#fe 17 spoilers

[didsomeonesayventus]

Hey Brodia fans do we think there's a nonzero chance some fuckhead noble ends up thinking the Morion Incident was a covered up/conveniently timed coup so Diamant could take over

(This is, ofc, Bullshit™️, and it makes both Diamant and Alcryst understandably incredibly upset)

[neymiiie]

I just want to see him again.

[silvergarnet12]

An ink piece I coloured digitally.

[azelle-intermisson]

how have i used pandreo for two playthroughs and i'm still learning crazy shit about him??? he's a priest who howls like a wolf, loves to party and apparently has such an amazing singing voice that BIRDS flock to him. i love him so much.

[creativesplat]

Flower Crowns.

So, you know me! I can't resist a little bit of symbolism, so I used flower language on the flowers used.

Both:

Chamomile Flower: Energy in Adversity

Yarrow Flower: Healing and Love

Forget-Me-Not: Respect, Love, 'please don't forget me'

Alear:

Edelweiss: Courage, Devotion

Red Chrysanthemum: I love you (Alfred made the crown for Alear, you can't tell me he wouldn't put those in)

Thyme: Strength and Courage

Sage: Immortality

Dark Red Rose: Mourning

Delphinium: Big Hearted, New Life

Nasturtium: Victory in Battle

Alfred:

White Windflower (the flower Lumera gave him (Vander B support)): Sickness, Luck, Protection

Hibiscus: Delicate Beauty

Gum Cistus: Ill health, Death, 'I shall die tomorrow'

Centaury: Simple (as in a little foolish), Delicate

At the start of my game-play, Alfred was nicknamed 'sacrificial Alfred' for a little while since he took all the damage because he could move quickly to the main villains, so popping in the 'delicate' flower was a little amusing nod to that 😂 < I eventually put him with Sigurd and changed his class, which helped!

[musical-dash-trash]

I've been scared to ask. But please explain newsies to me, and tell me if I spelled it right too. I wanna learn about this :3

you don’t need to be scared to ask, i love talking about newsies/things in general!!

okay!! so. newsies is a musical (or movie) about the 1899 newsboys strike. newsboys/newsies are children who used to walk the streets selling newspapers. they would buy the papers (in this case, for half a penny) and then sell them for double that.

then, joseph pulitzer (i think that’s his name… anyway, he owns the newspapers that our main characters sell for) decides that he needs to raise the price that the newsies pay by one-tenth of a cent.

that seems like it’s just a little, but it adds up, and these kids are poor.

slight change in topic to introduce our main characters:

jack kelly: 17, leader of the manhattan/lower manhattan newsies, wants to go live in santa fe, new mexico.

david/davey: of ambiguous age (but probably around jack’s age), gives the newsies the idea of striking, one of the strike leaders. les’s (and sarah’s, in the movie) brother.

les: 10, almost. davey’s younger brother.

crutchie/crutchy: of ambiguous age, one of jack’s closest friends, walks with a crutch (probably because of polio)

katherine plumber: of ambiguous age, reporter, gets the strike into the newspapers, jack’s romantic interest. only in the musical.

racetrack/race: of ambiguous age, manhattan/lower manhattan’s second in command. has a larger role in the movie than the musical.

denton: of ambiguous age (but an adult), reporter, gets the strike into the newspapers. only in the movie.

okay yeah back to the story!!

so, the newsies strike. specifically the manhattan/lower manhattan newsies. of course, that just makes the newspaper lose money, so it hires new newsies to sell papers. the striking newsies end up getting them to join their cause!

the rest of the musical is about the difficulties and successes they have while striking! (spoiler: they succeed :D)

anyway! i hope this was helpful, i tried not to spoil the plot too much. i would absolutely recommend watching it (both the movie and the musical are on disney+, there are also bootlegs of them) if you’re interested!

[tuhbanbuv]

Ode To Ouroboros Headcanons

This turned into a massive ramble but anytime I have the chance to infodump about any of my fics or AUs I will take it.

So enjoy some Ode To Ouroboros headcanons/lore because yes:

Cutman “Cutty” considers himself a cousin to the Light trio. Not exactly a sibling but not as distant as the other masters.

Blues is the closest thing you’ll get to an autistic robot master, sensory issues, not getting social cues and all before and after getting repaired.

Blues has PTSD and low self esteem from…well, everything. But he’s a better big brother than he thinks.

Rock has a crush on Bass, though it’s probably 89% not gonna be reciprocated…sorry, Rock, you can’t fix him.

Roll and Kalinka definitely have crushes on each other and it definitely started out all cutesy like a spontaneous kiss before having to part ways without another word Owl House style.

Tango was intended to be a sort of therapy animal for people with animal allergies or patients with low immunities that couldn’t risk any type of contamination. He sensed that Blues wasn’t well even when Roll repaired him in the Archie comics and helps to aid in his emotional recovery.

The twins (Rock and Roll) and Bass are 14-16, while Tempo and Blues are 17-20. Though Bass is on the older end of the 14-16 age range.

Rock has some slight resentment against Blues for leaving and coming back, especially since he still feels the weight of being Megaman is still on him despite his older brother returning. This will probably lead to things being said that he’ll regret…

Roll doesn’t hold any ill will, however. She just sees Blues as troubled and regretful for everything, and is secretly happy to get another brother. The two have a somewhat stronger relationship.

Light and Wily used to be a couple before and during Blues’ creation, but it was especially toxic on Wily’s end. Until the events of Chapter 4, Light truly believed he could’ve changed. Now any chance of them rekindling anything is long gone.

Adachi has a somewhat positive history with the Sniper Joe line, to the point they influenced a good part of their love for robots and misanthropy.

Blues knows some Spanish and Japanese, but usually sticks to Spanish.

Tempo was accidentally made tall due to a typographical error on her blueprints. She’s twice as tall as the Light siblings and doesn’t hesitate to carry her Blues any chance she gets.

Tempo and Blues got engaged shortly before the events of Ode to Ouroboros. They just figured that they’d rather do romantic stuff with each other rather than anyone else so they basically got engaged then and there. Tempo wears her ring under her glove and on her civilian form and Blues wears it as an earring so he doesn’t lose it. He does get a wedding band to wear on his new civilian form later on so people aren’t confused though.

There’s a good reason why Blues can contact X in his dreams but that’s a major spoiler. Just know that his dreams aren’t just dreams…

Roll loves fanfiction and reads it as much as she can. Light regrets introducing the internet to her.

Blues secretly looks up to Rock, but is somewhat protective of him. If anything bad happens to him he’ll immediately blame himself.

Rock and Roll introduce video games to Blues. Blues prefers slower or quieter games like Animal Crossing or Harvest Moon, but also enjoys rhythm games (especially with Vocaloids, his favorite is Kaito). Roll loves Kirby and Rock loves racing games. Roll has never won against her brothers during game nights.

Light thought Blues’ injuries were from his core corroding his body. He was wrong…

Blues’ scarf is his comfort item. He loves the thing dearly and will cuddle with it like it’s a baby blanket.

Blues loves music, it’s basically his coping mechanism and love language. Tempo knows this and will sing to him if he’s having a panic attack.

Tempo definitely calls Blues her “short king” and would hold him over her shoulder, bridal style, etc.

Bass (before the infection) hid a lot of his feelings underneath his ego. At one point, he was just as naive and innocent as Rock. Roll teaches Blues how to sew and bake to help distract him from his anxiety/depressing thoughts. It’s become a nice bonding activity between them.

Blues would definitely throw down if someone even remotely insulted his siblings. Any previous jealousy has been replaced with genuine love and protectiveness for the twins. He considers X a baby or son of sorts.

Guts-man is pretty much friends with everyone. Unless you’re Wily he’s nice off the bat.

Cut-man is pretty much best friends with Roll. He loves the kid and would do almost anything she’d ask. Almost, he has some standards.

Wily was planning on giving Bass a sister. Was.

[youkaigakkou-tl]

why why do i feel like the reason haru is a target for ebisu and *spoiler* is because of something he did in the past? Is haru why ebisu hates youkai? Is he the reason behind ebisu getting closer the current? Did he do something to *spoiler *?

ohhhhhhh haru somehow causing Ebisu to become jaded would be nuts but idk how likely that is....

we've really only seen how Ebisu acts at 3 points in time: present day, 10 years ago (ch26) and 120 years ago

and i feel like he acts about the same in the present and 10 years ago, being "hates youkai but acts nice", so it's really just "likes youkai, acts like haru" -> "hates youkai but acts nice"

Sano knowing about it wouldn't be that strange, could be that he heard about it from someone else, and it's possible that he said something so spot on without knowing just how spot on he was (his reasoning for it was "soft hearted, reckless, trusting, only sees the good in people" which could all just be things he heard, or that's how Ebisu presented himself to Sano when he was a kid)

i'm inclined to believe Sano is actually 17 and hasn't been around to see more of Ebisu than we think, mostly because he says so himself in ch35, sensei has a tweet saying so, we've seen him as a little kid, and he gets bogged down by too many teenager problems to not be an actual teenager (like homework, problems with his powers and being bothered that he's tone-deaf)

Renren musing about how gods age and how he's seen the Ogatas look like little kids Could be disproving this, but i think that line was more to retcon/explain the Ogatas showing up in the yoseito culture fes chapter, or maybe establish that at some point gods can decide how old they want to look, or maybe that something happened to the Ogatas??? idk lol

[didsomeonesayventus]

lord the way i can write in circles about Alear and the visceral experience of [redacted]

(or, the wordbarf of “I am very unhinged about Alear how dare you assume im normal” ft. copious spoilers for like. chp 21 onward because I need tumblr to know I’ve already said most of this on twitter to some extent)

he finally got to experience love and how he finally started recovering from his trauma and how he was at his desperate, frantic wit’s end probably when he first struck sombron down how he probably felt cornered and would rather risk his life and everything else to simply be free of his father how he went in without an emblem and all alone and likely not telling Lumera the full plan probably terrified if he would come out alive 1v1-ing sombron with nothing but fuck it he would rather fight for a chance to live in peace than wait for his dad to find out how “defective” he is and dispose of him like so many siblings and lumera was probably going to stop him because it’s crazy it’s stupid it’s risky it’s not worth it she loves him and promises one day it will end don’t be rash and please hold on but!!!!!! god damn does someone have to try and he is tired of waiting for the chance to get better he cannot fucking take it anymore!!!!! he can’t sit there and wait and worry and be strong he has a sister out there who is at risk every second they carry on their little hidden charade! 

How PAINFUL it is to finally receive kindness and be forced to realize all these scars and all these days spent walking on eggshells is for NOTHING for even what had been kindness before pales in comparison how WOUNDED to realize how damaged you are simply trying to survive and how unfair it all must feel when kindness and love was simply that easy to choose and yet knowing your father would never, EVER be kind.

and contrary to having a gentle and honorable nature that only carried out sombron’s will to survive, coerced into such violence and desolation, the nature that is stilted and a thoughtless machine so he, too, does not join the ranks of failure, the nature that the hero king himself recalls as “You were kind, as you are now.”, despite that gentle, gentle core that somehow survived he has such malice for his father there is no mercy there is no kindness dare I say he- with only a little conflict and concern -relishes the opportunity to personally do his father in because after years of abuse and trauma there is finally catharsis and it pours from him like he is finally vomiting and coughing up the vile dregs of the poison in his system

finally hope that is so disgustingly blinding right in front of him and how he was SO CLOSE he was SO CLOSE to walking away from this he was sick and giddy and the thought that he was going to get away and be free and live happily with his mother and go find veyle and be SAFE and HAPPY FOR ONCE IN HIS LIFE and then ITS JUST. TAKEN. IN A SINGLE MOMENT.

how even saying himself the war is over and they don’t have to worry still accepting that he’s a Fell Dragon this is just WHAT HAPPENS as if he is not sitting there dying, struggling to breathe, having just ended a war that nearly wiped out the Divine Dragons, no doubt caused terror across the land, HAVING DONE A GENUINELY OBJECTIVELY GOOD THING THAT HE HIMSELF RECOGNIZED and still saying that Fell Dragons die in the end. how he is no better than the father laying only feet away who treated his children like tools and only spoke his name once when he was born. Lumera says he’ll just sleep and he’ll wake up and it will be fine and how he so subtly doubts that and still speaks as if this is his last chance, simply speculating how, if he does wake up, he wants to be like her AS IF HE ISN’T ALREADY FOR. YOU KNOW. ENDING THE WAR AND SLAYING THE PROBLEM DRAGON.

the way i pull at my hair and scream at the top of my lungs over how AWFUL alear had it and how VINDICATING it is to see him grow and love and rage and scream and cry and find his own way anD KILL HIS OWN SHITTY DAD WITH A LASERBEAM OF LOVE AND ALL THE FRIENDS HE’S MADE AND GETS TO BE DRAGON JESUS HAPPILY EVER AFTER

[yellowocaballero]

i'm having yellowocaballero withdrawal so am attempting to read weekenders without knowing anything about fire emblem and so far it's working out pretty good and i'm having fun! quick question - how old are these children? no idea if i should be picturing 12 year olds or like 17 year olds and the vibes are very different on those. i'm enjoying it so far, especially seeing a character with schiz depicted sympathetically AND actually having psychotic symptoms.

Yay thank you for reading! :D Sorry I haven't written for any of your (?) fandoms lately, I go where the wind takes me. With Weekenders - it's one of those fics that scaffold the actual plotline itself, so some big stuff is only casually dropped and then we move on, but post time-skip I do go almost completely off the rails. I'm sure it's perfectly understandable but there's a shitton going on there beyond the fic because FE lore is nuts and the games are complicated.

The kids are different ages. Starting the game, Ashe and Annette are 16. Felix, Ingrid, and Dimitri are 17. Sylvain is 19. Mercedes is 22. Byleth, believe it or not, is 20. Spoilers for later on in the story but highly relevant joke:

*shrek voice* She wasn't even 23.

And thank you, schizophrenia spectrum disorders are not a very common headcanon diagnosis for Dimitri and I really have no idea why (I do know why). A lot of people guess he has depression and PTSD but some of his canon behavior is just...there's really only a few explanations for it and none of them are due to depression, lmfao. I won't spoil a ton for you here by going into detail, but basically he has a lot of psychotic symptoms in the game and I went ahead and added a few of the extra symptoms of schizophrenia and schizoaffective w/BD disorder myself. The game can be pretty iffy with its representation, so I wrote around and changed that up too. None of it's obvious yet, so we'll see.

Also thanks for the AU idea of the kids being all twelve. That's hilarious. Thanks for the ask!

[fe-smashorpass]

Fire Emblem Character Ages are Weird

So I was looking at the Serenes Forest forums to find out about character ages, and I did find them, but some of these ages felt off...

(I'm going to use the jugdral games as an example because they are the worst offenders)

So generation 2 takes 17 years after the 1st gen and, (spoilers ig) many of the male characters die just before the time skip, so it's going to be borderline impossible for a gen 2 character to be younger than 16 at the very least. But, according to Serenes Forest, some of gen 2 is.

Although the canonicity of these characters ages are contentious due to them being from the manga, I still have a conundrum. Do I abide by their "canon" ages and not include most of gen 2, or do I ignore it and include all of gen 2? Well what I did is a little bit of both.

If a character looks too young (ex Coirpre or Tine) they are excluded but if they look old enough, then they are included.

This also applies to other FE games, but I'm more leaning towards taking their ages at faces value because those games don't have a massive continuity error when it comes to ages, so Alear and Fogado and others will be excluded for being under age.

Finally if a character doesn't have a clear canon age, I'm just going to judge them based on their looks and how they act. Unfortunately, I am just but a singular human, so if you think a character should or shouldn't be here, I am sorry.

[technicolorfamiliar]

Technicolor Familiar Watches Too Many Conrad Veidt Movies Part 1 of ?

Apropos of nothing, I find myself wading around waist deep in Conrad Veidt's filmography, at least the titles I can easily find online.

I've been writing down my mostly brief impressions after each movie, mainly for my own entertainment since I know exactly zero other people who would care lol. I actually created a Mastodon account especially for this purpose, since my primary socials aren't really for this sort of thing. But the character limit on Mastodon is seriously cramping my style, so I'm going to be annoying about this on Tumblr, my self-imposed blog expectations be damned.

I'm not doing plot summaries, but there are spoilers. I'm not watching these movies in any particular order other than what I'm in the mood for on any given day. I'm half trying to keep the thirst levels to a minimum, but no promises; all bets were off after watching A Woman's Face. And tbh, this whole thing has turned into an Emotional Support / Coping Mechanism / Escapism Tactic because hoo boy is my brain bad these days. But be forewarned, I'm not a writer, I'm not a film critic. I just like movies and turns out I like Conrad Veidt a lot too. I'd probably have more and better things to say about a lot of these upon a second or third watch.

So as of late November, I'm 15 films deep with a lot more to go. I'm thinking about splitting this up into multiple posts, maybe like 5ish films/post. Originally I was going to see how many of these movies can I watch before the end of 2023. But I'm just going to keep going until I run out of available titles or I get sick of Connie's face (unlikely).

The Man Who Laughs, 1928 Dir. Paul Leni ⭐4.5/5 Watched mid-Oct, Archive.org Nothing could have prepared me for this. Of course I was aware of TMWL, but more vaguely than I guess I realized. It's really ahead of its time. The production quality is astounding, it's an absolutely beautiful film. The whole cast is pretty great, too. The Duchess? Total smoke show. Homo the Dog? Queer icon. And Connie really swings for the fences emotionally and physically as Gwynplaine. Bear in mind, this is literally only the third Conrad Veidt movie I've ever seen (other than the basic, intro level Cabinet of Dr Caligari and Casablanca), so I was really floored by what he's able to do in this role with the use of really only half his face. There are several wonderfully haunting and heartbreaking visuals and moments throughout the nearly 2 hour runtime that will stay with me long after watching. Half a star got knocked off because the score was a little bombastic and there were one too many clowns for me personally. But those are small complaints for what may otherwise be a pretty perfect film.

Unheimliche Geschichten (Eerie Tales), 1919 Dir. Richard Oswald ⭐3/5 Watched mid-Oct, Archive.org A romp. The version I watched had no soundtrack at all, making for a totally silent viewing experience. The vignette structure and old school effects are fun. I enjoyed seeing Anita Berber in action although maybe I was expecting more because of all the hype surrounding her/her image. But Connie, Anita, and Reinhold Schünzel seem like they had a good time working on this project. "The Black Cat" and "The Suicide Club" were my favorite sections (and I actually watched this when I was in the middle of Netflix's The Fall of the House of Usher, so yay for extra Poe content in the spookiest month). As for Connie Content, what can I say, he's stunning.

The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari, 1920 Dir. Robert Wiene ⭐3.5/5 Watched Oct 17, Archive.org I went hard with the silent era when I started this journey. Caligari was my intro to Conrad Veidt almost 15 years ago, and as a lapsed goth art student, I remember being bewitched by his strange and off-putting presence on screen. My rating for this one is kind of low compared to how undoubtedly iconic and important of a film it is. It could have been my mood but upon rewatching, but the story fell a little flat for me. I did like the updated score in the version I watched, and I would love to see this one on the big screen maybe with a live orchestra some day.

Orlacs Hände (The Hands of Orlac), 1924 Dir. Robert Wiene ⭐4/5 Watched Oct 17, Archive.org Loved. It's so horny and bizarre (the scene with the maid crawling on the floor? same, girl, same). And visually the most pre-David Lynch Lynchian-looking movie I've ever seen. The shots that linger on highly stylized, cavernous, empty rooms before a character enters? So David Lynch. I'm also a big fan of the psychological body horror and crime thriller genre mashup. It's got twists, it's got turns. Conrad Veidt's your man if you ever needed a Hand Actor. Like the handsiest Hand Actor who ever had a pair of hands. Someone who could really work those mitts.

A Woman's Face, 1941 Dir. George Cukor ⭐4.5/5 Watched Oct 18, Vudu & TCM Jumping way forward in Connie's career. This movie did things to me. This was, I think, the point of no return. It's extremely underrated, I'm legitimately surprised I'd not heard of it before diving down this rabbit hole. That said, it is strange and pretty spicy for a Hays Code era picture. It's so good, I actually watched it twice (it aired on TCM as a part of their creepy cinema series). Visually beautiful and narratively interesting, if maybe a little long despite the rushed ending. Shout out to Joan Crawford for giving what's probably the best performance of hers, at least that I've seen (Mildred Pierce who?). And then there's nasty, nasty Conrad Veidt. He very nearly steals the movie from Joan, I couldn’t take my eyes off him. He's beautiful, he's TALL, he's scary. Genuinely shocked he doesn't have second billing. But what else can I say about his Torsten Barring that hasn't already been said more eloquently by others? It's such a great character, and I believe he said it was one of his favorites during his entire 100+ film career. A Woman's Face is the only title on this list so far where immediately after watching I wanted to buy the dvd. Ugh, we deserved several more decades of Connie in roles like this.

I'll probably post the next few one day soon, where I finally get into some titles from the 1930s.

[dark-night-star-light]

Spirit Animals: The Burning Tide (Reread pt. 12)

DISCLAIMER: WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR BOOKS ONE THROUGH SEVEN IN FIRST SERIES AND BOOKS ONE THROUGH EIGHT.

Masterpost

Chapter 1

“It had started seven moontides before” (1). The Wyrm fell for seven months???

“ . . . signing the question with her black gorilla hands” (1). Do gorillas sign to communicate?

How exactly did the Wyrm fall out of the stars anyway?

Kovo’s relationship to his mom is so sad . . .

 “The world was a vast continent that contained jungles and dunes and mountains and snowfields, all connected together” (3). Canon Pangea equivalent? Also, I love how one continent had every kind of habitat.

“There were thousands of animals, all different species . . . ” (3). So how come there are only fifteen Great Beasts, then?

Oh, so the rest fled when they saw the Wyrm coming.

I love how the Wyrm split the continents. That’s a neat little Easter egg (oh no, a pun).

If only Kovo and the other Great Beasts survived, how did life start again on Erdas?

Chapter 2

“ . . . Hazeel’s spirit animal, Poe. His only friend” (9). That’s so sad . . . 

Hazeel knows the Greencloaks aren’t themselves. He knows that the spirals are controlling them and that they are now slaves. Doesn’t that mean that when the Greencloaks overran Erdas, the people they killed and plundered should’ve also been able to figure that out? That means the last arc is kind of wonky . . .

“‘But I already have a guide’” (11). Uraza hates water??? And also how can she be a guide on a ship? She’s a leopard. 

 . . . Can she still feel Abeke even though their bond is severed?

Chapter 3

“‘I set Kirat to swabbing the latrine’” (14). Talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show-stopping, spectacular-

“‘I tried bringing her into passive state . . . ’ . . . ‘At least you have a spirit animal’” (16). Rollan cannot take the hint.

“The boy’s crocodile tears had once convinced her to lead him . . . ” (17). This is such a great, loaded line.

“‘He needs us for something . . . ’” (18). Yeah, doesn’t mean it’s a good thing. 

Chapter 4

“In reply, the lion bared his white teeth and growled. Kirat showed his own teeth, which were chattering in the cold” (20). That’s such a funny image to think about.

Why were the other kids that bonded to Great Beasts willing to leave home to go with the Redcloaks? Is it because they were told they could get their animals back?

“‘King . . . ?’ Abeke said. ‘That’s what you call Shane?’ Stead nodded. ‘He tells us not to, but . . . old habits die hard’” (24). Shane literally introduces himself as King in The Return, though?

“The Shane they knew probably would have forced people to call him king on punishment of death” (24). Not really, in my humble opinion. He tried to make sure that the people he conquered had adequate food and shelter, remember? And also he literally pretended he wasn’t the true Devourer for most of the war, so . . . 

“Karmo’s wide brown eyes were on Abeke, who glared right back at him” (25). This is ironic, because last time they met, Karmo was assuring Abeke that he was on the correct side of the war . . . wow.

This book seems to really hate Rollan in particular. He’s been the butt of the joke at least four times already.

“‘One day I awoke to find I couldn’t summon Grahv from his passive form . . . ” (29). But Shane was released from the Bile by Tellun, so how did this happen to him??? Plot hole???

Chapter 5

Even Shane finds Kirat annoying . . . we stan a king (oh horror, I just made a pun). 

“Yumaris guided the group, running her hands along the walls, sniffing the air, and getting into arguments with the stones” (35). Yumaris: Listen here, you jackass. The ocean is a soup, and I will not tolerate your slander towards the truth! The stone:

“‘He’s clearly got his own way of tracking the Great Beasts . . . ’” (36). Because the Wyrm whispers to him, right? But where does the Wyrm get that information? From the tree?

“‘All I know is what these carvings tell us. They say that the Wyrm’s egg fell from the stars and landed in a place called Sadre, deep under the Earth . . . ’” (39). So the Hellans were told that by Kovo, right? It’s mentioned that some Hellans “exiled” themselves to the Place of Desolation (37). Was that when they created the trap? And why did they create it at the “bottom of the world” (37) instead of near the Evertree???

Chapter 6

Kind of a weird thing I’ve started to notice with this series . . . whenever the authors have a chance to pull an end-of-chapter cliffhanger, they do it so weirdly, because instead of a cliffhanger, then switching to the other plotline, they instead do a cliffhanger, then stay on the same plotline. It’s so strange. 

“ . . . Shane would never change” (42). Shane and change are so close to rhyming that it makes this sentence feel really nice when read.

“ . . . inching away from Shane, who was watching her intently” (43). I love how when Shane drops bombshells he only cares about Abeke’s reaction.

“‘ . . . Shane said, stepping toward [Rollan] . . . ‘Stop fighting,’ Abeke said. She pushed both boys apart” (43). Girl, you literally started them fighting.

Mulop-Niri relationship is severely underdeveloped, in my opinion.

“Even knowing that the leopard was under Zerif’s control, she still wished she could see her spirit animal once more” (46). Foreshadowing?

Abeke and Rollan suggesting Mulop talk to Briggan and Jhi instead of Kovo . . . aww.

Chapter 7

“Meilin dipped a moss sponge into a stone basin filled with stagnant water” (48). Is that what they’re drinking, too? Because that’s not good . . .

“Sacrifices to the Wyrm” (49). Why would the Wyrm sacrifice its own followers??? It needs them to conquer? And fight???

Jhi is barely in this arc at all . . . Not a fan of that.

Chapter 8

“Kovo was almost fanatical about the glowstones. He spent every day maintaining them, searching for new stones to replace those that had begun to dim” (51). Kovo the glowstone guard dog.

“‘You don’t know how important sunlight is until it’s gone’” (52). They could have Vitamin D deficiencies.

“Takoda had always argued that he thought Kovo’s reasons for trying to take control of the Evertree were more complicated than just world domination” (53). Yes, but at the end of The Evertree, it never suggests that. All Kovo talks about is the power he wants for himself and the other Great Beasts. He never even hints at deeper motives. 

“‘We can’t have you pining at the window for your lost crush’” (55). Why do I not remember Meilin referring to Xanthe as Takoda’s crush??? Why???

“‘With a catapult we could launch some kind of missile at the egg . . . ’” (57). That would crack it further, though, wouldn’t it.

Chapter 9

“Meilin nearly choked on her spit . . . If Shane was with them, it could only mean that they were in trouble” (59). The differences in the amount of knowledge each group has is one of the reasons I think the group should’ve spent some of the arc together.

“‘Rollan would like me to ask Jhi what it’s like being bonded to a snotty general’s daughter. Also, he wants to know if stubbornness is a skill you picked up from your fancy tutors’” (60). Love that the inside jokes become plot-relevant. That’s just. I adore that.

Chapter 10

“But before Rollan could say anything, Shane spoke up . . . Rollan gritted his teeth. ‘Why does he get to do all the talking?’” (62). Because the connection is weak and he’s asking the important questions??? Honestly love Shane for that.

“Rollan had trouble imagining a world without humans or spirit animals or Great Beasts. The thought of a world without Essix saddened him” (63). Oh, Essix was there, she just wasn’t a Great Beast.

“‘When the Wyrm landed, it caused great destruction - storms, floods, and earthquakes - that wiped out nearly every living thing for miles . . . ’” (63). At the end of the first arc, the weather was really weird because of something to do with the Evertree, right? So can the Evertree impact the weather or something?

“‘The Evertree is the source of the spirit animal bond. And the Wyrm is the source of that power . . . ’” (64). But isn’t the Wyrm taking from the tree, not giving?

“‘The corruption that fueled every spirit animal bond . . . ’” (65). So Kovo hates humans and spirit animals . . . because the Wyrm?

“‘I would gather the talismans and wrest control of the Evertree, by force if necessary . . . ’” (65). How will that help the Wyrm situation? The tree can’t contain it . . . 

“‘Zerif thinks he’s in control, but he’s being manipulated . . . ’” (66). Zerif can be controlled by a not-yet-hatched Wyrm? Also wow, that is pretty much exactly what happened during the Second Devourer War, with the Bile and Gerathon. 

Chapter 11

“A part of her feared what she would learn if she could hear Jhi’s true opinion of her” (69). Didn’t this get resolved in the first arc???

“She didn’t know how things went in southern Nilo, but in Zhong, people didn’t believe that plants had feelings” (70). But this is the Evertree, not an ordinary plant.

“‘So all we have to do is set it off. How do we do that?’ ‘Kovo won’t say . . . it was clear he wanted to keep that knowledge hidden’” (70). Why, though?

“‘I think he’s afraid of one of us becoming infected by the Wyrm’s parasites and betraying our plan’” (71). He doesn’t, but what if Kovo becomes infected? Then they would all be doomed.

“‘If the Wyrm learns of our plan ahead of time, it might try to destroy the tower before it can be activated’” (74). Not five pages ago, Kovo was refusing to tell them the plan, but then he immediately does???

“ . . . she could see the rotting purple spiral of the parasite . . . ” (76). Isn’t it black? Maybe a lighting thing?

Chapter 12

“He didn’t understand how he knew this. He only knew that anything that tried to stop him would fall at his hand” (77). So when victims fall to the Wyrm, they don’t remember anything about their old lives except things that pertain to the Wyrm? Does this mean Conor overheard Meilin and Takoda talking?

“Truly it was a feeling of peace. The calm that comes from one finally accepting his place in the world” (78). This reminds me of something a Conqueror says to either Abeke or Rollan in the first arc, something like, joining our side is the true right and you’ll feel at peace here.

“He had a vague unease echoing in the deepest parts of his mind. A mournful baying . . . ” (78). I know it’s impossible to fight off the Wyrm’s effects, but I wonder if people with a spirit animal take longer to succumb?

“Conor thought her name might be Meilin, and then he wondered how he knew that” (79). So they remember things from their old life, but feel no connection to it emotionally???

Chapter 13

“He knew her weaknesses . . . he could certainly exploit them” (80). Meilin knows his weaknesses, too, though.

“The red light opened, like an eye . . . ” (81). Red eyes on a villain? That’s so stereotypical.

I feel like in this fight, Meilin should’ve struggled with the idea of fighting the Many, because now that Conor is one of them, she has to hurt him, too. This might lead to an epiphany where she sees that, in this moment, Conor and the other Many are the same. If she isn’t willing to hurt Conor, despite the fact that he’s gone, why is she okay with harming these other people? But there isn’t anything resembling that that ever goes to Meilin’s mind. 

“ . . . Jhi appeared at her side, soaking wet and looking quite proud” (83). Proud Jhi reigns supreme.

“ . . . he was now directing the rest of the Many like a general - pointing straight at the bell tower” (84). They didn’t have a “general” before him, did they? Why do they now?

“But Meilin’s sense of triumph was over as soon as it had sparked when she looked to the bridge where Conor had been standing only a moment before - now a pile of burning rubble” (85). It’s honestly unclear to me whether this is because she thinks Conor died in the fire and is grieving, or whether she thinks Conor escaped and is alarmed.

“‘Conor,’ she whispered, for indeed it was” (86). This kind of “and so it was” type of line has been used so much in this book. It’s such a jarring difference from the last few books.

“It was coming from the direction of the water . . . ’Screamers’” (87). Did they have screamers on the ships? And why? Screamers don’t actually do anything, they’re just a warning mechanism . . . 

Chapter 14

“ . . . using her crystal spear to impale the Many who got in her way” (90). I know that crystal would probably normally be such a poor choice to make a weapon, but like, it just fits with the vibe of Sadre so well.

“There was something about the way Xanthe had said this that made him think maybe she felt the same way about him as he felt about her” (90). I like that this series makes only a half-hearted effort to pair characters into romantic relationships. It’s very funny to me.

“His fingers found what he realized too late was Xanthe’s hand” (90). I don’t remember these tiny Takoda-Xanthe moments at all. 

“The Many were defenseless against the glowing crystalline blades of the Sadreans. Every cut seemed to scald the very flesh of those infected by the parasites . . . ” (91). What are these blades made of??? Pure light itself???

“Conor, who had fought even more fiercely than the other Many, had finally been restrained by two burly Sadrean shieldwardens” (92). For some reason, I seem to remember them fighting all the way until the Wyrm was defeated. Also, did he fight harder because he took longer to succumb? And why did the Sadreans spare him in particular?

“The boy fell back to the ground - unconscious but otherwise unharmed . . . ‘ . . . Tell him if he touches my friend again, I’ll make sure he lives to regret it’” (94). But that helped??? And also, Abeke does the same thing at the end of the first arc to Meilin, so . . . 

Chapter 15

“Meilin started at the Wyrm, unable to look away . . . Takoda could see dark and slimy tendrils . . . Meilin heard a groaning sound . . . ” (96). This chapter had a clear lack of editing. It switched perspectives twice and the first line isn’t in all caps like the rest of the chapters.

They made the Wyrm such a stereotypical monster . . . I don’t know what to think about that.

“ . . . the Many grabbed hold of Sadrean soldiers and dragged them to the Wyrm as live offerings” (98). Would they offer themselves, too, or not? Probably . . . 

“ . . . she knew what had stopped Kovo and Xanthe . . . ‘The Wyrm,’ Meilin whispered. ‘It’s got Takoda’” (100). But wouldn’t hitting the bell stop the Wyrm and save Takoda anyway? Why didn’t Kovo just hit the bell?

Chapter 16

“When Xanthe had been lost in the burned-out remnants of the Arachne Fields, alone and defenseless, it had been Takoda who kept her alive” (101). Ironic, considering he blamed himself for that incident.

“It was as if she could see all of Erdas - the aboveground world she had only dreamed of - shining in his dark eyes” (102). They really amped up the Takoda-Xanthe romance in this one.

Wow, Kovo really showed the Wyrm who’s boss.

“Her voice was cold and without emotion, and Xanthe wondered just how much war this girl had seen in her lifetime” (104). But she’s right? The bell is the only way to stop the Wyrm and help Takoda . . . 

Chapter 17

“The floor in the center of the city was drawing back like the folds of a paper fan . . . ” (105). I don’t remember this plotline at all . . . 

“The snare had stopped” (107). Yeah, I remember nothing about this climax, wow.

“ . . . the Wyrm slithered forward and melted into the darkness” (107). What??? Into a bottomless hole???

“’Still. Thank you. Leaping out from the tower to save Takoda . . . I didn’t think you had it in you’” (109). Kovo-Meilin bonding(?) moment!

“’Do they know about the bell?’ . . . Kovo lowered his hand, shaking his head . . . ‘ . . . let’s hope they figure it out fast . . . ’” (109). That’s what they bank on??? Hope? doesn’t sound like Meilin at all . . . 

Chapter 18

SHANE CHAPTER, CAN YOU HEAR ME HOLLERING.

“It wasn’t a fist that had won him the Greencloaks’ talismans. Sacrifices had” (110). True . . . 

“He was gratified to see Abeke purse her lips in an attempt not to laugh at her friend” (111). That’s cute.

“‘You can hear Meilin?’ . . . ‘Is she talking about me? . . . ‘Or, um, Abeke? Any of us really? Forget I asked’” (111). What is this . . . while I don’t like it, I have to admit that’s pretty realistic for the age group.

“Shane knew it was a mistake to give someone like Rollan direct orders . . . ” (112). Why’s that?

“He slowed, fixing his eyes on her. ‘I promise.’ Abeke sighed, not meeting his gaze. ‘I’ve heard that before.’ Shane nodded, feeling the sting of her words” (112). I like Shane, but he deserved that.

“He wondered how many times he would have to save her life before she began to believe that he was truly changed. As many times as it takes, he silently promised himself” (113). This is so sad . . . 

“And somehow these two sets of ruins contained enough power to stop the Wyrm” (113). So they have an inkling of an idea how . . . interesting.

“Shane gave her a smile that he could only hope looked herolike” (115). Pfffffffft, this will never not be hilarious. He’s actually such a golden retriever. 

“ . . . javelins made of ice . . .” (115). Bro, what??? Those are gonna shatter . . . 

“Why did this kid have to question his every order?” (116). Rollan is, like, a few months younger than Shane . . . also Shane himself is a kid. Also, can you imagine being an adult Redcloak being bossed around by this thirteen-almost-fourteen-year-old child. Just. Wow. 

Chapter 19

“ . . . some of them sounding more animal than human when they spoke” (118). How would that even sound??? Probably a lot like a Great Beast . . . 

“‘I tried to tell them they had to stay, but . . . but he wouldn’t listen’” (119). So she cried??? I know they tried to make Tasha seem younger and less mature than Abeke and Rollan, but that seems too far. Why didn’t she just get them?

“‘They only care about our precious spirit animals’” (121). This is ironic, considering Rollan was exactly like this in the first book, but less spoiled.

“‘I don’t need a spirit animal anyway - all he did was lie around and take up space’” (121). Giving major first-book-Rollan energy.

“‘If Zerif wants Great Beasts, he can have mine. I’ll turn Cabaro over myself in exchange for my life’” (121). Zerif will just immediately infect him . . . also wow, this guy is spoiled and stupid.

Cordalles’s main argument is that Abeke and Rollan have spirit animals, but Abeke doesn’t and Kirat does . . . how come she’s still willing to side with Kirat after that???

Also, after Kirat carelessly says he’d turn Cabaro over to Zerif, why do the other kids still side with him??? That’s so dumb. They should feel betrayed.

“‘He was not raised to take orders, he was raised to lead . . . ” (123). This is so dumb. In an earlier book, didn’t someone tell Meilin that the best leaders know when to follow??? Wasn’t that a crucial part of her arc??? Why are we throwing that theme away for one incredibly spoiled kid??? I don’t like Kirat, and one of the main reasons is that he was a massive waste of potential.

“‘We owe you an apology’” (123). I hate this will all my heart and soul . . . no, they don’t. Kirat owes them one, and he never delivers.

“‘These others won’t listen to us - we’re wearing the same cloaks as the army that’s coming this way . . . ’” (124). What makes them think that Kirat will listen to them?

“‘ . . . watching your father build and protect the greatest fortress in all of Nilo by inspiring thousands of subjects . . . ’” (124). If by “inspire” they mean “abuse”, sure. 

I think it’s dumb that an amulet changed Kirat’s mind, even if it was his mom’s. Like . . . of all things??? Really???

This whole chapter . . . just . . . ugh.

“‘Better to live a coward than die a hero,’ said Dawson” (125). In the last book, the opposite is said by Atalanta and I thought it was said by Devin in a previous book . . . well, I was wrong.

“‘How can we possibly fear a thing like death, when we’ve nothing to live for?’” (126). I have to admit, the line hits hard. It hits less hard when you realize that everything Kirat says is a direct contradiction of his two-minutes-ago self. 

“This was a whole new Kirat” (127). Yeah, his development happens way too quickly . . . but whatever.

Chapter 20

“He . . . wondered what it would feel like to be so high above the world” (128). Convinced this is the moment the authors came up with the ending of the third arc. Foreshadowing???

“Rollan, Abeke, and Howl all looked at Kirat, who blushed” (130). Well, that’s new, at least.

“She always had more of a killer instinct than he did” (131). Does Abeke really??? Does she???

Chapter 21

“ . . . she had been afraid that Howl would insist that she belonged with [the other Great Beast summoners]” (133). She can just . . . disobey him. Shane is in charge, and Shane would no doubt back Abeke up.

“‘Who died and put you in charge?’ Talon said . . . ‘No,’ Shane said, stepping to Abeke’s side. ‘It’s a good plan’” (134). Talon appears to be jealous of Abeke already. Also, what’d I tell you? Shane will side with Abeke.

“Shane’s astonished smile at this meager paise sent a tremor of guilt through Abeke’s chest. He looked like she'd just kissed him on the cheek” (135). I’m telling you, Shane isn’t gonna cross Abeke. Also, wow, no need to feel guilty. He’s still the (former) Devourer.

“ . . . Abeke watched as the Expiator burst into splinters and sank into the cold water” (135). I genuinely cannot remember how they get out of this place.

“‘I’d hate to have you as an enemy,’ he said weakly. ‘Again’” (136). I love this line. It perfectly encapsulates Shane-Abeke relationship in this moment. 

“But whatever anger she felt toward Shane ws tempered by her memory of their time together among the Conquerors” (136). I have found an even better line. What interests me so much about this line is that it mentions that Abeke’s reason for trusting Shane was not that he had changed, but because of their time together when he was knowingly deceiving her. In other words, her positive past memories of him outweighed his present redemption arc, and I think that’s such an important piece. Deep down, Abeke truly enjoyed her time with Shane, so she wants to forgive him. And here, she slips and mentions it.

“The icy tower in the middle of the volcano was slowly rotating . . . ” (137). So it’s clearly the same trap. Did the Hellans just duplicate the traps wherever they could?

“ . . . Shane, who was staring at her, his expression unreadable. ‘I . . . can’t breathe,’ she said” (138). Ten out of ten answer right there. Also, all these Abeke-Shane moments went right over my head during my first time through.

“And somewhere in that horde was Zerif himself. She adjusted her grip on the end of her arrow” (140). I know Zerif dies to stop the Wyrm and that’s significant or whatever, but our girl Abeke has been trying to shoot him dead since Against the Tide and I, for one, believe she should’ve been the one to do it.

“ . . . fifty Greencloaks huddled on the eastern shelf . . . The entire shelf splashed into the ocean . . . they had reduced its numbers by a quarter” (141). There are only two hundred Greencloaks??? But there were six ships, each of which carried more than a hundred Greencloaks each, and Mulop only destroyed two ships, so there should be at least four hundred . . . 

Chapter 22

“‘How much stronger?’ Shane said, readying his bow” (147). Since when does Shane use a bow???

“He had cast aside his bow and drew his saber” (148). Oh, thank goodness.

“ . . . the sight of her former comrades fighting tooth and claw against Shane’s desperate forces stole her breath away” (149). Imagine if this line was like “the sight of her former comrades against her former enemies” . . . would’ve been better, in my opinion.

“‘Meilin will love it.’ . . . ‘Who said anything about Meilin?’” (149). I have simply passed away.

“Abeke remembered how the rotating tower had stopped abruptly. ‘It got jammed’” (150). Okay. So. This sentence implies that the snare under the Evertree’s roots and the snare in the Place of Desolation are connected somehow. But . . . why??? Like, the Wyrm can only be in one place at a time, so why is that useful???

“Kirat really did sound like his uncle . . . ‘He’s been like this since you left’” (152). Yeah. He did a complete one-eighty and it feels like it came out of nowhere.

Chapter 23

“‘Deep down, I know you don’t want to hurt-’” (153). I get that Abeke has emotional stakes in this, but I gotta say, that was pretty dumb. Understandable, but dumb.

Shane-Cabaro parallels: both saving Abeke from Uraza. Except one dies . . . 

“The arrow plunged straight through Uraza’s leg” (154). I mean . . . better late than never???

“She had been summoned into passive state by her new master” (154). From that distance??? The Wyrm is that powerful?

“He did not move again” (155). Despite being emotionally prepared for this, it’s still breaking me. Noooooooo . . . Shane . . . 

Part of what makes Shane’s death so meaningful is that Abeke’s own spirit animal kills him. Like. Uraza. Uraza does that. And the other part is Noooooooo, Shane.

Shane dies in Abeke’s arms . . . in front of a whole-ass group of people.

“ . . . but I could sense - deep down - that you had the instincts of a killer” (156). Didn’t Zerif say that Abeke was the most pathetic person ever (or something like that) in a previous book???

“‘A creature of raw and infinite power - power that will soon be mine’” (158). I think this is the heart of my problems with this arc. There’s no motive at all. It’s just “oh, there’s this ancient power that’s pure evil that fell from the sky and now wants to devour the world, and this guy with no motives is trying to control it”. Like, it’s so cartoonish??? Where’s the reason??? The backstory???

“‘The parasites . . . ’. . . ‘They’re part of the Wyrm’” (159). Did they just figure that out??? I thought that had been established? Wait, maybe that was just in the underground plotline.

“‘This is not what was supposed to happen!’ Zerif screamed, kicking out his legs. ‘I command you! Let go!’” (159). Love Zerif’s little temper tantrum. Also, wow, this man is so stupid. He really didn’t even think about where the parasites had come from before using them???

“‘I am fully borrrnnnn.’” (160). So to be fully born, the Wyrm had to . . . pour itself into Zerif??? 

Chapter 24

They just described Raisha’s hands as “scaly” . . . what.

“ . . . holding them both aloft over the gaping pit” (163). Genuinely can’t remember how Rollan and Essix escaped.

“Hanging from the ancient rafters was something dark and heavy and made of iron- A bell” (164). Okay, normally, I’d be so pissed off that the bell appeared conveniently when it was needed, but it had the appropriate amount of foreshadowing and we’re even told why: because the ice melted away to reveal it, so I’m okay with it.

“And quick as a flash, she raised her bow over her head and let fly” (165). Giving Katniss-Everdeen-kills-Coin energy.

Chapter 25

“ . . . struck the edge of the bell with a light ting!” (166). So, I apparently didn’t read very well the first time so I didn’t realize the bell was a huge bell, I had been picturing it as a small baby bell and the “light ting!” didn’t help my visualization.

“Redcloaks and Greencloaks alike scrambled to find stable ground around the perimeter” (167). This line mirrors another line: “The Sadreans and the Many screamed, running to safety around the edges of the town” (105). I don’t really have anything to say except the parallels make me happy.

I like the perspective shifts within the chapter. Very neat.

“This is what people must mean by an out-of-body experience, he thought” (168). Foreshadowing bond token plotline in third arc???

“For the first time in his life, he felt truly free” (169). Yeah, definitely foreshadowing him bonding further with Essix.

“She felt an overwhelming desire to care for every person suffering . . . ” (169). More bond token foreshadowing?

“The wriggling parasite no longer burrowing into his flesh. The Wyrm’s voice no longer hissing in his mind” (170). Does that mean Briggan-in-Conor’s-body will be affected by the parasite?

“ . . . she caught a slight flash of hazel” (171). Zerif has hazel eyes???

“What was a hero but someone who had chosen one time to do the right thing?” (172). I hate this line. It implies that you can do one right thing and still be considered good.

There are so many italicized words in this book.

“The Wyrm was truly gone” (174). Huh. It just fell in lava and died??? Interesting.

Chapter 26

This book has been from Abeke’s perspective since Chapter 21 (with the exceptions of the short passages from each of the other three’s perspectives for a few paragraphs in Chapter 25). And this last chapter is also from her perspective. It’s just. It feels. So strange. I don’t like it.

“Every blade of grass and flower and tree became a smaller version of the Evertree” (176). This needs to be explained in more detail.

“For the first time in centuries, the Sadreans and the people of Erdas met and communed with one another” (177). Wonder if any Sadreans besides Xanthe decided to stay topside.

“When Abeke finally saw Conor and Briggan waiting for them at the shore, she leaped clear off the edge of her ship onto the decks and sprinted toward him at a full run” (177). Based. Also, her leaping overboard is iconic and I can’t believe I missed that the first time.

“Rollan and Meilin were surprisingly awkward upon seeing each other again” (177). Maybe they didn’t meet again during the course of the entire arc so the writers could give us this gem.

“The eyes held her gaze for a moment, and then a sleek golden leopard poured out from between the leaves” (180). Poured out . . . like soup. (Sorry, my brain has shut down from the Uraza-Abeke moment.)

Final thoughts and rating:

The tiny Shane-Abeke moments live rent-free in my head, and while I’m sad about Shane’s death, from a writing standpoint, it had to happen. The only way for Shane to redeem himself was to give his life for Abeke, and it was done beautifully, not only giving his life, but giving his life for their bond, which he helped foster. It’s an amazing end to his arc and I will talk about it more during my Shane analysis. I absolutely adore Kovo jumping from the tower to save Takoda from the Wyrm without a single thought for his own safety. I also love that the inside jokes were plot-relevant, what a fantastic way to tie that in. I also like what I’m going to interpret as the slight foreshadowing of the bond token plotline when the spirit animals and humans switch bodies. During the next paragraph, I really, really go hard on this arc, but the emotional moments in this book were just. Some of the greatest ones in the entire series. The Shane-Abeke moments and Meilin-Kovo bonding and Xanthe returning and Shane’s death and when the group reunites and Uraza and Abeke “rebonding” . . . all of these tiny moments were just. So well done. So despite what I’m about to say in the next section, I would say this book was a positive experience overall for me. 

Starting with the elephant in the room, I have to talk about Shane a bit. While I love the reintroduction of his character, his entire existence is a plot hole. Tellun frees Shane from the Bile at the end of The Evertree, so how could he have merged with Grahv? There are two things that could’ve happened: Shane’s bond being severed completely or Shane’s bond being turned natural. Exploring the first option, Grahv should’ve been unable to go into passive state from the moment Tellun freed him. Now, delving into the other alternative means that Shane shouldn’t have merged with Grahv at all, because his bond would be a Nectar bond now. Between these two alternatives, it is impossible for the events of this series (with Shane) to occur. Ignoring that, this arc in general was a bit of a hot mess. We’re told the Wyrm sucks power out of the Evertree. Then, we’re randomly told it is the heart of the spirit animal bond and that it provided the Evertree with the fuel necessary for that. How is that possible? Is it taking or giving? It feels completely all over the place and threw me for more than a couple loops. I haven’t talked about this much in my other rereads, but I absolutely despised Conor in this arc, aside from the first book. He doesn’t do anything! He displays none of his changed personality, does nothing to further the plot, just gets sicker and sicker (which I’m not blaming him for, by the way). What was the point of having him in the story in the first place? Because fans would want him there? Instead, they should’ve made Takoda be the infected one. This opens up quite a few opportunities the writers could’ve taken advantage of. First of all, Kovo and Xanthe are the two people that are least opposed to leaving Conor behind because of the infection. They also happen to be the two people that are closest to Takoda. There could’ve been an arc of them getting over that to show Takoda they loved him, but it’s completely wasted on Conor. Think about that scene where Kovo jumps from the tower and single-handedly takes on the Wyrm in Takoda’s defense. Now imagine if that scene had taken place after Takoda had been infected by the Wyrm. Kovo has a love-hate relationship with Takoda, made worse by the fact that Takoda is infected, and it climaxes when he fights the Wyrm. It would’ve been so powerful. Conor’s presence in this arc is pointless and I hate it. The last five chapters are all from Abeke’s perspective, and the staggering of the climaxes just. Got to me. The point of having multiple perspectives is to use all of them, and this book severely lacked Conor, cementing my point about Conor’s uselessness. The Wyrm being a literal power-hungry monster that is just there to consume the world and enslave everyone with no motive or thought is just. So dumb. I hate it. It has no substance, no emotion, no point. Same thing with Zerif. Literally just wants power. Why? We don't know. My last gripe: Kirat. I hate him. His character development is so sudden and out of nowhere and he was so spoiled that it’s impossible to like him. His arc feels like such an afterthought. 

Rating: 8/10

[fireemblems24]

Fire Emblem Engage 15 - 17

Spoilers for FE Engage 15+. Though, this game is way better at gameplay than it is with story, but the characters are all likable so I'm good.

I really appreciate how different all the nations and their castles and interiors look in this game. I adore Three Houses, but one thing I really wish they did was have more variety in the weather, landscapes, etc . . . This game nailed it.

Solm, a desert country, having waterfalls in their palace is such a good touch. Not only does it show that water would be valued in a place like this, but it's also flaunting the royal family's wealth and power, like a palace should.

I'm not sure I'll ever warm up to Veyle. She's a walking moe cliche. Mind control. Innocent cute loli type otherwise. But, hey, I didn't like Hortensia at one point but her VA sold me in the last chapter.

Does anyone else find it a bit funny that we're a dragon worshipped as a god with influence over the land and this is a good thing. It's like a giant middle finger to those people who tried to rewrite the entire history of the franchise around a certain character's not-so-great view of dragons.

Also worth noting that Brodia invading Elusia is seen as a universal bad and something Diamant's supports resolve around stopping. Just putting that out there.

Ivy/Diamant feels cannon to me. It makes too much sense.

Kagetsu is so awkward. I love him.

I feel like I just took half of my units and got them with level 5 with Byleth. Mentorship is too good not to stick on a few people, and it's cheap too.

I love how literally no one takes Hortensia seriously. It makes an otherwise grating character kind of cute.

Holy shit, Merrin laid it on thick for Chloe. Honestly, don't blame her. But she is not subtle, gave Chloe flowers, called her beautiful, then asked her to dinner. Homegirl's even willing to try and stomach Chloe's . . . uh "food" choices. And Chloe thinks Merrin is like a cool knight out of a fairy tale. 100% new ship happening.

So far I like AlearxAlfred, IvyxDiamant, CelinexAlcryst, and now ChloexMerrin.

Alfred and Boucheron's support went exactly like I imagined it would. Poor dude. Alfred would lose his mind meeting Dimitri, someone who's abnormally strong despite not looking like a hulk, but is still shredded.

Alfred is probably the only person in the world who would've be offended or weirded out when someone asked to lick the flowers he's wearing and also offer to get licked later. Otherwise, Bunet is weird.

Seadall is VERY hot. He's like Sothe and Navarre had a baby. Or like Navarre put Sothe's clothes on.

F!Alear confronting Veyle again had really good voice acting. As long as we ignore that everyone just stood around instead of attacking her. Gratned, it was un-brainwashed Veyle who wasn't attacking so I'll let it go. Maybe.

Doing Ike's prologue is making me feel things. The nostalgia is real.

I love so, so much that one of Byleth's canned dialogue in Somniel is "Nothing to report!" and his paralogue is the Holy Tomb. And most of his dialogue was about Rhea, lol.

Eirika, my beloved, she's finally coming to me 😭😭😭😭😭😭 thank you, Rosado and Goldmary.

Rosado and Goldmary are both amazing. I want to use both, but I can't. There's just no room for both. But I think I'll use Goldmary because she's a bit better out of the box. She takes self-absorbed to hysterical new levels lol.

Anyone else think it's dumb that in Classic your units can die in the ring paralogues? It's like, oh bummer, Lyn/Corrin/etc just killed my healer who's the little sister of my mage, but our bonds are now stronger!

It feels extra sad seeing Firene get attacked. It's such a peaceful kingdom. It's nice to see Alfred back in the spotlight though. His lines about how these are just farmers and not soldiers reminds me a lot of Dimitri after Lonato.

I love how often the villains chit-chat with the heroes before and after battles, but like they never attack or threaten each other.

So mean that they're making Ivy and Hortensia fight their own dad :(

So I didn't start ch 17 after seeing the dialogue because it was too late and I didn't realize it, but I'm seeing the world map now and it's on fire :(

FYI, put Corrin on Alear. She/he can use all of the Dragon Vein terrain bonuses. I know most classes are locked to one type or another. I don't know if there's any other exceptions like Alear, but man I'm loving using this ring on Alear.

Alfred just did 5 criticals in a row. You think enemies would wise up and quit attacking him, but no. He is pissed off right now.

Alfred deserved that MVP. Boy put in the work.

Haha, they lost a ring. Wonder who I got back? And Veyle threw us another one? Nice! She got some points back despite being a character archtype I'm not about.

SIGURD! Fuck yes. Everyone's getting Canto. And Lief. Less exciting, but I'll take it. Jugdral boys are back.

[circle-bircle]

just finished fire emblem: the last promise. i gotta. i gotta talk

play tlp.

ok well don't if you don't want to. but the sheer SCOPE of this is un-freaking-REAL. i think one that really shines out to me is chapter 26 where it's basically a fe4 map in fe7 - you're going around conquering places and also THE SCENERY CHANGES FOR THE TIME OF DAY!!!! plus holton is basically a bootleg valter. always appreciate that. gosh. i just. hnng.

the plot? it's definitely fire emblem. i won't get into spoilers too terribly much but one of the main lords... isn't even playable in the final chapter, where he really should have been to complete his character arc. all i'm saying. but other than that it's good. you fight a dragon in a gaiden chapter

the gameplay? WOOAOW it's fire emblem alright!! lots of characters. gba supports though so i didn't really learn about most of them. but they're all fun and feel like their own characters. but there's lots of weapons, you don't get the convoy until CHAPTER 17!!!! though so be prepared to manage items. a lot of items. i didn't think it was UBER hard but there were definitely some challenging points in it. of course i talked about chapter 26 but one i also liked was with the next chapter; 27 was a DOOZY. it was very tough but very very fun and the boss can teleport (he's also sexy - yes, i have a thing for blondes. obviously.) and kill your convoy!!! so. RIP convoy man but not really. :P there's a few 'solo' fights, where shon (a lord) fights some guys and he goes on a sidequest if you choose to do it which is very cool i think. and kelik fights literal zoro from one piece (no, I am not kidding. it is Zoro from One Piece) and someone else who is a spoiler but it's sick as hell. not to mention the creator really loved the kaga sagas. like, really loved the kaga sagas.

the technicalities of this game? wow. it's built in fe7 - roms nowadays are usually built in fe8 due to... storage, i believe? or just because it's the most polished gba fe - but i haven't played much with fe roms so i wouldn't know for sure. there's voice acting! VOICE ACTING!!!!! and there's even dynamic voice acting for a character where they say something different depending on how far they are in the story. not to mention this was created when fe hacking at all was pretty underdeveloped - it still holds up today IMO. of course there's some jank but it's relatively minor.

ok have to talk about the characters now. first, not actual characters but there are... fe4(?) characters here. claud and julius.

or well. "claud" and "julius". no, i never met claud again. so. :/.

i can't really talk about kelik without going into spoilers. but he is unabashedly sick asf!!! he goes through a great character arc and gets a fairy sword :). there's also a difference in his ending whether or not you win/lose a very specific fight for vengeance or whatever. in his world of worlds every step meets the rest. inb4 weight of your sins. something something. play tlp.

spoilers spoilers spoilers:

i love galagar. he's just very cool. except when you get an infodump right before the final... chapters.... about his life...... you know it'd be nice if we learned a little bit more beforehand but c'est la vie.

tl;dr: tlp good. play :)

[bigklingy]

Well I guess this could be sorta fun. Also, spoilers here. 1. It was a Fire Emblem game. 2. No, and all of them but the original FE1 and FE2. 3. Chris Hackney got robbed HARD of Best Performance at the 2019 Game Awards. 4. Azure Moon. 5. Verdant Wind. 6. Azure Moon. 7. I made a tier list on my tumblr a while back but I'm too lazy to search for it. 8. Kronya should've been a recurring villain, instead of dying half a chapter after killing Byleth's dad. Imagine if the BLACK KNIGHT went out like that?? 9. Ahem, "Dimitri's motivation is maxed out." A.k.a "Dimitri goes bananas." 10. Swordmaster for being better than its intended promotion somehow. 11. I forget, which kinda says something. 12. Sofibeth Arts did fanart of a memetic NPC from my first playthrough, Blilda! https://sofibeth-arts.tumblr.com/post/188826204925/thank-to-bigklingy-we-have-discovered-three 13. I don't read 3H fics. Too much discourse. 14. I have a silly Dimitri x Edelgard parody fic. 15. Have a hypothetical P5 crossover in my head. 16. Grappler Hanneman, Seteth, Flayn, Cyril, Alois, Catherine, Shamir, Manuela, Normal Hanneman, Rhea, Gilbert. 17. Ferdinand, Hubert, Edelgard, Linhardt, Petra, Caspar, Dorothea, Bernadetta. 18. Dimitri favourite, Dedue least, everyone else tied. BL are all so good it's hard to choose. 19. Hilda, Lysithea, Marianne, Lorenz, Ignaz, Claude, Raphael... lol I forgot Leonie entirely. (Sorry Leonie fans) 20. Manuela. 21. Sylvain, maybe? 22. Rhea. She doesn't strike me as someone interested in romance at all. 23. Well, Blilda (Green unit in AM Chapter 19 replacing Hilda if she's recruited) is a Female War Master... 24. Yuri I guess? 25. I don't feel Byleth's sexuality is conventional, but I don't have a specific label for it. 26. Dimitri, obvious pick is obvious. 27. Off the top of my head, Ignatz? 28. Bernadetta. While I don't agree with Edelgard ideologically, that's different from disliking the character. Bernadetta, I feel the game ends up fetishizing her abusive past to a disturbing degree. I'm aware this is a hot take. 29. Jeralt, Kronya, Claude, Rhea. 30. ANNA. A character with absolutely zero supports in a modern FE game should not exist. Worse, they're DLC. Skipping all design questions, would require me to look through tons of art and I don't have a good sense of design aesthetics anyway. 37. I seem to remember someone had funny dining dialogue but I forget who. 38. Felix liking cats made me lol. 39. Hilda I guess. 40. Dorothea always offers to join without me even trying. I'm not sure why. 41. Claude ships Edelgard/Dimitri and distributes his fanart and fanfiction during the war as propaganda. 42. Azure Moon has the best writing for Edelgard. 43. Sylvain/Mercedes. 44. Edelgard/Dimitri is HILARIOUS and my coping mechanism when discourse bothers me. 45. Sylvain/Mercedes. 46. Unsure. 47. Hilda. It's really the ONLY one I've done, but it was fine. 48. Hilda/Marianne, I'M SORRY. I just don't see it. 49. Dorothea/Hanneman. WHY is this romantic and explicitly mentions them having children, when his endings with all other students are platonic?? 50. FEMALE BYLETH/MERCEDES, easily. Compared to the other female bi options, I feel this is rarely talked about.

50 Questions of FE3H

The ultimate FE3H ask game - Send me an ask and reblog to play!

What drew you to / made you pick up and play FE3H?

Was FE3H your first Fire Emblem game?  If not, which other games did you play?

Who is your favorite FE3H voice actor?

Which route did you play through first in FE3H?

Which route did you play through last?

Which route is your favorite?

Which side quest / paralogue was your favorite?

What storyline threads should have had more development / been further explored?

What is your favorite scene in the game (can be in the main story or a support convo)?

What’s your favorite combat class?

What’s your go-to weapon or spell in combat?

Post a link / reblog your favorite FE3H fanart (no reposting / credit erasure!!).

Post a link to your favorite FE3H fanfic.

If you’ve posted your own fanart or fanfic, post a link to the piece you are most proud of.

If you are an artist or writer, are you currently working on any new FE3H content (art or fanfic)?  If so, will you share a sneak preview?

Rank the Church of Seiros characters from your favorite to least favorite.

Rank the Black Eagles from your favorite to least favorite.

Rank the Blue Lions from your favorite to least favorite.

Rank the Golden Deer from your favorite to least favorite.

What character do you headcanon as bi?

What character do you headcanon as poly?

What character do you headcanon as ace or aro?

What character do you headcanon as trans?

What character do you headcanon as genderfluid?

What character do you headcanon as another sexual orientation or gender identify not listed above?

Who is your overall favorite character?

Which character do you feel “meh” about?

What character do you not like at all / hate?

What character should have gotten more development?

What characters should have more support options and who should have been their support options?

What is your favorite pre-timeskip character design or outfit?

What is your favorite post-timeskip character design or outfit?

What is your least favorite (or hated) pre-timeskip character design or outfit?

What is your least favorite (or hated) post-timeskip character design or outfit?

Which characters would you like to see switch pre-timeskip designs (for fun)?

Which characters would you like to see switch post-timeskip designs (for fu0?

Who are your favorite dining partners?

Who is your favorite teatime companion?

Who is your favorite / most used combat unit?

What character do you always recruit, no matter which route you are playing and why?

What is a favorite character headcanon (can be one you came up with or one you liked / adopted from someone else)?

Do you have / are you willing to share a possibly controversial opinion or headcanon you have about a character?

Who is your favorite in-game ship (meaning they have supports and a confirmed romantic ending card)?

Who is your favorite headcanon ship (meaning they either have supports but not necessarily a romantic ending or they may have no supports at all)?

Who is your FE3H OTP?

Who is your FE3H poly ship?

Who is your favorite Byleth ship?

What is a popular ship that you don’t care for / don’t like?

What is a general (not necessarily popular) ship that you don’t care for / don’t like?

Which ship do you wish was more popular / had more content available?