#frog detective 3 spoilers

[call-me-lemon]

[spinjester]

JUST WATCHED ALL OF THE FROG DETECTIVE GAMES!!!! I LOVED THEM SO MUCH!!!! WHAT AN AMAZING SERIES!!!!!!!

[thebeautyofgaming]

Frog Detective

Frog Detective 3: Corruption in Cowboy County

[eelinsouvenir]

shout out the frog detective games living in my head rent free

minor no context spoiler below cut for the second game about 3/4 of the way in

I think about this at least once a month

[furbyreg]

Do you have any comfort characters you headcanon as regressors/caregivers/dreamers/etc? I’d love to make an icon set for you! 🐇💕

this is a great question! I'll have to add to this list as I think of more bc this isn't something I've really pondered much 🤔

I'll put some characters that I think would possibly regress or who I think seem as if they even do regress sometimes in their media!

I might ramble on about this and hcs I have so I'll add a cut in case this gets long.

disclaimer: I'll be touching on impure regression and childhood trauma but not going into detail, also might contain details about certain media but no spoilers hopefully

Dirk Gently (of dirk gentlys detective agency the BBC show) is the first one I think of. I used to have a pfp of agere dirk gently a few years back that someone made for me, it was great and I'm sure I could find the post again. to me, he screams age regressor. he had a.. weird childhood (watch the show I can't explain it and do it justice here) where he never really got to be a "kid" and often kind of slips into using a whiny voice and acting very childish and immature. this is kind of connected to his childhood trauma in the show so I see it as his age regression kind of slipping out in intense moments, but I am probably reading a bit into an acting choice.

pinkie pie and fluttershy would both probably age regress, with pinkie pie being more into the "fun" side of regression, with her love for parties probably connecting to a love of childish things like playing with toys. and fluttershy probably enjoys relaxing, watching her favorite cartoons, etc. in my mind fluttershy regressed to a baby age maybe 0-2 and pinkie pie around 3-6? I imagine they would have playdates and sleepovers togethet too

gir from invader zim. but I'm not gonna explain that one cause he's a robot so he doesn't even rly have an age. I just think he gives silly fun loving maybe slightly over the top age regressor vibes

agent tamama and giriro from sgt frog, tamama is technically supposed to be pretty young anyways but he also gives me big age regression vibes. he's definitely a "knocks cheerios of the counter and then cries cause no more cheerios" kinda kiddo. giriro is a sulking badass who is secretly an age regressor and he regresses REALLY young, like newborn age and his carer is dororo :)

uhhh yeah I'll add more if I think of more :D sorry this is probably way more than u were looking for but tl;dr

dirk gently, pinkie pie and fluttershy, gir, tamama and giriro

[jamiedotorg]

Frog Detective: The Entire Mystery

This review contains spoilers.

Frog Detective came out in 2022 and was co-directed by Grace Bruxner (no shocker if you've played or watched a playthru of the game itself) and Thomas Bowker, whom also designed with help from Olivia Haines, and soundtrack by Dan Golding.

This was yet another Gamepass quick and easy game, but I would not let that fool you into thinking this game was quickly thrown together or made to be completed without putting any effort into it so lets jump straight into the gameplay.

The game is a collect-and-complete puzzle where you play as a Detective (who is also a Frog incase you didn't deduce that yet), who through the help of The Supervisor, is assigned cases and utilizes the people and items around him to solve the mystery at hand. There is not a lot complicated about the game at all, you simply walk up to an NPC, they tell you what they want in exchange for another key item or piece of information, and by the time you've spoken to every NPC in the area once or twice, you've collected the necessary objects or completed the tasks and have solved your case, and it really takes no time at all.

While the conversation piece can become redundant and long-winded, the writing is remarkably hysterical. Every NPC that talks to our main character is so out-there that you almost don't blame him for giving up on correcting them and just saying "OK", like constantly bringing up that he is NOT the more popular Lobster Cop, who is DEFINITELY the #1 Detective or that he is small or could never wear a hat because of the odd shape of his head. Despite his apparent short comings constantly brought up by random suspects that he's just meeting, it is apparent in every conversation that all he cares about is solving a mystery and being the best Detective he can be! His notes on each suspect in his personal detectives notebook are a testament to his honest but endearing nature, even writing himself in as a suspect!

There were little surprises around the corner in the game, like the Developer herself popping in to let you know she doesn't condone giving out your address or that all books are NOT factually incorrect and useless. Or the other NPCs of the game taking over the role of playable characters when you least expect it. Even the achievements themselves made me chuckle.

The soundtrack is light, mostly piano, but at the end of every case you do get a fun party where you can see all the characters dancing together to goofy music, and it made me genuinely smile every single time.

Towards the ending of the game, about 3 hours in for me, I was just aching to have more to play or more to solve, and wished the dialogue was less heavy. All in all though, I was surprised by how much I actually ignored the walk thru and just played the game because it was fun, and there wasn't much that you can miss even if this is the first game you've ever picked up, and it is not another quick completion that makes you feel like you somehow cheated your way to a thousand gamerscore.

This game is currently available for $19.99 on XBOX, Playstation 4 & 5 and Nintendo Switch or free with XBOX Gamepass.

This has been a free and honest review by someone who played the game and simply enjoyed it. Please give the developers some love and give the game a play, or let them know your thoughts if you've already played/watched it.

Trueachievements.com

Imdb.com

Please note the IMDb ratings are separated into the the three parts that the game integrates.

Thank you for reading and let me know what you thought about the game. 🎮🏆

[a-pile-of-contented-ravens]

I posted 3,599 times in 2022

That's 3,572 more posts than 2021!

28 posts created (1%)

3,571 posts reblogged (99%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@lolgmalolg-did-nothing-wrong

@ulysses-but-somehow-more-transer

@ds-sparrow-manufacturing-co

@elytrians

@transgender-rex

I tagged 1,644 of my posts in 2022

#tma - 314 posts

#hfth - 243 posts

#the mechanisms - 170 posts

#dracula daily - 59 posts

#wtnv - 37 posts

#goncharov - 29 posts

#unreality - 27 posts

#hfth spoilers - 26 posts

#tma spoilers - 19 posts

#monstrous agonies - 19 posts

Longest Tag: 139 characters

#in death to the mechanisms he says something about how galahad is “definitely one of the top ten religious zealots” so i think that’s a yes

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

How old is Nikignik by indescribable standards? They get so grumpy sometimes, what if they’re actually like 17 and this is just what indescribables are like going through their first breakups

15 notes - Posted May 18, 2022

#4

MAB SPEAKS WELSH?? SHE NAMED THE PLANT THE PRESENTER GAVE HER IDIOT (AFECTIONATE)???? ICONIC

38 notes - Posted June 9, 2022

#3

“I will be the man my father never was” is an iconic line anyway but if you look at it in a trans way???? So many thoughts so little ability to articulate them

49 notes - Posted July 17, 2022

#2

I can’t get over how almost everyone who encounters Polly in hfth mentions that he’s pretty like… why is everyone so attracted to the poor capitalism anxiety demon

58 notes - Posted January 4, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

O.W truly is blorbo material. He’s pretentious, he’s highly opinionated about fashion, his house is decorated like a Pinterest “dark academia” board, his only friends are a beating heart in a jar, a bicycle and an angel of death, he collects pickled frogs and bones, everyone he meets either thinks he’s pretty or is convinced he’s a murderer, he treats his obituaries like diary entries and it’s unclear whether he ever even publishes them, he’s completely incapable of dealing with grief despite writing obituaries for a living, we don’t even know what his name is, he owns three man-eating cats, he snoops around everywhere and acts like he’s a detective for literally no reason, he’s interested in squirrel migration patterns, he’s even bisexual

125 notes - Posted November 24, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[morningstarships]

Everything is Fine! [S/I Ficlet]

A small ficlet in which, a few days after finding out about new powers, Atlas has to remain calm while Anne and the Plantars try to find a way back to Amphibia.

[Atlas is a magical boy who can universe hop, but due to the Core, his universe hopping powers aren’t working. He has a familial bond with Anne and the Plantars!]

Warnings: none!! 

Amphibia spoilers if you haven’t seen Season 3!

The fact that there was anything related to Amphibia in the museum sounded crazy. But Atlas tagged along anyway. With King Andrias able to use the music box, anything was possible, and he didn't want to risk losing Anne and the Plantars too.

While Anne, Sprig, and Hop Pop searched the museum, and Polly was off admiring the medieval weapons, Atlas chose to wander off, eyebrow twitching in annoyance. It was risky, why were they risking their lives for a damn museum? A museum that probably didn't have anything of use. Thunder rumbled outside, a quick 'fuck' escaping his lips.

Calm the fuck down, Atlas. There's nothing to be nervous about. They were fine.

He took a few deep breaths, eyes on the ground, hands stuffed into his ratty hoodie pockets. Andrias wouldn't be stupid enough to attack them so brazenly, right? Right?

With his mind occupied, he didn't see the stupid glass display case, a grunt escaping his lips.

"Piece of shit..." Atlas's eyes snapped up, and his brown eyes widened for a moment.

A piece of stone, with ancient writing, decrepit and wasting away.

"What'd ya find?" Sprig's voice made him jump into the air, a strike of lightning cracking outside the museum. "Ooo, cool! ....What is it?"

"How should I know?" Atlas grumbled, crossing his arms. One of the symbols... He had seen it before...

"Oh! You're looking at the Beach Stone!" A woman with a cheerful disposition made Atlas flinch, seemingly appearing out of nowhere. "Yeah, me and the crew found that a few months back, buried deep in the beach's coast!"

"Do you know what it means?" Sprig asked, smiling brightly. Atlas shot his gaze down to the small, pink frog. (Who was, of course, wearing his disguise.)

"Oh! Well, the crew and I roughly translated it..." The woman pulled out a notepad, flipping through the pages. "Oh! Here it is! It depicts some sort of deity bestowing a gift upon a small child, and then..." The woman points at the stone tablet.  "...It says that this child will be the savior of all worlds and the ruler over said worlds!"

Atlas nearly choked on his own spit, rain pouring down outside.

"Huh! That's weird, it was just sunny a few seconds ago!" Sprig scratched his head. Atlas stared at the tablet for a moment, trying to calm himself down.

"You okay, kid?" The woman looked over at Atlas, who just shakily gave her a thumbs up, and rushed away, Sprig chasing after him.

"Atlas, what's wrong?" Damn him! Sprig was always good at detecting when he was upset.

"Nothin', lil man! Why don't ya go look at the dinosaurs?" Atlas gave him a bright, albeit fake, smile. Sprig stared up at him for a few seconds before letting out a cheerful "okay!", and running towards the fossil exhibits. Atlas whipped his head back to the stone tablet, sighing softly.

He's done worse than stealing things, this was nothing to him.

Time to actually test these stupid, gods-forsaken powers.

Atlas's eyes snapped to the camera that pointed directly at the tablet, eyebrows creasing up in focus. The light that indicated the camera was powered up faded, and Atlas walked towards the exhibit.

He mumbled a few Latin words while pressing his hand against the glass, and his fingers slipped through the surface, grasping onto the tablet, and quickly stuffing it up his shirt.

Meeting up with Anne and the Plantars, Atlas sighed.

"Find anything good?"

"Just some dumb pot. But it doesn't even show us anything useful!" Anne threw her hands up in irritation. "What about you?" Atlas's expression was stoic, giving the teenager a small shrug in response.

When they all got home, Atlas immediately rushed to the guest bedroom, slamming the door. With trembling hands, he pulled out the tablet, placing it on his bed.

He could read the language. What the actual fuck?

""...A child of water and sky will emerge from the goddess's heart, and will be destined to live amongst mortals, saving the universes and becoming...a god..." Atlas mumbled out. Thunder began to rumble outside, and Atlas let out a nervous laugh as he began to pace. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!

"I can't become a god -- Or save universes! I can't even cook fucking ramen without killing the microwave! What am I gonna do?!" A storm cloud had begun to form, his eyes focused on the tablet. The doorknob turned, his eyes widening.

"Hey, Atlas, have you seen the--" Sprig had come in, his eyes immediately darting to the stone. The cloud above Atlas's head began to downpour, hands trembling. "IIIIII should go get Anne--"

"NO!" Atlas shot his hand out, the door slamming. "Don't get Anne, please--"

"There's a rain cloud above your head! I think Anne deserves to know--"

"I-It's fine! Totally fine! I'm fine, this is fine, we're all good!" Atlas laughed nervously, now completely soaked from the cloud. "I just need to calm down, I just need to chill. This is chill."

"Areeee you okay?"

"Pfff! Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" Atlas snorted, but the raincloud got bigger.

[redantsunderneath]

DC COMICS: Incoherence as Not-a-Bug-but-a-Feature (Spoilers for Batman 89-100)

Due to the emergence of the new Batman villain character Punchline, I wound up buying the last 12 issues of Batman and reading them in a single sitting. I’ve had trouble following DC comics for a while, constantly feeling that they were in trouble since back in the mid 2000s (with a glimmer of hope here and there). The act of reading DC comics has been a frustrating experience, where individual good stories and runs were laying around in the context of a lot of things that didn’t make sense while the company’s thrust felt chaotic and ideas not well blended. Every status quo change seemed hard to figure out the rules of enough to parse the context.  We’ll get into the background of this, but my reading today of this extended stretch of comics that keeps losing the plot in favor of a fever dream of what’s happening at the moment with specific characters that refuse to cohere, it became obvious that what I had been looking at as subtext or critique was actually the text. I could see the messed up trees but was missing the the forest the universe was trying to describe.

What happens in these issues (Batman current series 89-100, I missed the beginning of the first of 2 arcs) is rolling war between the major Batman villains and the heroes (plus Harley Quinn and Catwoman), which shifts into a Joker and Joker adjacent vs. all as the Joker double crosses everyone then manages to steal Bruce Wayne’s fortune.  We meet 3 new baddies – Underbroker, whose schtick is putting ill-gotten gains beyond the reach of the legal system (with an explicit line to rich globalists drawn), the Designer, who back in the day offered the four A list Batman villains plans to achieve what they most wanted, and Punchline, who is your toxic ex’s new millennial GF who really has it in for you (there is also a new good guy Clownhunter, which is a whole different thing, and a new costumed detective that predates Batman).  This doesn’t convey the chaotic nature of what is happening issue to issue, but there’s more than one Batman hallucinogenic spirit quest, dead characters ostensibly walking around, a plan revolving around the Bat’s origin story that tells some version of it several times, and a no-nonsense declaration that the Joker, as the Devil of the Batman spiritual system, cannot die.   The whole thing has the effect of convincing you there is no definitive sequence of events, only versions.

Alan Moore’s Killing Joke is not a favorite of mine, for a number of reasons.  But the ending holds up.  The Joker has done terrible things there is no antecedent for, and Batman wonders aloud if this never-ending dance they do ends in anything but both of their deaths; can they uncouple from the unhealthy duality the cycle of which simply repeats.  The Joker responds, well, with a joke about two lunatics trying to escape an asylum.  One jumps the roof to the next building, while the other is too scared to try.  The escapee offers to hold a light while the other crosses on a beam but he says no, no you’ll just cut the light while I’m half way across.  This not very funny joke nonetheless has a bunch of resonances – BM and Joker as conspiring co inmates, BM wanting to break out, a commentary about their natures (almost a reversal of the frog and scorpion story where the scorpion won’t go because he knows how this ends), but mostly it implicates BM as the one who is enabling the cycle, the reason why it won’t end.  They both laugh uproariously, and the ambiguous final panels can be read as the fundamental realization of his complicity causing BM to kill J.  A lethal joke indeed… except, next month, we see the both of them again.  In broader context, the ceaseless cycle of the diad is reaffirmed.  This has been hellaciously sticky as an idea in the Batmen universe.

My realization of what DC has been doing is pretty banal in its pieces. Marvel has “ground level” heroes while DC has a mythos, a pantheon.  Their archetypal makeup is strong, the seven JLA members lining up with the pantheon of Greek gods and the Chakras weirdly closely.  DC has big characters that are somewhat flat which they can use tell big bold individual stories that are cool the way legends and fables are cool. But these stories require bold strokes that a bit incompatible with each other. People get attached to these iterations. Meanwhile, Marvel trucks in soap operas where the characters give you an empathetic stand in and are narratively flexible. Marvel events are usually about the writer vs. the company, asking you to sympathize or deconstruct the creative impulse amid efforts to impose control or order.  DC’s events are about editorial vs. the audience, the shapers vs. the forces of the world.  It may seem obvious, given this description, that DC’s focus is on an archetypal tableau though it may be less obvious that this tableau is under extreme pressure from expectations when trying to tell ongoing tales month in, month out (or semi-monthly in some cases). The stories are constantly compared against the big stories that have gone before, and the audience’s ideas of the characters exert pressure to push them in directions that capture “the” version they believe in.  This circle is not possible to square.

DC and Marvel both have a multiverse of sorts.  DC used to tell “Elseworlds” stories which were later tucked into pocket universes.  DC invented crossing over between “realities.”  DC’s continuity is heavy baggage and they began to have “Crises” to resolve the narrative incompatibilities.  These only made things worse as you can’t get rid of the past people have a relationship with – it will come back.  Now you have to explain that away too.  Marvel just lets it lay – forget about the iffy stories, they count, sure, just no one is ever going to talk about them unless they have an angle.  Marvel continuity is all angles and amnesia. This is just easier to do with dating and rent and your ancient aunt’s medical bills than with Gods. Marvel’s multiverse is about sandboxes that you can always dump into the mainframe if they work (and never really mention the sandbox again).

There is a shift that occurred in the industry in the 2004 to 2005 era that is less remarked upon than many upheavals in comic’s history. Marvel had gone through a period of incredible new idea generation in the early 2000s after a late 90s creative cratering but had just fired the pro wrestling inflected soul of that moment (Bill Jemas).  DC was coming off of a period of trying to do moderately updated versions of what they basically been doing all along. The attitude was “yeah we’re under stress from the combined history of these characters, but we got to keep telling the stories.” Geoff Johns was one voice of DC over the 99-04 period that showed potential - he seemed to get how to find the core of characters and push them into a new in sync directions if they over the years have lost a clear identity.  But mostly he had internalized a basic schism between something mean that the audience wanted, and something good and wholesome about the characters themselves, and figured out how to mess around with this in a equilibrating fashion.

Interestingly, the ignition point of the main forces that were going to blow DC over the next decade and a half was a comic that had virtually nothing to do with any of those main forces. Brad Meltzer, a novelist, was hired to do a comic called Infinity Crisis, which sold extremely well and was, justifiably or not, recognized as an event.  At the same time, everyone also kind of hated it because the dark desires of some DC fans were pushed forward just a bit too much for comfort and for a comic with Crisis in the name it didn’t do a whole lot other than “darken” things.  Nonetheless, this lit an “event” fire at both companies.  Marvel chose a shake up the status quo for a year, then do it again, pattern and was off to the races (I have written about this, and more, here) while continuing its Randian framing of beleaguered do-gooders opposed by rule making freedom haters.

As this was playing out, Dan Didio quietly took power in DC Editorial.  His outlook was more Bloomian – he seemed to spark off of writers who exhibited anxiety of influence. He recognized Johns was the one person they had could be promoted into something of a universe architect, starting work on two key projects from which the rest would evolve. The first, was bringing back Hal Jordan as Green Lantern and diffracting the GL universe into its own symbolic system, with parts frisson-ing other parts, and almost a Magic the Gathering color scheme of ideas. The other was to build up to Infinite Crisis, which would become the model for most of their universe changing events until the present day.

The basic frame is this: DC heroes want to be good (in a sense of their inherent nature) but forces outside form a context that makes them fall.  It’s a very gnostic universe, DC.  They  examine reflections of the concepts, invent scapegoats for certain tendencies (see Superboy Prime as entitled fanboy, Dr. Manhattan as editors that try and fail to mend things, etc), make characters violate principles, rehabilitate them, then show that the world if anything is more broken than before.  This is kind of Johns’ thing and it fits Didio’s narrative as historicval tension fetish.  But then came Scott Snyder (not to be confused with Zack) who began to work on Batman in 2011.  Since then, as much as Justice League is pushed as the central title and Lex Luthor has been pimped, Batman has been the core of the universe and the Joker the core villain.

Snyder had the same continuity conflict wavelength but was significantly more meta and able to contain multitudes than Johns.  He was the first to make an explicit mystery of how there could be several Jokers around at one time (who are the same but not, he posited 3 – man, Christians!) that seems prescient given the near future coexistence of filmic Jokers that are not able to be resolved.  I believe he was the first to begin to tease out an idea – that different versions of things in comics are not a diffraction or filter effect, a using the set of things that work best for that story and leaving the rest, but are a matter of the archetypal system of the audience coming apart. From an in story perspective what appears to happen is that multiple versions of incompatible things exist in the collective unconscious of the continuing narrative, and this is something that the characters may become conscious of.  

The run I just read is written by James Tynion IV building on the above trends.  The trick seems to be going all in on the Jungian aspect (at Jung’s most religiously epiphanic).  The Designer was a progenitor and adversary to Batman’s predecessor and his intellectual approach eventually defeated the detective… broke him.  At some point in early Batman history, the Designer brought the top four Bat-baddies together and offered each, in turn, a plan to achieve what they most desired: the Riddler, a way to achieve an empire of the mind; the Penguin, power; and Catwoman, money.  They are all elated as they await the Joker to come out.  The Joker emerges with a furious Designer on his heals and promptly shoots him dead.  He explains that he didn’t like his joke in the form of a fable – the devil offered four people the path to their greatest desire: the three chose earthly things, but the Joker’s wish was to be him, to become the devil.  The story proceeds to suggest that the Joker just exists, he is present as a necessary component in the system.   You can kill him, yet he is alive.

DC has been using physics metaphors for the nature of their reality since Flash of Two Worlds in 1963.  The multiverse as a continuity concept was their idea and the holographic universe of the hypertime was a thing.  It seems like since Dan Didio took over, they’ve been heading towards a concept of broad superimposition, of measurement effect being weak, of the universe being like a quantum computer with all possibilities coexisting and the story instantiating not one reality but a path through all the possible ones.  By making Batman trip balls through quite a few issues and relive his origin from different angles, the story is one of its own instability and the heroic task that confronts our hero is attempting to actualize the world.  The Joker is the Devil in the sense of lack of fixed meaning, of relativistic chaos, of the world not making sense because it’s unmoored nature with ultimately no knowability.  Batman, in this story, functions as a postmodern knight crusading against the impossibility of epistemological grounding.

There’s more going on, sure.  One plot is, literally, defund Batman.  There is rioting, people brainwashed by being exposed to toxic ether, people paid to go to theaters even though they will die as a result, and questions about neoliberalism similar to that one Joker movie. Punchline has no personality yet (Tynion’s not the best at that) but she serves well as a generational foil for Harley – a rudderless ideological vacuum susceptible to Joker-as-idea-virus rather than an unfulfilled MD who felt alienated due to the structures of her life and was seeking escape into structureless possibility.  The Designer stuff is both continuity play (See why they changed from goofy villains to more “realistic” ones! Look how pulp heroes informed superheroes!), a comment on the nature of a longstanding narrative (strong intentions die out as Brownian motion overwhelms momentum), and a lawful evil/chaotic evil setup of the dualism of apocalypses (overdetermined authoritarian vs. center does not hold barbarism).  But the thing that ties this to the past decade and a half of DC is the sense that the reality is fluid and susceptible to change or outright s’cool incompatibility.

This is different than other flavors of meta in superhero comics.  Grant Morrison believes the archetypes are stronger than the forces that seek to bend them.  Alan Moore wants you to deconstruct your sacred cows and probably hates you personally.  Marvel might play with self-awareness, but effortlessly resolves inconsistencies after it’s finished playing.  DC, at this point, allows you to watch the waves solidfy into symbols and dissolve, and the constant confusion and lack of grounding is more of a choice then I thought this time yesterday.  The conflict theory of DC reality has been in full swing but this looks to be turning towards a kind of Zen historicism, holding contradictory things in your mind at once. Warren Ellis’ JLA/Authority book is the nearest comparable text I can think of. I need to call this, but I didn’t even talk about Death Metal, DC character multiplicity as meta-psychosis event extraordinaire.  Comics just keep getting weirder.

[creativitycache]

Is Martin going to be mentioned again in ToT? Or is that little snippet in the buried going to be all Jon remembers?

Below is Spoilers, including details breakdown of the story’s meta. Bewarned! This is long & convoluted as all get out. It basically can be summed up like this:

Martin and other future people (not just events) have actually been mentioned more than that, and to answer your question right off of the bat, yes Jon will continue to remember.

As I was originally answering this, it kind of spiraled out of control as I dove into a detailed breakdown of some things so I decided to just go for the whole hog and put everything down here in one place. I’ve got a similar breakdown in another document, but that’s really just for keeping tabs on how many days have passed and not the meta analysis.

TL;DR on meta: Jon is leveling up at a ridiculous speed, but he already was high level to start out with so he’s really just lagging behind his adult self. The more he feeds the more he grows. In the Eyepocalypse, we’ve heard Jon lament that trying to access his powers within his body is like trying to “drink the ocean through a straw”, and it’s only gotten more difficult as his body has shrunk.

Another note on timing: in the original story, Jon had gained multiple marks in back to back horrible days. In my own small way, the pacing of these later chapters is repayment for Jon’s hell week.

Entity Touched events will be in bold. Jon’s powers being activated will be italicized. Remembering a specific person/statement/future event will be noted with (parenthesis). Please note that while I will put a specific name in the parenthesis Jon often does not consciously remember the name nor the full scope of the event/person/statement. I will keep a running total of how many days since the last notable entity touched event at the top.

Ch 1

Jon goes through the Spiral’s Doors. His body merges, and he fluctuates between seeing and Seeing. Eventually, his eyes settle upon Watching constantly. He struggles to remember Section 31 (Daisy and Basira “they were both strangers and enemies and friends“). He Knows Detective Davies exact schedule, and the train schedule. He attempts to Feed via Compelling, unsuccessfully. He Sees Detective Davies schedule change. He Senses stories nearby.

Ch 2

Day 3 post-emerging:

After reading a Story: he Knows the difference between true and fake statements, as well as Mr. Magnus’s true name and that he stole the name Elias. He can See farther than what his eyes should be able to, and is able to Watch Elias. He Compels Elias but does not stay long enough to feed off his answers. He remembers (Barnabas Bennett). He remembers (the feeling of his own rib.) He remembers (going into the Lonely to save someone). When pressed, he remembers (the Unknowing exploding into fire) and losing “them” (his Assistants). This causes him to vomit and creates a void within him that must be filled.

Ch 3

Day 3 post-emerging, less than one hour after reading a Story:

Jon summons tape recorders to listen to stories. He listens to dozens of Stories at the same time. Jon remembers (the layout of the Institute). Jon gives a Statement.

Ch 4

Day 3 post-emerging, hours after consuming dozens of Stories:

Jon remembers (the Dark Sun, and Looking directly at the Entities). Jon remembers (Michael stabbing him for Compelling).

Ch 5

One day after consuming dozens of Stories:

Jon reads a bedtime Story. This reveals to Elias that Jon is able to comprehend all languages.

Ch 6

Jon consumes multiple Stories per day, far exceeding the normal Archivist rate of consumption. He remembers (Elias unable to See him in Orsinov’s Circus) He is unable to lie. He walks through the Archivist nightmares and the nightmares of the Eyepocalpyse, but these future events are unable to be perceived by Elias. During these nightmares, he remembers (being hurt by several “monsters”.)

Post this chapter, assume Jon has read at least one bedtime Story and multiple Stories throughout the day for months.

Ch 7

Jon now Knows all answers to fact-based questions his teachers ask. He begins drawing Eyes that have some will of their own- refusing to be paired. Jon now speaks directly to the Eye. It is confirmed his eyes have now physically changed to be reminiscent of other Avatars of the Eye- ie Elias. Jon Sees all marks left on people by the Entities. He remembers (how the Entities make Avatars), (Simon Fairchild) and (that he did something very bad unwillingly). He can sense when Elias is trying to See into his head.

Ch 8

Jon Feeds off of Emma, and forces her to Know her victim’s pain. Everyone is unable to move or interrupt him. He forces the web of the Mother of Puppets to be Shown. He remembers (where the tunnels are and what they do).

Ch 9

One day after Feeding off of Emma

Jon grows bigger. Jon Knows the (true nature of the Entities, and their effects on the world) and tries to articulate them. His explanation is different than Gertrude’s. He remembers (Tim’s jokes, Martin’s love of fuzzy tarantulas, the fight with Peter, and Michael-as-the-Distortion’s Statement, being friends with his Assistants and that things went wrong when his Assistants were no longer his friends). He thinks, but is not sure, he remembers who the man in the tunnels is (Lietner) and that he can track him down. He can See everyone’s marks and make them visible to others. When attempting to consciously access Knowledge of Michael’s future, he faints and blood comes out of his nose.

Jon consumes a Story. Jon remembers (how to Quit). Jon fights with the Eye’s geas against speaking of escape and wins.

Jon remembers (the Eyepocalypse) and Knows why he can survive on only old stories and statements from Avatars. Reaching for this knowledge is even more difficult than just Michael’s future, and causes him to black out for a significant amount of time with a severe memory wipe. Despite this memory wipe, he remembers (Gertrude does not treat her Assistants well, and the location of Fiona & Joshua Gillespie’s statement).

Ch 10

Jon Knows how to get to the Coffin purely thanks to the Eye, and realizes the Knowledge is external because his sense of direction was previously so poor. He is now able to consciously communicate directly in a back and forth conversation with the Eye, although the Eye is currently only Answering Jon’s Questions and Jon is giving his opinion. Being near the Coffin causes Jon to remember (he was in the Coffin for 3 days).

Being in the Coffin causes Jon to remember (that he got stuck with someone else last time, that he had an anchor, and that it might be M-m-mar- ), then he gets out in a day and a half. This is half the time of the first round, despite Fiona being deeper in than Daisy had been.

Jon Feeds off of John the Buried Avatar.

Ch 11

Day 1 post-Coffin & Feeding off of John

Jon feeds off of Dr. Girard the pediatrician.

Jon still comprehends all languages, but now he can articulate something is strange despite still not realizing he’s not hearing English. Jon grows after feeding. Jon Knows when Fiona is in trouble. His eyesight is noticeably excellent. Jon remembers (Gertrude’s war against the rituals is “stupid”, and that Jonah stole Elias’s body and why. He remembers statements about Agnes, and how Agnes and Gertrude are bound, and what various members of the Cult of the Lightless Flame look like. He also remembers going out for Martin’s birthday and eating ice cream, which is how he knows where the nearest ice cream parlor is.)

This is the last time Jon takes out the crayon drawing of the Eye.

Ch 12

Day 2 post-Coffin & Feeding off of John, Day 1 post Feeding off of Dr. Girard

Jon remembers (you should never hold an Avatar of the Desolation barehanded, and that the tunnels go for miles and miles, and that Smirke realized his architectural theories were wrong.)

Jon Knows he loves tea but hasn’t found one that tastes right. (He’s thinking of Martin’s tea, but he doesn’t realize it.) It’s also revealed that Jon is crying alone sometimes in his room when he thinks no one will notice, but he doesn’t Remember why. When asked, he remembers (he was Made and not Born), and Knows that the Eyepocalypse/”his destiny” is preventable, but he had to lay down before remembering/realizing any further.

He remembered the (statement about Agnes’s childhood, and the Distortion’s Avatars, despite the fact the Distortion would not merge like that until post-ritual, and that Gertrude liked to blow things up/use fire to disrupt rituals.)

The Eye now is giving Jon specific suggestions, ie origami frogs, when he Asked for ideas.

Ch 13

Day 3 post-Coffin & Feeding off of John, Day 2 post Feeding off of Dr. Girard

When asked, he knows there’s no such thing as time where the Eye is, but vomits from trying to Know something directly about where the Fears currently are. Jon remains nauseous but does not faint, have blood loss, or memory loss. Then, when a Story is read to him from Van Closen, he remembers (the contents of a different statement entirely- Fanshaw’s letter.) He struggles to grasp something else the Eye is telling him.

Ch 14

Day 4 post-Coffin & Feeding off of John, Day 3 post Feeding off of Dr. Girard.

Jon remembers (being a manager.) Elias and Fiona do not realize Jon is using terms no one has used around him before- nor do they recognize like Michael did earlier that Jon’s specific grasp of corporate language is far outside the normal range of what children usually have picked up.

Fiona, newly awakened, uses her powers on Jon. He then, when in close proximity to her, is reminded of what information he hadn’t been able to grasp earlier (ie, Eric and Gerry).

Jon enters a battlefield surrounded by Entity-touched deathtraps being sprung. He remembers (wandering untouched in the Eyepocalypse, Mary binding herself to the book.)

Ch 15

Day 4 post-Coffin & Feeding off of John, Day 3 post Feeding off of Dr. Girard.

Jon (remembers “interrupting drinks” and that they always taste better when in a mug- ie, Martin’s tea. He remembers the Dark was “for babies”.)

When awoken, he is able to articulate that he did remember Gerry and Eric.

Jon summons Eric. The Archive speaks. Jon Knows how to edit the Book as Mary Keay did in the original timeline, and does so.

[peterstanslizzie]

Reacting To: Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (Season 2 Episode 5)

Episode Title: Fun Gus Part 1

Spoiler Warning: Kindly proceed if you’ve already seen the episode or are able to handle spoilers.

1. Just like last episode, this particular one begins with a flashback and this time, it’s Kipo’s parents, Song and Lio Oak whom are climbing up a building with tree roots along its walls. The reach the top and they’re amazed by the view of Las Vistas and the different kinds of mutes living there. Song looks almost exactly like Kipo; Only less...pink. 

2. Song has figured out a way to reverse the effects of the mutation in the mutes. And we find out that Hugo aka Scarlemagne was one of the mutes she’s basing her research on! So that explains the supposed backstory between Lio and Scarlemagne we’ve detected in previous episodes. 

3. Also, the reason why they’re there in the surface world is to find out more information about the mutes and how to turn them back to normal. However, both Song and Lio don’t agree with their team’s plans and they decide to hide Song’s research findings from them, especially after discovering that Hugo is able to say her name. Now I’m really curious as to why Hugo ended up becoming so anti-human. I guess it’s due to him seeing how humans have been treating animals over the years or something. 

4. I just find their interactions to be absolutely precious. They’re also planning to stay on the surface for as long as they can.

5. We’re now back to the present and we see Super Dave carrying his friends over a couple of blocks without molting (I never knew this word till now). They notice that Dave has been able to prolong the very form he’s in, far longer than before. 

6. Kipo tells the group that they’re almost at her parents old burrow and she also can’t wait to possibly find out more things about her mom. I’m beginning to wonder if she really died from burrow pox or not? Anyways, Kipo pulls out the map given to her by Cappuccino and it looks like they need to pass through one last checkpoint, a cheese waterfall. 

7. They are suddenly interrupted by the water mute Mulholland (from last season), who came through a fire hydrant lol. He’s obviously not welcomed by them, especially after what he did to them before. 

8. At Scarlemagne’s Court, we see the representatives from the 4 pro-Scarlemagne mute groups including the Mod Frogs, Scooter Skunks, Humming Bomber and Newton Wolves entering his residence and being in awe of the place. He wants them to “sing” to him where they think the Mega Monkey might be. Kwat, the Mod Frog sings to him, revealing that it’s in Cactus Town. Because of that, she gets first dibs on a luxury home in the work-in-progress city of Aurum.

9. To my surprise, Scarlemagne reveals that he will be going on the hunt for the Mega Monkey. I gotta say; I do like a pro-active super-villain. We shift things over to the ever-mysterious cloaked individuals who are rushing over to find the Mega Monkey by following an ant trail (because monkeys eats ants?) before Scarlemagne can. But we do find out one of their names: Greta.

10. They spot Scarlemagne and his crew flying through the sky and carrying the mind-control collar for the monkey. So, they need to hurry. I’m starting to think that they’re just humans; I mean look at those eyes. 

11. Back to Mulholland; He reveals to them that he is now a travelling nomad or nomads and that Kipo is going to find what she’s looking for. He then leaves. That was certainly random. Anyways, they now seem to be near that cheese waterfall place because they finally arrive at the entrance of her parents burrow and there’s cheese everywhere. Correction. FUNGUS everywhere...eww and it moves too. Despite finding the burrow, they still need to find her parents’ apartment.

12.  Next, we see the three cloaked individuals riding on a giant dragonfly and tailing behind Scarlemagne and the Nobles. Can the show just tell us who these people are? I’m kinda tired of referring to them as the “cloaked individuals” lol. All of a sudden, a high-pitched sound appears out of nowhere, causing everyone to fall from the sky. It turns out to be the doing of the Umlaut snakes. Looks like these guys are going to take on Scarlemagne but they’re probably not going to beat him I think. 

13. Kipo discovers that her parents’ old burrow used to be inhabited by a group of scientists, including her parents of course. They then realize that the apartments are arranged in alphabetical order and they make their way over to the O side to find the Oak’s apartment. Oh and Dave is now in his elderly form after being scared by the fungus creature or whatever. And he is the only one who’s noticing that the orange fungus is moving. 

11:59

14. Because humans aren’t as sensitive to sound compared to mutes, Scarlemagne orders his human Nobles to destroy the snakes’ equipment. Scarlemagne orders his followers to attack and the scene cuts off. I’m actually worried about the snakes; I hope they are gonna be alright. 

15. The gang is inside the apartment and they’re going through some of their things like their bed, kitchenware and Kipo’s old baby clothes to which she is keeping one of them. Kipo then notices drawings of constellations on their ceiling and points out that the Leo constellation has an extra star, which is actually just a button that opens up a secret panel.

16. The panel reveals a book with the title, “Project Kipo”. She grabs it and starts browsing through it. To sum up what she read, it’s basically about combining Kipo’s DNA with the DNA of apex predators like the jaguar. Other apex predators include the falcon, monkey and Komodo dragon. So this explains in scientific detail why Kipo is their “hybrid-baby”. As a Biochemistry graduate, I find the incorporation of recombinant DNA technology in the story-lines of cartoons to be exciting.

17. Again, I like how Kipo isn’t upset at her parents in any capacity for pretty much making her their science experiment. I’d probably be angry but then again, I’m not Kipo lol. Meanwhile, Dave is freaking out because he saw a face on the wall and calls out for Benson to come over. But yet again, nothing happens when anybody but Dave (and Mandu) shows up to check it out.

18. As Kipo goes further into her reading, we get more flashbacks of Song and Lio in that same apartment. Pretty much this book is also Song’s journal/diary it seems. Song comes home to reveal that she’s pregnant with Kipo and Lio is overwhelmed with joy. Aww, this is sooo adorable. I’m getting chills. They are such goals. 

19. After reading the part about the pregnancy, Kipo obviously gets very emotional, in a good way. And she, Wolf and Benson get into a group hug. The love fest is short-lived, however, because Dave is still freaking out about the “ghosts”. Benson gets annoyed and shouts at him and tells him to molt into someone more fun. This hurts Dave’s feelings and he plus Mandu walk away. But suddenly, the fungus mute/creature shows up on the wall again with a face this time and it also has the voice of a toddler. It then grabs hold of both of them and drags them through the wall. That was way spooky. 

20. Whilst the snakes are fighting off Scarlemagne’s minions, the cloaked individuals are using this opportunity to grab the giant collar and take it away from Scarlemagne’s reach. The leader of the cloaked group heads inside the den where the Mega Monkey is sleeping. Now I’m thinking that these individuals are human beings because she said “for the future of humanity”. After thinking through it some more, I predict that they were Lio and Song’s old scientist colleagues. 

21. Why didn’t Kipo, Wolf or Benson hear what was going on outside the apartment?; They need to get their ears checked. Kipo is still focused on the book and she reads that her mom was making kimchi and peanut butter. As she’s opening the jar, she accidentally breaks the entire jar without any effort. She seems to have super-strength as a side effect and she grew fur on her arm earlier, revealing to all of us that she’s a Mega Jaguar too. Therefore, I’m pretty sure her mom’s not dead. But if that’s the case, why d id Lio lie to Kipo for all her life about her mom dying from an illness? 

22. After getting all excited by this discovery, the fungus mute steals the journal (which should be Kipo’s anchor) from her. And the episode ends here.

23. I absolutely loved this episode. I liked being able to see the past interactions between Lio and Song through Kipo reading Song’s journal. Stay tuned tomorrow for when I will be posting my review of episode 6. Thanks for reading everyone! Bye!

[sparklyjojos]

random Maijo meta / wild theory musings for ID:INVADED. it’s very rambly, you have been warned

[spoilers! for Id:Invaded, Disco Wednesdayyy, Tsukumojuku and JDC]

--  the initial title was Alien Thursdayyy, which references Disco Wednesdayyy. In the latter book, the protagonist’s surname is connected to Odin (because Wednesday = Odin’s Day) and to Mercury/Hermes. If so, the protag of Alien Thursdayyy could be connected to Thor, especially since we know there was supposed to be a Jupiter Z involved (Jupiter = Zeus, also a god of thunder). It’s possible that things like Narihisago’s well being a giant thunderstorm or the lightning bolt pattern on Sakaido’s shoes were left over from that old version. [I didn’t figure this one out myself, Maijo twitter did.]

--  the new hot theory seems to be that Fukuda/Anaido came from *Miyavi’s dramatic voice* THE OTHER SIDE, however you interpret this. Which would sorta make him similar to Mercury C, who was also from “the other side”?

--  this one’s more obvious, but an entire sci-fi tech system working on (or at least being jumpstarted by) prolonged suffering of a girl is reminiscent of the Kozue Method. Which I guess gives a bit more relevance to the idea that John Walker, the source of Kiki’s suffering, is something similar to the Nail Peeler and/or the Black Bird Man. We’ll see. (Additional note: The fact that the interaction of a drive for love and a drive for violence, and especially mistaking one for the other, has been already investigated in the anime, makes me lean even more toward this theory--the Black Bird Men were born from hatred and anger as results of love. ...Cue episode 10 with Narihisago murdering not-quite-yet-killers to protect Kiki/his family and then John Walker appearing in his well.)

--   completely incidentally, Kozue’s new surname at the end of Disco was Inoue, literally meaning “over / on top of the well”, and Kikyou’s (the alter’s) name can be read as “Kiki”. (Also completely incidentally, we learn about the new surname right after Disco observes that random frog, so you can imagine my face when I was skimming through and suddenly saw the katakana for kaeru, lol.)

(-- speaking of Disco, it still fucks me up that Mitamura would fit the naming convention, since not only is his last name a sake brand from Fukui, but even his great detective persona can be seen as named after a dish containing alcohol (Runbaba = a rum baba). ...I’ll file this one under “fanfiction ideas for later”.)

-- there’s this one theory that was obviously disproven, but I still love the wordplay so much: “Momoki’s” well has a Kiki well in it. The first kanji of Momoki’s name means ”a hundred” and the “ki” can mean a “tree”. The name Kiki also has a “tree” in it. Cue Wakashika explaining Chesterton’s trick of hiding the tree in a forest. (It was a leaf in the actual quote but shhh)

-- do you know how long it took me to realize that the # in #BRAKE BROKEN is probably supposed to resemble the kanji for “well” (井)? too long. ARGH

-- this one has been talked about ever since the first episodes, but Murakami’s Kafka on the Shore (haven’t read that one) has Johnnie Walker as an antagonist, and knowing Maijo’s love for Murakami, the reference is intentional. People pointed out that episode 9 and 10′s arc of choosing between the real world and the fake one reminded them of Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World (...also haven’t read that one. I need to brush up on my bizarre Japanese novels). While this emotional arc is a call back to Tsukumojuku (it even spans episodes NINE and TEN, come on), Tsukumojuku itself was heavily referencing Hard-Boiled Wonderland and even name-dropped it once or twice. There’s an entire critical piece in Faust vol. 3 that compares the two books extensively.

-- since Tsukumojuku and Disco both had that “24 elders” symbolism, I’m going hmmm over Shirakoma Nishio’s first name being written 二四男, the kanji meaning “two”, ”four” and ”men”. (Doubt it will mean anything, but again, neat fanfic fodder.)

--  Maijo had a short story called 夜中に井戸がやってくる。in Faust vol. 4, and from what I’ve heard it’s about a female ghost emerging from a family’s well at night. I haven’t read it, so it’s possible I’m missing some references?

-- why is that one episode called Fallen. why does it not have -ed at the end like everything else. what is the meaning of this

-- [JDC spoilers, seriously] Narihisago’s ability to talk people into suicide seems to be lifted wholesale from Dokuson’s personal ability, and Anaido reminds me of Pyramid Mizuno, who also pretended to be hilariously inept at detective work while actually being the smartest one around. Hondomachi talking about feeling that intense hatred for serial killers reminded me of Nemu's similar hatred, which the narration brings up so often in the books I feel like it’s foreshadowing for... something very not good. Not sure if any of this is intentional.

[minijenn]

And now, cause im bored, here's every chapter of Keys briefly summed up in just a few words each (possible spoilers ahead??)

Prologue: The Thirteen Keys: MoM fucks with his students, what else is new

Chapter 1: Remaining Recusant: Riku rescues his boyfriend through the power of Gay

Chapter 2: To Guard the Light: Bunch of boring lore but Sokai makes it worth it

Chapter 3: To Seek the Darkness: Organization shenanigans; Vanitas divorces his shitty, abusive not-dad

Chapter 4: Hero to Zero: Uhhhhh fuckin' Hercules or somethin idk

Chapter 5: Go the Distance: Rage Mode angst is Fun

Chapter 6: Wandering in the Dark: Riku gets a haircut in the Realm of Darkness and Sora really needs to stop lying to everyone

Chapter 7: Promising Beginnings: Kairi and Lea are forced to wear a "get along" shirt

Chapter 8: Lazy Afternoon Streets: Sora has an Identity Crisis part 1

Chapter 9: At Dusk: YA STUPID ORG XIII FUCKHEADS BEST LEAVE MY SON ALONE OR ELSE ILL THROW HANDS

Chapter 10: Sinister Whispers: ^^^ BASICALLY THAT AGAIN ONLY I MEAN IT THIS TIME

Chapter 11: You've Got a Friend in Me: Being a living toy has gotta create some sorta existential crisis, right?

Chapter 12: To Infinity and Beyond: JEN IS GONNA THROW HANDS WITH YOUNG XEHANORT I SWEAR TO GOD I AM

Chapter 13: Chase the Shadows: Detectives Mickey and Riku play a round of "Where's Terra?" And fail miserably

Chapter 14: Paradise Found: Fun with Balloons and Grumpy Geriatrics

Chapter 15: Adventure is Out There: Sora may or may not fall to his death from ridiculously high up in the air i dont fuckin know

Chapter 16: Unspoken, Unheard: Kairi writes Sora a bunch of letters cause she loves him so much but wont say it cause she shy ahah

Chapter 17: How Far I'll Go: MOANA AND SORA ARE MY NEW BROTP

Chapter 18: Know Who You Are: Vanitas gets yeeted by the Ocean cause he a naughty boyo

Chapter 19: The Streets of San Fransokyo: Sora doesnt understand how Technology works what else is new?

Chapter 20: Immortals: everything's all fun and games until Sora's dumbass self-sacrifical complex kicks in (again)

Chapter 21: Depths of Despair: LOOKS LIKE I GOTTA THROW HANDS WITH MALEFICENT NOW TOO

Chapter 22: Rise and Fall and Rise Again: Sora and Kairi hang out and DAMMIT JUST KISS ALREADY YOU DORKS

Chapter 23: The Lost Empire: Lingering Will pops in to say hi and also uhhhh whatever the fuck happens in Atlantis goes down idk

Chapter 24: Where the Dream Takes You: Sora may or may not have PTSD, boi should probs go see a therapist

Chapter 25: Drowning in Darkness: Aqua throws hands then proceeds to get Norted

Chapter 26: I See the Light: Basically KH3's take on Corona but things actually make sense this time

Chapter 27: What Once Was Mine: In which that bit from KH3 where Marluxia knocks Sora out actually leads to some legit payoff smh

Chapter 28: Firsthand Experience: Kairi and Lea take a trip to Disney World and yeet Vanitas (again) right the fuck outta there

Chapter 29: The World Es Mi Familia: Being an (unliving) skeleton also is bound to raise an existential crisis, right?

Chapter 30: Recuérdame: I cry while writing this chapter, both for my baby Xion and because Coco is just that damn tearjerking

Chapter 31: Destined Reunion: ALL THE POLY DESTINY TRIO FEELS

Chapter 32: Something There: At this point even Riku be lookin at Sora and Kairi and shouting "KISS ALREADY YOU ADORABLE DORKS"

Chapter 33: Tale as Old as Time: Sora commits an Actual Murder (am i kidding? Who knooooows)

Chapter 34: The Realm of Darkness: DARK AQUA CAN STEP ON MAH FACE IMO

Chapter 35: Rise to the Light: Great, now Aqua has PTSD too, thanks for nothin, Mickey

Chapter 36: Return to Depart: Sora has another Identity Crisis, part 2

Chapter 37: Broken Chains: Vanitas challenges Sora and Ven to a fight in the Denny's parking lot and fucking loses what else is new

Chapter 38: So This is Love: YES THEY FINALLY KISSED THOSE DORKS

Chapter 39: Almost There: Frogs and also like... Voodoo and so many BBS callbacks so damn many

Chapter 40: Dig a Little Deeper: Sora is too damn stubborn to admit he needs help what else is new

Chapter 41: Follow the Light: Wayfinder Family Reunion saves my life

Chapter 42: Solving Mysteries, Rewriting History: Sora and Goofy meet Donalds family (who then proceed to take the piss outta Donald cause this is Ducktales fam why wouldnt they)

Chapter 43: The Other Promise: Sora has yet another Identity Crisis, part 3

Chapter 44: Vector to the Heavens: Sora and Roxas drink their "Respect and Protect Xion" juice

Chapter 45: Another Arabian Night: Sora, Roxas, and Xion fuck around in a B-list Disney Direct to Video Sequel

Chapter 46: Out of Thin Air: GONNA THROW HANDS WITH XEHANORT HIMSELF THIS TIME AROUND GET AWAY FROM MY SON YA OLD FUCKHEAD

Chapter 47: Alone on the Run: Sora has a Bad Time, Riku and Kairi also have a Bad Time, generally everyone has a Bad Time

Chapter 48: Trust No One: Ven and Roxas add onto the never ending Twin Pile that apparently exists in Gravity Falls

Chapter 49: Not What He Seems: I KNOW ITS NOT UF BUT LOOKS LIKE I GOTTA THROW HANDS WITH BILL CIPHER ANYWAY SOMEHOW

Chapter 50: A Heart Torn Between: Vanitas learns that Girls exist while Sora continues to have a Very Bad Time

Chapter 51: Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride: Riku's goin on a twink hunt, and dont think he dont know how to weeeeed em out

Chapter 52: Aloha 'Oe: Sora and Riku get into a bit of a lover's spat dont worry about it its nothin serious dont worry about it

Chapter 53: Treasured Memories: Namine is the Very First Person Ever to tell Vanitas he has emotional issues, its about damn time

Chapter 54: Let It Go: KAIRI'S FUCKIN PISSED SHE GONNA BRING HER DAMN DUMBASS WAYWARD BOYFRIEND HOME ALREADY DAMN also Sora hangs out with Elsa i guess

Chapter 55: Love Will Thaw: KAIRI KICKS EVERYONES ASSES INCLUDING SORA'S CAUSE LIKE I SAID SHES FUCKIN PISSED

Chapter 56: Back Into the Fold: Sora doesnt have an Identity Crisis anymore but he sure as hell has Anxiety now, part 4

Chapter 57: Farewell to the Wood: Absolute tone whiplash, brought to you by Winnie the Pooh and Sora's ongoing Existential Crisis too

Chapter 58: Link to All: Everyone just cries a lot for an entire chapter cause they all know they boutta fuckin dieeeee

Chapter 59: Face My Fears: I systematically rip every single one of our protagonists hearts out and stomp on each of them with no remorse whatsoever

Chapter 60: Fragments of Light: The B-Squad saves the day

Chapter 61: The Thirteenth Vessel: Sora hangs out with his New Fam, otherwise known as Organization XIII, family fun ensues and it totally isnt a massive angstfest i dont know what you mean

Chapter 62: Key to the Heart: Riku and Kairi throw hands with their boyfriend while also trying to save their boyfriend it makes sense if ya dont think about it

Chapter 63: The Final World: Sora is McFuckin dead and chilling in heaven with a cute baby plushie cat (hey its not a spoiler if KH3 did it first)

Chapter 64: At Daybreak: "But Jen, if you hate KHX so much then why do you keep making so many references to it???" BECAUSE THATS WHY NOW SHUT UP

Chapter 65: The Keyblade War: Keyblade Fight Club, either you Die or you DIE

Chapter 66: Clash of Light and Darkness: Bunch of teenagers throw hands with some bald old fuckhead, but in the end nobody wins except me

Chapter 67: Kingdom Hearts: You know you're in for something fucking nuts when the chapter title is named after the entire series

Chapter 68: The King and the Crown: Jen pulls off a plot twist so mind blowingly ridiculous that it would probably make Tetsuya Nomura blush

Chapter 69: Reconnect: Everyone has a happy ending except no not really i lied

Chapter 70: Don't Think Twice: Oops I Lied again :)

Epilogue: Dearly Beloved: Fuck KH3's ending this is my new canon now

[harleiquina]

Typical... as if I don't have enough stories within my mind, a new one is brewing 🙄

So far I'm "working on":

- 7 books of a supernatural detective saga (Working title: Broken Wings): The Devil himself chooses to work with a demoted guardian angel to capture the evasive 7 Deadly Sins before Humanity is forever doomed... I'd tell more but SPOILERS. Bits and some chapters written here and there, and overall plot set so... I'll say it's about 20% done

- 3 books of, let's call it, a thriller (Black Suit). Asassins's organization is starting to be noticed by a group of detectives. Cat & mouse kinda thing with a twist but SPOILERS! so 🤐. I almost finished the first half of the first book, second one being plotted... the third one is still taking shape. About 30% done (?)

- 1 book, another supernatural/detective kind of thing -that could be more if inspiration strikes- of a Ghost-hunter-kinda-guy that tries to solve a murder of 70-ish years... with the victim's ghost obviously (Working title: Tak-tak). Just a few scenes half-way written, plot points set... 2% done.

- 1 book of a thriller? I guess based on 2 myths: 1) There are at least 7 people that look exactly like you around the world and 2) If you ever see your Doppelgänger, you die. Overall plot thought out... few scenes half-way written... maybe 5% done 🤷🏻‍♀️

- 1 book of fairy tales that will consist of retellings of famous stories (Cinderella, Snowhite, Sleeping Beauty and Beauty & the Beast born out of spite after Disney's remakes) and the novelization of my all-time favourite russian folkloric fairytale that will borrow elements of other stories to fill a few plot holes in the story. Either The Harlequin's retellings or The Little frog princess and other stories. Overall plot for the novelization done, first retelling (Cinderella AKA The Lady of the Well) first draft done, B&B in progress just like Sleeping Beauty... Snowhite is just a thought. I'll say 10% done.

- 1 fantasy book (The Hunter's Daughter) born out of the question "what if the lead heroine has a long dated romance with the villain of the story, but they keep it on secret to the rest of the world?". Few things, scenes' seeds, written and nothing more... let's say 0.5% done.

- 1 fantasy book (untitled yet) born out of the question "what if instead of having a romance born throughout the story between a human and a fae, they are already in a serious relationship until the Starting Incident takes place and the fae part has to 'come out' to their partner?". Just a thought, 1 dialogue written... about 0,3% done.

And now... another idea that could marry my untiltled project where a kingdom is divided into 4 realms (no hate among each other, just small family-rooted conflicts and maybe some mistrust towards some regions but nothing too big). We'll see... 🤷🏻‍♀️

Life would be a lot easier if I could live off of my creativity... but my country doesn't allow it and I need a "serious job" to support my family *cries in argentinean*

[aion-rsa]

Lucifer Season 6 Episode 3 Review: Yabba Dabba Do Me

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

This Lucifer review contains spoilers.

Lucifer Season 6 Episode 3

“How do you help somebody who’s in Hell?”

Unlike the series’ titular character, Lucifer showrunner Joe Henderson clearly embraces taking risks with his Netflix fantasy series. Having successfully navigated the potential pitfalls of a musical episode, Henderson brilliantly adds animation to the show’s resume with the delightful, yet insightful “Yabba Dabba Do Me.” However, it’s the episode’s bombshell conclusion that promises to take Lucifer on an emotional journey he did not expect to have to confront.

The opening camera shot reveals Linda’s in progress manuscript, Sympathy for the Devil: My Time with Lucifer Morningstar, and as Lucifer barges into her office, it appears we’re about to begin an exploration of the doctor’s thoughts and feelings relative to her time as a member of the celestial family. But the scene merely serves as a jumping off point for Lucifer to continue his journey of self-discovery and make the decision to return to the murder investigation that brought Team Lucifer together in the first place.

It’s always fun to hear Chloe talk about her future as God’s consultant, and when he informs her he’s going to Hell to help murderer Jimmy Barnes, her response is not only expected but significant. “When do we leave?” Chloe’s not about to sit around and wait for her man, and her fearless approach to entering the place where the damned must live out a tortured eternity shows a lot about her growth. Neither forget that it was Barnes who shot and nearly killed the detective during that initial murder investigation.

Time loop, Hell loop – the potential for a story to go off the rails increases whenever writers employ these devices, but the judicious use of the pair’s time in Hell coupled with the exquisitely executed animated sequences provides a chance for Lucifer to find what he’s been looking for. Amidst the pale blue lighting of Hell, Lucifer tells Chloe that “Every Hell loop is different so we could be in for anything,” and we’re reminded that this version of Hell is far different than the traditional fire and brimstone interpretation. It’s never explained how or why Jimmy’s Hell loop door has been moved, but once Lucifer and Chloe enter, the Devil takes what may be the first step toward finally committing to his new job.

We eventually learn the reason Jimmy’s Hell loop employs all the traditional Saturday morning cartoon elements, tropes, and stock characters found in countless Hanna-Barbera animated shows. And while it’s a ton of fun watching Lucifer fret about his missing penis and Chloe kick the crap out of the traditional, stylized version of the Devil, the takeaways for Lucifer are even more significant. Once he learns that caring about someone like Jimmy isn’t all that difficult, we know Lucifer’s getting closer. “If I can care about anyone, then I can help anyone,” he tells Chloe and thinks he’s ready to be God. Through his attempt to help Jimmy, Lucifer develops true empathy for others outside his circle which marks a huge turning point for him.

The frog falling from the sky at the end of the last episode now begins to make sense, and when Lucifer finds Ella puzzling over the creature’s meaning, it sets up the mystery angel’s big reveal. The universe is, in fact, in trouble, and we have to wonder whether Dan’s role in this matter will ultimately lead to his salvation. Despite everything, he’s come to realize that at his core, Lucifer is good and deserves Dan’s support and loyalty. In that one moment in the penthouse when Lucifer strides out of the elevator, Dan’s warning should be enough to earn him a reprieve from his Hell sentence. It’s heartfelt and honest, and while it doesn’t prevent Lucifer from being attacked, it should count for something.

Before we break down this crucial encounter, however, Amenadiel’s first day of LAPD field training bears examination. Hopefully, we’ll get to see more of Merrin Dungey as Amenadiel’s gruff training officer Sonya Harris, but when their first encounter with a criminal turns out to be Mazikeen, the exchange doesn’t go as expected. Naturally, Amenadiel assumes Maze wants to mock his desire to give back to the community, and when Officer Harris tells her charge “once a criminal, always a criminal,” it appears he’s going to have a rocky start to his career in law enforcement. But in a wonderfully written twist, Harris takes Maze to a women’s shelter in the hope that a second chance may be all she needs, and we know Amenadiel has been paired with the perfect mentor. 

Lucifer earlier helps Jimmy deal with his feelings of abandonment, but now comes face to face with a young woman intent on revenge “for what you did to me.” To this point, the natural assumption is that she is one of Lucifer’s celestial siblings, but he immediately dispels that notion, setting her up for a huge cliffhanger. “I’m your daughter.” 

We’re now venturing into unexplored territory since Lucifer’s virility has never been in question. Because Lucifer’s daughter appears to be a full blown angel, we must consider that her mother is also an angel. We really haven’t heard of any heavenly dalliances other than his brief affair with Eve who actually isn’t even a celestial. Yes, the angel Amenadiel and human Linda produce Charley, but his status remains unclear. All of this assumes that we believe she’s telling the truth. Are their DNA tests for celestials? 

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“Yabba Dabba Do Me” moves Lucifer one step closer to his dream job, but with three quarters of the season still to go, he’s clearly going to have to overcome obstacles out of his control. Perhaps next time we’ll get a name to go along with the wings, but until that happens, Lucifer may have some splainin’ to do.

The post Lucifer Season 6 Episode 3 Review: Yabba Dabba Do Me appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[escapist-experience]

Claudia Toman - Hexendreimaldrei

I read Hexendreimaldrei, the first part of the Olivia Kenning trilogy from Austrian author Claudia Toman as part of my German reading challenge. The book was published by the Diana Verlag in 2009 and is only available in German. I have very mixed feelings about the book. It was a weird ride where moments of fun and intriguing details alternated with shock over the sexist generalisations, annoyance over poorly solved plot difficulties and eye rolling over the clumsily used plot device characters. The story doesn’t work for me because I could not emotionally connect with the Olivia, or understand her motivation for half of the things she does in this book. The narration gives you coincidence upon coincidence to solve the plot problems. The lack of foreshadowing removes the fun part from the detective/investigation quest: the guessing and dissecting the text if an offhand remark contains a clue. Spoilers after the text break. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- The things that I didn’t like (or annoyed me a lot): 1.The “this-all-was-just-a-dream” trope 2.The pop culture references that do not add value to the story. It already has a strong fairy tale and classic literary influence, heaping the pop culture references on top is an overkill and creates a cheapo gimmick-y effect. 3.The classic literary references work better, but I had the feeling they were just included randomly to fill the plot holes. It bothered me particularly in the last conflict scene with the main antagonist where Olivia defeats Lady Grey by citing from a Shakespeare play. 4.Explaining how a seemingly insurmountable problem can be easily solved by jumping back in time and explaining that a secondary character who is Olivia’s friend happens to be an expert in the field that is necessary to solve it. The readily available sodoku and literary expert friend? Randomly talking to the hotel receptionist who happens to be a Shakespeare specialist-slash-amateur-actor? Walking into the first esoteric shop and just telling a complete stranger something that a. sounds insane b. could get you in trouble with the organisation you are trying to infiltrate? Build these up first, often a few lines or comments in advance are enough. 5.The frequent jumps between the different timelines make the story difficult to follow. This is made even worse by the above-mentioned issue with jumping back in time to provide explanation that is needed in the present timeline. 6.The plot is based on the idea that a woman, on the wedding of the man she is love with makes a wish that surprisingly becomes true: the man is transformed into a frog. The fact that anyone in a such situation would wish exactly that is not plausible for me (Wish that he marries you instead? Wish that you are not in love with them?). I realise this is the “This is magic, silly!” moment where I should suspend my disbelief. I’m trying, I promise but it’s hard. 6. The protagonist is completely sure that the Pianist (or the Prince as the text often refers to him) is Mr Right for her based on the following three factors: • He has emerald green eyes • He composes and plays music that the heroine finds deeply touching • He is a foreigner and “frenchy” I find it alarming that Olivia becomes so quickly so obsessed with the Pianist because they barely speak a few words at all before she decides to marry him at the earliest possibility. I know this book is heavily influenced by different elements of the Princess and the Frog fairy tale but even so. At least give us a few scenes where we see them bonding. I can’t care about the relationship that is just built on a few sketch-like scenes from the Sex and the City and sweeping generalisations. It made me sad that Olivia went through so much pain to please the Pianist and it’s clear the aside from being physically attracted to him, she doesn’t have a good time in his company. She is constantly worried about her appearance. She even prepares topics and interesting things to tell him. This is not a romance book; Olivia and the Pianist prince don’t end up together. Yet, seducing and getting back (rescuing) him is the one and only motivation for Olivia in the entire story. 7.The ”Get a life already woman” syndrome. There is an entire chapter where Olivia doesn’t do anything else than waits for The Pianist to call. When does she work? Is there really nothing else in her life? There is a point where the narrator refers to being single as an “unfortunately fashionable thing lately”. Olivia is characterised as a stereotypical single woman who has a cat, a few female friends to order take out and sip prosecco with and who is desperate to find a partner. This is so sexist and limiting that I cannot even… Which brings me to the next two points. 8. The clumsy, whiny, self-deprecating to the point of self-abuse female lead is desperately (and irrevocably) in love with the mysterious and perfect male lead she spoke with twice when they exchanged like 10 words (Bella Swann syndrome). The clumsiness is used as device to advance the plot and get the male lead’s attention: Olivia falls over, knocks down, drops or loses things, gets drunk and is incapable to use simple tools and devices. The same incapable and helpless character doesn’t even break a sweat why infiltrating aa secret organisation of dangerous magicians. 9. Most characters are the caricatures of themselves: the coffeeshop owner, the hotel receptionist, Olivia’s both friends even the Pianist. They just embody a few generalisations (some of which are sexist and heteronormative) and any other characteristic that the plot needs. 10. Revealing one of the characters is a ghost by the ghost sending a letter to Olivia thus providing all the hints she needs to solve the last hurdle before the climax of the book. 11. Johnny Depp references. The book was published in 2009 so the author could not have known but it is still unpleasant. An additional reason why I’d leave out the contemporary references. They don’t tend to age well anyway. 12.Shakespeare statue / ghost. Each time it appeared it had different abilities: 1. triggered in the Leicester Park with the ring and by Olivia directly addressing him 2. telepathic communication between Olivia and the ghost (or ghost animated statue) 3. the statue just comes by on the Picadilly Circus to give a magic object to Olivia It irked me that it was just there to give you a Shakespeare quote and whatever else served the plot. 13.Every single time I thought the book cannot get any weirder it just did. To be honest this wasn’t always unpleasant. Like I said, I have very mixed feelings. There were a few golden (pun intended) moments and details that I liked (and a few I loved): 1.The idea of the Everycat and everything about the Everycat. 2.The boss-witch Hekate looks like Olivia’s older version. This is intriguing enough that I want to read the second part of the book just because of this (and the Everycat). 3.Hathor’s characterisation and unflappableness (totally a word, I looked it up). It would have been even more intriguing if she is not the Greatest Magician but some proxy of hers who will lead to her in, say, the next book? 4.I’d have liked to see Noel’s character in action. I mean magic action. I understand the authorial intent was to remove a mentor figure so Olivia could go her own way, but still. Now that he is outed as ghost I’m afraid we will never see him do anything exiting. And what did Shakespeare do to piss of the witches? 5.The Frog-prince-pianist was so whiny and mansplained and always assumed the worse. I’m not sure if that was the intent, but I found it hilarious. The frog-ness getting worse with time was also a good touch. 6.Witch rules: every witch must have a cat and witches cannot love. Both are interesting choices and have consequences in the worldbuilding that I’d like to know more about. How did Hathor get out of it? She used to be a witch but she is not a one anymore. How do you un-witch yourself? What if you are allergic to cats? 7.You can only find one golden ball in your life. It makes me wonder what will happen with the golden ball in the next books. It sounds like destiny or fate calling. How will Olivia end up being Hekate (is it her from the future?). 8.The reveal that Olivia is a witch (guessed it when she first looks into the mirror in Hathor’s shop) but it was still cool. I would have liked if her reaction to the news is explored more in detail, if the narrative shows if she thinks about it later. 9.The first scene is Olivia sitting on a toilet in a church. Quite an unusual choice and it was a good way of immediately setting the reader into the “head” of the character. All in all: I would recommend the book if you enjoyed the Bridget Jones books/ movies and the Da Vinci code. The narrative contains sexist elements and negative stereotypes of single women so if this is something that disturbs you, give it a pass. I will very likely read the remaining two books of the trilogy out of curiosity, but I would not re-read this book. Ideal present for: *That* aunt that always asks when you are going to get married.