#he might not be a likeable character but he has a special spot in my heart

[iroissleepdeprived]

quick little thing of the lonely boat man

[thekingofwinterblog]

Any manga that DID stick the landing?

Oh there are plenty of good and great manga endings.

Jitsu wa watashi wa, Azumanga Daioh, Useless Ponko, and many, many others.

Hell its actually not that rare to find a manga that just has a decent, but solid manga ending.

It's just that two specific types of manga tends to have terrible endings, and because they overlap and are withouth a doubt the most popular manga types there are, they have lead to Manga as a whole having terrible endings.

Action manga, and long running plot based manga.

that latter one might seem a bit vague as it would cover so much, but it's very much true. if you look at long running manga and start to look at which one works, and which one that has a bad ending, it's almost always the ones with an actual plot, whatever that is.

it can by anything from "Saving the world through "whatever the manga is about" for bullshit "insert reasons here", to "Will these two hook up together?" to "There is a big mystery that the series revolves around".

You can bet that the longer the amounts of chapters, the higher the chances it fucks up the ending will be. That's basically a rule.

My theory on the subject is that length just makes everything more complex for the mangka, and so makes it harder and harder for them to wrap it up. Which is why manga with simple plots tend to have a much easier time wrapping them up, even if the manga is 200+ chapters long.

As for the other criteria, Action series that focuses more on fights and battles for obvious reasons have the caveat that this isnt actually their mangaka's speciality.

Just take Naruto, where Kishimoto decided early on that part 2 would end with a rematch between naruto and sasuke, and had no clue how to get there, and by the time it actually reached that point, he had lost any and all hold over the plot.

Inuyasha is similar. the manga actually hit a good spot to end on somewhere around the 150 chapter mark, give or take a dozen chapters, but ended up lasting 558 chapters, having basically spun its wheels with a cast that had reached their apex as far as natural character development was concerned so long back that most successfull manga gets canceled before reaching that equivelant points.

hence why it now has a very mixed reception and it's main lead kagome a very bad reputation nowadays, as beyond a point she became just as infuriatingly frustrating to read about as sasuke, just for different reasons.

But as for long running plot heavy, action manga, there are a few ones that did stick the landing.

Fullmetal Alchemist is of course the go to definite example of a good, plot based battle manga that managed to wrap itself up perfectly.

It's not the best manga every written, but it did manage the rather unique feat of not only having a great ending, but also didnt actually have a bad arc in its entire run(something even the best manga usually have), instead being a rather solid manga all throughouth.

Teppu also has a rather solid ending, even if it's much shorter.

The series is a brilliant deconstruction of both Shonen battle manga, and sports series in general, as it tells the first arc of such series from the point of view of it's villains... and unlike Disney Star wars manages to both portray the deconstructed "Hero" of the tale in an interesting and likeable light, while also being a rather nifty character study of both her and our main "villain" protagonist.

also, you dont necesarily have to be great to have an amazing ending.

Shigurui is an interesting manga that deconstructs samurai ideals about loyalty and honor set during the great era of isolationism and internal peace and stability. is a good, if not a spectacular manga, but it has both one of the most depressive, and yet most amazing endings where the mangaka just went all in on making it as tragic a tale that condemns it's protagonists for their obsession with honor, and showcases better than any other series i have ever read why "I was just following orders" is such a hollow excuse.

on a more cheerfull samurai story about revenge, there is blade of the immortal.

The ending isnt AS perfect for the series it belongs to as shigurui's is, but it's still a rather solid series, and just like FMA above, it managed to have a good, solid run from start to finish.

While My Hero Academia's ending was absolutely terrible, it's spin off manga Vigilantes had a pretty good conclusion even if the final battle leading up to it lasted way too damn long.

The original Battle Angel Alita/Gunnm had a really good climax too, which it's alternate universe sequel series last order tried to replicate to pathetic results.

i dont know how mars chronicles will end, but it would be really sad if it did not end on a better note than last order.

Im sure i can find other series that fits this criteria, but i cant recall any immediatly from the top of my head.

Also if the questionaire is asking about good or decent non long running stories, i can do that too in another ask. i have read A LOT of weirder manga with nice endings.

[popculturebuffet]

House of Mouse: Max’s Embarrassing Date Review

Hello House Mouses and welcome back to the house of mouse. Another comission by Kev and my second House of Mouse for the valentine’s season. This time we’re not tackling a Valentine’s Episode necesarily, but a romantic one all the same as fan faviorite couple Max and Roxanne finally go on a date.  I always liked Max. Even as a kid when I wasn’t the biggest fan of “A Goofy Movie”, didn’t like the darker patches like the principals office scene or the Pete Hot tub scene.. though in hindsight both had legit greviances with Max... it just dosen’t make either less terrible as the principal still told an innocnet man who wasn’t responsible for what his kid did and was trying his best that his son was going to become a crminal because of one stupid but mostly harmless prank, and Pete.. is just an abusive, unlikeable and unlovable ass in both Goof Troop and Goofy Movie, and I hate how he treats his son, don’t blame his wife for leaving him or taking their daughter and dog, and am really sad he got custody of PJ somehow. And for the record this isn’t ALL petes, just this version. The rest are fine and just the right level of asshole. 

Point is despite my problems with the first film, I had none with the second and even now I like it due to having some really good ideas and concepts while also being gloirously rediclous due to the loveably dated X-Games element. While I do have a spot in my heart for the Dana Hill and Shaun Fleming versions, especially the latter once upon a christmas is awesome, Jason Marsden’s version is the best by the mile having the right amount of ego mixed with self doubt to make him likeable enough to brook him being an ass to his dad a lot. He’s a good character.. and it baffles me Disney NEVER uses him nowadays. No really, the last time he showed up was in twice upon a christmas and no one liked that because he was dating someone who wasn’t Roxanne just to rehash the same plot they’d already rehashed better in Extremley Goofy Movie. I REALLY need to rewatch that one. Hmm.... gonna see if I can squeeze that one into May or later in April. That’s for another time. 

But yeah while he’s at one of the disney parks, that’s it. The character just .. vanished, and hasn’t been brought back in any way shape or form. Though I could see either a Disney Plus reboot of goof troop or a goofy movie with max having his own kids. That could be intresting. Also bring Roxanne back as weirdly this episode i’m reviewing, a goofy movie and now her ducktales cameo are her ONLY apperances. 

Seriously I get she’s not the most fleshed out.. but then flesh her out. Like Max she’s crminally underused and while I get her absence as a character in the sequel, the plot really didn’t need her, he still could’ve been dating her off screen. Though clearly the two worked things out and tried again as this episode came out AFTER extremely did. But did this episode work out? Join me under the cut to find out. 

As i’ve decided is my standard for House of Mouse Episodes, shorts first, then wraparound, then Mickey Mouse live sex celebration. Though I will say i’ve picked up there are two kinds of formats for the show: They either use two of the longer Mouseworks shorts or just one close to 11 minute short, a medium one, and one of the little two minute segments. There might be a break from this in the future, we shall see but for now those ar ethe two standards. This time we have two longer shorts. 

Pluto’s Penthouse Sweet: 

I’ve mentioned in the past I dont’ really get why Pluto is part of Disney’s sensational six along with Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy and Daisy. And I stand by that: While he’s had his own cartoons they just aren’t as entertaining and creative as MIckey’s or hilarous and relatable as Donald and Goofy’s. He’s just an average cartoon dog. He works fine in tandem with Mickey, but on his own he’s just nothing and his spot should be taken by pete, who while not a goodie all the time, again the goof troop version needs to step on a rake and fall into a well.. somehow. i didn’t think my insult through. Point is pete is better.  And this short isn’t BAD .. but to me it’s what some fans THINK the disney shorts are: Bland, maybe one or two good jokes but almost nothing new or intresting. As I found out last year, that’s far from the case, as a lot of the Donald shorts are still hilarious today and a lot of the mickey shorts are shockingly creative, like Thru The Mirorr where he goes .. well thru the mirror into a wonderland like world where all the inanaimate objects are alive and he can shrink and what not via astral projection, or Mickey’s Mechanical Man, which I sadly didn’t know about when I did the MIckey Birthday Special and for some reason isn’t on disne plus. In it Mickey creates a robot and has it box a monsterous looking gorillia. 

How has Mickey piloting this thing but giant sized against various kaiju been a thing yet? And if it has someone tell me. Seriously with all the comics and animated series how. I’d even settle for a Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse episode. Just bring this guy back. Point is there was far more invetnion than it seemed.. at least at first as it slowly died out as they went by the late 50′s. But Pluto just seemed even in their hayday like your standard pet gets into antics thing without the creative slapstick of tom and jerry or the likeablity of sylvester who never could get that asshole Tweety Bird. This is just weak sauce and whiel I could forgive the older shorts, as their from another time and likely lead to say Tom and Jerry... I can’t forgive this which was made probably in 1998 and released in 1999 originally. Comedy had evolved a LOT by that point and unlike the Goofy how to shorts, which are a format that is immortal and still evolved to match the times and felt fresh, these just feel stale and boring and like the last Pluto short I covered this one was a chore to sit through though not nearly AS bad. 

Still though the premise is about the same, Pluto’s left to his own devices, and finds a female dog, though in this case she’s VERY intrested in him. I”m also not entirley convinced she’s a dog, but instead one of Jumba’s experiments and that Lilo and Stitch later had to journey to.. wherever these shorts take place to fetch him. Or more likely the house of mouse. I mean Proud Family, Recess, American Dragon Jake Long and Kim Possible all take place int hat universe, why can’t house of mouse? Also tell me you wouldn’t watch an avengers style team consisting of Kim, Ron, Jake, Penny, Probably TJ, Lilo, Stitch and Donald Duck. If you wouldn’t i’d call you a liar because you would be. 

Seriously the eyes give her away.... just look at them. Very experimenty. But before Pluto can do it like they do on the discovery channel he has to get past the guard dog.. though how he does produces the one great gag of the short, as he BUILDS A GIANT, TROJAN HORSE ESQUE PLUTO OUT OF JUNK. Just holy shit that’s awesome> It gets him inside, only for him to find his lady friend is a bit TOO affectionate and he has to escape, he does so, and MIckey wonders if he missed him etc lame button. This short was a vacuum of comedy outside of GIANT PLUTO. Seriously where’s my disney giant mecha series. YOu have five main characters, and Pluto among with MANY, MANY side characters, frmo scrooge to the boys to hopefully Della, to even possibly pete and mortimer who could have their own mech against the heroes but maybe join them in the last episode. Maybe max and pj could have some, have a father vs son thing with PJ and Pete. I”m just saying, i’d watch it. I know my nieces would watch it. I know my nephews would watch it. Greenlight it. Or i’ll make it.. somehow. 

How to Ride a Bike: Speaking of the How To Shorts, as usual for the House of Mouse era ones.. this was awesome, pretty much what you’d expect, some goofy, pardon the pun, gags about goofy riding a bike and then a fun climax of him in a bike race. Not a ton to add, other than that hamster bike above is genius. Just needs some tweaking. Really funny, really simple, and really good as you’d expect from a good Goofy Short. Easily the best part of the episode. 

Max’s Embarrassing Date: So this was a disapointment. Like i’d try to be nice.. but I had high hopes given this brought Roxanne back, and while the premise was stock maybe they’d do something funny with with it. 

But no the plot is pretty standard, very predictable and fairly obnoxious. Max has a date with Roxanne, and is playing it cool and what not, but is worried his dad will find out.. which he somehow did offscreen. Probably Clarabelle.. I mean they do go out sometimes in this one, wouldn’t surprise me. 

So Max pleads with the rest of the HOM staff to keep him away because he fears his dad will overdo things, which.. is fair and one of the few things I like> He dosen’t want him to overdo it on the mood because this is well.. a first date. He dosen’t want to pressure her or himself and just wants it to be nice and calm. The problem is it’s framed like him once again being embarassed by his dad and having to learn better.

At this point we’d had TWO movies do this already, one of which was only two years old at the time of this episode. This plot is stale as old toast even if it dind’t have goofy in it. And the twist is predictable: the HOM crew end up also overdoing it: Minnie comments on how cute they are and wants candles brought, Daisy gets them a bigger table forgetting how dates work,t hough we do get a great gag of hte 7 dwarves stacked, and Mickey while having .. some.. gopher? I honestly can’t tell who it was, usually i’m better at the cameos. Speaking of which they also have a runner of beast going on a date with Cruella Devile. 

I mean is he cheating on his wife? Is she holding his wife hostage? Is this before belle because we see a post transfomratoin beast too so maybe the House of Mouse is an intersection of space and time? That’s.. actually the most resonable answer I can think of honestly and when i’m focusing more on how the hell your gag works than how funny it is, you clearly failed somewhere along the line. 

Point is Mickey puts his good friend in a pothole, and not only calls max little max, which while an understnadably close family thing to do is still embarassing, but also takes pictures while their eating the spagetthi.. which i’m 100% sure was Huey’s idea nad had Mickey not interrupted, would’ve been tied up down the middle for a lady and the tramp thing. It’s his signature move. Well that and having a panic attack. That’s also one of mine the others being lettterkenny refrences and sex jokes about disney characters.  But yeah this just.. dosen’t work. Them being as embarassing? that’d be fine.. if they weren’t wholly unsympathetic for not only keeping their friend from WELL INTEITONEDLY trying to help his son on his date, something his son shold have no problem with since ROXANNE’S MET HIM. AND IS FINE WITH HIM. AND NEVER CARED ABOUT YOU BEING HIS SON LIKE THE DICKHEADS AT SCHOOL. MINUS BOBBY WHO YOUR FRIENDS WITH FOR SOME REASON. My point is this plot bothers me a lot, and it makes the mickey crew come off like assholes for doing this to thier friend instead of just talking to him like a person. Especially since only ONE of them is a parent and Conviently donald is mostly absent. Likely because he realized this was going to end badly and just agreed to tie the spagetthi like huey taught him to keep his involvment in this shit show and gaslighting his best friend to a minimum. 

Eventually Mickey takes things a step too far and has Sebastian almost sing kiss the girl. Max cuts him off though yelling that he just wants them to back off, he just wants them to relax and he TOLD them this, which makes them come off worse as they KNEW he didn’t want this and did it anyway and never apologize becaue apparently the first rule of house of mouse is never apologize for anything, huh huh. Goofy naturally steps in, tells them off and agrees to serve them and Roxanne finds him entertaining and gives him a nose kiss for being a good dad. He’s a good guy that Goof.  Roxanne then whispers something in max’s ear at the end of the date... which gives him an audible erection. No really. And given his age is vauge here I’m suddenly super duper uncomfortable so let’s move on. 

So max tells them she liked it and wants to come back.. 100% sure that wasn’t what she said but what she said isn’t fit to print and you’ve seen what i’ve said and what I put in the we’ll be right back. Point is he’s happy, though Mickey says we’ll try to make it extra special next time. Mickey.. did you do a space mountain’s worth of pills and cokea nd just forget the entire evening? Did you take some of those hangover roofies/ Why would you do that? Was that pete’s new plan to steal the house of mouse? To drug you guys and make you forget you already paid the rent? Did PJ stop him? Inquiring me wants to know. 

Final Thoughts: Yeah this wasn’t a very good episode. Roxanne is wasted despite having a suitable replacment Roxanne voice in Grey Delise, with no real depth just to rehash the plot of the first and second goofy movies. And this one didn’t have an inexpilicable beatnik cafe, PJ getting laid and finally being happy for once, a standard college fraternity plot  surgeically infused with an out of nowhere obession with xtreme sports that was nowhere in the first film, Goofy in an afro, Goofy finding love, That disco sequence, and a climax in which Goofy carries Brad Garret out of a fire, then Brad Garret probably kills the villian of the film who certainly deserved it. My points are this episode was an underwhelming rehash only saved by some good shippy moments and a good goofy short. It was weak, not all that funny, and not all that intersting.  My other point is that an extremley goofy movie is awesome and also kinda insane and I love it for that. I’m glad I saw this one but i’m really disapointed in how bleh it was. Next time I visit the house of mouse is.. actually in a few days as Pete Does a One Man Show. So yeah already 100% better just by having THAT musical number in it, see you then and if not, there’s always another rainbow. 

[af1899]

FEH - Finally got the first merge on Hoshidan Summer Micaiah + appreciation post

With [Hall of Forms] now finished and all the rewards obtained, I can now rest at ease forgetting it, so I went to [Forging Bonds] and just got the last [Divine Codes: Ephemera 8] to give Micaiah her well earned merge, and here it is, her RES bane is no more.

While I don't see her often in [AR-D], I've come to understand why she's a good option here: she fills a very unique niche as a refresher with min-maxed attack and resistance that deals effective damage on armored and cavalry units, she aged really well as a unit despite her having one of the lowest BST values of her class but her refine will eventually come out and make her outstanding, I'll wait for it before I invest too much in her.

Anyway, this is not what I appreciate Micaiah, so I'll tell you a little story below and sum up my reasons, there'll be minor spoiler warnings and it's a tad too extensive but I hope you'll find it an interesting read if you do look on it.

I've known about her ever since I started to play Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn after I got my black Wii back in 2015 for my birthday and unlocked it to sideload USB games some time after, but it took me a little to feel like trying it and get it running, I used to be a guy that just trained whoever seemed likeable enough from looks so that I could get on, not as attentive with the plot of every game I play as I am now, but I've started to change that around the time I've started Final Fantasy VIII on the second half of 2019, a game that was truly legendary and emotional Imo.

This is more or less how I've come to known her, but I want to share what sparked interest on me for her:

It took me exactly two weeks to realize I wanted her so badly, it helped that when Lilina was announced, I'd need a [Feh Pass] subscription for just this month, and I got it with help from a friend, to date, I'm still grateful to that user for the support and for us to continue upholding a strong bond.

In any case, when the time came, I realized how charming this skin was, it's one of the best we've gotten, the Hel thematic looks wonderful on her (what a delightful blend of colors and precise styling by Sachie, same person that made the art for Legendary Julia and Sara, yes, more favs 💜) and the art is overall just too good but the best piece out of the four is the normal one I think, and I'll explain why while covering my favorite part of character talking: personality.

Micaiah is a kind and caring girl towards those she holds dear, specially the people of the country she eventually leads as a queen: Daein, located in the Tellius continent.

«I don't really like crowds. Sometimes, I sneak off to the forest to catch a break. I'm guessing the guiding hand of this army might need a break, too!»

— Micaiah: Priestess of Dawn, Fire Emblem Heroes.

She also has a bit of a bitter side but that's not how she normally comes off, yet, this doesn't come out without a reason, she was born a Branded (a human born from a human and laguz unity that end up getting a special power and an irremovable brand somewhere in their body, highly discriminated in Tellius), she had to hide her brand to anyone but her closest friends like Sothe so that she's not mistreated.

She's highly capable of selflessness, symbolized through that power she's gotten: [Sacrifice], it heals the target's wounds at the cost of her life force, she can recover just fine, but it exhausts her in return. This has allowed her to heal without staves and get the recognition from her people in Daein, like when she was first fleeing Begnion forces in Nevassa (capital city of Daein) while repelling bandit attacks, the citizens blocked the path when Micaiah and the Dawn Brigade (it's a group she leads to liberate her country) flee, but before she could escape, she sensed danger, and spotted a young guy being hurt from an arrow a Begnion soldier shot to a child named Nico, who would remember Micaiah's act of kindness for nursing him back to health almost instantly.

There were some times in which Micaiah also had to make really tough decisions, for example: Ike's army was tasked by Apostle Sanaki of Begnion to escort her to her country as they were trying to uncover the vile senate's acts, they had to pass through Daein territory, but because of a [Blood Pact] (a contract that enforces its signer's obedience to avoid a greater catastrophe) that Pelleas (that's the former king of Daein's son) signed under the false pretention that was a peace treaty the senate proposed. Micaiah had to hinder Ike's army advancement to see if she can trick the Begnion senate so she sent her soldiers to fight for that... she wanted to give time to Pelleas so that he could find a way to remove the effects from the [Blood Pact], as they couldn't just be removed normally. She had to make those sacrifices all because of a contract, and she couldn't even just tell Ike that she was forced to follow orders, the attacks from Daein forces didn't make much sense to him naturally. It was her people or her soldiers, so she had to make such decisions that tested her willpower, yet she's strong at heart and carried out with the orders she was given.

In Fire Emblem Heroes, she doesn't talk much about those events, but that's because she wishes to be free from the chains of past days, even if for a moment, she shows a friendly personality towards the Summoner and still being herself. She became queen of Daein and led her people to an age of prosperity, welcoming both laguz and human alike.

Now, all this and more things you'd learn as you play Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn (or may remember from your playthroughs) show how strongly developed and compelling she is as a character, there's a lot going in her life and she lived many difficult moments, yet she got through and grew into a kind and strong-willed woman, she truly impressed me, and I think she's truly pretty, like, I mean:

(Artwork from Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn Memorial Book Tellius Recollection: The Second Volume)

I won't deny that the Resplendent skin is magnificent and gave me the last push-up to play her home game after a long time and learn more about her, but I could see what kind of character she is and what makes her truly special... true, she's not my "best girl" (see PFP) but I still hold her dear as if she was almost high up there. And it's said that "nothing beats the original", so I certainly love her original design.

Here's a little showcase of the other two variants of her I have, I'm missing only her Bridal alt and the possible Legendary one coming later in this month, but here are them:

I love all her official art and how it manages to bring out her friendliness and tender side.

I'm so glad that so far, I've lucked out well with her IVs save her Hoshidan Summer alt, and she appeared randomly when pulling for others most of the time, so it's great to have her now, even as-is.

Her Brave variant from 2019 should be getting a refine next month or any time for the remainder of 2021, I know it'll be good but I would already love to know what it'll do before I give her anything else.

...

And here ends my appreciation post and optional read, if you've made it this far, thank you so much for reading, it means a lot to me if you've come to enjoy it.

[aion-rsa]

Superman & Lois Episode 5 Review: The Best of Smallville

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This Superman & Lois review contains spoilers.

Superman and Lois Episode 5

This is the first episode of Superman & Lois that maybe felt like it was spinning its wheels a little. To be fair, this entire season has been unfolding at what can best be described as a deliberate pace. It’s an understandable decision since the entire concept of this show is meant to take fans of the Superman mythos pretty far out of their comfort zones, so there’s still a lot of heavy lifting that has to get done each week, especially as we get used to the Kent family, the Cushings, the history of Smallville, and more.

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That isn’t to say that “The Best of Smallville” is a bad episode, or a boring one, or even a rote one (it’s way too early for this show to have any kind of real episodic “formula,” other than those big reveals that it saves for the final moments each week). If anything, this shakes things up a little by adding flashbacks to Clark’s teenage years at key moments in the episode. And those, just like everything else relating to Clark’s history on this show, are handled with real care and reverence for everything that has come before. But I can’t help but feel that several of the beats we get in this episode, from Jonathan continuing to lose to the troubled home life of the Cushings, is stuff we’ve already been getting in previous episodes, all while the Morgan Edge story continues to just kind of lurk around the outskirts, just like the character himself.

Fortunately, this is Superman & Lois we’re talking about, and this show’s core four (not to mention its terrific supporting characters) make every moment worth watching. I have already written endlessly about how truly endearing Tyler Hoechlin’s Clark Kent is, and I’ll continue to do so. But there’s one thing Hoechlin does with Clark that I’m not sure I’ve ever seen another Superman actor do quite as effectively, and that’s how he makes Clark’s uncoolness not a put-on or an affectation, but as a genuine component of the “real” Clark Kent.

It’s hard to explain, but hang with me for a minute. It’s generally assumed that any time Clark is being “uncool” or overly earnest about something, it’s part of his “disguise.” And with many actors, especially the legendarily perfect Christopher Reeve, that was absolutely the case. The key to a truly great Clark performance always seems to come in the moments when he lets his guard down, and you realize that this is the “real” person, not the “Clark who has to pretend he isn’t Superman” shine through. Hoechlin does this effortlessly, and as dad-cringe as his entire opening enthusiasm about the Smallville Harvest Festival is, it’s real. He doesn’t have to fake this for his family, it’s really who he is. It’s great and I don’t know how many other leading man types who have played this role over the last 20 years or so who could actually pull this off so easily.

Anyway, that was quite a digression. Sorry about that.

I singled out Jonathan’s struggles this episode for some mild criticism above, if only because we’ve been watching this kid’s life unravel pretty much since the first episode. It is, perhaps, a little TOO convenient that he gets dumped by phone the same moment his brother is setting up his first ever date. And maybe this is the kind of thing they could have saved another episode or so instead of letting it come so soon on the heels of his football struggles.

But both of these kids are just so damn good that it’s tough to fault it. Jordan Elsass makes Jonathan perhaps the most likeable character on this show, even when he should be (as Sarah points out) a completely insufferable jerk. I know there’s speculation out there that Jonathan will be driven to villainy by his pretty ordinary teenage struggles, and I just don’t see it happening. These are both good kids, and even when they screw up, it’s pretty clear that their heads are screwed on straight. I’d just like to see Jonathan catch a break soon, though.

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They’re definitely playing the long game with Jordan, too, and Alex Garfin manages to imbue him with the almost wild-eyed wonder of someone who really just can’t believe his good luck…all without either lording it over or condescending to his suddenly unlucky brother. I’ve always felt that empathy is a secret Kent superpower, and Jordan’s got that by the boatload.

Lois and Chrissy are a surprisingly delightful pairing, and so far this show has managed to resist the rest of the Arrowverse’s tendency to “do a journalism” here, even as we see these two starting to dig a little deeper into whatever Morgan Edge is up to. Still, the fact that Lois literally can’t even write for the Smallville Gazette at the moment isn’t doing my or anyone else’s misgivings that they’re sidelining her any favors. It’s great to see Lois in these other contexts, and Elizabeth Tulloch is nothing short of the best screen Lois this century, but I can’t help but think that there’s something being missed with her story so far. (That being said, her thoroughly annoyed “go faster” to the boys at the Harvest Festival was a terrific, and intimidating fun moment.)

Those flashback sequences, though! Just as I love it that Jon, Jordan, and Sarah are all actually believable as teenagers (coughSmallvillecough), I like that they fully leaned into awkward 15-16 year old beanpole Clark and not some already filled out heartthrob type. Clark leaving home THIS early feels like a slightly new wrinkle for the Superman mythos overall, and I’m especially interested in seeing if we’ll see how some of this developed down the road.

I look forward to seeing Wolé Parks’ Captain Luthor continue to develop, but it would be nice to see if they give him enough screen time soon to give us anything beyond “seething, barely contained rage.” I’m also very curious to see if there’s any nuance they can build into his Lois twist, so that she doesn’t just become another object of fixation for the character. Similarly, it’s time for this story to show us a little more of its hand with the Morgan Edge/X-Kryptonite stuff, because sometimes a slow burn is just a fizzle, y’know?

I appreciate this show’s commitment to its family drama first storytelling, and I get that if we show Superman in action too much it will a) not be as special and b) eat up the FX budget so the moments we DO get won’t look quite as good. But I’d like to see a little more, and I certainly hope that more of Superman’s rogues’ gallery becomes open for business at some point. Yes, I get it, so many of those were utilized on Supergirl already, and I don’t want this show to fall prey to the “villain of the week” tedium that The Flash occasionally slips in to. I’m sure there’s some middle ground that won’t lose what makes this show stand out from its peers.

Metropolis Mailbag

Right out of the gate in this episode we learn that Smallville was established in 1949. It certainly was! While it was clear early in the Superman mythos that he wasn’t from Metropolis, and had grown up on a farm, and Superboy was established as a character in 1945, it wasn’t until 1949 that Clark’s hometown actually got it’s name, in the pages of Superboy #2.

Martha Kent giving Clark the sunstone crystal is a new one. Usually, so much of Clark learning about his heritage is tied exclusively to his father(s). Either the crystal itself calls to him (in which case, it’s Jor-El) or it’s Jonathan telling him the story of how he was found. This is the first time I can think of where it’s Martha really speeding Clark along on his journey to becoming Superman, and it’s about damn time.

On that note, their conversation about Clark being “sent here for a reason” is very much a nod to Glenn Ford’s Pa Kent talking to Jeff East’s young Clark in Superman: The Movie.

I assume he’s leaving here because the sunstone crystal told him to head north so it can build the Fortress of Solitude, but let’s ALSO not forget that Supergirl established early on that Clark was a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes in the future, so…this might be the time!

Spot anything I missed with these Superman Easter eggs? Let me know in the comments!

The post Superman & Lois Episode 5 Review: The Best of Smallville appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/31b6lyu

[boukenboy]

#16: アンジェリーク 魔恋の六騎士 / Angelique: Maren no Rokukishi

Angelique: Maren no Rokukishi was a visual novel released by Koei in collaboration with Otomate, a developer of many otome games within Japan. It follows the story of Teresa, a young girl whose parents went missing when she was very young. She lives in the city of Siva with her adoptive family - an unnamed grandmother and her annoying brother, Renaud. After hearing strange rumors about a series of kidnappings within the city, she falls victim to a masked assailant later that night, only to wake up in her room a day later with no recollection of what had happened to her. Read on for drama!

Her brother disappears too, and Teresa beings to desperately search for the boy. She soon finds him within the company of a band of traveling mercenaries. She pleads for him to return, but Renaud refuses, pledging his loyalty to the captain of the mysterious group, Leviath. Faced with a lack of options and her brother's stubborn reluctance to return home, she begs the one-eyed weirdo to serve as his assistant, as Renaud is prone to exhaustion and illness. He agrees, and soon Teresa finds herself on an interstellar adventure, supporting the knights as they serve various clients.

Maren no Rokukishi focuses on the nature of war. When is violence justified? Is it worth it? Do the ends always justify the means? The game explores all of these at some point, and overall, its surprisingly cynical and dark, in a sharp contrast to the colorful art direction. Family ties are broken, betrayals abound, and the action sequences are surprisingly well-written. There are sections in Maren that I found myself completely absorbed in the writing - despite being the type to skim fight-scenes, especially those written in a language that I am not a native speaker of.

Unfortunately, most of the above happens in the final hours of the main route - the rest is simply not that interesting, primarily due to the focus on Renaud. So much of Maren revolves around him, and quite frankly, he is easily the worst member of the cast. Renaud is whiny, naïve, occasionally bratty, and has an incredibly irritating voice. He collapses at the slightest bit of effort, and yet everybody in the cast dotes on him and sees zero no issue with letting him lead his own army. Make no mistake, this is not Teresa's story. It is his.

When you're not experiencing Renaud's latest temper tantrum, depressive episode, or fainting spell, you'll be treated to amusing slice-of-life vignettes of Teresa adjusting to a mercenary lifestyle. You'll be harassed by a drunk, attacked by bandits, threatened with your life at the slightest suspicion, and so forth. Like I said earlier, Maren really only picks up in the final hours, where the shit hits the proverbial fan and characters start dropping like flies. The ending is honestly shocking in how far it plunges into campy tragedy - think Game of Thrones, but actually entertaining. I said what I said.

Thankfully, the other routes solve the Renaud issue entirely. But there is a caveat: in order to unlock these routes, you have to complete the main story first. I am of two minds about this feature. On one hand, I think its interesting that the designers have you experience their fantasy epic before allowing the player to romance their favorite knight, but on the other, I don't think that Maren's "canon" story is strong enough to justify it - there's just too much focus on one character, and he's not even remotely likeable. I did some research before writing this game, and found someone who agreed with me, saying, roughly translated from memory, "...but there was too much Renaud, so I'm taking off a star."

The individual routes are much stronger. My favorite of those that I've played was Giovanni - he's basically the ultimate twink: a hard-drinking, gambling, blackmailing scammer who loves trouble. His route is very light-hearted, which was a welcome relief from the drama present throughout the rest of the game, and his playful nature reminds me a bit of a particular ex of mine, so I'm naturally a bit biased. The main conflict in his route occurs during their second date: he carefully arranges a luxurious all-day experience with Teresa. They go to the opera! He gives her a new dress! A fancy restaurant! Flowers! It's amazing!

It is then revealed that he was able to go to such excesses because he scammed rich people out of their money. Teresa, for whatever reason, is appalled at this, and basically tears him apart, making a huge scene in public, even - and I was completely dumbfounded. This might be a bit too political for a gaming blog, but I personally would have no issue with someone I am interested in romantically treating me to a five-star experience through some rich asshole's money. They'll be fine, they're rich - who cares? It would be one thing if he was beating up orphans in the street, but Giovanni only targets those who can afford a little blackmail. He is the ideal husband. Teresa should deal with it.

Kiefer's route was incredibly moving, albeit in a more personal way - this blonde mad lad is absolutely insane, and for a good part of the story, Teresa is left unsure as to whether or not he wants to love her or kill her. With most characters of this type, they quickly warm up to you, but Kiefer is different: if Teresa expresses even something even slightly disagreeable in his mind, he would not hesitate to slaughter her on the spot. He is also the character I'm most attracted to, and that says a lot about me and I don't want to talk about it.

As I said earlier, Maren has a streak of denying the supposed inherent value of family, and there is no greater example of this than in his route: Kiefer kills his brother, an adorable himbo struggling to adjust to high society, in cold-blood, and then attempts to do the same with his father, who, as we find out, tended to dote on his twin-brother. As someone who has been disowned by my own family, Kiefer's rage resonated with me. We, as children, take in our parent's biases, for better or worse, and when we cannot live up to them, it creates a disconnect. I have not spoken to my family in nearly five years. I could understand and identify with Kiefer's rage. I wouldn't go as far as to kill my own family, but who knows what would have happened should I not have left my home town?

I did not know this when I first began playing Maren, but the game is an adaption of a light novel released after Angelique: Tenkuu no Requiem, which is itself an RPG spin-off of Angelique Special 2. This makes Maren a spin-off of a spin-off, but despite that, I still had plenty of fun with the game - I just wish the main route was realized a bit better. I usually like to replay certain routes to better formulate my opinions, but Maren focuses entirely too much on a character I could not stand. I'd definitely recommend this to fans of Angelique, particularly the sequels mentioned above, as I'm sure the game contains all sorts of references to the source materials, but on its own, it's a bit lacking overall. That being said, as much as Maren lacks, there are certain scenes that were so well-done that I found myself genuinely moved. It's an uneven experience, but one worth looking into!

[dorminchu]

It’s been over a year. I am almost ready to subject myself to several hours of emotional exhaustion via mood whiplash  watch Mr. Robot again. Almost. Honestly I could re-watch the pilot episode like, seven more times and enjoy myself just as much. It’s probably just a homing pattern but in my mind it beats dealing with the semi-rough start in subsequent episodes of season 1 and having to face up to the fact the show is not as smooth as I remember it being. What do I mean by this? Uhh.... Without getting into too many spoilers,

There are some pretty cringy lines (okay Sam Esmail we get it you are not fond of bureaucrats, can you make Terry Colby a little less cartoonish thanks).

Most of the main characters are coming into their own and thus kind of grating. Angela is a little annoying but at least you get who she is. Darlene is REALLY annoying and her personality isn’t as defined yet so it’s just... ugh.

I might get some flack for this. Elliot (and Mr Robot) are fun to watch but they’re also kind of insufferable. If you already don’t like Elliot I would imagine you’re probably not going to have fun in Season 2. The problem is that he won’t EXPLAIN ANYTHING, then he gets mad at the fourth wall when these plot twists start coming. In hindsight it makes sense, and you understand other characters’ frustration with him, but it’s not any less of a crutch from a narrative perspective to keep leaning on his unreliability (and it really hurts some of the twists in later seasons IMO). I would consider his unreliable narration a double edged sword, cool in concept but one of the weaker aspects of the show’s narrative. But he gets to do a lot of cool stuff in season 2 + 3 so I can’t complain too much.

Krista, Tyrell, Tyrell’s wife, Whiterose and Vera (and Gideon!) are the only characters I don’t recall being very grating. Shayla, too. The other characters sort of come into their own as the series progresses.

The scene with Tyrell on the roof is so bad it gets its own spot. Seriously. That is the worst scene in the whole show. Why is it shot the way it is? Why is the music so CHEESY?? I get Tyrell’s having an arc, I don’t mind that, but jeez the execution is so unlike everything else in the show, it’s not clean or interesting to look at. Falling action that results from this is pretty solid though.

Okay enough griping. What DO I like?

The whole pilot. special mention to Elliot’s “fuck society!” monologue.

Vera. Just... Vera. His brother is a good addition too.

Tyrell was my favorite character in season 1. He’s just so desperate to prove himself yet everyone seems to see him for what he is. It’s a great dichotomy between preserving and losing control. His wife is something else!

While Elliot’s not necessarily the most likeable character (especially later on, but that’s what I appreciate about him) he is pretty easy to understand, in a deceptively simple way. This gets built upon continuously as the series goes on but for now, he’s interesting to watch in action.

Episode 4--the trip to the drug house, dream sequence and awakening.

Episode 8′s surreal confrontation at the window that has a lot more meaning in hindsight. One of the better pieces of foreshadowing overall imo. Same with the pier in Episode 2.

Shayla offers a more humanistic connection and gives way to a side of Elliot we don’t often see. It’s nice to watch him reach out a little.

Angela’s arc post-Colby is pretty neat. The shoe scene is another one of my favorites and the point where I started to like her a lot.

“I just wanted to save the world.” cue Where is My Mind :0

[tallstales]

Day 4 Books (13 Days of Halloween)

There are so many books perfect for reading in the fall. Many people read with Halloween in mind at this time of year and I happen to be one of them from about July through mid November. At this time of year, we gravitate towards Stephen King and now Joe Hill or the latest big name. Sometimes we forget about the classics that started it all or we don’t think to look in our own backyard for new favorites.

Today I’m going to share a list of 13 of my favorite spooky classics mixed in with brand new hits on my to read list. And as a bonus, I’m including a list of Rhode Island authors of Supernatural fiction, Mysteries, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Horror, Thriller, and more to keep you enthralled as we get closer to Halloween.

Let’s check them out!

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

For those who know me well, they know the special love I have for The haunting of Hill House. Last year I even got the crazy opportunity to direct the play at the Rhode Island Stage Ensemble because they knew of my crazy obsession. I might talk about this book too much. That being said, I will keep it brief today. Read it! Go! No, you have not experienced it through Netflix or even the play. They’re wonderful, amazing interpretations, but they are very different.

To truly know Hill House and the people staying there to study it, you need to read this book and get trapped in the mind of its not quite reliable narrator.

The Turn of the Screw by Henry James

Speaking of Netflix, on this list is another psychological haunted house thriller that has just been made into a streaming hit in The Haunting of Bly Manor.

The Turn of the Screw is a short but not so sweet story with an atmosphere of slowly growing tension. This is a great quick read for a rainy day home alone to get your nerves just the right amount of frayed for when the trick or treaters start knocking.

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Another classic is the travelogue Dracula! With any other title, people would question how a travel journal could be scary, but Dracula needs no introduction. If anything, time and popular culture has added so much to this story that when we go back and look at the original tale we are terrified all over again by the simplicity of atmosphere and characterization over props, costumes, and all the other added layers.

There’s a scary bit of truth to this tale as well, one that even connects back to Rhode Island! Did you know that Bram Stoker was inspired by the story of Mercy Brown? Yes, news of her tragedy and horrific exhumation made it all the way to London! Stay tuned this week for our 13 Haunted RI Tales for more on Mercy.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

While we’re in the Victorian Era and talking about classic monsters, we can’t forget about Frankenstein’s monster! This is another one that’s been taken apart and put back together by so many different writers, directors, and actors that we forget how terrifying the original is.

What really makes this story stand the test of time even past the language changes that can make other stories written in the same period slog along, is Shelley’s understanding of human nature.

We all question the meaning of life and death and Frankenstein has a way of helping our imagination come up with the most terrifying answers.

Edgar Allan Poe

How could we discuss Horror classics without the twisted tales of Edgar Allan Poe? I can’t even pick a single story to discuss for this list, just trust me and get a collection of his stories if you don’t already own one. You won’t be disappointed.

Haunted houses? Evil animals? Disease? Death? Human Nature? Poe has covered all of the best horror tropes and even invented a few himself. If I had to choose a favorite to start with… one that sticks with me and makes me shudder to even think about is The Lighthouse. It’s the rats. They get me everytime and unlike the suspense they bring in The Pit and the Pendulum, the rats in The Lighthouse just bring terror and an overall sense of disgust. Happy reading!

His Hideous Heart Edited by Dahlia Adler

While we’re on the subject of the laste, great E.A.P. I bring you a fairly recent edition to his fandom.

His Hideous Heart is an anthology put together by 13 well known YA authors for a new, contemporary audience. Edgar Allan Poe may be gone, but his works and their themes have stayed with us and in our classrooms with a love their surprising and unsettling nature.

Contributors include Dahlia Adler (reimagining “Ligeia”), Kendare Blake (“Metzengerstein”), Rin Chupeco (“The Murders in the Rue Morgue”), Lamar Giles (“The Oval Portrait”), Tessa Gratton (“Annabel Lee”), Tiffany D. Jackson (“The Cask of Amontillado”), Stephanie Kuehn (“The Tell-Tale Heart”), Emily Lloyd-Jones (“The Purloined Letter”), amanda lovelace (“The Raven”), Hillary Monahan (“The Masque of the Red Death”), Marieke Nijkamp (“Hop-Frog”), Caleb Roehrig (“The Pit and the Pendulum”), and Fran Wilde (“The Fall of the House of Usher”).

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

Continuing to move forward in time, I find myself thinking of Ray Bradbury. Bradbury has a wonderful way of slowly seeping discontent into the reader but with Something Wicked he seems to put pedal to the metal.

This is the only book on my list to feature a nightmarish carnival and Bradbury might be why. I somehow walked away without a fear of clowns or carnivals but reading about them… still gives me the heebie jeebies. Now that I think about it, this book might have something to do with why mirrors creep me out too.

Readers be warned. Something Wicked This Way Comes has all the marks of a beautifully written coming of age tale, but the themes stick with you like a shadow well into adulthood.

House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

If you haven’t read this book, you have definitely heard of it. That book with the weird typography, with the backwards words and print in the margins and all that weird stuff? Yes, it’s House of Leaves and “all that weird stuff” makes for one exciting and unsettling ride. People I give this book two either firmly LOVE it or HATE it, but I recommend it today because 8 out of 10 are on the love side and passing around their copies to others because it’s hard not too.

As you read, you follow two stories. The main story is about the Navidson family moving into a new home where some very strange things begin to happen. The second story takes place in the footnotes where we follow a man named Johnny as he finds, reads and obsesses over the first story which is referred to in the book as The Navidson Record. Now, I have set out with the mission of not spoiling anything for anyone today, especially since most the books on this list are of the thriller or suspense genre so I will stop here, but know I really, really want to tell you everything that happens and everything I think of it! Go read this crazy work of art and message me. We’ll talk.

Twelve Nights at Rotter House by J.W. Ocker

I said it earlier and I’ll say it again, I have a soft spot for a good haunted house. Now, haunted by people or haunted by spirits… I think both are the best kind. Those who have started reading my series The Monsters Within can probably guess that I love the “Humans are the Monsters” horror trope. And, well, nothing brings out the monsters in humans faster than the particular fear that comes with staying in a haunted house. Or at least, a house perceived to be haunted where your mind can play such glorious tricks on you.

Twelve Nights at Rotter House is admittedly slow to start, but I like and recommend this title because that slow pace is there for a reason. We get comfortable when nothing much is happening, when the pace is slow and friendly. I think it makes everything that comes next that much more exciting. Give it a chance and let me know what you think.

The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher

The Twisted Ones is a delicious cocktail of Suspense, Thriller, Horror fiction, Psychological Fiction, Occult Fiction. It’s everything I wanted M. Night Shyamalan’s The Village to be when the trailers came out back in 2004 and everything it wasn’t for me. Add into it the the main character is cleaning a hoarder’s house in the woods… yeah! Sold, this is creepy and gross and sets off all my alarms, I’m reading it with ALL the lights on.

And somehow, through not being able to put it down and finding myself breathlessly speed reading , I still found time to laugh. There are these little gems in the main character’s personality and the story telling that are so relatable and likeable that it adds an effortless humor on top of the effortless horror. This is the only work I’ve read by this author, but she is absolutely on my follow list and I hope she makes yours as well.

Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

Some might recognise the name Leigh Bardugo from popular YA fantasies but fear not (or do for that matter) Bardugo can write the hell out of terrifying adult themes. Ninth House is almost impossible to out down in its fast paced, constantly twisting and turning mystery and terrifying ghost story.

[Now, I feel the need to mention before we move on that this is an award winning piece and it is loved by too many to count, BUT if you are on my blog then you may be here because I write about mental health and mental illness and all the emotions dark and light that come with psychology. I try my best to do so in an educated and realistic way that relates back to what I’m going through with good intentions. I try my absolute best to write realistically without including triggers. That being said, as someone who has mental health issues, this story did trigger me. Did I still enjoy the read and do I think you would too, absolutely! I wouldn’t have it on my list otherwise. But if you have anxiety, depression, ptsd, or are overcoming assault you may want to do some further research into the adult topics of this novel before reading. Please feel free to ask questions or leave comments regarding this topic. Thank you.]

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix

Moving into this year’s releases there is the ever popular The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires. This is another one that seamlessly works in some brilliant comedy into the spooky plot.

Some have compared this to Fried Green Tomatoes and Steel Magnolias meet Dracula and I’d just like to throw in Buffy the Vampire Slayer as the cherry on that brilliant summary sundae.

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth

I had the pleasure of studying under Emily Danforth while going after my BA in Writing at Rhode Island College. At that point, she had just published The Miseducation of Cameron Post and I was completely enamored. That being said, I have kept up with her writing and oh man am I glad because Plain Bad Heroines was GREAT!

There are so few great additions to their horror genre that I just want to paste gold stars all over this beautifully written, funny, sexy, and utterly disturbing coming of age hit. I hope you love it as much as I did and if you do, be sure to review! This book is brand spanking new and new book sales depend on reviews to help audiences find them. Get out there and post what you liked or even what you didn’t about everything you read. In the end, even negative reviews help new readers find something they will enjoy.

Supernatural/Paranormal

Lorne J. Therrian Sr.

Jeanine Duval Spikes

Alexander Smith

Elizabeth Splaine

D. R. Perry

Sheryl Lynn Kimball

Lisa Jacob

Paul & Ben Eno

Christine Depetrillo

Roland Comtois

Daniel Cano

J. C. Brown

Horror

Alexander Smith 

H.P. Lovecraft Lisa Jacob

Christa Carmen

Science Fiction

Rachel Menard

Tabitha Lord

R. K. Bentley

Fantasy

J. Michael Squatrito, Jr.

Lorne J. Therrian Sr.

Angelina Singer

Scott William Simmons

C. K. Sholly

Heather Rigney

Rachel Menard

Paul Magnan

M. A. Guglielmo

Heather Dunn

Susan Catalano

A. Keith Carreiro

Daniel Cano

Noel Anne Brennan

Tim Baird

Mystery

Anne-Marie Sutton

Elizabeth Splaine

Dusty Pembroke

Risa Nyman

Rick Marchetti

Jean Kelly

Sam Kafrissen

Ilhy

Daniel Currier

Judy Boss

Julien Ayotte

Thriller

Heather Rigney

Glede Browne

Judy Boss

David Boiani

David Aiello

DON’T FORGET TO COMMENT BELOW!

13 DAYS OF HALLOWEEN IS A SPECIAL TREAT FOR ME AND MY READERS. ON HALLOWEEN, THERE WILL BE A VERY SPECIAL GIVEAWAY I’D LOVE FOR YOU TO TAKE PART IN. ALL YOU HAVE TO DO TO ENTER IS COMMENT OR SHARE THIS POST TO YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA.

THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING AND BEST OF LUCK!

[timeagainreviews]

A Loch back at a Zygon Era

Hello friends! I've had quite the week! Monday was my birthday, so my boyfriend and I took a road trip around Scotland. We saw lots of things from the Beatrix Potter Garden in Birnam, to the Cave of Caerbannog from Monty Python, to the Devil's Pulpit in Dumgoyne. But our main destination was Loch Ness! We settled into our hotel by watching "Terror of the Zygons," which seemed appropriate considering our surroundings. Naturally, I decided to review it here. Before I do, however, I would like to thank all of you who have been liking and reblogging my stuff lately. It means a lot to know I'm connecting with people. Thank you for your support!

On the surface, "Terror of the Zygons," appears to be just like any other serial of its era. However, if you do a bit of digging, you'll discover that there are some interesting facts about its production. Did you know that there was a sort of "real-world," tie in with the story? No, I don't mean Nessie. Think closer to Mickey Mouse. In 1975, Tom Baker played the Doctor for the August "Disney Time," bank holiday special. After introducing several clips from Disney films, he is called away by the Brigadier to the events of Terror of the Zygons. I can't help but wish this information was known to me before writing my Doctor Who and Disney article! You can watch the clips on youtube. They feature Tom being suitably bizarre.

Along with having an unusual prequel, the story also had a deleted scene from the beginning which was later colourised by YouTuber "babelcolour," for the DVD release. This edited version is the one I rewatched for today's review. The scene begins with the TARDIS materialising invisibly. The Doctor walks out from nothingness, wearing a matching tartan tam and scarf, replacing his usual fedora and scarf. Not far behind are Sarah Jane and Harry Sullivan wearing said hat and scarf respectively. There's something rather humorous about the Doctor using his companions as human hat racks. Considering Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart's name, it seems appropriate that the Doctor is sporting the Royal Stewart tartan. I can't help but wonder if the costume department did this on purpose. After rematerialising the TARDIS to "fix," it back to it's usual broken police box state, the three continue their journey to answer the Brigadier's Disney Time summons. It seems an oil rig off the coast of Scotland has crashed into the sea just shortly after having lost radio contact.

After hitching a ride from the eccentric Duke of Forgill, the three meet up with a kilted Brigadier in a small Scottish inn where the landlord, Angus, plays bagpipes ad nauseam. They're really driving the Scottish shit home, which makes sense when you consider they filmed the episode in Sussex. Also gathered at the inn are Sergeant Benton, various UNIT soldiers, and a man from the oil company named Huckle. The Duke has some curt words with Huckle, informing him that any crewmen found on his land will be shot. After leaving in a huff, we see one of these crewmen wash ashore, seemingly alive. Over the past month, three different rigs have all met their demise. The gang splits up Scooby-Doo style. Dr Harry goes off to check on the injured crewmen, while Sarah stays behind to get the scoop from the locals. And the Doctor goes off to be the Doctor.

Back at the inn, Sarah mentions the odd nature of the Duke to Angus who promptly defends the duke as a good man. However, even he has to admit that the Duke has been acting strangely since the oil companies came. After letting go most of his servants, the only real bit of interaction he's had lately was gifting the inn with a goofy looking stag head. Nowadays the Duke keeps mostly to himself at Forgill Castle. The surrounding area of Tulloch Moor seems steeped in mystery. People go missing as the mist comes in, Angus tells Sarah as they're being spied upon from a distance. Eavesdropping in on the conversation over a veiny, bio-mechanical screen, an unknown figure watches from the shadows.

While driving alone, Harry spots the washed-up man from the rig and jumps out to help him. Believing him to be yet another trespasser, a beardy fellow by the name of Caber shoots the survivor and wings Harry across his brow, rendering him unconscious. Back in the bio-mechanical ship, alien villains twist and caress a fleshy panel in the weirdest form of nipple play ever seen on Doctor Who, causing the destruction of another oil rig near Ben Nevis. While trying to decipher the signal that has been jamming the oil rigs' radios, the Doctor learns of Harry's brush with death.

After checking on Harry, the Doctor goes out to inspect the oil rig wreckage where he discovers strange holes in the foundation. After taking a cast of the holes with plaster of Paris, the cast reveals what looks like the shape of an impossibly large sharp tooth. During a call with the Doctor, Sarah is attacked by the previously seen alien hand, which belongs to none other than a fearsome Zygon! I've always loved their design, especially in this scene. Something about the shape of its mouth is particularly disturbing. I was slightly disappointed about the redesign from the new series. I'm a big fan of the Zygon cat nose. I almost named one of my cats Zygon due to his dark orange fur and similar nose shape, but my partner at the time vetoed that idea. I named him Rory instead.

After discovering both Harry and Sarah missing, the Doctor discovers Sarah in a decompression room for divers, the door slightly ajar. I was annoyed by the fact that the Doctor fell for such an obvious trap, but it also led to an intriguing sequence. Harry's nurse, Sister Lamont, closes the heavy door behind the Doctor and seals it shut for decompression. Running out of air, the Doctor hypnotises Sarah and enters into a trance to conserve air. I'm a big fan of any time the Doctor acts like a bit of a mystic. I'm a meditator myself, so it's cool to see the Doctor tap into the innate powers of thought control. One of the side effects of certain meditations is a slowing of breathing. It was nice that the scene doesn't overly explain this. It allows Tom the chance to really play up his weird alien charm as his eyes roll back and he howls toward the ceiling. Moments like these are why I love Tom Baker so much. He's not afraid of being utterly bizarre.

It's around this time we begin to learn a little about the Zygons. Having taken Harry to their ship, their leader, Broton, tells him a bit about their history. After they crash-landed centuries ago they awaited rescue while subsiding on the lactic fluid of their giant Nessie-like cyborg pet known as the Skarasen. That's correct, you did not misread that- they feed off of cyborg breast milk. Only with a show like Doctor Who can you get a sentence like that. You've kind of got to love that. After discovering their planet was destroyed by a cosmic event, they redirected their efforts toward getting their suckers on Earth. The Skarasen is to be the form of Earth's destructor, as no human weapon could hope to penetrate its augmented skin. In order to move their plan into motion, the Zygons gas the village, knocking the Brigadier and the UNIT soldiers out cold, thus allowing them to move in secret. Luckily for the Doctor and Sarah, Sergeant Benton was on the lookout for them where he saves them from death by asphyxiation.

After coming to, Huckle gives the Doctor a bio-emitter that attracts the Skarasen, which he found among the wreckage of the rig. Having bugged the inn, the Zygons reveal to Harry that they use the psychic imprint of humans in order to mimic their form. He sees the likes of Sister Lamont, Caber, and the Duke, stored in hibernation chambers, maintaining a link to their Zygon counterparts. They use Harry's form to slip back to the inn where they may fetch the emitter. But he is intercepted by Sarah who is concerned by his odd behaviour. She chases him into a barn where they scuffle in a manner that had me weirdly thinking of “Super Vixens.” Russ Meyer's Doctor Who is not something I ever expected to imagine. After a bit of trouble, Zygon Harry falls from a hayloft onto his own pitchfork, killing him instantly and revealing himself to Sarah as a Zygon. However, the crafty Zygons completely evaporate his remains to hide any evidence. I wondered why they didn't just do the same thing to the emitter in the first place, but I guess the answer is "it doesn't do that." Ok, sure, whatever. Now free from his psychic link with the Zygon, Harry is able to sneak about on their ship unabated.

After realising the Zygons were working from the shadows, the Doctor assumes they must have bugged the inn somewhere, so the lads go about searching the place from top to bottom. I love Angus' indignant response to the idea that his inn might have actual bugs. Angus Lennie's performance as Angus is a true highlight in the story. Afraid of the humans discovering that the goofy stag head must be the bug, the Zygons decide to send the Skarasen to rid themselves of these tiresome humans. After figuring out the secret of the emitter, the Doctor draws the Skarasen away from the village only to find it has fused itself to his hand. But Harry's meddling with the ship's systems allows the Doctor the ability to toss the emitter in the path of the Skarasen, destroying it in the process. 

The Doctor and friends meet up and go to Forgill Castle to ask permission to drop depth charges into Loch Ness, the source of the signal. Their hope is to draw the Zygons out. Meanwhile, the Sister Lamont Zygon goes to fetch the stag head and fights with Angus in the process, killing him. It's a sad ending for one of the more likeable characters, but it's also kind of wonderful in its simplicity. I never quite understood why the Zygons needed to turn people into electric balls of something I might pull out of my hairbrush, as they did in "The Zygon Invasion." If anything, I much prefer the updates they received in Mark Morris' "The Bodysnatchers." Using venom from their suckers matches their physiology far better than superpowers. Morris really fleshed out the Zygons in a way I wish the show would. Seeing them in their initial incarnation using brute force seems far more practical to me. I think sometimes, more is less.

After discovering a way into the Zygon ship, they save Harry, but the Zygons flee with the Doctor still onboard. The Doctor gets a wonderful opportunity to match wits with Broton in a speech that includes my all-time favourite Fourth Doctor line- "You can't rule the world in hiding. You've got to come out on to the balcony sometimes and wave a tentacle." Evidently, that line was ad-libbed by Tom Baker, only further solidifying my love for the man. He makes a good point though, the Zygons have mostly been working from the shadows, in secret. The Zygons fly away, masking their trail from UNIT, still hiding. I must admit, it's not abundantly clear what their plan actually is. Sure they intend to use the Skarasen against earth's weapons, but there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of explanation as to how the oil rigs play into everything. There's mention of turning the Earth into something more habitable for Zygons, but I'm honestly not sure. I asked my boyfriend what his impression was, and he couldn't quite figure it out either.

There's a lot of what happens at this point in the story that seems like happenstance. The UNIT crew and Sarah end up going to London, which also happens to be where the Zygons have set their next target. They plan to swim the Skarasen up the Thames to wreak havoc on Westminster Abbey. In my review for "Castrovalva," I mentioned how the Fourth Doctor's super-heroics were oftentimes overstated, and what comes next is nothing shy of extraordinary. After rigging some ventricle type wiring from within his cell, the Doctor uses his own body to complete the circuit, allowing UNIT to see past the Zygon's scramblers and pinpoint their location. I loved that it was Benton that did this, by the way. This was twice in one story where Benton got to play hero. They pinpoint the ship's location to be a disused quarry, which made me ugly cackle. Classic Doctor Who used quarries so often to make up an alien planet, that the idea of them saying "This actually is a quarry," seemed almost cheeky. Broton, thinking the Doctor has died, uses his Duke disguise once more to go plant another emitter in Westminster. After releasing the human captives aboard the Zygon ship, the Doctor sounds an alarm and sets off the self destruct killing the remaining Zygons onboard. Yay, murder!

The UNIT soldiers dispatch Broton after a fumbling fight scene between him, Harry, and Sarah. All the while, the Skarasen is working its way up the Thames. It's a brilliant little bit of puppetry mixed with stop motion animation that I found completely charming. Even if it does look a bit naff, it's effective enough to be a suitable set piece to end such an episode. It's very much within the tone of the story to have the Loch Ness monster stomping through London. The Doctor manages to trace the emitter and toss it into the open jaws of the Skarasen. It nom nom noms the emitter into nothingness, causing it to lose all interest in the Abbey. The Doctor casually supposes that it will most likely return to its home of Loch Ness. I loved that the show kept the Loch Ness mystery intact. After all is said and done, "Nessie," may still be out there. It wouldn't have felt right killing off a beloved cryptid that brings so much wonder to many. Such feelings of wonder are what Doctor Who thrives upon. Sadly, while we got to keep Nessie, we say goodbye to some regulars. This marks the last regular appearance of both the Brigadier and Harry. With the Doctor no longer relegated to the Earth, UNIT begins to play a much smaller role in the story. And Harry, now back in London, hasn't a lot of need to continue travelling with the Doctor. It's an almost unceremonious end of an era for Doctor Who.

All in all, I really enjoyed this story. While I feel like it somewhat falls apart in the final act, the mystery and intrigue in the first few episodes really draw you in. Even my boyfriend, who is a casual fan, was drawn in by the atmosphere. You can see the beginnings of what was to become the more horror-themed stories such as "The Talons of Weng-Chiang," or "The Horror of Fang Rock." The Zygons are, for me at least, a classic baddie. They may not be as popular or iconic as the Daleks or Cybermen, but I think they work as their own kind of threat. Bringing them back has also proven to be successful. The Big Finish audio "The Zygon Who Fell to Earth," is well worth a listen. There's a lot of care put into this story that I think makes it stand out from others. Geoffrey Burgon's beautifully haunting music was a nice change of pace from Dudley Simpson's usual work. The track "A Landing in Scotland," is particularly memorable. The Zygon ship interior being organic was a unique touch that we rarely see in Doctor Who, save for maybe "The Claws of Axos," and the model work was also pretty damn charming. Having recently been to both Loch Ness and Ben Nevis, it really added something to the experience as well. There is a surprisingly low amount of episodes that take place in Scotland, which is unfortunate. If there's anything this trip has taught me, is that Scotland has a lot to offer. There are so many peaks and valleys covered with lush greenery and deep dark waters. It's easy to imagine that somewhere, something is lurking down below. Hats off to Robert Banks Stewart and Robert Holmes for seeing this potential, and turning out something magical.

[mrepstein]

Daily Mirror - Monday, February 22, 1965

THE MAGNIFICENT 7

They’re a ten million pound supercargo: flying out today to make a new Beatles film in the sun

by DONALD ZEC

Pictures: ALISDAIR MACDONALD

Today, the most valuable human cargo in show business - £10,000,000 might start the bidding - will be air-lifted by special charter to the Bahamas. The Beatles, the mind-boggling phenomenon of the Western World, fly to Nassau to make their second film.

How do we arrive at this gigantic £10,000,000 price tag? By my own dazed ready reckoning, song writers John Lennon and Paul McCartney are already cosily installed in the millionaire enclosure. And Ringo and George, you will be relieved to know, are only a few coppers behind.

Daily, if not hourly, from darkest Africa to whitest Alaska, their music is backed by the rhythmical sound of cash jingling and jangling into a million cash registers.

CHASED

Never were four likeable and unassuming entertainers chased by so many dollars, yen, piastres, dirhams, francs, lire, pesos, marks, pounds shillings and pence.

To this Croesus-like cargo add the names of Walter Shenson, the film producer, and Dick Lester the director. As both these sought-after gents made the record-breaking “A Hard Day’s Night” you will not be called upon to slip them the price of a cup of coffee.

Total this up, the earnings current and potential from the film, records, live shows, investments and the like and what have you got?

You have a staggering airborne El Dorado cheered by all, begrudged by none.

Which brings me to the seventh VIP in our exclusive family portrait - Mr. Brian Epstein, the Beatles’ manager.

He is no less a phenomenon than the extraordinary foursome he manages.

POWER

At the age of thirty and in less than four years, he has emerged as one of the most powerful figures in world entertainment.

Every top showman, film tycoon, promoter, and sharp-eyed Johnny-come-lately is chasing Mr. Epstein by plane, phone, cable and special messenger.

QUIET

Clearly the world’s top agents, the cigar-biting Titans of the Ten Per Cent., first regarded this quiet, courteous negotiator as a fair push-over.

Knowing these characters myself, I can give you the dialogue:

“Who does this Limey think he is, anyway? When he comes in here I’m gonna lay it on the line, spell it out, wrap him up and goodbye Charlie.”

HERO

Five minutes with their well-dressed visitor had them back-tracking on their wall-to wall carpets. Swiftly, deftly, albeit pleasantly, our hero pinned their burning ears back.

I invited him out to dinner the other night for a closer look at this managerial mailed fist in the soft kid glove. He is intelligent, he is also a good-looking chap with wavy hair and light blue eyes.

TOUGH

If this image is a gentle one I must also tell you that he can be as tough as any of the characters who believe naively that they can call the shots.

He has to be. Never in the history of entertainment have so many clamoured, chased, cajoled and cadged after one genial male-voice quartet.

Twenty-four hours in the lively life of Mr. Epstein reveals him standing like Horatius on the brink, facing a horde of special pleaders with assorted demands for the Beatles to:

Shout… open… lend… drive… adopt… finance… support… present… invest… attend… and they can name their own price.”

Lesser men than Brian Epstein might have been tempted to milk the juicy coconut dry.

CASH

To cash in quick on this four-sided Klondike and retire gleefully with a fistful of millions.

But this is what he says: “Maybe there are managers who would have taken the boys and squeezed everything out of them. But that is not what I’m in business for.

“It seems everybody in the world has a great money-making scheme for the Beatles. But I’m only concerned with doing what is best for them. I’ve already been offered £3,000,000 for my share of them.

FRIENDS

“But I couldn’t sell. I wouldn’t sell, and anyway the boys wouldn’t let me. We’re friends and that’s it.”

In his apartment near Hyde Park - portraits of the Beatles face a glittering silver holster and gun, a present from Elvis Presley - Epstein said: “What I want to nail once and for all is the myth that I made them what they are… that I am responsible for their success. This is absolute nonsense. They are what they are, and nothing would have held them back.

LUXURY

“All this,” he added, glancing around his luxury apartment, “I owe to them. I didn’t make them. They made me, and you may quote me.”

He sells himself short. Sure he has pinned a hefty price tag on their services and promoted the Beatles into the Number One spot in the world’s top showplaces.

And if you wish to hire them, it saves time if you start talking in four figures and upwards. But with it all he has kept “the property” highly saleable, highly likeable, highly respectable.

Ask any top showman, from Ed Sullivan in New York to Bernard Delfont in London, who has confronted Brian Epstein and he will allow him his instant, if rueful, respect.

THANKS

And there is a hearty vote of thanks, too, from John, Paul, George and Ringo.

The plane, with its ten million pounds’ worth of human cargo, leaves early today.

Fans around the world - and the Stock Exchange - will wish it well.

[tiadash]

You and I

  Somethings I need to clarify before you start reading,this fanfic is based of the children's song :

Vrapcici-Ti i Ja

,it's a Russerb based fanfic(Russia x fem.Serbia) ,let me clarify i'm not Russian so the sentences might be wrong,but I tried my best to accurately translate them. The picture was drawn by my good friend @chick-hicks ,and thanks for my friend @ask-aph-kosovo

-thank you both so much,go check out their blogs!.

The characters(by name):

Ivan/Mr.Braginsky  -Russia

Vesna- Serbia

Ms.Irina - Ukraine

And lastly ,I suggest listening to this while you read :

Vrapčići - Ti i ja (karaoke)

Hope ya`ll enjoy!

____

School is a really interesting place when you think about it,you start of as everyone else does,at the beginning you hardly do anything,but you do a lot of very important things without even realizing it,not academically, of course-you`re just a kid, but rather socially. Think about it,we all meet our best friends at school ,we all go around and play with other kids ,and some of us meet our first crushes.

*

When the school bell rings I `d be the first one at school I hurried out to see those two blue eyes And then on the other hand ,they are the professors and profs. Then on the seventh heaven there would be me

*

It`s Vesna`s first day of going to elementary school,she joined the first grade just like most of her peers and she was very exited about it.

Now she was a first grader,and was feeling pretty proud of herself ,her mom  braided her long brown hair, dressed her up all nice in a red shirt,a blue skirt and white shoes. The only thing bugging the little brunette that day was that she was running late for school,what a day to oversleep !

Vesna ran out of her house and grabbed her bag,almost tripping as she ran in a haste ,after running for 30 minutes and she finally got to her school. But,to Vesna`s frustration she wasn't sure where to go ,she even wasn't sure how she was going to explain this to her parents'

Mum is gonna kill me,oh no no no no...'

as she got in the school she ran around trying to find her class room. But as she finds out,luck was not on her side that day. While she was running around the halls, a group of six graders were smoking by the windows,next to a

don't smoke

sign . Vesna being too much in a panic and distracted didn'

t notice the small group.She ran straight into them ,realizing that she made a mistake.

Vesna tried to stop herself but before she could properly react she stumbled into a very tall ashen blond boy,making her fall down and making him turn around. Vesna almost began to cry out of fear as she apologized profusely "

I'

m so sowwy, I didn't mean to! Please don`t hu-'' but to her shock and unfinished please the older boy confusingly smiled at her and picked her up.

''

Oh,hello! Are you lost,little one? Don'

t be scared ,I won`t hurt you,my name is Ivan,do you want to be friends, yes?'' -he said it so casually that it made the other kids around him cringe,she wasn't the only kid who got offered that on the first day,already they felt sorry for the little clumsy girl. Vesna taken aback by his lack of anger, feeling relived immediately  Vesna happily beamed '' Um...Yes! I wanna be your fwend!''

When those words left her lips the older kids all boggled at her,even the older blond boy who was holding her small frame did a double-take after hearing her words . Ivan put Vesna down ,not really sure of what he just heard''

...You do?...''

he asked uncertainly ,unknown to her, this was the first time anyone answered

yes

to his question.

Vesna smiled brightly and answered with a sweetly childish voice'' Yes, bre ! I don`t have friends yet,but you`re nice and didn't yell at me! My name is Vesna!'' all the things she said made Ivan blush just out of pure shock,to his sudden embarrassment it didn't help that she was a child saying that to him,a teenager. A second didn't pass and already the other kids couldn't contain their laughter. ''

Kesesese~ Ivan's got a girlfriend!

'' one said ''

I didn't know you liked them young,dude!''

and''

Ohoho! This is interesting,no? '

'

Ivan just stood there ,a blushing mess, Vesna didn't understand their teases, she was looking at the older boy so much that she started smiling like duff ,but quickly her smile disappeared as she remembered why she was even running.

'' Oh I forgot! I`m late! ...Goodbye Ivan! '' she didn't waste a second as she was back to running through the halls ,leaving the group of six graders to tease their flustered friend eventually Vesna found her classroom . She didn't even realize the impact of her words,but how could she? She was just a kid.

*

All A's and C's B's or D's I would give everything to love and so much more But she teases me and looking at my friend and doesn't give me a dime of attention You and me, you and me we would be a real great pair you and me, you and me Look at me at least once

*

After that strange encounter a couple of months had past,but even still, Vesna could not stop thinking about the older boy.Every thought was about him,how he smiled ,how kind he was-Oh how she idolized him '...He is  ...so kind...so pretty... so very nice...' especially in class,who even needs to learn the alphabet while there are more important things to know? A little grin had formed on Vesna's lips. ' Like Ivan!' Well...Vesna's mother first of thought so '' Vesna ! You are in the first grade-Why are you bringing me D's and C's!?''but her shortly-lived  grin disappeared as she  was back explaining the situation to her mother. '' But mama....! You don't understand....I told you!-I don't need school! I'm in lov-''but her explanation was cut short as she saw her mother taking of her shoes,something she did when she was about to beat her with it” No boys until you graduate !You need to study! I don’t want to see these grades-Was I clear!?Vesna!’’ when the shoe had been taken off  Vesna sprinted back to her room,ignoring the loud protests coming from her mother. The very next day was special ,Vesna was planning on  confessing  her feelings to Ivan. She had asked her teacher Ms. Irina on how to impress Ivan,seeing as how so, her teacher was Ivan’s older sister,so she gave a lot of  supporting ideas . The little brunette had spent the whole class drawing a sunflower,at Ms.Irena’s suggestion and support ,Vesna had finally mustered up the courage to confess .

But she  was still very shy’’ What do I do?! Miss Irina said that he likes the Sun and sunflowers ...’’  Vesna thought as she was walking through the empty halls ,she glanced at her drawing. A big Sun and a smiling sunflower  in the middle,she even got a big gold star on the back by her teacher for it. She hid the work of art behind her back as she approached the small group of teenagers ,conveniently for her,at the same place she had encountered them on her first day , by the don’t smoke sign.  The group quickly noticed her and  were already giving her strange looks. Vesna’s heart pumped so much that she was beginning to think that this was a big  mistake ‘Where is he? I shouldn't have come I should have just studied like the others-’ but her  doubtful thoughts disappeared as soon as she recognized him,he was actually sticking out like a sore thumb in the crowd.

Vesna quickly puffed her chest and walked up to  him “ This is for you Ivan!’’ she extended her arms up and handed him her drawing. Ivan ,now extremely confused became just as much flustered when he saw what she had given him “Eh?!’’ on the top of the page were badly spelled words ‘ You and I would make a great pair’(written like this ‘You and I wood maiyk a greet pear’). Vesna was expecting Ivan to be happy and maybe even accept her confession but the moment the other kids started to laugh at him,especially at her was the moment Ivan’s smile vanished. He looked at her ,at first a bit sadly,but then he began to chant a strange sound,something like:

’Kolkolkol-’which made the other kids around him immediately shut up. He looked down at her,an intimidating aura forming around him ‘‘What is this?... What is the meaning of this?’’ he moved closer but the little girl did not move from her spot ‘‘We don’t want kids who don’t play nice,right-?’’

She interrupted ’’But I like you! Don’t you like me?!’’ he stopped “It isn't nice to lie,little one.’’ Vesna denied it ‘‘ I like-no I love you! I’m not a liar!’’ as the L word was uttered the other teenagers continued to laugh and tease their friend. Did she do something ? Why was he looking down on her,so casually cruel ,with so much anger,what happened to that sweet smile that greeted Vesna on her first day of school?Even when he was picking on some of her friends he was more amused than this! She asked,unsure of what is currently happening around her.

’’W-what did I do wrong?I thought you wanted to be my friend…’’she was begging to tear up as she heard the words that were uttered from his lips,the way he was speaking sounded eerie as he was forcing those words out. ‘’I don’t want little bratty girl as my friend!’’ He was so upset that he crumbled up her drawing “ Go home and study ! Don’t waste your or mine time with these things!’’ and by the end of his statement she was already crying her eyes out. Vesna ,completely ashamed,ran back to her classroom,refusing to speak to anyone for the rest of the day. Well ,today was a failure but as she calmed down she thought ‘Who cares about the stupid grades...wait...no.’ another thought popped into her mind ‘ Maybe if I learned Russian he would like me better?...’she sighed,repeating the words her father would say when he was in trouble with her mother “ The things I do for love....’’ she said aloud and went to sleep. * He has  blue  eyes, a curl  on  the top of  his head he’s likeable and cute and has a freckled nose for him  I would give it all oh  only if I knew that I was worth to him at least a bit * However,despite Vesna's determination, it was clear as day that Ivan and his  rejection had taken it’s toll on her. While the other kids were learning  or playing games  she was sitting by herself ,every recess  she would have just sat by the window,staring through it and in all honesty  it was beginning to scare the hell out of her teacher and peers.She had been  so cheery thus far,but unknown to the rest of them,she felt broken. Is this what love feels like? ‘ Everyone says the that it feels so nice?...’then why,why does it hurt so much?  Her eyes started to tear up as she remembered how he smiled at her the first time’Why does my heart hurt when I think about him?’ Vesna placed a hand on her chest and sighed,  at the ripe age of 7 she had learned of heartbreak and concluded that life wasn't fair.  This idea of hers was only reinforced and some of her friends came into the classroom whining to their teacher. Two boys came in ,as soon as they stepped in they started to cry and complain  ‘Oh ...those are my buddies!’ Vesna thought as she looked at the scene in front of her. A   shaggy blond ,pale , red-eyed boy stood with a frown crying his eyes out,next to him also teary-eyes ,stood a slightly taller  boy with dark hair and  green eyes .

Miss Irina confronted the two boys ,getting down to their level and listening to their problems. But when Vesna heard what they were complaining about she wanted to slap them silly.  It turns out Ivan wanted to be friends with them,not their exact words but to her it was the same,and yet they had the audacity to decline?!

‘Those tattling traitors!’ She wanted to get up and knock some sense into them ‘ “Staring down with  ‘creepy purple eyes’ ?!’’ ‘ He has beautiful violet eyes!’ Vesna’s thoughts began to wander ‘ And a pretty big nose,silky hair..and a curl when the wind blows...he he~’ a sad smile was making it’s way to her face. Her tears had completely   dried up,she looked through the window like she always does,not really paying  attention to her friends anymore.

She saw him,again,with those kids who laugh at him. She might have been young but she saw that that  wasn't fair. And like before,she sighed again ‘ They’re so lucky...I wish I was worth to him at least a bit ,like , like they are to him-...!’but,without regard to her wishful thinking the bell rang,signifying the school day’s end. Grabbing her bag she stood up and went through the door’’ Already? Oh sweet!’’,but,what she failed to realize when she was by the window were two sad violet orbs looking  directly at her  from a far ,as she went so did they. * But when the school bell rings I ‘d be the first one at school I’d hurry out to see those two blue eye And then on the other hand ,they are professors and profs. Then on the seventh heaven there would be me * Some years had passed and Vesna was in her final year of high school ,now, being a senior she was more then ever motivated on finishing the school year with an 4.0 GPA.There was just one problem... Russian  ,her problem was Russian. For the past 3 years she had been the best in her class ,if she wasn't raised to act humble she would even brag ,for sure! But this year was different,the sweet old lady  that was teaching her class had decided to retire and a younger teacher came as her replacement.He was tall and handsome,a bit strange ,but still ,despite the friendly apperance he was extremely strict,well...at least to her.

She still wonders why though,she had the best marks in his class yet he still always had a comment about her work,he couldn't just give her some praise  like he did with the other kids when they got something right. It was always “Oh ! I am sure you will do better next time,yes,don’t worry!’’ however,now that she thinks about it,the kids might of just been too scared to even concentrate on work.Something she didn't understand even now ,she wasn't scared of him,maybe that got his attention?

She was more annoyed every time she heard his “professional opinion” ‘’Really Vesna,getting cocky ,I see?You made a  real obvious mistake,so young lady, you better start working harder!’’ and with a  little sickening  smile,she could swear that he was smirking every time  she made a mistake! Vesna could swear that she did it right but he always found something,even when she didn't write anything it’s like he added a mistake just to correct her. That’s what she thought anyway,she finished the test he gave her,then placed her head on the table and closed her eyes.

‘ Come on ‘Zvonko Spasiću’ ,just ring already...!’she was beginning to doze off ,finally relaxing after a while,that is,until a hand slammed itself right next to her head making her  look up in shock. She saw her teacher, Mr.Braginsky’s ever so cheerful face ,looking  down at her  ’’ No sleeping! “

Oh, how she wanted to scream at him but she concluded that would get her ass expelled so she  just frowned and explained ‘‘ I wasn't sleeping...I did my test already! ‘’  Mr.Braginsky raised his eyebrow in amusement “Really now ,sunflower,you did?’’ he took her test before she could think of a witty comeback. Not even 10 seconds after looking at her paper he smiled and put it behind his back “ Not good,you failed the test.’’

Not a second passed and she was beaming with anger,she stood up to face him,her rebellious  side coming out’’ What?! You didn't even look at my test,how could you know! I studied - I know I did it right ! Look at it agai-’’

He interrupted as if he knew what she was going to say “ No you did not. And  if you came to me and told me what you didn't know I could explain it to you,but here you are,arguing with the teacher! After school detention Vesna,don’t be late!’’ he said strictly and went back to his desk,taking her paper with him . To say Vesna was speechless was an understatement,she sat down and stared blankly at the wall ‘...Old man telling me  I have detention,more mrš’...!’ all she wanted was to have good grades and to  go to a nice college afterwards,was that too mush to ask? Was this God’s way of punishing her for something? Yeah ,she was left to ponder that for the rest of the day.

She got up and was always the first kid in school,when the bell rang she would be there ,and yet ,the first thing she would see was her Russian teacher. His purple eyes  infuriated her each morning ,greeting her with the usual .

‘’Доброе утро, Весна!’’ he always said,well if today he gives her a bad mark she will give him a piece of mind,at this point she could care less about her grade,just about his ‘‘special’’ treatment of her. *

You and I, you and I we would be a great pair you and I, you and I Look at me at least once * No getting out of it now,it’s the end of the day,Vesna was heading to her Russian teacher’s classroom ‘ Great....just great!’ as the other kids could go and have  a nice weekend she had to spend  her Friday in detention . She knocked and a familiar voice answered ’’Oткрыт!’’ Swallowing the lump in her throat Vesna  opened the door and went inside. She sat in the first row,looking at her teacher Mr. Braginsky who smiled at her in a nice and strangely calm manner  “ So glad you came Vesna! Usually,my pupils run away so I have to get them myself! Hahah~Thank you for saving me the trouble.’’ he said casually joking a bit. Vesna laughed  a little nervously ,what kind of a smile was that? She looked at him

’Well that’s a new  one....’Vesna sighed quietly and asked:

“Mr.Braginsky  I-’’ he chuckled loudly,interrupting her he said “ Oh,heh don’t use those pleasantries ,sunflower. You can call me Ivan!’’

Vesna was looking at him,not really sure if he was joking or not “ O-ok?...Ivan...I-I was wondering-’’  he laughed again cutting her off  “ You are so cute when you stutter,and  to think you sounded so angry with me today!’’

While he was smiling and laughing like he was having the time of his life, Vesna was looking at him extremely perplexed,Ivan noticed this  and smiled even more “ Oh sorry,I cut you off-what were you going to say,dear?’’ -Wow a new pet name? Was she dreaming or what? Why was he so nice all of a sudden? Vesna narrowed her brows .

“ I know that I studied for today’s test,why did I not pass it?’’  What he said next made her blood boil “You did  pass,without a mistake ,in fact.’’ . She wanted to get out of her seat and strangle this man,he made a complete fool out of her in front of her whole class! She was gonna give him a piece of her mind!

However “...W-what?....’’she stuttered out the word, sounding like she was about to cry. Ivan stretched his hand and patted her head “You did an excellent job ,sunflower!’’ Vesna was honestly muddle-headed at the moment ,if she did such an excellent job why did he say she failed? Vesna  looking utterly upset frowned and moved her head back.

“ Then why am I here!? I don’t understand...Why are you petting me? “ to this Ivan winked at her “How else was I going to get you to stay after school  on a Friday night ?-Hmm? Don’t worry , my sunflower,parents get notified when their kids get detention.’’ He was positively going to kill her ,Vesna thought ‘ Well,today’s the day I die.’ she mentally laughed ,as she honest to God thought. But ,instead of that,he put a crumbled up piece of paper on her desk and said “Tell me what you see,in Russian,dear.’’

The brunette looked down at the crumbled up piece of paper,it looked  like an old children’s drawing “  Это цветок...подсолнух, я думаю? ’’ Ivan smiled and nodded “And?’’ it was bit hard to distinguish the figures,but Vesna tried “За ним солнце?’’  Ivan clapped and laughed “Yes it is!’’ . This was  getting ridiculous ,he was making fun of her,yes! That’s it,why else would he  be asking these stupid questions and showing her bad kid’s art?

Ivan asked in a sing-song voice “ Do you know the artist?’’ how the hell would she know? She doesn't exactly hang out with kindergarteners in her spare time “Я не знаю!’’

Ivan grinned and explained “ She was a cute little girl,how I heard,very lazy in school but outside was very stubborn,she gave that to me but...I wasn't ready for it and I hurt her. You see it’s crumbled up,yes? Well I did that,I was ashamed ,but I realized something...’’ Ivan stood up from his seat “ She was just a little girl,she didn't know any better,what she gave me was really sweet and I hurt her,I did not even realize I that cruel!’’

His little story made Vesna feel a little sorry for him,this man who had been tormenting her since the beginning of the school year had opened up to her,yet it was extremely uncomfortable. She wanted to say  something but he continued,making his way to her “I will give you a question,you have to read it aloud and answer the question; if you answer correctly you will pass my class,deal? ’’

This sounded sketchy as hell but seeing as he was the only teacher she was having problems with she agreed “Я понимаю!’’ he brightly smiled and took a note out of his pocket, wrote down something and gave it to her.  She  quietly read it  ,then looked at him “...? Я не понимаю, что это?’’ . Ivan sighed and sat next to her,making Vesna flinch as he repeated what he wrote “ Mы были бы  крутой парой,не так ли?’’

Something about the way he looked at her , how happily  he said it,  was eerily familiar to her “Да? Эй...!?’’

A truly cheerful smile,which she rarely saw from him and a longing look in his eyes were all it took for her to connect all the dots ’Wait...No..no...no it can’t be him!’She gazed at him,becoming shy on the spot  “I-I-Ivan...?!’’ she asked bewildered as she looked away,losing the courage to even look him in the eyes,what kind of trickery is this?  He looked at her,not really happy she didn't properly answer.

The older blond put his arm around the younger brunette’s shoulder and made her turn to face him.She just blushed and  silently looked at him . The next thing he asked ‘opened a new page’ in their book ’’Эй , Весна, мои подсолнухи ... Посмотри на меня хотя бы один раз!’’ ______ Zvonko Spasiću- A name for the ringing bell ( a nickname literally meaning`saving bell`) Доброе утро, Весна- Good morning,Vesna! Oткрыт!- it`s open! Это цветок...подсолнух, я думаю? - It's a flower...sunflower,I think? За ним солнце?- Behind it is the sun? Я не знаю!- I don't know ! Я понимаю! - I understand! Я не понимаю, что это?- I don' understand,what is it? Mы были бы  крутой парой,не так ли?- We would be a great pair ,would we not? Да? Эй...!?- Yes?Hey...!? Эй , Весна, мои подсолнухи ... Посмотри на меня хотя бы один раз! - Hey ,Vesna,my sunflower...Look at me at least once!

[filmista]

The Piano (1993)

“What a death! What a chance! What a surprise! My will has chosen life! Still it has had me spooked and many others besides!”

Jane Campion’s The Piano is well known for being the first and until recently one of the only films that has won a woman a Palme D’or for best director at Cannes. It’s still one of New Zealand’s best known pictures and a steady reference, when discussing female directors.

The only thing I knew about it however was, how successful it was at Cannes and that it was at the time (and perhaps still) regarded as a very controversial film, of which it has been heavily debated whether it is or isn’t a feminist picture in nature. It’s kind of sad that in large part today it lives on through its reputation of “difficult”, because it’s truly a stunning film.

When I first watched it (I have seen it twice since) I was swept away and fell in love instantly, it quickly got a spot amidst my favorite period dramas. It felt thoroughly modern and at the same time timeless to me.

I love it when a film and its maker alike, are brave and it isn’t afraid to sometimes shock or provoke a little. And not out a need to just shock necessarily, but more about a passion to let their vision go uncompromised.

The piano certainly is that kind of film. It wasn’t difficult to imagine that not everyone liked this and that some people might have felt shocked or even appaled.

I think this is in part due to the fact that it doesn’t offer us any clearly defined or initially even likeable human beings in it. They’re all far from perfect, but that makes the film all the more grittier and emotionally rawer, which might be why it has endured in time.

What made it for me so special and masterful, and what fuelled a desire to watch it again almost immediately after, is the fact that the film is so clashingly different from what you usually expect of a film of the same kind.

It’s at times a living contradiction, it embraces conventions, and then dances around them. It might be a period drama, but its the first period drama in a while; that had me in genuine suspense, shocked and surprised pleasantly at every turn while its story was unfolding.

I had a vague idea that this was a period drama, and read that it involved two men, I just thought it might be extremely pretty to look at melodrama. I like period dramas, but only when they manage to do something unexpected.

Something that surprises me and The Piano certainly succeeded at that. Visually it does justice to the time period it’s supposed to take place in, the clothes and artifacts and attitudes of the people match and are what is supposed to be expected, initially...

Yet as I said, at its heart it clashes with these traditions and expectations of the genre and subverts them. And that’s what’s so exhilarating about it for me, it’s a powerful film, in that it gently imposes its feeling and emotions onto you.

If it reminds me of any other film, it’s only in one thing of Picnic At Hanging Rock

in that it takes “proper victorian society, and puts everything upside down. Letting it run wild, letting it be led completely by instinct, and at the same time show the perversion of its repression and properness.

The Piano is an incredibly beaufiul film in terms of visuals. Like many or at least good period dramas it painstakingly recreates the period its supposed to take place in. However it is as I said also visually a gem.

The cinematography is sumptuous and lush, alternatingly light and dark according to the mood of a scene and often of a character. The colors of the landscape heightened, to put emphasis on both the beauty and wild unpredictableness of it.

It’s been criticsed a few times for its editing being too abrupt or grainy in quality. But personally I love it, the cinematography and the sound, don’t follow any sets of rule any more rules than its story.

Again what surprised me about it, is that for a period drama it was surprisingly untame and erotic, yet at times brutal while still elegant, like only a female touch seems able to bring to a film sometimes.

The Piano opens with Scottish mail order bride Ada (a magnificent Holly Hunter) being sent to New Zealand by her father alongside of her young and preccocious daughter Flora (Anna Paquin in one of the best child performances I’ve seen), to marry Stewart a local farmer and settler.

As soon as we see this, we know what kind of world to expect, and how the society in it functions. Women were still regarded as little better than cattle, to be sold off and bought, with the other only purpose of bearing children.

You best weren’t too temperamnental or strong willed. All things the film’s protagonist is not. We discover another curiosity about her: she hasn’t spoken since she was 6 years old. We don’t know why this is; it’s ever since her last husband was struck by lightning when they were singing in a forest during a thunderstorm once, according to her daughter.

During another moment she tells someone that it’s because her mother says that people talk rubbish anyway, and that it isn’t neccessary to listen. It’s probably a bit of a combination of different things, she very likely has been emotionally traumatized at one point in her life. We don’t know whether something happened as a child, or with the man that gave her, her daughter and who he was.

Very likely her muteness is equal parts brought on by trauma, as selective. It gives her a tranquility, she doesn’t have to answer, if somehting displeases her. Yet all the while in her mind she can think whatever she wants, and no one will read her. It’s also a trait that would make it perfectly socially acceptable to be a bit withdrawn sometimes.

With her daughter she communicates through sign language, and her daughter translates them for her whenever the need arises.. Their dynamic with each other works, until of course going to New Zealand.

Things start off bleak immediately, her husband isn’t there on time to meet her and her daughter. So the two are forced to sleep in an improvised tent, made out of her underskirt, and sleep outside on the beach.

The next day he arrives, but rather than apologize,instantly complains to someone about how small she is. Prior we see he had written her a card sayng he didn’t mind her being mute, as god loves even dumb creatures.

Through the tone of the voiceover we can instantly tell how she feels about him, not positvely at all. Ada has one thing in her life that allows her to feel like she can speak and feel alive, her piano.

However her new husband, even though she empathically, desperately makes lcear how important it is to her, he could care less, and tells her it is too heavy, the piano is now exposed to the elements on the beach.

No affection, love or lust grows between her and her husband. And initially her daughter refuses to call him papa. Stewart grows frustraed, especially since she also doesn’t talk, she looks at him with an icy expression at all times.

He doesn’t seem to understand that this is because he never tries to see her fully, try to understand her and show kind of tenderness that’s unforced and from within him.

Ada is eventually so melancholy by the separation from that she sneaks off to the beach to play it. There a neighbour hears it and is so moved by Ada’s playing that he offers her husband a deak, land in exchange for letting his wife come over to teach him how to play piano.

We quickly find out his plan is not enitely act out of love of music, but also a strong sexual attraction to Ada, he isntinctually gets that her piano is a way to come closer to her.

And here is where the film takes its often controversial trun, into nasty romance territory. The film becomes about sexual power play, and how the power can shift from one person to another. Though here that grows into genuine affection on both sides.

Banes makes Ada a rather crude offer, small sexual favors, in turn she gets to play her piano. There’s 88 keys, acts like taking off her jacket might equal one, while raising her skirt would be five. Each act is assigned a number of keys.

Initially she seems bothered by the offer, but accepts in order to play. Had a man directed the film, we might have been shown this in a much more impersonal and aggressive way, there’s never anything grauitious about it.

But we really get to see the perspectuve off both. Both people are lonley and long for a real human connection. Ada knows this of Baes, and quickly realizes her power: he desires her company, and is affected when she pretens to not care.

Meanwhile she has the power to negotiate the sexual acts in the direction that she lies, increasing the number of keys required for a certain action.

While this offer is undeniably crude and borders on prostutituon. Campion did take a surprsingly affecting trun. Both people find warmth in each other. And by the time they make love, they are eactually in love.

And surprsingly for a that takes place in the time it does, he checks in with Ada, sees if she’s okay with it. And unselfishly proceeds to focusing on her pleasure, something she likley hadn’t experienced.

There’s even a scene in which he lifts her hoopskirt to perform oral sex (wild!) there’s a genuine affection and passion; and it is with him that she finally speaks, whispering something in his ear during the act, he seems overjoyed by her reaction.

And while it’s a powerful moment, it’s one of a great many in the film. It shows them connecting  a personal level. However Ada’s husband, saw the two of them, only discoering the betrayal because her daughter Ada had told her stepdad, who she has finally come to like.

After sleeping with each other, Banes tells her they should not see each other again, as he was already suspicious and mean towards her. Thus sacrificing what he feels for her.

Howver after the incident events take a turn for the worse. And George snaps completely, actually locking her in the house, by setting wooden boards around points of exit. His stepdaughter voluntarily helps him. Campion never explicitly places blame on the child though.

She was likely, dangerously acting out childhish jelaous, as she is ni longer her mother’s only source of happiness and thing she pays constant attention to. But she is eventually horrified, when Stewart in his mad jealousy goes even further.

Ada whilst not in love with her husband, knows exactly what he wants. And starts to play right into it, finally approaching him physically, so that he thinks she’s warming up to him or even falling in love. Finally he trusts her and allows her to go outside, however she can’t really do much because her daugher is still there.

So she decides to write Banes a declararion of love. Asking her daughter to deliver it to him. However she brings it to her stepad, who opens and reads it. And finally fully loses it.

Previously he had already tried to rape her (after catching her in the act), but he now drags her outside towards a choping block cuts off one of her fingers, that he sends to Banes with the threat “come near her again, and I’ll cut off the others”. There’s a moment in the film, in which certain characters attend a play of the Blue Beard story, perhaps this foreshadowed his violence in the end.

There’s a look that Ada gives her husband after it happens, it’s one of pure disgust and hatred. The way a person would look at their shoe after having stepped in dog poop.

Something interesting happened at this moment, the veneer of “respectiful Victorian society cracks. Stewart turns out to be more insensitve and ulimately a bigger brute than the man who had “gone native”.

The difference is that Banes has long ceased to give a shit about the ways of societt, and what anyone thinks. And that he is therefore free to see and treat Ada as a fully layered and equal human being.

By which she reveals sides, she hadn’t shown anyone and thus feels appreciated and falls for him. And he falls for her in spite of her, what would at the time have been deemed an unseemingly strong will for a woman. I’s very likely why he fell for her to begin with.

Yet Stewart, regarded her almost as somehthing inhuman, and sees her as somehthing he’s entitled to as a man, and expects that she will automatically submit to his authority.

Ada however doesn’t. Like Banes, she seems to care very little for societal norms as well. If Stewart had been kinder to her maybe the relationship would have evolved different, but since his actions at the beginning of the film, he condemmned himself by his unwillingmess to “listen”.

Finally stewart realizes tat Ada will never love him, and allows her to doo what she had wnated: run off with Banes, we don’t know if it’s entirely selffles, if he in the end realizes his mistakes and wants her happiness, or if he has given up.

Regardless it sets about a change and Ada is now with Banes, who has fashioned her a metal finger. When they go away with each other, he takes her piano, knowing how important it is. She however no longer wants it and demands it to be thrown in the water. Where she ends up with it.

The piano at least I think so, represents her past, her bad memories  and a means of communication. Or rather that with which she escaped having her “voice” oppresed as a woman. Briefly she seems to contemplate dying with it, but then fights to the surface and joins Banes, to embark on a new life.

The figure of her lover, is a controversial one. Some reduce him to a rapist, since they say that Ada had no choice or agency. But that would mean denying things, first that Ada isn’t as demure and innocent looking as she seems.

She read the situation, and played into all the while realizing, her power, it’’s ultimately she that sets the pace and decides what happens when. But more importantly, this interpreatation dismisses Ada as sexual; it denies the possibiluty that she could have desires and enjoy pleasures, or have a kinky side that enjoyed the seductive game they played initially.

There’s a moment where the tone shifts completely, Banes gently makes a hole in her stockings, and caresses the skin underneath it. We see Ada’s face, she responds with a visible gasp of enjoyment, that makes it clear she’s excited by what’s happening and wants it.

That’s another thing that’s great in the film, it subtly and accurately shows feamle desire and pleasure. The Piano could be at times considered quite steamy, but not because you see all that much but rather how what you see is shown.

Focused on the emotions , and often the joy of the moment. That moment in which Banes lifts Ada’s skirt to pleasure her is signifcant, there’s urgency and laughs, at just how difficult it is to lift.

It recognises that sometimes sex isn’t always perfectly in sync and sometimes just funny, but more importantly here fun. One of my problems, with the sex scenes in some films, is that there’s always taken so terribly seriously...

And it’s quite surprising that given the film’s age, that scene still feels so incredible refreshing. It is just like Holly Hunter’s performance, that makes the film, literally quitely brilliant.

Hunter learned to play the piano herself, so whenever she plays it (sometimes only as backgorund music) it sounds genuinely beautiful and moving, and like someone with actual passion for music is playing.

For an actress playing someone mute, must be hard but Hunter handles it beutifully, never laying it on to thick. But rather knows how to sublty convye emotion through her face and body at each moment, we can read from her face what she is feeling or how she is interpreting a certain situation, it’s fascinating to watch.

The character of Ada is not simple one. She seems like a quiet, calm and reserved woman and seems to enjoy a certain isolation. Or rather is revealed to perhaps enjoy the company of those she likes, and doesn’t have to pretend to.

As soon as someone does something she doesn’t like, she clearly lets this be known, indicating a fierce pride. And Hunter shows that beautifully, just with one look Ada can seem to shimmer with rage and indignation. The Piano is ultimately a fascinating look at gender and societal norms, and a beautiful ode to the priceless freedom of loving passionately and who we chose.

“Ada, I'm unhappy. 'Cause I want you. 'Cause my mind has seized on you and can think of nothing else. This is why I've suffered. I am sick with longing. I don't eat, I don't sleep.”

[fnlrndcllctv]

REVIEW: Nitroplus Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel- (2015)

Going into this review, I wasn’t at all familiar with the world of Nitro+, which doesn’t come as much of a surprise as the vast majority of their work has never actually been released outside of Japan.

So, let’s start this off with a quick background on the company and what kind of stuff it has released in the past. Since 2000, Nitro+ has been steadily releasing Visual Novel games, with Steins;Gate arguably being their most well known game in the west.

Most of the themes in these games are pretty dark, ranging from the more fantasy-based stuff like necromancy to some incredibly questionable material such as murder and rape.

In the mid-2000s, the developer released Nitro+ Royale -Heroines Duel-, which brought together thirteen fighters from their back catalogue of games in a traditional 2D fighter, and seems to be a pretty unremarkable, by-the-numbers doujin fighting game.

Almost a decade later, Nitro+ once again stepped outside of the Visual Novel genre to make another attempt at a crossover fighting game that included a who’s who of their games making appearances, only this time taking advantage of the various advancements in the fighting game genre had seen.

The resulting release was today’s topic; Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel-.

The question remains, is it any good?

Gameplay

The game uses just five buttons; light attack, medium attack, heavy attack, escape action, and heavy action.

The escape action button can be used to perform evasive manoeuvres and guards while heavy actions can be used to push an opponent back when players are feeling pressured during a fight.

The game makes it incredibly easy to chain together combos, and implements a whole bunch of other common elements that help to make the game feel like it fits in with the subgenre, and makes it easy for new players to get the hang of things.

Air dashing? You got it!

Super gauge-fuelled super attacks? Hell yeah!

���Lethal Blaze” ultra attacks that feel unique to each fighter and often look stunning? Of course they’re here!

Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel- feels very comfortable to play, while still offering enough of a challenge to encourage players to improve.

Story

The game’s main story mode is a standard 8-match arcade ladder in which players must battle through with their chosen fighter. The plot revolves around an evil being (a copy of the character Al Azif made from fragments taken from multiple different timelines where the Demonbane failed) who attempts to take over the final remaining dimension.

Instead of cutscenes, we’re met with the visual novel approach, which doesn’t do a fantastic job of engaging players and making them muster up any motivation to finish the story.

Upon finishing the normal story mode for the first time, an extra story mode becomes available, comprised of ten individual chapters. The mode is a(yup, you guessed it) visual novel adaptation of HP Lovecraft’s story “The Case Of Charles Dexter Ward”, and follows the games cast as they assume the roles of the story rather than themselves. This mode has more variety visually, but only slightly, and the scenes that do pop up are very questionable (one particular scene is very “non-consensual” in nature).

I guess it was inevitable that the game’s story would be presented in a visual novel-like format, considering the origin games for the majority of the roster, but they’re so difficult to follow thanks to a tidal wave of complicated terminology instead of any likeable dialogue or character development.

Roster

Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel- features fourteen unique playable characters, two of which are DLC fighters.

Al Azif - From the Demonbane series, Al Azif is the spirit of the Necronomicon (that’s the “book of the dead, for all you non-Evil Dead fans out there!). Her primary goal is to hunt down and destroy all unholy powers that are in league with the evil gods.

Anna - From the Gekkō no Carnevale series, Anna is an automaton doll that was found in a trash dump. She has amnesia, and now works in a workshop, fixing machines.

Ethica - One of the protagonists from the Tokyo Necro series, Ethica is a young "Private Special Living Dead Stalker" who practices a special kind of fighting style known as "Close Quarter Armed Martial Arts".

Ein - From the Phantom Of Inferno series, Ein is an assassin with such skill she was given the codename "Phantom", has no memories of her past and is incredibly apathetic towards, well, mostly everything except killing.

Ignis - From the Jingai Makyō series, Ignis is a demon hunter and the sworn protector of humanity who makes up for her lack of supernatural powers by mastering martial arts and being deadly with a kitana.

Mora - From the Vampirdzhija Vjedogonia visual novel, Mora is a vampire hunter who is armed with a massive hammer to beat down her opponents with.

Satsurikuin Ouka - From the same modelling agency as Super Sonico, Ouka is a confident, extroverted young girl who is constantly looking for her spot in the limelight. She’s also attached to a robotic metal crucifix for some reason.

Ruili - From the Kikokugai: The Cyber Slayer visual novel, Ruili is essentially a reanimated corpse/”soul transfer experiment” that contains the soul of a young woman who yearns to be with her brother (in a “way more than friends” fashion… yeah).

Saber - From the Fate/stay night visual novel, Saber is the personification of Arturia Pendragon (or, as he is more commonly known, King Arthur) and was created to aid participants in a to-the-death tournament called the Fifth Holy Grail War.

Muramasa - From the Full Metal Daemon: Muramasa visual novel, Muramasa is the human form of a tsurugi (a living soul forged into a set of armour). Also a demon?

Super Sonico - Nitro+’s mascot and lead singer/guitarist of the fictional band First Astronomical Velocity. Originally appeared in the arcade version of this game, but was made into a fully playable fighter for the console releases.

Saya - From the Saya no Uta visual novel, Saya is a being from another dimension who materialized in this universe for the sole purpose of reproduction. While she looks like an innocent young girl, in actuality, she is some sort of amorphous fleshy abomination that emits a putrid stench and produces slime, and eatanything from cats to human beings.

Heart - From the Arcana Heart games, Heart is the first DLC fighter in the game.

Homura - From the Senran Kagura series, Homura is the last DLC character.

In addition to the game’s roster of playable fighters, there are twenty different “assist” characters to choose from.

With representatives ranging from games/anime/manga such as Psycho-Pass, Guilty Crown: Lost Christmas and Phenomeno to Expelled From Paradise, School-Live! and Gargantia On The Verdurous Planet, each of these characters act in the same way as the striker system in The King Of Fighters ‘99. A player can choose two assists, and during a match, can briefly tag one of these assists into battle to do extra damage or change up specific stats.

The game handily makes things easier for players in this decision making process by informing you which duo of assist characters have an effective synergy with your chosen main fighter. With how likely it is that players will not be very familiar with most of (if not all of) these extra support faces, this is incredibly helpful.

Therein lies one of the biggest issues of Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel-, and it’s a problem that it seemingly shares with a great deal of anime as a whole; it’s full of fanservice, but actively alienates and overwhelms anyone who might be newcomers.

All of the character descriptions above were the result of me having spend hours delving into the story of each individual game for the purposes of the review, as this game doesn’t give you any information whatsoever. Throughout the dialogue of the story, each character makes references to their respective game, which is fine if you’re a diehard fan of any of these titles, but is absolutely bewildering for anyone who is out of the loop, and makes it tough to connect with any of the fighters outside of a technical level.

Look, I’m really not asking for my hand to be held through this, I just don’t think that it is too much to ask to include some basic information to go along with each fighter.

At least put the original game titles for each fighter in somewhere!.

Graphics

Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel- follows the tradition of many 2D anime-style fighters such as Blazblue, Under Night In-Birth and Arcana Heart, showcasing some very stylish fighting action.

All of the character sprites in the game are nicely animated, especially during assist moments mid-match and whenever someone lands a particularly devastating finishing move.

The visual flairs that pop up on screen during some of the “Lethal Blaze” attacks are amazing to watch, especially characters such as Ein, who leaps offscreen only to reappear in the distance with a sniper rifle, allowing players to quickly aim the gun at a foe.

At no point do the visuals in Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel- set the bar for the genre, but it’s still a great game to look at.

Stages

The variety of stages in Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel- is quite a mixed bag quality-wise.

When the stages look good, they’re great. The skyscraper-laden view from the rooftop stage is a highlight, as is the viscera covered grounds of the city (which feels appropriately Lovecraftian, when you learn about why it’s happening in “Another Story”).

The problem is that every stage feels very boring, even the ones that look nice. Everything feels so empty and lifeless, and directly clashes with the fast-paced action of the fights.

Every stage feels like a training stage, and is one of the more disappointing aspects of the game.

Replayability

Outside of the game’s standard story modes and score attack, there’s not really that much to do in Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines Infinite Duel-.

In a similar way to games like Blade Strangers (read our review of the game here!), there’s not much of an incentive to carry on playing the game once you’ve gained the character art from the end of each character playthrough in story mode.

Even then, the gallery is lacking somewhat, showcasing art you’ll have already seen by the time you’ve unlocked it.

Training mode is as barebones as you could possibly get, offering nothing other than the ability to reset your position onscreen and a command list.

Online play is tricky too, as (at the time of writing) there was next to nobody to fight against, so it renders the option rather useless.

Final thoughts & overall score

Nitroplus Blasterz: Heroines Infinite Duel- is a solid and interesting crossover fighting experience that effectively offers an impressive fighter roster, fun to watch assist characters and easy to learn gameplay mechanics.

It’s a shame that the game doesn’t have the same depth as its peers, with two borderline nonsensical storylines, a range of disappointingly boring stage designs and a total unwillingness to offer any character context to players that aren’t familiar with the source material.

Do you agree with our review of Nitro+ Blasterz -Heroines infinite duel-?

Let us know in the comments section below!

[noditchablepromdate]

A consideration of the muse via TV Tropes

//Mun comments: these are based on my interpretation of and headcanons for the muse, not just canon events.

Appearance/Physical

American Accents - though Bobby himself is from South Dakota, his accent definitely hints towards a more typically southern redneck. Badass Beard - one of his most distinctive features.  Blue Eyes - sometimes Icy Blue Eyes. Generally when he’s getting particularly enraged. Nice Hat - Bobby is almost never seen without one of his beloved trucker caps.  Older Than They Look - Bobby is in his late fifties when the Winchester boys show up asking for help, and by the Apocalypse he’s sixty. He’s grizzled and clearly not in his prime any more, but is still younger-looking, tougher and much more physically capable than a guy his age would usually be. Seriously Scruffy - Bobby’s usual outfit is heavily worn and frayed clothes - usually jeans, t-shirts and flannel - that he’s owned for a very long time.

Personality Traits

A Friend In Need / The Reliable One - One of Bobby’s defining traits is that no matter what, if someone calls on him for help, he will do whatever it takes to give that help. Even if he’s freaking DEAD. Badass Grandpa - Bobby’s out there fighting evil well into his sixties. Brutal Honesty - He doesn’t really do sugar-coating very well, so if he’s presented with something and asked his opinion he will often be very blunt about what he thinks of it. Catch Phrase - His go-to swearword is “Balls!” and he often expresses his annoyance (or affection) by calling someone an “idjit”.  Character Alignment - Chaotic Good. Bobby gives absolutely zero fucks about legal or illegal, but he’s absolutely committed to helping the fight against evil and is basically a decent and kind person. Combat Pragmatist - He doesn’t fight in a bid to impress anybody, he just aims to take his opponent down and make them stop fighting back as fast as possible, and has no qualms about fighting dirty to get the result. Crazy-Prepared / Properly Paranoid - Bobby regularly doses visitors with holy water, keeps guns to fire several different types of monster-slaying ammunition, and has built a panic room in his basement, made of solid iron coated with salt, that is demon- and spirit-proof. He has also made several copies of all his priceless books and stashed them in safehouses around the country, just in case something happens to the collection in his house. And he does it all because he knows it could happen. He’s even described himself as a “paranoid bastard”. Deadpan Snarker - A fundamental aspect of his personality. No matter what situation, he usually manages to come up with a sarcastic or snarky quip. This can lead to Snark-To-Snark Combat breaking out, especially if it’s Crowley he’s talking to. Determinator - He just will not lie down and die. Even when a bullet to the head puts him in a coma, he spends the entire time evading and holding off the Reaper coming after him so he can warn Sam and Dean about the Leviathans’ plans. Encyclopaedic Knowledge - He’s done so much studying that he’s able to reel off facts about rare monsters, cast spells and recite exorcisms, and draw a number of sigils from memory.  Forgets To Eat / Must Have Caffeine - Bobby regularly stays up pulling all-nighters in order to do research for a fellow hunter, and in such cases will often subsist on strong coffee and/or caffeine pills. This has left him with a reliance on coffee that’s almost as bad as his drinking problem. Genius Bruiser - He looks and often acts like a typical dumb redneck, but spends most of his time at home with his books, doing research for others; when called on to join the fight directly, Bobby proves himself as capable of kicking ass as hunters half his age. Good Is Not Dumb - He might be on the side of the good guys, but Bobby sure as hell is not stupid. Good Is Not Soft / Good Is Not Nice - While he has dedicated his life to helping others and saving lives, and is gentle and caring to those in need, Bobby is also a cranky, short-tempered alcoholic who lives on his own and gives everyone, including the law, angels, and Satan himself an attitude. He’s also not likely to spare enemies out of the goodness of his heart, either - the few antagonists who manage to escape his retribution are usually the ones who talk the quickest and convince him they’re worth sparing. Otherwise he’ll finish them off without blinking. Grumpy Old Man - Has definite shades of this, though often as not he’s just playing it up, for the sake of a cover or to amuse people. Gut Feeling - Bobby’s instincts are usually spot on and he’s learned to rely on them reasonably heavily, to the point where he can usually guess within seconds if someone he knows is possessed by a demon or otherwise not actually themself. Of course, being paranoid, he’ll generally follow his guess up with a test to see how right he is. Handicapped Badass - During the year he spends wheelchair-bound; although he’s no longer able to actively hunt, his mind is as quick as ever and he’s still a crack shot. Jerk with a Heart of Gold - Famously bad-tempered, antisocial, yells at people who ask him for help and calls them stupid, regularly gets arrested and has no respect for... pretty much anyone. Also one of the key players in the attempt to head off the Apocalypse, who loves the weird little family he’s got with all his heart and will do anything for them. Knight In Sour Armor - Yeah, the world sucks and pretty much everything is horrible apart from a few little warm spots... but he’ll step up to fight for its right to exist time and time again, because that’s the right thing to do. Mr. Fixit - As well as earning his living as a mechanic and salvage yard owner, Bobby is able to turn his hand to a number of other practical skills; he’s successfully modified several guns to fire specialised ammunition, and built the panic room in his basement himself, during “a weekend off”. He’s also proven to be very capable when it comes to installing booby traps and surprises around his house, including a trapdoor outside the hall closet that drops straight into the basement and a specially strengthened basement door to keep whoever got dropped in from getting back out.  Nerves Of Steel - He’s faced down dozens, maybe hundreds, of monsters over the years, armed with a few weapons and his wits and, if he was really lucky, someone competent running backup. He’s even intervened in a showdown between the archangels Michael and Lucifer, though that didn’t go terribly well for him. Not much fazes him now. Old Master - Bobby has likely fought, researched and warded off more monsters than Sam and Dean put together, and is known to be THE person to go to if you need help tackling something you don’t recognise. Omniglot - He speaks several languages, including Japanese and Latin, and is able to decipher and translate a huge number of written languages. Only Sane Man - He often feels like this, especially after dealing with hunters who have managed to completely fail at displaying common sense. Physical Scars, Psychological Scars - Bobby has picked up scars from all sorts of monster encounters over the years, many of them reminders of what went wrong on the hunt. He also still has some old scars from his childhood, as his father used to beat him with a belt. Self-Surgery - Given he prefers to avoid the authorities unless it’s really serious, Bobby will generally patch himself up with needle, thread and a bottle of Jack Daniels. Street Smart - Studious as he can be, Bobby is also a capable survivalist and very savvy at bluffing his way into situations - or out of them. Taught By Experience / Seen It All - Bobby’s one of the best in the hunting community simply because he’s made it his business to be. He’s encountered monsters very few others have, he’s studied countless texts to find weaknesses nobody else knew about... and he’s closely linked to the Winchesters, who seem to get targeted by all the weirdest things out there. Which he takes as a learning opportunity. It’s not often he actually gets startled by something. Talented But Trained - He’s a very smart man, that’s absolutely certain, but many of his skills are what he’s picked up over a long, rough life, and he’s honed them till they’re sharp as a razor. The Alcoholic / Drowning My Sorrows - He’s turned to alcohol to cope with the horrific things he’s dealt with, from an abusive childhood to killing his possessed wife to the deaths caused because he wasn’t quite quick enough to take down the monster he was hunting. The Kirk - Usually plays this role between cool, logical Sam and hot-headed emotional Dean. Undying Loyalty - Literally, in his case; he takes lethal injuries several times, at least one of which was deliberately self-inflicted, and still keeps trying to help his boys in any way he can. Workaholic - He doesn’t often take a break from working, at least not for very long. Wouldn’t Hurt A Child / Friend To All Children - One of his more likeable traits - after the horrendous upbringing he had, Bobby will go above and beyond to make sure any kids he spends time around feel as safe as possible. He’s gentle, affectionate, and respectful of their thoughts and feelings, especially if their own parents are harsh.

Personal History

Abusive Parents / Alcoholic Parent - Bobby’s father Ed was a drunk who thought nothing of being verbally and physically abusive, punching his wife and regularly taking his belt to his son. By the time Bobby hit his teens, his mother was also blaming him for his dad’s violence. Back From The Dead - Bobby was killed by Lucifer while trying to help buy time for Sam to regain control of his own body. Castiel, newly resurrected himself, brought him back minutes later after the crisis was over. Bobby will occasionally refer to it as “that time I died” or something along those lines. Calling The Old Man Out - He finally snaps and intervenes with a rifle when his father begins beating his mother, demanding Ed leave her alone. When Ed taunts him and threatens to deal with him, Bobby pulls the trigger. Later in life, trapped in a coma, Bobby sees his father again in the memory and confronts him, fiercely claiming to be far better than Ed told him he was. Dead Partner - This applies to a number of Bobby’s old hunting friends who have died over the years, most notably John Winchester, Ellen Harvelle and Rufus Turner, all of whom he had a particular bond with. Deal With The Devil - Technicaly a deal with a demon, but the same principle. When Lucifer is on the verge of triumphing in the bid to start the Apocalypse, Bobby sells - or, technically, pawns - his soul to Crowley for the final key piece of information that gives them a fighting chance. He also regains the ability to walk, though that was more of a generous freebie on Crowley’s part. (Naturally, Crowley does not keep his side of the agreement, and later has to be threatened about it.) Fighting From The Inside - When possessed by a demon trying to kill Dean, Bobby manages to put up enough of a fight to turn the blade on himself. Hero Secret Service - Technically the hunting community could count as this. Although they are not organised and have no authority figures, Bobby is a major persona within the ranks. Only Child Syndrome - With no siblings around, Bobby took the full brunt of his parents’ abuse; he never really understood why, but his mother once hinted that he was too much hard work on his own for them to handle having another kid on top. Survivor Guilt - Regarding pretty much everyone he knows who gets killed. His attitude is always I should have done better.

Romance & Family

Badass Family - Adoptive version; anyone who spends a while around Bobby will absorb some of his personal badassness, even if they are already damn awesome themselves. First Love - Karen, the first woman he ever really loved, and whom he holds a torch for long after her death. Happily Married - With Karen. Until she finds out he doesn’t want to be a father... at which point they have a fight that never gets resolved, because she’s dead three days later. Honorary Uncle - To Sam and Dean as kids, and to most other hunters’ kids he spends any real time around, he was always “Uncle Bobby”. Ho Yay / Foe Yay - He and Crowley clash repeatedly, but all that snark-laden verbal fencing, long looks, moments of real vulnerability around each other... yeah, there’s definitely something going on there. Incompatible Orientation - One of Bobby’s main attempted defences against the attentions of a certain king of Hell. Like A Son To Me / Happily Adopted - Sam and Dean, who he played a large part in raising until their teens. Also counts for any of the other younger people he takes in and becomes a father figure to. Papa Wolf - Don’t mess with his kids. Just don’t. He will hurt you. Parental Substitute - To many of the young people he takes in or keeps an eye out for, particularly those who have had poor experiences with their childhood. He absolutely relishes being able to be a positive figure for a kid who needs it. Stalker With A Crush - This is how he tends to treat Crowley a lot of the time, especially when the demon’s being particularly flirtatious or overly attentive. Team Dad - To... well, pretty much everyone with the age or life experience to be considered a kid in his eyes. This includes the Winchesters, Jo Harvelle, several other hunters around their age, a freaking Vampire Slayer, and Castiel, an actual angel with the social savvy of a very sheltered gerbil.

[reviewingshit-blog1]

TOP 10 Personal Movies

Today marks a year since the first review was posted on this blog, so, to celebrate this anniversary I’m going to post my personal Top 10 movies and the reason they made it in.

Enjoy and thank you for a year full of reviews, let’s hope for another.

10. HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 3: SENIOR YEAR. 2008 Dir. Kenny Ortega

I know it might seem like a bad option, but the reason it made it into the top is because its emotional value.

I often come back to this movie, at different times of my life and it always makes me feel different, like when you read a book several times and you keep finding new things; most recent I’ve watched it for my college graduation; but the one time that I needed it the most was when I was graduating High School myself, it helped me see how it was hard for everyone, that moving on was part of life but at the same time it’ll always be part of us.

So, for helping me grow up it has earn number 10 on the list.

9. JAWS (1975) Dir. Steven Spielberg

This one’s a plain old classic, and also the reason I love shark movies.

It’s not a master piece, but it does a great job building the suspence and the resolution doesn’t feel too fast or quick, it actually has a work-up to it.

So, because of that feeling of “at the edge of your sit” it has earn its place on this list.

8. THE FIFTH ELEMENT (1997). Dir. Luc Besson.

If I could pin-point the movie that light the sparkle of sci-fi in me it would be “the fifth element”; the storyline and lore of the movie was always so appealing to me, it also has a lot of action comedy and it’s up beat and fast.

So, for being my introduccion to the genre it has earn a place on the list.

7. SPIRITED AWAY (2001) Dir. Hayao Miyazaki, Kirk Wise.

Any Studio Ghibli could’ve made it to the list, but Spirited Away holds a special pace in my heart because it was the first one I watched from this studio and I remember loving the style, animation and the story so much that a few years later I found myself coming back to this movie.

So, for being amazing it has earn it’s spot.

6. BACK TO THE FUTURE (1985) Dir. Robert Zemeckis.

This is one of those movies that I watched about a hundred and eight times growing up, and just wouldn’t get tired of it, it’s funny, it’s interesting and it’s just a perfect pick for a day where you just want to watch a movie and not over think life.

It became a clasic for a reason, and that was because it’s funny and the characters are likeable.

So, for being a constant presence in my life, it has made it into the list.

5. STAR WARS EPISODE IV: A NEW HOPE. (1977) Dir. George Lucas.

The star wars franchise is my favorite one and what better start that the beginning?

I know a lot of people prefer episode V, but I love beginnings, and I love the innocence of Luke and Leia being fearless, this is the movie where you start to love the characters and their fight, so for that it has earn its spot on the list.

4. CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER (2014) Dir. Joe and Anthony Russo.

There was something astounding about seeing Steve not fit in into the 21st century.

Steve has always been one of my favorite characters and seeing him adapting to his new life and surrondings made him more human, it remained us that he’s not just a super soldier but a person.

The hints of him suffering depression and survivors guilt are there to remain us what he’s been through and how much he deserves a happy ending (but he won’t get it)

And let’s not pretend that we all didn’t walk out of that movie with our hearts broken by the Winter Soldier/Bucky Barnes.

So, mostly for its characters and story line it has earn it’s spot on the top.

3. X-MEN (2001) Dir. Bryan Singer.

Once again, I love beginnings and this movie it’s the beginning of my favorite superhero franchise, and as a kinda weird child the idea of mutants was always apealing to me, I loved the idea of people that was so unique that it had become so much more; as a child I was always hoping for a new movie and I grew up watching this movies in the theater and loving their characters.

So, for teaching me that it’s okay to be different, it has earn its spot on the list.

2. LOGAN (2017) Dir. James Mangold.

As much as I love beginnings, I also love a good ending.

Wolverine was my favorite X-Men growing up and seeing his story come to an end was something emotional wrecking, I was happy, I was sad and I was something that I can’t quite name. The movie itself has a great story and great performances and saying goodbye to Hugh Jackman as Logan was algo something hard to do.

So, for brining me closure to one of my favorite characters, it has earn its spot.

1. THE GREATEST SHOWMAN. (2017) Dir. Michael Gracey.

There are so many reasons why this movie has taken over the number one spot on my personal list, for having a beautiful soundtrack, for giving me hope, for having me walk out of that theared inspired and ready to take on the world, for having such great characters and amazing visuals, etc. etc.

Mostly it was because it remained me why I create, why I want to make movies and tell stories, it remained me how it’s never easy to reach a goal but you have to keep going, embrace your differences and bring joy along the way.

So, for being extraordinary, it has taken over this list.

[danganromps]

[Fanfic] Danganronpa: Class 44

We’ve been sent this from anonymous  - it’s great!

Sixteen lovely but rather unfortunate children find themselves trapped inside the illustrious Hope’s Peak Academy. What is even going on and why is Monokuma here? Can they solve all the mysteries surrounding them? Will they find a way out?

These eight make up half the participants in this new and improved game of mutual killing… Some may live while others will die, but who among them will fall victim to despair and do the unthinkable?

… “I just want to be seen for who I am.” SHSL LUCKY STUDENT: HANAKO YAMADA Our protagonist, the lucky student of class 44, is Hanako Yamada. Hana has managed to convince herself that everyone sees her as a sort of generic concept and not an individual, because her name is so ordinary it’s sometimes used as a placeholder name for unidentified bodies (much like John/Jane Doe). As a result, she tries her hardest to stand out, from her hipster aesthetic and dyed pink hair to being a bit of a memelord. She dislikes anything she deems to be too popular or mainstream. Hanako always tries to be helpful and friendly, because she cares a lot about what other people think (of her, especially) but she isn’t a fake friend; she cares just as much about your health and wellbeing as she does your opinion once she gets to know you. Although Hana had reservations about being the only “untalented” member of the class, ultimately she hopes to prove that she is as extraordinary as her name is ordinary. – “As long as I can feel the ocean’s waves in my beating heart, I know that I’m alive.” SHSL FISHERMAN: KAITOU UMIBAYASHI Kaitou was born in a small village near the sea and began fishing when he was very young. When he was around 8 years old, he caught and accidentally discovered a new species of giant deepwater fish, though he nearly drowned in the process. He claims he was rescued by a mermaid princess who is now his fiancee, but that story is… questionable, at best. Kaitou loves life and loves love. He likes to remind anyone he meets that every day is a special gift. – “Handmade gifts are the best gifts. You can feel the love that went into them.” SHSL NEEDLECRAFTER: FUYUSOUBI Fuyusoubi is very private about her personal life – going so far as to make sure her real name stays a secret – but she’s very popular, regardless. Despite her young age, she’s considered the leading expert on all forms of ancient and contemporary knitting, sewing, embroidery, and more. She puts her all into everything she makes; she always wants the recipient to feel safe and loved. As the oldest member of the 44th class, she feels the need to mother and protect all of her classmates. However, this conflicts with her desire for privacy and her overwhelming fear of being murdered. – “I wonder what secrets the position of the stars can tell me about you…” SHSL ASTROLOGER: MUUDAI TAIGEN Muudai is something of a walking astrology book. He loves to look at in-depth charts of the placements of all the planets at someone’s birth. Besides intuitively being able to interpret these charts, he can accurately guess your sun sign upon meeting you. Muudai likes to come across as this serious, aloof, brooding mystery man, but he’s really a lonely nerd who wants some friends. – “Always fear what you cannot see.” SHSL MARKSWOMAN: RYUUKO MAGAMI Born Chiaki Saruwatari, Ryuuko was kidnapped from the hospital where she was born. Thirteen years later, she was found living overseas with a band of mercenaries for hire. While living there she became an expert in shooting guns and arrows as well as throwing small items like knives. Since her return to her family three years ago, she has tried (and failed) to flee Japan no less than one hundred times. While deadly accurate from long distance, she is basically helpless if cornered into close combat. Ryuuko does not particularly like people, especially large crowds. She doesn’t trust easily and is constantly surveying her surroundings. More than anything, she wants to go back to the only life she’s ever known. – “Life is just darkness and suffering wrapped in bright ribbons and glitter… and the same is true of art.” SHSL PAINTER: KURAKIZU Kurakizu, much like Fuyusoubi, is rather private about his personal life; the only thing really known for sure about him as a person is that he has been friends with the shsl needlecrafter for many years. He dresses like someone who was puked on by a Hot Topic, but he is well-known for his bright, colorful paintings. He’s very sensitive, though he tends to scare people with his dark and depressing attitude. – “Anything is possible if you believe hard enough.” SHSL WITCH: ANJU KOHARA Anju Kohara came into the public eye the day she wandered into a city park and very dramatically put a curse on a politician who was wildly disliked for his harmful policies. Within days, it was found that he had been involved with a number of illegal dealings and was removed from office. Leaving his wife and children behind, he went on the run, attempted to change his identity and leave the country, and finally ended his own life. There are people who don’t believe her magic actually works, but this is just one instance out of many. Anju is very superstitious. She is often vague and distracted, off in her own world. Despite this, she is very good at reading other people. She has a totally positive outlook and believes that things always work out for the best. – “I can’t believe a place like this even wanted someone like me.” SHSL DELINQUENT: YUUSUKE KUWAHARA Yuusuke is a known street punk: troublemaker, shoplifter, brawler, vandal. Some people say he isn’t even real, since the rumors are so outlandish. They say when he whistles, he summons 200 other guys with guns; he can throw a punch so hard it cracks pavement; his father is yakuza and his mother a demon from hell; for the right price, he’s an assassin for hire. He refuses to confirm or deny any of this, because it’s a waste of his time. Underneath the tough exterior, Yuusuke has a heart of gold. He’d do anything to protect the few people he holds dear - even die… and now, he just might have to.

So many great characters, I don’t even know where to start! Looking first at Hana, I find the way she sees herself as boring and generic to be fascinating, and would make for a rather interesting tale. She sounds like a genuinely likeable person though, so an excellent protagonist!

I believe we’ve looked at Kaitou before, so we’ll move onto Fuyusoubi. She is a solid, mysterious character. Her talent is good, and (as with all of these) you’ve done a great job at integrating the talent with the personality and back story. This is definitely evident with Muudai - I have a soft spot for slightly aloof, creepy characters who are really nice once you get to know them, and he sounds like he ticks that box. 

From her back story and talent, Ryuuko evokes thoughts of similarly awesome girls in Danganronpa such as Mukuro Ikusaba, Peko Pekoyama and a certain person from V3 (no spoilers!). The ‘unusual’ childhood, disdain for close relationships with people and so on are catalysts for conflict, something that really helps in fiction!

Kurakizu, as you’ve said, is similar to Fuyusoubi - and it sounds as though like personalities attract. Also love the description of him as being “puked on by hot topic”!

Anju is rather awesome too. I like the upbeat personality, and - although I may be reading between the lines here - it seems as though she doesn’t really recognise the power of her own talent? I’m getting the impression that her vagueness causes her to use her talent without thinking it through.

And finally, Yusuke! From what they say about him, he’s pretty scary, but I get the feeling we’ll end up loving him! Being a delinquent…as Hajime would say- “That’s a talent?”! And it seems that he doesn’t have much confidence in it either - hopefully he will gain some belief in himself as a person.

Thanks so much for sending all these in!

-Alice