#help I’m having aspirations above my skill level

[seeminglyseph]

I may never do this because I am beginning to doubt I will find the physical strength and health in time with motivation to learn to draw an animatic because I fully have not been able to draw properly or consistently in years due to pain,

But due to the degree of my emotional attachment to Hector growing for not readily discernible reason, I do have a mental image of a “Just A Man” animatic that has like… heavy references to the Iliad in some way, if only in the form of Achilles and Hector as shades who haunt Odysseus in this choice or as Neo(ptolemus) takes Andromache since like.

“Neo avenge your father, kill the brothers of Hector”

Is mentioned, so that is enough to work with to bring up and demonstrate Neoptolemus (Achilles’ son) seizing Andromache( Hector’s widow) who he takes as a war trophy essentially, and fathers many children with, and I guess is how Alexander the Great is descended from Achilles. Sources unclear. I’m sleepy.

Anyway, to make a short story long the idea I have is to have the shades and memories of Hector and Achilles haunt Odysseus in the different ways things can escalate, until the very end where he does walk out to the sound of the chorus and in looking at Neoptolemus and the captive Andromache he sees behind them the shades of their dead patriarchs for a flash. Has his final line as he releases Astyanax, it is heart rending in its tragedy. The shade of Hector is shown in a way catching the infant, and weeping embraces his son. One of the meanings of Hector’s name is “to hold.”

While technically I don’t think Astyanax will have the proper funeral rights to pass on to his father’s afterlife, there there’s a possibility someone after the Greek fleets fled Troy were able to make appropriate arrangements. I don’t really want to think too deeply about whether or not Astyanax gets to be with Hector in the Afterlife. I’m giving myself this.

[petalruesimblr]

Hello everyone! I'm back with another realistic part-time career with a bit of The Sims 3 twist and this time, it's a teen internship! Drawing inspiration from science programs such as BRAINYAC and GeoSciences Bridge Program designed for high school students which is perfect for our teens and they can even be promoted to a full Science career.

If you are interested, click on ’Keep Reading’ below for more information and pictures of the Landgraab Science Internship Career.

Landgraab Science Internship

Generations Version: Sim File Share | Base Game Version: Sim File Share ⚠️Download and use only one!

Attention, aspiring scientists! Dust off your lab coats and tighten those safety goggles because the Landgraab Science Internship is here to make your scientific dreams a reality. From potion brewing to genetic decoding, discover the thrill of discovery alongside industry experts. Say goodbye to mundane careers and hello to a future where innovation meets aspiration, one bubbling beaker at a time with Landgraab Science Internship!

Career Type: Part-Time Available for: Teens Available Languages: English Levels: 3 Rabbit Hole: ScienceLab Work Days: M,F,S Work Hours: 4PM - 7PM Does it have Carpool? Yes Does it have Uniforms? Yes (details under Final Notes) File Type: Package Min. Required Game Version: 1.42 Packs Needed: The Sims 3, Generations 📣All descriptions for the levels, tones and metrics as well as skills required, salary, uniforms and other details are provided on the pictures above.

NRAAS Careers Mod Generations Expansion Pack - if you choose the Generations Version.

I've used fairly common level names for this internship as I couldn't think of any others that fit perfectly. Some might sound familiar as I utilized them from The Sims and Sims 2 console games, such as Lab Assistant and Lab Cleaner respectively, although I haven't played those games myself, so the tones used here may differ. The work days for this internship are scheduled for Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays due to Thursday is considered as a holiday if you have the Seasons expansion pack and Shop Club meetings are on Tuesday and Wednesday if you have the Generations expansion pack. The package file includes uniforms and one of them is taken from the Generations expansion pack, specifically from the Catalyst Chemistry Lab Station (Chemistry table) excluding the goggles. Recognizing that not everyone may have this expansion pack, I've created two versions. The Generations version features a lab coat for levels 1 and 2, while the Base Game version uses base game outfits for all three levels. Please download and use only one version in your game! 📣 Upon reaching level three in their internship, teens will be eligible for promotion to the Science career upon applying once they become young adults. Instructions are provided in the picture above; right-click on it and select 'Open image in new tab' for a clearer view. As stated above, you will need NRAAS Careers Mod for these careers to show up in the game and as long as you have the latest version of it, it should work for higher patches. You can also read my #psa regarding these careers, click here. I’m not fluent in any other languages to translate so if anyone is interested in translating this career, please don’t hesitate to send me a message here, comment on this post or let me know in my Ask/Contact form (if you don't have a Tumblr account) and will let you know the details. I have tested this career in my game, so far it is working and all scripts are showing up. All feedback is very welcome to help me learn and improve my skills so please let me know if you experience any problems on your end and I’ll do my best to sort it as soon as possible.

MissyHissy step-by-step tutorial Twallan for the Career Mod S3pe

[ink-and-dagger]

HIII god I never use this app but I really needed to tell you how much I love your work, you are my new inspiration as an aspiring writer ily 😭 Your Silco fic really stuck with me, I've been reading fan works for like 8 years and I never felt so many emotions reading something on that site I'm not kidding, it's *chef kiss*, you are an incredible writer I hope you know that 🤍 On the other hand, if you don't mind I wanted to get an insight on how you work and what your writing process is with the characters and everything. I've been wanting to start writing for so long but never know how to start, mainly because I don't know how to get characters to stay in character and not make them feel OOC (and bc English is not my main language 🥲). I envy that a lot from many authors such as yourself and I could only hope for that level of skill, it's amazing 🥺 That's all, I'll be here waiting to read more of your works about anything or from any fandom really, you are great! Thank you in advance :) <3

Holy moly those are some huge compliments 😭 thank you so much ❤️ I’m so glad my story struck a chord with you.

I think you're literally incredible for even being able to contemplate writing a fic in a language that isn't your mother tongue. My personal belief is that story > writing. There are plenty of books out there that are beautifully written and boring as ass. There are also lots of books that have moved people to tears despite being averagely written. The words you use are merely a tool to communicate your story, and if your readers are invested in the world and characters you've created, then they will forgive imperfect writing.

I've answered a few writing questions in the past that might be of use/interest to you. I'll link them below:

How I plot my stories

How I came up with the outline for DWM

How to stop obsessing over edits

But in terms of your concerns around characterisation – I know it sounds wildly obvious... but you just kinda have to make sure you know that character inside and out.

It helps to build some kind of dossier alongside your outline that you can use as a reference sheet. This can contain whatever information you want, but here are some ideas to get you started:

Personality traits [both good and bad]

Likes and Dislikes

Special Skills/Abilities [plus anything they're rubbish at]

Fears and Desires

Important Relationships [do they have family and/or friends?]

It's also super important to familiarise yourself with the little details too. Real, relatable people don't walk around with their 'biggest qualities' plastered above their heads for all to see.

If you asked someone who works with me to quickly describe me, they wouldn't say – "Oh that's Inky. She values loyalty, her zodiac sign is Virgo, and she has mummy&daddy issues."

They'd more likely say something along the lines of – "Oh that's Inky. She's very friendly, likes to work with her AirPods in, and tends to fall over a lot."

It's these little details that flesh out a character and make them feel more real.

Try and envision your character in different mundane situations. What pizza would they order? How would they react to slow wi-fi? If their favourite song came on the radio whilst they were alone would they sing and dance? If they found money on the street what would they do?

A practical tip whilst writing is to read their dialogue out loud as them. Does it sound right? Can you hear them saying it? Think about their language and speech patterns. Think about what they're trying to communicate, but also whether they're attempting to withhold anything.

And lastly in terms of getting started writing...

I'm sorry my friend. The only way to start is to start...

I recently looked back at some old writing files from when I first began writing as an adult in late 2019. And believe me when I tell you that it has all the elegance of Donald trump in a pair of kitten heels. It’s awful.

But that’s okay. Because I knew when I was writing it that it was for my eyes only, and that I’d look back on it one day and think "wowee I've improved a butt ton!" And of course I was completely correct because I'm a Virgo and also INFJ so 💁🏻‍♀️

My point is, writing is a skill, and skills need to be practiced and honed. You have to allow yourself to be shit first, or you will never get good.

Open up a blank file and write a sentence. Doesn't matter what it is. Just write it. Save it in a private file just for you. Create a safe place where you can learn and make mistakes without any pressure.

And remember that even seasoned authors don't produce perfect writing from the get go. You put down a rough draft first. Then you go through and make it more coherent. Then fill in any gaps you left. Then tweak the order of events. Then finesse the language etc etc etc... It's a multi-step process, just like painting a picture. There's no point in attempting to add lighting and shade on top of a pencil sketch that doesn't even have any base colour on it yet.

WOW I'm rambling. I'm gonna wrap up, but as you can tell this is a topic I'm passionate about, and I'm more than happy to answer any more questions you might have!

I hope this is helpful in some way <3

[bugbeast]

Save Vase, plus some advice

I mentioned in my first post that I’ve dabbled in computer game design; I didn’t get very far into my game development journey before I pivoted to tabletop games, though, since it was quicker and easier to get a prototype ready to play. I did, however, finish four very simple games before moving on, not counting stuff I made during programming class in high school. Most of these games had a specific educational purpose behind their creation, as I suppose any piece of practice artwork does. I’m not sharing them with you because I think they’re particularly worthwhile, though I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have a certain level of fondness for them, but because I believe “pulling back the current” on these old game dev projects might help aspiring game designers realize they’re not alone in their struggles.

But, without further ado, I present to you one of my earliest completed computer games: Save Vase!

When I first started making games I had grand aspirations: I was going to make a space-shooter/RPG hybrid with a karma system and choices that affect the game’s story and a robust skill tree and – Yeah…I’ll talk about how bad of an idea this was later, but I knew my goal, misguided though it was, and I set out to achieve it.

There was only one problem (actually there were many, many problems; again, I’ll get into it later): no one knew about me. And if no one knew about ME, then how would they ever know about this masterpiece of a game I was working on? I needed a website, but most importantly, I needed proof I could actually make a game. Why would a person spread my website link around if they couldn’t be sure I even knew a thing about game development, after all? So I spent 30 minutes of my time creating a simple game to show to my friends on social media to prove I wasn’t just talking out of my ass (it was more like whispering).

That’s how Save Vase came to be. I don’t have much to say regarding the game itself, honestly; I think the above video is self-explanatory. In case you’re curious, though, keeping your vase safe for 30 seconds unlocks a hard mode in which you control a second vase with the arrow keys. “Impossible Mode” would be a more appropriate name, in my opinion, since it’s a little brain melting protecting two vases at once.

It won’t come as a shock to some of you that the space-shooter RPG never got past a couple of half-baked prototypes (and “prototype” is being generous); the truth is that making a game of that scope as your first project is basically impossible, especially if you’re flying solo. The lesson Save Vase taught me was that it was my true love all along a beginner’s first games should remain as limited in scope as possible. I should have been pumping out simple arcade games like Save Vase left and right to hone my skills, but instead I was convinced, despite having next to no idea what I was doing, that if I just tried really hard I could develop my dream game. I wasted time learning how to implement mechanics into a doomed project instead of focusing on the fundamentals. If you want to make games, and you haven’t heard this advice already, start small; instead of the battle royale with dating sim elements you doodled pictures of in your chemistry textbook, maybe make a couple dumb games about protecting pottery from psychic aliens first. Keep them simple, and make sure you finish them. A bunch of small completed games will do more for your skill development than attempting a large, complicated project ever could. Just make sure you’re having fun!

Peace.

Computer game design may not have worked out for me, but I still actively work on tabletop games; in fact, I have a card game available for purchase right now! It’s called Jewel Thief and it’s an asymmetrical card matching game. Purchase it here and/or read about it here.

Oh, and I guess if you want to try Save Vase for yourself you can download it here or whatever.

[crancisfrozier]

I have an idea for a gifset that I’ve been wanting to make for like weeks but the idea of sitting at my computer more and actually making it is so very unappealing right now 😩😩

[chouhatsumimi]

Hi! I am trying to become a japanese to English (& vice versa) translator. I can't find any sources to check the English to Japanese translation. It is difficult to get which grammar must be used since I am not a japanese native and don't know any natives to ask either. I have studied till N2 level but have no experience and must start freelancing to get experience so I need to figure out how to translate on my own. I can only use free translation software but I am not sure about it's reliability. I have seen questionable translations when it's for Japanese to English. Do think you can give any suggestions or anything that might be helpful?

Hi! I did put in a little time searching for the kind of tools you might have had in mind.

It seems that there are many that function in the exact same way but have different interfaces. Here are two of them. Many others can be found by searching "日本語文章校正ツール" or similar keywords. https://dw230.jp/kousei/

https://so-zou.jp/web-app/text/proofreading/

While they can point out some things to look out for, from the testing I did with them, they overlooked some pretty obvious errors, while also catching some things that I couldn't figure out why it thought it was wrong/sounded bad, or how to fix it.

There was one more I found that I didn't try, because it involves downloading software. This page explains the software, and another page on the site offers the download. The webpage is sponsored by a university, so I think it's safe to assume its trustworthy, but it might be a hassle and I can't say for sure if it works.

https://www.pawel.jp/outline_of_tools/tomarigi/

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That said, it's most common for translators to work from one language INTO their native language. While interpreters often have to go both directions (J <--> E), translators typically work either (J -> E) [English native speakers] OR (E -> J) [Japanese native speakers]. If you grew up bilingual, maybe you can translate both ways. But if English is your native language and you learned Japanese as a second language (which is true of my situation), it's pretty much not going to be worth bothering to do E->J translation, unless there are extenuating circumstances. The reasons for this are 1) You can't be sure that the translation you produce reads smoothly or is error-free 2) While you might think, but yes, if I do a really thorough check and compare it against native Japanese examples, I can be pretty darn sure it's perfect, the amount of time it takes you to do that is not going to be cost-effective. Like anything else, people purchasing translation as a service usually want the end result to be done well, in a timely manner, and as cheaply as possible, so it doesn't make sense to hire you for E -> J when they could hire a native Japanese speaking translator, or send their work to an agency to find that translator for them.

If you ARE translating into Japanese and are not a native speaker of Japanese, it is a good idea to have a fellow translator who has the opposite native language you do (in this case Japanese & English), and ask them to check it over for you (which, considering that's part of their job, you'd probably pay a small fee for). They could do the same to have you proofread their translations into English. Some translators consult friends/spouses, etc., but I think this can get old for them sometimes, so it's advisable not to rely on them for your job. You mentioned not having any native speakers to ask right now, but this is still an idea you can file away for in the future when you meet more people and get to know other translators.

In short, if you're aiming to become a translator working with Japanese but are not a native Japanese speaker, don't worry about translating into Japanese. Just focus on translating from Japanese into your native language.

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Translation software: let me make a distinction here between "machine translation" and "CAT [computer aided translation] tools".

Machine translation is Google Translate, DeepL, anything like that. There are times when they work well, but particularly with a language like Japanese that likes to imply a lot of information instead of stating it directly (such as who is doing the action described in the sentence), they're pretty much always going to miss something. In any situation that someone is looking to pay a translator to do work, it's because they already know machine translation won't cut it. One thing that's becoming more common is MTPE (machine translation post editing), where a translator "fixes" what's wrong with a machine translation (or more often than not, just re-translates it from scratch because what the machine came up with is mostly useless).

CAT tools, on the other hand, are widely used by translators. Paid CAT tools such as Trados, MemoQ, Memsource, etc. can be very expensive, and are often provided by a translation agency to their translators. (Also, most of them require a PC operating system.) There's more I could say, but since I haven't been in any situations that require them, I don't have any personal experience. I do have experience using OmegaT (free, works on Mac) and Felix (free, I use it on Windows). They both take a little tinkering to figure out how to use effectively, but basically what they do is, once you've translated a segment of text, they store the original segment and the translated segment, and for each new segment you go to translate, the CAT tool compares it to segments that you've previously translated to see if you can re-use any of what you came up with before. They can also have a built-in dictionary function, but that's basically just having your typical web-based dictionary but more automatically and in a more convenient location.

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For going into freelancing, I have a few recommendations.

Apart from CAT tools, some resources that I refer to frequently are http://nihongo.monash.edu/cgi-bin/wwwjdic?9T (basically looks up all the words in a sentence at once), http://thejadednetwork.com/sfx/ (if you're doing anything with sound effects, like manga), https://tsukubawebcorpus.jp//search/ (this is a corpus, I have another post on how to use it -here-, it's probably going to be your best bet when it comes to checking grammar), https://books.google.com/ngrams (for when it comes to figuring out what turns of phrase are commonly used in English), and https://yomikatawa.com/ (for figuring out the readings of names in Japanese, though there are other sites that work similarly).

When it comes to practicing, contests are a good place to start. The two I know of now are run by JAT in October (https://jat.org/events/contests) and JLPP deadline of 7/31 (and they're long, so it's probably too late for this year unless you're free between now and then: https://www.jlpp.go.jp/en/competition6/competition6en.html ) You can also practicing doing translations for fun. Any kind of media you enjoy (manga, video games, variety shows, newspaper articles) is a good target for doing a practice translation. Just be wary that it's not a good idea to post your translation in a public location on the internet, because it could be infringing copyright/licensing agreements, etc. Finally, there are websites like Gengo, Conyac, Fiverr and others where you can do gig translation work. They can be useful for practice, but also have the pitfall of paying, like, 5% of the rate you should be getting. This is an ongoing debate because on one hand, you can get practice while still getting a little money for it, but on the other hand, if customers can get people to do that work for 5% of a livable wage, that makes it harder for aspiring and working translators to find enough work that pays well enough to support themselves doing only translation for a living. Entertainment (primarily manga) scanlation groups also a significant enough force to merit a mention here- many aspiring entertainment translators find themselves a part of such a group. Practice is practice and developing your skills is important, but they also have many many of the same problems associated with them as I mentioned above, namely infringing on copyright and contributing to the inability of anyone to turn entertainment translation into a livable full-time job.

Another recommendation I have is to join some J/E translation-focused groups. This page lists a number of them: https://shinpaideshou.com/translation/ I can personally vouch for JAT as I am a member and I got my current job by being part of their directory. They run an online training program (eJuku) once a year around April, and applications only stay open for a few days, so if you're interested make sure you keep your eye out. Another one not listed on that page is https://swet.jp/ which is not entirely about translation, but it is heavily related and they host some good events. Twitter is also a very good place to be if you're getting into J/E translation. I prefer to keep my tumblr and twitter separate but if you DM me, I can give you my handle so you can see who I follow and who among that seems worth following to you.

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In closing, I see you say "I have studied till N2 level but have no experience and must start freelancing to get experience so I need to figure out how to translate on my own." I'd say, give yourself some time. Even at N1 there's still going to be a lot you don't understand (or at least there was for me, that's why I started this langblr). I'm sure there are differences in our situations, but it was about five years ago for me that I started diving into translation- I think I was between N2 and N1 then. I've done a lot of translating and gotten a lot of experience since then, but I also have and am experiencing a lot of burnout. (In fact, I'm procrastinating right now by answering this....) Many translators have a job and translate on the side, and it's also common to gain experience with a company or agency before diving into supporting yourself on freelance work. I'd encourage you to take a breath, get experience when and where you can, and remember that if you keep at it long enough, you're sure to get there- just don't wear yourself out or worry to death in the meantime!

OH and definitely keep track of what projects you do, how long they are, and how long it takes you to do them! Knowing your speed is important when it comes to setting your working rates. I am always doubting these, and they differ from person to person, but my current estimates are that I can do 600 moji (Japanese characters) per hour, ~10 min. of audio per hour, and I try to aim for $45~$60 per hour. Generally the lowest acceptable standard rates are $0.05-$0.06 per moji and ~$5 per page of manga. You'll definitely get requests lower than that, so remember your sanity and don't be afraid to say no, there are plenty of opportunities out there!

[luxe-pauvre]

Hello Holly....

I was wondering if you could have any suggestions for me about this - i have this exam that i so need to get a good rank and qualify so that i can do p.hd. But i think i am not working as hard as i should be. I see other exam aspirants and i lose my sh** because the level of questions they are trying to solve. I know i haven't been too studious in the past yet i studied as best as i could (i have adhd and grew up in a dysfunctional family and it took me a lot of time to unlearn and relearn a lot of stuff). I do try and study good and sometimes i drift so easily away. The thoughts i specifically label as "unnecessary" some how creep up and before i know I'd have spent hours with it. Sometimes i really think i remember my past or some people or create scenarios just to not keep studying. I really want to study. I really am interested. I just slip away into not studying so easily. Honestly those Students in the top,being eligible for various fellowship scare me and make me think that i am never gonna be one among them and i should give up and find something else to do. Sometimes i can't bear the thought of failing to score the cutoff mark again and seeing the disappointment on my parents face. I think that pressure is there and i don't know how to handle. Please.. Do you have any advice for me? Any insights? I could really use your help. I totally understand if you couldn't answer me.

Take care🌻. Love your posts always. It is so attractive to see how much you read.

Okay, there is a lot to unpack here so I am going to try and organise my answer as best as possible.

‘I think I am not working as hard as I should be.’ The key words in that sentence are ‘I think’. Thinking/feeling like you’re not studying as much as you should is not evidence that that is true. Studying is not about quantity, but quality. Getting in an hour a day of difficult active recall is better than spending ten hours highlighting and re-reading notes. Look into evidence-based study practices (I highly recommend the book Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning), and, given how dedicated you seem, work out a way to get comfortable with the feeling that you’re not doing enough. I, too, never feel like I’m doing enough. Earlier in the year I had to have some time off sick and felt so behind when I returned, despite there being no objective evidence that I was behind. I stuck a post-it note in my eye line on the wall above my desk that had ‘you are not behind’ written on it. It reached the point after a few days of constantly glancing at it that even having the thought that I was behind became ridiculous and laughable, and eventually I just got on with what I needed to do unhindered by the thought.

‘I see other exam aspirants and I lose my sh** because the level of questions they are trying to solve [...] those students in the top … scare me and make me think that I am never gonna be one among them and I should give up’ You have to run your own race. What other people are doing should have no bearing on what you are doing. You’re not seeing what is really going on for them, you’re seeing what they want you to see. During my MSc year I was surrounded by students who were pulling ten hour study days and seemingly had an impossible amount of extracurriculars going on, and appeared to have everything together, but they didn’t get in to the programs they wanted to. They were either putting in the hours, but not using them effectively, or were just unlucky. It’s horrible to acknowledge but there are far far more students capable of doing PhDs than there are places, so a certain amount of luck is involved. You can do everything right, you can be the gold star student with the top scores and the twenty extracurriculars and several summer’s of work experience, but still not get a place. Focus on what you can control, on what you are doing, and forget about everyone around you.

‘I studied as best I could’ Great. That’s all you can do and all you can expect from yourself. I don’t have ADHD nor do I have close friends/colleagues who do, and so I cannot offer you advice on this specifically. If you’re at a college/university with a student wellbeing/health/disability service do reach out to them for advice. My usual self-help resource that my university recommends has nothing ADHD-specific. If anyone reading this has any resources to help Anon, please share them in the notes.

‘Sometimes I can’t bear the thought of failing to score the cutoff mark again’ Failure is part of getting into a PhD program. There’s a student in my lab group who has just submitted her thesis, and I’ve read it, and it’s amazing, and she’s amazing, and her CV is amazing, and she’s going on to a fantastic post-doc position, and it all seems so glorious. But I was talking to her at her leaving party last week and discovered she didn’t get the first TWENTY TWO PhD programs/projects she applied for. It’s ridiculous that this the system we’re all desperately trying to work in, but you’ve got to get comfortable with failure. I highly recommend you look up academic CVs of failures that some professors publish to get a true grasp of the scale of failure the ‘superstars’ around you have faced. Persistence and perseverance and being comfortable with rejection are the most valuable skills you can carry into a PhD program, just keep going.

[thepencilnerd]

Pasta and Dinner Parties

"Edamame," Theo says.

"The fuck did you just call me?" Blaise’s face contorted quicker than a shifting boggart.

Another eye roll. “The pasta, it’s made from edamame.” Theo pronounces it with a certain twinge of pomposity that would have Percy Weasley reeling. Too many syllables. Vowels too lengthy. “Type of soybean, I reckon.” 

"IT'S NOT PASTA!" Blaise’s roar shook the walls of the foyer.

Pansy snorts into her mug. “I don’t know about you, but I think this dinner will go swimmingly.”

Draco and Hermione have reached a domestic milestone. They've finally decided to move in together. Draco invites her over for dinner, but what would a little Slytherin hospitality be without some sugar and spice?

Rated M for language and discussions of heavy topics in future chapters

Full fic + updates on AO3

"Luna sent a box of these over, wonderful isn't she?" If lovesick eyes had a picture to accompany the definition, Theodore Nott’s face would be front and center. In his left hand, he held an empty cardboard carton with a sticky note adhered to the front flap. 

Simmer for 10 minutes with a sprig of rosemary and a teaspoon of salt. Keeps away the balfspracks. 

Blaise rubs his eyes. It’s half-past five and he’s already had it with Theo. Had it. Patience wore down to the bone. Basta. Finite incantatem. In all honesty, he’d gladly throw himself in front of a flying—

A shorter figure crept up from behind. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she gives her boyfriend a peck on the cheek, which seems to loosen the wrinkles settling over his forehead. 

"Ladies," Pansy jests, mediating the arguments between the two as always. "I'm sure there's more than enough pasta to go around." 

"Not pasta," Blaise muttered. He tried to concentrate on the lingering warmth Pansy’s lips left on his face. The poor bloke sounded like he was about to hurl.  

At this, Theo rolled his eyes and waved dismissively. “Yes, yes, yes, you can flaunt your Italian heritage some other time, now let me work my culinary magic!” 

Blaise takes a deep breath. High blood pressure, he remembered Pansy saying. Need to stay calm. "Mate, I love you, I really do, but if you don't tell me what those green things swimming about in my favorite crockpot are, you have another thing coming."

"You used a crockpot to boil pasta?" Pansy’s head popped up from behind Blaise’s shoulder. Her nose wrinkled like she’d caught a whiff of something foul. 

“Not pasta.” Blaise was a broken record.

Draco groaned from the living room. The headache from earlier evolved into a full-blown migraine by the time lunch was over. His eyeballs were absolutely throbbing. He jammed the heels of his hands into his eye sockets as if it would relieve any of the aching. To no avail. 

"Granger's coming over in half an hour and we’ve yet to transfigure a dining table." He verbalized his misery in as simple terms as he could. Sitting on the living room couch, he calculated the farthest distance from the kitchen and found himself just a few feet away. Problem with having a small flat. He couldn't find it in himself to raise his voice. Not with the demon baby currently going stir-crazy with a gavel in his skull. 

He questioned his level of sobriety when he agreed to this.

Meeting Hermione Granger’s parents had been less stressful than this. 

Introducing her to his mother was a Christmas tree full of Christmas presents compared to this. 

Sitting in a train compartment with 2nd-year Hufflepuffs sounded more bearable than this. 

Why, oh why, did he have to open his big mouth that night? 

“Seems proper that I’d at least get to share dinner with them before we move in together,” Hermione shrugged. Her hair was still damp from her—their—shower. Stray curls escaped, framing the curves of her face. Draco loved how her sheets always smelled like her soap. The scent of her shampoo was reserved for the pillowcases. 

“Come over for dinner,” he suggested. Quite impulsively, really. “Allow me to treat you to an evening of... Slytherin hospitality.” Draco’s trademark grin served him well. Resting on his side, Draco was propped up on one elbow with no shirt and sheet draped over his bottom half. She wanted to believe he was wearing briefs underneath. He looked absolutely wicked. 

Hermione scowled tentatively but surrendered with a smile. Her chest rose before she let out a sigh. “Well, I’d be lying if I said I’d experienced an inkling of that before.” Mirth graced her tone. 

The embers from the fireplace bounced off of her bare skin like rays of summer sun; warm and welcoming. Draco’s fingers fondled the strap of her bra, the only thing she was wearing, and earned a breathy giggle from her. Tugging the lace down, he sat up and started pressing a trail of kisses along her skin. Goosebumps erupted where his lips traced her flesh. The bath had stained her skin; she tasted of rosewater and honey. 

Hermione let out a hmph and tried to focus on the book she was holding. She developed a knack for knowing when he craved attention. Whenever Draco came over, he turned into a literal child. Always nagging and begging for her every time he got the chance. If she wasn’t superglued to his side, Hermione would bet a million galleons he’d throw a fit. 

“Turn around and face me instead. I don’t fancy being smothered by your hair while we sleep.” 

“How do you turn on the stove?”

“Granger, help me fix the antenna!” 

“Could you take a look at this spot on the back of my head? I might be balding.” 

“Granger, I think I nicked myself on the aluminium.” 

“If you weren’t wearing so many clothes, we’d probably warm up faster. Becoming a pair of popsicles isn’t exactly on my bucket list.” 

This time around, his demands were very clear. 

“Pay attention to me.” 

Hermione’s eyes shot up from her book. Shock painted her features like a splash of cold water. 

She blinks once. Twice. Three times for good measure. And then, her lips break into a blinding smile, pearly whites and all. The corners of her eyes curl into half-moons and her whole body shakes with glee. 

Sweet Merlin, he was fucked. 

Setting her book down on the nightstand, Hermione sits up straight and looks at Draco expectantly. He sits unmoved beside her. Staring. Admiring. Waiting. The cheeky grin that etches into her face is one Draco would give the world to see every day. 

Draco leans back against the headboard and stretches his legs out towards the foot of the bed. Scooting closer to her, she flips her leg over his awaiting lap. She’s straddling him in the span of two seconds. The feel of her bare flesh against his is utter bliss. 

Her arms wrap around his neck like a koala bear and her head nestles into the crook of his neck. Despite lathering him in her soap, he still smelled like Draco. All these years of dating and she still couldn’t put her finger on the bevy of aromas. 

Draco mirrors her actions like a reflection, one and the same. His arms make her feel so incredibly small when encased in them. Like a bear cub. Or a kangaroo in a pouch. Maybe mammals would be an appropriate term to generalize how warm and safe she felt in his embrace, but it wasn’t the most attractive or poetic—

“I thought we finished showering earlier,” he sighs into her hair. “Why is there steam coming off your head?”

She blows a puff of air into his neck and he jolts at the sensation. Ticklish. Draco knew that secret would die with Hermione and she was honored to keep it. Unless it served her in times of duress. 

“I was just thinking about how safe I am when I’m with you.” The tip of her nose brushes against the junction above his throat and feels his heartbeat, delicate but strong. 

Da-dum.

Da-dum.

Da-dum.

Pulling back, he slides his left hand along her cheek and she leans into it like second nature. Hermione raises her right hand and cradles it over his. The way it pales in proportion almost makes him break into laughter. When she presses open-mouthed kisses down his bare wrist, Draco resists the urge to take her right then and there. It’s too perfect of a moment to ruin. Not tonight. 

She’s even more tender when her lips reach his scar. The marred flesh that takes him back to his inescapable past. A reminder of everything wrong he’s been taught since childhood; everything bad in this world; everything wrong he’s done throughout his entire life. 

But more importantly, it’s a symbol of how much good was left in this dismal world. 

It’s a battle scar that reminds him that he lived.

Something that motivates him to keep trying. 

A reminder of how despite being swallowed by the darkness that plagued the world, he chose to hold onto light. 

A reminder of how above everything, he chose Hermione and Hermione chose him. 

He takes a moment to look at her, really look at her, and melts. 

Hermione is a vision actualized. He sees the dreams and aspirations swirl about her irises in flickers. Roaming freely and always there when you needed them. He wants to bask in them. Relish in them. In her. For as long as she’ll keep him, no matter how infinitely small or finitely large. He’d burn through galaxies if it meant seeing her happy and safe. Anything and everything he could provide for her was his to offer. She need only ask. 

Draco Malfoy was wholly and irrevocably head over heels for Hermione Granger.

Magic and might, save him. 

No really, save him.

What the bloody hell was that infernal yapping? 

"I, for one, thought it would be better to go to an Italian restaurant, but Blaise here," Theo quipped. “—wanted to dish out his non-existent cooking skills,” He paused to stir the pot. “At least Luna was kind enough to—”

Blaise stomped his foot on the kitchen tiles. Miracle they hadn’t cracked yet. There was no point in trying to hide his tantrum. “Just because my ancestors were Italian doesn’t mean I’m a master chef!” He narrows his eyes. “Honestly Theo—” The words die in his throat when Theo fishes out a noodle from the pot. Maybe it’s just his eyes playing tricks on him but he swears it flipping wiggles. “What in Merlin’s great magical kingdom is that abomination and why the ever-loving fuck is it green?” 

Pansy gave his cheek a pat. “Colorful, Blaise. Truly” 

"Edamame," Theo says. 

"The fuck did you just call me?" Blaise’s face contorted quicker than a shifting boggart.

Another eye roll. “The pasta, it’s made from edamame.” Theo pronounces it with a certain twinge of pomposity that would have Percy Weasley reeling. Too many syllables. Vowels too lengthy. “Type of soybean, I reckon.” 

"IT'S NOT PASTA!" Blaise’s roar shook the walls of the foyer. 

Pansy snorts into her mug. “I don’t know about you, but I think this dinner will go swimmingly.” 

A crash echoes from the kitchen and Theo lets out a screech that rivals grindylows. 

Pansy takes a long, calm sip. Likely pumpkin juice. Draco wouldn’t be surprised if it were laced with some pre-appetizer spirits. How she managed to deal with Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dum was beyond him. Hell, he needed some right about now. At least to dial down the nerves. Not to mention the spike in blood pressure provoked by his flatmates. 

The remaining minutes pass like clockwork and before he knows it, the front door dings. Never has a bell sounded more menacing than now. Why is he so nervous? She’s met them a few times before and they’ve definitely shared rounds of drinks. No doubt, gone to Diagon Alley with Parkinson, Lovegood, and Weasley. The tolerable one. 

Did he clean his room? 

Theo promised to dust right after tea but the bloke was delusional about everything except Lovegood. A bit poetic, not that Draco ever cared to admit it. 

Pansy and Blaise stopped by the market yesterday and restocked the pantries and fridge. 

And then Luna dropped off her bag of goodies this morning. 

“She’s early.” Theo stuck his head out from the kitchen. Why was he covered in flour? 

So many questions. Draco didn’t even care to know the answers to half of them. 

“She’s always early when she’s excited.” 

The three stooges stand shell shocked and stare at Pansy. They just stare. 

She blinks like an owl and shakes her head. “Honestly, are you three just going to stand there or is someone’s boyfriend going to get the door?” 

Draco’s brain registers the words too late for his liking. He’s dead sober but his brain is all fuzzy. Just as she’s about to knock for a second round, Draco’s feet propel him to the door so fast a whip of apparition cracks. 

The door clicks open to reveal a dazzling frame. Hermione Granger is, to say the least, an unreal figment of everything good in the world. War heroine, member of the Order of the Phoenix, magical, academic, and practical genius, pure in mind and soul, and his girlfriend. His girlfriend. His. Donning a pair of black leggings and a flowing cream blouse, she’s bundled in a beige trench coat and blush pink scarf. Dark mahogany brown ankle boots boost her height by a few centimeters. Draco still overshadows her by a good head or two. Nevertheless, it’s a thoughtful effort. She’s holding a bouquet of flowers and a bottle of wine. 

“Hello—woah!’ 

Draco’s arms are around her instantly and she’s brought into the house. His broad shoulders envelop her into a cloaked embrace that lets his scent wash over her. He never wants to let go. 

Initially surprised at the abrupt shift in balance, Hermione relaxes into his hold within seconds. He still smells like her soap and Draco and… smoking?

“Blaise!” a female voice shrieks. “Don’t just stand there Theo, do something!” 

A cloud of smoke—contained by a bubble charm, thanks to Pansy—swirls above the stovetop, large and foreboding. The source? A deep green crockpot placed on one of the burners.

Wait. Why is a crockpot on the burner? Hermione wonders.

“I told you we needed to salt the water and add the rosemary! Now you’ve got balfspracks all over the bloody place!” Theo’s voice changed from panic to mockery. He turned his nose upright and growled in a nasal tone. “‘Oh, salt is acceptable, but rosemary? Unacceptable. A disgrace to all cuisine Italian. May as well—’”

Draco pinches the bridge of his nose. By the end of the day, he’d probably have to ask Hermione to heal his bruises. “Bloody hell…” 

“Oh, it’s my fault now, is it?” Hermione realizes Blaise’s name suits him very well. Almost too well. In any other life, he might have been sorted into Gryffindor with that fiery temperament. “Next time we have a guest over, we’re ordering take-out. From Hogsmeade!” 

“Someone help me get rid of this burnt pot of—whatever the hell pasta Theo was making,” Pansy gags while trying to contain the swelling bubble. The scent is overwhelming. Something between seaweed and polyjuice. Perhaps a vile mixture of the two. 

“EDAMAME!” 

“NOT PASTA!” 

Draco can’t tell whether he wants to burst into laughter or cry. Maybe he’ll do both. Hermione was there to wipe away the snot or tears, regardless of whichever it would end up being. 

Giving him a chase kiss, Hermione placed the gifts in his hands and made her way to the lounge. Draco was going to kill them. He was going to kill them dead.

She pulled out her want and raised it towards the giant orb of smoke, confidence igniting her eyes. Her wand moved as if it were on its own, guided purely by magic and intent with an undeniable essence of Granger. She draws a broad circle that covers the entire room and summons the wisps of smoke like a magnet. The ashy tendrils of burnt food claw their way out of the floorboards and ceiling cracks, latching on for as long as they can before they’re drawn out Aiming towards the ajar door, the coils of smoke and singe are thrown out the entrance with a deafening gust. 

A single strand of hair falls out of her ponytail. 

She blows it out of her eyes with a single, deliberate puff. 

The corner of her lip quirks upwards the slightest. 

It’s so fast you’d miss it if you blinked. 

If Draco wasn’t so overcome with the urge to skin his friends, he’d dive in there right now and kiss her numb. 

The flat has returned to an atmosphere of calm. 

“Fucking finally,” Draco mutters out loud. Not intentionally but he doesn’t regret it one bit. 

Pansy, Theo, and Blaise resemble owls; wide eyes, unmoving bodies, twitching necks that swivel side to side. 

Theo breaks the silence with something along the lines of a chortle. “Welcome to our humble abode, Granger.” 

“Pleasure to have you here,” Blaise adds. His hands are still clenched around Theo’s shirt collar. 

Pansy is still trying to catch her breath having inhaled a hefty amount of the fumes. Blaise and Theo had probably tumbled around the living room enough to avoid the thick of it. Still, she refuses to let it impede on her hostess abilities. 

“Hermione!” Pansy coughs. “Why don’t you and Draco check out upstairs while—” she pauses to glare daggers at the two boys covered in God knows what, “—we deal with the mess down here.” 

Hermione draws out the excess smoke from Pansy’s clothes and hair with a swish of her wand. The next thing she does makes the three boys’ jaws unhinge. They bring each other into a warm hug and laughter rings in the air.

“It’s good to see you too, Pans,” Hermione breathes. Draco was definitely going to have a fit over this later.

Hermione gives Theo and Blaise a shy wave. Hopefully, they’d understand. In any other instance, she’d be more than happy to rid their clothes of the stench. They wouldn’t even have to ask. But this was Pansy Parkinson and if Hermione knew Pansy Parkinson, she knew that the Slytherin would want to drag on punishment as long as possible before even thinking of succumbing to forgiveness. 

Hermione Granger’s stubbornness coupled with her Gryffindor loyalty? 

She’ll be damned if she lets either waver when surrounded by friends. 

Draco clears his throat forcefully and offers his arm. “Upstairs then, shall we?” 

Hermione loops her arm through his and grins. It’s contagious and Draco already feels his anger ebb into affection. 

She speaks almost as lightheartedly as the wand movement for a levitation charm. "We shall." 

[shihalyfie]

Daisuke and Tagiru

Ever since Tagiru’s concept was announced, people have been comparing him to Daisuke, and, honestly, it’s hard not to -- in fact, considering that Xros Wars did certainly have some degree of trying to invoke stuff from older series, it’s very likely this is intentional! You have someone introduced as a junior to a prior protagonist, who wears goggles like him (and eventually inherits the senior’s pair), wears blue, has a blue dragon-like partner, is more hot-headed than said senior...

...and that is about where the similarities stop!

Still, I think such prominent base profile details practically beg one to make a comparison, so let’s dig in!

(Translations linked below are PositronCannon’s for 02, The Wild Bunch for Hunters, and L Subs for a Kizuna screenshot, unless otherwise stated.)

The junior-senior relationship

Both Daisuke and Tagiru look up to their seniors, and that’s probably the most well-known part about both of them, but I think the first major difference between the two is how they approach that admiration towards said seniors.

While Daisuke’s way of approaching Taichi can generally be observed through his tone and actions overall, the most clear representation is in 02 episode 8, where you get to see their relationship as soccer team junior and senior. The most consistent thing about this is that Daisuke is completely and utterly deferential to Taichi.

What does this mean? It means that, even when Daisuke is jokingly bragging about his skills, it only takes one criticism from Taichi to entirely shut him down. The degree to which Daisuke respects Taichi’s opinion and holds him in regard is in such high esteem that he completely defers to his judgment. He really, really thinks Taichi is that much cooler of an experienced person whose judgment takes priority over his own. Even in episode 39, when he makes his first major disagreement against Taichi -- that he wants to go help Ken in Tamachi instead of accompanying the others -- the way he phrases it is firm, but politely and respectfully, to the point it almost comes off like he’s asking for permission to go.

Tagiru, on the other hand...

...well, his first appearance in the series involves disregarding Taiki’s advice. And when it comes to his approach to Taiki...

...his goal is to outdo Taiki. He understands that Taiki is amazing, but he’s fixated on beating and surpassing him, seeing Taiki’s amazingness as more of a goal to reach.

In contrast, Daisuke’s approach to Taichi is completely on the other extreme.  While no part of 02-related canonical material ever explicitly covers whether Daisuke thinks he’d ever be able to be as good as Taichi, the implication is that Daisuke thinks Taichi is so amazing that the idea of surpassing him doesn’t even occur to him, or that he may not even think it’s possible at all. See Spring 2003:

All right! I’m finally a regular! A center-forward. Haah, I’m getting all pumped up! I’ll show ’em all my power! But… Taichi-san was already a regular in his fifth year. I heard he was big. Ahh, he was awesome!!

The one time he’s known to explicitly compare Taichi to himself...he just gushes about how Taichi was a regular earlier than he was. And then gushes about Taichi in general. So in other words, he treats the fact that he’s not as “good” as Taichi as...just a fact of life, because Taichi being that amazing is a fact of life to him.

Even all the way in 2010, Daisuke’s default reaction to Taichi is to gush about how amazing he is. He doesn’t even think of himself in the equation.

The goggles

Both of them are also known for having wearing goggles specifically because their seniors do, but the circumstances behind them are somewhat different.

Tagiru’s reasons for imitating Taiki are explicitly laid out in Hunters episode 1:

Tagiru basically sees Taiki as a “role model” -- he thinks Taiki is the model of the “superstar” level he wants to attain, and, eventually, surpass.

On the other hand, Daisuke’s circumstances and motive behind wearing the goggles were only implied in the series itself, but fully fleshed out in Spring 2003. In what’s implied to be a metaphorical conversation with his younger self, it’s said that the reason Daisuke started wearing goggles was because of “a person wearing goggles and riding something that looked like a huge dinosaur" -- Yagami Taichi, whom it seems Daisuke did not properly recognize as Taichi at the time -- during the 1999 Odaiba fog incident, when Vamdemon kidnapped everyone. Wanting “the strength to protect everyone”, Daisuke went home and picked up a pair of goggles, and has this to say about them:

...when I wear them, I guess it’s like, my feelings become stronger... ...Because I have these goggles. Even I didn’t know a lot from the start — well, I probably still don’t even now — but when I wear these, I kinda feel motivated… to do anything!

In other words, it’s likely Daisuke didn’t even realize “Taichi-senpai” was the person he was modeling himself after at the beginning -- it’s a bit unclear due to the circumstances of Spring 2003 being somewhat metaphorical, but either way it seems it had more to do with Taichi as “the hero who protected everyone” rather than simply his amazing soccer senior. Supporting this is Daisuke’s cameo appearance in the Adventure novels, which also has him express frustration at being powerless to protect his family.

(But of course, at whatever point Daisuke realized they were the same person, Taichi’s amazing soccer skills and leadership abilities must have certainly helped how much Daisuke adores him.)

Their general demeanor

Both Daisuke and Tagiru, on the surface, seem to track with the sort of “brash shounen hero” stereotype, but even their way of going about things differs greatly!

Despite Daisuke having a very “abrasive” surface demeanor -- he tends to get easily irritated at other people, and can sometimes come off as being pretty aggressive -- the truth is that he actually defers to others quite easily. This is especially in the case of the seniors or Hikari, but it extends to pretty much anyone -- the moment someone else puts their foot down, criticizes him, or takes a sufficiently large stand, he has a very strong tendency to back down. The fact that he’s so wishy-washy at the beginning of the series is a huge part of his character development, especially since the end of the Kaiser arc and the second half of the series are when he starts to make a serious stand about major things he cares about -- such as stopping more casualties at Chimeramon’s hands, or reaching out to Ken -- but he does still have some degree of deference to his friends’ opinions, and of course especially his seniors. At the very least, even if he gets argumentative, he’ll actually debate it out with them and try to make his case. In other words, Daisuke spends the course of 02 learning to be assertive, but he’s actually not as aggressive as his initial demeanor suggests.

In fact, Daisuke has often been described as being a lot like a puppy, which is something I find to be rather incredibly accurate -- he gets easily riled up or defensive, but in actuality is eager to please others and is otherwise not very threatening (especially if you give him attention).

For what it’s worth, as much as Daisuke seems to often have a lot of confidence (he does the usual shounen hero schtick of gloating about taking enemies down and all that), it’s very rare he actually talks about himself or shows any moments of pride or self-esteem. Even his joking that he might make the national soccer team was that -- a joke -- that he snapped out of the moment Taichi criticized him, and the same episode has him not even entertaining the illusion that they might win against the Tamachi team -- he’s just happy to play them at all. By the time of Kizuna, he’s rather grounded and realistic about his position and abilities in terms of how to approach his career aspirations -- overall he doesn’t actually seem to have a lot of self-awareness, positive or negative, and can be quite humble when it really comes down to it.

Considering that, it makes sense that Daisuke was able to settle for such a simple career aspiration (ramen making) -- he’s not that ambitious, and he doesn’t shoot very high. He’s happy with what he’s able to do, and while he of course wants to succeed in that and do his best, he's still satisfied with not aiming all that high.

Moreover, while he of course tends to be the one who wants to charge forward, it’s quite easy to hold him back if the others advise him that it’s a bad idea (see: 02 episode 7). During times he does put his foot down because he really, really believes it’s the only thing that can be done, Daisuke is actually forgiving of those who don’t want to charge in forward as easily as he does; in both episodes where he chooses to push on forward when the others are hesitant (02 episodes 20 and 48), he holds no ill will towards the others staying behind and simply informs everyone that he’ll go in alone if he has to. 

Tagiru, on the other hand, is actually as aggressive as his demeanor suggests -- he’s not nearly as deferential as Daisuke and doesn’t “deflate” as easily, is much more willing to argue with others (or disregard them and go off on his own if he sufficiently dislikes what they’re doing), and is rather generally brimming with pride and a lot of self-assuredness in being great and awesome. Unlike Daisuke, he is absolutely ambitious and wants to shoot for the highest thing he can possibly be -- hence why he wants to not just be like Taiki but surpass him, because he has the drive to push himself as far as possible.

Tagiru also has a tendency to try and “claim credit” for things (the basketball match in episode 1, the above scene in episode 14); most likely Daisuke wouldn’t even bother (except, perhaps, in the occasional moment of weakness when he’s trying to impress Hikari-chan). Moreover, Tagiru doesn’t need any permission to charge in whatsoever; he’ll do it if he wants to, regardless of what others tell him.

This also contributes to Tagiru being much less of a team player than Daisuke is -- making him excel much better in Hunters’ battle royale format in which his aggressiveness helped him compete in a game where everyone was playing for themselves. It’s likely he would have done very poorly in Daisuke’s situation, where team coordination and bonding was important to their adventure, and, conversely, Daisuke, who’s reliant on others and constantly deferential, would probably have performed very poorly in the Hunt.

V-mon and Gumdramon

Personality-wise, I think it’s generally understood that Daisuke and Tagiru’s actual partners have rather little similarity, and everything is mainly aesthetic (being blue dragon-like Digimon) -- V-mon is rather easygoing and friendly, whereas Gumdramon’s competitiveness and mischievousness matches Tagiru’s own. In general, though, I would also point out that this is reflective of the different ways Adventure/02 and Xros Wars approached Digimon partnership as well. In Adventure/02, Digimon partners were effectively part of the inner self, so V-mon was reflective of Daisuke actually being of a quite friendly and agreeable nature when it really came down to it and you got past his abrasive surface demeanor. As a result, Daisuke and V-mon were like-minded almost unconsciously, to the point of being in sync without even trying. (Not that they’d never got into an argument ever -- see The Door to Summer -- but their relationship was definitely more of a “natural clicking” sense.)

In contrast, Xros Wars very much treats Digimon and humans as individual entities in every respect, with “partners” really just being the Digimon each General/Hunter bonded the most with and has as their core battle partner, so there is much more of a significant level of choice between partners choosing each other in terms of whether their personalities click. (The fact that Taiki and Shoutmon were very disparate in temperament and motive was a big part of the first series of Xros Wars.) Nevertheless, Gumdramon and Tagiru are extremely like-minded -- both a little mischievous, and both very ambitious. Of course, both of them being rather aggressive did lead to some friction in episodes such as 7 and 17, but this led to them ultimately bonding more deeply by working through it.

Unlike V-mon, who had no real affiliation with Agumon, and unlike Tagiru, who can hardly be said to be all that deferential to Taiki, Gumdramon does seem to be significantly deferential to Shoutmon...although mainly out of intimidation more than anything.

Round-up

So, a tl;dr in closing:

Daisuke's relationship to Taichi is almost entirely deferential, and Daisuke holds him in such high esteem that he concentrates more on Taichi being amazing more than he ever factors himself into the equation; Tagiru sees Taiki more as a role model and someone to aspire to and eventually surpass

Daisuke’s reason for taking after Taichi with the goggles is out of a desire to protect others the way Taichi did; Tagiru wears the goggles explicitly to imitate Taiki as part of his goal to be a “superstar” and eventually surpass him

Daisuke is generally deferential to others, is somewhat lacking in ambition, and only really puts a firm foot down when it’s something he cares about; Tagiru is actually capable of being aggressive, does not necessarily defer to others, and has significant ambitions of pushing himself as high as possible

Daisuke’s relationship with V-mon is that of V-mon being reflective of Daisuke’s inner friendliness, and the two simply get along naturally in a friendly manner; Tagiru and Gumdramon had to more consciously form their partnership on being more like-minded, which meant that they had to overcome some obstacles in their relationship due to both of them being more on the aggressive side.

[thebmatt]

FFXIV Write 2021 Prompt #8: Adroit

(More Franks and Tataru shenanigans. I think I officially have to call them siblings after this one and my day 1 prompt!)

Adroit – clever or skillful in using the hands or mind.

“Greetings, miss! Welcome to the Carpenter’s guild! How can I help you?”

Tataru smiled at the man behind the desk. “Hello, ser! My name is Tataru Taru, I’m here to speak with Timbermaster Beatin about a commission!”

“Ah, yes. I was told to expect you! Go on in, the guildmaster is at the back of the room, just up the stairs in the corner!”

She thanked the man and entered the hails of the guild. The sounds of hammer and saw beating wood into shapes filled the room. The smells of lumber and sawdust pervaded the air.

She climbed the stairs and approached the gray-haired elezen she knew to be the Timbermaster. He was intently examining a set of documents, but turned at her approach.

“Ah, lady Tataru! Good to see you again. The Elder Seedseer did let me know to expect you. I gather this is not about you finally deciding to become one of our number?”

Tataru giggled. “Sorry, Timbermaster, not today. No, I’m here on behalf of the Scions. Several of our number were….away for an extended time and only recently returned. However, because of the nature of their mission, they had to leave everything behind, including their weapons.”

She reached into her traveling pack, withdrew a rolled parchment wrapped in green-colored string, and handed it to him.

“I mean to make a gift to them of a faithful recreation of said weapons, and need a truly masterful carpenter to recreate the shaft and head of this staff. The original was called Nightseeker.”

Beatin unrolled the parchment and set it on his table, looking over the plans with interest. “Hrrmm…..yes, quite intricate. This wood, I’ve not seen its like anywhere in Eorzea. Half of the challenge shall be in sourcing something suitable! I presume you’ll be asking Serendipity to assemble the pieces and provide this gemstone, here?”

Tataru nodded. “Indeed. So what do you think, sir? Can you do it?”

He stood, glancing over the array of other documents on his desk, then shook his head. “Unfortunately, Lady Tataru, not in any degree of soonness. Mistake me not, under other circumstances I would relish this challenge, but unfortunately, the guild is swamped with commissions and too few skilled carpenters to pull them off. Most of my days are spent instructing and sifting through aspirants. I would not be able to give this project the time it deserves.”

Tataru looked downcast. “Ah, I see, I should have expected as much.”

“Do not despair, my lady, for though I am unable to undertake this challenge, there is another option! I would entrust a commission of this level only to one other, my greatest student, and perhaps my only equal in the ways of woodwork. I can get in touch with him, I’ve no doubt he will be able to complete it to your satisfaction”

Tataru brightened. “Excellent? What might his name be? And do you know where I can find him?”

“I do not know where he might be, but I can reach him via linkpearl! Name the place and time, I shall ensure he is present. As to his name, well, he goes by ‘Old Man’ if you can believe it, though his surname is ‘Franks’

Tataru had pulled out the small ledger she used to keep her appointments and was checking through it when she stopped. She looked up to the Timbermaster. “I’m sorry, did you say ‘Old Man Franks’?”

“Indeed, milady. It’s a strange moniker, yes, but you get used to it.”

“Hyur man, about 6 and a half fulms tall, white beard and well-coiffed hair?”

“Yes, indeed, milady! Are you perhaps already acquainted with him?

“I…yes, but I had no idea he was so skilled in Carpentry that you considered him your equal! I honestly had no idea he had any skill in carpentry at all. I know him as-” She stopped suddenly, then looked back to her book. “It…it doesn’t matter. Um, can you ask him to come to our headquarters in the Rising Stones say…this afternoon?”

Beatin looked perplexed for a moment, then began searching for a stylus. “Certainly, milady! That is in Mor Dhona, correct?” He jotted down a few lines, on the table itself she noted, and then picked up the plans she’d given him. He rerolled them and tied the string before handing them back to her.

“Yes, it is. Um, thank you again, Timbermaster. I….I look forward to speaking with your student.”

“Take care, milady!” he replied, returning to the pile of requests on his desk.

Tataru walked away in a bit of shock, before clearing it away with a shake of her head and left the Carpenter’s Guild, making her way to Gridania’s airship landing.

A few bells later, the airship taxi landed in Limsa Lominsa. She took a small bit of time to enjoy the smell of the sea air (and of course the myriad delicious scents coming from the direction of the Bismarck) before making her way to the area of the city reserved for the Blacksmiths and Armorer’s guilds. She entered in the rear door, where she knew guildmaster Brithael had his personal work area, raised above the guild’s halls so that he might inspect any of their work quickly.

The master blacksmith was in fact at his own desk, dealing with some paperwork. When he aw her enter, he immediately stood and regarded her with a warm smile. “Ah, now, ‘ere’s a sight fer sore eyes! Tataru Taru, o’ the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, ‘ere in me halls! Tha Admiral did drop a note sayin’ to expect ye and to makes sure I take yer commission. So what can an old smitty do ya fer?”

Tataru smiled. “Good day, master Brithael! Thank you for your no doubt greatly demanded time. I’m hoping you can create a weapon for me, one that one of our order’s number recently took up, but had to leave behind on a recent…expedition. What he did…it was extremely important to our mission of safeguarding this star, and I want to make a gift of a faithful recreation.” She pulled out a rolled up parchment, this one tied in a red string, and handed it to Brithael.

The blacksmith unrolled it. “Well well, a gunblade? Your man a Garlean or somethin? No, wait…” He pulled it closer, his eyes squinting as he pored over a certain section of the plans. “Aaaah, I see what we got ‘ere. Heard bout these. Bozjan make. Th’ Garlean versions are knock-offs of this design. Mass produced in their factories. This, tho, this looks like it took some real heart to hammer.”

He rolled up the parchment. “Sadly, lass. I can’t help ya.”

“What? Whyever not?”

“Hang on, lass, lemme finish. I ain’t had no experience makin’ no gunblades. I could hammer out the pieces, sure, but I ain’t no engineer. Got no real idea how to assemble summat like this properly. We do the occasional flintlocke in here, but even I can see that there’s way more t’ it than anything like that.”

“However, I do know a man that can probably help ye out”

“You know of an engineer that can assemble this If you presented him the pieces?” Tataru asked.

Brithael smiled. “More ‘n that, he can certainly hammer ’em out as well as me! Man’s the best smitty I ever trained, hell I ain’t afraid to say it, he’s probably better ‘n me if’n I’m honest! Moreover, I know he’s more’n acquainted with them Machinists over in Ishgard. They tend to produce their own guns, but he’s shared the plans with us in case they need more’n they can produce. Hells, I think he mighta helped found the bloody organization? Anyroad, his name’s ‘Old Man’ Franks. Course, that ain’t his real name, he just-“

“-goes by it, yes. I’ve met the man, actually” Tataru interrupted, a little quietly. Her eyes were wide.

“Oh, ‘at’s right, you spent some time in Ishgard, didn’t ye? Issat where ya met ’em?”

“S…something like that, yes” Tataru replies, her face a bit dazed with this realization.

“Well, I can get a message to ‘im. Don’t think he’s in Limsa at the moment. Want me to have him meet ya somewhere?”

“Er….yes. Um, the Rising Stones, this afternoon, please. He knows the way there. Thank you, guildmaster.”

“Not a problem at all, milady!”

Tataru turned and slowly walked out, still trying to process what she had just heard. A master Carpenter AND Blacksmith? She knew Franks liked to build things, and she’d seen him helping in the Ishgard restoration before, but how in the hells had he gotten to be a carpenter and a blacksmith good enough that the actual guildmasters considered him their equal? Or when?

She supposed she’d get the chance to ask him that this afternoon. She had a final stop to make

A few hours later, and another airship charter reached Ul’dah. Tataru loved the way Ul’dah smelled, the air full of spices and scents from all over. She wasn’t a tremendous fan of the heat however, so she made her way to the goldsmith’s guild as quick as her legs would take her. Once she arrived, she started to move towards the receptionist’s desk, but a voice called from the workshop “TATARU”

“Hi Sera!” she calls back. Both race to meet each other, colliding into a hug at the top of the stairs that led to the workshop floor.

Serendipity finally pulled back and beamed at her. “Oh it’s been so long, Tataru! When the Sultana of all people showed up and mentioned you would be dropping in, needing a big favor, I was so excited to get to see you again!”

“Me too, Sera! We are absolutely getting something to drink to catch up, but first, you wanna see what the favor is?”

Serendipity clapped her hands, excitement all over her face. “Yes! Do you need some jewelry? Ooooh, a big date perhaps? Did Wedge finally-“

“SHHHHH shshhshsh! No, I actually have a couple of magical arms i need created!” Tataru replied, blushing furiously. “One of them is an Astrologer’s Star Globe, the other is a staff. I’ve got a carpenter to shape the actual wood, I just need the gemstone made for it and set inside.”

She quickly dug into her pack, handing her two rolled parchments. One was tied in green string, the other in blue.

Serendipity’s expression changed, professional interest replacing teasing grin. She took the parchments, unrolling the green-wrapped one first “Oooh, this is pretty! Very intricate work on the staff, I hope your Carpenter is good, that’s going to be some precise work. Good size gem on it, too. Looks like an azurite maybe? Or perhaps a star spinel? We’ll have to chat a bit more about what this staff’s used for to determine what’ll be best to use here. What about this other thing…”

She then unrolled the second parchment. “Oh, a Star Globe, very nice. We’ve been getting a lot of commissions for these out of Ishgard, seems like their guild is growing very nicely. This one’s really ornate though, I like it. Okay, I think we can make these happen for sure, lemme just check my….oh. Oh, dear. This can’t be right? Oh, it is. Oh, that’s not good.”

Tataru looked worried. “What? What’s wrong, Sera??”

Serendipity turned back to her with an apologetic grimace on her face. “I’m so, so sorry Tataru. I forgot how backed up I am on commissions. I really want to help, I do, but I’ve already missed some deadlines as it is!”

Tataru looked downcast. “Oh…I don’t suppose there’s anyone you can foist those on to help me get these made, can you?”

Serendipity shook her head. “No, I can’t do that, everyone else here is either just as busy or isn’t yet skilled enough that I trust them with commissions usually reserved for me. Although…there MIGHT be someone who could make your items in my stead? He’s actually really good, remember those music boxes I told you about that played different arrangements of the same song but harmonized beautifully together? It’s the man who made those! He’s really fantastic, I just don’t want to commit on his behalf! I can get him a message, though, want me to have him meet you later?”

“Um, well, yes, that would be nice. This afternoon at the Rising Stones would work well, if he’s available. Aaaand I’m almost afraid to ask, but…his name wouldn’t be Franks, would it?

A look of surprise came across Serendipity’s visage. “Why, yes, actually it is. ‘Old Man’ Franks. Do you know him? Do you know why he wants to be called that? He’s not even really all that old!”

Tataru just blinked, staring off into space. Then she rubbed her temples, as if trying to massage a headache. “Of course it’s him….it was him the first two times, why wouldn’t it be now? Heh heh heh”

“Uh, Tataru? You okay?”

She looked back up to Serendipity with an apologetic smile. “Oh, sorry, Sera! I’m fine, just a long morning. Lot of airship travel and all. Yes, please, send ‘Master Franks’ a message to meet me. Do you still have time for a drink this evening, with your backlog?”

“I’m hoping to be able to get caught up today, yes! Looking forward to it!”

“Great! I’m gonna head back to the Stones and finalize everything, but I’ll meet you tonight at the Quicksand?”

“See you then!”

Tataru practically ran for the door.

It was early into the afternoon when Tataru opened the door to the Rising Stones. Most of the Scions were out in the field, save one person who sat at one of the tables, idly reading. She walked right up to him and glared.

Without looking up from his book, Franks spoke. “Oh, hey Tataru. How did your meetings with the guildmasters go?”

Seven hells, was he SMIRKING?

She stamped her foot. “Oh, don’t even! You know EXACTLY how they went! Why didn’t you TELL ME you were some kind of avatar of Byregot that knows how to craft practically everything??”

Franks threw back his head, laughing. “Well, to be honest, I kinda have a bit of a cheat going, thanks to the Echo, you know?” He stopped laughing and turned to Tataru. “And I remembered how much you struggled with wanting to find a way to be more useful to the Scions. I also remember that you were justifiably very proud of yourself for all the crafting skills you’ve learned, and I didn’t want to make it seem like I just usurped everything you accomplished nor step on your toes or anything like that.”

“Are you crazy? I wouldn’t have thought that! You should know me better! I know this isn’t some competition! We’re all in this together, and you’ve been hiding skills I could have allocated for us to use!” She pointed a judgemental finger at him “So now I’m gonna! Your first punishment is you get to make everyone’s weapons while I sew their outfits!”

“Your wish is my command, ma’am! Let me know if you want some extra hands with the fabric, I can weave too!”

Tataru just glared at him.

[emersonfreepress]

okay so is there content that you had planned for the ROs and story in general but then scrapped cause there wasn’t a good place in the story to stick it in? and if so, can you share what it was? 👀 👀 👀

yes, definitely. *rubs hands together* oh man, you done asked THE question today xD I can't wait to get into this 😁

Academics. I almost decided to have classes and grades be a minor part of gameplay, but the more time I spent designing it the more I realized I wanted nothing to do with it 😂 I haven’t really enjoyed academic gameplay in other interactive fiction because I 1) hate having to choose between studying and interacting with awesome characters, 2) have terrible short term memory, and 3) hate school in general!! So instead I just opted to have the MC be really good at school, point blank period so I could focus on social drama and relationships instead! 😆

Physical skills. I spent literal months crafting the catering scene around setting up stats for stamina/endurance, dexterity, and strength instead of just magnetism, confidence, and persuasion. They had their own backstories with the MC’s parents being overly invested sports parents instead and I think the background choices were like... martial arts, gymnastics, and track? But yeah, I ended up scrapping it all because I was spending hours on research about those individual sports so I could integrate them into the MC’s narrative organically but like... when I tried to think of what use they would be in the actual story, I came up blank. Best decision yet, esp since it means a lot less coding!

Skin tone customization. For one, I noticed that a lot of my favorite IFs don’t offer that customization and it hasn’t impacted my experience at all. For two, I originally realized I might as well not implement it since I am striving real hard not to introduce any customization that won’t actually be mentioned in interesting or meaningful ways in-story. I don’t think it’s really all that common for real life friends (esp in high school?) to comment or compliment each other’s skin and like... when it comes from someone who doesn’t share a similar complexion or ethnic background, that type of commentary gets... d i c e y. So then I wanted to be sensitive to that but what’s the pay-off? An RO mentioning how they love your skin tone once? Awkward sentences with the MC referring to their own skin color? Idk, just wasn’t vibing with it. I’m open to revisiting it in beta or something but for now it’s scrapped.

Singing, Rapping, and Gaming as Hobbies/Talents. I feel bad about scrapping these, honestly 😂 They’re great and I really wanted to incorporate them but it just came down to already having a lot of stuff to code. Plus, I know I can write the Hobbies/Talents I stuck with far better. And for Book 2 purposes, as well!

Leo. as @sourandflightypeaches ​​ asked me about a long while ago, I had to scrap an entire RO 😢 His name is Leo, he was the nephew of wealthy west African diplomats residing in Emerson, and I love him dearly! His backstory was largely based on my mother’s childhood and the circumstances she lived through after immigrating to America. and... ok, i’m about to go on one hell of a tangent so buckle up and bear with me if you can 😅

my intention with this story, aside from writing things that I personally enjoy (graphic violence, spooky woods, social drama, romance, conspiracies 😚), is to explore greed, wealth, and how the ways people and families interact with those two things influence young people and who they grow up to be. here i go sounding pretentious af 😝 and here’s where I apply a cut for those who want to preserve a little mystery to the main characters!

With Gabe, we’ve got someone who grew up with very little stability or financial security but who has found unscrupulous methods to gain status and money, with both noble and selfish motivations.

Kile has some of that childhood experience in common with Gabe, having been in the foster care system since infancy, but they lucked out when they were adopted into massive wealth by a caring, loving couple—a couple that uses their wealth and privilege to be far more lenient and protective of Kile than is actually reasonable or responsible.

Jack comes from a prestigious wealthy family on his dad’s side who he loves dearly but there’s no getting around the fact that they love him back as much as they despise his working class mom.

Jessie is a spoiled sweet heiress (being the baby of her family and the only girl) and while she lives blissfully ignorant of the harmful source and impact of her father's income and career, she bears the weight of the expectation to fulfill very traditional gender roles, including her behavior and appearance, but also extending to her career and life plans.

Rain's wealth led to them growing up sheltered and isolated but also extremely accommodated, giving them maximum freedom and opportunity to discover and develop their personal talents and interests. However, they have almost no positive relationship with their parents who have essentially decided to give up on a kid that couldn't be exactly the accessory they tried to mold them to be—both in terms of their identity and personality.

Rupan/Rohan, at their very core, rejects everything about conformity, self-importance, and excessive luxury—which means they have never, ever truly fit in with their peers. Going full non-conformist, however, has resulted in them becoming alienated from much of their family, as well, despite them all loving each other very much. Their history with false friends and betrayals has led them to over-indulge in their vices and reckless behavior to compensate for that isolation. Sometimes, they just get in over their head and many times, they know better. Every time, it's just that the feeling of finally belonging is utterly intoxicating.

Vivian/Vincent has two extremely successful parents who didn't inherit but instead built up their wealth and they aspire to be just like them, to a degree that is well and truly unhealthy. Their mother specifically is an over-achiever and applies mountainous pressure for them to follow in her footsteps, especially academically. Vi is completely capable of achieving what their mom expects of them, but they were already an extremely sensitive perfectionist so this has made them intensely critical of themself. This is a large part of why they are such a rigid, no-nonsense person and that in turn has made them one of the most disliked people among their peers—which is a huge personal failure to them since their father is a very well-liked and socially successful person in town.

And the Emersons are peak privilege: inherent high social status, brains, looks, charisma, athleticism, and massive wealth. They could never have been anything less than extremely popular, just by virtue of their last name and the nature of the town's social dynamics and politics. And they do enjoy that privilege (esp Curt lol). However, it should go without saying that being so high profile, even (or maybe especially) just in the isolated scope of your hometown, isn't always a boon. Their family's and their own perceived failings are widely discussed and privately mocked and/or celebrated. Real friends are scarce while fake ones and snakes are plentiful. Plus their dad is a gigantic dickhead who sees his kids as extensions of his own status and reputation and not much else. Public shortcomings make for an unbearable time at home and the world outside the estate is at once overly accommodating, full of assumptions, and even subtly hostile at times—all unrelated to their own actions or character.

And with the MC, I think the narrative will make it clear there are several ways that story can go. You start off with irresponsible parents that have lost their wealth due to their own mismanagement and material ambitions—how that affects any individual MC should differ based on choices and consequences!

So why bring any of that up when I was supposed to be talking about my cut OC? 😂😂

Leo was going to be the unwelcome recent addition to his uncle’s household, the son of a brother his aunt hates for (petty af) Reasons, and she took that resentment out on him directly by restricting his access to nearly every aspect of the family's wealth. Especially material goods and living conditions. He was basically treated like the help, tasked with playing nanny for his many younger cousins and burdened with doing the homework and providing academic cover for his dumb as rocks cousin in the same grade as you all. To sum it up, he was basically a victim of trafficking at the hands of his own family with his uncle out of town enough to feign ignorance to how bad his wife was treating his nephew and his aunt going out of her way to keep him busy, at home, and isolated. This is sadly a super common form of trafficking in Francophone African cultures (although I don't think most people view it as trafficking. and I’m sure the same is true of other cultures but I don’t want to speak outside of my purview). And like I mentioned above, it’s how my own mom's (and idek how many cousins') child/teenhood went.

It’s a perspective on modern wealth, privilege and greed that I really, really wanted to tell. I am confident in saying it hasn't been explored in interactive fiction yet (though correct me—and direct me 👀—if I'm wrong) and out of all the wealth/greed explorations I came up with, it's the one I have the closest personal ties to and the strongest feelings about. The characters and plans I had for it were detailed and I'm proud of them but at the end of the day... I just couldn't find a place for Leo in the story at large.

Leo was, in fact, the last main character I came up with, when I had already designed and fleshed out the larger story and started crafting the timeline of major events. I think the worst thing I could have done for a story and perspective that I care about this much is shove it into a plot that didn't have room for it at the very base level, regardless of how well the character or his story is written. Shoe-horned characters always stick out. I didn’t want to disservice Leo by having him be the character that did nothing or could be removed from the main plot without affecting it at all, y’know? That’s so much worse than just forgoing the indulgence, imo :((

ugh.... Leooooo 😭 I'm so sorry bb, I failed youuu 😥

[vagabondedlife]

Kei Fujiwara’s name is hardly recognizable to most fans of Japanese cinema despite her crucial role in director Shinya Tsukamoto’s early cult classics. As Tsukamoto’s “right hand” woman in the 1980s, Fujiwara became closely involved in his underground theater troupe, Kaijyu Theater, and contributed to the productions of the experimental and DIY films The Phantom of Regular Size (1986), The Adventures of Denchu Kozo (1987), and Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989). Her credits include actress, cinematographer, prop artist, makeup artist, and set-designer (her apartment was used as a primary set). She also engineered Tetsuo’s iconic phallic drill.

Born in Kumamoto in 1957, Fujiwara moved to Tokyo in her early twenties and discovered theater troupe director Jūrō Kara, who became her mentor. After a decade, she created her own troupe called Organ Vital, which underwent a series of evolutions but remains her life work. Her new project this year is Ibunkitan, a form of micro-nomadic theater, whose kanji characters mean “strange-listen-machine-story.” A private person now living in the reclusive mountains of Nagano, Fujiwara rarely gives interviews, but seemed excited to talk about her rarely discussed directorial debut, Organ (1996).

An avant-garde exploration of violence, pain and pleasure with an operatic amount of coagulated blood and extrasomatic body horror, Organ follows two detectives after they break into an organ harvester’s warehouse and collide with yakuza gangsters, a drugged doctor, and his eye-patch wearing sister Yoko, played by Fujiwara herself, who also produced and wrote the film. A cherished work among hardcore fans of Japanese cult cinema, Organ is still ripe for rediscovery. The film’s offerings of a full-bodied sensorial experience and an abusive questioning of cruelty prove tirelessly relevant.

Fujiwara’s work was recently revived at FFFest in New York City with a double feature of Tetsuo: The Iron Man and Organ. Fujiwara prepared a special statement that was shared as an introduction. Following the screening, we had the opportunity to speak to the artist about her life, practice, and ideals in more depth. The conversation was held over the phone in Japanese.

NOTEBOOK: Is Ibunkitan a new Organ Vital?

KEI FUJIWARA: Yes, it’s a new Organ Vital. When I was young, I lived in the rural area. I always just read theater but never had the opportunity to see state-of-the-art theater. When I was in high school, I was always reading, and I picked up an Antonin Artaud book that featured this French term. It meant the vessels of life. When translated to English, I’m told it just becomes, “vitals of organ,” or something, but in Japanese it is called gozōroppu and to me signifies the corporal. That’s the name of my theater company, and it has always been that for me. Born into this three-dimensional world with bodies, we sense and express. That’s what’s interesting in life. Ibunkitan can be done in a very small space. We’ve done it in temples, in the corner of a shop, in salons. Our first performance was in March, and we’re planning to do another in November. We've been invited to perform my new Jomon-inspired piece in a live-house in the mountains in Nagano, so we’re preparing some woodwork for that now.

NOTEBOOK: You were working in Shinya Tsukamoto’s Kaijyu Theater production between working with Jūrō Kara?

FUJIWARA: Jūrō Kara, my mentor—when I was in Jōkyō Gekijo [Situation Theatre], he took a liking to me and wrote roles for me. A lot happened, and Kara said he would make a new troupe with me, but I had other plans, so I left once, and he said, “As my mentee, you can leave but wait for me to come get you.” That’s when I went to work with Shinya Tsukamoto on his plays and films. It was after Tetsuo: The Iron Man [1989] that Kara started the new troupe “Kara-gumi” and I returned to work with him.

NOTEBOOK: How was it that you began working with Tsukamoto?

FUJIWARA: I had just left Kara and after a while a friend said that Tsukamoto was looking for someone to act in his plays. He was Tsukamoto’s classmate and an actor, and he made the introduction. I found Tsukamoto interesting and talented. So, I began working diligently as his right hand after that.

NOTEBOOK: I wanted to ask you about Tsukamoto’s 1987 film, The Adventures of Denchu Kozo.

FUJIWARA: Denchu Kozo and Tetsuo were actually both shot in my apartment where I was living at the time. You know all those cats? I couldn’t rent a normal apartment, so I had to live in a cheap nagaya tenement house on the verge of getting demolished. I just needed a place to live that permitted pets. Denchu Kozo and Tetsuo’s interior shots are all at my place.

NOTEBOOK: Are the scenes projected in the TV monitor in Tetsuo from Denchu Kozo?

FUJIWARA: Yes. They’re from Denchu Kozo.

Above: Organ

NOTEBOOK: What turned you onto making Organ, if you were always only interested in theater?

FUJIWARA: That was because of my experience filmmaking with Tsukamoto. It prepared me for how arduous it would be. Theater is an impermanent art, and that’s why it’s such a luxurious art form. But film is like capturing a world in a crystal ball. The joy of creating film is like making your own universe. My staff members at the time— six men other than myself—were all talented, and I thought, “Everyone’s here, why don’t I just make it?” So, all the staff also became the actors, and that’s how we started filming. But it was so difficult at first. We used the atelier space we had and reformed it over and over and shot it like that. It was time-consuming. It became the warehouse set, the school set. It kept on transforming. We did it all in the same space.

NOTEBOOK: That seems like a very theatrical way of using space.

FUJIWARA: Yes.

NOTEBOOK: But first, you started writing it?

FUJIWARA: Yes, I first started writing it. I’m actually not very good at planning. I just think that if I put my mind to it, I can make it happen. So I wrote the script, and had the staff pool in their savings. Between the seven of us we had 200,000 yen, so I thought, “Great, if we have 200,000 yen and one reel of film is 5,000 yen, and even if we bought lights, we can make 30 minutes of footage.” As for the equipment, there are countless aspiring-filmmaker boys who have camera equipment lying around collecting dust, so we borrowed from them. As for the set, we were all used to making it for our theater. We were good at foraging free stuff to make things. That warehouse set in the beginning of Organ was made with an extremely cheap budget. Then we started filming. All those organs in that scene were worked from what was supposed to be our dinner for the day [laughs]. We used real food. We took some gelatin- and konjac-noodles and thought, “This can look like veins!”

NOTEBOOK: And then you had it for dinner?

FUJIWARA: Well, we ended up not being able to, because it was covered in fake blood! It was all about how little money we could spend and still make something, which was a valuable lesson for me.

NOTEBOOK: You’ve mentioned the Kenji Miyazawa poem, Ame ni mo makezu1.

FUJIWARA: Yes, I just really like Kenji Miyazawa. I like the way he thinks, and his philosophy. He’s a Buddhist, and as I haven’t studied Buddhism properly, I cannot say for sure, but I think his seimeikan, or view of life, is on par with that of Osamu Tezuka. Osamu Tezuka and Kenji Miyazawa are two gods with the same perspective regarding seimeikan. No matter how great their art is, Yoshihide Otomo and Hayao Miyazaki can never reach Osamu’s level. Osamu’s core is love. There’s only love. The way they think about life is totally different. I was reading manga before I was literate [laughs]. I like Osamu Tezuka, but also Sanpei Shirato. And in my teens, I liked Daijiro Morohoshi. He’s an extremely interesting person.

NOTEBOOK: Do you think that your films need to be discovered?

FUJIWARA: They need to lock in perfectly with someone’s desire to watch it, or else watching it has no meaning. It just appears as a confusing, grotesque film.

NOTEBOOK: Please tell us about your make up and special effects.

FUJIWARA: Since Tetsuo, my method is always the same. I don’t have any background knowledge of special effect makeup. I just have a gut feeling of what can and can’t be used. Tsukamoto had these drawing storyboards for Tetsuo, like the steel body and the drill penis. For the latter, Tsukamoto just wanted to make something simple and said it would be enough if we could just pretend like it was moving, but I thought it would only be interesting if it actually moved. I didn’t have any hi-tech skills, so I thought, “That’s it!” I took the nearest working electric fan, dissembled it down to its core, used all the rubber and tape I had at home, sprayed it up and got it to go, vroom [laughs]! It was the same for Organ. I used household products, mostly kitchenware.

Above: Organ

NOTEBOOK: What about your cinematography?

FUJIWARA: I had no background knowledge. The first time I started shooting was on Tsukamoto’s set. A lot of people who graduated film school and wanted to help were there, but Tsukamoto didn’t trust any of them. Just because you have technique doesn’t mean you can shoot well. He thought that the person wielding the camera needs a certain amount of power, of energy. So I, who had never touched a camera in my life, was given the camera and told where to press to get it rolling, and shot all of the scenes Tsukamoto was in.

NOTEBOOK: Do you still shoot with a camera lately?

FUJIWARA: Rarely.

NOTEBOOK: As the occasion for this screening was FFFest, Female Filmmakers Festival, could you comment about your experience as a female filmmaker?

FUJIWARA: Something men don’t have—there are two types: female filmmakers who focus their perspective on their immediate surroundings and daily lives, and those who focus on creating a worldview from the even more intimate bodily perspective. That’s what’s a little different from male filmmakers. Even in theater, most female directors write familial narratives, although I don’t [laughs].

NOTEBOOK: The podcast Ladies Horror Night, on the occasion of this screening, recorded an episode that raised the question of why you, a female filmmaker, didn’t include more female characters. I’m not sure about this pressure for female filmmakers to represent female subjects, as I think there’s power in the female filmmaker re-writing the male-centric story. Can you speak on this and how you came to write the police story in Organ?

FUJIWARA: When I think about seimeikan—our view of life—it appears to me that the moral judgment of good versus bad is not something universal, but just a rule that protects our lifestyle in society. It’s a regulation. We make regulations to protect ourselves. That takes the form of “good” and “evil.” But that’s not the good and evil that holds ground in nature. Animals kill other animals for their own predation, right? Humans, too, in the context of war, can kill other humans and become heroes. The concept of zen-aku, or the notion of good and evil, is just a societal regulation. The police represent upholders of this regulation. And then there are those who defy this regulation, who lie in a realm completely different from this conventional morality. Organ is a clash between these two groups. That’s how I formed the police narrative. As for why there are few female characters, well… In the case of females, expressing them requires—for many, not all—a focus on the micro world, the micro perspective, that is, if you pay attention to their priorities. In other words, if you have a goal and you want to finish something, but she says she needs to take a bath at this certain time and cannot participate, there’s nothing you can do. In my theater, only men can keep up with me. Because of this standpoint, if a woman were to express a woman, she would need to create a micro world. But when describing a police story, a macro worldview, the direction would lose focus.

NOTEBOOK: It would become more internal?

FUJIWARA: Right. That’s why there aren’t as many female characters. But the wife of Numata represents the reality for women. And also the female teacher who approaches the criminal but gets killed. Woman participated in this way. But it’s hard for them to take leading parts for the narrative. It’s hard to let them be there and have their perspective be represented, because their perspective is in a different dimension.

NOTEBOOK: What about the character you play, Yoko?

FUJIWARA: Yoko is outside of that realm. She’s an outlier. She doesn’t represent family or the household or the joy of daily life, because she didn’t enjoy any of those things. That’s why she can exist there.

NOTEBOOK: How did you direct your actors in Organ, was it different from how you usually direct them in theater?

FUJIWARA: It’s the same. The only direction I gave them in Organ was that they only get one shot. I don’t give actors multiple takes. If there’s a camera or equipment problem that requires another take or two, I’ll do it. But I won’t do it for the actor. The actor has one chance, the take. But, on the offhand that the actor makes a mistake and requires a take two, I tell them they need to buy their own film roll. That was the rule. So, no one ever made a single mistake. They were all dead serious, completely focused. They’re all broke and have no money to buy film.

NOTEBOOK: In that sense it’s theatrical.

FUJIWARA: Right, and I had one actress tell me that that it was brilliant. She said, “I do lots of work for TV and film, but everyone is so lukewarm and they do take after take, and think about it so leniently. But there’s none of that here. The one take is the real thing.”

NOTEBOOK: So, that urgency was good for the actors?

FUJIWARA: Right. They said they couldn’t afford to buy their own film.

NOTEBOOK: If you give theater actors the same direction for film, how does that work? The performances in Organ don’t come off as exaggerated; I doubt a viewer without knowing would assume they are all theater actors.

FUJIWARA: There’s no difference. In theater, my scripts are like music scores. The lines come out and dance, modulate, sing, calling on the innate sensation playing the instrument that is yourself on stage. The actor, with this music-score-as-script, has a multitude of possibilities of how to play it. In film, the scripted character is a part of the environment. They are simply material for the scene. I didn’t need to explain this to them, they naturally just became materials for the scene.

Above: Organ

NOTEBOOK: That’s a good transition into my next question: can you talk about your music and sound design direction?

FUJIWARA: Music is difficult. What I say doesn’t get across, because I was working with new people. They hadn’t even seen any of my theater. I like German bands, something strong and hard. But even if they mimic the Germans, the Japanese can’t avoid making music that doesn’t sound soft and weak. One day I said, “Make it more powerful, something that alludes to the power of nature, more animalistic and sturdily-built,” and they said, “Okay.” The demo they brought to me literally had animal sounds, like elephants wailing and dogs barking, and I was like, “…That’s not what I meant” [laughs]. It didn’t get across. But there were some interesting sound bites that I could use. But Japanese band musicians can’t get over their own softness. I think what they have is different.

NOTEBOOK: So you’re not happy with the results?

FUJIWARA: Well, I’m the type of person that thinks, que sera, sera. So I wasn’t satisfied, but…

NOTEBOOK: You’ve mentioned that you a very easily scared person. But in Tetsuo and Organ, your characters say, “I won’t be afraid.” How do you interpret this difference?

FUJIWARA: When I came to Tokyo in my twenties, the first theater directors I met said they’d never met anyone as weak and sensitive as myself. They didn’t think I could live on a few years longer, much less do theater, and that I might find myself drugged up in a brothel in the near future. Kara was the only person that ever said to me that I was the strongest person he’d met. In other words, the fear and strength that I have appears to others as a weakness that can barely withstand life, but it’s just my highly sensitive nature they see. In actuality, I’m very strong. I feel very easily, so that seems weak, but my capacity for empathy is just very large. I feel others’ pain and sadness so strongly that I throw up thinking about them. That’s why I don’t watch TV or read the newspaper. Or else I would be crying all day [laughs].

NOTEBOOK: Watching Organ feels like you’re making the audience feel this extreme pain you describe.

FUJIWARA: Yes, that’s the result of the film. My second film, ID [2005], is even more so.

NOTEBOOK: In addition to fear and pain, pleasure is another large theme. After the screening, someone told me your film was grotesque but something about it was so pleasurable. How do you maintain that balance?

FUJIWARA: I think humans, in order to live, can’t cut those away from existence. If you deny desire, you’re not human. The existence of such things causes our misery, too. Thus, desire and slaughter are inescapable. My fear and sorrow regarding this, and my questioning what are they anyway. That’s what I wanted to portray.

NOTEBOOK: What’s interesting about your portrayal of violence is that Yoko uses the gun as a weapon but doesn’t shoot from it. The one time she tries to shoot at her father, it wasn’t loaded. She mostly hits with it.

FUJIWARA: When I act a role, it needs to be real for me to imagine it. I can’t shoot a gun just like that. I need to feel it. Whenever I do something I feel a corporal build-up that can’t just be released by shooting away.

NOTEBOOK: Shooting it would be too easy?

FUJIWARA: An action needs to be taken. The body and the heart are connected. It’s not that easy.

NOTEBOOK: What was the biggest challenge in shooting Organ?

FUJIWARA: The most difficult challenge was the first scene, in the warehouse. When the doctor and yakuza fend off the police while trying to dissect the man. That shoot was in the middle of summer, but we had to close off the warehouse because it was a night scene. It was hot, smelly, only men, and everyone’s body odor was suffocating the room. That was really difficult. At the time there were seven of us, and now there are three of us, just Takahashi, Mori and I. In Organ, all the actors take on multiple roles. Whenever they weren’t onscreen they were doing lights or shooting. We shot it scene by scene in order. I remember towards the end of the film, during the scene in the tunnel, when my role Yoko comes in on a bike and there’s a fighting scene, we couldn’t get a permit to shoot. We were able to shoot outside the tunnel on the road but not inside. But I badly wanted to shoot inside so we went at midnight, and the characters got all bloody and we were shooting, and the police came. They thought it was a real yakuza fight and took off the safety on their pistols and were about to shoot at us. We thought we were done for. The character Yasuda, who later falls into the ditch and gets stabbed with a Japanese sword, was responsible for getting the permits and he had all the documents on him. So, he came out from the ditch all bloody and with a sword in him, screaming, “We’re shooting a film!” terrifying the police even more. While he was negotiating with them we finished shooting the scene. The police just told us to be safe and left, but it was all thanks to him for putting his life on the line. We really thought we were going to get shot. Usually film shoots have large crews and it’s obvious, but in our case, all the crew were also the actors, so it was hard to tell, and the lights were hidden.

NOTEBOOK: What about the camera?

FUJIWARA: Yes, but it was a small 16mm Scoopic, and the police were so focused on the bloody actors they didn’t notice it. The police were terrified, but it was a great location and I just needed to shoot there no matter what.

[nuzzle-nip]

Family Values Legacy

I know I’m not a big account but after starting a new legacy challenge I got super inspired and decided to make my own…so here’s that, hope you enjoy!

(also there are colors attached to each generation but if you decide to incorporate them into your gameplay is up to you)

Basic Rules

No cheats unless it’s for aesthetic purposes

All cc is allowed

You can move to different lots throughout the challenge

You can edit your sim if they look ugly

GENERATION ONE - RED

You didn’t grow up with the best home life so you decided to move to a new town to start over and grow your family. Family is the most important thing to you and you want to pass this down for generations to come.

Aspiration: Big Happy Family

Traits: Family-Oriented, Good, Cheerful

Career: Any part-time job or the freelancer career

Goals

Complete the aspiration

Have at least 3 children

Reach level 10 in Handiness

Reach level 5 in Parenting and Cooking

Build at least 3 pieces of custom furniture for your house

Go on day trips with your kids every weekend

Have two pets throughout your life

GENERATION TWO - ORANGE

You grew up idealizing your parent and the sacrifices they made for your family. You want nothing more than to be an amazing parent and raise a loving household.

Aspiration: Super Parent

Traits: Childish, Outgoing, Neat

Career: None

Goals

Complete the aspiration

Have at least 2 children

Reach level 10 in Parenting

Reach level 5 in Baking and Gardening

Help your children with homework every day

Volunteer with your family every week

Maintain friendship levels with parents, siblings and their children

Never get a job

GENERATION THREE - YELLOW

Your parents gave you a loving and happy home to grow up in but didn’t have the money to give you the lavish life you always dreamed of. You’ve pushed yourself to become the best in your field and provide for your family.

Aspiration: Fabulously Wealthy

Traits: Ambitious, Perfectionist, Materialistic

Career: Business

Goals

Complete the aspiration

Max out the Business Career

Reach level 10 in Charisma

Reach level 5 in Logic and Gourmet Cooking

Have children from two marriages

Live in a house worth at least 50,000 simoleons

GENERATION FOUR - GREEN

Growing up you were able to study anything and everything you wanted thanks to your parents, you want to provide the same upbringing for your children as well.

Aspiration: Renaissance Sim

Traits: Genius, Snob, Squeamish

Career: Astronaut and another of your choice

Goals

Complete the aspiration

Reach level 5 in the Astronaut Career and a career of your choice

Reach level 10 in Programming and Flower Arranging

Reach level 5 in Writing, Handiness, and Logic

Have at least three failed relationships

Have two children

Never marry

GENERATION FIVE - BLUE

Your parent pushed you to be the best you can be your whole childhood, because of this you discovered your talent for writing. Your children being successful and happy in life is your biggest priority.

Aspiration: Successful Lineage

Traits: Perfectionist, Hot-Headed, Family-Oriented

Career: Writer

Goals

Complete the aspiration

Max out the Writer Career

Have 4 children

Reach level 10 in Writing and Logic

Reach level 5 in Parenting

Spend most of your free time writing

Become best friends with one of your children

GENERATION SIX - PURPLE

Having to watch your parents overwork themselves and stay inside all day has made you prioritize living an active healthy life.

Aspiration: Body Builder

Traits: Active, Loves outdoors, Vegetarian

Career: Doctor

Goals

Complete the aspiration

Max out the Doctor Career

Reach level 10 in Fitness

Reach level 5 in Cooking, Gardening, and Wellness

Marry a fellow doctor

Never retire

GENERATION SEVEN - PINK

Growing up eating fresh homegrown food gave you a passion for cooking and eating healthy. Food is an important part of your life and you love sharing it with those you love.

Aspiration: Master Chef

Traits: Foodie, Loner, Goofball

Career: Chef

Goals

Complete the aspiration

Max out the Chef Career

Reach level 10 in Cooking and Gourmet Cooking

Reach level 5 in Baking, Comedy, and Mixology

Have your own garden for cooking

Eat every meal together as a family

GENERATION EIGHT - PEACH

Your parent always made time for jokes and it inspired you to follow your dreams as a stand-up comedian. Despite the value of family being passed down from generation to generation in your family, you prioritize your fame and career above family.

Aspiration: Chief of Mischief

Traits: Clumsy, Mean, Unflirty

Career: Entertainment

Goals

Complete the aspiration

Max out the Entertainment Career (comedian branch)

Marry someone you meet at open mic night

Reach level 10 in Comedy

Become a level 5 celebrity

Get divorced

Hire a nanny to watch your kids every time you leave the house

GENERATION NINE - BEIGE

Seeing your parents get divorced broke your heart and all you want in life to find your soulmate and raise a loving family.

Aspiration: Soulmate

Traits: Geek, Bookworm, Romantic

Career: Engineer

Goals

Complete the aspiration

Max out the Engineering Career

Reach level 10 in Programming

Reach level 5 in Video Gaming and Parenting

Have one child

Have your child max three childhood skills

Marry someone in the Tech Guru career

GENERATION TEN - GREY

Not having a sibling to play with growing up made very lonely.; in your spare time, you discovered your love for painting. While you’re glad you found your passion, you want to fill your household with children.

Aspiration: Painter Extraordinaire

Traits: Self-assured, Creative, Gloomy

Career: Painter

Goals

Complete the aspiration

Max out the Painter Career

Have a household of 8 sims

Reach level 10 in Parenting and Painting

Reach level 5 in Singing and Dancing

Maintain perfect relationships with your children

So… That’s it! The challenge is over after you’ve completed all the goals for Generation Ten. Happy simming!!

[betamaxburns]

burnsmithers marxist analysis essay

truly the essay no one asked for

the core conflict of bsmits does not reside in my head as simple internalized homophobia, rather it is a more complex lack of communication and an alienation of the self. there’s marxist theory in here but i’m not going to cite my sources for simpsons men. read your theory.

monty is above society due to his wealth. never has he had to adhere to any strict societal rules because he can buy his way out of them all. his sexuality is no exception. but this freedom to love men and women equally comes at a cost, namely, how he views relationships. being born into wealth teaches you to view everything as transactional: power, wealth, and love. he forms no real meaningful relationships other than maybe recurring hookups because he sees anyone he beds as just a means to an end (be it potential blackmail or just hedonistic pleasure). i think he progressed through a lot of his life like this, maybe slowing down once he got older but never fully stopping. he still sleeps with people at his old age but to him it’s more of a game to stroke his own ego. he’s still got it no matter how old he gets. all the while he is alienated from his feelings, never fully forming bonds with anyone besides business partnerships and socialite acquaintances. he doesn’t know how to love because he’s never had to. love to him is a weakness that forces you to make irrational business decisions.

waylon is the petit bourgeois, he aspires to rise through capitalism to monty’s level by any means necessary. he fell in love with monty for reasons outside his money, yes, but that wasn’t completely it. waylon has always been attracted to power. he wants the luxuries of monty’s lifestyle, and being his assistant gets him close. though he is closer to the workers in terms of economic and societal standing, he is an active class traitor. he does not hesitate to put down or demote workers that get in his way of his goals. he looks for opportunities to make himself sound better, like discovering a rising employee is defrauding their paltry health insurance. he actively helps in union busting, strike repression, and hiring scabs. he would do this regardless if he considered monty a romantic interest- it is done as an attempt to impress a potential access point into that world of the rich.

at the core of it, we must ask ourselves this: why would waylon fall in love with a man repeatedly proven to be a ruthless capitalist? there is nothing forcing them together. waylon’s skills and experience as a sycophant are highly valued and his position with monty would allow him the connections to leave if he wished. the simplest answer is that waylon wants to be him. he sees burns’ ill gotten wealth as something to aspire to. smithers is fully immersed in the american capitalist dream of rags to riches and wants so desparately to achieve that for himself by any means possible. we must remember that waylon chose this path. he is not a minimum wage worker scraping by, he is a decently compensated office man. conversely, why would burns fall for anyone below his social standing? monty is attracted to waylon's capitalist desire for profit, enough to the point it drives out his worries of class divide. he is willing to accept waylon as a partner because waylon does not act like a member of the proletariat or even the petty bourgeois, he acts like a true exploiter through and through.

miscommunication is a common joke between the two in the show, but why shouldn’t this extend further? monty is smart enough to operate under the assumption that his workers are straight to avoid any conflicts with ideology. passes at waylon could be too outdated, waylon might willfully ignore any attempts at closeness as wishful thinking, any number of reasons. though monty and waylon are both secure in their personal understanding of their sexuality, their communication together is woefully lacking. class barriers, attempts at performing heteronormativity for the other in a misguided assumption that the other is straight, all impact their attempts to portray their love.

how do you give to a man who doesn’t solely ask for wealth or sex like monty's other partners did? how do you cope with the fact that for once you want to give him something more than just empty presents? at first, monty doesn’t. he’ll fall back on a transactional view of relationships. a game of “you owe me a coke” taken to extremes, with more hedonistic iterations each time. but even while he puts a pack of coke on waylon’s desk and asks for something dirty, it doesn’t fill the hole in his heart. he’s too afraid to open himself up to a man who wants more out of fear of not having much more to give. he feels he’s always cold and cruel, and surely waylon deserves more than such a heartless old monster. waylon worries he’s not good enough, that monty will decide it’s just another fling and drop him. on and on this continues, trying not to seem too attached to the other for fear of heartbreak. eventually something snaps, they argue and get it all out in the open and realize how silly their fears were, how they truly do feel deeply for the other.

monty learns to be more human from waylon. he learns that relationships can be about much more than money and sex and there are lots of ways to express your love. but this transactional view is never fully demolished. over the years waylon became complacent in this viewpoint himself. working under monty he finally understands the value of treating human lives as simple commodities to use and dispose of when no longer necessary. they are both co-conspirators in worker exploitation and extracting as much wealth as possible from the masses. they are the perfect power couple, always plotting ways to increase their profit margin and cut costs after a long session in bed together.

and perhaps buried somewhere deep within both of them is how to ruin the other, how to completely take over the company and run it better without the other.

but as a wise man once said: dick too bomb

[12raben]

Uninstalling Inteen & Nerfing ACR

Edit 07/10/21: I’ve seen, that this post has been liked and reblogged a lot. (Thanks for that!) But I just want to point out, that I changed some parts of my “romance mod system”. The current one can be found here. The information here is still valid, just wanted to clear up, what is up to date. :)

Ok, while some of you might be interested, others might not. For all of you, who are not interested: Here, have a nice picture of the Cullroth’s home and the Sunflower Inn from neighborhood view:

For the ones, who want to know, how I set up the new mods, and are not afraid of a good ol’ wall of text you may continue here:

So, one of the main-reasons, why I wanted to uninstall Inteen, is the fact, that it conflicts with everything, everybody and their cat. I read a post by simgigglegirl, where she explained, how she edited ACR to work with Romantic Standards (a mod I wanted to use for ages), so that was a motivation as well. And forgive me, but I’m getting the creeps, when an elder is heart-farting over a teen, who just aged up (so in my mindset is barely 12 years old). I wanted to get rid of that “feature” as well. ACR is hilarious at times, because sims are horny af, but I wanted the sims of twinhills to be somewhat modest. Drama: Yes. Unneccessary, stupid drama: Meh, sometimes, but -please- not all of the time. Raising the needed STR/LTR for romantic interactions was my solution, so far, but it did not always work. The love-triangle between Moira, Madleine and Hesel is somewhat disturbing. Midgethetree uploaded a mod to add a chance for death by childbirth. And how in the name of someone holy can you play a historical game without that mod? It’s also incompatible with Inteen.

Don’t get me wrong. Inteen and ACR are a great set and I used it for many years and I am very grateful, that people put their time and effort into the mods, so people, who are hopeless, when it comes to mods like myself, can enjoy the new features. And it’s all FREE. Simbology’s Inteen and ACR are still enjoyable and if used carefully do not blow up your game. They enhance your experience and will add many handy features.

Still, I wanted to get rid of Inteen, and so I did. I tried to make my progress as clear as possible, but I don’t know, if I succeeded. At the end of the post will be a list of all mods with links.

First, I made a list of the features, that Inteen had provided so far and I need for my gameplay, which was honestly more time consuming, than I thought. I dug through forum entries and mod desriptions just to see, what's even possible and/or compatible. At the end of the day I came to the conclusion, that I need:

teens, who are handled as adults, so they can get married, give birth, take over responsibilities etc. sooner

Chance for miscarriage, which is sad, but a feature, I don't want to miss

Romantic relationships only between adults/elders and teens, who are old enough

autonomy in romantic relationships, but not as strong as ACR, mainly for reproduction

And that was it. I thought, Inteen is such a big thing, surely there is more of it, that I need.... No. XD

So, after getting an idea on how to make the new set-up working (more on that later), I read instructions on how to uninstall inteen. Surely the uninstall-instructions of Inteen are there, but there are a few tips, I found here (post #15). This is, what I gathered; Quick and dirty:

Make a backup. I feel, there is always the need to say that.

Terminate any teen-pregnancy in your game (luckily no need for that in Twinhills)

Delete the Inteen-files in your program files and in your downloads folder EXCEPT Inteenimater_C. It contains the miscarriage memory. Deleting it will cause corruption, when a sim already had a miscarriage. If you don’t want to keep the memory file, you’ll have to delete the memory and all of it’s traces with Simpe and I have no clue on how to do that.

Gather and Install new Mods :D

There is a whole ton of things, I feel like, I have to explain, so you’ll understand, why I made specific changes. Alright. Let’s follow my own list of features, I needed and how I incorporated them with the new mods:

Teens, who are handled as adults & Romantic Relationships between Adults/elders and teens, who aren’t too young That was easy and hard at the same time. I use Midgethetree’s Independent Teens. Teens become for all purposes adults, but they’ll still look like teens. Perfect. Excactly, what I wanted. The only problem with that: The span of independent teens only lasts 7 days in the original setup. I use Almighty Hat’s Aging mod, so my sims spend 24 days as teens. (In Almighty Hat’s calculation one year equals 4 days. Which make the lifespan of teens 6 years, from 14 years old till 20 years old) So, 7 days is really not long enough in my setup. Luckily Midgthetree included Bcons to edit the mod to my liking. My sims will spend 8 days as young, innocent teens, who do not woohoo and if they have romatic relationships, they’ll only have them with other teens their age. The rest of their teen years (16 days), they’ll spent as independent teens, who are for all intents and purposes adults. This also gets rid of the fact, that elders/adults hit on teens, who are way to young. Any sim, who wants a college education, will spent 8 day as a teen, 8 days as an independent teen and 8 days as a young adult, because I use Dave Luv’s Faster College Education Mod, which is very much compatible with Squinge’s Mega College Pack. Only problem, mortia mentioned, when I discussed diffrent alternatives to Inteen with her, is the fact, that independent teens do not go to school. I don’t have a school in Twinhills so far, so that is not a big deal. I think, when the time arrives and I do have a school and a college in Twinhills, I will eighter have independent teens employed in their future career or will make a student career, where they can earn skill points with chance cards. I also use Cyjon’s Edukashun Iz Gud, so the independent teen’s maximum level for any career is level 5, even if they had a A+ grade in high school. The third option (which is my favourite) is to have an actual college/school lot for independent teens, who aspire to have a college degree. The best I can think of right now, is eighter to have a few apartments, where sims rent only a room and can study in the common area or to have them live at home and set up a community lot as a school. Uuh, the community lot could be owned by a sim, who is also enrolled in the education career and his employees are professors. (Who I could add as another pool of marriageable sims... yeah, I really like that idea...) Maybe an idea for the set up of guilds? I have no idea on how to include them in my game so far, so maybe that would be a good start. Maybe it will be a mix of all of the above depending on the sim’s social status? But I digress... Sorry.

Chance for miscarriage That one was easier, than I thought. I installed Chris Hatch’s Alternate Pregnancy Controller. Yes, it also enables teens to become pregnant, even if they are not independent teens. But I myself will have to make my sims reproduce, if the parents are teens. And if I don’t, they won’t. I have full control over teen pregnancies except for teens, who run away or teens, who sneak out. Midgethetree extracted Risky sneak out and Risky Runaway, which matches my taste perfectly. Teens, who rebel and do not follow the rules, aka run away from home/sneak out without their parents permission, are more likely to have a child out of wedlock. *evil cackle* Excellent.

Autonomous reproduction Frankly, when you read through simler90′s complete mod description for romantic standards, it’s so engaging and interesting, I wonder, why this mod doesn’t have more likes. (145 updates?! Come on, even if you don’t like the mod, that is impressive.) I encourage you to read the whole description, because honestly: It made me really excited! The progression of romances in the game are much slower and sims need a little time to warm up before they’ll consider to woohoo. They’ll value their existing relationships and depending on the version you get, it can be based on chemistry. You can add or remove autonomy add ons or get rid of them. It’s highly adjustable. I like this setup much, much more than ACR’s “I just met you and this is crazy, but there’s a hottub, so woohoo maybe?” (Simler90 has also a mod to overhaul the attraction system, you should check out.) Still, I can’t deny the allure of surprise pregnancy, that comes with ACR. Luckily as mentioned above simgigglegirl had the idea to use romantic standards and ACR side by side. She also uploaded the updated ACR-controller, which I think, is really kind. The problem, I ran into, was again the age span. ACR only considers the ingame age, so pretty much all adults in my game are too old to get pregnant this way. But glorious as she is, Almighty Hat included an edited version of the ACR controller to work with her age mod. Simgigglegirl asked Midgthetree for help and I follwed the instructions to edit Almighty Hat’s version of ACR. And lo and behold! It worked out for me! ACR is not uninstalled from my game, but the only option available for sims is reproduction. So, deprived romance sims can still woohoo all the way with strangers like before and knock up/be knocked up, but every other romantic encounter will take time and effort for them. Also, jealousy is handled so much better by romantic standards. The sim will always take into consideration, how serious the relationship has been before they explode and slap the cheater.

Phew. That took some time. As promised here is a list of the mods I use for the intermingling of sims (and the ones I mentioned, but not linked above).

ACR, with an edit by simgigglegirl (follow midgthetree’s instructions on how to edit ACR yourself, if you use a diffrent version of ACR)

Romantic Standards by Simler90 (+all add ons)

New Turn Ons - Young Adult + Education + Aliens + Influential + Travel + Great Dancer + Pet Lover + Great Fighter + Eye Colours + Rich + Poor by SImler90 (You can pick and choose, which version you like the most.)

Age Transition Teens keep loves from Simblogy

Chrishatch Alternate Pregnancy Controller

Independent Teens by Midgethetree

Risky Honeymoon, Runaway, Sneak Out by Midgthetree

Death by Childbirth by MidgetheTree (slightly altered the Bcon, so sims who are younger are also affected, but the chance is significantly lowered, so sims, who give birth in later stages won’t die no matter what)

PregRel by Chris Hatch - look for “pregnancy relationship change“ Original Instuctions: “ For when a sim's pregnancy first shows and those around her realize she's pregnant. If she is a teen living at home (with at least one biological parent) her parents will become furious with her and lose a lot of LTR and STR toward her. Just how furious and how much of a relationship drop depends on her school grades. Parents of A+ students will get a lot more upset than those whose daughter wasn't doing so well at school. If she's married, engaged or going steady and the baby is not from her spouse, fiancé or boyfriend and he figures that out then he will also get mad at her and lose a lot of LTR and STR. If they've never had a woohoo he'll know the baby can't be his, otherwise he needs a logic skill of 300 (out of 1000 or 3 bars) or more to realize. If he has a logic skill of 750 or more he'll also figure out who the real father is and get mad with him as well. There is also a small LTR and STR increase from the baby's father to the mother when he realizes that she's carrying his child. That is unconditional and applies regardless of if they are married or he was just a fling.” If only it would affect reputation as well *sigh*)

NoBiGenderPreferenceDecrease by DeeDee

ACR Asexual Plugin by Midgethetree (For nuns and monks, who should not woohoo)

It's the Proportion -Gestation-Based Age Duration Mod by Almighty Hat

Edukashun Iz Gud by Cyjon

Faster College Education by Dave Luv

Mega College Pack by Squinge

And that’s it. I hope you’ll find this information useful! Please consider install instructions and load order.

Happy simming! :D

[monkey-network]

The Glory of No More Heroes

Who would’ve thought a Wii game by Suda 51 would be the best slap in the face. Let’s not beat around the bush, No More Heroes throws you right in. When Travis says, “It’s Game Time”, he means it. The swinging of the light saber, the splatters of blood, the essence of this badass looking weeb fills me with joy every time I play. NMH is a game I cherish and I wanted to express why.

The Touchdown

Honestly when I think of a realistic take on an anime anti-hero, I immediately think Travis Touchdown. He’s basically Saitama from One Punch Man except not invincible, considerate, bald. He doesn’t have a luxurious status compared to everyone he meets and he’s fine with that. Then again, they both have this subconscious pride in either looking for a challenge or, for Travis, becoming #1. Then again, where Saitama’s story is about understanding the humility of being a hero, Travis’s story is more macabre with how far you’re willing to go with your aspirations.

Travis isn’t facing any bad guys that are out to take over something like the city or whatever. They’re cantankerous mercenaries where the job of assassin has driven them to the deep end. Travis goes down the same path, the garden of madness, but in a different light; he at first gets a kick out of facing his enemies like its a movie where he’ll get the girl at the end, but soon enough empathizes with the idea that not everyone feel the same way and everyone has their own goals in this gig. 

Beyond the finale, he doesn’t really possess a chip on his shoulder in the first game and that clashes with everyone that’s been through a lot. The game does a great job veiling the haunting spiral Travis goes through by making his attitude towards it all eclipse the harsh reality of his journey. He’s becoming a remorseless killer, but that never gets in the way of the thrill you and Travis gets when slashing down some dudes or talking shit. 

At the same time, he’s not a complete asshole in spite of how sees this game. This is generally where we have to talk about...

The Ranked Fights

Every assassin in NMH is memorably unique, some more than others but they nonetheless capture the point of the game, without ‘em this would’ve been a standard beat ‘em up all things considered. With the exclusion of one, the assassins aren’t as enthused with their job as Travis is and even that excluded one, Destroyman, takes it to a level far beyond Travis’s likeness. That is the thing, all of them are Travis yet taken to differing yet equally extreme turns as assassins. For Letz Shake and Dr. Peace, it’s a euphoric calling. For Shinobu, it’s about the honor of the fight. For Bad Girl and Holly Summers, it’s all they think they have for a life. Each believing that being an assassin was their exit to something better but, aside Shinobu who was spared, had their fate sealed until Travis showed up. It’s kinda how Batman internalizes his “No Kill Rule”, you kill one and you’re potentially going to continue until someone stops you. And really, you probably appreciate every one of them. A couple fall by the wayside personality wise, but most the assassins has their moment before and/or after that makes fighting them feel gratifying. It’s almost impossible to hate them and they each subconsciously welcome you to give it your all.

This helps makes Travis a great protagonist. Moments like when he holds the mic for the defeated Dr. Peace, when he spares Shinobu, especially when he feels remorse for not killing Holly himself are what shows the true man in him, the growing protagonist. He tends to be cocksure, but isn’t a full on scumbag to everyone and is never rewarded for his shitty moments. Travis has an ego, literally rising in the ranks, but he doesn’t consider himself so above the people he fights. He’s kinda the hero in a way of giving each assassin a humble end, a sense of satisfaction that comes with the 1v1 challenge. Travis doesn’t cheats his way to the top and the assassins aren’t stripped of their humanity regardless of the downward spiral that came with the job. 

He is no hero and the people you fight aren’t either hence the title, but at the end of the day, as badass as everyone is, everyone is human wanting that paradise. But, with that want comes...

The Work

I often think of No More Heroes as a balanced Male Power Fantasy. DMC5 and Bayonetta are ones where while the action is earnest and the cutscenes are spectacle gold, the joy lacks in everything else. NMH fixes that by making exploration genuinely fun to do. The jobs, the challenges, the training, the clothing you’re able to get, all pay just as well in investment as getting to the main event. I seriously get in the zone when I finally maxed out my combos, got the final beam katana, and get to the timed challenges where I’m slaying as fast as possible. The previous two I mentioned are already badass in their own right and it’s mostly up to you, the player, to make them dance with your gameplay. But I say NMH takes that extra step, while having simpler controls, to where it’s not just your gameplay that makes you feel epic, but taking your time to gradually make that epicness come to fruition not just with earning money but doing the odd jobs and exploring the city.

Santa Destroy feels like more of a character and you feel better integrated in that world than you admittedly do in most hack and slash games. It also helps that getting to the next ranked fight isn’t as frustrating in the grind. There are a couple stinker jobs and assassin gigs but they all pay well that beyond getting to the first event with Dr. Peace, earning money never felt like an insufferable chore. Once again, this plays well into Travis as a character. He’s not immediately given immense power locked away inside him; he earns it all. You train him, you collect those balls for the special moves, you earn money for those beam katanas, he’s strong enough to suplex and pile drive people effortlessly, but you know he’s capable of becoming better. The only thing you generally got no charge is the motorbike which honestly is the sweetest damn thing in the game. It adds up to a character that, in a typical modern environment, you make happen.

The Beauty

I say the genius of No More Heroes is its portrayal of everything. You’re not the chosen one destined for greatness, you’re an average anime lover that got his fighting skills from VHS tapes and won a weapon from eBay. You’re not fighting in grandiose locations but everyday buildings like a school, parking lot, the beach, train station, warehouse, etc. And again, you’re not fighting chaotic supernatural enemies but people with lives that just happen to love killing people. NMH makes a playground out of the mundane without making it cynical or boring; honestly reminiscent of home movies where you’d have epic battles take place in the backyard or mall lot but given that legit bloody action flare of video games. With the humor and music being the jimmies and cherry on top. 

This is why 1 works far better than the sequel but that’s for another time. 

Suda overall sets you in an believable environment to go nuts in but doesn’t sucker punch you when shit gets real. He gives you exactly what you crave but doesn’t make you out to be an emotionless killing machine. The synergy between the player and Travis is what makes NMH great, potentially underrated, and it never shames you for enjoying it. Even when there are no more heroes on every front, 

You still feel like one in the end

The Conclusion

So yeah, I love this game. It’s one where I’m just into playing it in one sitting and as I grew up, came to appreciate more than before. It isn’t the most complex unless you really dive into Suda51′s “Kill the Past” lore but doesn’t need to be. Like I said before, compared to most big titles nowadays, this one jumps right in and whether you find it deep it or not, it’s all compelling. It’s up there as a favorite with Great Teacher Onizuka where it’s an underrated celebration of the no shits given badass counter part of pop culture while having some meaningfulness in what it actually says. I’m glad I got into this game series.