#helpless devotion is one of my favourite tropes

[autisticlancemcclain]

fic rec friday 16

welcome the the sixteenth fic rec friday! where, on friday, i rec five of my favourite fics.  

1. home depot catalogue by @moonguilt

“No, really, he’d love to,” Lance said into the phone, just as Keith pressed the button for the kettle to start heating up.

Those words were enough to raise Keith’s suspicions just a tad. He shot Lance an inquisitive glance while opening the cabinet to retrieve his box of morning tea, but his husband was the picture of innocence, flipping casually through a Home Depot catalog they had received in the mail yesterday.

“Oh, definitely. If you need someone to paint your insides white, Keith’s your man.”

Keith dropped his box on the counter, tea bags spilling out onto the granite.

-----

Keith is having a normal, relaxing morning. Lance throws him a curveball.

this one made me LAUGH. out LOUD. it’s domestic and fluffy and FUNNY dear god, like it’s such a lance thing to do and such an objectively funny prank that i just!! literally just typing this makes the urge to reread it too great my hand has been forced.

2. kindling by @moonguilt

Lance struggles with his attraction to Keith during training, and it all comes to a head when Keith corners him afterwards to ask why he was off his game today.

Prompt from tumblr: Angry Kiss.

one of my fave vld tropes EVER is lance being whipped and then equally as furious that he’s attracted to keith at all. it’s endlessly funny to me. and then keith being the eyebrows raised, not surprised one??? gets me every time. also keith is a massive sweetheart in this fic and i love him

3. chocolate granola bars by @moonguilt

“A pillow fort sleepover!” Lance cried out, leaping up with such alacrity that Pidge had to grab her laptop to prevent it from sliding to the floor.

“No way, we're not—” Pidge stopped and blinked, exchanging a glance with Hunk, then looking back at Lance again. “... Oh.” She evidently had not been expecting such a tame suggestion. “Okay.”

-------------

Or, Lance is bored out of his mind and decides to organize a sleepover with the squad. Nonsense ensues, and Lance works through some confusing emotions—particularly those involving a certain mullet-haired team leader.

okay there are too many good things about this fic i cannot choose which to highlight, and so i will mention them all. ahem: a) lance is a ray of sunshine who regularly uses his power of cuteness to his advantage, b) adorable team bonding, c) shiro is a dorky nerd, d) HEALTHY LANCE AND ALLURA COMMUNICATION, e) krolia and romelle have actual characters, f) lance has allergies which isn’t rly important but he gives me a vibe that he’s allergic to several things and it’s very validating to see it in fic, g) lance validation and feeling expression for the piece of shit game show episode, h) observant lance!! and i) literally the most painful and necessary and well-written klance fight i’ve read in a while! hurt badly but was resolved wonderfully 10/10

4. Terminal Velocity by @speakswords [GORE WARNING]

The only fate worse than being tortured to death is watching, helpless, while the person you love most takes your place.

this is one of my fave vld fics of all time. although fair warning it is very violent for a good chunk of time. the story is EXCELLENT, the entire thing will have u biting ur nails in terrified anticipation and i mean that literally. whole time i was gagged. at the edge of my seat. AND i have several specific lines screenshotted bc the pure fucking devotion and care knocked me out of the water

5. you and me are cosmic dust by Yuu_chi

Knowing that your team loves and trust you no matter what and believing it are two very different things.

i LOVE keith angst. i know this fandom is very langst heavy and honestly i am too but sometimes keith angst is so so good. and this fic is one of them!! excellent read and features observant lance as well. OH and there’s a little sprinkling of suave keith in here too lol

that’s it for today!! i’ll see y’all back next friday for the next fic rec post!!!    

[chunhua-s]

hi baby! CONGRATS 🎉 on 200!! HEHE and ur wish is my command— tho, this time, i’ll put off friends to lovers for mafia!au whew 😆 and my favourite boy, mr bokuto koutarou <33 (i think i’m rlly in lovvv w him 🥲) i love u!! hope u enjoy writing this hehehe 💙

atiq, sweetie!! thanks so much for requesting from me!! and thanks for always swapping ideas for haikyuu with me 🥺 i love our interactions and everything you add to our discussions is always so golden!! your mind? amazing, astronomical, built different. and i know how much you love kou so i’ll work extra hard on this request for you!! ilyyy 🥰 and i hope you enjoy it!! i cannot tell you how badly i wanted to write a mafia au for a while and i was actually hoping that someone would request one for me for this event! originally i had three different ideas for this oneshot, but across all three i wanted our reader to be in a oosition of power — a ruler rather than a bystander in the grand theme of things of that makes sense? i just... i really like writing female characters with a strong presence that you can feel pressuring you whenever you’re around her. when i chose this route for the plot, i added a little twist to it since i thought forbidden lovers would be another good fit for this — i hope this is okay with you? it still falls under your original request but with just a touch of another really fun trope! uhhh for the song i did struggle a little with choosing it, but i think the vibe of this song fits better than what i had in mind? it the lyrics capture the whole “i’m helpless when it comes to you” theme that i wanted to put into this oneshot, like it’s a sensation that the other person has so much power over them that they can’t resist. anyways enough with my rambling — please enjoy the story! and as always, don’t be afraid to tell me what you all thought of it 💕 and a big thank you to runa for giving me a hand with writing this when i got stuck! ily wifey 🥰

WHERE YOUR LIGHT SHINES BRIGHTEST ➽ KOUTARO BOKUTO x READER

genre: drama— tiny bit of angst if you squint

au: mafia au with some hints of forbidden lovers

warnings: none other than the au type if that makes anyone uncomfortable!

your relationship with him is like something written straight out of fiction — the tale of two lovers whose paths should never meet.

as the rules dictate, a queen should never kiss the hand of her servant. it’s unheard of — the mere thought of it could be called ridiculous had it ever left from your lips. and even you had frowned upon it once upon a time. back then, you would never have even entertained the notion of love within your business. the word love has no place inside a frozen heart, it’s petals without a home on cold northern land. as a woman in your world, you couldn’t afford love, not with your money, nor with your time. to you, all it had ever been was something too expensive and not worth the pain that would trail after its name. and so, the empress closes her heart and builds her throne on the skulls of men who dared to challenge her power, sews her dresses from their flesh and blood and decorates her neck with silver bones, her fingers with rings of thorn. you become a force in the underworld, one that demands respect with your name alone and causes the blood of those who should doubt you to run cold with fear. in the cruel and unforgiving world of pain and bloodshed, you blossom beautifully, and you run your empire on the same harsh principles that you once fought against to get to the top.

but the queen, she has a weakness — one lonely spear that rests right over her heart, piercing the skin there and drawing rivers of blood from her opening wounds. the queen who once spat on that four-letter word and scorned it with every part of her being, she fell in love with her right hand man. you couldn’t stop yourself from melting into golden eyes that shine like the sun itself, you’re rendered defenseless in the face of his light that shines like a beacon in your dark world. you’re a moth to his flame, and you so carelessly let yourself burn on embers of adoration and worship. for him, you abandon your personal code and allow your heart to dance in the palm of his hand. for koutaro bokuto, you allow yourself to bury your crown on a sandy beach, you let him pull you into golden waters and teach you how to swim in his ocean.

music blares outside of the private room, where neon red lights hide the trails that his lips leave across your skin. he fills you lungs with a subtle aroma of sweet oranges and a sort of earthy scent that’s almost lost under the overwhelming smell of gunmetal and blood that clings almost desperately to his clothes— as if to suffocate his fire and leave the both of you cold. when you pull away from his arms, you find his golden eyes already searching for you through black and white strands of hair that you gently brush from his forehead; he leans into your touch with his eyes closed, and his lips come apart to exhale the weight that sits on the both of your chest. the gun in his belt suddenly becomes heavier, as if it would pull him under if it weren’t for your hands around his waist, supporting his body when he tiredly collapsed into you. guilt turns your stomach over with a sickness so powerful that your resolve wavers, flickering like the surface of a calm lake disturbed by a single stone — that stone, you think bitterly, is your throne. the empire you’d created that you can no longer run from.

“you did well for me, kou,” you whisper against his skin, pressing a gentle kiss to his cheek and sinking further into his arms as if to permanently mold your bodies together. “you always do so well.”

he pulls back once again to lock gazes with you, golden hues drinking red wine to shine on a sunset blaze. you see his lips pull upwards in the beginning of a smile as your thumb traces the shape of his jawline, his hand coming up to cradle your own when he leans into your touch. “i live to serve you, my queen,” he mutters into your palm, and you swear you feel the devotion behind his words as they rumble across your skin like thunder. “i’ll do anything for you — just give me the order and i’ll get it done.”

you bring his face closer to yours and press your lips against his, feeling his entire body relax above you as his hands lock around your waist, draws you closer into him so that your figure curves into him. what space once existed between the two of you vanishes as you steal his breath from his lungs and lose yourself on sweet ocean waves. your voice of reason goes muted under every hushed gasp that falls from your caving chests chests, codes and conduct vanish beneath the heavy base of the music that blasts from outside the private room. when you pull away, the both of you are breathless, left to drag in slow, heaving gasps as if the air surrounding you both had vanished.“good,” your lips brush against his lips, your eyes flutter closed as your forehead leans against his. and you don’t dare doubt the validity of his words — in your world, an oath bears the same weight as a pound of flesh. false promises are punished in blood and sacrifice, and one would do well to quickly learn to never lie under any circumstance.

your smile softens on its edges as you press your head against his chest, falling into the soothing rhythm of his heartbeat. a queen can’t afford to fall in love in such a dark world, but you think that, for koutaro, it’s alright to let your guard down and offer him your heart.

he would never betray you, after all.

davi hits 200 followers — haikyuu!! au writing event! 💕 

taglist: @aiiishiiiteru @tsumue @bootylikepeachy

send an ask to be added!

[marymacd]

IF YOU TOUCH ME, I WON’T BE STILL.

𝖖 𝖚 𝖔 𝖙 𝖊 𝖘

“𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒔𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒅. 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒍, 𝑰 𝒇𝒆𝒍𝒕 𝒖𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒍𝒚 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒌, 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝑰 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒅 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒖𝒆 𝒎𝒆. 𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈. 𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕. 𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒖𝒍.” - Allison Argent, Teen Wolf

“𝑰 𝒕𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒂 𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒑 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒈 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒚 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕. 𝑰 𝒂𝒎, 𝑰 𝒂𝒎, 𝑰 𝒂𝒎.” - Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar

“𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒂𝒍𝒌 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒂𝒕 𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔.” - Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet

“𝑵𝒐 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍 𝒊𝒏𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒐𝒓 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒕.” - Eleanor Roosevelt, This Is My Story

"𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍 𝒚𝒐𝒖? 𝑨𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖? 𝑻𝒐𝒐 𝒎𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆. 𝑻𝒐𝒐 𝒎𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆." - Marina Tsvetaeva, Bride of Ice: New Selected Poems

𝖇 𝖆 𝖘 𝖎 𝖈

NAME: Mary Anne Macdonald NICKNAMES: Mare, Mac (rarely, prefers Mary) AGE: 20 BIRTHDAY: June 12th, 1959 GENDER: Cis female PRONOUNS: She/her

𝖋 𝖆 𝖒 𝖎 𝖑 𝖞

MOTHER: Lisa Macdonald (47), muggle nurse FATHER: Anthony Macdonald (49), muggle firefighter SIBLINGS: None

𝖕 𝖍 𝖞 𝖘 𝖎 𝖈 𝖆 𝖑 𝖆𝖙𝖙𝖗𝖎𝖇𝖚𝖙𝖊𝖘

FACE CLAIM: Diana Silvers BUILD: Average height and noticeably thin. HAIR: Hangs down below her shoulders. Naturally wavy and usually with a little frizz, she doesn’t do much to it other than wash it every couple of days. Usually worn out, tends to only pulls it back when she’s doing physical activity. HAIR COLOR: Dark brown, was lighter in her youth. EYE COLOR: Light brown, with flecks of green. SKIN COLOR: Fair. DOMINANT HAND: Left, though somewhat proficient at using both.  ANOMALIES: A jagged scar on the bottom of her right foot, acquired when she was nine and stood on shattered glass barefoot. Faint scars on one of her thighs. Freckles on her shoulders and her nose, particularly noticeable during summer. A small birthmark on her lower back. SCENT: Coconut, from the shampoo she uses. Old parchment when she comes home from work. Mint, from the gum she chews. ACCENT: East Coast Irish (Dublin). ALLERGIES: None. DISORDERS: Generalised anxiety & panic disorder. Since her attack, Mary has suffered from regular panic attacks. Though they have become more infrequent as the years have gone on, she still has them on occasion. She also experiences bouts of depression. FASHION: Whatever she finds comfortable. Loves oversized clothing. Sweaters all year round, button-up shirts and culottes.  NERVOUS TICS: Chews her lips, picks at her nails, and taps her feet. QUIRKS: Hums her favourite songs when she’s working. Talks to her cat as though it were a person. Always double-checks she locked the door. 

𝖑 𝖎 𝖋 𝖊 𝖘 𝖙 𝖞 𝖑 𝖊

RESIDES: Plainview Point Apartments. BORN: Tallaght Hospital, Tallaght, Ireland. RAISED: Tallaght, Ireland. PETS: Childhood dog, Sonny. Currently owns a cat, Clyde, and has since she started Hogwarts. He’s a ginger cat, and quite temperamental, by Mary’s own admission.

CAREER: Junior Administrator at the Wizengamot. EXPERIENCE: Has been working in her current position for over a year and a half.  EMPLOYER: The Ministry of Magic (Wizengamot).

POLITICAL AFFILIATION: Aligned with the Order of the Phoenix. BELIEFS: Her father is Jewish, and her mother Roman Catholic, so Mary was raised with a mix of beliefs. Now, she considers herself agnostic, though mildly spiritual.  MISDEMEANORS: None. FELONIES: None. DRUGS: None. SMOKES: No. ALCOHOL: Socially, preferred drink is an Irish Cream. DIET: Vegetarian. Mostly just eats whatever is left in her fridge when she gets home. If she can cobble together an entire meal, that’s a bonus.

LANGUAGES: English, some Hebrew.

PHOBIAS: Feeling helpless and out of control. The deaths of those closest to her. Being alone in the dark. HOBBIES: Reading, quidditch (formerly), football (formerly), knitting. TRAITS: { + }: intelligent, courageous, discreet, humorous, sensitive, stoic. { - }: tense, argumentative, cynical, reticent, self-righteous, diffident. 

𝖋 𝖆 𝖛 𝖔 𝖗 𝖎 𝖙 𝖊 𝖘

LOCATION: Her parents’ house in Tallaght. It’s the only place that still feels like home to her.  SPORTS TEAM: Shamrock Rovers (football), Holyhead Harpies (quidditch). GAME: Monopoly. MUSIC: David Bowie, Elton John, The Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac. She owns a cassette player, gifted to her by her father. Every few months, he sends her a new mix tape to listen to, so she ‘can stay up to date on muggle music’ -- Mary listens to every one, and shares her taste in music with her father. MOVIES: Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind. FOOD: Chocolate frogs, pesto fettuccine.  BEVERAGE: Butterbeer. COLOR: Crimson red.

𝖒 𝖆 𝖌 𝖎 𝖈

ALUMNI HOUSE: Gryffindor. WAND (length, flexibility, wood, & core): 11″ hazel wood with unicorn hair core, inflexible. AMORTENTIA: Freshly baked pastries, drying paint, and lavender.  PATRONUS: A wild rabbit. BOGGART: Malcolm Mulciber.

𝖈 𝖍 𝖆 𝖗 𝖆 𝖈 𝖙 𝖊 𝖗

MORAL ALIGNMENT: Lawful neutral MBTI: INTP MBTI ROLE: The Logician. The Logician personality type is fairly rare, making up only three percent of the population, which is definitely a good thing for them, as there’s nothing they’d be more unhappy about than being “common”. Logicians pride themselves on their inventiveness and creativity, their unique perspective and vigorous intellect. Usually known as the philosopher, the architect, or the dreamy professor, Logicians have been responsible for many scientific discoveries throughout history. ENNEAGRAM: Type Six. ENNEAGRAM ROLE: The Loyalist. The committed, security-oriented type. Sixes are reliable, hard-working, responsible, and trustworthy. Excellent "troubleshooters," they foresee problems and foster cooperation, but can also become defensive, evasive, and anxious—running on stress while complaining about it. They can be cautious and indecisive, but also reactive, defiant and rebellious. They typically have problems with self-doubt and suspicion. At their Best: internally stable and self-reliant, courageously championing themselves and others. TEMPERAMENT: Melancholic. A melancholic personality leads to self-reliant individuals who are thoughtful, reserved, and often anxious. They often strive for perfection within themselves and their surroundings, which leads to tidy and detail oriented behaviour. WESTERN ZODIAC: Gemini. Adaptable, versatile, communicative, witty, intellectual, eloquent, youthful, lively, nervous, tense, superficial, inconsistent, cunning, and inquisitive. CHINESE ZODIAC: Year of the Pig.  Pigs are diligent, compassionate, and generous. They have great concentration: once they set a goal, they will devote all their energy to achieving it. Though Pigs rarely seek help from others, they will not refuse to give others a hand. Pigs never suspect trickery, so they are easily fooled. PRIMAL SIGN: Cricket. Crickets are intellectuals who like to explore and experiment with new ideas and theories. Unlike similarly intellectual signs, like the Seal, members of this sign are very polite in social situations and like nothing more than getting into a theoretical discussion about something scientific or otherwise cerebral. For this reason, this sign is often that of self-proclaimed “nerds”, but most Crickets are simply too likeable for such a derisive label. TAROT CARD: The Devil, The Lovers. TV TROPES: broken bird badass bookworm mage born of muggles deadpan snarker vengeance denied

SONGS: 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒚, 𝒔𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒍 𝒇𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓 But if you touch me I'll lash out. Don't fuck with me. If I must, you know I will. I'm not your prey, I'm not your kill.

𝒄𝒍𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒆, 𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒔𝒆𝒚 'Cause I don't need anyone I don't need anyone I just need everyone and then some

𝒓𝒊𝒃𝒔, 𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒆 This dream isn't feeling sweet We're reeling through the midnight streets And I've never felt more alone It feels so scary, getting old

𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌𝒔, 𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒔𝒌𝒊 One morning this sadness will fossilize And I will forget how to cry I'll keep going to work and you won't see a change Save perhaps a slight gray in my eye

𝒅𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒔, 𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒅𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒐𝒏𝒔 Don't get too close It's dark inside It's where my demons hide

IDEOLOGIES:

Just because someone speaks the loudest, doesn’t meant they’re right.

White chocolate isn’t really chocolate.

Sometimes, it’s okay to take justice into your own hands.

Pineapple absolutely does not belong on pizza.

You can’t take care of others if you are unable to take care of yourself first.

Trust must be earned, and second chances shouldn’t be given out easily.

Everybody has a sense of humour, it just might not be the same as your own.

[drink-n-watch]

  Genre : Action, romance, violence, Bottle Royal

Episodes: 11

Studio: Nexus

  Mobile games are turning into a real bane. You think it’s all lighthearted casual fun, free to play easy to install and them before you know it they hit you with the small print. You’re just minding your own business and somehow you now owe 60$ in microtransactions for some game that isn’t even that fun or you know, or maybe you only had two hours sleep because you spent hours mindlessly tapping on a screen and letting your brain melt slowly, or somebody is trying to murder you. Any one of these things can just put a damper on your day. For Kaname it’s mostly the latter that has him down, especially since a couple of his good friends are dead now and he accidentally got roped into this whole thing without even knowing the rules. So how do you quit a real life free for all PvP? Not easily…

That’s kind of a weird title for my post… In case some of you don’t know King’s Game is an anime with an extremely similar premise which I watched a while ago and reviewed here: King’s Game – A Modern Transcendentalist Rallying Cry. I stand by that title! Grated the plot of both Darwin’s Game and King’s Game is sort of basic horror fodder right now so it’s not weird to find two similar animes but the second I started watching Darwin’s Game I was struck by just how many elements were pretty much identical. Even the title is almost the same. And since I didn’t enjoy King’s Game much, I was just about to drop Darwin’s Game when something made me stick around…

what could that thing be?

Now visually speaking Darwin’s Game is what I would qualify as competent. It’s not bad. The ladies are very pretty and have very pretty eyes. The boys are much less interesting in design and for me, less attractive, but they get the point across. The backgrounds are similarly forgettable but functional and a lot of attention is given to floor plans and layouts to really coordinate the virtual space with the action which I thought was a very nice touch.

I don’t have much to say about sound design and apart from a few classic tropes the non verbal storytelling was rather minimal. It’s an o.k. looking show which most people are not likely to remember for its production unless you happen to particularly like a specific character design or something.

Oddly though, this may have played in Darwin’s Game’s favour. This is a convoluted sentence but I really wanted to keep it…

You know what else I kept? Dozens of eye close ups!

Like I said, I almost dropped this show at the first episode, which is a double episode by the way so that 11 episode count is really 12 like most other shows. First the production is not bad in any way but for me didn’t have any particular element that would keep me watching. And the set up is so full of worn out horror tropes that I felt like I had seen this show before.

The basic premise is that there’s a mysterious mobile game that sort of appears on your phone and if you happen to open the app you automatically become a player in Darwin’s Game. It’s a sort of Battle Royal in which players kill each other for fabulous prizes and indecent sums of money. There is a lot of techno-magic going on that ensures non players are never in the way and players can have supernatural abilities called sigils. When every man nice guy (standard protagonist) Kaname finds the app on his own phone he suddenly gets sucked into a never ending fight for survival and manages to collect both allies and foes along the way.

Now King’s Game does differ in the fact that the mobile app gives you random and increasingly gruesome tasks to accomplish in order to survive (or else you are supernaturally killed) instead of sucking you into battles to the death, but the tone and effects are very similar. The character archetypes are pretty much the same as well and the early story was progressing along the same narrative beats and plot points.You have to understand, I really didn’t like King’s Game much and found it a chore to finish so these commonalities were giving me very serious pause.

I have a bad feeling about this

However, after seeing that Darwin’s Game had a much better rating than King’s Game I decided to stick around only out of curiosity. I find that sometimes two very similar shows can have very different ratings and it’s always fascinating to me. However, after episode 2, it became very apparent that these were wildly different shows and one was clearly better.

I know merely comparing two shows is not much of a review but I really did enjoy the exercise of figuring out why one worked for me while the other didn’t and I think sharing that with you will help you get an idea of what type of show Darwin’s Game is.

First thing that I think really helped Darwin’s Game is the shift from Horror to Action. Now Darwin’s Game is a very violent anime and occasionally quite gruesome about it. A lot of the deaths are bloody, onscreen and the victims are often very young or more or less innocent. It has just as much gore and suspense as any horror series I have seen but that’s not what the plot chooses to emphasize. Instead of slow moody scenes meant to built up tension we have quick moving action that rarely broods on the tragedy and dread of the situation.

no hard feelings

This in turn changes the character archetypes and the way the story treats them. People in Darwin’s Game get over things pretty easily and quickly. They have to, they don’t have time to be all gloomy. Which means the overall tone is a lot more happy go lucky in spite of everything that is going on. The story also becomes much more plot driven with the appeal being trying to figure out who is behind the game and why it exists rather than character driven with the audience breathlessly hoping our heroes will survive.

This means a bit less development for the cast in favour of more daredevil plans and twists along the way. And I think that this is what works best in this type of story. It also means the characters don,t have to be as helpless or sympathetic since their deaths aren’t the focus of the narrative. They can survive, and kick some behind along the way. They can also be kind of ruthless in their own right with a lot of the essentially innocent character deaths being of their doing. Hey, it’s a kill or be killed world out there. For me this meant that despite having less time devoted to character backstory, motivation or development, they seemed more complex and well rounded (if rather unhinged).

Finally, the fact that the story relies on a lot of well established tropes and fairly basic production also served in efficiently getting me quickly hooked into the action. We all know the basic concept of a Battle Royal, all these people suddenly rapped into this kill to survive situation. It’s a familiar premise that doesn’t really need much explanation or justification at this point. And motivation becomes inherent as well. All these characters are acting this way because they don’t want to die. Great, I get it, I relate, I also would probably not want to die!

getting pixelated seems bad

Smartly Darwin’s Game doesn’t waste any time reexplaining concepts that are by now well known by most of the audience and instead just concentrates and the few tidbits of information that are unique to the show giving the series a more individual feel than it would have otherwise and makes the characters fun and fun to watch instead of bothering with explaining their thought process. The visuals and sound design are the type of stuff anime fans have seen so often that they don’t interfere in any way. There is no overload and no distractions. You get thrown right into the story and then it just never stops for the entire run. And that more or less nonstop action is done very well.

Every time an episode ended I really wanted to know what happens next. Darwin’s Game didn’t affect me in any deep way or stir up my emotions or anything, personally I liked all the characters but didn’t really care anyone specifically. My favourite is chosen mostly on character design. But I was really entertained for the entire run. I should say I finished the series in 3 days and even without being able to directly compare I’m rather confident that Darwin’s Game is the type of show that is really at it’s best when taken in in consecutive more or less uninterrupted viewings. The momentum is really what it has going for it and I have a feeling that if you break it, the series becomes considerably less interesting.

So what I’m saying in short if that Darwin’s Game wasn’t the same as King’s Game…

Favourite character: Rein – obviously

What this anime taught me: nothing – I already knew butterflies are evil

If you don’t drink, how will your friends know you love them at 2 a.m.?

Suggested drink: Game Set Match

Every time we see a butterfly – shiver

Every time anyone says “sigil” – take a sip

Every time the game sends a push notification – go to the settings

Every time Kaname dodes – take a sip

Every time Shuka is merciless – think about your priorities

Every time Kaname is considered outstanding – be confused

Every time Kaname hears his inner voice – take a sip

Every time Sui and Sota switch – take a sip

Every time someone makes a noble sacrifice – get a snack

Every time Rein figures it out – cheer

Every time we see Wang – take a sip

Like I said the lady character designs are very cute, let me show you what I mean:

Darwin’s Game is not the same as King’s Game Genre : Action, romance, violence, Bottle Royal Episodes: 11 Studio: Nexus Mobile games are turning into a real bane.