#his outfit will probably go through a major overhaul at some point

[avetesketches]

Royal/fantasy AU on the brain… so here’s a colored sketch of the Sonamy dynamic I’ve been playing with:

I want to play off of Sega’s recent attempt at trying to portray Amy as more than just her love for Sonic but without totally getting rid of it. In this AU she behaved how her early 2000s self would around Sonic up until about 14/15 years old but began feeling embarrassed about how she behaved and would cringe at the memories as she got older. She still has a LOT of love for Sonic but tries to play it cool and pretend she isn’t as into him as she once was. Meanwhile, as he’s gotten older, Sonic has slowly realized that he’s actually liked her back this entire time but now is kind of nervous to admit it. He totally sees through her disinterested act though 😁

Also realizing the colors make this look very Romeo and Juliet coded but it isn’t trust me, I’m just still workshopping the kingdoms and their motifs/color palettes 😭

[agent-cupcake]

As a resident Claudefucker, I know am curious to know what our fave charming schemer is doing during this Mafia!AU. He'd look lovely in a suit.

~It was quite the headline when Godfrey Riegan died. The details are a little hazy, a little convenient, but people don't talk about that sort of thing. Car accidents are common. Tragic, but not unreasonable. There’s no reason to smear a man’s perfectly respectable political career for the sake of some sensational gossip.

~In the right circles, however, there was a huge uproar, questions about who was going to take over the Riegan family when the elderly boss Oswald died. The Riegan’s had been dominating Leicester for quite some time, but a lot of people began to predict that the Gloucester family was going to move in. They had powerful friends, it seemed. Friends with money, no less.

~Claude Riegan, grandson of Oswald, appeared out of nowhere just when he was needed. Stories of the lost daughter Tiana still circulated, sure, but there were still a lot of questions about Claude’s origins when nobody except Oswald were able to vouch for him. He obviously had military leadership experience—his skill with guns and ability to lead was just too excellent for any other explanation—but he dismissed the question out of hand. There’s no documentation of him, either, leading some to wonder if even his name was false. But Oswald said he was family, and that was that.

~Claude was quick to establish himself, in any case. Despite his cavalier attitude, his efficacy in overhauling the power dynamics of Leicester were profound.  

~He decided, first and foremost, that the way to win the people over was to invigorate the local culture, which had seen a sharp decline as a result of new laws that were unfavorable to business, Adrestia’s growing market monopolies, and the bad reputation of the red light district Ailell. This included some perfectly legitimate campaigning and some under the table type schemes. 

~The result was a flourishing Derdriu Street. While it lacks the prestige of Enbarr Square in Adrestia, it welcomes entertainment that would be considered too “low brow” like comedy, trendy new restaurants, and music venues. Even better, all of it is built on the recently cleaned up river. The Riegan family is involved in all of  it, of course. 

~Casino owner Claude. This exists solely to thirst but maybe it was preexisting and he took it over due to its poor management? If there’s going to be gambling anyway, it should be done right. The extra money’s not so bad, either. But, Claude lounging in a big leather chair in a dark blue blazer with gold brocade, his white shirt unbuttoned low enough to see enough his chest. Enough to make you drool. Enough that you’d definitely get caught staring and probably called out for it because he can’t help himself. Claude with his elbows on the arm rests and fingers folded in front of him as he considers you, gold rings winking because he’s just that ostentatious and appearances are important. Claude asking you how you feel about taking risks in a way that really feels like it has nothing to do with cards, staring at you with a friendly smile that doesn’t meet those calculating eyes—eyes that you know will pick up on every tell. 

~Claude also struck a deal with the Kupala Distillery. They’d been fighting to keep hold of their historic business for years, and Claude offered to help them with that. You know, not for free, but he’s good at making deals that leave everybody happy. 

~The second biggest thing he tackled was the drug trade. For the most part, no one family had ever had a complete handle on that market. The Goneril’s had a hold over the docks for years, but the Edmunds had been moving in and working with the Gloucester family to bolster their power. Distribution was scattered and hard to keep track of as it ultimately circulated wherever there was a profit to be made. Looking at it like this, Claude decided that the only way to fix things was to take control over all of it. In his line of work, shady things like the drug trade are impossible to avoid. At the very least, if he has control over it, he can ensure the product is clean and expel far more unsavory ventures.

~Through these escapades, Claude was able to make alliances with all of the major families. A lot of them had only remained loyal to the Gloucester family out of fear so as soon as they had an alternative, they bolted. This has an unfortunate side effect of revealing how his power is perceived. Every day is a balancing act for Claude. He allows each family to function as they please as long as they’re aware they do so at his mercy. It’s better to keep friends than to control enemies, but even that requires a delicate maneuvering of power.

~However, Claude likes the conflict. He enjoys the game and he especially enjoys winning the game. There’s a certain level of his excusing amorality for the sake of his family and Leicester, but there’s an equal part of him that understands his wrongdoings and deals with it separately. He wouldn’t hold to the naïve “ends justify the means” idea to excuse himself, but he would still argue that his actions have value and are even necessary. If it weren’t him, it would be somebody a lot worse than him. That’s probably something that would linger in the back of everybody’s minds whenever they shook his hand or paid their respects, whenever they began to think of how easy it would be to take him out. Fear, too. So far, Claude’s never done anything shockingly bad, only what was necessary. But with his power and intellect, it’s always a question of what he could do.

~If someone asked him that, Claude would smile that friendly smile and tell them that he would do anything to see his vision made real. Whether or not that’s true remains to be seen. 

~Luckily, Claude’s not alone! Hilda is the stereotypical crime family princess. She joined Claude because he offered her freedom from the overbearing control of her father and brother. Her skill in manipulating everybody around her combined with her reputation as a ditzy rich girl makes her fantastic at gathering information, assuming Claude can get her to do so. But, as long as he’s not being too forceful, she’s surprisingly motivated to weave her way through social circles and charm everyone. Although she would never say it, the order he brought to Leicester, not to mention the entertainment, made everything a lot better for her and her family. Plus, she likes being useful after spending her entire life watching Holst give his heart and soul to family while she did nothing. Ultimately, the information she provides is essential and her relationship with Claude is one of the few either have that’s built on trust, respect, and loyalty. That said, sometimes even Claude gets a little shiver as he watches how easily Hilda can manipulate people.  

~Lorenz was one of Claude’s most disdainful detractors, although a part of that was jealousy. Claude just swept in and did things that Lorenz had been waiting and planning to do once he became the head of the Gloucester family. Even after being on the receiving ends of such vicious attacks, once Claude undeniably had the upper hand in Leicester, he went behind the Gloucester boss’s back to Lorenz and told him that they were going to be friends or enemies, it was Lorenz’s choice. Not threatening him, just pointing out that the fall of the Gloucester family was inevitable under his father’s leadership and that Lorenz didn’t have to suffer for his father’s sins. Probably over mimosas and brunch. Lorenz is proud and has no appreciation for Claude, but he’s not stupid. After they worked out their disagreements and more or less accepted each other, Lorenz and Claude became pretty close. Claude knows that having someone to openly and aggressively disagree with him isn’t a bad thing. Not only that, but Lorenz’s a solid ally with a better grasp on some of the things Claude has difficulty with due to not being a native. Lorenz is willing to admit that Claude is a good leader.

~Marianne is well educated in the realm of the law and political action. The reason the Edmund family saw such success despite their lesser status was because of her adopted father’s genius. which he made sure to share with Marianne. She is invaluable in aiding Claude on the perfectly legitimate side of his business, and helping him hide his tracks for the shady stuff. Raphael is the muscle. Lysithea is a computer genius. Being a sickly shut in with issues that only recently saw treatment, she’s on the Mr. Robot level of hacker mode activated. Ignatz is an architect which is useful since so much of Claude’s power is in the property and infrastructure. He also designed a lot of places to have some neat-o hidey holes. Claude loves buildings that have secrets. Leonie is manages a lot of the physical and pettier side of the work. If someone’s stirring up trouble, she’s likely to pay them a visit as a warning before Claude has to get involved. She used to be a mercenary but being on Claude’s payroll is a lot better of a gig.    

~As for the suits, one thing is very important. Claude would not, under any circumstances, wear something tight on his thighs. I actually kind of like the idea of him going for a 1980′s style modernized. In his post timeskip outfit, he’s already got a hint of that going on with how oversized his outfit looks. The 80′s (rightfully) gets a bad rep for fashion, but it’s also very iconic with those wide-collared suit jackets, matchy-matchy three piece suits, sportscoats with a fun patterned shirt underneath, open blazers, pleated pants with an oversized jacket, and—in particular—the trend of summer suits in shades of tan and cream with colored shirts underneath. Then, combine that with a pair of Ray-Ban Aviators and a topless convertible and you’ve got a distinctly recognizable mob boss who doubles as a devastating heartthrob. I’m not saying he’d do a 1:1 recreation, but you’d definitely see references to the fashion of the era in his outfits. He would wear oxfords or ankle boots. Whatever it was, they’d have to be comfortable. He also doesn’t shy away from jewelry. The earring, of course, and rings when he's feeling particularly decadent. When he’s wearing his shirts unbuttoned Claude could possibly wear a gold chain. I mean, what are you gonna say, no? That gold doesn’t look gorgeous against his skin? That it’s tacky? You’re talking to the man who wore quilted pants. Claude’s not afraid to stand out because he knows he will anyway, nor is he afraid to be seen as unfashionable because he doesn’t particularly care about trends. I also enjoy the idea of him emulating the 80′s as someone who didn’t grow up in a western culture and thus mainly saw things through the lens of movies. Whatever he wears, however, he would look very handsome.

[stillness-in-green]

When MVA/MLA Arc gets animated, what will you be looking forward to the most? What (canon-compliant) additions and/or changed do you want or think Bones should make, if any?

There’s--a lot.  Does that surprise anyone?  There’s a lot.

o  I have been foaming at the mouth for voice actor announcements for almost a year now, particularly for Trumpet, Geten and RD.           Trumpet’s superpower is literally his voice!  I mean, nothing about that statement requires that voice be particularly entrancing, but it certainly seems like it should be, right??             Geten is a boku-type in the manga, but that was literally the only hint foreshadowing his pretty boy face through 21 solid chapters of Pure Feral Gremlin.  Everyone was shocked by Geten’s face reveal!  How do you maintain that surprise value with an actual voice actor in the mix?  Do you not even try?  Do you play up the disparity--in which direction?  I can’t wait to see what they do.           And Re-Destro!  Re-Destro requires so much range!  From his peppy, silly businessman persona, to the urbane commander, from the overeager yes-man to the raving zealot--who on earth do you get to believably cover all that ground?  I can’t even begin to guess, but I am living in anticipation of that article going up on ANN or the official Twitter sources.

o  I’m also much looking forward to getting official coloring on Trumpet and Geten.  Skeptic seems pretty straightforward--black, black, more black--and RD and Curious, we have color art for, but I wonder if Trumpet will also be all black clothes, to go with that dignified politician image of his, or if he’ll get some color to pep him up a little.  What color are those tinted shades of his?  His eyes?  The wicked-cool Sevens Loud?           I assume Geten is all wintery shades, but it’ll be great to confirm which ones.  I mean, we all assume he’s white-haired to better annoy Dabi with family parallels, but what if he turns out to be platinum blond?  And are his eyes blue?  Gray?  White?  What color is that awful parka?           Also, Re-Destro’s stress powers.  Having been writing them as black since at least August--Rorschach test blots are generally black, after all, and they’re the clear inspiration--I would much like it if the anime would have my back on this.  They made Destro’s mask a dark cinnamon brown, though, so I’m prepared to be unpleasantly surprised in this matter.

o  Predictable MLA adaptational choices aside, I’m also eager/anxious about how they’ll handle Spinner’s narration.  What I really hope is that they actually straight-up hand him ALL the narration duties--not just the stuff he dictates directly in the manga, but also e.g. the name and quirk explanation material that Present Mic normally gets, or the previews that are always handled by Deku.           The opening and closing sequences are another big structural thing, of course--based on the flashed snippets of Hawks and Endeavor in both our current and the previous OP, I’m expecting we’ll see at least a bit of something referencing the upcoming internship arc (which I expect to close out the season), but I hope the villains just walk away with the closing entirely.  I want my slice of life villainy ED, dangit.

o  Another thing I’m eager/anxious about would be Kotarou, and the Shimura flashback generally.  There’s a brittle edge of to Kotarou that I really love, and I hope he manages to keep it in the anime, despite the anime being generally not so great at moments that I would describe as “delicate.”  For example, I’d like it if he doesn’t get a super deep voice, and if they could manage to keep his pretty face, and capture how deeply bitter and tired he looks in the scene where he’s reading the letter Nana left him.           Also, I hope they keep the little montage bits and, crucially, the changes of clothes the family goes through.  We see Tenko in no less than five, possibly as many as seven, different T-shirts through the course of that flashback.  It seems like a small thing, but it’s one of the factors that makes me skeptical that AFO gave Tenko Decay, when so many days clearly go by between the opening with the man at the door and the tragic end.  It’d be nice not to see too much resurgence on that just because the anime can’t be bothered to come up with more than one outfit for the Shimuras.

I have enough issues with the anime’s usual adaptation choices that I’m trying not to get my hopes up too high on the actual content of the episodes.  The staff is diverting too much of its major talent to the movies (BAH) these days for me to expect the whole season to look all that great, and it’s never been particularly creative or daring outside of its climactic sakuga-heavy fight scenes anyway.  I’ve also long had a bone to pick with its scoring decisions, and am already eyeballing the climax of the RD/Shigaraki fight and imagining the minor-keyed terrifying dirge I fear the anime will play there, at the moment that Re-Destro (and, shortly afterward, Spinner) are supposed to be experiencing something akin to religious awakenings.           There’s also the issue of the violence and gore--judging by how the anime handled the scene where Shigaraki and Compress maim Overhaul, I have some severe reservations about how much blood they’ll be allowed to get away with, particularly in the scene where the League brutally decimates that CRC group and, of course, Shigaraki’s backstory.  I’m looking at MVA to serve as a preview for how all the same issues will be addressed in the War Arc.

That bit of pessimism aside, as to what I’m hoping they’ll add or change?  Well, off the top of my head.....

o  I would love to get a full episode devoted to the time the League spends fighting Machia.  Not that first tussle, but the six grueling weeks in the mountains.  There’s so much you could add there for character building and atmosphere that Hori didn’t so much as montage through.  Where was their food coming from?  How’d they pick out places to pitch camp?  How much access to news from outside did they have, and how frequently?  What were the circumstances in which Gigantomachia “told them himself” about his great sense of smell??  Stuff like that!             I don’t think we’re at all likely to get this--honestly, the series of late has had enough of a problem with trimming bits and pieces that I’m as worried about what they might cut as I am hyped about things they might add--but the one thing that gives me some hope is the training camp arc.  Specifically, the moment 1-A first gets to the Pussycats’ forest, they get jumped by earth golems, a fight that the manga off-panels entirely, but the anime spends a modest amount of time on, giving the kids a little bit of time to show off their moves and such.  I’d love to get something equivalent for the League.

o  On a similar note, I wouldn’t turn it down if they fleshed out some of those running street fights a bit.  One obvious thing comes to mind: there’s a weird jump in the manga between Skeptic and a horde of his golems being all but on top of Twice at the beginning of 233 and then that fight just--doesn’t happen.  There’s no mention of it at all.  I think the suggestion is that either Machia’s appearance or the tower going down interrupted it--Skeptic breaks off from his fight the same way Geten and Trumpet do theirs, shifting focus to protecting Re-Destro--but it’d be nice to see the anime touch on it.

o  It’d be nice to get a bit of expansion on the nature of the bullying Spinner endured.  We’re told he was, but was it limited to verbal?�� Did he get beaten up a lot?  Was there an online element?  Deku’s our only other reference point for “bullied kid,” and whatever one might think about the story’s development of Bakugou’s mentality, it’s been made clear in retrospect that there was a lot more too that than just the matter of Deku’s quirklessness.  I’d love to know how Spinner’s bullying looked in comparison (not least because of some of the theories about Spinner and Deku needing to come to some kind of accord to free Shigaraki from AFO).

o  Make the Villa (both here and during the War Arc) look more realistic.  By which I mean, I know Horikoshi is capable of drawing interesting and lived-in interior spaces--he has an entire chapter dedicated to it in the 1-A dorm room contest, after all--but he normally doesn’t bother much with it.  At UA, it’s not too distracting, because we know good and well that that whole building is probably maintained by Cementoss anyway.  Ditto places like Tartarus (intentionally, dehumanizingly barren) or the League’s post-Kamino hideouts (abandoned homes and industrial spaces).  But the Villa?            For heaven’s sake, it’s called a mountain villa.  It has a clear reception desk on the ground floor; it’s obviously some sort of high-end hotel, if not an outright resort or rentable retreat lodge.  Speaking as someone who’s worked in one, places like that don’t look as fuckin’ bare as the rooms we see there always seem to.  For fanfic purposes, I’m happy to go on telling myself that e.g. the pool and the bar and the restaurant(s) and the gym are in the building Cementoss doesn’t tear in half, but it’d be nice if the anime could class the whole place up a little, maybe put some real furniture and decor in the rooms that are in use.  (Yes, I know this is a ridiculous nitpick.)

o  This is less a change and more a correction, but for fuck’s sake, BONES, give us white-haired Shigaraki.  The climax of Deika is a solid time for it, given that it’s obvious in the manga that Shigaraki’s hair gets paler in Deika--you can see it in the way Horikoshi inks it (which is to say, the way he stops inking it)!  I think if we ever get white-haired Shigaraki in the anime, a somewhat better time as far as narrative justification goes would be when Shigaraki gets out of the tube in the War Arc; you could easily justify it as a side-effect of the surgery.  Still, I’d rather see it here.  I want white-haired Shigaraki, gleaming and brilliant through the scattering ash in that crater, a veritable angel of sacred destruction.           Honestly, more than anything, the crater sequence is the one I hope I love.  It’s probably my favorite single moment in the entire manga, as Shigaraki wins over Re-Destro, Spinner and Gigantomachia in the same moment, and finally comes into his own.  If they can at least nail that, I’ll consider myself pretty satisfied.

[after-witch]

birthday gift part 2 responses

Consolidating some responses to Birthday Gift part 2!

Anonymous said: Theo, I had a question for the birthday story’s Kai! I know he’s a jerk and stuff, but I was wondering about his dynamic with the reader. In a way it seems moderately sweet (with the hand squeeze) but does he let them hug him? Or does he ever kiss her? If reader asked for him to lay with them till they fell asleep (tho he would likely say not like he does with everything else grrrr) would he? I guess just to say- how close would you say they are when it comes to physical touches?

I feel like there would be a long period where reader gets no physical affection or touch, outside of occasional grazing (when he’s handing her a night gown, for instance)--particularly if she’s behaving “bad.” But once she starts crossing into the threshold of behaving well, he’s going to start feeling comfortable with engaging in smaller touches and being warmer with her, such as squeezing her hand in ‘Birthday Gift Part 2.’ 

If reader asked for him to lay with them, he would be fucking thrilled. It might make him feel a bit anxious (holding hands is one thing, laying physically next to each other///oh geez) but it would be a major sign that his darling is learning to accept his place in their life. Plus he’d get to see reader fall asleep live and not through his cameras for once.

Kissing would be off the table (Except maybe when reader is sleeping, just saying) until their, uhhh, “relationship” is well advanced and reader is deep deep into Stockholm Syndrome. 

Anonymous said:

Super dumb little question babe 😅 I was just wondering how Kai would react if reader asked him “hey Kai...we’re friends, right?” Would he be offended or, how do you think he’d respond?

Reader: Hey Kai... we’re friends, right

Kai:

As long as reader isn’t doing silly things like saying she wants to leave or do something that’s outrageously against his rules, he’ll take gradual improvements like this in stride. 

Anonymous said:

Overhaul says no so much I feel like if I asked him to watch 1 episode of GOT a week together he’d STILL say no

He would say no to GOT. But just because he knows the agony of investing in GOT only for Season 8 to happen would destroy his darling emotionally. .... but in all seriousness, I think if reader were being really really good all the time, he wouldn’t be too opposed to a weekly movie night. Though some weeks it would be more like him setting up a movie on his tablet and having reader sit with him while he works on his laptop. Reader would get bonus points if they sometimes turned down a movie night in favor of reading books in his office. Basically anything that indicates reader approves of Kai’s rules and schedule is getting them into his good graces. 

Anonymous said:

I LIVE for that faint and ever so slight underlying “infantilization” spell Overhaul has reader under. One step out of routine and it’s so disorienting

He did it on purpose and he’s such an asshole for it.  Reader would probably feel overwhelmed and weird just trying to pick out their own outfit now.

Anonymous said:

Chisaki made me angry at the very start of part 2 but.. by the end I feel really comfortable now. You’re so good at delivering the readers emotion that I can actually feel what they are feeling.

Of course you feel comfortable, Chisaki’s routine is what’s best, after all. <3  also ahh thank you for that compliment!! 

Anonymous said:

I haven’t read the whole thing yet but the moment Overhaul said “absolutely not” AHHHHH!!! I WANT TO HIT HIS FAAAACE!! Bish says no to EVERYTHING

He says no to anything that doesn’t fit within his pre-existing plans, unfortunately for reader. Anytime they’ve “succeeded” at getting him to agree to something, it’s something he’s already accounted for. 

hello-lucky-luka said: @after-witch congratulations you make me want to spit and throw overhaul into a pit of rats. You make me so angry that I just want the reader to go outside.

He’s the worst. 

damtoti said: goddamn the psychological manipulation is 10000/10. been a while since i read something like this and holy fuck i love it

ahh;adsf; thank you thank you!! your comments are an energy bar.

[thatsnicebutimmarried]

So I watched Descendants 3 and I have Hot Takes TM

Yes I know, I am a good decade and a half older than the target audience of these movies, and no, they are not cinematic masterpieces but they also aren’t trying to be, and it’s 2019 and cringe culture is dead and we’re allowed to unironically like bad things now so just hush, okay? They’re not bad, they’re not fantastic, they’re fine, and there is entertainment value and I find them at least mildly entertaining but they leave me with Thoughts.

First off, again, they aren’t bad, but they also are not exactly something everyone needs to run out and watch. They’re all three Disney Channel Original Movies and that’s all they are really trying to be. They aren’t perfect and if you think too hard about them then they fall apart or get real weird so just don’t do that. It’s meant to be a fun colorful disney movie aimed primarily at kids and teens. They don’t have to be Oscar-worthy, they can be just fine. And they are. All three. This one is possibly my favorite of the three, actually. 

So hot take #1: yeah, the music is pretty good, but for the love of God, I wish they didn’t produce the music so much like a pop song that it sounds super out of place in what is supposed to be a movie musical. They’ve done this in all three movies and it annoys me in all of them. The music is great, but auto-tuned and electroniced and synthesized to the point that it really strains suspension of disbelief that they might actually be singing in the scenes instead of very obviously lipsyncing to something recorded in a studio and mixed and edited and slapped over the scene they’ve filmed. And given that suspension of disbelief is already pretty flexible in musicals, and I am someone who has always loved musicals and has worked in musical theatre, it is really saying something that this has managed to throw off the suspension of disbelief. I’m painfully aware of the lipsyncing, not because they are bad at it, because they aren’t, but because the vocals are so over-produced that it feels out of sync with the scene. And that sucks, given that so much of the music itself is fantastic. I think “My Once Upon A Time’ is the only song that didn’t make me feel like I’m watching someone lipsync to something that was recorded in a studio. Obviously that’s what you are watching in literally ANY movie musical, but a good one will trick you into thinking they are actually singing what you’re hearing. Even in some of the numbers where that should be easier to do, like in “Do What You Gotta Do”, where even the dialogue sounds prerecorded. It’s especially painful in what are otherwise knock-out numbers. Because ‘Queen of Mean’ is a fucking BANGER. LIKE YES QWEEN YOU TAKE THAT STAFF YOU TAKE YOUR REVENGE YOU GET YOURSELF SOME GOOD HAIR. Also “One Kiss”. Should be great, except that it’s clear that Sophia is lipsyncing.

Hot Take #2: Could Audrey not have kept her ‘evil’ hair? Because those pink to blue curls are SO MUCH BETTER than blonde with washed-out pink and blue streaks. Someone get Dizzy on this girl’s hair STAT. 

Hot Take #3: I have worked in costume design. I have a degree in fashion design. These movies both delight me and test my patience when it comes to the costume design. Everything is either hit or miss, or good in concept but not so great in execution. We continue to see just...too much leather. I mean, it’s okay I guess with the biker outfits, but with everything else, just chill a bit. ALSO, if you’re gonna have Mal rock a truer purple hair with cooler tones, then please stop putting her in warmer magenta and violet outfits. It just looks weird. Also wtf is her outfit in the opening? Way too much leather, and waaaaay too much green splatter. Like find a balance between her colors, please. 

Hot Take #4: Not really a hot take, but Cameron Boyce was probably the most talented out of all of them and I’m really fucking sad to hear about his death. He was a talented kid and too young and honestly probably the best thing about these movies, not gonna lie. I’m so heartbroken for his family and friends. Carlos continues to be a freakin cinnamon roll and he made a necklace for Jane with their goddamn ship name on it and that is the cutest fucking thing. 

Hot Take #5: God I forgot the dog fucking talks. Why does the dog fuckin talk

Hot Take #6: I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: where is Evie’s frickin army of dwarf slave labor or little mice and birds and deer who help her do all this sewing? I sew for a goddamn living. You expect me to believe that one girl with a home sewing machine (what is that, a fucking Singer? Girl should at least have a Viking, a Bernina, or a Juki), no serger, no industrial straight stitch machine (how the fuck is she sewing all that leather without an industrial???) , is somehow responsible for her entire wardrobe, Mal’s entire wardrobe (at least for her numerous public appearances), special things for her guy friends, as well as the formalwear for the entire female population of Auradon Prep. And somehow still has time to like, go to school/have a social life/advocate for the kids of villains? Hell no. It takes me and my business partner working 60+ hour weeks just to get through all the alterations during prom season, but this one self-taught girl with a home machine makes all these clothes all by herself? Sure. There is some magic involved here. Why does this upset me?

Well when people come to your work and expect miracles because they see girls on tv making 30 formal dresses all by themselves and expect you to be able to completely overhaul their prom dress in two hours, then we’ll talk about whether or not I’m allowed to be bitter.

Hot Take #7: Look, you can have Harry flirt with girls all you want, but he is still exuding Big Queer Energy and there is no convincing me he is not at least bi. There is nothing straight about that boy, okay.  This is the hill I will fucking die on.

#8: Gil and Jay are also exuding some super queer energy. Like they go on that world sightseeing trip as friends and come back as boyfriends. I don’t make the rules, I just call the queerness when I see it. Gil is giving me major Soft Gay vibes. 

#9 “put your Vs up in the air” *deep breath* Did...did no one vet this? Did anyone, like, point out that, V can be short for...never mind. Okay.

[medakakurokami]

DOA6 post-weekend binge talk w/ spoils

Finished DOA6's story mode, like 80% through DOA Quest, played a lil over 100 matches online, unlocked maybe 4 costumes. Overall its all mostly good there's just not enough of it? Like the core gameplay, graphics, music are all great and improved a lot I think over DOA5, but all the trimmings are pretty scant so far. The exclusion of lobby mode at launch is already pretty maligned but we at least know we'll get it within the month. The story mode felt pretty rushed and disjointed especially near the end, reflecting the apparent 30 episodes that had to be cut for time, that will hopefully release as DLC later with a hopefully reasonable price.

DOA Quest I really really like, but I think more could have been done with it, and based on what seems like will be timed events in the game and the likelihood of a FTP version releasing I'm guessing DOA Quest might be expanded along with certain events. I'm almost finished with the base quests after only 2 days and its basically the only way to unlock stuff and I've barely unlocked anything yet... I think it would do really well with a procedurally generated quest mode where a new set of 3 are generated randomly every hour similar to the Yokai Realm missions in Nioh.

Because the reward system needs a major overhaul and basically makes Arcade, Survival, and Time Trial modes feel utterly pointless outside of practice, which you could just do in training or online. Like basically you have to obtain a certain number of parts for outfits to unlock them, and you're given those points at random on the completion of an online match or an Arcade/Survival/Time Trial mode and well, look at this

They basically give you a part reward that's like a random number between 1 and 15. This image is from Survival on Easy but I went and did a Master difficulty Arcade mode and ended up with 7... online matches are better and tend to give you 15-30 but its still pretty fucked. In DOA5 I used to take a break from playing and gettin trashed online by going and unlocking a couple outfits in Arcade or Survival and that really wouldn't work here. Starting tonight after maintenance they'll have it to where rewards are multiplied by 10 for the release event. Which I'll probably spend that time just grinding for all the unlockables while I can, and they really oughta just leave it multiplied after that.

Netcode is good. The majority of the matches I played were lag free and my internet is usually shit in general so that's good.

And outside of the it being really scant in nature, I did like most of the story that was there. It actually was sorta DOA5.5, starting from scratch as to who Honoka and Marie and Nyotengu and Even-More-Evil-Raidou were since they were basically DLC characters without much in game context. Marie and Honoka naturally stuck out like sore thumbs but in a pretty amusing way. Like watching Christie escaping via helicopter with an unconscious busty anime schoolgirl under her arm or Bayman walking around with a gothic lolita over his shoulder. Nyotengu's arc sorta went nowhere but as a character she is a hugely welcome addition to the cast and I hope she somehow appears in Nioh 2, and gladly apparently more story for her is the focus of the possible story DLC according to Shimbori and them. Diego and NiCO too. Diego was fun in his final bout with Jann Lee I was like "man that just overloaded with hypermasculinity" and then I was awarded the title "Manly Men" and that really cinched the tone, though a shame that Leifang and Jann Lee still in its holding pattern. And NiCO I really love playing and it was funny to watch them make excuses earlier in the story while she was just working in the lab with Christie as to how a fight needed to break out and so everything anyone said to her just pissed her off. Same with Kokoro! Actually everyone is just fuckin sisters now! That was some great soap opera bullshit! But again felt so skimmed from the lack of episodes. And Frankenstein Raidou was a thing I wasn't really excited for but it coulda been worse in the end. Guess after all that I need to go peruse the encyclopedia.

After all that not much left to do except start grinding ranked and hoping for good updates coming soon. And that's the thing I been seeing a lot of people even DOA fans online saying they just wanna wait on a complete edition release and like maybe that'd be a good idea. I hope the initial release does well, but it is lacking. They announced this last June and are releasing it now so its fair to say this game maybe had a bare single year development in a new third party engine while they also probably have their team working on Dissidia, Musou, Venus Vacation, and Nioh 2 at the same time so yeah, a good chance the trimmings of this game had to be cut down on just to make sure they released the game within a year with the core elements as good as they are. Just gotta hope they put out good updates.

[askthetriokzt]

so whats the reasoning for how the hero costumes look?

When I make designs, I try to keep a balance “What would the actual character pick” and practicality. So sometimes a design will have some major design flaws but it makes sense for the character to go with it. I mean, Present Mic wears leather all year round. There’s a TON of practical issues with that but its Mic, he’s 100% the kind of person who would have his costume be made of leather.

Kodo’s costume was probably the easiest one for me to come up with and went through no changes at all. First try. I don’t normally get that lucky. Meanwhile, Zack went through like 4 different designs before I finally picked one that I liked and even then, it went through a few changes. And finally Tachi, his costume went through a MAJOR overhaul, basically everything changing from the initial concept, with only really one part of it staying the same. And honestly I might still change things in the future, there can always be room for improvement after all.

Now Kodo’s costume is pretty simple and straight forward. Because Kodo is part of the Support Class, she actually made the costume herself. More so just for practice. But thats also why it just looks almost like normal clothes, and for Kodo, everything has a use. Nothing is ‘just for looks’. From the top down.First off, the goggles. Now, Kodo is immune to her own pollen but the goggles are to help prevent any from getting into her eyes since that would still hurt. That and it never hurts to have eye protection.Next up, the coat. The coat itself probably has the most uses and really makes the entire costume. Kodo’s biggest weakness is actually the cold, so the coat is made of some pretty thick material to help keep her warm (though she also has a lighter version for the summer), it also adds some decent durability to it. The coat is also made of some fire-resistant material but its far from fireproof. The pink fluff is actually petals and they add some color to the design, softness, and also emit a faint but soothing scent to help keep Kodo calm as well as anyone she might rescue. She is supposed to be a hero after all. And finally, the coat is lined with plenty of pockets for Kodo to store up on her Blast and Wisteria Seeds, as well as anything else she might bring with her.Despite already having ample of inner pockets, she still has a belt added to the outfit. Can never have enough compartments.Finally, Kodo actually created a pair of vines that attach to the belt at her waist. The vines were made to act just like her own though she hasn’t gotten to that point yet. While she does have control over them, they aren’t as reactive as her own vines, so the reaction speeds are much slower and the movements tend to be a little more stilled or stiff but they work well enough for now.

Zack’s costume has far less to it, mainly because he just prefers less. Less is more. Kodo does try to convince Zack to add something, like armor, something for his face or eyes, really anything, but Zack is more than content with how his costume is.First off, his hair is actually braided so its easier to keep out of his face. Its one thing if he’s just walking around or relaxing, but hero work is fast paced, high energy, always moving, so he cant have his hair getting in the way. That and he likes how it looks. Just adds to the ‘blowing in the wind’ look.Just like Kodo, the coat(?) is the main feature here. Its large, can cover most of his body, adds more color to the look, but the most important feature and really the main reason why Zack wears it (besides looking cool) is because its water repellant. Water just rolls right off of it. With a fire quirk, water is a HUGE weakness and pain, so having it just roll right off of it is a big plus.The kiseru is mostly for show as well, though it does serve a purpose. Zack can actually form smoke bubbles with it and can be used as a blunt weapon for emergencies.As for the rest of his outfit, for show, just to complete the look and go with the theme. Thats really it for Zack. He already has what he needs from a costume, the rest can just look good so long as it doesnt actively get in the way or hinder him.

Finally, Tachi. While Kodo is focused more on ‘use’ and ‘practicality’ and Zack is geared towards ‘looks’, Tachi is somewhere in the middle. He wants his costume to look good but to also serve a purpose and to aid not just him but those he will save.Starting with the Rat Mask. While his family has uh… some issues, he still wants to show some pride for his heritage, including his dad, so thats why the mask is rat shaped. Tachi also knows that if he does end up making it, commercialism is just bound to happen, so he might as well just make it easier. The kids will see a cute version of it, while the villains will face his version, striking fear in them. Or at least thats what Tachi says. Where the eyes are, are actually covered in red one-way glass. He can see out but they cant see in. Mainly because he is blind in one eye and he doesnt want that to be none right away.The vest has his family crest on it and is also made of pretty thick and strong material, meant to take quick a lot of hits and last a long time. His arms are bare though because of his quirk. Not the best idea but covering his arms would be pointless, just get in the way of his quirk in the long run.The gloves do help protect his hands and keep his fingers aligned properly when punching. As for why they’re fingerless, they just feel better that way. Tachi never really liked the feel of normal gloves, just felt too constrictive for him.The rest of his costume acts the same as the vest, thick heavy material that shouldn’t be easy to cut or tear.

When I look at all three of their costumes together, they don’t really go with each other at all and honestly, thats what I was going for anyway. They might be a team, but they are all different in many ways. Personality, likes and dislikes, roles, strengths and weaknesses, ect. And while their costumes are far from perfect, I do think that each one fits them rather nicely and says quite a lot about them.