#i actually had a bit 2 say about his arc and how i actually rly like his punishment for how it relates his suffering

[lemongogo]

[liquidstar]

SEASON 3 TRAILER DROPPED HERES MY THOUGHTS (LN spoilers)

BROTHER AND SISTER OF ALL TIME THEYRE SO CUTE <3 love seeing how their relationship has progressed from beako literally throwing him out a window for stuff like this to her happily playing along its so so so so so cute. genuinely just one of the cutest and sweetest dynamics in the series

hi ram roswaal and fred :) this is probably all we're going to really see of you guys this arc lol

JOSHUA REAL!!!!! but not for long (also otto in the bg foreshadowing all the drinking hes about to do this arc. hes so stressed. poor emilia is trying her best)

julius looks so babyfaced here? they really emphasized his long eyelashes just like subaru has been on about every time he mentions him. they better include the scene where he checks him out, like, if they dont animate subaru looking dead at this mans ass im going to riot

i LOVE this shot of ana. you can really tell shes up to some corrupt capitalist bullshit as we speak. love her for that. wish i had this pic when i made that one money game anastasia video

the red dress actually does look really good on crusch like it compliments the green hair really well but also the crusch we know would not walk around in such a thing so its like. damn looks like the "memories are an important part of identity" story thinks memories are an important part of identity. who knew.

ALSO LOVE FELTS NEW LOOK SO MUCH! the only complaint is i felt (felt lol) like the red brought out her eyes more but the blue also looks cool. three primary colors all being used looks nice too

whatever who cares about all that THE CUNT!!!!!!! THE CUNT IS HERE!!! I CANNOT WAIT FOR ALL THE DRAMA SHE CAUSES TO BE ANIMATED FOR REAL

no fucking way... did they actually...

THEY DID! THEY CENSORED THAT HORRIBLE FUCKING DESIGN OH MY GOD. SHES WEARING SHORTS AND JUST A CROPPED SHIRT. AND CHAPS I GUESS? BUT ALSO A LITTLE SKIRT CAPE SO NO ASS SHOTS... THIS WILL MAKE WATCHING THE SEASON SO MUCH MORE TOLERABLE. i mean not perfect but STILL.

photos taken seconds before disaster lmfao. i still love how chin thinks subaru is a freak and weirdo for being so buddy buddy with him after he and his buddies mugged him. twice. (even more times from subarus perspective. hell he stabbed subaru once) genuinely cant wait to see more of this dynamic its so stupid.

THE FUCKING CUNT!!!!!! also the apples lol

oh you poor thing. you have no idea what next level family drama bullshit awaits. good luck. get ready to kill grandma AGIAN lol

:'( emilia still misses her terrible cat dad and its kinda sad when you know were not getting a resolution on that here either. they both look so sad :(

i cannot wait for garf mommy issues round fucking 2.

THIS CRAZY BITCH!!! I CANNOT WAIT TO SEE THIS CRAZY BITCH ANIMATED. I CANT WAIT TO SEE HOW THEYRE PORTRAY HER MANNERISMS. ESP W HOW WILD PETELGEUSE WAS ANIMATED IN S1. REAL LOONY TOONS BULLSHIT. AND HER POWERS ARE ALSO SOOOOOO MUCH COOLER I CANT WAIT

NO MORE DRESSES FOR CRUSCH YAY

he fucking bit it. yeah i guess thats what dogs do tho.

YOU. DIVORCE MAN. KILL YOURSELF. SLASH SERIOUS.

the empathy powers will have a glowing eye effect. very cool but i hope they dont show it too much in the first scene bc like in the LN i think its cooler if you dont know why everything is so... Wrong.

i dont rly have anything to say i just think ferris looks cool covered in blood. imagine being healed here like doctor catgirl will see you now

emilia be nice. that crazy bitch might be your mom. just like how the previous crazy bitch was in fact your dad.

THEY CHANGED UP CAPELLA'S DESIGN TOO honestly tho her being sexualized makes sense w a lot of the themes (the way its intentionally meant to be perverse and gross in a way explicitly stated) so i didnt mind as much and she still IS here but. this is still an improvement imo just a better outfit looks cooler. bug.

NAUR I DONT WANNA WAIT... OCTOBER.... AUGH

[atomizingcat]

season1act3 criticism - warning, its rly long

DISCLAIMER: season1 of arcane is a masterpiece imo!! pls dont take this as me bashing it or smth.

alright so when i originally watched act3 of season 1, i definitely had some negative thoughts about it, but i was overall hopeful that season 2 would fix some of the things that were a bit rushed/weird about act3. suffice to say that didnt happen🤡. i dont want anyone reading this to think i want to damper your enjoyment of the show - thats not my goal at all. if you feel like reading this criticism will be shitty for you, definitely dont read it:)))) i only want to discuss the show and lay out my thoughts. also while i obviously think season2 is worse written than this act, i feel like a lot of people have more adequately criticized than i can.

overall act3 is amazing, but there are about 4 major areas where i felt like the writing was a bit confused in its own goals:

episode 7 blocking

the philosophical/thematical discussions for viktors, jayces and mels characters + contrivances in their plot

Vi

Jinx (this is less criticism and more just me wishing it was a bit different because of how it was set up to be)

Episode 7 blocking

there is so much to say about episode 7, mostly positives - political discussions from silco+the chembarons, ekko+caitlyn; ekkos and vis scenes together<33; jinxs paranoid scenes. and obviously in retrospect caitlyns 'cycle of violence' speech isnt meant to be an attempt to try and inspire change, that fails because of her reliance and trust in the system, a system that only really fails zaunites and that she wants to return the hex gem to, but its supposed to be an actual thematic conclusion to her arc(s2, when i get you s2..). but when just watching the episode itself, its still an interesting speech for her character to make so i wont dissect that rn.

the issue i have here is the blocking and plot aspects of the bridge scene. now you can say that its a show, not everything needs to make sense. but this is an incredibly important scene and arcane in season1 pays a great amount of attention to detail to how characters interact with their surroundings.

shortened version of the plot: jinx feels paranoid and silco kept the truth from her, so she confronts him. he successfully brings her back on his side and in order for her to have something to do, something to distract her from her pain and to make her feel useful, he asks for the weapon to be made. jinx HASNT told him the hex gem was taken from her - so shes affected by his words, and by the facial animation we can tell she WANTS to make this weapon for him, but feels guilty/inadequate (?? unsure) about losing the hex gem. so she logically concludes that if caitlyn has the hexgem, she will take it to piltover, sets up her trap at a place that caitlyn HAS to cross, and waits. Vi and caitlyn are kidnapped. Vi finds out its ekko; they have their argument, but by getting out of the handcuffs and deciding to HUG ekko, not fight him, they basically reconcile and tension between them doesnt return until caitlyn starts it. short note on vi for later: its HERE that the powderVSjinx thematic narrative starts; ekko is the one to introduce her to this concept (i will talk more about this later). the firelight tree is a place of hope, and while ekko recognizes that piltover is to blame for their situation, silco is the one who presents an immediate threat at this moment. caitlyn gets untied; they discuss things. caitlyn thinks they should return the hexgem, ekko thinks they should keep it to take down silco. instead of agreeing with caitlyn about the cycle-of-violence speech, he should have pointed out that through this act of goodwill, maybe they can start negotiations between ZnP. but nvm thats for someone stronger than me LMAO. they head towards the bridge to cross it and bring the hexgem over. Vi DOESNT join them, says she wants to return for her sister, starts to walk away. jinx (from her place above, nearer to the end of the bridge) sees this. caitlyn and ekko walk all the way to the end of the bridge, where marcus is waiting. marcus legit shoots ekko (which is its own issue), and caitlyn still doesnt realize that marcus is corrupt and obviously has his own agenda at that moment. it was always weird to me that they didnt have a convo between these two - caitlyn breaks the rules, but follows the truth; marcus is the rule maker, the sheriff, but instead for his own selfish goals and biases towards zaunites created his own hell in which he must be corrupt. one arrests vi, the other frees her. in a way you could say that marcus arresting vi is the reason for his downfall -> caitlyn frees her -> vi shows up in jinxs life again -> bridge attack. anyways im getting ahead of myself. they should have had caitlyn realize marcus is corrupt and berate him/point it out/ANYTHING. vi, who somehow HASNT made it off the bridge yet (even though she was at the other end of the bridge and a while ago), hears the gunshot and starts running. then jinx triggers the bomb attack. vi DOESNT make it to the end of the bridge BEFORE the bomb attack - she isnt hurt in any way. jinx starts walking towards the carnage, and kills any enforcer showing signs of life, walks up to where ekkos body is, picks up the hexgem. she sees vi and caitlyn (from far away mind you) and shoots at them. ekko shows up from behind, takes back the hexgem, disarms pow-pow, gives the gem to caitlyn and vi to give to piltover. then the incredible fight sequence happens (apparently around the middle of the bridge). Vi hears the final bomb go off and looks back in pure fear (she most likely assumes theyre dead? or injured). sorry for the long plot recap, i just think its important LOL.

the most common criticism is - how does jinx know which bridge to wait on? and lets be real, this can go even further - its just coincidence that caitlyn and ekko choose the bridge that marcus is on? this is so easy to fix, im not sure why it wasnt. in episode1 we see that the bridges can be pulled up, and that there are more than one (ZnP are huge, they definitely need more than one bridge, so we cant argue that that specific bridge is the only one). if piltover is doing a blockade, you would think that the easiest way to enforce this is to bring up the bridges, and keep one down (some people still need to get across) while heavily monitoring it. but in the background we can see the other bridges are NOT lifted up. i feel like this would have been interesting worldbuilding and yet another symbolic layer of piltovers control over the two cities - THEY decide when to life up the bridges; PILTOVER can control who gets across and when. in a way piltover is getting more and more afraid of zaun 'burning the bridges' between them, escalating the tension.

now i already pointed this out in the plot recap - HOW is Vi still close enough to hear the gunshot? how is she still on the freaking bridge in the first place? was she walking at a snails pace? again this is so easily fixable and the scene could have been even more layered - we watched another heavily important scene with vi on the bridge with vander all the way in episode2. imagine if before caitlyn and ekko walk ALL the way to the other end of the bridge, vi took a moment to look at the mural that she and vander visited. even if its just her stopping to look at it for just a second, this would both explain plot-wise how shes close enough to hear the gunshot, and it would help set up why she tries to work with the piltover council in ep8 - her father, who she was heavily inspired by, worked WITH an enforcer.

okay i have no issues with vi running on the bridge, and making it to the other end AFTER jinxs firelight bomb attack. jinx most likely saw Vi running back, and immediately set the attack in motion to blow up before vi gets there, as to not injure her sister.

so this to me is the most obvious handwaving aspect of the plot here - how does jinx kill enforcers when there were no enforcers behind caitlyn and ekko? did they run around during the attack? if so how arent there any other survivors that run in the other direction, away from the bombs and then out of jinxs line of sight? how do caitlyn and ekko survive? obviously on one hand they are main characters so they need to survive for plot+thematic reasons. yet the fact that we arent shown/allowed to understand from a logical standpoint why theyre alive cheapens the overall tension of the scene. its something thats always bugged me, especially since they use the scene of jinx shooting (and looking away while shooting) an injured enforcer as a reason why she gets there a little bit after Vi.

So lets consider this - ekko gets shot, falls down behind where he was standing+where caitlyn was standing. that means that hes got to be incredibly close to where caitlyn is lying injured (we can tell she doesnt move much because of where the huge light is in relation to her). So when Jinx is slowly making her way to caitlyns end of the bridge, why doesnt she at all take notice of ekko when she takes the hexgem? I can believe that he would 'play dead', esp after the firelight bomb attack. but that means that she say him, didnt think anything at all, then took the hexgem bag. NO acknowledgement of him (i dont mean 'she needs to be sad', but i feel like jinx would at least make a 'dont have to think about this guy attacking me anymore' kinda face). So IF thats what happens (ekko plays dead) how does ekko go from behind jinx to behind caitlyn and vi?

the other possibility is that ekko WASNT playing dead - he already made it BEHIND caitlyn and Vi, waiting for them to join him towards piltover, then attacks jinx when she fires pow-pow at them. but then.. why does he leave the hexgem bag where jinx could obviously easily attain it? logically speaking none of it really makes any sense, so when ekko shows up from inbetween caitlyn and vi, its just a cool-looking moment, not a moment where his character shines, bcs we dont understand what hes done to get to that place.

this will be explored more in another post, but why doesnt vi say literally fucking anything? genuinely to me this is just so that the 'plot' can happen, even though if she DID say something, jinx still would have a 'shoot them all' moment with pow-pow, thus the plot still would happen. instead of the audience thinking 'noo their circumstances and their inability to understand each other is stopping them from truly reuniting', its more like 'why the hell is vi just staring.' she could say literally anything 'i WAS coming back for her; im not leaving again etc' and YES we understand shes desperate, so shes just saying these things, BUT it would make more sense that just 👁👁.

After ekko shows up, gets rid of pow-pow, and returns to caitlyn and vi to tell them to leave with the hex gem (that he doesnt even check btw; but to me this isnt a big issue, hes obviously busy thinking about other things) why doesnt jinx just shoot at them? what is stopping her? the hexgem is hard to destroy, she would know this from studying it in act2, so if shes now alright with shooting at vi, and obviously wants to kill caitlyn and doesnt mind killing ekko, why doesnt she just throw a bomb at them? or use zapper? her goal here is to get back the hexgem, so she can finish the weapon. she has a gun. why doesnt she use it? instead she just waits around until ekko starts the next fight. again this could so easily be fixed - have her fall after ekko gets rid of pow-pow or smth and have her slowly get back up in time for ekko to start the music video fight.

anyways the other area that i feel like is rly rly weak would be the overall arcs of mel, viktor and jayce - theyre just rly wishy washy. its still rly good, but i feel like theyre not as thought thru as the act2 arcs. however i DONT think im good enough at analyzing things to really tackle this. maybe i will share some videos/posts that i thought did a good job looking at these characters in act3..

the vi and jinx posts i will make later on - for them i want to actually do a good job analyzing their arcs.

Hopefully this post isnt utter garbage and completely unreadable... feel free to discuss ur own opinions in the replies etc!! <3333

[magicalgirlsirin]

hi rly enjoyed ur post on elysian realm! ik ur a new fan (i am too) but i heard that before retcon, elysia was a lot more morally gray. would you happen to know how exactly?? im rly curious bc i think it would be a severe improvement obviously. we deserve complex women who do wrongs

So when I say retcon in relation to the elyrealm arc it's less so "things they changed because of the story evolving and wanting to expand previously established events" and more "things they straight up forgot about in service of making Elysia a herrscher". It's not like hi3 is a stranger to retcons though?

For example, Durandal being the "original" Kiana is a retcon. The fact that our Kiana was a clone remained the same, but it's clear from older story stuff (iirc it's Everlasting Memory/Theresa's chronicle set?; second eruption manga doesn't focus on the Kiana part) that Durandal wasn't originally there. Otto refers to Kiana as K-423, and that Theresa needs to retrieve her, which implies that Theresa knows it's not Siegfried and Cecilia's kid, but her distress remains the same. The later game retcon by Thus Spoke Apocalypse is that OG!Kiana and Siegfried were going to go retrieve K-423, but OG!Kiana ended up injured and so Siegfried only left with K-423. And if you're confused then so am I because the details don't really super line up with the presentation, but it's like, fine, because at the end of the day the current writing intention and trajectory is for Durandal and Kiana to be sisters, and to both be Siegfried's daughters.

Anyways, for Elysia, a lot of her retcons occur in a very rapid pace from the first realm chapter set to Elysium Everlasting. Like I mentioned in my last post, the herrscher reveal is nonsense just going off of basic information like the fact she received MANTIS surgery like all the other Flame Chasers. However, there are other plot threads that are completely dropped for the sake of making Elysia a very special good girl who you should love because she's so nice and never did anything bad.

[About Betrayal 1 - Chapter 2]

[About Betrayal 2 - Chapter 2]

Elysia the traitor plot is something I was, well not hopeful for (a friend had already warned me that the game wouldn't do anything interesting with it] but I still ended up mulling it over a lot because it was such an interesting hinge piece for her initial presentation.

What stands out to me is the phrasing. Kevin says she never endangered humanity even if she was a traitor. Kevin says that Elysia made a decision. This implies agency, like Elysia was actively choosing to do something dangerous for the sake of the Flame Chasers. However, if Elysia was a herrscher from the beginning, then none of this makes sense. She doesn't choose to be a herrscher if she was one from the beginning, so why even make it seem like her betrayal was her choice at all?

[Traitor - Chapter 1]

It doesn't stop there though. Mobius' active disdain implies that whatever choice Elysia made, it was enough to make Mobius of all people consider her a lost cause. Mobius, who body mods and injects honkai energy into anyone with a pulse (hyperbole) to try and make humanity last just the slightest bit longer.

[Traitor - Chapter 1]

Mobius wants us to doubt Elysia's intentions. If you go through all their shared information, you'll find that the worst Elysia really does is just... coerce Mobi to wear pink dresses, and while that is obnoxious, it wouldn't warrant utter contempt for Elysia as a person.

There's actually a lot of stray text that implies there's something wrong about Elysia's existence, which I guess in generous terms could be interpreted as setup for the herrscher reveal? But it just feels like it's just there to add to the mystery that won't go anywhere.

[The Blind Spot - Recollection]

This right here nags at me. Deeply so. Elysia isn't so much a character as much as she is just a concept, the idea of a story that could be told. Not even in the canon-compliant weird endgame hook meta-textual breakout in Transcending Finality about the power of stories... Although, there's a way to introduce it here and tie it to Elysia to give some semblance of connectivity.

I went this long without actually giving my thoughts on how to make Elysia's writing good though. Disclaimer for clarity sake I know not everyone will agree with the changes I want to make and I'm also not claiming to be a more skilled writer than anyone in the hi3 team, they're all people with enough talent to be employed by the company.

That out of the way.

This isn't so much about making Elysia morally grey as much as it is about giving her an emotional core, because right now she's pretty hollow. Rather than a pristine girl who never did anything wrong, I'd rather cast her as a romantic, tragic heroine who would move heaven and fate just to seem noble.

Elysia was born human. Maybe she loved stories, and how they transported her to far off places, far far far away from the tiny town she was growing up in. When she was old enough, she traveled the world. Honkai descends. Because she was a globe trotter she ended up connected to many people, and was given the chance to join the MOTH organization. She gets MANTIS surgery. As the number of soon-to-be Flame Chasers grow, discussion begins about if the strength of the soldiers is enough.

'Maybe, if I had power comparable to a herrscher, we could fight with less casualties.'

She doesn't say this out loud, of course. It's a dangerous thought, a line that shouldn't be crossed. But she's curious. She breaks into Mobius' lab [Miss Pink Spy - Pristine Memory] to find the information she wants. Mobius figures out her intentions and warns Elysia off. It's not even in consideration, so keep whatever plan you have in mind off the table before you do something irreversible.

Mobius thought that Elysia gave up on the plan after the seventh erruption. The haunted look behind Kevin's eyes, the sadness creasing Elysia's face, all of it makes it seem like a simple consideration forgotten by the sands of time.

Elysia doesn't have a discipline. She told Dr. Mei it wasn't needed since her combat performance was well above standard margins anyways. (She is on par with Kevin in strength, after all.) At least, we all thought she didn't. A deal is made with Aponia.

Aponia, Aponia, apostle of fate, I offer you my 'humanity' to become a 'story'.

Elysia cannot receive any more disciplines. The target has to be "human". Elysia as a story, unchanging, pristine, capable of remaining as she is without blemish, can reach out and become a herrscher while remaining herself. She's desperate. She wants to help. She reaches into the deep, the start of the universe, and gathers the power. She names it Origin, since it's something she found at the source.

She's a herrscher.

Herrschers are an enemy of humanity.

Kevin runs her through with Shamash.

Elysia is still herself though, talking like she would as usual.

-Oh Kevin, I wanted to know if your tears would freeze, but I was hoping it wouldn't be like this. They're so warm, though. Thank you for crying for me.

-I see no herrscher here, just... the flame chaser, bearing the signet of ego.

The Elysian Realm keeps a secret. Aponia keeps it, the fact that Elysia gave up her humanity. The final banquet? A polite way to refer to Elysia's own demise.

It's sad, isn't it? That strength she wanted to give fell right through her fingers. Her own undoing, the desperate plan of a foolish girl who wanted to be a hero, but only ending up as a villain to oppose. It's so much more meaningful, then, that Elysia's gift, the power of sapience, is kept on to the next cycle of humanity. Held again, the power of ego, of humans, to someone with a kind heart to move beyond the past she's trapped in. Thank you, Raiden Mei, for carrying on the ideals of the thirteen trailblazers, the moths who chase the flame.

so anyways yeah i think elysia couldve been interesting whos to say

[t-w-i-l-l-e-r]

pondering jeremy n rich friendship dynamic post-canon n y’all that shit is craaaaaaaaazzzzzzzzy. Cause I highly highly highly doubt rich just completely dropped all of his self destructive tendencies from during/before canon n I think they would defo show up BIG TIME in his relationship w/ Jeremy. Like, they have the whole squip thing in common right? That’s what they bond over at first!!! same trauma, Spider-Man pointing meme, etc etc. (that plus they were literally shoved into the same hospital room for however long. nothing brings two lost souls together like watching the nurses swap out each others bedpans. shudders in disgust <3). But the thing is like. Rich did that. He not only literally encouraged (n lowkey threatened) Jeremy to buy/take the squip, he also had a direct hand in building the insecurities that made Jeremy interested in a squip at all. Now, as an audience we can generally recognize Rich as a Very Vulnerable And Manipulated Child but if rich had that kind of self-awareness the plot of be more chill would be veeeeeery different so im gonna go out on a limb n say Rich feels megazord guilty for that. And that’s where the self destruction comes in </3. Rich keeps trying to goad Jeremy into snapping at him or being angry in the hopes of getting Jeremy to “finally stand up for himself” but rly he just wants Jeremy to be mad at him bc Rich is mad at himself n feels like he deserves it. I am a VERY firm supporter of Jeremy Heere Snarky Arc post-canon (bc I feel like we see a lot of Jerry Sass in bmc but it’s limited to either just in his head or (affectionately) to Michael), n I think Rich would absolutely play a role in Jeremy developing that side of himself. BUT. Not necessarily in the way rich wants. Bc again, same trauma!!!! Jeremy recognizes that rich understands him now in a way that nobody else rly does. even the ppl squipped @ the play don’t rly understand what that thing does 2 a person after a while, and jeremy rly needs rich after everything, more than either of them realize. He’s not willing to just reject rich out of hand like rich subconsciously wants him to so you get this dynamic that’s just like:

Rich: aw, you mad? You upset lil bitch boy? Whatcha gonna do about it huh???? Hit me???? Do it i dare you!! Fucking hit me!!!!!

Jeremy: rich it is 9 in the morning. 

And I think rich would very quickly learn that ~friendly ribbing~ n stuff is a slippery slope with Jeremy. On one hand, if he teases Jerry n he rolls his eyes n snarks right back, HELL YEAH!!!! Revenge Of The Nerd!!!! Mission accomplished!!!!!!! Rich sees a lot of himself in Jeremy n I think he would be very genuinely proud of him for not just taking shit like he used to (and rich might also think jeremy is actually clever n funny n like that jeremy feels comfortable around him n bond bond relationship sssssshhhhhhhhhh). On the other hand, sometimes rich hits a little too close to home n Jeremy goes quiet. He gives a curt response, or just doesn’t say anything at all. That shit drives rich crazy. Rich says smth shitty about Michael or Christine or smth n Jeremy doesn’t talk to him for a week n by the end Rich is pulling his hair out n just word-vomits “IM SORRY IM A DICK PLZ CAN WE GO BACK TO PLAYING CALL OF DUTY TOGETHER” 

And the thing that fucks me up the most is that. Jeremy is afraid of Rich. Not as much as he was before (I’d imagine watching Rich bitch n moan every time he had to get his bandages changed kinda sanded down the edges a lil bit) but he can’t just forget all that bullying, even if he wants to. For rich, the worst moments r when he goes too far with trying to get Jeremy to b aggressive n instead he just goes pale. His mouth draws into a thin line n he gets fidgety but not the loose stimming of when he’s relaxed or deep in thought, sharp and tight motions like he doesn’t want to be spotted. And he won’t meet Rich’s eye. GIRL!!!!! How does rich even begin to process that emotional LABYRINTH bc like, he feels shitty bc he spent so long trying to fix his self hatred by being a dick 2 Jeremy but now he realizes being a dick is actually… dickish. And unpleasant. And so now he has more self hatred about it. Oops. And then Jeremy’s having a shit time bc PANIC MODE SCARY LOUD but then I think he subconsciously realizes rich feels bad so he feels bad for making Rich feel bad and ugh. Ugh. Yikes. 

But then the thing is,,, Rich can make a joke. Maybe reference their shared SQUIPerience—SQUIP experience, obvi—emphasize the connection between them (rich has gotten rly good at managing potentially dicey social situations. You’ll never guess where he got that skill from). And Jeremy will laugh, a little forced at first but rich keeps going until he’s curled up on the ground, cracking up like he’s about to piss himself. And Rich feels a little bit like he dodged a bullet but a little bit like he gained a friend so? If u add it all together it basically cancels out, he thinks. So they keep talking and hanging out and playing fuckin Call of Duty together and it’s not an apology, not really but… it’s a start, y’know? 

N that’s what gets me about Rich n Jeremy post-canon </3. They both need each other, and they both know it. They understand each other in a way that nobody else in their immediate circle does which is important bc we know how much Jeremy struggles talking 2 new ppl and post-fire Rich is too busy putting the burnt up pieces of his life together to reach out to other SQUIPtims. Jeremy is comfortable around rich in a way that he is with nobody else in the world because he gets it, and Rich feels the same way whether he likes it or not. But Jeremy is also so deathly terrified that it’s all gonna be an elaborate bit, that Rich is unfixable and will always treat him like human garbage or worse Jeremy is unfixable and will always b treated like human garbage. And Rich in turn is afraid of Jeremy’s fear, what it means about himself that he could ruin someone’s life so thoroughly. But then he like? Wants to get Wendy’s with him. So it’s like. Whatever. 

FUCK! 

[mysteryman-17]

* B1RD-BR4IN 3000 - ATK 10 DEF 5 * One of the Conductor's greatest props ever. * Or so he says.

Time’s End is an AHIT/Undertale crossover AU of sorts, taking place in the aftermath of a timeline where you lose the final boss fight against Mustache Girl. You can find the write-up here! In addition, you can find the write-ups for the Neutral Endings and TimeWarp Route Requirements on Google Drive! The logo for Time's End was designed by @bittybattybunny. She's an incredible artist, be sure to check out their work here on Tumblr and over on Twitter!! This track was commissioned from my boi Wisteria Bird Studios. Be sure to check out his work too!

Motifs:

Battle of Award 42

Train Rush

original

You can listen to this track in high quality on the AU’s SoundCloud here, and in their separate "in-game" loops on Google Drive! The rest of the description is underneath the Read More.

The Conductor fills Mettaton's shoes in this world. He may be the sole greatest influencer in the bird entertainment now (thanks to him ousting Grooves during the initial "Time's End" fiasco) but… he's incredibly bored and agitated. There are no obstacles in his path to success, and only now does he realize how much he despises it -- though he'll be damned if he EVER admits to missing DJ Peck Neck for now at least. His kinder side -- although still faintly there -- has become a LOT harder for his crew to see over time, especially Thomas the Inventor, who receives the brunt of Conductor's unchecked cockiness and fury nowadays. Bow Kid's arrival in the Mafia Flows makes Conductor immediately pounce on the opportunity for something CLOSE to a rival in his life again. For the "dungeon" scene in this AU: the Conductor had a mech built from and disguised within the remnants of his first ever train (which derailed and was damaged beyond repair,) and after some reminiscing, he ambushes Bow Kid and SMASHES the old passenger car. The battle starts from here. …Unbeknownst to Conductor, Tom has his own ideas, so the mech has a lot of faults that Bow Kid is able to exploit.

Ye ik it's still not funni musriel his theme real but I was low-key getting a bit tired of putting so many "heavy" tracks one after another on the account. So here's the song that plays when you fight a scottish bird's mecha built from a goddamn steam train. This is yet another one of the ideas in this AU where I had no ideas initially, then wound up shitposting my way into coming up with something needlessly-but-also-majorly awesome. Except this one actually winds up tying a bit into the "arc" I settled on for this part of the story! (A large string of these sorts of ideas also happen to be in the "Hotland" portion of this AU, come to think of it. Sexy robot rectangles and weeaboo lizards overcomplicate things ig lmaooooooo) The track is very much inspired from Digga-Leg's Theme from Super Mario Galaxy 2; the Super Mario RPG flavor was all Kristian's idea, and he did a fantastic job on this piece. Was fantastic working with him, as always. Hope you guys enjoy! :) (P.S. uhhhh don't worry i have an idea for the "Oh! One True Love" replacement too, i just honestly don't give enough of a fuck to wait to finish that one before i post this one. out-of-order posting for the win baybeeeeeeeeee!) (P.P.S. ik i didn't post the updated track 71 here on tumblr after the soundcloud post last month, part of me honestly doesn't rly feel like it but i'll maybe see about doing it when i can force myself lmaooooooo)

[affinitystoryblog]

so these questions were initially an ask but i accidentally published the ask before i was done answering. luckily i had copied what i had written before i deleted the incomplete answer, but here is the answers! i do not remember what the last one was, so unfortunately i can only give u these ones.

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

break: What would cause your OC to break down completely? What do they look like when that happens? Has anyone ever seen them at their lowest?

Sinie

SO ACTUALLY there is a major story event that takes place late book 1 that changes sinie's character for a while. book 2 sinie is not going to be the same as book 1 sinie....i cant say what the event is because i think its too much of a spoiler. but sinie fuckin loses it. goes dark. corrupted by her own emotions. itll be the lowest anyone has ever seen sinie. the event, and her actions resulting from how it affects her, will change her forever.

Csilla

this one is a little harder for me to answer, because i havent thought of something like this for csilla like i have for sinie. csilla is...a little stronger than sinie tbh. she can handle darker emotions easier, given that she's been an outcast and lonely most of her life. she isnt sheltered necessarily, just kept on a tight leash. she feels her mother doesn't love her, she adores her father but he's often times too busy to make any actual time for her so he overcompensates by spoiling her in any way he can, and her and her brother have an estranged resentment for each other.

the one that really brings out the best in her is everett. sure, everett is kinda just doing as programmed and trying to woo csilla, but damn does she fall for it. she's a hopeless romantic, and everett is everything she could've ever wanted in someone. he makes her laugh, hes attractive, he gives her attention, comforts her, they have a lot of similar interests, he is always taking her out to do new things she never dreamed of doing trapped by the shackles of her parents expectations. he makes her feel free. so tbh, i actually think a perfect scenario for this would be everett's betrayal. (idc about spoiling this since i mean itll be obvious its gonna come out once i start the arc) i mean, idk if i would rly call it much of a betrayal, more of a reveal that he was a spy but lbr, he's gonna continue doing what mommy (agitha) says until his heart finally tells him to do whats right. (i have a feeling that everett will be on their side before agitha, but i havent fully figured it out yet...) so there'd be a bit of time where everett's heart is in limbo and csilla would be sitting in her room rotting away bella twilight style until it was all resolved.

guilt: What is your OC guilty about? How do they handle their guilt? Do they try to avoid guilt, or do they accept it?

Sinie

again, the big story event that sinie goes through at the end of book 1 will cover all of this. she's definitely gonna marinate in her negative emotions for a while, coping very very badly. she cuts her hair off. not a spoiler u guys have seen short haired sinie tons of times if ur familiar with this blog. i just decided tho...i think i want her to go full throttle and shave it all off. i think she'd eat.

Csilla

see, i love asks like this because i dont normally think of stuff like this for csilla like i do sinie because im used to sinie being the protagonist like she was in beta affinity, but i need to treat csilla with that same respect cause she's equally the protagonist. theyre both the main character because u cant have this story without one or the other. and this stuff makes me think for csilla.

so anyway, i dont know how to answer this question off the top of my head, SO lets psychoanalyze csilla!

she's shy and introverted, but she's also still a nerd; she likes art and music, dance, videogames even though she doesnt play much herself, anime and cartoons (sinie does end up getting her into "kiri kyu-kyu-cute!!") but she also kind of doesnt know how to have friends. she was outcasted for being the weird witchy kid growing up in a bougie all girls private school, and we ALL know how hardcore middle school girls bully. i havent fully thought of how all of csilla's history with bullying went, but it definitely affected her to grow up alone and isolated.

she probably would feel guilty for liking witchcraft and being interested in magic, it being ingrained in her head that its weird and creepy and dangerous. and running with that, she would probably feel like an absolute freak for being a magical girl. ive kind of already depicted csilla calling magic freaky and she is shown to be scared of it.

(shown in chapter 1)

(and then a couple times in chapter 2)

csilla is the one who insists they keep their magical identities a secret, partly because i personally dont want too much of the world suddenly being exposed to magic rn, (hence miko, who takes them to a place they can be destructive) but also because csilla is embarrassed. notice how she calls it "wacky". she does admit it was awesome, but thats really mostly sinie's influence. csilla does still love wacky things, she was just abused into feeling guilt about liking these things. she can be more free with sinie who is OPENLY expressive about her love for magic and their newfound powers.

so i definitely think csilla should go through an identity crisis of some sort, battling her feelings of feeling like a total freak and then feeling like she has a purpose. csilla is a little more logical when it comes to magic, its not supposed to be real. no one would believe them anyway and she's terrified of being considered the freak in a place where she can start over.

i think playing with this idea early on is better, so ill go through and edit some chapters and then keep the theme in mind for future chapters for consistency :)

oc ask meme

[llycaons]

reread ch 44 - 46: well at least we're getting some priest character introspection. it's not that this arc is even bad, but being sandwiched between two incredible arcs didn't do it many favors by comparison. also....the high school shit does weigh on me I shan't lie

okay so they're only naked for their rituals. charlotte just likes running around in the nude for some reason. #respect

omg cyril and erskine! this was the first panel I was like 'hm I think they're gay' based on how they shared a broom and erskine was so affectionate. but I didn't want to say it too soon. ha!

manon looks like a 7 yr old child but knowing the witches she could be a 45 year old woman

that fact that she's actually mad about this is so funny. also notable - mikhail didn't really hurt anyone, they're being pinned down by a magic that only impairs their movements. that's why it could pierce the defensive magic of the witches - it snuck in? smart design

the magic system is pretty soft so I feel like we just take whatever we've given and go 'sure, yep'

keep going charlotte I want to hear your backstory. she's kind of...not really restrained at all, is she? she's very emotionally driven and easily pissed off and given to intense, dramatic speeches. I know she's stalling for time here but I think her passion is real. it's a little funny. I rly like her personality but I would love to see more of her heartfelt side, or even just why she became a witch

OH NO...SHE RAN OUT OF WAYS TO STALL....

damn I don't think we've seen verge this fucked up. rip

ohh he just thought that aria was possessed and he could kidnap her. WELP.

often thinking about how disenfranchised and powerless and impoverished verge was as a kid and how that facilitated his abuse and now he's able to sit calmly and bargain with literal demon lords of hell...he attained SO much power over his circumstances and status and position and the opportunity to change things as a witch

that did make me laugh. buddy

the worssst

OKAY I thought this bit was just him being extra and weird and self-absorbed but he was calming down the mandrake so it wouldn't curse anyone lo. also SHE RLY FOLLOWED HIM....scream

we learned that baba yaga is one of ASMODEUS'S witches which is interesting, and it seems like she's lent a piece of herself to verge so they can do the ceremony. I didn't really notice that the witches were up to a whole thing on my first read, but they've got an entire b plot going on that you can follow pretty clearly

I always thought it was crazy that priest had to literally bring imuri into the heat of battle with him every time, but in this scenario we can see why. verge snuck into aria's room while mikhail was distracted! he's dumb!

imuri truly at her strongest when she's in a high school romance manga

she got carried away tho....the way that she's framing it is so wrong bc she's acting like they're actual romantic rivals and not like asmodeus is the woman who tried to rape him when he was 12 and who's stated purpose is breaking him. like I'm a little frustrated w imuri for losing sight of what a legitimate emotional and mental danger asmodeus is to priest considering how much compassion she had for him in every other fight but also...short of exposing herself, what could she do?

and when she opposes the bet, asmodeus immediately jumps to her sore spots - her pride and her guilt

she didn't agree to make this stupid bet but ig she reasoned if she won then priest would be 1. with her and 2. safe

still...I hope priest learns about this eventually because 'me and your would-be rapist once competed over who you'd like more and took turns trying to woo you' is a really horrifying thing to do to someone. but again, how much does imuri really know? and given the situation, maybe he's understand what she was trying to do and why? he's so angry in 84, and rightfully so. he values honesty so much. I don't know

STOP TRYING TO MAKE IT HAPPEN WITH A 'SITUATION' THEN...just tell him you like him!!! honestly it's way too soon but when he said she was cute and she blushed I was like ? then why not keep going and tell him you think he's cute too...this is why I don't rly get romances. anyway it's too soon for him and his repressed and wounded heart but I don't think she knows that

I FORGOT ABOUT HIS CELIBACY VOWS...they really said this kid can only be a weapon dedicated to the church his entire life fuck his hopes and dreams and any possibility for intimacy or companionship he is a TOOL

these guys were shitty earlier but since they made a sincere apology and have been very welcoming to priest I've grown fond of them. it's not like priest has many kids his own age to talk to. these might be the only boys actually, huh. mikhail doesn't count bc he doesn't like him

he's got the terror of intimacy on BOTH ends doesn't he. aw man. fear of both being hurt and of hurting

[borreloadsavagedragon]

4 9 and 15 for the ygo ask meme please! 🙏

WHY WAS THIS IN MY DRAFTS

omg thought I sent this forever ago wtf

4. Favorite season/story arc GOD there's a few arcs I love and hold dear, but I’ll pick the ones for my favorite two djdhdhdh For Zexal, I'd say the WDC is probably my favorite just because it's done so so so well I LOVE the Barian Invasion, I love the Mytherian Number hunt arc, but the WDC stands out because characters are why I’m so invested in YGO and it was the part of the show that sold me the most to my favorite characters as well as felt like it gave them the time to establish, develop, and show themselves and their values For Vrains, the first half of season 2 when it's just Playmaker and Soulburner trying to scramble through why a lemon scented bottle of fabuloso kidnapped Kusanagi's brother, who the shirtless guy is and why he can go anywhere he wants, Ignis Housewive Drama, it's nice, it's simple, it's a bit silly, you're invested in the mystery, it doesn’t try to do too much like the second half does The last six or so episodes of Vrains are also BANGERS, Rev vs Soba is the best duel in the franchise, I'll die on that hill For non-those, I love season 2 of GX, the second half of season 1 of Arc V is rly strong, and I like the beginning of the XYZ part of Arc V because Kaito shows up and just... does what he does, kill people, be OP, collect too many boyfriends, be the cool loner guy type who crosses his arms and makes noises

9. Favorite minor character Me struggling to label what minor character means in terms of YGO bc anyone who isnt a protag, rival, bff, or lead girl may as well be one cjshxhshsh

He's not super minor but Spectre comes to mind, mostly because of his limited screentime, they were too scared to show him being his freak self too much

Mizael too, I’d kill someone for Mizael but we all know that already djshxhshsh

Durbe also does since he doesn't have a lot of time compared to the rest of the Barians and his story is... interesting

15. How did you get into YGO? So originally, I have a brother who decided that he wasn't gonna be alone in his interests and his friends weren’t catching onto the things he liked, so he just aggressively shared all of his favorite shows and games with me until they just osmosis'd Dragon Ball, Pokemon, Power Rangers, you name it, he did it Yugioh though, out of all of them, that's the one that stuck the most and kept returning over and over and over

I kept revisiting it as a teen, once after eighth grade graduate in through the abridged series and again in my senior year

Then finally again in adulthood in college during my fifth year, I actually passed and earned my Film Studies degree by writing a few different works about YuGiOh DM, bc at the time I was a Yugi Boomer ™

Wanting to pick up the TCG is actually what led me to the spin-offs and to this point now, I wanted to learn how to link summon and suddenly I had binged 24 episodes of Vrains, then it was revisiting all of the shows I’d been so adamant about staying away from because clearly I was missing out haha 🥹

[abcdosaka]

Watched oshi no ko and hells paradise both mid. Kinda makes me mad bc hells paradise was giving soul eater a little bit plus the op is catchy as fuck but I’m a little annoyed like I just don’t think I have it in me to tolerate mid female characters anymore. I really wanted to like it too bc the first ep was really good but then the second was like umm ok this dude is a bit much but he’s cool still. Then the third ep I was like “so why tf is the girl even travelling with him if everyone knows he could easily overpower her at any time”. And the forth ep gabimaru had to save her and she collapsed bc she got overwhelmed ? Like it’s so embarrassing for her I can’t go on. I realize her arc is about facing her fears or something actually no I don’t really know what the author was going for but anyway my point is theres a way to do that without making her a cringe damsel in distress. Maybe I’m just jumping to conclusions bc it really does look good but like it’s not a great look so far

as for oshi no ko I was hoping it would be about like balancing motherhood and being a star or something obviously I expected too much. I actually kinda enjoyed the movie pilot but I dislike that:

1 it’s isekai

2 the mom fucking dies and the kid/guy is on some revenge fantasy bs. Like I said I thought this would be some cute show where a guy doctor falls in love with a pregnant woman who’s actually an idol hiding her identity and the issues that would arise from that. (Btw I did not know she was 16 going into this show. Another thing I dislike)

3 I feel like the isekai part is just accepted and will never come up again. Like idk bc I wouldn’t mind if it was actually incorporated into the story as like the main thing but it’s not really. like I want sarina/rubys backstory to be more important, the connnection between her wanting to be an idol and her not being able to move around in her previous life could be expanded on, idk anything abt the guys goals from before but I would like to see that instead

4 I hate the Mc he’s fucking BORINGGGGG and he’s obsessed w his sister and mom. (Side note When are we gonna get an anime where the Mc just despises his sister like there’s no other feeling other than hate.) What happened to the fun guy who used to be a doctor. Like trauma obvs but his whole personality became unbearable. you could say that he was obsessed with Ai even when he was alive but honestly, bro had a job and lived in the countryside, there is no way he didn’t have other things going on in his life

5 both these kids have no personality other than being obsessed with their mom like SHUT UP PLS

6 it’s literally just a girl in the mcs life suffers due to being an idol and he jumps in to save her by doing something maybe a little innovative and weird but ultimately good. Like I kept watching bc I wanted to see how him trying new things could expand his perspective or something like trying acting again or being on the dating show but no it’s just him saving chicks from other ppl

7 I feel like all of those points just show the plot is trying to be more than what it is. Like it’s just another isekai where an older guy takes care of underage women in return for their dedication. Ok to be fair it actually does have a lot of the inside life of idol culture which is interesting but also don’t advertise it like ai is a main character when she FUCKING DIES :(

I actually kinda dislike gabimaru too like both these mfs are gloomy, overly perfect, emo, and have saviour complexes and it’s rly not my vibe. Like idk they’re Gary stus. Ebony darkness dementia raven way but as a guy. Like please just suck at something you’re boring me

I think that’s what I get for trying to watch Shonen but ugh. I like action I like the power of friendship I even like a lil romance if it’s not like annoying and very specifically aimed toward the male gaze.

[strangerfigs]

the fact that in response to el saying mike does not tell her he loves her, he says “you know what I think of you” ✋🚩 the fact that he uses the word feel when talking to will hand ✋🚩

“I feel like l was worrying too much about el and I don’t know, maybe I feel like I lost you, or something”

then, literally when talking to will, he can’t even bring himself to say the word, makes zero reference to his feelings or having trouble expressing them, instead saying that if he just said the thing he needed to say, then he could be with eleven now. in this, i also think it goes back around to the whole “maybe i was worrying too much about el” like that has been a majority of his relationship with el, looking after her, and her being in trouble, and trying to help her. it’s almost the nature of their relationship. there has not been a single point where he wasn’t worrying about el in some way since she came into his life which is not only unhealthy! (their relationship is honestly so unhealthy on both sides but let’s focus on mike rn) but it pretty much takes up all the space in his brain to feel anything else, which hey, that’s what he said to will, right? yeah, it was. while mike might not fully realize it, or have agreed with eleven, on some level, he knows she is different. he knows that she does not get to have a normal life. he worries about her because on some capacity, he knows that she needs help, and he thinks he can be the one to give it to her, or maybe even feels like he owes that to her (she has entrusted him more than anyone else and she has helped him so many times!) but honestly, I know I said this was about mike, but he needs to let her go. when eleven was able to remove herself from mike and get other help, she was able to conquer her trauma. mike is not the answer, and their relationship tends to hang on that promise of “everything is going to be okay” kind of thing. but like, mike is just some kid in indiana, he’s not a professional, and i really hope, that on some capacity at least, mike realizes that he needs to take care of himself for once. because ya, he can be a little bit of an ass at times, but finn was correct, especially if you rewatch. he is always focused on other people. it’s never about himself. his arc in seasons 1&2 were both about will/el (el being second priority in both to will) and in season 3, it’s obviously eleven, along with season 4, thus far; but will isn’t in trouble in these seasons. but el is, but she was also in trouble in 1&2 and even though we did see mike worrying about her and trying to help her, his focus was will when he was in trouble because truly, truly i think he really cares for them both and loves them both (in different ways) but when it comes down to it; he would choose will. but since season 2, it’s only been eleven, who had to worry about. will has his mom, jonathon, their other friends, while hopper “died” and el moved in with a family, of which, she really did not have much connection to? other than joyce? so I guess what I’m saying, is, I’d be so interested in seeing what mikes feelings are outside of worry; like if he didn’t have to worry about el, how would he feel about her? how would he feel about will? because truly he has had no time to not worry about these two people, one of which he says is the most important thing in his life and the other, who he said was the best decision of his life to become friends with. I think it’s a triangle, and at the very least, he is bisexual (but I rly think he is gay.) And to completely deny that or say fans are delusional to see this, is actually, just homophobic. sorry

literally I can’t wrap my head around it. mike - honey - thinking does not equal feeling. I feel like these two conversations truly confirm the differences of feeling v thinking. mike doesn’t have a problem with words of affirmation. someone with issues with words of affirmation doesn’t say shit like, “I think you’re the most incredible person in the world,” they don’t say, “you look beautiful”, they don’t say, “I called you every night for 363 days,” they don’t say, “I can’t lose you again,” they don’t say, “you’re the most important thing to me in the world” (this is honestly the biggest thing ever and I promise you, someone with words of affirmation is not capable, or at least not as easy to say it as mike was), people who struggle with words of affirmation cannot say, “I’ve never felt, you know, this way with anyone before”, they don’t say things like “a friend is someone you’d do anything for,” or “I’m happy you’re home,” and they don’t say things like, “that was the best thing I’ve ever done,” in reference to becoming friends with someone. like, maybe on a few occasions, Mike would be able to express how he feels if he truly struggled w this, but he doesn’t, and neither did nancy when she did not tell steve that she loves him; it was not even like she hadn’t told steve before, like that we know of. steve says, “you don’t love me?” as if he is surprised, as if she has said it in the past. it’s so valid that people do struggle to open up, people like hopper, for example, but mike has never been that way. he openly sobs in his mothers arms upon wills “death” and seeks her out for comfort again when el and the byers leave. as someone with actual issues of expressing fondness and affection and love, it’s just so obvious to me that that is not the case with mike, and if it is, the development of that makes zero sense. it’s just not his character. like to credit myself, i study human behavior and that’s just… not how it works. nor has it ever been insinuated further than, maybe the scene where he first tries to tell her but that scene made sense: he does not know if she will say it back, but that clearly is not the case anymore.

[iwillbecomealawyer]

gonna babble and list down all the reasons why i love psychonauts 2 so far to OBLIVION

(warning: post contains major spoilers so i dont recommend continuing if you havent played the game. but also do not spoil if you have, since im still in the part where i reached where the psychic 6 resided)

1. raz being much more babey in this game, but also being just as capable and intelligent as last game

2. the game showing that raz CAN fuck up, learning his mistakes and making up for it

3. raz being such a good and respectful boi ;-; the way he talks to his grandma and the way he talks to lili knowing she was in a very vulnerable state,, his parents raised him so well

4. raz and lili basically switching places in pn2 where raz is being a complete stuttering mess and lili is the oblivious one (though this is mostly bc she was occupied with her dad so UNDERSTANDABLY so)

4. THE REALISTIC DEPICTION OF SIBLINGS OF THIS GAME GOOD LORD I LOVE IT

5. i mentioned this in my last post but after raz learns his lesson with hollis, he starts to ask for consent before going into someone’s mind

6. the seamless metaphors and symbolism to mental issues and healing

7. the fucking genius that is the panic attack foes..them being quick, ruthless enemies thats hard to catch up with unless you deliberately slow it down with the time bubble ability. it also has the ability to multiply; symbolizing that the person struggling cannot tell what is real of what is fake. idk this enemy just really made me pause the game for a bit bc of sheer appreciation .. i i remember struggling with a panic attack fight and even i felt overwhelmed

8. raz having a change of heart from killing animals from pn1, and pets them in pn2; him also constantly making apologetic remarks when he does is so funny

9. the whole segment of raz finding out lucy was pretending to be his grandma and it being ford’s fault. the way he felt betrayed, hurt, and angry; and how it hurt even more so when raz idolized him, and considered him a friend bc of what they went through together in pn1. the strength raz had to say that ford fucked up his entire family, and its all his fault. UGH. cinema

10. raz’s char arc being absolutely stellar in this game!!??! we got to know more about him, the family ‘curse’, and how he grew. im so damn proud of him i feel like a loud mom cheering her kid’s name when they get up onstage for graduation

11. raz’s family. period

12. gameplay being fun as fuck with thought compelling puzzles with a balance of forgiveness if youre being a dumbass,, im not a gamer by any means but i found myself playing for 10 hours straight and each time i come back im having the time of my life and never wanna put the controller down. im rank 60 ffs

13. i theorized that the minds we were gonna go through this game were the psychic 6 and while that DID end up being the case, they did it in such a smooth way that fit the narrative that didnt just feel like a ‘checklist; do this and save the world’ feeling, it was closely tied to the narrative and it wasnt a linear process. its so good

14. music is obviously a given i literally have no words i find myself staying in one place in each world just to dwell in the music

15. the ENTIRETY of psi king’s mind. definition of gorgeous

16. psi king’s segment where we find out his band members were the psychic six and where we slowly get to put the pieces together and find out he’s actually helmut fullbear. the moment we got to witness where he slowly unravels his doubts about his friends and himself with raz helping

16. speaking of psi king: jack black. thats it

17. SPEAKING OF PSI KING AGAIN: LGBT REP!!!!

18. milla’s full name being camilla and it being revealed that sasha accidentally mispronounced her name to ‘mia’ and decided to remain it that way bc she thought it was rly cute

19. the moments in this game having the perfect balance of heartwarming, hilarious, and foreboding. early on in the game i was like ‘huh i was expecting something a lil darker to bring to the table but i can understand this!’ but i was wrong. i was so. fucking wrong. i had my jaw dropped in the lucy nona reveal the entire time i was terrified. fantastic segment

20. as much as i struggled in compton’s mind i really loved the idea of his world bc 1. hes the first world we encounter the Judge enemy, since all he did was blame himself from what happened with lucy and the psychic 6 2. his world based off of hollis, truman and ford being the harsh judges and critics of his own mind and facing the constant pressure sinilar to a reality cooking show. its kind similar to gloria’s theater from pn1 in that regard, but definitely brings new and different ideas to the table

21. raz offering frazie to come with him to psychonauts hq as an intern to embrace her psychic powers and frazie considering it

22. raz being a good older brother to queepie

23. norma having a crush on raz’s fucking dad (idk if shes doing it to screw with raz or if she rly does but either way its SO FUNNY)

24. raz (depending if the player chooses to or not) bringing rare fungi for lili to make her feel better despite him knowing the truth about truman god these two are adorable

25. lili feeling terrible about truman and raz trying to sympathize w her saying he was pretty shit to his own father too (poor baby ;-;)

26. raz wanting the approval of nona :’) asking her if she wants anything to make her comfortable

27. the intense conversation between dion and raz

28. ford dropping this bomb on raz that there was no curse to begin with, and that the aquato curse was just a ruse for lucy to not go near water so maligula cant be awaken. jfc poor kid i actually cant believe that dialogue was optional

29. raz’s ’yoink!’ voice clip. baby

30. raz mentioning true psychic tales to any moment available ever

31. THE CASINO MISSION SEGMENT WITH THE INTERNS 💙💙💙💙

32. sam boole

33. oleander trying to make the death tanks against maligula without a budget

34. those two psychonuts members in the atrium talking about how sasha and milla are ’doing it’, with raz interjecting that theyre professionals and the members replying with ‘we meant yoga why what did you think we meant’ and raz being like ‘oh.’

35. that man and woman planning an affair in the entrance lobby of hq and the woman’s husband accepting and knowing about it

36. the clarification of psychonauts’ mission with hollis, on how their purpose is not to ‘fix’ people but to help fight the struggles they already have

37. the voice acting holy HELL the voice acting!!!! psychonauts 1 already had amazing va’ing but gOD everyone did amazing here; especially richard horvitz 

38. RAZ AND LILI IN NICK’S MIND THEYRE SO FUCKING FUNNY SJJKDJKSD (IM TYPING THIS AFTER I FINISHED THE WAVE OF ENEMIES BIT WHERE LILI PRESSED THE WRONG BUTTONS) raz being like ‘’ok yeah you finished pressing the wrong buttons so far’’ and lili being like ‘’JUST GET ON THE STUPID RIDE’’ IM FUCKGIN DYING

39. the player having the option to get rid of the background music in gristol’s mind and the reward being raz’s sigh of relief im actually fucking dying 

40. raz making up a code name for lili (’potato masher’) and lili liking it :)

aand thats it so far :)) this list will be updated the more i play or tidbits i remember

[dyeyourhandsblue]

DANG ITS RLY OVER………. I’d give the show a 9 overall.

- I was worried a bit there but they managed to keep their main themes consistent, which is what’s most important for this show imo

- seanwhite are perfect and I love them, perfect character arc that encapsulate the main message of the show, perfectly executed and acted and finished at the perfect point. 10/10 otp of the year

- people saying the parents not appearing again is a plot hole make me confused bc i never thought they’d be that important lol the dad appearing again would be interesting yes, but the main plot wouldn’t be impacted at all, so…. it’d make for a good s2, but it’s not rly relevant for this storyline.

- the toddblack ending was ALSO perfect and it doesn’t kill the ship at all for me, it actually fuels me more lmaooo bc that’s their thing, that neither want to bend to the other and they’re in a constant tug of war! it’d make such a good second season

- black’s character arc overall needs a second season/special/something. i know some people are pissed abt the “he left the gang” line but tbh i thought it was fitting, because he DOES need to find himself and in show canon he never opened up to the gang. it’s disappointing if we see it as his final point, but as a hook for a season 2 it’d be perfect.

- black’s ending fits with the episode mood of nothing’s really resolved, we’re all just starting… for black’s arc it left me a bit unsatisfied but for tawi, todd and co i thought it was extremely fitting. of course we would end with tawi under investigation but nothing more. and of course we’d end with a hint that actually tawi isn’t even the REAL man in power (his phone call, everyone?). the fight against power would never be this easy.

- i actually wish danyok’s ending followed black’s when it comes to being more of an open ending. i’m glad dan finally quit his job, but imo they should’ve left more of a doubt about whether yok would take him back or not (tho this is a bl so i know how hard that’d be to do)

- extremely unpopular opinion but if the show killed gr*mblack bc they wanted to focus more on danyok and toddblack i totally understand and support their decision tbh. gr*mblack wouldve been cute but they wouldn’t rly bring a new dynamic to the show since they’re kinda similar to seanwhite… danyok and toddblack bring a new flavor of ship AND interact with the themes of the show in more interesting ways than gr*mblack could’ve. their mistake was substituting them for gramgene instead of just… not giving gram a romance

- gramgene is a flop, everyone hates them bla bla everyone already knows and agrees with that. imo that’s the only real flaw of the show, but saying everything else would’ve been fixed if they gave their screentime to others is a lie imo. none of these plots would’ve been solved “in a satisfactory manner” with 20 more minutes. not even if the show had 16 episodes, actually. eps 12 and 14 wouldn’t felt so rushed but the arcs itself still wouldn’t be resolved imo. the topics it’s tackling are just too complex for only one season. an open ending was the only possible solution, because the reality is that we need at least Another 14 episodes to truly go into the nitty gritty of how tf will sean deal with his friend dating his dad’s killer for example, and what tf dan will do now, white’s next steps, black vs todd 2: electric boogaloo, how will the gang continue, etc. all of this if for after their mission against Tawi. aka season 2 come on gmmtv open your EYES

[stanharu]

beastars episode 24 thoughts!

this post got kinda long i have Many Thoughts on this one

Overall I had fun watching this ep but I could really tell it was rushed and there was so much that got cut, which makes me super sad. our fears about the finale having pacing issues due to all the added scenes & rearranging were confirmed & it rly sucks, but i'll elaborate more on that in a bit.

this week's ep covered the end of chapter 92, chapters 93-97, and included small bits of chapters 98 & 99.

so the ep starts with the ED and the latter part of the tunnel scene with ibuki and louis. i liked the visual effect they used to show that they were in the dark. louis' voice acting was also On Point. for the most part i think this scene was done pretty well but I can tell it's being rushed also. I really wish we got more buildup and narration instead of just jumping straight to ibuki telling louis to shoot him. the way it is in the anime feels less impactful imo.

also im sad we didnt get to see this in the anime

before i move on, i wanna talk a bit about louis and his relationship w/ the shishigumi and ibuki. i feel like in the anime quite a few of the lil moments that really endear you to the shishigumi and also ibuki were either cut or kinda glossed over, which is strange to me considering how much effort and care went into the ED. it's very emotional and good but i feel like maybe anime onlies are missing out only seeing the anime and the MV. but idk.

legosi and riz's fight was quite rushed as well. there's so much narration and dialogue missing from it and that really rubs me the wrong way. It wasn't all bad but compared to the manga I just don't think it's as good. I will say tho that I really liked the sequence w legosi and the moths. I thought it looked really nice and was pretty well done.

also i liked how the backgrounds had some anti-yahya graffiti, its a nice touch imo

it says "high quality horse meat"

I was happy to see legosi do the "tell me more" pose but I'm honestly disappointed that the anime took out the whole exposition about why legosi did it. like i feel like without that it's just legosi being weird when he has a reason for it!!! This is just one example of the anime taking out crucial narration during the fight.

I also think it's kinda weird how they changed how louis shows up at the fight. im not sure how i feel about riz just charging at him like that, but i liked how legosi kicked him before they ran lol.

i dont have much to say about pina's small scene but I did wanna say that during my first watch thru of the ep i was too distracted trying to read the graffiti behind him that i didn't notice him getting his phone out of the dumpster and calling the cops lmao

it says "devour yahya"

and now... here we are... the predation scene.

overall i thought it was pretty well done but, like the rest of the ep, i could tell it was also being kinda rushed. some important beats werent given enough time to really sink in, and there's a few bits of narration taken out of this part as well that i find disappointing :^(

tho i did like how the anime called back to this scene in s1 when legosi mentions utilizing his strength.

also this part where louis is remembering ibuki had me like😭

I also really liked seeing louis cry. I was crying too sjdflskjdflsjkdf. i thought that scene was really good, its prolly my favorite part of the ep tbh. getting to hear the whole predation scene voiced made me kind of a mess lol. i really liked louis' expressions throughout this whole ep too. studio orange used their whole louis expression budget on these last 2 eps lmao.

seeing legosi instantly get all beefed up was great too. he looked a little ridiculous but i kinda loved it lol. he's so huge and poofy. i love him.

big pomeranian

anyway, im also sad they took out louis' line about being reduced to a flashback character lol. instead he tells legosi "be a hero" again which... im not sure about that change. i liked the part with riz thinking back about tem tho. tho imo the way riz realizes he's in the wrong feels pretty sudden. again adding to how rushed the whole ep feels.

before i move on again i just wanna say legosi looks so cute. even all puffed up and covered in blood. how does he do that

baby boy baby. i wanna ruffle his cheek floofs.

i think one of the things im most disappointed about from this whole ep was how the fight got wrapped up. i really like how the cops show up and totally shift the tone in the manga jslkdfjskljdf. im also really sad we didnt get this interaction

tthe anime really took out most of the sillier moments from the finale, which makes me pretty sad to think about. i know the anime and manga have different tones but pls let the boys be silly sometimes!!

the next part where legosi and louis finally establish their friendship was really cute tho ❤️ even tho it was pretty different i enjoyed it a lot.

BABIESSSS 🥺😭❤️❤️

the wrap-up for this arc and this episode gave me whiplash sdjlfkjsdf. it literally speedruns thru legosi's predation conviction, being released, louis & haru's graduation, and legosi deciding he's going to drop out of school. that is SO MUCH AT ONCE. also i was holding out hope that legosi would have his new years call with haru after the fight instead but that didnt happen!! so it just got cut!!! kinda mad about that tbh. legosi and haru having a lil scene at the very end made up for it a lil bit but that's still one of haru's few moments in this arc that's just not included.

we didnt even get the part wher legosi learns he can't marry haru bc of his conviction.

ive been really hoping for a season 3 announcement once this season ended. with all the background allusions to yahya, the added plot point of someone stealing elephant tusks, and sebun and melon's lil cameos in this season, it seemed to me that studio orange was kinda teasing a 3rd season. but now, with the dismissive way the anime ended, and paru's note from earlier today, im less sure about the possibility of a 3rd season. i'd still like to see the rest of the series animated, but i guess we'll just have to wait and see if more anime is announced in the future.

if we do get another season in the future i just hope that we swing back around and actually address the things that got completely glossed over in the last couple minutes of this episode instead of charging forward w/o touching them again.

i really think the finale for this arc should've been two episodes at least. not including the tunnel scene. i think then things wouldn't have felt so rushed. people have been saying this season really would have benefitted from at least 1 extra episode and i cant help but agree. some have even suggested a whole 24 episodes just for this arc, but i think that this arc couldve been done properly with 12 or 13 episodes if there was some better prioritizing on what to include and what to cut.

like i dont mind not getting the parts about legosi's family if they can be addressed somehow in a future season (or if theres no more future anime seasons thats a plot thread that doesnt have to be worried about). i could have lived w/o seeing sheila & peach's chapter animated if it meant more time for the focus of this arc. and was the kangaroo red herring really necessary?

adaptation wise, i dont think this season was as good as the first. i still think it did fairly well, but i know that it could have been much better. ive been excited to watch this season with my friends once the dub releases, but now im wondering if i should just tell them to read the manga instead. sighs idk. perhaps it comes thru better as a bingewatch, or perhaps im being a bit too harsh. idk. at some point ill do a rewatch and see how i feel about the season as a whole, but that wont be for a while.

if you've read this far, thanks for reading my ramblings!! it's been fun to make these posts every week and im gonna miss getting new episodes every week.

[stray-tori]

TPN S2 Appreciation

I remembered I started this so here we are: there's a lot of problems with s2 but you've probably heard everyone talk about them anyway so I'm skipping that and going straight to all the stuff I DID like about s2:

opening

episode 1

(episode 1) seeing them interact with the environment

(episode 1) Ray running + being out of breath animation and voice acting

episode 2

(episode 2) especially the parallel with the drop like holy shit

episode 3

(episode 3) the fish bug scene while maybe out-of-place is pretty cute and funny

(episode 3) the wall scare is pretty ominous and as of ep3, not yet stupid.

the **OPENING**

(episode 4)

(episode 5) the shot of the apple rolling and the camera turning over with it. so cool.

(episode 4) Ray shooting the demon animation cut even though Emma was robbed

(episode 4) Chris knowing the bunker tunnels after we saw him playing there with other children is really nice. Especially knowing that in the manga he's sad he can't explore properly, I think it's a nice in-character touch haha.

(episode 5) masked Norman with blood splattering behind him

Myuk Mahou cover art makes them look so cuteeeee

portraying the two worlds in parallel from the OP to wanting to care and save your family

the opening making me cry every time

cup-kun memes

(episode 3) them entering the bunker being so fecking tense and suspenseful, like i was expecting a corpse the entire time pff-

(episode 5) ray and emma using hand signals during the rooftop chase

(episode 5) the natural in-convo reveal about how they hide their scent by Lani/Thoma

(epsiode 5) the detail that they throw it in the fire to spread the masking scent when the old demon gets there

(episode 5) the old demon scene (listen ik people questioned this, but it's an old weak demon... I kind of see it like helping out a weak strong animal. I doubt this old geezer would have jumped Emma; it could reveal their location, that's true, but oh well - it’s implied he met them more often before so maybe Emma just slowly considered over time / maybe her realizing they’re not that different and all that yadayada)

(episode 5) Emma doubting herself because they've literally just been chased around (ik some people didn't like this and I get why but they've been barely surviving for like 11 months... she's lost and paralyzed, she's allowed to have her doubts, though they could be worded a bit differently. It just sucks that there wasn’t much of an arc regarding this after that, so. Yay Norman Christ has rescued us all.)

(episode 6) the reunion hug / scene, it looked so soft and nice ahhh- the entire art in that scene was just nice.

(episode 6) the atmosphere and framing of when Barbara was eating the demon meat. it came pretty unexpected and the moment you realize was such a big “ohhh… oh no.“

(episode 7) Lani and Thoma mentioning the migrating birds during their tower watch and that then later coming back when the kids think about where they could be was nice!

(episode 7) Norman’s soft “be careful” to Emma and Ray

(episode 7) Also Ray's reaction to "the gate is in gf" is just a mood haha

(episode 7) THE SHIPMENT PARALLELS! the sounds, grabbing his hand this time when he had to take hers during his shipment AHHH-

(episode 7) evolvment of the “dont do it on your own / involve your family/friends” by asking Gilda and Don to come with them on the search for Sonju/Mujika. Sadly this doesn’t carry over to ep11 where they decide to do sth as drastic as staying behind for god-knows-how-long without letting anyone know beforehand.

(episode 7) like their reactions to it are so wholesome, I really like how it is portrayed. Especially because up until now Emma was still bottling up. Idk I like that it takes a while for this to really settle in properly.

episode 8

(episode 8) “are you god?” / “I’ll be a god or a devil” / “are you a human?”

(episode 8) showing the demon suffering pretty graphically for what I expected

(episode 8) the simple fact that I got the experience of pure euphoria and a laughing attack when the parallel between Vylk and Norman was actually a thing, when I was so confused why they both had a distinct characteristic (the walking stick) in episode 5. My friends thought I was crazy but I was just big brain. (we were robbed of more stick though)

(episode 8) norman hand symbolism, with blood, Emma grabbing it, him looking at it and how it ties Emma to his plan inherently and then when it's not his blood on his hands but someone's that he's taking away from another living being.

(episode 9) the unspoken realization that he’s not the only one being tested by the test scanner was on the right-hand side. good shit. Ik thats technically not the anime’s idea but I like how they put the focus on it with blur and didn’t actively state it.

(episode 9) him coughing up blood to show how fast it’s been progressing/getting worse // though that implies he refused to take his meds OR that its that bad even with the meds which I don’t think is the point. Like the psychological warfare of giving the kids a condition that they can only fight while they’re in their prison bc they’ll run out of meds is just. hHHH

(episode 9) I really liked Norman going to talk to Vylk and… hhh- Emma *AHEM* and how he didn’t really know what to say, and .........… E-EmMa going up to him and apologizing for what demons did, showing empathy and understanding AND ABSOLUTING WRECKING NORMAN and me. man, cycle of hatred bad.

(episode 10) Emma speaking over the radio to everyone is just… so heartfelt ahh

(episode 10) The little kids sneaking amongst the others is rly cute and honestly kind of epic haha

(episode 10) the moms/sisters either not noticing them or not doing anything bc they’re on their side anyway is just… a funny thing to think about either way

(episode 10) Phil and Emma hug TvT

(episode 10/11) MICHELLEEEEEEE

(episode 11) the turning ceiling is pretty

(episode 11) I like the shadow asthetic of the Ratri exposition, generally the Ratri exposition is pretty nice aside from being so fast you cannot take all that in and process it properly

(episode 11) dramatic gate closing is dramatic

(episode 11) the slideshow of them in the human world gives nice glimpses into things, even if… very vague haha. Especially the shot of Isabella playing guitar stuck with me. And Phil on a train! Not a steam one, sadly.

(episode 11) while the demon world slideshow is uhhhhh SOMETHING, I do like that the weird dragon-on-water thing is in both the Ratri exposition during the promise thing and then also at the end, which at least gives A BIT of context to what's likely happening. Idk I liked that, but then again my standards aren't very high.

I'm not saying any of this outweighs the problems bc oh boy, but ye.

[seoafin]

tbh,, i havent read the raws of the interview yet, only the translated ver from fan-translator and b4 i start, i think that this will be just me talking in circle and in no particular order AND a real mess (my brain does weird things after exams) but uhh here we go

gojou collects talented people, and by doing so he finds the people he can most probably relate to, except that he can't, not really, because something in the universe shifted when he was born. and it makes me think of how he's always known it, that he is special, and he's proven it, time and time again— he wants to take in talented ppl and he does, but there rly isn't much he can do for them. for they are talented, more talented than the world can understand,,

but they aren't gojou satoru

gojou took in megumi, bc he knew megumi was strong, and would grow up to be someone even stronger, but gojou can't facilitate or encourage his growth, bc for all they're similar, they are so fundamentally different. ALSO,, while geto was in his life, gojou rly judged everything according to his understanding of geto’s moral compass. gojou wears a human suit and geto is how he learnt to wear it well 🏃

the dragonfly analogy regarding to geto’s response to gojo, who was shown wearing a dragonfly patterned yukata in HI arc,, i’m trying to not think abt the fact that dragonfly symbolized victory in jpn....pain. i quoted from a web here for more explanation : In Japan the dragonfly is known as the "victory insect", or kachimushi, because of its hunting prowess and also because it is known to never retreat. Dragonflies are agile and fast fliers and can even hover, but never fly backwards

and bringing this up again, matricide and patricide are 2 of the 5 worst act to commit in buddhism, and it was said that if u commit one of those act u’re going to spend a real long time in the deepest pit of hell before continuing the samsaric cycle (higher chances to be born as an animal after that probs)— this might be geto’s divine retribution. held no power over his own body and could be considered that he’s the same as those “monkeys” 💀

ALSO the fact that sukuna's interest is "eating" rly drives home his hedonistic philosophy of seeking pleasure for himself. and he’s a cannibal...makes me think if he’ll just chomp on ppl with the mouth on his stomach

randomly, to date i think he hasn't really called himself a human, shaman, or a curse, and has held himself apart from all 3, and we've also the intro of the cursed wombs so i wonder if he’s trying to become, or is, a different entity altogether

so onmyoji got mentioned in the interview and what they practice is called onmyodo and abe no seimei and kano no yasunori were the notable practitioners,, and the kamo in jjk is the same as irl who served the imperial court back then

maybe i was right when i said that the relation between the govt. and jujutsu elders are similar to how the shogunate and imperial court work (ie, the former holds the actual power) but... lets see later,,

and i cant believe that i actually nailed it on the analogy of jujutsu practices by religion,,, so mahayana buddhism, shintoism, and taoism is present in jjk along with their respective jujutsu practices...but between the 3, it shld (?) be taoism > shintoism > mahayana buddhism (which could took a path to pure land buddhism)

it’s weird that the number of curses are supposedly higher in jpn comparable to other countries when taoism was brought from china....tengen sus

so the zenin family tree is sth like :

brothers: [toji's dad] ; naobito ; ougi

so toji, naoya, and maki & mai are cousins of the same generation

[toji's dad] → jinichi (probs) ; toji → megumi

naobito → other brothers, naoya

ougi → maki, mai

but yea i’d call anyone who’s within/close or below my age range as cousins and others above 30 as uncles/ aunts LMFAO,, i dont rly memorize my own family tree 😭😭 especially since most call the other by honorifics instead of names : aunt, uncles etc or attaching said honorifics at the end of a name for an older sibling figure/ older cousins [but like ppl in my country also call the other who are older with sibling honorific even if we’re strangers,,, rly similar to korea’s hyung/oppa—eonnie(unnie)/noona but some uses more genderless honorific] (1)

tw // topic of incest, mentions of abuse

if anyone got the wrong idea when reading this : i am not glorifying/ romanticising incest(uous themes),, i’m looking at this with absolutely no lenses of bias even tho im rly against it

初恋 = literally : first love, or puppy love

恋 = romantic love/ deep longing

i literally don't know how else to put this...🧍and with language barrier...using a western interpretation of the eng word "love" to explain a jpnese term is not quite that simple, unfortunately

that thread omg,, i rly do understand how exactly someone could associated kindness with love bc of my upbringing, it was when i was slightly older that i was just...oh so its not like that orz,,, so the most plausible explanation would be that

but the problem is that,, akutami never specify when exactly she had a crush on them,, and when megumi answered todo’s question she had a “♡” reaction 😶,, uhmmm there’s rly no way to look past this if its this way or be in denial

i’ve seen some of "why wouldn't mai react that way after hearing megumi say he'd like someone who's compassionate when she's surrounded by men like naoya",, well I MEAN,,, that, but also mai probs admires that megumi grew up so well out of the clan, regardless of the fact that he had the foundation (10 shadows) to do so. imo she seems happy for him the way she can't be for maki, bc maki ultimately had to leave her behind

hate to say it but yea,, the 3 clans most likely still practice inbreeding in order to preserve their power and presumably their wealth too 😀

i had an idle thought abt it at first but i filed it deep in the back of my mind asap,, bc i ont wanna jump to conclusion abt this out of all things too early. it’s probably not even in jjk, but all those elite clans in other ani/mangas that produce powerful heirs and whatnot also do the same,,, but this way of (my personal) thinking was influenced when i first got into tsukihime (type-moon),,, i read abt the nanaya family background and found out that they practice that in order to keep their bloodline “pure” (to keep it short : they have an optical power),, and i had this kind of assumption ever since so there’s that

i’m,, convinced the zenins' inbreeding made it more difficult for them to get powerful shamans bc they got 2 jujutsu technique-less children with heavenly restrictions in the same generation: toji & maki

even more convinced that maki might be a bit stronger than toji bc toji could see curses without aid while maki can't so the pay-off must be higher,,, SJJASN IDK ,,, plus naoya sort of implies his older brothers are nothing compared to him, and idk if we should take that as his arrogance or that his older brothers rly are weak/powerless. it would make sense as to why naobito had a lot of sons, ig, as head of clan

i feel so bad that if one of the factors that can caused heavenly restriction is inbreeding,, toji and maki and mai had no say in how they wanted to be born but are scorned for it,, typical asian families projecting their traumas and ideals onto their kids but get mad when they realize that those ideals are ugly...😁😁😁

since the zenin are conservative,, i wonder if they still hold onto old jpnese dining traditions. where in ancient jpn, hierarchical relationships were made readily apparent even within families. a dining table where everybody sat down and ate as equals would be unheard of. rather, each individual is given their own table that indicates their status,,, someone who is not considered “strong” according to the zenin’s views most likely have no place at the table, and probs eat when those who are “strong” finished/ serve them when they are eating

if toji was tossed into a swarm of curses,, i dont think abuse during said time is below them,,,

the zenin clan was already great, but they further amassed power and strength by, what i assume to be, marrying and adopting powerful individuals into the clan 🤔 ,,, i imagine they're like the hiiragi but without doing what they did to shinya (ons reference)

BUT after all that, i like to think that since akutami’s a big horror fan, jjk might be an outlet to explore said topics or even darker ones, so i wouldnt be that surpised abt it. given that there’s more than enough “red flags” before this was dropped : a reference to “tale of hikaru genji” when a grown woman asked for gojou’s number in HI arc (out of all things); granny who transformed into the man’s daughter, sat on his lap and man just touched her waist; mei mei and ui ui ; and...this (incestous theme is in the novel btw)

lets not start with whatever the fuck in kubo’s head in the interview otherwise i’m writing paragraphs with every curse words possible,, those big 3 mangakas are so— UGH,, a planet w out (cis) men like him sounds real good rn 😌 if one of yall out there decide to do it,, pls hmu rly cant do this shit anymore

akutami said i like my men pretty and i like women who will step on my neck and spit in my face (I REMEMBERED TATSUKI FUJIMOTO’S INTERVIEW WHEN HE WAS ASKED ABT MAKIMA AND IT WAS SO 😭😭😭😭) but ykw,, love that for both of them <3

when i said 3 : one piece, bleach, naruto. aside from the blatant depiction/ characterize of women in those 3,, idk if some ppl arent aware yet but oda is friends with two (2) convicted pedos,, man...the major disappointment and disgust when i first find out abt it

anyways this is just my 2 cents (which i think rightfully belong to the trash can) so pls just take this w a lil to no grain of salt - 🐱

YEAH THE ♡ LMFAO I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST A “good answer ♡“ heart BUT NOW IM RE-EXAMINING?????

honestly i wouldn’t be surprised if the three clans practiced inbreeding. but ik people are going to be  😡😡😡😡😡 about it when the queen of fucking england is literally married to her (something) cousin. i’m not justifying it but like....love the double standards, just as always with the west 😍

DON’T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THAT FUCKING PED* LIST THEY SHOULD ALL BE IN JAIL. JAILLLLL. it’s all so gross. that’s why i fucking hate when people look towards manga for positive representation because the chances of that are super slim to zero, especially since the industry is saturated with misogyny and ped******* and a lot of other gross stuff.

i think ppl forget jjk is a horror manga LOL so obviously it’s going to confront darker themes. the question is whether it’s going to be done tastefully or not......