#i also re-read the entire manga like last month

[boyofzoot]

Akira (1988)

[hotwaterandmilk]

With the Pumpkin Scissors manga off hiatus and volume 24 set to come out in Japan next month, I've started re-reading the series. While I'm still not well, I really wanted to put together a brief post encouraging new readers to check it out because it is woefully neglected given the strength of its writing. Plus hey, legally available in digital format in the US via Kodansha -- easy to check out for many of you!

What's it about?

Pumpkin Scissors is set in the aftermath of a great war between the European (German)-inspired Empire and the Republic of Frost that has now been resolved via treaty. To keep money flowing, the Empire's Imperial Army commissions a small military unit to serve as a propaganda platoon by providing visible war relief efforts across the decimated country. However, this small but dedicated unit (State Section III aka "Pumpkin Scissors") actually tries to make a difference despite their limited funding and powers, finding themselves drawn into all sorts of dramatic and brutal post-conflict scenarios as the Empire itself reckons with the ghosts of its past.

At the centre of the story are Alice L. Malvin, second-in-command of the Pumpkin Scissors unit and Randel Oland, a new recruit to the team. Alice comes from a noble background and has lofty ideas about justice, while Randel is a gentle a veteran who served during the war and struggles to reconcile his past and present selves. These two couldn't be more different but for Randel, who was left without purpose after the war, stumbling upon the determined Alice and finding himself ushered into a unit dedicated to war relief could give him the direction he needs to go forward.

Why is it worth reading?

Don't let the rough early art or medicore anime adaptation fool you, once you get past the first major arc in the Pumpkin Scissors manga it grips onto you and won't let go. I cite the anime specifically here because even if you've watched it you're probably not entirely sold on the Pumpkin Scissors manga as a result of the ho-hum adaptation (which you can watch on Crunchyroll). However, the anime ends at a point that is basically this meme given form:

Because where the manga goes next after the final arc shown in the anime is is absolutely phenomenal. Hostage situations, terrorism, ridiculously intense tank fights. The war is over in this story but it is so deeply ingrained in every character, town and situation that its claws will never let go of anyone in this world. In that sense, with each arc building on the last, the series goes from being about superifical "war relief" to the lingering atrocities of war gradually enough that you don't even realise you're holding your breath while reading until something humorous happens to break the tension.

The author Iwanaga uses this smothering atmosphere effectively, with each successive arc peeling back more and more about the horrors of war and the difficulty of surviving after participating in the unthinkable.

However, Pumpkin Scissors never loses a sense of hope. Randel and Alice are both driven to achieve something that feels unfairly far out of their reach, but they never give up and they continue to inspire others along the way. I feel this sense of hope, this desire to improve society and to never remain satisfied with the pre and post-war status quo, is what helps Pumpkin Scissors avoid feeling too bleak even when dealing with some extremely heavy topics.

When you think about it, so many series are set during war but few opt to look at the immediate aftermath of conflict and how things don't ever really go back to normal. In this sense, I think if you liked a lot of the observations made in Golden Kamuy (which also has a cast inhabiting an in-between space post-conflict) then Pumpkin Scissors may also appeal to you.

While the Pumpkin Scissors unit are our heroes, there are no punches pulled regarding the Empire itself - be it how corrupt the military is, how useless the politicians are, or how abominable the country's wartime acts. Nobody is really who they seem to be within the rank and file, with allies and enemies coming from the most unlikely places as the series chugs along.

This is a series that deftly weaves a tale of mesmerising characters and scenarios that, while set in an alternate history, still feel depressingly relevant to today.

What about the characters?

The characters, particularly Alice and Randel, really help make Pumpkin Scissors a deeply riveting tale. They have an extremely slow-burning affection for each other, but each is so obtuse about romance for numerous reasons that even getting them to admit they feel strongly for one another takes most of the series to this point.

And while their relationship is important, they both stand alone as characters in their own right with contrasting backgrounds that often make it hard for them to understand each other.

Alice is from one of the most privileged families in the country and in the opening pages of the series we see she graduated into the military the day the ceasefire was called. Having never served on the frontlines and coming from a wealthy, political family means Alice has been sheltered from a lot and in other series she could well be an obnoxious character as a result.

However, Iwanaga gives Alice the opportunity to actually grow, to make mistakes and to broaden her outlook as she progresses through each arc. She isn't always painted as "right" despite her idealism and it's interesting seeing a young, female protagonist in a seinen title get to be like this without also being grossly over-sexualised. Overall, Alice is a strong and proud noble whose journey has involved many harsh life lessons, but who still holds her unit together and strives for a better society.

Randel, our other lead, has come from a background of poverty and suffering. I won't spoil too much of his backstory, but he brings a perspective to the unit that even Oreldo the back-alley brawler doesn't. Randel not only grew up in an incredibly tenuous situation, but he selflessly sold himself to the war machine as a youth and as such, has actually endured the battlefield. Not only does Randel not eat meat as a result of this, he truly wants to live a life without raising his weapon again -- something he has yet to achieve.

Even with the war being over on paper, he very often has to take out his "Door Knocker" gun and literally fight armored tanks. Physically, this is destroying him. Mentally, it is driving him over the edge. But deep within Randel is this burning desire to be useful in achieving lasting post-war peace, for all his deep suffering and sacrifice to be worth it, and that propels him forward even when it probably shouldn't. In the Pumpkin Scissors unit he finds purpose and a commanding officer who gives him something to believe in again, but will Randel ever be able to stand by Alice's side or will he succumb to everything pulling him down?

Something I appreciate about Pumpkin Scissors is that every character comes into their own when the time is right, well beyond our leads too. From characters that play major roles in certain arcs like Haarkenmeijer right through to Rosetta, the minor gag character nurse. Everyone has an arc in the narrative and geez, some of them are good.

If you just watch the anime it seems like Stecchin and Hunks, for example, are two extremely flimsy individuals who round out the core unit by being "the peppy little admin girl" and "dull, middle-manager-esque commanding officer". When the true extent of their individual histories and skills become apparent in the manga, you're left agape at how truly incredible they both are and how vital they are to the success of the team (albeit in very different ways).

What about it isn't good?

There are a few things about Pumpkin Scissors that bug me, but surprisingly few given the length and content of the series.

The art is honestly not that great. Iwanaga draws a mean weapon but he can be quite clumsy with human anatomy and even though his style has improved over time, I still wouldn't say it's the best. I know the art can put people off a bit, but I'm glad I stuck with it because after a dozen or so volumes it does grow on you (and the story absolutely makes it worth the effort).

There has also been a literal 5 year break between volumes. We have no idea if Iwanaga will take another break or how long he intends to continue the series for and that kind of uncertainty, I get it's not for people who really only want to read a complete story.

Speaking of stories... story-wise, I dislike how the minor character, Princess Septieme, is 9 and has a mildly fliratious relationship with the adult Martis. While Martis doesn't actively pursue anything with her and it's all fairly light, it's still weird to put them in that situation to begin with imho and totally unnecessary. Overall there's minimal fanservice (aside from Alice's sisters having big honkers) so having a random loli princess is just odd to me.

That's about all that comes to mind, but obviously if strong, bloody violence in a war-related setting are triggrering for you then I would not recommend Pumpkin Scissors due to how much of it centres on conflict and its horrible results.

So how can I read it?

The manga was originally licensed for US print release by Del-Ray, but this release was discontinued a while back. Nowadays Pumpkin Scissors is a DIGITAL ONLY release from Kodansha USA and volumes 1-23 are currently translated and available for purchase here. If you're outside the US and don't have local official options or are in the US and low on cash then check the usual sites for free options.

Can I watch the anime then pick up the manga?

I'd say yes, if you watch the entire Gonzo anime adaptation you can fairly easily pick up the manga and continue on from there. Personally I'd recommend reading the manga from volume 1 even if you've watched the anime though, as it's a more tightly written story. If nothing else, you absolutely need to indulge yourself in the anime opening because it is top tier stuff (performed by Evangelion's Takahashi Youko no less).

I think the images contained in the opening sequence may also give you a bit of an idea as to whether or not you'll find the series to your tastes overall.

Anyway there are my extremely incoherent thoughts on Pumpkin Scissors and why it's a series I enjoy and recommend you check out. I feel it deserves far more attention that it receives and I am so happy to have it back from its long hiatus. If you do check it out, let me know what you think! If it isn't for you that's OK, hopefully you'll enjoy the next series I decide to ramble about :)

[into-the-feniverse]

New week new brainrot new timeline, this time for the Trigun 98 anime!

More detailed timeline with episode marks: google sheets

High res file & additional Trigun resources: bit.ly/trigunresources

Note: This probably works best as just a sequence of events rather than a strict timeline (since all of 2 actual dates were given in the entire series and there's some conflicting dates being given💀). But it does help showcase just how much it delineates from TriMax though!

Rest of the timeline & additional notes under the cut!

Notes:

Let me start off by saying: If you thought the TriMax timeline was rough, that was nothin compared to this (which BEFORE I FORGET: I revised the TriMax timeline, so if you saw that just know it’s been updated! )

Interestingly, unlike TriMax and TriStamp, the 98 anime seems a lot more linear(if that's the right word?). The series timeline pretty much starts and stops within a 130 year timeframe, rather than establishing the PE system by when the seven cities were first constructed. (This also makes 98 Vash the youngest of the Vash iterations by at least 20 years, maybe that’s why he's like That)

The two dates given were the Destruction of July (July 21, PE 0104, 2:06 pm) and the day Meryl typed up her report: July 20th (2 days after the Monev the Gale incident, over 4 and a half months after being handed down their orders which was back in early March)

Note: In the dub, Meryl says they were "handed down their orders last December", but in the sub it's "in the city of december". I went with the sub info cause that seems more correct, but you could always argue that the months on NoMan's Land aren't the same as Earth's. (in which case July has got to be a really long ass month with how much supposedly happens in it)

Legato makes a remark at the Fifth Moon incident that July was 23 years ago, which is why I placed the start of the anime at PE 0127

Before Meryl is told about the Vash sighting in Little Jersey, Karen makes a comment about how they “spent 5 months on the outside working with a dangerous man who’s been labeled a human disaster”, I interpreted this as their entire time on assignment was 5 months (including the 3 months before they first encountered Vash) which is why I placed the Fifth Moon incident in August) but could also be interpreted as they actually traveled with Vash for 5 months (which if we assume is starting off when they first encountered him (in June) would place the Fifth Moon incident in October like in TriMax. I just find it hard to believe that 3 months elapsed between Monev and Augusta but to each their own!

No time frame was given for how long Vash was disguised as Eriks (as far as I could tell), and for the latter half of the anime I could not for the life of me find any other relevant date marks so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ free for all. I assumed it was around 2 years though, maybe a smidge more, just to neatly align the the end year at 0130

For the keen eyed observer, the May City shooting competition documents further exacerbates how messed up the timeline is (so I blatantly ignored them) but as you can see it places the year as 0131, and then the competition is being held on April 1st (1th?) and Wolfwood entered Vash's name on March 31st. The other info on the forged data sheet is kinda funny though

Additionally, I couldn't find any clear indications of how old Wolfwood actually is in the series, but he was 7 when he shot his guardian and trained under Chapel the Evergreen for 10 years

Lastly: for those like me who can't stand having to re-read events (and are looking to start reading TriMax): You can pretty much skip Volume 1 and just start with Volume 2 (ch 13-20). Just know that Meryl & Milly only met Vash starting at the InEpril city incident (In the manga it's a city in Voldoor, not InEpril explicitly)

[asachuu]

Guys. It’s been a while but I have to come out. This was a very hard decision for me to make, so please be respectful.

Anyway.

I fucking love Litchi Light Club. Nobody knows why, not even me. I just went to Akihabara again and the FIRST thing I did was run to a bookstore to pick up the second book AND the officially released art book, because I happened to have the main manga already, and I did that entirely on purpose, this was very much pre-planned. I also have a Jaibo cosplay and I’m thinking of investing money into the very limited amount of LLC merch out there and/or making my own. I need help, I think.

Wise words from a wise man once told me you cannot escape an interest no matter how far or fast you run, and I fear it’s true, because I have spent the past two to three years actively forgetting this fandom existed, just to re-read something from it on a random afternoon a couple months ago, and lose the remains of my mind over it. I’m genuinely hoping this whole Arthur business never wears off, because the second-in-line— albeit still incomparable, but regardless— is likely this godforsaken spawn of the devil, unless I get my ass back in gear and read the rest of TGCF, but even that’s debatable. It’s so unbelievably cursed that I found the main manga volume in a bookstore for 20¥ last year, because evidently, someone wanted to get rid of that thing immediately, and I cannot blame them.

I am deeply sorry if this significantly lowers your opinion of me. I am also mortified at this knowledge, I really am.

[runabout-river]

One thing that bothers me about jujutsu is that the author doesn't know how to develop some characters. 1 Shoko Ieri is an interesting character but I find her apathetic without a cold and superficial personality. 2 itadori yuji doesn't seem to be a protagonist he seems more like a tool than the protagonist of the work. 3 nobara had no development dry and emotionless death. and many other characters. There were only 2 characters that really had development, which was gojo and geto, for me, they were the only ones that had it. Why do you think the author did this, is it because he didn't want to develop the characters that's why he killed many important characters? I would appreciate it if you respond.

This is a lot to answer so sorry if it gets confusing a little.

1.) and you really have to keep this in mind, is that the manga isn't finished yet. It's also not about to finish. We have just reached the beginning of the end and we have at least another 6 months to go if not more. Without the last panel drawn, we can't really talk about the stuff Gege hasn't put into the story yet.

Still, many of your points can be addressed.

Shoko: In both the present and the past storylines, she is a side character without her side of the story being shown too much. Her being cold and apathetic can be a fitting description of her in the present but in the past she was more open and easy-going.

When you say she has a superficial personality that's where your interpretation is a little off. For one, her personality changes and for two, her current personality reflects the cost that living as a sorcerer has on people. We are also shown her inner thoughts on occasion but interestingly, one of those thoughts kind of comments her role in the story.

(This thought also establishes that she has trouble understanding Gojo's point of view on his godlike status)

The thing with Shoko is that we're never shown what she does: heal and save people. That's an aspect of her character that has been completely, and deliberately I say, missing until this point. But she has saved the lives of: Geto, Ino and Angel (plus some others) and she has therefore shaped the entire plot of the manga extremely.

But this I think will change in the most impactful way possible: with her saving Gojo's life by showing us for the first time what her CT is and how she heals people.

On Nobara, you're right. She had little character development and no reflection on her thoughts and beliefs. To this I say, read my post about her coming back because I believe that she will get that character develepoment and reflection when she re-enters the manga.

The same thing goes for Tsumiki. I was really disappointed when Yorozu died and Tsumiki basically disappeared from the story with her role never being more than that of a prop. But it was pointed out to me, that Tsumiki actually had been shown in an active role in the manga 70 chapters ago and that role will definitely be revisited when Megumi gets the spotlight again.

Now to Yuji. Did you realize that you contradicted yourself? You said that Yuji doesn't feel like a protagonist but you also said that Geto and Gojo had the best character developement. You're definitely talking about Hidden Inventory here but HI is and arc where Yuji is removed as the protagonist.

So the main protagonist being removed from the story temporarily has a purpose. You could say that that was a flashback and doesn't really count and that you mostly mean the 4 mini-arcs in Culling Games where Yuji wasn't present + the Sukuna/Yorozu fight + the Gojo/Sukuna fight.

Gojo/Suku we don't even count in this, that's a given, Sukuna/Yorozu is character showing plus setup for the future and Yuki/Choso/Tengen vs Kenjaku we don't count either, because that's a plot progression plus villain fight.

In my experience when people talk about Yuji not being a good protagonist because he isn't present often enough, they mean the arcs where Yuta, Maki and Hakari take centre stage. (The three other mini-arcs add to this)

Why would a mangaka do their story like this?

For world building. To be more precise: for plot building. Yuta, Maki and Hakari have important roles for the endfights and for that they needed character development (Maki), a show of their powers (all) and setups for the future (eg alliances with Kashimo and Uro).

Right from the beginning, JJK always moved the plot forward first. That's why the pace is so fast. The story is plot driven and not character driven, but that doesn't mean that the characters aren't given their time, just that that time isn't an entire chapter.

You can critizese this of course, I too would've liked small character scenes to have been expended on. That Yuji is taken off the picture for world building isn't sth I would critizise though. That's what happened in parts of Attack on Titan, and it also happens constantly in One Piece with Luffy albeit in Flashbacks.

It simply adds to the story when we can see other characters act on their own and while Yuji is back in the centre now, he will most likely take small steps back again to let other characters shine like Megumi eg. It also adds to his personality, but for the end of the manga he will be the centre of attention.

[stillness-in-green]

Favorite Characters of 2023

Saw this meme template by @limayde and had to drop anything more productive because I Love Character Memes. I tried to focus on characters who particularly signified 2023 in fandom for me, not necessarily just my favorites in any given fandom, and certainly not my favorites of all time! So consider it a reasonable representation of what I read/was reading/was still thinking about last year.

(I'm also relatively sure I could fill this out entirely with BNHA characters, but if I were to do that, it would be with the goal of representing how much I was thinking about said characters in terms of Fix-It Fic(s) Brainstorming, rather than simply how much I like them. Yoichi would be prominent in the former and not present at all in the latter, for example.)

Anyway, after much painstaking cropping, here it is!

(A full list of who all these people are and a blurb apiece of my thoughts on them, as well as the meme template, can be found beneath the cut!)

Most Favorite Blorbo(s) of 2023

Lord Glück and Macht of El Dorado (Sousou no Frieren) – Macht's was the arc that turned me around on Frieren's treatment of demons—he’s so interesting, and so tragic, totally set in his ways while also yearning to change them.  Glück, meanwhile, is so devoted to his word, blunt in his assessment of Macht’s character but wholly sincere about trying to give him the knowledge and environment he needs to change.  My BF asked me for the spoiler-free version of what I liked about them, and the best I can sum it up as is, “A mutual acceptance despite the parts of each other they can’t understand,” and, “They’ve made each other promises that go all the way to end, to the goddamn end.”  Thirty years of that!  I am once again begging on my hands and knees for Frieren to get a second season, and also, if the universe really loves me, to end the first season with a tease for the Golden City.[1]

(I cheated a bit here; the central square is intended for a single supreme fave, not center-mounting one's OTP. I am, however, entirely incapable of picking one of those two above the other. Also, putting them both there does bring the character count to a nice even 50.}

1: A second tease.  There’s actually been one already, a reference to Macht’s enchanted jewelry, squirreled away in some on-screen text—one of the anime’s many additions to the background detail compared to the manga.

12 Characters vs. 12 Months In A Year. Coincidence? Probably!

(Starting at the top left corner and moving clockwise.)

Shigaraki Tomura (BNHA) – 2023 was the year Shigaraki Tomura got his groove back, thank heavens.  While he didn’t get much material in which to speak his own mind—really just Chapters 379 and 411, a full year apart (the latter didn’t officially come out until just a few days ago; we just got the leaks a week early).  We’ll see how he holds up going forward, but even those few scenes effortlessly demonstrate just how profound a waste of time handing AFO the reins to the end game was.  Here’s to not letting Heroes off the hook in the new year!

Iguchi Shuuichi/Spinner (BNHA) – Spent a lot of 2023 worrying about this guy.  Still am worried about this guy.  But him turning the tides of the war at the end of 2022 shifted the whole course of the battle, and new we’ve got Shigaraki invoking The Horizon to finally give us incontrovertible evidence that Shigaraki and Spinner have talked about more than just video games!  2024 is shaping up Spinaraki!

Yotsubashi Rikiya/Re-Destro (BNHA) – I provide fanart for this man because, of course, he was in the actual canon not at all last year, absent a single flashback panel from Hose Face, not at all making up for what a caricature that character was otherwise.  All the good Re-Destro content I was getting last year was thanks to @nickfoo’s wonderful, wonderful fanart of him.  Thanks for continuing to give this guy love, foo! (full art here)

Geten (BNHA) – Himura backstory reveal!  And that revelation accounted for the only fanfic I posted last year at all, as well as being super satisfying in terms of largely clearing Todoroki Enji of the responsibility for the heteromorphobic microaggressions perpetrated by certain of his children, as well as giving us some more hints about Geten and Re-Destro’s relationship.  Exquisite. (Now just let him have something to say that isn’t mostly there to Contextualize Dabi.)

Vamirio/Anne from Management  (Helck) – I reread Helck last year in celebration of its anime, and just to reiterate this again, Vamirio and her determination lead her to make firm stands and fiery declarations about her combat role and priorities that Deku has never even fuckin’ thought about.  Vamirio a best; vote Vamirio for Head of Management.

Samuel Murphy +Hal and Nobu (Canis: The Speaker) – Sam’s my favorite of another inseparable trio, probably because, at least as an adult, he’s the most vulnerable—not simply because he lacks the firearms or goons that his partners’ positions allow them to call to hand, but also because of his struggles with insomnia.  Whip-smart, observant, and well-spoken, and I always have had a preference for the smart ones.

Jasper (Steven Universe) – I started reading @faelapis’s post-canon Jasper exploration fic Something Better last year and absolutely fell in love with it.  It reminded me all over again how much I love Jasper, and how much I wanted a story that gave her all the time she needed to change.

Somei Yoshino (Yakuza Fiancée) – Last year saw the anime announcement and Yoshino’s totally amazing bathtub fight with Azami, which I guess there are cowards out there who didn’t like?  RIP to them but I’m different, I guess!  I’ll watch Yoshino break her terrible suitors’ fingers any time!

Wolfgang Grimmer (Monster) – Reread the back half of Monster last year solely because I love Grimmer and wanted to read his material again.  A perennial favorite, manga and character alike.  I love a man held together with scotch tape, stitches and good intentions.

Boutarou the Pirate (Golden Kamuy) – Probably not my actual favorite character in the series, but I finally got to see him in anime form last year after a maddening wait thanks to the delay in 2022.  Shiraishi’s best ship and a feral merman (look at the way he uses his hair and tell me I'm wrong) that someone unaccountably let walk around on dry land. A+ character.

Sailor Cosmos (Sailor Moon) – Speaking of characters with a huge wait on seeing them in the anime..!  God, I’ve wanted anime Sailor Cosmos since high school, and I’m thrilled to finally get her (and the merch that would accompany her).

Mitaka Asa (Chainsaw Man) – I read the first half of Chainsaw Man a while back, largely on the basis of @robotlesbianjavert’s enthusiasm, and while I enjoyed it well enough, particularly Denji’s assorted travails, I never got super invested in it because, not having to wait week to week for releases, there was never really enough time to get attached to most characters before they got unceremoniously offed.  Whether it’s the week-to-week wait or just that I like Asa as a character more, she’s really done the job of getting me interested in the series.  I love this loser failgirl and I want only the best for her; while I doubt that’s what she’ll get, at least I can watch her torture logic to make sick weapons and have affecting scenes about her own crippling inadequacy issues in the meantime.

36 Others

(As before, starting on the top left and moving clockwise through the BNHA Zone.)

Scarecrow/Spinner’s Number 2 (BNHA) – Scarecrow’s big speechifying moments would have been back in autumn of 2022, but I still loved him more than enough in 2023 for him to make this grid.  He was reduced to a shallow caricature and still had to get knocked off a roof because no one could actually out-argue him, and through all of that unendurable authorial laziness, his potential still shines through for me.  Stan the MLA, MLA 5Evah.

Toga Himiko (BNHA) – The only Villain whose Hero foil plotline is working for me on any level, though a lot is hanging on whether or not she, y’know, lives.  She definitely should have gotten to stab the bejeezus out of Hawks, and Ochaco should definitely go on the run with her once Apple Cheeks realizes that the HeroAca justice system could not possibly be relied upon to do anything other than throw Toga in a hole for a few years before executing her.

Gentle Criminal (BNHA) – The only redeemed villain whose regard for Deku functions at all thematically.  Lady N’s return is hogswash on multiple levels, but I will defend Gentle’s without reservation.

Kunieda + Aoyama Yuuga (BNHA) – Consider these two to be a stand-in for all the thinking I did last year about Fix-It Fic scenarios for this whole final arc.  For example, Kunieda in the canon speaks far too knowledgeably both about and to Aoyama for them to be total strangers, so why not plant some seeds for their confrontations earlier?  I ask the reader to consider this:

In a version of the Edgy Deku arc that allowed the rest of 1-A to get out into the world to help out with relocation efforts, they one day come across a scene of dread: a neighborhood full of corpses and Kunieda’s flowers.  Aoyama has a noticeably shaken reaction, which he plays off as just horror to his similarly horrified classmates, but the truth is that he’s got prior history with Kunieda—AFO didn’t plop corpses in front of his parents to intimidate them (because that’s ham-handed and silly), but bodies were still involved.  They’d turn up buried in the family's fancy gardens sometimes, always heralded by those vivid red-black flowers…

Frieren (Sousou no Frieren) – I was relatively neutral on the title character until the anime came out and I had to suffer through The Discourse about her attitude towards demons (arguments on both sides tending to be poorly considered and ignorant, both of canonical details and real-world relevance).  That made me a bit more defensive of her, but even setting my contrarianism aside, I was also very pleased with how she navigated the manga’s most recent arc.[2]  She’s maybe the first character I can think of who I have actively wanted to write Asexual Representation fic for, if only because my answer to, “Does she Romantically Love Himmel?” is much more complex than just saying, “No, she only saw him as a friend,” or, “Yes, and now she’s going to be sad about her Tragically Lost Love for the rest of her life and we need to write all the fix-it fics about that.”

2: She wants to go home!  Her feelings for Himmel, whatever they are, are of less importance to her than going home!  Despite everything we know about how she perceives time, she still values her “now” more than her lost “then”!  My gloating aside, though, I was far more affected by the sword scene than I was the wedding attire or the near kiss.  Being trapped in a wedding illusion?  Trite, overplayed.  Being trapped in a wedding illusion yet still being able to wrap your hands around your partner’s arm and faithfully guide them into drawing the sword neither of you can perceive?  Now that’s intimacy!

Heiter (Sousou no Frieren) – While I had little overall use for the aforementioned most recent arc of Frieren, I did very much enjoy my favorite member of the Hero Party getting a moment to demonstrate what being The Priest Of The Party That Defeated The Demon King actually means in practice.  Grausam being unable to put him down with an illusion?  Being the only one who could defend his downed companions?  The sheer level of trust he has in Himmel?  A little bit of vulnerability where he’s bare seconds away from getting gibbed by Grausam?  Heiter is the member of the party that we get the least amount of in on: Sein didn’t stay with the party long enough to serve as a point of comparison, and despite Heiter raising Fern, she didn’t assume his role in the new group, like Stark did Eisen’s, nor do her reminiscences about him get anywhere near the amount of screentime that Frieren’s do of Himmel.  So for real, you guys, Chapter 118 was so good.

Edward (Shadows House) – *bangs fists on table*  WORST BOY WORST BOY WORST BOY!!  Anime Edward is pants, but Manga Edward is where it’s at, always keeping Kate scrambling, always coming out on top of his maneuverings against his peer group rivals, just flappable enough that his victories doesn’t look effortless, and engaging enough that his smugness feels earned rather than intended to turn the reader against him.  I have no idea how the story is going to deal with the adult shadows, who are after all still just as brainwashed and wronged by Grandfather’s workings as the kids are!  If anything, they’re worse off, having already been manipulated into losing the “faces” they must once have loved dearly.  Thus, while Kate and her allies certainly approach the conflict with a very Us vs. Them, Adults=The Enemy mentality, the screentime Edward’s own affairs get, fully independent of how they intersect with Kate’s, along with an avowed desire to improve the House that parallels Kate’s, make me hopeful that the authors have something a little more nuanced in mind than, “Free the current victims by wiping out all the previous ones.”

Melinda Desmond (Spy x Family) – The main cast are all perfectly fine, but Melinda is interesting.  Super curious to find out more about the Desmond family dynamics, and I love Melinda bouncing around with Yor. (I swear, though, judging by the collective response to the most recent chapter, the fandom is going to turn me into a Donovan Apologist yet. Only one member of that family has visible scars suggesting brain surgery, folks!!)

Anti/Knight/Gridknight (Gridman Universe) – Always my favorite single character from both Gridman and Dynazenon, and he was characteristically great in the movie as well.  His scene with Akane at the end was only my second favorite beat because, while it’s wonderful emotionally cathartic (more fanservice like this, please!), it’s also kind of muddled thanks to the idea of Gridman!Anti and Dynazenon!Knight being two separate entities. Churlish to hold that against it, though, when it's so heartfelt.

Minami Yume + Asanaka Yomogi (Gridman Universe) – Such a great pairing in their own show—I once saw someone call them forced, which has always struck me as just being too high on Bashing The Hets to see that Yomogi and Yume have a great arc towards getting together, actually.  Seeing them be unabashedly together and happy about it in the film was 100% delightful and deserved. Yume swooping down out of the sky on Dynarex to scoop up her wifeguy boyfriend is my actual favorite beat in the movie.

Hyura (Helck) – Firstly, the dry humor around Hyura is fantastic.  (“Something like an arm grows back simply enough.  That’s just common sense.”  “It doesn’t, right?”  “It does not.”)  Secondly, she’s the biggest badass in the secondary cast.  Thirdly, she and Edil have the designated rival ship dynamic (incredibly rare to see across gender lines in shounen manga), and Hyura holds her own all the way to the end.  Hyura is great.

Mikaros (Helck) – “Yes, we may have lost some assets and I personally shattered the mind of one of our strongest soldiers, removing him from the playing field.  But the important thing is that I personally overcame my trauma, so overall it’s a win.”  What a slimeball.  What a total heap.  And what an excellent example of the end-stage stakes driving the title character's choice in the epilogue! I love Mikaros unreservedly.

Harold Aldo Hughes and Iwaki Tadanobu + Sam (Canis: The Speaker) – Transformation, reinvention, the fierceness of devotion and the ruthlessness of rebirth—I don’t love them quite as much as I do Sam, but they’re also both great.

Hera (Lore Olympus) – Lore Olympus is one of those series I read more because it’s interesting enough while also being blisteringly gorgeous than because I’m deeply invested in the characters, but the plotline about Hera and Kronos really has pulled me all the way into active, character-specific interest.  Great, tense, painful stuff.  Can’t wait to see where she goes following recent events.

Redcloak (Order of the Stick) – His last really insightful and heartwrenching scene was in the year before last—that fantastic exchange with Oona!—but for as long as I’m reading OOTS, Redcloak is going to be a favorite.  God, the Law Elemental summoning is so funny.

Hyness (Kirby franchise) – This one’s entirely on my sis-in-law—like another character further down the list, I am not remotely “in” the Kirby fandom.  But what can I say—tell me about a warped cult leader who started in a bad place and only got worse who still managed to get saved by the Hero taking a leap of faith that paid off, and tell me the fandom calls him a horrible abuser?  Sorry, but I Have No Choice But To Stan. (full art here)

Lafcadio Boone (The Sexy Brutale) – Replayed this again last year, and it’s still great.  In a sense, despite its sizeable named cast, it really only has the one character, and his story is such that I want to make every single person on tumblr that gets hyperbolic about the forgiveness and redemption of fictional wrongdoers play this game.  “Time to move on, old man,” indeed.

Sissel (Ghost Trick) – Finally got the remaster of this and replayed it, and it’s also still great.  Knowing The Spoilers about Sissel seriously make replays such a scream, but also man is this game really sitting on some completely over-the-top darkness not at all far beneath its candy apple red and Matrix-text green surface.

Pavitr Prabhakar/Spider-Man India (Across the Spider-Verse) – Strictly in terms of character writing, he’s very fun, but I don’t think he’s as strong as Spider-Punk or Miguel O'Hara, but on the other hand, he’s so much fun, especially to simply watch in motion.  Most of the rest of the leads, however varied their artstyles might be, still feel like they move in basically the same ways, just with varying levels of grace vs. power, intent vs. controlled collapse, but because of the way Pavitr uses his thread, he moves completely differently, and it’s just a ton of fun to watch.  The first character I went hunting for fanart of when I got out of the movie theater.

Gwen Stacy/Spider-Woman (Across the Spider-Verse) – I have outstanding affection for Spider-Gwen from reading her comics back when, but that opening Vulture fight, the fantastic look of her dimension, and all the trans signaling kept her right at the top, too.

Brutha (Discworld: Small Gods) – @codenamesazanka read this and a few of the Watch books last year, prompting me to do some rereads as well, and Brutha and Small Gods remain very dear to me.  I only wish more artists would draw versions of him that remotely resemble “fat, simple-looking young man from a desert country in fantasy!expy!Middle East” rather than “suspiciously trim and Benedictine.”

Sam Vimes (Discworld series) – Ditto on Nal’s read above, but also chatted with foo a lot about this guy, and he’s been my favorite single character in the series since high school.  It takes very little to prompt me to reread his books generally, but last year was the first time I’ve had it in me to reread Snuff, as it was previously a little too tied up in my feelings about the last few books prior to Pratchett’s death.  Regardless of anything else, though, Snuff is the book for Sam/Sybil.

Mina Murray (#DRCL: Midnight Children) – Discovered this lush chonk of horror phantasmagoria last year and I’m kind of in love with it.  Its take on Mina anchors it well—she’s smart and fiery but up against ingrained sexism and classism in her setting, and not too Anachronistic Grrl Power to not be hurt by that sometimes; she’s stubborn, but vulnerable to the supernatural horrors in the way any child would be.  An unreliable but intriguing and sympathetic narrator.

Capone Bege (One Piece) – The other character I got onto largely without getting into the series he hails from, nickfoo—whose art I again use to illustrate—does great work with this guy, a once-jovial monster shocked back from that moral brink by marriage and fatherhood.  Still gets a bit Into It at work, but tries not to bring it home, at least as much as that can be avoided when carrying both family and crew around in the same heart/sub-dimensional space.  (Also, foo’s version of Bege is great, but her rendition of Chiffon is—speaking as someone who doesn’t read the series and can only gauge by image search or skimming the wiki—borderline miraculous, accurate to Oda’s lively caricature design, but so much more sensitive, expressive and human.)

Prince Kazu/Lady Chikako (Ooku: The Inner Chambers) – On the occasion of the Netflix anime, I finally tracked down and finished Ooku last year, and when I tell you that I laughed more and harder in the final arc than I did through the entire rest of the series combined…  The Kyoto cast members are a big part of why,[3] and none more delightful than the stuffy, prideful, possessive, and deeply impetuous Chikako, one of the most singularly human characters in the whole 19-volume melodrama.

3: Catty ex-male prostitute turned head of the Inner Chambers Takiyama is the other part of this equation, by the way.

Gao Shun (The Apothecary Diaries) – Long-suffering stoics are my absolute favorite type, and that holds true even though Gao Shun's stoicism has been largely a humorous beat thus far.  I want this guy to get more attention, but until then, I will continue to enjoy his weary exasperation every time he has to deal with Mao Mao’s eccentricities/Jinshi’s enthusiasm about same.

Mao Mao (The Apothecary Diaries) – Best female character of the season, for sure, but I’ve been reading one of the manga for a while now, and she’s a regular delight.  Eccentric and ruthless by turns, painfully aware of the limitations of her position and yet wholly willing to make her own decisions and exert her own agency within those limitations without ever concerning herself with whether she should ask permission from or report to someone above her rank.  Mao Mao’s mercy takes the form of knowing when to speak and when to demure, and every time I see some stuck-in-their-own-ethical-framework commenter complain about her moral compass, I appreciate it harder.

Accustomizer Stud/Tiffany (Angelic Acceptor Alouette) – Enthusiastically resourceful teenage girl who would probably be super into transhumanism if she hadn’t fallen in with angels (sic) instead, transforming into the gloriously nonbinary pile of muscles and amazing hair that is Accustomizer Stud, Tiffany’s ultimate expression of her inner self.  Stud is magnanimous, gracious, and well-spoken, and they are also VERY LOUD AND FIGHTY.  My absolute favorite character in a game wall-to-wall with great characters.

Yuunagi Tsubasa/Cure Wing (Hirogaru Sky PreCure) – The first Official Boy Cure with absolutely no provisos or qualifications or ways to wiggle out of it, and the show gets him just right by playing him basically completely straight.  Has a costume no one would look twice at in a magical girl line-up, wastes no time on masculine embarrassment at his frills, with the only nod he/the show make towards his gender at all being to frame his role as being a knight to a princess, rather than simply a guardian to one, but it’s not really what he’s about.  His actual character is driven by knowledge, studiousness, and a desire to overcome the limitations placed on him by being a human/pudgy flightless bird fairy.

Kei Miyama (Go With the Clouds, North By Northwest) – Something of a stand-in for his series generally, which I read the two most recent volumes of last year and fell in love with all over again—particularly the most recent one, which switches deftly between depictions of shattering, world-hollowing grief and the beguiling intimacy of the rhythms of life and nature.  But my love for the manga itself aside, Kei’s a great protagonist, full of little contradictions and snags that make him feel much more fleshed out and grounded than your average animanga male lead, even as he’s running around doing very Animanga Male Lead Things, like solving mysteries by using his Strange Power to get information a normal person could not.

Lord El-Melloi II/Waver Velvet (Fate franchise) – Waver is possibly my favorite character of all time in any medium, so it takes very little to rekindle the love.  In last year's case, it took the Fate/strange Fake special!  Love to see my boy continue to wrest more narrative space for himself than he was originally allotted by virtue of being a run-away audience favorite of the Fate/Zero anime!

Ivan (Giant Robo: The Day the Earth Stood Still) – Got the remastered Blu-ray last year as a gift, and guess what?  I still love Ivan in all his cartoonish mini-boss villainy layered over the pathos of tragic loss and resentment.  Honestly, I can only assume he’s as well-adjusted as he is because Alberto is so inspiring to work in close quarters with (mood), because otherwise I’d think it pretty unfair that the sole surviving Bashtarle national in the story gets so little to say about/to the people who blew it up.

Isurugi Camice (Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans) – I was a bit too preoccupied with BNHA meta last year to think much about my prior fandom phase, but I still made time to rotate Isurugi in my mind from time to time.  As one of my beloved long-suffering stoics, I can always make that kind of time for him.  (Image source is from the cover of a doujinshi I have, because melancholy BL doujinshi is definitely more the kind of tonal zone my mental rotations were occupying than they were canon’s!)

And, finally, the blank

(If anyone reading this wants to give it a whirl, I reccommend blowing it up to x2 size; makes the small squares easier to work with.)

[thatinsufferablenerd]

Post Spooky Update

The weather is slowly cooling off here finally. Spooky Season is over and another year has gone by without reading any scary books or movies like I say I’m gonna do every year. I’ve been enjoying all the festive content in my different social media feeds instead. Horror book recs from BookTube, video essays that analyze aspects of the horror genre, discussions of films or anime that set the mood. I probably should be more embarrassed of how much YouTube I watch, but seeing as I’m a housewife with a passion for learning and too many interests to succinctly sum up, I’m not going to lose too much sleep over it. 

I wish I did have some mood appropriate reads to tell you about. I love books, I love storytelling, I love getting lost in a good book, but my ability to actually get into–let alone through–books has atrophied so much I’ve concluded it’s a Me ProblemTM. When I was young, in elementary and middle school, I could read a book a day. I DID for a long time, exchanging the one I just finished for something new during lunch. And then I got older. I got into movies and writing, I had a job, then I had longer hours, then I had kids that I stayed home with. The library was too far to walk to, we didn’t have money to buy books, and I was too tired to read them anyway. It was easier to focus on honing my craft of writing because it was simpler to hit the backspace button when a toddler smacked my keyboard than risk a library book.

And I regret that. The act of consuming story and pure, distilled joy I get from them is a core part of who I am. If I didn’t love reading, I would never have developed a love for writing. If I didn’t love the stories and characters I read in books, I would never have discovered the love I have for analyzing and discussing them. I would never have learned about the relationship between literature and culture, that I love learning about historical context, the art of interpretation, or linguistics, things like that. Ever since I stopped reading piles of books or trade paperbacks of comics from the library, I’ve said to myself every few months “I miss reading”, “I want to get back into reading”. 

It’s not like I haven’t read anything since I was nineteen. Of course I have. I read all five books in the A Song of Ice and Fire series in the span of a year. I read monthly releases of DC comics for years, picked up pulpy romance novels ‘just as a palate cleanser!’, I tried starting book clubs with friends, promises of ‘I won’t buy or borrow any books until I read the ones I have’. And then I’d get through a few chapters of whatever I picked up only to put it down for the last time. I’ve made some progress! I read A Song of Achilles and Circe by Madelline Miller, Skyward by Brandon Sanderson, I accidentally read the sequel to Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter? In the last year. And I’ve gotten further in a lot of the books I’ve picked up than before. I’ve been reading manga more than anything the last few years. My Hero Academia, Spy x Family, My Dress-up Darling, Dungeon Meshi, Demon Slayer, One Piece, all stories I’ve enjoyed and have a lot to say about! I re-read the last six volumes of Demon Slayer a few weeks ago and wrote an entire comment section dissertation about it, the latest installment in a series that serves as the quiet void I shout into.

The first step for me was probably accepting that I’m never going to be able to read like I did in middle school. That’s okay, right? I might not have a JOB, but I am a grown-up with grown-up things to do. And it’s not like I’ve been sitting on my ass the whole time. I’ve learned so much, like how to actually form opinions, how to interpret text, how to analyze properly, how to do research, how to really write, among so many other things. Things I had to teach myself. I know, they say ‘the best writers are also prolific readers’. I believe that, I really do. I would never claim that I’m some genius writer and better than people who have gone to school for this or are so well-read that it improves their prose by default. What I am saying is that…I want to get there. I miss reading. 

So, I set a small goal for myself. There are so many books out there that I want to read. And sure, my little local library has a limited catalog, and Libby has at least two weeks’ waits on everything, and I can’t afford to buy books brand new, but we can only work with what we have, not what we don’t. I’ve decided to read one contemporary book, one classic, and one (ish) manga a month. Sure, there are going to be some blurred lines here, but I think we’re all mature enough to handle that. I’m going to define ‘classics’ as anything more than a century old. Slaughterhouse Five is newer than that but it is taught as a classic and on my TBR, so maybe it will count as a classic for that month. Who knows? We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. And if the manga is long, say, more than three hundred chapters, then I might split it into two months. 

With that being said, my picks for November are: A Hero of France by Alan Furst, Tolkien’s translation of Beowulf, and for the manga, Bleach.

My local library had a book sale recently. I bought a hundred and thirty books for eighty-five dollars in two trips. Not all of them are novels! I’m very proud of the memoirs and other non-fiction books I got. But that should keep me occupied for a good while yet. Not to mention the books I already have. That Furst novel is one of the ones I picked up last year at the book sale. It’s historical fiction about an agent in the French Resistance. I like historical fiction, I think it’s a versatile genre for both readers and writers. I read about half of a book called Lion’s Blood that was alternate US History last year that I’m gonna have to go back to because I STILL think about it. Anyway, that Furst novel. I’m about halfway through and I’m going to finish it. I’m invested enough to see it through, and I’m enjoying the experience. When I finish it and have had some time to collect my thoughts, you’ll be hearing them. 

While at that book sale, my almost nine-year-old became infatuated with a book. He liked the cover and title so much that he wanted me to buy it for him. I told him, “Buddy, this book would be a tough read for a grown-up.” He said he would figure it out, that he would ask for help when he needed it. The book was a dollar, so I bought it. I can’t say I’ve ever read Clive Cussler, but if I can help him understand it, I can be persuaded to read dry historical fiction. I know enough about WWII to explain what’s going on to him. It’s not on my list to get done by the end of November, but it is a high priority read. 

I picked Beowulf (and this translation) specifically because A) I know how influential Beowulf is on western storytelling, B) I’m a fan of Tolkien as a writer as well as his love of and gift for languages, C) I watched Monstrum’s episode on Grendel’s Mother and the Cardinal West YouTube documentary on Tolkien in the last few months, both of which I enjoyed a lot, and finally D) I’m a fan of Dr. Chase from The Best of Fantasy. My friend was kind enough to surprise me with a shiny new copy. It’s probably going to be a difficult read for me. I plan on taking notes and going slow to really digest it. I’m also trying to talk my mom into a buddy read, but we’ll see how the cookie actually crumbles with that one. 

Now, for how I landed on Bleach. I watched the entirety of Naruto and Shippuden (yes, even the filler) back in 2020, 2021, and then binged One Piece in 2023 into the early part of this year. So, of course, the insufferable nerd in me said ‘I want to be able to say I’ve seen the Big Three’. So I watched the anime. I wasn’t that impressed with it. Yes, certain characters stayed in my brain, yes I LOVE the Thousand Year Blood War (I’m currently behind), but it didn’t really hit me like Naruto and One Piece did. I thought the passion of the fandom might get me more into it. I tried art, lore videos, discussion, analysis, and that did help! But Bleach just…kinda fell by the wayside for me. A lot of fans say the anime isn’t as good as the manga, but it’s a long series. I didn’t have the time or energy to commit, especially when I had other series I was actually into to follow. I do follow One Piece, Spy x Family, and My Dress-up Darling on release. I followed MHA for more than three years week to week, only binging the last hundred or so chapters last month after its conclusion. 

And then AJ dropped his video titled ‘The Hollow Melancholy of Bleach’. It brings up some of the feelings I had watching the Fullbringer Arc and the Thousand Year Blood War and expresses something the anime just…didn’t capture for me. But that video and Geoff Thew from Mother’s Basement’s video on Bleach finally sold me. It took me a couple weeks, according to the notes I’ve been taking I started on October fourteenth. 

The manga is fantastic. I tried for thirty chapters a day and haven’t been as consistent as I’d like, but I’m in the two-sixties now. The art is beautiful, the character writing is great, the fights are intense, the vibes immaculate and the emotions are SO deep, so complex and resonant. I am so glad I jumped in, and I’m going to continue to take notes as I go. 

Reading isn’t the only thing I do, obviously. My first love will always be writing. I took a bit of a break cough-BookTube-cough, but picking it back up is always a joy. I’ll probably be spending some time in front of my white board in the near future working out some world building details that were not super relevant till now. I watched Jake over at Nerd Level Rising talk to Christopher Ruocchio and was sent into a PANIC over idiolects and regional dialect features, which I’ve been doing all along, just not enough? I guess? I looked everything over and did some light edits, took some notes to make things more consistent. Culture is a complex web, all interconnected and inseparable from the individual parts. Building them is hard work, a job that never seems to end, even if the document of notes is for me, not the hypothetical reader. 

You could say that I was too heavily influenced by long form stories with extended casts, because even though I’m closing in on a hundred and seventy thousand words, I’m in part two of…five? Maybe? In epic fantasy, there are so many moving parts to keep track of at any given moment aside from the nuts and bolts of prose and pacing. I worry all the time that everything I have is trash, and even if it isn’t, it would never get picked up by a trad publisher and I won’t be able to afford self-publishing. I’ve had some other sets of eyes on my prologue as alpha readers. Positive, encouraging feedback that I’m grateful for! It’s not the same thing as having someone who’s familiar with the story, who knows where my head is at, where I’m going. I don’t write to publish, I do it because I love it. But I’ve been writing for twenty years, and actively working to get better at it for fifteen of them. There’s just nothing to show for it. Everything I’ve finished has ended up in an old computer’s recycle bin or in a literal paper shredder, with abandoned works in progress along the way. As terrifying as it is to expose yourself to the light, it’s impossible to soak in the warmth of sunlight in the dark. 

I’m going back to the grindstone when I’m done here. I won’t give up. 

Other than all the YouTube distractions and trying to rightfully earn the title of bibliophile, I’ve been trying to watch shows again. Just a few things. I watched Kaguya-sama: Love is War and loved it, enough to put the manga on my TBR. I finally got around to watching Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End with the same result. I watched Dungeon Meshi twice, read the manga front to back. What a story! I’ve been meaning to write an essay on it, but I can’t imagine having anything to say that hasn’t already been said. I watched Mob Psycho 100 and can’t express enough how much it resonated with me. For the first time, I watched Over the Garden Wall. The kerfluffle on Twitter over it being removed and restored to Hulu recently had me digging that up. Quality Culture did a great essay on that series last year which I highly recommend. My friends have been obsessed with the new Interview With the Vampire series, enough to read the books, so I watched three episodes of season one and liked it a lot. I’ll get around to it. I watched Steven Universe: Future, which I’ve been wanting to for a while. We watched the main series with our kids and enjoyed it, and I thought the sequel series built on the themes and story well.

And like everyone else in the anime community right now, I’m watching Dandadan. It’s GREAT. The animation, the sound design and OST, the character writing, the action, all of it is just stunning. It’s funny and got a lot of heart to it. Momo and Okarun are so cute. I haven’t watched the new set of episodes in the Thousand Year Blood War yet, but I’ll catch up in the next week or so. I’ve been impressed with this adaptation, especially with the old series not really pulling me in until its final episodes. Not only is it visually enrapturing, it really hits on the atmosphere and emotions; not just in service to the story but truly elevates the material. 

With all the things I take in, it’s probably no surprise that there’s no less than five trains of thought going on at any given time. That video Tale Foundry did last week about Weird Tales and pulp fantasy, and this comment arguing that the fanfic community has stepped in to fill that niche? Yeah, I’m still thinking about it. Zoe Bee’s most recent drop about how metaphor influences the way we think and how that relates to politics? Of course I’m thinking about it! Not just about how it affects rhetoric but how it affects diction in prose, which is more my wheelhouse. Princess Weekes’ follow up to her ‘Tall, Dark and Racially Ambiguous’ essay surrounding casting Heathcliff gave me food for thought, and Jess of the Shire’s fantastic essay ‘Monstrosity & the Vampire’ did too. Tim over at Hello Future Me did a video about ‘Arcology: The City in the Image of Man’ and I’m still chewing on that one too. How could I not? The ideas presented there are FASCINATING, big picture questions about structuring society and the growing subgenre of solarpunk. Broey Deschanel and Final Girl Studios both doing amazing videos on The Substance? Of course I’m over here thinking about them! Final Girl Studios’ essay is called ‘The Simulacrum of Feminine Performance’, how could I not sit here and think about that, and what that is, and what that means?? And on top of all that, I opted into a DnD one shot in a couple weeks! Gonna need a character for that, one that’s PG…man, I’ve been busy! 

[noire-pandora]

I got tagged by @rakshadow @musetta3 @in-arlathan @barbex @pedlimwen @cleverblackcat @kittynomsdeplume @pikapeppa for the fic writers' end of the year round up: 2022 edition.

Thank you for the tag and for thinking about me. You all are wonderful and inspiring writers and your presence and works are to be admired.

Words written (published or not, WIPs included): I wrote 122.381 words this year! More than I wrote last year. I'm proud of myself for writing this much even if I lost my steam in the last months because life. Nevertheless, wow I wrote those words!!

Here's the recording. Mine is different cuz I add my daily word count in a sheet. This year, the data starting from Sept to Dec was lost. So I almost did a table flip. Until I remembered I ALSO use a writing bot to record my daily word counts so I re-added the lost word count in the sheet to get the total.....the things I do for fanfic 😂

Smut scenes:.......0. Gosh darn it. One of my goals this year was to write an entire smut scene but I failed. 2023 has to be the year!!! My Lavellan is waiting for me to start it 😂

New things I tried: I jumped into exchanges and I wrote pairings and characters I never wrote. I participated in art trades and OC exchanges. I submerged my tiny writer feet in lots of fandom stuff and it was fun! I can't wait to do it even more this year!

Fic I spent the most time on: Definitely Daughter of Fire/Herald of Spirit. I spent so so many hours writing the chapters, editing them and re-editing them. It was so much fun and I want to do it again this year! I feel more confident with my English skills and I kinda....don't care anymore if people like it or not. Life kicked my ass and writing must be my calm down hobby.

Fic I spent the least time on: I usually spend lots of time working on what I post because I'm like that. The things I wrote and was semi-relaxed with were my DADWC drabbles. I did work a lot of those too but not so much as on the other things.

Favourite thing I wrote: Daughter of Fire. It's my special project. But I did had lots of fun writing for the art exchanges! Writing about other OCs is fun!

Favourite thing I read: gods I read so so many fanfics this year. And over 20 books and manga. I can't pick! I'm grateful for every fic and book I read cuz it kept me sane. Thank you for writing them!

Writing goals for 2023:

1. Write that darned smut fic. Istg, if I don't get it done this year, I will flip two tables. 😂

2. Try to finish DoF. I think two years for a long fic are enough. I want to be more confident about publishing my long fic even if now I don't have a beta. Anyone feeling like beta-ing me? 😂

3. Participate in more exchanges and give more writing gifts. Because gifting people is fun and writing about other OCs is fun.

4. Reach 200.000 words in a year. Fingers crossed.

5. Have fun because that's the only thing that matters.

I'm going to tag: @rosella-writes @darethshirl @little-lightning-lavellan @thebookworm0001 @anneapocalypse @thedastrash @knightdawn @potatowitch @pinkfadespirit @johaerys-writes @plisuu @fandomn00blr @crackinglamb @oxygenforthewicked @inquisimer @queenaeducan @perlen-gold @anderstrevelyan @melisusthewee @isk4649 @a11sha11fade @dreadfutures @sidhelives @retrowondergirl @bluewren and anyone who wants to do it. Please don't feel forced to participate and please be proud of what you've written this year. No matter how "small" or "big" it is. You wrote and that's all that matters.

Thank you for all the support you've given me and to my works. To many more fanfics this year! Cheers!

[enruiinas]

𝐅𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐌 𝐑𝐄𝐅𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐓: for read/watch progress and AU/verse plotting purposes. I love AUs & verses in general and am always happy to use a fandom we're both familiar with as a starting point, whether it's borrowing the whole setting, elements we enjoyed or both recognize from a fandom, etc. This is a long post so I'll read-more after "currently reading/watching" - a full list of fandoms I'm familiar with or enjoy is available below the cut.

bold - fandoms i'm familiar enough to base an AU on, pull elements from, etc. italicized - fandoms i'm fairly confident on my grasp of. can base an AU on or pull elements from, but might need a tiny bit of time to revisit some things. ★ - muses from this fandom will likely feature on or will soon be tested on the multimuse i'm working on in the background.

𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐋𝐘 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆/𝐖𝐀𝐓𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆:

★ ONE PIECE. (manga re-read): ch. 339/????. I am technically "caught up" through the end of Wano and peep on spoilers for the ongoing arc, but as I speed-read the entire thing in a month last year, I'm not always super confident in my grasp on the second half of the series because I was so ready to be caught up. Wano grasp is particularly abysmal but I'm okay with exploring ongoing Egghead stuff with Law in interactions. [Potential muses: Baby 5, Mihawk, Usopp] ★ FAIRY TAIL. (manga first-time read): ch. 285/545.

★ POKEMON (mostly Kanto/Johto stuff though). I grew up on Pokémon and love lol things Kanto/Johto but haven’t watched, played, or read anything since Ruby and Sapphire were current content. I’m starting from scratch and working my way up again, beginning with Pokemon Adventures (manga) and Pokémon Origins + an original Kanto rewatch on Netflix.

𝐅𝐔𝐋𝐋 𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐅𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐌𝐒 𝐈 𝐄𝐍𝐉𝐎𝐘:

Anime / Manga:

★ ONE PIECE. see above. ★ FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST: BROTHERHOOD. I haven't watched FMA (2003) in years, but it's on my list to revisit. [Potential muses: Winry Rockbell] ★ DEMON SLAYER. Have dabbled in Demon Slayer muses and plan to bring them back after a rewatch to spark my muse again. [Potential muses: TBD pending revisit.] ★ FAIRY TAIL. Reading for the first time. Current progress: ch. 285/545. Potential muses (once I've completed my read only): Cana Alberona, Loke, Gray Fullbuster, Levy McGarden. CHARLOTTE. Anime. This is one I would love to explore AU plots based on. It's short (13 episodes?) and I would probably revisit before jumping into anything but highly recommend if you're looking for a short anime to watch sometimes. ★ NORAGAMI. I slacked off following the manga there for a bit at the end and would need to revisit, but might add muses after a re-read. [Potential muses: TBD pending revisit.] ★ TOILET-BOUND HANAKO-KUN. Need to revisit, but I loved what I'd read so far and would likely end up adding muses. ★ BUNGOU STRAY DOGS.

★ ANGEL BEATS.

Movies:

LABYRINTH. 1986 - the David Bowie movie. always a fave. ★ DISNEY MOVIES. Pretty much any, but my favorites are Hercules*, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Emperor's New Groove, Lilo & Stitch... HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE. (Also reading the book trilogy at the moment, currently on 2/3. Potential muses: Sophie Hatter, Lettie Hatter, Martha Hatter.) SPIRITED AWAY. BARBIE (2023).

Books:

A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES. I loooove ACTOAR but it's admittedly been a while. I want to reread soon! (mun confession: after getting @climatact I realized the full extent to which Law is accidentally/unintentionally Rhys-coded. Oops.) ARTEMIS FOWL My all-time favorite book series. I re-read this at least once a year. I doubt I'll add muses, but I'm definitely familiar enough with it I feel like I could muse almost anyone. PRIDE & PREJUDICE. Won't add muses, but enjoy a lot of themes & character tropes/archetypes here. THE LAST UNICORN. [finished 2/19/2024.]

TV Shows:

★ Once Upon a Time. Other than the last season, probably my favorite TV show, but I'm due for a rewatch. [Potential muses: not sure yet but there will be some.]

Video Games:

LEGEND OF ZELDA: OCARINA OF TIME. STARDEW VALLEY.

* - I love Greek mythology (or any polytheistic belief system) in general. There are probably plenty of things i'd need to read up on but I am always up for Greek mythology or fairy tale (Disney-fied or original versions) inspired verses/themes.

𝐅𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐌𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃/𝐖𝐀𝐓𝐂𝐇:

Inuyasha

Pokemon (Anime? Manga? Games? Where do I wanna start?)

ATLA

Yu-Gi-Oh

Kaoru Hana Wa Rin To Saku.

[yuamusuzuran]

Some BL manga I read in the past 4 months:

Haven't posted one of these in a hot minute, life! But rating is the same as with the last post!

💜 Not risky, anyone can enjoy it

🖤 Theme not for everyone/depends on taste/may be triggering for some people

February

"Cherry blossoms after Winter" by Bamwoo

I absolutely adore this story and its longevity. We got to see their relationship bloom from highschool until they became responsible adults. Would always recommand.

Personal rating: 💜💜💜💜

****

March

"Sign" by Ker

I don't usually see disability in BL and I always appreciate when I find a gem like this. Soohwa is absolute lunatic and so whipped foe Yohan, I adore their relationship. So fluffy and hot at the same time but also had me on the edge of my seat on a couple occasions! Always recommand!

Personal rating: 💜💜💜💜

"Good day to go crazy" by Yusa

When a part-timer gets employed to look after an idol who's in a lot of emotional distress.This story seemed to be all over the place at time, but it still has some good moments that had me invested. Because of mentions on mental illness and other triggering things, read at your own risk!

Personal rating: 🖤🖤🖤

××××

April

"Sensei wa Nekketsu ga Areba Juubunda!" and "Manager ni natte mo mondainai!" by Zawarc & Fuerzabruta

Not much to say about these oneshots: very basic plot and a lot of smut. Don't think about it too much, it was actually kinda hilarious. Its not everyone's cup of tea, but if you like smth that's basically a p*rn, knock yourself out with these ones!

Personal rating: 🖤🖤🖤🖤

"100% Love Gauge" by Yeoro & Sagold

This one is very cute, short and simple: a huge BL game otaku sees a guy at his university that looks just like his favorite character in the game and the story goes from there! Will definitely be a sweet and fun read, trust me!

Personal rating: 💜💜💜💜

"Your Skin is Tinged Red like Burning with Heat" by Yuho Okita

Two beach volleyball players are forced to play in pairs for the upcoming tournament despite their personalities being jarringly different and them not liking each other in the slightest. Rather intriguing story with a bit of angst and lots of emotions. Loved it!

Personal rating: 💜💜💜💜

"Umibe no Etranger" by Kii Kanna

Watched the movie before reading this. Its so sweet and some details give even more context to their relationship. I'll definitely re-read this when I need a positivity booster! Big like!

Personal rating: 💜💜💜💜💜

"Nisemono DK ha Haru wo Uru" by Yoko Misumi

Story of Haru who works as a s*x worker and mostly pretends to be a highschooler despite being in his twenties and Takashiro who's attracted to entire school boy aesthetic. It was unexpectedly wholesome ngl.

Personal rating: 💜💜💜

****

May

"Love so Pure" by PlanB

Love this one so much, mostly because of the shifting focus on various couples and how all characters became this lively, lovely bunch of friends. Very heart-warming with right amount of angst and thrill. Highly recommand!

Personal rating: 💜💜💜💜

[megsbooklr]

End of the year book-reading ask game

(Part 5)

22. What are some books you discovered this year that you added to your tbr?

Murder Your Employer: The McMaster's Guide to Homicide by Rupert Holmes

The Licanius Trilogy by James Islington

Under the Earth, Over the Sky by Emily McCosh

Onmyoji and Tengu Eyes series by Yoshiko Utamine

23. What new releases did you read this year?

Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson

Yumi and the Nightmare Painter by Brandon Sanderson

Heir of Uncertain Magic by Charlie N. Holmberg

24. What new releases are you looking forward to next year?

Besides English translations of Chinese and Japanese novels-

By authors I already know and like:

The Brides of High Hill by Nghi Vo

The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton

A Crane Among Wolves by June Hur

The Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P. Djeli Clark

Heavenly Tyrant by Xiran Jay Zhao

Echo of the Blue Mountain by J. F. Lee

By new authors (so I'm judging just by the vibes and early reviews):

The City of Stardust by Georgia Summers

A Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal

The Girl With No Reflection by Keshe Chow

The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett

25. If you had to give a TEDTalk on a book you read this year, for better or worse, which would it be?

Devil Venerable Also Wants To Know by Cyan Wings - I HAVE SO MUCH TO SAY ABOUT THIS NOVEL ADFGHKJHGASDNHGFDSX

26. What are your reading goals for next year?

Read Stephen King's entire Dark Tower. And do a liveblog while I'm at it :D

Read more of Tolkien's writing - finish The Nature of Middle Earth, read The Fall of Numenor....

Try reading works of Edgar Allan Poe, H. Rider Haggard, Wilkie Collins, E. W. Hornung.

Read freely, according to my mood - and allow myself to read fan fics, re-read favourite books, read classics, manga, webtoons, webnovels and not feel any pressure because of any of it :D

Book buying ban in the form of keeping tight budget for books, manga and audiodramas each month, and not overspend.

[rigelmejo]

anyone else like doing weird language challenges?

i love testing out ‘study methods’ or ‘study challenges’ and seeing if they work.

(behold my entire ‘listening reading method’ tag for all the attempts i did trying to learn a language that way... which tbh was relatively successful, i feel the actual Full method would probably work effectively, its just i never have enough time to do the full version and test it properly - which is going through an entire book in a week then re-going through for a few more weeks).

if you’re a beginner in a language, i offer some challenges i have done to some degree in the past (and want to dedicate a full proper-attempt into where i go through the entire material, when i have the time). if you try any of these, please let me know your results or tag me i’d love to hear how it goes for you!

Try clozemaster to ‘learn a language.’ Basic challenge: go through as MANY sentences in the ‘most common words’ collection of your chosen language as possible in a month (or other specified time limit). You can skip reviews if you desire/when you desire, goal is just to get through as many new words as possible. Ideally: at some point listen to sentences too, attempt to read sentences in the target language (each sentence provides these elements). Alternative: purchase clozemaster premium, click Radio Mode, proceed to do as much radio mode as you can in your specified time limit. Ideally: at SOME point reading the sentences while radio mode is playing, so you get Some reading practice and not just listening practice. Combined challenge: go through as many sentences as you can in specified time period, and play Radio Mode during down time (since you can just turn it on then listen to it in the background as you do other things) - ideally you would be targeting initial learning with the sentence flashcard mode, and ‘comprehensible input’ review of what you studied with radio mode. Without radio mode - simply do the Basic Challenge. Note* you do not have to memorize or ‘master’ any sentence, simply go through as much of the content as you can. For fun (if you want to test your progress) watch and/or read something in japanese before you do the challenge. Then watch/read something in japanese once you’re done with the challenge. I did a variation on this challenge last summer and ‘crash studied’ about 600 common words in sentences (I was not a complete beginner - I had gone through several Genki chapters years ago, had familiarity with some particles and real basic kanji, knew kana, and knew a smattering of basic words from Genki - but far from a lot). At the start of this challenge I could not read manga without a dictionary and even with a dictionary could only grasp ‘main chapter ideas’, I could not hear anything but occasional isolated words in jdramas. After this challenge i could read the manga i own without a dictionary and general grasp main idea per sentence as well as per chapter, and for the first time in my life had some basic listening comprehension for jdramas, I could also start to play Kingdom Hearts in japanese (which i know the plot of so i do have prior context to rely on - but basic conversational speech and grammar had gotten easier to get through basically). Seeing my improvement was really cool, and in a way it helped me improve in a way Nukemarine’s japanese decks didn’t (because clozemaster had more sentences in a variety of formats whereas Nukemarine’s decks like Genki tend to be more proper grammar in gradual introductions catered to learners). My goal for this challenge last summer had been to improve reading skill and improve listening skill, not necessarily expand vocabulary, so I expected to still need to look words up but to have less issues afterward of comprehension of things like grammar I’d already ‘studied.’ Which this study method addressed fairly well. Warnings on study material: Clozemaster does not screen all their sentences - the sentences were originally example sentences pulled from user-made collection Tatoeba website. So the translations are not always literal, occasionally the translations have errors, and sentence content varies wildly. I personally do not find this an issue, because if you were a person trying to do the ‘anki 10k sentence mining in your target language’ you would also likely have sentences with grammar/word translation errors (since you being a learner would not accurately translate all your cards despite your best efforts). So I find clozemaster to be a nice option for those wanting to try a similar method to ‘sentence mining’ but who do not care if the cards are personally made/in a more niche topic area specific to you. As a total beginner? If you do this challenge you need to know there will be some errors and learn cautiously by assuming what you ‘learn’ may be contradicted later and learn to adapt as you realize errors later (which if you made your own sentence mining you may also want to practice). As a beginner who already knows some stuff? This method will suit you much better because you will likely already recognize the error sentences and can simply mark them to be ignored, will notice when a non-literal translation is used and use that to interpret HOW an example word is used differently in your target language, and just in general you’ll be more aware of recognizing when something ‘might’ be an error you need to be more skeptical of. In short: if you’re a beginner PLEASE be mindful not every translation is accurate/perfect (though the vast majority are ‘good enough’ to learn from). And in general, its worth applying that assumption to other learning materials you engage with as well - from dual subtitles, to textbooks, more materials have ‘slightly off’ to ‘wrong’ translations than you’d think and the skill of identifying when its not quite a perfect-match is useful.

Go through a ‘Learn by the Nature Method’ book. Go to Ayan Academy on Youtube, pick a beginner comprehensible input book for the language you are studying (Italian, French, German, Spanish etc). Basic challenge: proceed to watch through the videos until you complete the series (or cover as much material as you can within your decided time limit). Read along as the video plays so you see the spelling as well as hear the pronunciation. Alternate challenge: if you are ONLY focused on reading skill (or like me enjoy reading old books), go onto archive.org or similar library sites, find one of these books, and read through them. Additional options: study the videos further in a manner you prefer, or in a manner that suits your language goals. So you may also listen to these videos in the background, to practice listening skills and potentially just get more comprehensible input into your day. You may practice reading these videos out loud along with the audio to practice shadowing and work on pronunciation etc. Apply whatever study methods you like to use on things. Alternates to Ayan Academy: if you are studying another language they don’t have materials for, search ‘target-language comprehensible input’ on youtube. Channels I know of with good lessons: Spanish - Dreaming Spanish, Korean - Learn Korean in Korean, French - Alice Ayel and French Comprehensible Input. This challenge is mainly to see if ‘comprehensible input method’ style learning meshes well with you (for me it is definitely a preferred study method for me). I also love testing how far particular study materials made in this style can take you. The ‘Learn By Nature Method’ books claim in their introductions that they will take you far enough to be conversational and read at a B1 level (so news, books/novels that aren’t too hard) so that you will have enough language skill to then proceed to KEEP learning your target language by consuming content in that language and having conversations in that language. I have wanted to complete one of the textbooks in this style for a while, to see if it really brings a learner up to such a skill level. In the past, I read 300 pages of the French version of this textbook and it did seem to boost my reading level significantly - enough that I could switch to french grammar study using only french materials, and just reading french things i wanted. i did not have audio back at the time though, so i’d like to use the material again this time with the audio benefit. also i never completed the textbook, and i wonder if it would still offer a reading-skill boost since i clearly did not cover everything it teaches. I’d also love to find out if it covers less material than it claims or not. Note that youtube channels focusing on comprehensible input may not all teach up to such a skill level, so if you’re testing them I do not know what the final ‘skill level’ you should expect to obtain should be. I recommend browsing any comprehensible input channel you find to see how high the material they cover goes to (like French Comprehensible Input channel has a playlist for B2 and C1 so... if i were ‘testing’ out the method i’d see if their video lessons would help me break into at least B1-B2 skill level somewhat... I suspect the channel would need additional resources to supplement study though, depending on if the channel’s goal includes genuinely introducing all the words of a skill level to you or not). Warning on content: these books are OVER 50 years old and just like a history book that old, these textbooks contain some outdated content as far as language used and as far as things considered acceptable. Expect some words/grammar taught to either no longer be in use or no longer considered appropriate. Remember to view these textbooks as the quite old materials they are, they’re as much a glance into the climate at the time. This warning also applies to any textbooks you will find when searching for ‘nature method’ type textbooks, since a lot of the ones i’ve found are from 1900-1950, i’ve seen german ones and russian ones with similar issues of outdated values and some outdated language usage in terms of words/grammar.

Go through an ‘audio flashcards’ course - either to completion, or get through as much material as you can within the time limit you decide on. Basic challenge: find a course, and simply listen through all the material. It is entirely up to you on if you listen entirely in the background, or make time to give your full attention to the material as you listen to each file the first time. I recommend at least being able to pay attention as much as you would in a classroom lecture or to a conversation with a friend (so if you plan to multitask then maybe listening during a walk, while driving, while level grinding in a video game, basically doing something where you Actually Hear what you are listening to and can comprehend the meaning). Optional: also review the material by either re-listening to earlier flashcards in the background as you do other things, or re-listening to earlier flashcard files every so often, or any other way you choose to review such as perhaps reading a transcript. Also optional: shadow the audio flashcards - attempt to speak along with the audio to practice speaking. This study method is more focused on if you want to learn through audio, and learn listening comprehension. If you wish to learn speaking skills from this, at minimum you may want to speak aloud alongside the audio files at least once. If you wish to learn reading skills, you need to get ahold of the accompanying book or transcript. The idea with this study method is a way of using flashcards that WORKS for people who cannot focus on flashcards, and/or who want a study method they can do while multitasking. Or if you want to improve listening skills, this study method is ideal for re-listening to in the background over and over even if you aren’t fully paying attention. I used audio flashcards to improve my listening skill, just by playing them in the background as i level grinded in video games, walked, or did office work. After a month my listening comprehension had improved on words I knew, my overall listening sentence comprehension improved, and i had picked up some new words from context (though this aspect likely depends on how comprehensible the new sentences you hear are - i used Chinese Spoonfed and Clozemaster Japanese radio mode which are both organized by common words first, so sentences were fairly comprehensible at all times with usually only 1-2 new words per sentence). Material options. If you study Japanese, japaneseaudiolessons.com has a free course and accompanying transcript document. You can simply work through their audio lessons. If you search ‘Core 2k pimsleur’ you can find audiofiles of english/japanese sentences from the pimsleur course which will work as audio flashcards. If you search ‘anki core 2k japanese english’ you will find the sentences from that anki deck in audio english/japanese format in the form of audio files. If you study chinese - search ‘chinese spoonfed audio’ and simply listen through the audio files. If you want a transcript, look up ‘chinese spoonfed’ and you will find a matching anki deck, and likely an excel spreadsheet format of the sentences typed out. If you have Clozemaster app, and pay for premium, you can turn on Radio Mode for any language and that is basically ‘audio flashcards’ that play for you. The pimsleur learning series also is basically this learning method (but with more dead air slowing things down) if you wish to check pimsleur out. Glossika is precisely the audio flashcard format - either find the course for free or get it from a library (I prefer other options though because i find pimlseur and Glossika both cover very little material and seem to not have the greatest structure). If you have Genki or a textbook, often they have some audio materials with your language/target language right after each other. If you search for the free old FSI courses online, they are all basically audio-flashcard lessons if you just listen to the audio files, and with transcripts if you also read the accompanying textbook files. Also an option: if you go on youtube and search “target-language sentences” you can find TONS of videos that say/show a sentence in the target language and english, so you can listen to them like audio flashcards (no visual attention required), or you can watch and read along to get some reading practice in. Basically, an audio flashcard for our specific purposes here means: an audio file that reads sentences aloud in a language you know, and your target language. Ideally in big audio file chunks like 30 minutes+ so you can just listen through one then move onto the next one. If you already have any anki decks with audio, and a tool to auto-generate audio in the other language you understand, you could probably build your own learner material in this structure.

Read/listen to Japanese in 30 Hours. Basic challenge: Simply go through these videos https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYp8AxZkxl890s4S3WTHQMeJUisP5DjNo and read along/listen. You can also just choose to listen to this while doing other things - the book does not use kana or kanji so you do not learn much reading skill wise from this book. Alternative: read the book on archive.org or a similar library and finish it. Goal: to see if within 30 hours you can a. complete the material (yes, its a quick read), b. to develop a basic grammar foundation and introduction to the language to make you beginner-conversational especially if you utilize a dictionary for unknown words. This course is 1 part a curiosity to the old-style textbook approach, and 1 part a crash beginner course for survival conversational skill and basic grammar comprehension. Which is interesting if you want to produce language early on (or need to), or want a sort of ‘basic grammar summary’ before delving more in depth. If nothing else, I find this is a nice simple grammar intro course. I recommend checking out this book in archive.org and reading over the table of words at the end - because back when this book was used in classes, students would likely be practicing using all those words in example sentences and conversations, whereas the actual book chapters use much less vocabulary just to explain the basic structure and grammar. Or study vocabulary from a separate source, if vocabulary improvement is needed, because this book’s lessons don’t incorporate a ton. I find this book fascinating for being an older textbook approach to teaching japanese, for its very simple presentation style (it is easy to understand), and for its goal of giving the learner a basic foundation. The book is old, so it has some outdated grammar (not much but a bit), and the writer I believe does some awkward-language things that are not perfect japanese but are comprehensible (which to be honest some modern textbooks do as well). The goal of the author was to prepare learners to handle conversations in japanese, and with the use of a dictionary (and/or learning more vocabulary on their own) be able to discuss anything they need to. As a result it does not teach the japanese writing system, and it does not teach a bunch of specific vocabulary-theme topics (it expects you to use the vocab table at the back or do outside vocab study). But it excels in other areas - it is trying to prepare you for overall conversational skill. So it covers a lot of basic grammar in an overview sort of way so you will have some familiarity with it and some ability to recognize/use it. The book is definitely only beginner level, but in some ways it covers topics much quicker than some modern textbooks I’ve seen. It is a lovely little book for developing a basic foundation before adding more grammar in depth study or writing system study, and to develop some basic speaking ability early on so you can start doing that relatively early. Whereas a modern book like Genki teaches you the basics in one specific topic at a time, but may hold off several weeks in the lesson plan before mentioning a new grammar point (although it has taught more kanji by then obviously than this book). If you find the japanese writing system daunting in combo with the grammar daunting, a book like this may lower the grammar confusion so you can feel less overwhelmed later. If you desire to speak early on, this book caters to that in a unique way. I’ve always wanted to test how far this particular textbook will get a learner - and I’ve read half of it but never finished. My only wish is that this textbook had included kana and kanji, but excluding the writing system is not super uncommon in some old japanese and chinese textbooks :/

Brute force read a book. aha haaaa ToT. Basic challenge: Pick a book, and read to completion or read as much as you can within the time limit you’ve decided on. If you’re going to do this challenge I recommend either: you are doing this with a language you have some familiarity with (you are NOT a total beginner, or you know the writing system somewhat already like an english learner learning french who read the basic alphabet pronunciation differences), or you have a REALLY high tolerance for difficulty. Two options with this one: either read through a book and look up key words/grammar you do not understand but need to know to comprehend the plot (or ALL unknown words/grammar if you have the time/feel the desire to), OR you pick a reading material that you can already understand the main idea of paragraphs without a dictionary and then just read through it (learning any new words/grammar by guessing based on the context clues). If you do the second option i recommend finding material you find 95% comprehensible or more if you get easily frustrated (since 95-98% comprehension is when guessing words from context feels less draining). If you have high tolerance for ambiguity, or wish to develop a higher tolerance, then AS LONG as you can grasp the main idea of a paragraph then the reading material is probably good-enough to use. Examples would be like if you read little red riding hood and could grasp ‘she’s in red, there’s a wolf, wolf attacked someone X’ but not much else. If you read sherlock and you can gleam character names, X died, they’re at an office/house/outside - basically enough to follow the core actions/decisions happening even if you aren’t always sure what people are wearing, or what someone said, or how someone fought just that they did fight some kind of way. If you pick option 1 where you DO look up words - again, depending on your ambiguity tolerance level and how many words you look up, try to find something you at LEAST can follow the main idea of a chapter, or a paragraph, even if you can’t grasp all sentences or all details. If you cannot even understand a chapter’s main idea without a dictionary, then even if you only look up key-critical-to-understanding words you will be looking up a LOT and that may be very time consuming.  The idea with this is simple - if you read more in the language, how much improvement will you get? What you wish to improve on skills wise will likely determine how you decide to read. If you want to pick up a LOT of new vocabulary, you may pick a harder book and look up words more frequently. If you wish to improve your ability to comprehend ambiguity, and your reading speed, you may wish to limit word look up (or not look up any words and practice guessing from context primarily). If your goal is to improve reading fluency you may pick something very comprehensible to you and mainly focus on reading speed and not relying on word lookup. 

Listening Reading Method, mini version! Do you want to try out the Listening Reading Method, but you don’t have time to do an 8-12 hour book? or don’t want to commit to 40 hours of study time using this method without trying if it WORKS well for you first? Here is the mini version to see if its your kind of thing! Basic challenge: pick a short novel uploaded to youtube (or go to bilinguis.com, or DuoReader app, LingQ app etc and decide to just do 5 chapters of a book). I personally recommend Le Petit Prince or something of similar length (aim for 2-3 hour long audio). Listening Reading Method you will apply: 1. (optional, you can skip this). Read through the novel in english.  2. Read through the novel in english while listening to the audio in the target language and following along (these youtube files are perfect for this as you can look at the translation as the target language audio plays) 3. Follow along to the target language text while listening to the audio in the target language (when looking at the youtube file simply follow along to the target text this time as the target language audio plays) 4. (optional, only if you wish to develop some speaking skills). Follow along to the audio while shadowing the audio by trying to speak along with it. 5. (optional, only if you wish to work on listening skills more). listen to the audio of the file without looking at the text. listen to the file as much as you’d like, in the background while multitasking if you would like. Only steps 2+3 are required, and you can do them in either order (do what ends up working best for you). So a 3 hour audiobook like Le Petit Prince will take 6 hours of your time. That’s either one very long study day or shorter study sessions across a few days. Within a week you should have completed the book, and have a good idea on if this study method worked well for you. Here’s a file that will work well for a Chinese L-R Method: https://youtu.be/bqUG-pV724Y For French: https://youtu.be/Lz9cEGnAbgI Alice in Wonderland and Sherlock files are also easy to find on youtube. Search the book name plus “target-language english” and usually you can find the audiobook with accompanying text in your target language and english. note: the listening reading method works BETTER with a more difficult novel written for adults with more vocabulary, and more content (so a longer novel that takes more like 40 hours to do the full L-R Method process so you get much more vocabulary review). However, people (including me) have done L-R method with Le Petit Prince and noticed some skill improvement after doing so, so it should be enough of an experiment to see if you would like to apply this study method to a more appropriately difficult reading material. Also: YES you can do this with japanese or chinese even if you do not know the writing system. However, having a tool with a popup dictionary or having a word-by-word translation will likely make your life easier (like Pleco app’s popup dictionary as it dictates text). If you are not a total beginner, and already know some common words and grammar in your target language (even if its just 200-500 words) you will likely see the most benefit in this learning method - since new words will be more obvious from context to you with the help of a translation (versus total beginners), and you will still have a LOT more common words to learn that will increase your comprehension by a significant percentage (versus intermediate and advanced readers who NEED to pick a challenging enough novel to use for L-R Method if they want a significant vocabulary boost - difficult novels are suggested for this method because from beginner to intermediate level you can continue to pick up a LOT of new stuff if you just repeatedly do the method to the book a few times over and over). If you ARE a beginner I know its tempting to pick an easy study material for this (and textbooks with translations, transcripts, and audio work well if you desire). But the more difficult the material you pick to use, the more you can potentially learn from repeatedly Listening Reading Method with the material. So the more unknown words, the longer the novels length so there’s more repetition to learn and remember, the more stuff you can potentially learn from a given novel. 

I may add more to this post later.

Likewise, if anyone’s got any particular study methods or challenges they find interesting, feel free to add to this post!

[sarahjtv]

BNHA Chapter 327 Spoiler Analysis: Home Sweet Home

OH MY GOD, GUYS!!!  DEKU GETS A BATH!!!! 🎉🛁 🧼   My broccoli boy finally gets squeaky clean, gets some sleep, and we finally get some R&R time with the Class 1-A kids.  It’s not close to the happy-go-lucky days of old, but it’s some time with the kids nonetheless.  I’m glad Horikoshi put some heart and humor in this chapter because god knows we needed it.  But, let’s be real, this is the calm before the storm:

The chapter starts off with what everyone and Horikoshi has been wanting for Deku since he went on his mission: A motherfuckin’ bath 🛀 🧼🛁!   Kaminiari and Kirishima lead the Class 1-A boys to carry Deku into their side of the UA Alliance bathhouse (looks real nice btw) and give him a good power-wash.  The whole sequence is very comical!  The boys are rushing in and poor Deku has this O_O face on him like “what is happening?” 😂 We also see some of the boys butt naked 😳  It’s clear that Horikoshi had fun drawing this thing and it was fun to read 💚

Bakugo is with them of course and you can actually see his scars from when Shigaraki stabbed him.  He’s not bleeding, but you can see those scar patches on his skin.  I’m curious of how fan artist are going to draw him from now on.  I would like to see that fan art 👀

There’s also some bubble sfx coving Bakugo’s crotch and a translator said it might say dick or penis.  I’m curious what the officials will say.

But, Bakugo being Bakugo is still aggressive towards his classmates.  More playfully than before, but still.  He reminds everyone that he still intends on being the best there is and that everyone is still his rivals (also friends, Bakugo).  HE EVEN MAKES AN ATTEMPT TO CALL DEKU IZUKU!  LIKE HE ALMOST SAID “DEKU” BUT HE CHANGED IT TO IZUKU AT THE LAST MINUTE!  AND DEKU SAYS THAT CALLING HIM DEKU IS JUST FINE LIKE THAT ANGER THAT ORIGINATED FROM THE NICKNAME ISN’T THERE ANYMORE AND IT’S A FREINDLY NICKNAME BKDK FRIENDSHIP GROWTH YOU LOVE TO SEE IT 🧡💚  

After Deku’s bath, he’s sitting in the commons talking to the rest of Class 1-A.  Well, most of them.  Mina tells Deku that Ochako and a few other students went to bed after everything became ok again.  So, I definitely didn’t see Tsuyu, and it looks like Shoji, Aoyama, and Hagakare weren’t in this chapter either.  Ochako I understand; her speech must’ve been emotionally taxing.  Aoyama and Hagakare are the top suspects for being the traitor in the fandom and this isn’t helping their cases.  I don’t know about Tsuyu and Shoji though.  They’re both mutant-types, but characters like Ojiro or mutant-like people like Jiro, Mina or Tokoyami didn’t get outcasted.  Horikoshi did hint that Shoji would be getting something soon.  But, I really am just speculating here.

Now that Deku’s back, everyone has questions for him.  Though I understand why, this has gotta be overwhelming for Deku.  At least they’re not mad at him for hiding OFA.  They seem very understanding actually.

Then my ❄️🔥 boy, Shoto Todoroki, comes in all handsome right out of the baths 💙  He’s drying his right side while you can see a steam cloud on his left.  So, it is canon that Shoto drys himself naturally with his heat. His entrance is so pretty that even Mineta’s questioning it (shut up, Mineta, you’ll never be as beautiful as him).  And yes, I might be a Shoto simp, don’t judge me I see y’all too 👀

Anyway, Shoto asks everyone to let Deku sleep since that was pretty much the whole reason they brought him back.  Problem is, Deku can’t because he really needs to apologize to All Might for abandoning him.  AND AFTER HE SAYS THAT THERE’S A DETAILED PANEL OF SHOTO POINTING TO ALL MIGHT LIKE “UH, MIDORIYA? HE’S RIGHT THERE” AND ALL MIGHT LOOKING FROM THE WINDOW LIKE A HORROR VILLAIN WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE 😭

All Might comes in and apologizes to Deku for not being able to support him when he needed it, but Deku says that All Might support him more than enough.  Mina also scolds All Might for not saying anything when he left.  She wants All Might to apologize to everyone for that.  Though I’m glad Deku and All Might have reconciled (I honestly thought that last convo between them was going to be THE LAST for a hot minute), Mina has a point.  All Might did bail on all of them without any warning.  Kinda messed up in general.

All Might apologizes and he is going to fight with everyone regardless of his physical state so that he can see that flame continue to shine.  However, he warns the kids that they got info on the villains and that the final decisive battle is coming soon.  If the whole “Final Arc” thing hasn’t been hammered into your head, there you go.  I’m also glad that Stain’s speech did end up motivating All Might further.  Who knew?

So, All Might is off to help Endeavor since he’s got unfinished business to take care of.  But, the kids are wondering why Endeavor (and probably Hawks) isn’t entering UA entirely yet.  Shot reminds them that Endeavor is still connected to Dabi and that his presence alone would cause more discourse.  People’s minds can’t change that easily.  Shoto of all people would know.  

As Deku FINALLY SLEEPS 💤 and Shoto puts a blanket over him (possibly warmed by his left side 🔥) 💙💚 Shoto acknowledges how his presence might be making people anxious too even though it’s not his fault at all (thank you, Kirishima for doubling down on this btw ❤️🪨).  But, things are different and Shoto’s going to show that so that everyone can be at ease like he wants as a hero.  There’s even this sweet small smile on his beautiful face as he says this.  He’s grown so much and he’s pretty to boot I love him so much *HANDS IN FACE* 💙❄️🔥 

EVEN KIRISHIMA’S CRYING FROM HOW MANLY SHOTO IS I LOVE THESE KIDS!!!!

And now Jiro steps up and says her piece.  That she knows how hard it is to convince everyone to change their minds for the better.  Like with those two critics from the Culture Fest.  Even so, they accomplished this before, so she thinks they can do it again.  She even gathers all the band members to emphasize on this.  I love how Jiro uses her earphone jacks to rally the band and how she literally drags Bakugo by the shirt for a cute group shot.  None of these kids are afraid of Bakugo anymore LOL 😂!  Also, Momo is the tallest out of all of them in this line up shot (except for Bakugo who’s still being dragged on the ground).  I think she’s roughly 5ft 6-7 inches?  She’s the tallest of the girls I know that, but damn.  She towers all of them.  Even me...  She’s also very pretty in this shot and it’s her birthday as I’m posting this, so happy b-day Momo ❤️

And we get a beautiful panel of Jiro leading everyone to make sure that they’ll go beyond with making everything better than it was before.  We get a nice group shot of the rest of the class agreeing with her with a smile including Shoto with a small one (did I mention that I love him?) 💙💙💙 And Deku’s in the center still sleeping away.  I hope he has good dreams *kisses forehead*💚  And go Jiro for stepping up to the plate too 💜!  All these kids have grown so much.  There is a light at the end of the tunnel. 

Finally, the last pages show Endeavor, Hawks, and Best Jeanist going somewhere, maybe Tartarus.  They got info out of Dr. Ujiko via polygraph and the Nomu Research Group at Central Hospital.  They predict that they have 2 months until Shigaraki’s ready to go again, so they’ll need 1 month of preparation.  But, the info Stain gave All Might gave them more info.  His letter ended up being a personal letter to All Might (Stain really is that nuts...), but there was a microchip in the blade Stain left containing the security records from Tartarus.  It’s not stated how this info affected the mission at hand, but it sounds like it has to do something with the time frame.  So, I’m curious if they have less time to prepare or more?  Given how this is the Final Arc, Imma say less.

Finally, the teaser asks “How are the villains moving?”  I wonder if that means we’re switching to the villain’s next week.  I would love to hang out with the kids more, but I would also like to know what our villains are up to.  Like, where the hell is Himiko Toga?  Is Spinner still questioning shit?  What happened to Mr. Compress after he mauled himself to help Shigaraki and the others escape?  Also I think we need more info on this dude’s backstory given he’s the grandson of the famous Robin Hood villain who’s name definitely didn’t escape me... 😐  Is Dabi laughing his ass off from the utter chaos he started?  Is AFO still smiling like the evil mastermind he is?  Is Shigaraki as crispy as he was earlier?  I was going to ask about Twice but... 😭

So, yeah!  Love this chapter.  Really good transition chapter into whatever happens next.  I’m kinda sad we didn’t see Deku fight off more past villains during his vigilante days.  We got Muscular and Overhaul and I think that’s it?  Didn’t see any of Overhaul’s minions or that teeth-blade villain (Fish-something?; he broke out, but we haven’t seen him since) or Re-Destro or his goons.  I don’t count as Gentle or LaBrava as villains anymore and they were never truly evil to begin with.  Regardless, it was a really cool arc to see a more dark side of Deku.  I’m really glad Horikoshi made great use of his bunny hood and metal mask finally.  Deku really did look demonic for some time.  Also, seeing Deku badass is always a plus.  And seeing the deconstruction of hero society and the possible reconstruction of it was really good too.  Not everything is sunshine and rainbows, unfortunately, but we can do our best to make it that way.

I’m also glad that we finally got our kids back in top form.  Not just being heroes, but being teenagers too.  They all had great moments especially Iida, Ochako, and now Shoto as they should.  But, Bakugo’s apology was peak for me.  Over 320 chapters of development and build-up lead to that moment and it really is one of the best in the series.  It lives in my head rent free.

So, we got 1-2 months in-manga-time until what is probably the final battle of the series.  God, I can’t believe we’re actually nearing the end of this series.  I started reading it back in 2018 when shit was rough for me. I found this series after listening to the music and reading the hype around it.  I watched the show then I read the manga and it really helped me.  Saved me from a dark place actually.  I will miss this series when it’s done and I will be greatly for the joy Horikoshi has gifted us.  I’ll try to save the farewells for later.  I’d say this series has at least 1-1 1/2 years to go.

Me @ the kids and All Might:

[makeste]

i saw a post that explained well why i hate this: deku's outlook is now like kacchan's at the beginning. whereas before he saw people like kacchan, aizawa & shoto as heroes, strong & admirable, now he looks down on them (regardless of intent), invalidates their decision to participate and only sees them as useless and bloody. now kacchan's the kid throwing a notebook at a villain and deku's the one dismissing him (see: kacchan's sacrifice). i guess the speech from post-ground beta 2 is forgotten

also like seriously fuck the narrative, fuck all might and tbh fuck deku too lol kacchan kept their stupid fucking useless secret, helped deku train for months on end while knowing deku getting stronger and dominating 7 entire effing quirks inevitably meant kacchan never would even have the slightest chance to accomplish any of his dreams, worried his mind off about deku (all might knows, not like he gives a fuck), mounted strategies to prevent deku from battling alone, sacrificed himself (cont)

(contd) got out of his literal coma bed marching to see deku while still bleeding from the mouth, was dismissed by everyone, and still nothing at all. his hero name reveal was treated like a fucking joke, his sacrifice amounted to nothing by the stellar narrative, he was off paneled for literally anything that wasn't a stupid gag, and now he's thrown aside like garbage. hero name after all might: all might doesn't care. all might in the room hearing the ruckus: doesn't care, but ida & co (cont)

(contd) can see him. spent months helping deku & all might figure out the ofa stuff, with the most productive contributions: no one cares. so to have not only deku dismiss him like this (he's now a useless victim, not a hero who decides to collaborate, help, and save), but also all might, who kacchan also did all of this for, and who told them THEY, TOGETHER, would be the best winning to save and whatever, so sucks. all might no longer has any use for bakugo, so he's ignored and thrown aside.

(last ask abt this i swear) & ALL OF THIS comes after kacchan's plot has been reduced to absolutetely nothing but deku to the point he has spent literal years of this manga without even interacting with kiri or kami. at least have kiri in his room when he woke up but nope, not even that, kiri's with shoto for some reason bc we have to make a gag out of kacchan's worry and he can't have meaningful interactions. no battles, no wins, no friends. just a side char in the ofa plot, now not even that

anon, no offense (because you seem polite enough in spite of this ask getting rather heated), but I disagree with literally every single point in this ask. literally every last one. this is basically all of my least favorite discourse bundled into a single post. I don't particularly enjoy reading "fuck All Might and Deku" in my inbox first thing in the morning, and I don't like reading paragraphs of hyperbolic negativity about Kacchan being shortchanged because the story doesn't revolve around him every single moment, and we haven't yet -- yet, because the story is still very much ongoing -- gotten to the narrative payoff for things like his hero name and his reunion with Deku. these are opinions you're more than welcome to post about on your own blog, anon. but to be frank, I'm not keen on spending a ton of mental energy trying to change your mind on my own blog when I'd much rather be discussing other things about the chapter and about the series. so yeah, my apologies, but I'm just going to leave it at that.

---

ETA: as promised anon, here are links to my other posts about the various topics you brought up:

re: Deku’s current mindset (tl;dr he’s traumatized by what happened at Jakku and him pushing everyone else away because he’s afraid of them getting hurt is totally expected)

more on said mindset and what drives it, and the parallels between him and Kacchan (and why Kacchan is inevitably going to be the one to knock some sense back into him)

meta on Deku’s role as a MC and how that affects his characterization (by design, for better or for worse)

and a couple of add-ons to that meta

meta re: All Might keeping OFA a secret

and another post about that

and another!! this is why I don’t want to talk about it any more lol

meta re: the meaning of Kacchan’s new hero name (which btw All Might hasn’t even heard yet, and which I suspect has more to do with Deku anyway)

and lastly, re: fandom needing to chill and be patient when it comes to Kacchan and Deku’s storyline

a big part of my reluctance to wade into these discourse waters again is because I would probably just be reiterating stuff I’ve already said in previous posts. but anyway so here you go if you or anyone else is interested.

[holycow99]

石田お寿司 19/7/21 stream translation Part 1

This is not the full translation of the stream. I only translated the parts I could understand & interpret or parts I found interesting/important. I’m still a beginner in Japanese, so the translations may not be accurate. If you want to repost, please repost at your own risk. 

(t/n: Sorry for the late update. I had so many distractions these past 2 weeks. This translation may have a lot of mistranslations as I couldn’t really catch what he said since the bgm was super loud. I tried my best to separate the voice and the bgm so that the voice would be clearer, but I didn’t manage to do that.)

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

I: Hello. You guys, are you ready for Ghosts n Goblins? I am.

C: You’re in high spirits tonight.

I: Of course. I’ve been busy with the rough sketches. I’ve spend the entire day fixing the sketches for chp 5.

*Fixing the sound

C: Contrarily, won’t you feel stressed playing this game for a change of pace?

I: I’m already used to this game.

I: I’m stuck in the same place so I’m gonna play this game from the start.

*Choosing mode.

I: I’ve played this game before (referring to the old ver.), so I’ll choose the harder mode.

*Choosing stage.

I: I haven’t progressed at all. I haven’t seen the other stages yet. Graveyard, execution chamber. I played the execution chamber stage for a bit during the stream with Ms. Towada. I progressed a little only. Should I play the graveyard stage?

*Playing the stage.

I: The armour used to get destroyed with just one hit. The armour has a ranking. If you collect a lot of armours, it’ll become a bronze armour. This one is probably a metal armour.

C: Fighting!

I: Kamsahamnida. Is it Kamsahamnida? Thank you.

(t/n: Kamsahamnida means thank you in Korean. He’s talking in Korean.)

C: Have you decided on the date for Kagoshima trip?

I: That’s right. What should I do with the trip? Looks like I can secure 20 buses.

(t/n: Ishida had been jokingly planned on a trip with Japanese fans.)

C: Is the stage different from the old one?

I: It looks similar, but I think it’s a completely different stage. Yeah, it’s completely different. What’s this creature? What’s his name again? Everyone said they didn’t like this boss. I like it. He’s like a friend to me.

C: Russia loves you, sensei.

I: Really? I heard that illegal uploading of manga is widespread in Russia. Haha. I have a grudge against Russia. Haha. Spasiba (thank you in Russian).

C: I like Russian girls. They’re cute.

I: I don’t think it’s because they’re Russians. I heard that their nose tends to be taller due to the climate effects. This isn’t considered as discrimination, right? That’s why they’re good-looking. The same with their white complexion. People adore those with tall nose because their noses are small and cute.

(t/n: I’m not sure about the translation of this part since I couldn’t hear him clearly. He said something more but I couldn’t catch it. Sorry.)

Y****: Are you about to snap?

I: Ah, Y****?! You’re here. You weren’t in the prev. stream, right? I’m not angry.

Y****: I was busy with club.

I: What club are you in? You must be busy. What club are you in as a middle schooler?

Y****: Theatre club.

I: Theatre club?! You’re kidding, right?! Really?! It’s so unexpected, hahaha. Theatre club? I thought you’re in a sports club, like soccer or something. So cool. That’s nice. Seriously? Do they have theatre club in middle school? Amazing.

*Ishida struggling to kill the monsters and then died.

I: I was looking at the comments, waiting for Y****’s to show up, then I became like this.

*Someone commented that they did vocalisation training in theatre club.

I: Vocalisation training? So they do have that. Wait a min, did Y**** say something? Wait, tell me when I die again.

Y****: I’m a high-school student.

I: Eh, Y****, you’re a high-school student?! Didn’t you say you’re 13?! Were you a high school student all this time?! Wait, can I talk to Y**** for a bit? Hahaha. Eh?! Have you been a high-schooler all this while?!

*Continue playing.

I: Hurry up and tell me. I suddenly become interested in human world. Y****, hurry. Did he say something?

Y****: I’m in my first year.

I: I see. A first year student. So, last year you’re 13? I remember you said you’re 13. You’ve enrolled to high school. Congrats for your admission! It must be hard with the COVID-19 situation. Y**** has further modified. His DPS (Damage Per Second) has increased to 1980.

C: I envy the youth.

I: Well, you can become anything as a high-schooler. If you work hard, you can become an actor or a playwright, though I’m not really sure. (inaudible). I think it’s a very good career.

C: What club were you in?

I: I was in volleyball club. I was in the badminton club for 3 months. I joined because of similar reason I joined volleyball club.  I joined because I wanted to be good at smashing. Then, I quit the club after I’ve mastered it. Same with volleyball. I wanted to master spike. I had other stuffs I wanted to do. I wanted to play games all day long. I didn’t wanna go for club activities. I skipped club activities and played Smash Bros. I was a boarding student, after all.

C: Have you read Look Back? (t/n: Look Back is a one shot manga by Fujimoto Tatsuki, author of Chainsaw Man.)

I: Yes, I have.

C: Which console is this?

I: This is switch. I play this because I was tired from fixing the rough sketches for chp 5.

C: Did you go and watch Yamakasa? (t/n: Yamakasa refers to the float carried by men during Hakata Gion Yamakasa festival. You can google it up for more info.)

I: I watch when there’s one. Ms. Towada went and see it. Where did she recently visit?

*Ishida having a hard time defeating the monsters & passing the stage.

I: This is harder than RE. RE is way easier compared to this.

C: Sensei is getting tired!

I: Actually, I should be resting at times like this. It’d be better for me to rest after I did the rough sketches.

*Someone commented they had to work that night.

I: It must be hard to work at this time. Night shift? Nurses and… is it correct? I’m not so sure though, but caregivers also have night shifts. Well, good luck on your job. Take care of your health, eat a lot of delicious foods, and don’t forget to wear an armour. You don’t know when you’ll be absorbed into this game.

C: I need to do excel as my assignment.

I: Must be difficult. I copy pasted the stuffs I found on the internet for my assignments. I wasn’t the only one who did that. Everyone else did the same too.

I: I like summer. If I were to pick a season…but I prefer autumn. Still, summer is great.

C: I have test tomorrow.

I: Then, you should study.

C: I hate summer since there’ll be a lot of Terra Formars.

(t/n: terra formars is a manga about humanoid cockroaches. So, OP referred cockroaches as terra formars.)

I: Yup. They’re in the drawers the other day. They’re always there mostly. 

C: What are you drinking today?

I: Barley tea. I want to drink juice. Ginger ale as well, but I’ll gain weight drinking that. I drink it occasionally. Do you guys know root beer?

*Ishida constantly failed and died.

Comments: Are you getting angry?

I: This is pissing you off, right? I’m pissed off. Of course I’d be pissed off with something like this. The ones who made this game, show yourselves. I’m gonna bring this to court and claim for compensation.

Comments: Please calm down.

I: I’m calming down. Okay, I’ve calmed down.

*Finally progressing a little.

I: Yes, finally! I’m gonna do this calmly.

*Fighting a bunch of monsters.

I: (whispering) Calmly! Calmly!

*Dead again.

I: (whispering) Shit! Just now…It might be impossible without the armour. Let’s do this calmly.

I: This game is more of a psycho break than Psychobreak.

Part 2

[meimi-haneoka]

Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card Chapter 52: Comments + JP-ENG translation differences

Admit it, you’re all here because you like the pain that Cardcaptor Sakura is dishing out in the latest chapters, ne? 😂 Just kidding. We all knew that eventually this atmosphere would come. It’s not like they’ve spared us from the anxiety and pain since chapter 1!

And so, let me welcome you again to our monthly corner, I’ll start right away warning you that the last page of Chapter 52 needs attention because it has been translated in English in a way that makes you believe something, when it’s actually not the case.

...Who’s surprised? No, honestly, who is surprised at this point?

If you follow me even from just 2 months you know that every month they have messed something up, so....😅

Gif of the month (courtesy of Momo):

Lots of angsty feelings this month! And a certain butler officially applied to the Guinnes World Record for the biggest amount of insults received over a pudding! Eh? Want to know what I’m talking about? Under the cut!!

Kaito on the color spread

Let’s start from the color spread.

Ladies & Gentlemen, for the first time ever we have a color spread that is NOT featuring Sakura, but another (main?) character!

This was seriously a surprise, and @chibiyuuto​ made me realize that up till now, all the color spreads featured either Sakura alone or Sakura with other characters (even in the old manga). Well, apparently CLAMP said it was time to break that pattern! XD

And what a color spread.

We have Kaito, surrounded by dry branches and shattered glass, eyes closed, sleeping peacefully. The theme of transparency didn’t leave out even the villain/anti-hero/antagonist (?) of the series, and he looks really, really pretty here. Almost innocent. But he’s dressed in white. Among dead branches who are gripping him tight. The callbacks to death are everywhere. I even noticed that the white on his closed eyes, supposed to indicate his eyes behind the eyelids, almost look like emerging tears (you have to make a big close up to notice).

He’s preciously holding something, without touching it. There are many, many speculations as to what that could be. Maybe the editorial text can help us a little bit: it is probably the most important line Kaito ever said in the whole story until now.

“I’ve made a decision, that day. And it was the first decision I’ve ever made on my own”

Personally, I think the sphere is indicating everything that he’s trying to protect to the point of insanity. But here there’s nothing of that, only a peaceful, quiet atmosphere before death takes him completely.  It could indicate Akiho, yes (and maybe that’s why the indefinite shape, since he doesn’t recognize that yet), but also a newfound soul, feelings, warmth of the heart. Attachment to a human being. I think I’ve never spent so many words on a color spread and that speaks volumes about how much I loved it 😆 But it’s time to get on with the real story!

Sakura’s Pain

Sakura and Syaoran meet up the morning after what happened in chapter 51, in front of a bench outside the school (it’s not the usual spot in the schoolyard), and Kero + Suppi comment on how she's still in low spirits from what happened the day before. Sakura knows what the mysterious new Card is modeled after, but as Kero and Suppi inform us, the pendant watch seems nowhere to be found. We start with a little translation difference: ENG, Suppi: I haven’t seen this watch... ENG, Kero: Well yeah. She’s looked everywhere, and she can’t find it. JP, Suppi: And that watch.... JP, Kero: She told me that she’s looked everywhere, but she couldn’t find it. Syaoran arrives, and as the good observing boyfriend he is, he just needs one look at her "smiling" face to know that something is wrong. He tries to reach out to her, probably to hold her shoulder or cup her face, as a comforting gesture, but stops and closes his hand immediately, remembering that they can’t touch, unless he wants to end up fried alive.  I have to confess that I am re-reading this entire scene with a lump in my throat, not only for the difficult situation they’re still in, but also knowing something else that will happen later. There’ll be time to explain. Sakura, putting up a smile, asks what’s wrong. Yes, unfortunately our Sakura still hasn’t solved her biggest problem. How long have we been talking about it?  This habit of hers to sweep under the carpet all the negative emotions, all the restless feelings inside, all the pain.....all buried under a smiling mask. Thankfully Syaoran, who loves her more than anything in the world, has learned to decode her signals long time ago, so he tells her... ENG: I’m worried about you. You look like you’re in pain. JP: You looked like you were in a lot of pain.

Knock-knock.

Sakura looks surprised, and blushes slightly. The fact that Syaoran knocked at her door and basically told her, with one statement, “You look like you’re in pain, I’m here for you, let me be your support”, made her incredibly happy. Sakura opens her heart and welcomes Syaoran, the person she can trust the more in this world, regardless of the less-than-ideal behavior he’s had recently, with the Cards and all. Sakura chose to love him and trust him above anything else. So she lets him in, and tells him of the events of the day before. Sakura rushes to mention that maybe she’s imagining things. I wonder if that’s an instinctive, defensive reaction to this scary, unknown feeling. “If I say it’s my imagination, this feeling won’t exist anymore and everything will go back to normal”. Again, sweeping under the carpet. Syaoran, thankfully, is her anchor to the ground. JP: You produced a new card. That can’t be just “your imagination”, right? (I’ve put the JP version here because it makes it somehow more clear where Syaoran is going with this) And here we have a beautiful scene, with an exciting reappearance: Yelan, through Syaoran’s words, serves as a provider of a very IMPORTANT advice for Sakura. Yelan used to tell Syaoran that... JP: People with magical power shouldn’t ignore the turmoil and changes in their heart/chest, (which represent) the so-called “intuition”. And it’s not limited to people with magical powers. People should never avert their eyes from the changes in their heart. While the ENG translation basically says almost the same thing, I wanted to translate the JP version more literally because CLAMP in this scene are reviving the words of another character, pretty distant from Yelan, who said the same things in regard to the other protagonist of this chapter. 目を逸らす. Averting one’s eyes to the matters of the heart. Where did we hear this already?

Here’s the first link in the chain that connects Sakura and Kaito in this chapter. Sakura, very eloquently, touches her chest and says “Heart”.... It seems incredible, but our heroine is having a very hard time listening and understanding her heart. She’s kind, she’s compassionate, she’s loved and protected by everyone. Yet, when it comes to the matters of her heart, she’s still as blind as when she had to understand what she felt for Syaoran. She’s still so young, true. Yet, the children around her seem to deal better with that side of them, so she really stands out, story-wise. And she seems to be turning away from her heart especially when there are unpleasant, harsh things happening. The school bell rings, it’s time to go to class, and Syaoran apologizes for not being able to give her answers. He doesn’t know yet, but he might just have given her the most important answer of them all.

Sakura shakes her head, and shows all her gratitude to Syaoran, telling him that she’s just really, really happy that he’s by her side. They mimic touching their hands, just like they did by the swings at the Penguin park, and it’s such a bittersweet moment. They can’t touch, but their hearts are more connected than ever.

Once in the classroom, while Sakura is chatting with Tomoyo, Kero and Suppi have a whispering conversation on how Sakura completely forgot of their presence after Syaoran appeared, and how that goes to show how serious their conversation was (and also how competent they’ve become at *erasing their presence*, hahaha). Sakura, just like she did with Syaoran moments ago, has a brief surge of affectionate feelings for Tomoyo, certainly stemming from what she saw in the world of Momo’s book, but that she can’t remember right now. She has seen (and doesn’t consciously remember) what it feels like to live in a world where your most important people don’t remember about you. Her heart, however, does remember and makes her feel this tingling feeling, just realizing how lucky she is to have them by her side. She voices this thought to Tomoyo, but then she remembers that Akiho isn’t coming at school today. She wonders if she’s alright, and says she will send her a message later, hoping a reply will come from her.

And here we switch, ladies and gentlemen, to the other side of the coin, the other side of this chapter, which is basically a huge parallel in itself.

Kaito’s pain

I might get a little emotional in this part, so forgive me by now for my ramblings, hahah.

Akiho is awake and sitting in her bed, doing... guess what? Reading a book, of course! She receives that message from Sakura, and her face immediately brightens. At that moment, Kaito knocks on the door and brings her a (very fancy) jug of water, asking her if she's already awake. Akiho mentions feeling good, not hurting anywhere, and having a normal temperature (NOTE: the ENG translation makes Kaito say this line, while it is AKIHO the one who’s saying it). Kaito tells her that he already took care of contacting the school, so she should just take the entire day off to rest. Akiho, though, of course has questions. She wonders why she collapsed so suddenly, she can’t understand it herself. (NOTE: The ENG translation made her say “Thank you” when actually she never says it, in that bubble she only says “but”) Momo listens, and subtly opens her eyes with a quite menacing face. She’s looking at Kaito, who is placing the tray on the bedside table, just in front of her. Kaito puts up his trademark fake smile and in just one go he manages to dismiss both Momo’s death stare (you can see some small lightning bolts beside her, aimed at him) and Akiho’s doubts about her health. He asks her if something good happened, and Akiho without thinking twice replies that she received a message from Sakura, with a cute sticker too. THEN she realizes that as usual she wears her heart on her sleeve, and while she hides her face in shame she asks aloud if she’s really that obvious, easy to understand. Kaito replies with a cryptic どうでしょう, dou deshou, which I want to say could be translatable as “who knows?” or “what do you think?” in a playful manner, like saying “You certainly are”. Or maybe he doesn’t really know and he’s just so incredibly good at reading her every mood and thought.....save for one.

In replying so, Kaito gets closer to her bed, so Akiho immediately notices the aura he gives off. Something is not right. Once again. Kaito sees her staring, and just like that night in their garden, he asks what is it.

Knock-knock.

JP (all of this conversation): “Kaito-san...are you feeling unwell?”

....

“No, there isn’t any particular problem with my health” (Note that here Kaito uses a word that leaves me a bit perplexed, 不具合. The  具合 part certainly can indicate physical condition, but when it’s 不具合, I find it attributed way more to malfunctionings and bugs, than stuff related to health. Hm.)

Akiho frowns. She knows he’s lying. Again.

One more time.

Knock-knock.

“But...you look like you’re in pain”. You have seen it, right? The parallel with Syaoran. Syaoran and Akiho, this time around, are the characters paralleling between the two couples.  Until now, Syaoran was always shown as the parallel of Kaito, but this time around CLAMP decided to shuffle things.

We know that Akiho sees through Kaito’s mask, we have known for a long time. And the pain she’s seeing is certainly not only a physical one.  Just like Syaoran, Akiho sees the person she loves in pain, and feels the compelling desire to be there for him.

....

“It must be your imagination”

While Kaito says this with a smile that only apparently looks kind, Akiho’s frown deepens. Not only he keeps lying, not only he’s dismissing her concern, he’s also trying to convince her that it’s all in her imagination. But she’s having none of that.

Kaito starts to run away. “If you feel like eating (something), how about I bring you some breakfast?” and he’s already at the door.

“Kaito-san.” I have to say, I loved this assertive Akiho. This is my girl. Kaito keeps trying to feed her bullshit, and she’s having none of that. If she wasn’t such a sweet and well-educated girl, she would’ve been probably yelling “Oh come on, cut that bullshit and listen!” by now, just like I did while I was reading this scene. 💢 Kaito does turn around, but his fake kindness left completely his expression and his face is between serious...and...sad? Afraid? I can’t really read that expression.

Knock-knock-knock.

“There are...many things I can’t do, yet. I think I’m still not really that reliable. But ever since I met you, Kaito-san, I could change something/s (about myself). So....”

“Kaito-san, let me in”

........

Kaito wears again his fake smile, but you can see by the way Mokona shaded his eyelids and forehead, that he’s feeling utterly distressed at the moment. Interrupting her abruptly, without even showing any sign that he listened to any of the things she was saying (or about to say), he just goes: “The pudding must be firm by now. I’ll bring you that too”. And just like that, he shuts the door. The real one, and the figurative one too, the one he’s kept shut the whole time Akiho was knocking. Akiho is left all alone with her delicate hand reaching out for him, closing on itself, without being able to take a hold of him. This is frankly a very strong image that shattered my heart into a thousand pieces.

Akiho gently demanded access to his heart. She’s been keeping her feelings all to herself until now, but after her half-confession under the moonlight she has gained an incredible courage and determination. Don’t get me wrong, all she wants is to be able to support him, to be there for him, because she can see that there’s something terribly wrong with him and she knows he’s carrying all this burden alone.  But he won’t let her in. He can’t. First of all, he cannot certainly explain to her that he’s killing himself, trying to obtain a dangerous taboo magic that would allow her to be freed from that cursed book that is trying to make implode her soul. Let alone, the fact that he wants to drag her best friend into this.

Second, he’s terribly afraid. Afraid to let anyone near his heart. As soon as he heard her knocking, he quickly shut and double locked everything. What he once felt like “I don’t know what’s good about connecting to people” has now turned into “I am impossibly afraid to connect with people” because he’s been deprived of human connection and warmth for too long. And he doesn’t want to hear anything about “changes of the heart”, I’d dare say when Akiho mentioned that he was triggered definitively, that’s why he interrupted her.

Momo, powerless spectator of this regrettable scene, is livid. I think we can all agree that she’s representing us, right?? 😆 I am pretty sure that as soon as Akiho falls asleep, she’s gonna speed-fly to the kitchen to kill Kaito with her bare hands. I have never seen her this mad!!! 😅

Almost as a confirmation of what we said above, while Kaito is on his way to prepare breakfast, he stops to realize that he’s shaking. And he even slightly laughs. This guy is either losing his sanity altogether, or this is just a very cynical reaction to something unknown to him. “Why am I shaking?”

Yeah, Kaito, why?

Is it because your charade crumbled as soon as you left her room, and you’re showing us how you really feel, a terrible health condition that is quickly bringing you in death’s embrace? And yet, would you be surprised to find yourself shaking, if you knew that was the sole reason why it’s happening? Nah. There’s something else, beside death.

As if to “calm himself down”, he summons something related to his plan. And this is the second reason why the whole fandom basically wants to kill Kaito by now: we find out that Mirror, the Sakura Card that went missing, has been taken by none other than our emotionally incompetent butler.

And now comes the time to clarify what’s written in the last page of this chapter, please read well because it’s very easy to get the wrong idea, with the ENG translation:

ENG: The card is in my hands at last. Now I just need to take the liberty of using it...to complete the spell.

JP: The card I’ve obtained with so much effort...let’s use it effectively...in order to complete the spell once for all.

Now, I have more than one observation to make on the JP-> ENG translation. First of all, the word せっかく (with much effort, special) was translated as “at last” and this created a huge confusion because it’s like suggesting it’s the Card Kaito wanted Sakura to create all along. Of course, we all know that doesn’t make sense, because Mirror has always been there. This is just a last resort card that he obtained (and it was quite a pain in the ass, judging from his words) and that will contribute to bring to completion the spell he’s trying to activate, BUT IT’S NOT THE CARD HE WAS LOOKING FOR ALL ALONG. So nothing changed and we still don’t know if Time is the Card he wanted, he hasn’t mentioned it at all.

The second observation regards the way he called Mirror, with the usual trick Ohkawa uses to make things more interesting (and complicate the lives of the translators): the word is  切り札 and the furigana beside it reads “Ka-do, Card”. That word means “trump card” but also “ace up one’s sleeve”, so we can find actually 3 meanings attached to that term! Interesting, isn’t it? I have more questions about this term, but since I have nothing concrete to prove and I don’t want to fuel the Kaito hate even further, I’ll stop here for now. 😆

The last observation I have to make is on the use of the noun 完遂, “completion”. Its extended meaning is “successful execution”, and I wonder if the use of this term instead of the usual 完成 might mean that he’s preparing, finally, for the last battle. Because the subtle, very subtle difference between  完遂 and  完成 is that the former is much more definitive. It’s when you bring something to completion till the very end, and there’s nothing more after that (at least from what I could read around, it’s very subtle, as I was saying). I’ve actually seen a Japanese mutual on Twitter pointing this out, so I thought it was worth mentioning. We’ll see?

------------------------------------ What to say about this chapter, overall...it’s true that there wasn’t much action and probably not even a big progress (but we had a revelation at the end of the chapter!), but on the character development and introspection side, this chapter was a bomb! I loved the parallels between the two couples, loved the fact that CLAMP managed to surprise us once again, making the parallels between Syaoran/Akiho and Sakura/Kaito, instead of the usual combination. Loved and cried for the living demonstration of what happens when someone shuts his heart, as opposed to someone who keeps it open, even if she doesn’t always listen to it herself. I’m glad that, despite all, Syaoran and Sakura still can count on that bond between them, something that made me instead very upset and aching for the other side of the chapter, where trust was completely missing from the picture. Kaito doesn’t trust Akiho, probably she’s the person he trusts the least, because deep down, in the depth of his heart, he knows she could have an immense power over him. And it’s scary, isn’t it?  I have to say it: in this chapter, with her determination, Akiho felt like a little woman to me. And Kaito, with his running game, like a hopeless kid. It’s ironic as it sounds, but it’s true.

This analysis and translation post has become way too long (as usual) and I thank everyone who survived reading it until now, hahahah! The next appointment with chapter 53 is: - On May 1st, on Nakayoshi magazine - On April 29th, on CLAMP-FANS website (Youtube) - On April 28th, on Comixology (to be confirmed)

See you next month, and my DMs are open for any questions/comments on this chapter!!