#i also wanna make a persona one as well tbh

[kumakuma-circus]

heehee p4 arcana swap chatfic go brrrrrrr.

[mobblespsycho100]

👍psychoanalyze ur kabru playlist now boy

yes I shall #1 boykisser... 🫡

ask game thing

anyway formatting the last post was kinda hell for me. which is why I'll do the same exact formatting for this one...

(rambling all over the place is commencing)

1. Valley of The Dolls by MARINA

baby. where do i freaking begin.

"In the valley of the dolls, we sleep" -> his adoptive mother, Milsiril, is a big fan of collecting dolls. Like, plushies of everything. She animates them to fight, but they're also there to soothe her. She also adopts a lot of children from short-lived races who don't have a family and she got allegations that she treats them all like her dolls lmao... I mean she kind of does in the sense that they're all precious to her. She does respect their autonomy but uhhh still living with such a doting and overbearing/overprotective mother makes u wanna break outta the dollhouse the cage . be free . hashtag transgenderism also gosh im getting off topic . anyway i bet Kabru slept with a lotta those dolls. in his comfy bed . that he left behind because hes not abt that life mama he wanna see the world and save it and get killed in dungeons. boy.

"Got a hole inside of me / Living with identities / That do not belong to me" -> Grouping these lyrics together because it makes sense for my twisted narrative i mean my very real and based takes. Anyway, he's got a hole inside of him the void in his heart (in his mind) and thats why. his autism and ptsd masking swag. thats as eloquent as i can put it. theres a lot more i can say though

"In my life, I got this far" -> He survived the tragedy of Utaya his hometown . the bloodbath because of the dungeon. It has to be for a purpose ™ . It's because he has to save the world from suffering the same fate and it's his burden to bear it's his purpose it was why he survived (the survivor's guilt... goodness man. trauma processing of all time. :[ )

"Now I'm ready for the last hoorah" -> boy . letting these panels speak for itself. putting it under the cut because spoilers for the peeps seeing this maintagged and they're not caught up with manga .

yeah boy hes falling. fallen. uhm. in the pit. Ready for the last hoorah in this case like. yeah 🤣 just leaving it up to laios (Liar . kabru and mithrun dungeon adventure speedrun)

"Dying like a shooting star" -> guy keeps dying. not even like a shooting star really. well. ig hes going out in style somewhat id getting crushed by Falin's chimera dragon claw counts as shooting star style

2. Lip Sinking by The Hoosiers

We all know Sash does not play about The Hoosiers which is why I have 26 damn The Hoosiers songs on there I should get awarded tbh .

Now Lip Sinking is really good because it's another one of those scammer / masking guy anthems i keep talking about. These lyrics in Verse 5 in particular is really easy to match to Kabru's character moment™ though, so let's break it down.

"I float above my body" -> Common depersonalization experience. For trauma reasons, Kabru probably feels like this a lot sometimes but specifically in this scene...

(apologies for no alt text peeps . but this is the friendship confession scene for those in the know if it hasnt loaded in yet)

anyway, back to the show (psychoanalyzing Kabru) . I think this disconnect with his words VS his thoughts and his heart is so real. Like. seeing urself out of ur body is again a depersonalization thing, and idk if hes feeling depersonalization in this moment specifically but he was really out of it and in a sort of , scrambled and intensely anxious state. His usually calm and cool persona slash facade is Crumbling and man he hates that .

"Must be out of my mind / Cos I watch myself / Getting it wrong everytime" -> He's like. man what the hell am I saying

letting the page speak for itself again because It's like. its there i mean its in tha text what am I supposed to dissect hes dissecting himself already 🤭😭 okay. 'What am I saying' 'I can't find the words' so true man idk what the hell im saying either rn

"I can't tell you how I'm really feeling" -> because he doesn't know his own emotions. He thinks he does, he has been so good at controlling them and like being fake about what he's truly feeling in his heart, adjusting his personality for others' sake. So they trust him, believe in him, listen to him. But for Laios, how does he even say anything? Before this, the words just spilling out, he didn't even know how he felt about Laios. It sounds ridiculous even to himself and that's why he clamps his mouth afterwards but indeed it Is what he was truly feeling all along... (and then Laios thinks he's lying and hes like "NO BITCH!!!? what?!!!?! im being vulnerable and honest rn?!?" )

"Cuz I'm just lip-syncing" -> for so long that's what he's been doing. lip syncing, saying things he doesn't really mean to influence others' perception of him... but this time his mouth moved faster than his mind racing with thoughts. that he's able to convey what he truly wanted all along and finally admit to himself and his own consciousness. like. aaaahgh. man hes so special to meeee....

bonus: the outro's lyrics is rlly good aha. he can finally say what he actually feels... he can be #real.

3. Allies or Enemies by The Crane Wives

This one is . a lot of vibes I think.

"Are we allies or enemies? / This will be the death of me / This will be the death of me" -> He legit says this to Laios . like hes still wondering if they're allies or enemies . Technically he doesn't want them to be enemies. he's cautious but he knows Laios isn't really a bad guy but like, his mind just keeps fixating on Laios and the steps he takes to get the dungeon under control so. hes desperately trying to figure it out because goodness this guy is so. waugh

"All is fair in love and war, but I can't fight with you anymore / This will be the death of me" -> his mental conflict is sooo tasty to me. like . all is fair in love and war !!! any method is justifiable !!! means justifies the ends but also he understands that in the end he can't fully wrap his head around Laios' love of monsters but he knows that Laios will be the one to conquer the dungeon because he also loves his family. He can't fight with him anymore and he can't "kill" him anymore because somehow this man has wormed his way in. well, he never wanted him dead in the first place but I find that he often thinks about killing him to save humanity from his... well. freakishness (complimentary) (concerning sometimes) ;;; but in the end Kabru lets him go and is willing to trust and support Laios till the end ... also once again the repetitiveness of "this will be the death of me" because he's stressed as helll!!!!

"What happens now, do we have another go?" -> I think this is post-Marcille being talked down out of being dungeon lord . Kabru's probably like ok so now what. well. Laios goes its my turn with the dungeon lording 😭😭 (and shit goes down) (but its okay he got it covered)

"Do we bow out and take our seperate roads?" -> Now this is probably when they're (the whole gang) is like "WHERE'S LAIOS DID HE DIE?" no he lives guys its fine. and namari toshiro and kabru run at him in relief. wauh. and also ofc the whole people coming together to eat faligon meat and save Falin ... yippeee... so yeah they don't go seperate roads because Kabru is like yeah imma be Laios' pr manager . #royaladvisor . sticking with him fr fr

"I'll admit I had my doubts / But I want to be let in, not out / But I want to be let in, not out" -> again the repetition ... of him wanting to help. I've mostly been talking abt how this entire song is Kabru's conflicted thoughts @ Laios but this can also be Kabru lending a helping hand to Mithrun at the end of everything. Because he's the one to like help Mithrun realize that there is a purpose to living and like . new desires and ppl who care abt him... but also yeah Kabru "i want to be let in, not out" because he wants to help out Laios with running the new kingdom instead of being in the background again and being ignored ahhaa he wants to be friends for real (and maybe even . lovers. lets go gay people)

ANYWAYYY YEAH THATS THE END WOOOOO idk how to close this out. happy belated birthday kabru and ty juno for sending this in ajshjdhsb :33 ♡

[daz4i]

oh wait i did promise a full dazai and nikolai comparison post didn’t i. time to deliver. no keep reading button, we’re clogging everyone’s dashboards like men. enjoy

clowning

so. i doubt i need to elaborate much on nikolai’s clowning - it’s very plainly put in the text, he along with other characters constantly call him a clown, and he obviously takes on a clown persona.

nikolai’s method of clowning is to take it to the extreme - everything he says sounds like a joke or pure nonsense, making you doubt everything that comes out of his mouth immediately, even when he’s saying the truth.

dazai’s is only slightly more subtle. i’m basing this on no longer human, given that so much of his character is based on yozo. dazai puts on a mask of a carefree, funny, lazy guy, especially to the agency, just like yozo does

his method of clowning is to seem genuine. pepper in just enough truth to make others believe him. seem reliable enough to make others trust him. but never showing his full self, so you should doubt everything he says

ultimately, the same outcome, done with different methods

so, we all agree they both do it. now, let’s analyze why. dazai’s is more obvious imo, so let’s start with him. 

with the agency specifically, it makes sense, gotta appear nonthreatening n all, seem like a normal guy with absolutely no past in the mafia (at least at first). i’d also say it can be used to make his enemies underestimate him - no one expects the goofy silly guy to pull a knife on them, after all, and you definitely don’t expect him to be a mastermind.

on a deeper level, if we go back to the yozo train of thought, it’s also to protect himself. no one can leave you, hurt the deeper parts of your soul, attack you personally if they can’t figure out who you are. no one can get close enough to matter to you then get taken away, the way oda was.

nikolai’s reasoning is less grounded in canon or external works (that i know of), so feel free to disagree with that part (with any part of this post tbh.) but in my interpretation, he does it for multiple reasons:

same as dazai, not letting anyone close enough to get him to care. nikolai sees bonds as something chaining him down - he cares about fyodor and sees him as a friend, and that’s why he wants to kill him. if you see him, he will care about you, and he can’t have that. better to have the self inflicted cage of a mask than have the key in someone else’s hands, if you wanna be poetic about it.

chaos! a lot of what nikolai does is to subvert expectations, be illogical, to prove the existence of his free will. nothing more chaotic than a clown

to contrast dazai, rather than make his enemies underestimate him, nikolai’s intention is to make his teammates underestimate him. he’s trying to throw their suspicions off him - oh, he defied the plan fyodor set up? well, can’t blame him, he always does silly shit like that. look how crazy that guy is, obviously he can’t follow orders - so he can freely do what he wants and only have them catch up way later.

already, we see a lot of similarities, as well as opposites-within-the-same-action. let’s continue

death

tldr: both are supposedly willing to die, yet still avoid death.

dazai sure managed to survive a lot of suicide attempts, huh! weird how all of his on screen attempts - especially since oda’s death - have been using methods that are easily to survive, like drowning. that’s so strange guys i wonder why’s that (psst i wrote a whole post just about that already)

and nikolai sure did give a dramatic speech about how dying will set him free, very convincing! weird that he faked his death, then. hmmm.

granted, nikolai’s speech might’ve been The Page’s work, but tbf it does align with his views on this topic so i’d like to believe there was some truth there, just like there’s some truth in dazai’s suicide attempts - yes, they want to die, but... there’s more to be done first.

both of them seem to hold a high value in the act of dying, and both see it as being set free. both feel trapped in their own life - nikolai outright says so, that he feels caged inside his own head, and if you dig into dazai’s character song you see him describe life as a “never-ending today”. both see death as salvation from their situation, but won’t get down to achieving it.

this is actually a good place to transition to our next topic,

meaning

since i mentioned dazai’s character song, one thing he seems to focus on there is looking for meaning, or rather being frustrated that he hasn’t found one yet (he also brings up this internal conflict in the dark era, but the song solidifies it as relevant even in his current state). dazai tries so hard to find meaning, but can’t.

nikolai’s fixation on free will, i’d argue, is not quite a search for meaning, but rather a struggle to prove there is no greater meaning in life, in order to ease his own guilt. none of his murders matter at the end of the day... right? then why does he still feel this way?

ironically, both can find meaning in their bonds - dazai has many at this point, with oda being the main one he might’ve found meaning in before, and nikolai has fyodor - but this is scary. they’re not used to having meaning, to caring. and so we circle back to the clowning, to pushing people away, to wanting to kill fyodor, to the comfort and familiarity of no meaning. 

guilt

like onions and ogres, clowns have layers. bear with me here.

on the surface, you’d expect them both to feel guilt for their horrendous acts. peel a layer, and it seems neither of them particularly does, otherwise they would stop doing it, you’d assume. peel back another layer, and... honestly, i think they do, but are just repressing it.

this is smth i get less from the text and more from their real life counterparts, tbh. going back to the yozo comparisons, he does outright say “i’ve lived a life filled with guilt” which. is very fair to expect to hear from our dazai. meanwhile the real life gogol straight up died because of his guilt. i don’t think asagiri would overlook stuff like that when turning them into characters.

nikolai also does outright tell atsushi he feels guilty for the atrocities he committed - though, pretends he didn’t mean it immediately after, putting back one of those layers we tried to peel.

going back to dazai’s song, it’s the “the tainted past, too, begone!” line that i feel is nodding to it. dazai obviously knows the things he’s done while in the mafia are wrong, seems like he knew while being in the mafia as well given his conversations with oda during the dark era. but this really does make it seem like he regrets it, imo.

they’re both repressing their guilt for the same reason they won’t die. there’s more important shit going on. dazai outright tells atsushi that wallowing in guilt is pointless, and we see him move forward and execute plans even if he’s still feeling guilty throughout, and even when he needs to do some dirty work to make them happen. nikolai is the same in that regard - he’s just hyperfocused on this goal of proving his free will, and guilt is another thing that’s keeping him caged, so he must break free from it. wallowing in it will simply be counterproductive.

sorry i gotta talk abt fyodor now

but it’s gonna be short i promise

so we’ve got this all knowing, unbeatable, super smart guy, right? anyway what if the only people we see outsmart him were 2 suicidal clowns. wouldn’t that be funny

so, it’s a bit tricky to call it “outsmarting” with dazai considering how their whole Thing is give and take that’s not going to end any time soon, but fyodor obviously views him as someone on his level so i’m counting that. he wouldn’t put this much effort into someone he didn’t think was less smart than him. and, he calls him a worthy chess opponent for a reason

nikolai did outsmart him, though. nikolai was supposed to die. nikolai wasn’t meant to survive the plan, let alone come to meursault and put fyodor in a death game when he could’ve escaped using the vampiric guard he planted in the prison instead. nikolai is throwing an unpredictable wrench in the plan of the guy who knows how everything is gonna turn out because humans are so predictable.

clearly they both affect him a lot, more than we see others have. both of them are the only ones so far we’ve seen get on the same level as fyodor

and, both of them are seen by fyodor. nikolai explicitly says fyodor is the only person who sees him, and dazai is seen because they are the same, on a certain level. fyodor understands them, which is why it’s even more impressive that they can outsmart him, imo

in conclusion

asagiri i am on my knees begging. make them interact properly please please please

fr tho, i’m curious if this means something. because this is a huge amount of similarities, especially when they’re not really related in any way and barely ever talked. does it mean anything?? how about nikolai being able to use his ability on dazai, does that mean anything????? asagiri please give me some answers i am asking so nicely

anyway. thank you for reading! lmk if i missed anything, or reblog with your own additions and analysis. if you disagree with anything i said, feel free to express that as well, just be respectful. hope i managed to infect you with my brainrot as well. have a great day :3!

[tinukis]

FINALLY SHOWING OFF MY COLLECTION !!! i finally reorganized a little bit buuut it still feels incomplete... anyway!! it's a mix of one piece and pokemon... ft other things but mostly one piece

FIRST SHELF:

again, mostly pokemon and one piece. i've been collecting pokemon plushies/merch in general since 2018. and to be completely honest with you, i feel like my life didnt start until 2018. i have no recollection of anything at least irl before 2018... i have a bunch of pokemon plushies still that arent even on here or theyre just hiding from sight! (like behind gladion is a steven stone plushie nfmshd) OH AND I HAD MY GLADION AND MIKO PLUSHIE MADE !! i just drew it and then gave the designs to a manufacturer :3 my next goal is to make another two but with their alt outfits this time :D

also on the top shelf, other than the action figures and plushies, are artbooks! for original sun/moon, usum, scarlet/violet, and it's hard to see but artbooks for the great ace attorney/dai gyakuten saiban as well !! also the gladion acrylic standee blends in well with wano zoro jfkdhjd omg do yall think gladion could do a closet cosplay of zoro (miko got him to do it <3)

also im not rlly big on pop funkos, theyre just gifts <3

AND TWO BINDERS OF POKEMON CARDS... i dont play i just collect them bc i like pretty art

SO UM. SECOND SHELF. one shelf dedicated to zolu, asl, and ace and sabo :3 behind the zolu figures are tiny plushies of them and rubber straps but well, its hard to see em </3

i got into one piece since like. early september and now i have an entire display dedicated to one piece 😭 + other things like persona lol

feat my pokemon boxes and unboxed one piece figures. ofc, this isnt Everything i have but it's Mostly everything

the last two things i'll show and the second post wont be posted until i update my stuff more

so heres my poorly made luffy cutout that was literally made with sweat and tears... in fact i startwd this project like a WEEK after starting one piece 😭😭😭 thats how you know i was strapped in for life

and my corkboard!! some cool one piece works and the wano zolu sc :3 it's really cool to have these things hfmhdjd

the ace print, frobin charms, rubber pins, and stickers i just pinned on are stuff i got from a con. everything else from jp mercari !!

tbh, the sealed gladion acrylic standee is like my most prized treasure... not that i dropped hundreds on it but i got it for a lot cheaper compared to the other sealed ones online :'D + his postcards too are one of my most prized possessions... i wonder who my favorite pokemon character is

honestly idk what to fill the empty space in with but i wanna balance out this corkboard with pkmn and OP so maybe i'll try to hunt for more pkmn stuff

this is all i'll share for now but the next post will show my two ita bags that i have :0 !!! and my comically large arcanine plushie that i named ace 😁🫶

[stickbug-made-entirely-of-spite]

He's finished!

Or well, his base concept bahahaha

And as promised, I'm also including his colour palette! The shadow colours aren't set in stone of course, that 100% depends on the style and lighting one chooses to use - should they want to doodle my bug boy -, but I wanted to include them because - why not? -

Nothing is set in stone tbh, if you wanna up the saturation, darken/lighten some colours, change a hue or two to make him fit your style a little better, you're more than welcome to do so ^-^

I haven't worked out a name for him just yet, but I tend to call him "Stick", "Bug", or "Bug boy", so I guess those are his nicknames so far! ^-^

And just to be clear, there are no set pronouns for this buggy dude! I tend to use he/him because it comes naturally to me, but this character is in fact genderfluid, with a majority of the time spent more on either the agender or masculine side of the spectrum

He basically shares my gender identity (and my eye colour, a fun little detail), which makes sense since he is my persona after all bahahaha

His height, which I now realise I should have included in one of the pictures :'], is 7'8". Yes, this is very tall. Yes, he is based on an absolutely massive insect lmao

Clothes are honestly up to whoever is doodling him, I drew him without them here since I wanted to clearly display his build (and he technically doesn't need to wear any clothes unless he's cold, since there isn't really anything to cover up lmao)

All of that said, I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day! 🧡

Yours truly, Stickbug 🪲

(and Stickbug's bug boy)

[chans-room]

Rank SKZ as ghostface (you should have seen this coming)

Okay so I don't feel like any of them would be necessarily bad at it, but there are some notable ones who'd be really fucking good.

Also uh... I may or may not have a mask kink and Ghostface is a Fave 🫡 so just... nsfw warning for what's under the cut. Nothing too graphic but I'm just telling you. Bc I don't wanna hear about it.

Lino. I'm sorry but I'm right. It's not a bit in the same way it is for some of the others. It's super natural to him and he'd be so scary and hot it's giving Billy Loomis in the best way. He's a full experience kinda ghostface: he likes to be the one calling and torturing you psychologically and being behind the mask ready to slice and dice. Full predator/prey vibe and I'm afraid it's a 15/10 slay

Jeongin. No I can not explain why but he'd be so unhinged and menacing. Lowkey giving Stu Macher vibes. His Ghostface gives serious mocking/degradation vibes and he's getting off on making you beg. I think his fave part is the psychological manipulation aspect but honestly he's enjoying the whole experience. It's gotta be a 13/10 slay

Hyunjin. He's doing his most and it's so dramatic and theatrical but it's properly scary sometimes. He violently oscillates between dramatic and scary like every sentence. BIG predator vibes, he wants you to run from him. Bc of that, he'd enjoy being in the mask and being the action oriented party of the Ghostface persona. Like is it foreplay or is he actually gonna murder you. Hard to say tbh. 12/10 slay.

Chan. If he weren't in a group with some truly unhinged mfs he'd be top of the list. I have a feeling he'd get off watching you cry. Idk if anyone other than me and @kiestrokes have seen the mtv scream show but it's giving those vibes. 11/10 slay.

Felix. The teasing, mocking tone of his voice even through the modulator?? Girl bye I'm feral. He'd do so well in those planning stages, setting up the house of cards designed perfectly to ruin you. The only reason he's not higher is because at some point, he'll get too emotional and snap a little bit and ruin some of his own plans. Is it cheap for me to say there's a dumbification kink happening here? No? Okay. 10/10 slay.

Seungmin. Okay, I know someone's gonna question why he's so low but tbh the whole thing feels like too much work for him. He has to be SERIOUSLY motivated or full of enough spite to go this far and do the whole thing. Because he'd honestly rather just get things done with and move on. But if he's doing it, man is committed HARD. He's getting off on his ability to outwit you and it plays into a lowkey superiority complex. 9/10 slay.

Hanji. I love him. Do I think he could pull of the planning? No. Do I think he could be scary and pull off the murdering bit? Yes. But is he in charge???? Fuck no. He's working at the behest of someone else. Nearly anyone else. Also the first time he stabs someone he almost chickens out but gets it together at the end. Another Stu vibe but like almost less menacing? More of the goofy Stu vibes. The cocky, confident vibes he's got bc of the mask tho makes him 😮‍💨 8/10 slay tho.

Changbin. There's something about Changbin to me that absolutely does not give me ghostface vibes, but at the same time, he could be one of those plot twist ones that really send the message home that ghostface could be anyone. I'm gonna be real tho, if I'm seeing Changbin come at me menacingly, I'd be properly terrified. He'd def throw you around. Even if it's just a kink thing, he's doing his most. 7/10 slay.

[sirenspells]

WIPs and abandoned projects (March 2021-December 2023)

Info on each one (as well as what the songs/audio sources are):

The song playing in the intro and outro is Dianthus Nardiformis from the Dreaming Mary OST.

19: March 2021. Okay so this one's not actually a work in progress. I made this on my 19th birthday, the joke being that the singer just says 19 then it ends. I think I thought it was kinda dumb so I didn't end up actually posting it. Also features a sona I had before Cress that I never really got attached to, so she was barely used. Song is 19 by Old 97's.

Lonely Holiday: July 2021. This has the honor of being the first OMORI mv I ever attempted. I started this on a whim while bored out of my mind dogsitting for a couple weeks, and I kinda just lost interest in it. Dunno if I'll go back to it. Song is Lonely Holiday by Old 97's.

Numb: July 2021. Another one I started while dogsitting, and another one I kinda just lost interest in, but I absolutely want to revisit it someday because it's an idea I've had for a while and still really want to do. Song is Numb (Linkin Park Cover) by Robyn Adele Anderson.

The Artist: December 2021. I stopped working on this one because doing everything manually frame-by-frame got really annoying and I started to hate working on it. I dunno why I did the zoom in manually but it looks bad, lol. The entire MV would have been just this verse of the song because I thought it really fit Basil and Omori. Tbh I still like how this looks and I may come back to it. Song is The Artist by The Hush Sound.

Higher: February 2022. It's the animation meme. I actually posted this wip a while ago but I'm still gonna include it here for completion's sake. This was really just storyboard practice, so I don't have much of an interest in completing it beyond this. It's Omori Strikers AU (my omori x persona 5 crossover au) and it's basically about Omori's identity issues due to being Sunny's Shadow. The quality's really bad on this one, for some reason iMovie refused to export it in a higher quality than this, I don't know why. Song is High by SIVIK.

Little Sunbeam: February 2022. This MV would have centered on the omari au, and beyond this it'd switch to Mari's pov and take on different palettes. Doing that text effect made working on this very annoying and would make my art program lag a lot so I lost interest in working on it. I might revisit this one, though I'd have to rework the original idea I had now that my perception on the common omari au has changed lol. Song is Little Sunbeam by Eleisha Eagle.

Nightmarish: April 2022. This MV would technically be a remake of one I made in 2020. Same song, same color palette, but with a completely new media. Part of wanting to work on this is wanting to spread Dreaming Mary propaganda cause I love it and I think people who like OMORI will like Dreaming Mary as well. Also I love this song. I definitely wanna go back to this one at some point. Song is Nightmarish from the Dreaming Mary OST.

Keep You Safe: July 2022. Like Higher I also posted this wip before but will still include it here. I absolutely want to go back to this one someday because I still really like the idea I have for it. Fun fact, for those who remember this piece, that was based on this MV, but it's not like you can tell based on what's shown here. Song is Keep You Safe by The Crane Wives.

Four Walls: August 2022. Amnesiac Omori MV, what would have been his youtube introduction if I hadn't stopped working on it and then made When Am I Gonna Lose You. I think I kinda just lost interest in this one, though I wanna go back to it at some point I think. Song is Four Walls (The Ballad of Perry Smith) by Bastille.

Someone Gets Hurt: January 2023. Amnesiac omori again babey!! Animatic that would have taken place after he regains his memories, where he's basically really angry and lashes out at Sunny and Stranger. Might revisit this one. Song is Someone Gets Hurt (Reprise) from the Mean Girls musical.

Uhh some shitpost: February 2023. Silly thing, it's a shame I stopped working on it before it actually got to the main funny part. I dunno if I'll go back to this one. Audio from @/tylergaca on twitter.

Jealous: March 2023. Animation meme. It would've been about Sunny and Mari in my pmd au and the leadup to the incident. It took me a while to get that second shot right and I still really don't like it. Do wanna revisit this one cause I love angst surrounding these two so much I love them in pmd au GRAHHH. Song is Jealous by Eyedress (slowed down).

Stranger lipsync test: May 2023. This was way too difficult as a lipsync test so I gave up on it, though I still like the animation for it. Also this is a pretty good contender for headcanon voice for Stranger I'll be real. Audio is from Persona 5 Royal.

Propaganda: August 2023. Amnesiac omori au storyboard that I do actually wanna make into a completed thing. This is very spoilery so my master plan is to not explain what's happening. Muah hah hah >:3c. Also once again iMovie exported this in a really bad quality for some reason. Song is Propaganda by Kill J.

Alter's Rant: December 2023. One more amnesiac omori animatic for the road. Once again it's really spoilery but it's basically Alter and Omori's final confrontation. I have more done than what's shown here but I wanna keep it a surprise for when I finish it, which should hopefully be soon >:3c. Also this one also got hit by iMovie's low quality curse. Song is Eva's Rant from Bring It On The Musical.

[forlorn-crows]

Ghoulette mischaracterizing...

I'm sure a lot of people will tell you it's mommy-coding Cumulus, which tbh it probably is. (see also: Aether. boy likes to be held too ya know?) But I've seen a lot of people actively pushing against that recently which makes me very happy.

So instead I raise you Confident-Boss-Bitch Cirrus. We've all seen her hyping the crowd behind the keyboard risers like a soccer mom on match day, she OWNS the stage with the keytar solo, and she's pretty much a universal dom in fics.

But, what if she's not the on-stage persona? (We all hc Dew as something other than just angry right?) What if she's actually hiding a deep feeling of needing to hold the pack together and appear in control all the time because of the turbulence around when she first joined the pack? I get strong eldest-daughter vibes.

I hc that she has a soft and vulnerable side the congregation doesn't see, even her pack don't know the full extent of it, only Cumulus does really since they were summoned together. She has insecurities too, just more hidden.

Here is where I tell every fic writer who ever put any time into making the ghoulettes more 3D that I love them will all my heart (your cirrus/mist fic was *chefs kiss* btw!) 🖤

Hope you're work day goes well!

i think y'all hit the nail on the head. honestly speaking i think cirrus is one of the least dynamically written characters in this fandom. 90% of the time she's the mean femme-dom. nothing more. like? thats boring! i like what you've all said about the reason she might put up a stern or stoic front.

but! also! what sage mentioned. while i think she takes performing seriously, she isnt serious in appearance, if that makes sense. she is having fun, jumping around, doing little hand gestures, and bein fuckin sexayyyy on that keytar. she's having fun with it all, performing just like the rest of them. i'll see clips of her and just scream LOOK AT HER GOOO.

and yes, how does that differ from her off-stage personality? i still think she's on the stoic side, like dew. but she isnt, like, apathetic. she's silly, she laughs, she teases, she pines, she fails, she cries. she. fUCKING. BOTTOMS Y'ALL. come on. you can't tell me swiss doesnt run her into the fucking ground sometimes. you cant tell me that lus doesnt absolutely pamper her and eat her out as long as she wants. you cant tell me that dew doesnt take it slow with her, hold her close and warm and let her relax for once.

i would really like to see us dig into her more. what is she really like outside the bedroom, outside of her relationship with cumulus? bc, lets face it, lots of us like to write them as a unit. while they're fucking in love, obviously, i mean come on, cirrus is a person aside from her bond w/lus. what is she like with the others? hell, what is she like when she's alone?

its why i wrote her the way i did in Been Long Enough. i wanna see her stutter, see her 'meet her match' so to say. bc i still think cirrus is very clever, smart. she can still like that dom role every once in a while (again, remember a little dash of these things are fine). but i think she gets tired of it too. she wants to be taken care of, wants to just totally have that control slip out from under her. maybe thats something about her, an anxiety like those of you mentioned that creates a front that isnt really her.

i wanna pick her apart more. @askingforthesun always helps me see the light about her haha. they are very passionate about cirrus and rightfully so, and i always love what they have to say about her.

[harapeveco]

heyy so ive loved eves songs for a while now and i really wanna delve into their lore. so far ive seen the names of the characters from his mvs, but is there a story? what are the characters like? im so curious and i would love to know where to start reading into it. thank you!! c:

Oof well gotta be honest with you bestie that is a very difficult question…the simpler answer to that is yes and no

The more complicated answer is it depends on how you see those MVs, everything it’s pretty much up to your interpretation. There are some MVs however that are connected to each other to some extent, those being Nonsense Bungaku, Dramaturgy, Outsider and Last Dance all of these make a reference to the characters that appear in each one so most fans agree they are part of the same story. There are two other MVs that are undoubtedly related, these being Inochi no Tabekata and Fight Song, the second one being a sequel to the first. Another interesting case is the one of Tokyo Ghetto that also has cameos of characters from the aforementioned songs and its main character appearing on Inochi no Tabekata several times, which makes everyone believe they are connected…as far as a “story” goes related to his MVs that’s the most I can give you

As of lore there’s a bit of it. You probably have noticed how in every MV there’s a human and a creature/monster like thing with said human. Those creatures are called Zingai and they can be described as the physical manifestation of a person’s heart (if you’ve ever played a Persona game it’s literally the same thing). Usually Zingai are friendly with their human and pretty much do whatever their human wants them to do but there are times where they become unstable and attack their humans. Good examples of this are the end of Dramaturgy and Tokyo Ghetto

There’s more I could explain ofc but where’s the fun of that when you can read it yourself and make your own theories too! Idk if you are aware but Eve has two mangas! One of them is Kara no Kioku which is the story of a complete new character discovering what Zingai are (which explains better the whole human/zingai dynamic) and another one called Inochi no Tabekata which as you can assume follows the MVs’ protagonist and his origin story (this manga also has a light novel counterpart you can find the first two volumes translated here on tumblr). There’s a third one but it’s more of a gag type 4koma manga called Tobi to Ryuuko which is about the two characters from Fight Sing vibing together

That’s all I can say regarding this tbh. Most of the lore or story (not taking the mangas and light novel into consideration) is mostly your own interpretation. Some people like to say some MVs are canon while others aren’t bc they don’t see them fitting their idea of continuity while others (like me) like to believe every MV is related to some extent. I think that’s the best aspect of being an Eve fan, you can just put your own thoughts on it and you won’t be wrong

[mygwenchan]

Hi Jump :3

Good to see that this one is still alive!

Ah, they're playing the "do you remember when we first met?" game! Tbh, I'd totally lose at that game, cause I can't remember shit 😅

See, Jump did like Porche right from the start, I knew it! Ok, it wasn't love at first sight, but he did feel attracted to him

Seeing Porche like this really makes me wonder how much of that little master persona from before was actually him and how much was just Porche pretending to be a tough guy 🤔 It's kind of the same with First. It's cute when they're all lovey dovey with their boyfriends, but what about the spice? What about the kinks? What about the pet play, hm Porche? Where did that go? 😭

There, Jump is asking the real questions now! I wanna know as well

Hmm, was it really only because of Jason though? I mean Porche must have certain dom tendencies regardless of what happened with his daddy, right?

Also "act cute like Zouey" he says... Meanwhile I'm thinking about Zouey railing Teena on the billiard table lol

Oh! Guys, maybe that`s it? The ones who were harsh and kinda dom are cute now and Zouey who was sort of shy and subby might turn into a full on dom 👀

Now I'm the one who feels shy

Don't look at me like that! 🙈

And of course Jump is loving it and they have a bit of a bj session going on :)

Side note: Don't smoke on the bed, kids. That's dangerous. Also your bed linens will smell like cold cigarette smoke juck

[0pawprint0]

Decided to start posting my doodle dumps here, too!

Doodle 1: my Mekakucity Actors/Kagerou Project OC, Kia.

Doodle 2: my OC for a game I wanna make one day. Their name is Chel (pronounced: shell).

Doodle 3: a character I considered making my Supernatural OC. They’re based on the wisps or dead lights in various folklores.

Doodle 4: character from an MV I hope to put out eventually!

Doodle 5: Fiona, my OC for Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs. She’s based on the frog prince/princess and the frog. She is not a princess, so when the frog prince asked her to kiss him, he ended up cursing her as well. Now she turns into a frog at night.

Doodle 6: another OC from another game I wanna make one day! Her name is Maya! She’s an experiment and a streamer!

Doodle 7: me/my persona Pawprint with hair down

Doodle 8: maid Paw!

Btw, the dots and arrows are because I had to download them off Instagram oops. This is the second set of doodles I’ve posted.

Doodle 1: my main Twst OC, Ciel! He’s twisted from Captain Hook! You can’t really tell, but it’s more his lifestyle than appearance. Lowkey I designed him before I knew who I wanted to base him on and was too attached to the design to change it. But y’know what? If Riddle can have red hair, Ciel can have blue. Also, yes, his name is Ciel because, again, before I fully decided his whole thing, I thought it’d be funny to name my MC Ciel because Yana made the game. For context, Yana made Black Butler and the MC in that is Ciel Phantomhive. Then the name stuck because it’s cute. And it fits Octavinelle’s color themed names lol!

Doodle 2: very early design of my Yuusona. They look WAY different now.

Doodle 3: a character I saw in a dream once. Their name is Siu.

Doodle 4: a reaper OC of mine, Piko. Idk what to use her for yet tbh.

Doodle 5: My magical girl OC, Violet. She finds that outfit to be very impractical.

Doodle 6: Twst hates me and I needed to express it.

Doodle 7: another character I saw in a dream. I think his name was Tamaki. I hope to use him for something one day cause I love him.

Doodle 8: my OC’s Io and Lin in middle school!

Doodle 9: Angel Sebastian! He is my precious boy (OC).

Doodle dump number three! Four and five will have to be on a separate post.

Doodle 1: the monster girl I saw hammering away in a dream. She’s actually my Villainous OC now and her name is Gambit! She’s an ex sidekick who was fired because the hero she worked for is a dick. Gambit didn’t match their aesthetic enough anymore.

Doodle 2: Viper, a second gen character I made for Helluva Boss. She’s Striker’s kid. Clearly.

Doodle 3: Shinen, the living porcelain doll!

Doodles 4-6: a drag look I wanna put together (the split dye is how it’ll look irl and the other two are just variations it’d be if I use him as an oc)

Doodle 7: Modrá, another second gen character. The kid of Azul Ashengrotto and my Twst OC, Ciel. Modrá is going to see Barbie hehe <3 They dye their hair depending on the outfit (it’s temporary dye) because she finds it fun.

[arcplaysgames]

OKAY I WENT BACK AND FIXED THE FLAG, lets roll

i'm gonna say it: futaba is the character that can go toe-to-toe with the casts of P3 and P4. she is so well written, so expansive, just the way she talks feels more alive, like allusions to her broader self. she's the one character who feels like she exists when she's not being observed on the screen.

she is Reverie's little sister and I love her to death.

Also when Reverie gives her a head pat (which is a thing I do to my mother to say hello) it's adorable, and it's clearly been so long since it's happened that it takes her off guard and she leaps away.

Baby steps, Futaba, you're getting there and I'm proud of you.

oh man i love how this game keeps making it agonizing as i turn people down!!!!

tho tbh none was worse than Ann, my god the Ann scene was so good I almost dated her just because the set-up.

but no, Futaba, i really thought about it, and you are a little sister.

(also, I am morbidly curious how the obligatory Christmas date goes without a romance. in P4G it was fucking delightful, but P5R has proven to be a fucking bastard if you don't romance someone. I wanna see if it can be worse than the Hawaii trip somehow.)

but jfc PERSONA! STOP THIS! LEMME SAY SOMETHING MORE PROFOUND! Lemme say "You're like a sibling to me" or "You're the best friend I could have hoped for," SOMETHING not just "Because we are teammates," it's so fucking cold!!!!!

yells

SEE

THAT'S MORE LIKE IT

I love that they have an in-joke. Futaba is absolutely Reverie's key item too.

okay so that's Hermit nearly a wrap, rank 9.

Time for the latest Beige News.

Akechi wants to go have a private conversation. Super private. No, even more private than that. He wants to have a chat in Mementos.

Morgana, I cannot BELIEVE you just let Reverie GO OFF TO MEMENTOS WITH AKECHI, who the fuck is gonna be around to drag Reverie's body back to the real world after? Someone needs to run up to Sojiro and meow like Lassie, okay.

But no, Morgana presumably is nervous about being an unwilling spectator to some hot makeouts so he's outie.

Points to Akechi's VA because my god it sounds like Akechi is actually having an emotion for the first time in the game.

For the curious, his emotion is Barely Restrained Murder Boner.

Unfortunately for you, bro, I just bribed Notigor with 60k yen to give me King Frost with Null Bless, so you are royally fucked. (Ba dum tish.)

This is so fucking horny I just stopped and laughed to myself for a while.

i'm fukcing cackling at this shit

Akechi would be like 50% more stable as a person if he just read Homestuck, honestly. The feeling that is burning in your chest/pants right now is called kismesissitude and it's totally fine, man. You are be max dramatic about your blackrom feels when you and Reverie could just be making out and leaving bruises on each other for fun.

But lets be real, if Akechi read Homestuck he'd unironically think Vriska did nothing wrong and then we'd have to kill him.

HE FUCKING THROWS HIS GLOVE AT REVERIE

He could be taking off a lot more than that if he stopped being weird about this blackrom thing but WHATEVER MAN, Y'ALL CAN HAVE HATE MAKEOUTS LATER I GUESS.

Pompous little windbag. I want to beat you up and make you wear something that isn't monochromatic to a hospital wall.

[notmoreflippingelves]

What kind of people do you think Kristoph is particularly drawn to (both romantically and non-romantically, not counting Phoenix)? Do you also think he can feel some form of sympathy for someone else's suffering/despair and, if able or given the chance, want to help them (perhaps if it hits him on a personal level)? Part of me thinks he's drawn to the more naive/docile/innocent types, though his pride + reputation gets in the way of pursuing such relationships, but I wanna hear your thoughts.

I tend to read Kristoph as the sort of person who has lived his life according to fairly rigid expectations of himself. These may be self-inflicted or may be the result of his upbringing--but more likely is a combination of both.

He is the sort of person who probably decided (or was told to) that he would become a lawyer at a fairly young age. And he has let this sort of logic dictate his life in both large and small matters.

(ex: "I must to do well at school so that I can get into the best law program and then get the best internship post-graduation and then have the most successful lucrative and prestigious career. Therefore, I can't afford to let myself get distracted by anything that will not directly contribute to my ultimate success. Even if said thing might make me happy or help me realize that my end goal isn't necessarily the right path for me.")

As a result, Kristoph has spend most of his life living "for other people"--not in the selfless, compassionate way, but strictly in the sense of "this is the sort of thing that I am supposed to do and supposed to want. it's what everyone says and knows so they must be right and I must strive for it."

He distrusts his emotions and does his best to ignore or counter them (which of course makes him even more volatile and blind of how they impact him anyway).

Because Kristoph has such rigid expectations for himself, I think he would paradoxically be drawn to his "opposite" in those respects. He keeps himself "caged" so he is fascinated by people who are "free" unlike him. People who "know themselves" because they weren't afraid to be spontaneous or emotional or contradictory. People who don't necessarily have to be "comfortable" in their skin all the time--but who aren't uncomfortable either.

This is a key part of his attraction to Phoenix for me. Phoenix "allows" himself to be emotional and impulsive--often to the point of recklessness--which Kristoph can't help but find fascinating even he doesn't quite understand it and would never give himself permission to try living that way.

I occasionally ship Kristoph with Lang ( I ship everyone with Lang tbh. And why wouldn't you? The good wolf boy deserves all the smooches from everyone. ) and I think there's sort of a similar self-possession and"freedom to feel" with him as with Phoenix. I've also been curious about Kristoph with Blackquill, Ray Shields, Godot, and Dhurke. And while I'd say that none of them are quite to the "I know who I am and I accept it and let myself be me" that Phoenix and Lang are, they are still nevertheless much more self-aware, self-resigned, and self-determined than Kristoph himself is--which would make them compelling to Kristoph.

I think this aspect may also have "platonic" appeal to Kristoph in addition to romantic. I would argue that while Klavier is not as "free to be himself" as he could be (and that a lot of his public persona is a facade and defense mechanism), he is still leaps and bounds beyond Kristoph in "allowing" himself to feel emotions and try things--which is simultaneously compelling and terrifying to Kristoph.

I know I probably talk too much about zarla and bardic's Gavin Brothers Frozen AU (but believe me, it deserves it.) But "Dangerous to Dream" (one of Elsa's new solos from the Stage Musical) really captures how I see Kristoph's view of his and Klavier's relationship perfectly. I've shared a few lines below:

"I have to be so cautious, and you're so extreme. We're different, you and I...."

And then later.

"I can't be what you expect of me./And I'm not what I seem./But I would love to know you."

[brokenhardies]

woo woo, margarita, and long island iced tea + gwen, amber, and madoka?

𝘄𝗼𝗼 𝘄𝗼𝗼 〜 what’s their relationship like with their parent(s)/guardian(s)?

Gwen

Her relationship with Spencer's good! Better than her relationship with her dad! To summarise - being used as a DNA experiment, then p much being abandoned with your 'brother' for two years having to lie about his identity just for your father's sake, and then, after everything's been resolved he goes back and makes more robots???? Gwen literally takes Dax's name for that sole reason.

Amber

She has a pretty healthy relationship with her parents - well, the one that's still alive anyway! Her mum - Carol - became her rock after her dad died, even though she's busy with her work - being a nurse is a rough go when dealing with your 10 year old child grieving the death of her father - but Amber doesn't hold it against her. They're close but not like 'friends' close, there are boundaries and Carol knows that there are rules, but Amber also knows when her mum needs her space!

Madoka

In spite of her having a very close relationship with her parents, she constantly feels expected to reach very high for her dad's lofty goals. After finding out that Yuuki didn't tell him about Kamoshida, Eikichi is mortified and believes that Madoka's hiding things from him out of fear, so he tries to become more open, but even then that messes up. It's sad, and he's trying his best -- probably because of his own relationship with his father he kind of overcompensates. Plus as a Wild Card (headcanon taken by @hobie-doh), Eikichi can hear Della Rose and later, Hel, so he knows that she's probably a Persona user but doesn't know how or why she got the powers, but that's like awkward to bring up at the dinner table

𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗮 〜 does your oc have any disorders or disabilities?

Gwen

Gwen is pretty able-bodied! She has an inferiority complex if that counts as a 'disorder' :')

Amber

Amber is definitely neurodiverse but she hasn't gotten diagnosed yet, mostly due to not knowing if she's actually neurodiverse or if she's just being 'weird'. Probably has a Cluster-B Personality disorder of some description

Madoka

Madoka has both Autism and ADHD! tbh i also kind of wanna make her dyspraxic bc as someone who managed to get my coordination issues in check bc i really wanted to play the violin it seems like something Madoka would do as well!

𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗲𝗮 〜 who are some of your oc’s best friends?

Gwen

Up until meeting the Overdrive team, she didn't have any friends outside of Mack. Now, she has a tonne of friends - mostly in the team -, and stays in contact with them even if they're far apart. She also - somewhat - considers Jane Fairview her friend, mostly because she treats J-Borg like a person and not an experiment lol

Amber

Nate and Rachel have both been in her life the longest and she loves them platonically so much. She met Nate at a grief support group but they both felt bad bc their parents died long before they joined the group and felt like they shouldn't be there, so they hit it off. Then Rachel joined and they've been thick as thieves since! I'd also say Billy is one of her closest friends, they both know each other's secrets and other embarrassing traits :')

Madoka

Hifumi Togo became her friend upon moving to Kosei. Much like Madoka, Hifumi didn't have many friends, so Madoka immediately scooped her up, and she's kind of become her 'extrovert adopts introvert' friend. She also encourages Hifumi to get together with the protag, and is very happy when she finally confesses her feelings to him!

[broken-clover]

*poke poke* okay your turn lets hear some music takes! (no need for a long list like i did you can just tell me your top and bottom picks if you wanna)

Iiiiiii spent way too much time trying to analyze these. It felt like a good excuse to look at them all, your analyses were really fun to read! And I like making lists! Unfortunately I am way less knowledgeable about rock genres and music in general so this'll be less smartly analytical as opposed to me just screaming. Also I found out that I was way more opinionated on some songs than on others. Not surprising I guess but man looking between my thoughts on Chipp's vs Faust's was a little embarrassing.

Find Your One Way- Likewise I absolutely got the title confused. Tbh I think it'd make more sense if it was 'own.' I feel like this song sums up Sol well in terms of being edgy and rocking but mechanically pretty straightforward. Not bad, just kind of basic. It's serviceable. Just…not much else

Roar of the Spark- I fully maintain that Ky has not had a single clunker or flop theme, not even in the original vocal tracks. Tonally and lyrically it's an absolute gem. I adore how the sparkly keyboard gives it a bit of a 'holy' vibe. Not a second of it doesn't absolutely go hard. This is one that I regularly relisten to not even as a video game theme but just a song I love banging my head to

The Disaster of Passion- A little basic? Sure. Absolute bop? OH BOY IS IT. Utterly bursting with energy, but it never comes off as exhausting or cloying. For the most part I really love AISHA's themes, and it's another one I listen to for fun a lot

Out of the Box- I appreciate that even if I'm not a huge fan of the theme it still very clearly reflects who it belongs to. A very offbeat and leisurely feel, fits Axl perfectly. I love the drum kicks, but the high pitched parts are a little silly. At least it knows how to a decent chant, unlike some themes.

Play the Hero- ….man, it really is an anime theme, huh. The sudden sweep of energy going into the first chorus does do a great job of pumping you up. I wish I had more to say. It's good, it does its job.

Armor-Clad Faith- I don't know about 'underrated,' but I feel like the low, grinding, industrial vibe really fits Potemkin and creates a really powerful atmosphere that gets a bit overlooked. You can feel Potemkin, but you can feel the mechanical nature of Zepp surrounding him too. As much as I love Engage I'm tied between them, they both create really good atmosphere

Alone Infection- (Prepare for a long-winded mess)

It's been a hot second since I listened to this one, at least before Another Story, and not to read too into stuff, but I feel like the whole thing is an abridged version of Faust's entire plot arc. The first portion is growling and harsh and whispering with fretful undertones, which fits really well with his original snap as Baldhead, psychologically he was all over the place, unable to process the grief and self-loathing, and even after stopping with the killing and trying to atone, he had nobody to connect with or to talk to in order to help him understand and process his psychological damage. It constantly hangs over him, but nobody else can see it's there aside from him.

The sort of goofy vaudeville/circus-esque section could be a lot of the 'Faust' persona, but I'd lean towards Xrd and maybe the tail end of the XX-series. He's happy! He's fun! Don't focus on the undertones! He's the happy silly doctor man, everything is fine! Everything is fine!! But it's temporary, because it's just a band-aid on a stab wound, making everything look good on the outside. As soon as you prod it, it's obvious that barely anything has changed, and we're back to the chorus

And just as quickly, it all cuts out into a gentle guitar piece. I think this could be Another Story. It's finally quiet, no distractions for him to use to ignore what he hasn't been able to address. He recognizes that he's been running from his past and the trauma that comes with it, and is able to see 'eye to eye' with himself. It's difficult, and it's something he hasn't wanted to look at, but it's what he had to do in order to accept what happened and finally let it go.

While the final section is basically the same lyrics at first, it's much more grand and sweeping, soulful and dare I say it, hopeful. Positive things are mixed into the line about grief, and the final round of the chorus gives off the impression that he's come to terms with the fact that his trauma is something that he still is the only one that can see the full depths of it, but it's something he's accepted as a part of himself and can allow to coexist with the rest of him rather than overshadowing everything like it has for years.

Love the Subhuman Self- Ough Millia sweetie I'm so sorry I overlooked your theme it's fabulous. Tbh in general I love whenever they go for a more electronic sound, and the opener does give off a slightly lopsided vibe, like Millia herself isn't psychologically solid. But the low, grinding sound it veers into not long afterwards also works really well for her tonally, it remids me of a Metal Gear track, and offers up a mental image of her masking her uneasiness and discomforts with the rigid assassin duties she's given. The growl in the chorus also feels like a pretty obvious nod to Zato, and how even in a song that's supposed to be about Millia and who she is, he still seeps in. Even if she tries to move on, he's still there.

One thing I hadn't noticed the first couple of times that there's a sense of…almost childishness in some of the lyrics. The repeated mention of lullabies, throwing rocks into a lake like children would do, specifically the mention of looking 'cute' rather than something like pretty or beautiful that an adult would use. Could be overanalyzing but I like the suggestion it gives off that her upbringing left Millia psychologically stunted in some ways, and part of the reason leaving the assassin lifestyle is so difficult

Let Me Carve Your Way- Okay. Yes. The opening and the ending do worm into my skull and do indeed slap monumentally. However, I think the middle of the sandwich is just…decent. Basic in the same way that Sol's is, and I don't think it flows into the ending well, it just kinda stops and starts as a new song. Front half is a solid C tier, back is an A

Necessary Discrepancy- MORE ELECTRONIC SOUNDS YIPPIE. It plus the usage of Esperanto fits really well for an artificial girl. I know this one is a little divisive, but I love the chorus. The turn into standard guitar and vocals after the first chorus could make sense from a narrative POV, but it feels a little like playing it safe after getting experimental with the beginning. Did I mention I like the chorus? I like the chorus.

Hellfire- Cool opening! Can we please send Leo to therapy now. It's a good song but genuinely I don't think any of the themes are so transparently about self-hatred and intentionally suicidal recklessness born from it and it's legitimately hard to get into it like the others because I just keep side-eyeing the lyrics uncomfortably. Small aside but the sitar-esque twangs are a fun addition even if I'm not sure if it fits him well.

What do you Fight For- Still amazed they went for a Beatles homage in the intro. Like with Zato's though, the different parts don't so much flow into each other as they are stapled together. I like the radio segment but I still don't get what relevance it has to Nago. Thankfully he wasn't stuck with just the one

Trigger- She gets a really good and distinct sound, shame they don't do much with it. Nothing wrong with a song that just sounds fun, and while I know it's sort of the point of the lyrics, but given how much they were used for telling a story or going deeper on a character, hers is so surface level and uncomplicated that I wonder what the point is of having lyrics at all for her theme.

Rock Parade- Still eternally mad about the 'it's about wanting to have sex with Baiken' interpretation that is still so prevalent despite it not making a shred of sense. Nonetheless, terrific song. The shifts between parts actually feel natural. The usage of an intentionally more 'Japanese' sound in the later parts is both a fun way of tying into Anji's background and gives the emotions more of a sense of earnestness, which is especially punchy for someone who's known for their dishonesty

Requiem- It really stands out that so far, this is the first song that opens with lyrics. While I can't say this theme is my favorite for a couple of reasons, maybe in part due to listening again after Strive's release this one did bring my mood down. The post-chorus is getting stuck in my head though.

Crawl- BANGS BANGS BANGS BANGS THE THEME NAGO DESERVES. Perfect followup to I-no's theme honestly because the contrast of 'I'm not going to give up in the face of this suffering and I will literally crawl out of it if I have to' is all the more impactful. I adore the last round of the chorus and the concept of the 'freedom of calm' is so good that I can gladly overlook it being a touch cheesy

The Kiss of Death- Like with Axl's, I love how a theme can so resemble a character just in terms of its sound. Mechanical thrumming like heavy machinery and a slow, rocking beat? That's our peepaw! I wish the title had a bit more explanation behind it but that's a minor nitpick

Perfection Can't Please Me- Huh. It's just like Jack-O. Cute and boring. I get what they were going for, but this is the cloying energy that May's theme skirted. The 'this is it' refrain was fun and them playing around with piano was a nice touch, but like with Giovanna's the lyrics are so surface level comparable to others and the themes it's trying to go over feel like they were done better and more creatively in other themes

Drift- Playing with the piano again! Like with Ram's, opening with something cool and unique before shifting into the standard guitar feels like you're playing it safe. Hokey or not the Disney segment almost got me feeling something earnest before they gave up again. Dammit Happy you almost had something.

Mirror of the World- Like with Anji's I appreciate deliberately including more clearly Japanese elements, in this case the actual language. So much of this becomes more heartwarming since we got Another Story, relistening was worth it just for that

Like a Weed- I am ashamed to admit I had yet to hear this one in full. I say with shame because wow I sure have been missing out. Some of the lyrics feel a little forced, including the title drop, but I appreciate Naoki doing something different with his voice. The theme of 'life is simple and unremarkable yet beautiful and full of the meaning I choose to give it' is similar to Jack-O's except good and well done. The string outtro was unexpected but gleefully welcomed

The Town Inside Me- Similarly to May, a little basic? A little poppier? Yes, but if you're going in that direction, go whole hog, and this one totally does. Own it! In that way, it ties into Bridget even more. Use that energy to be joyful and confident. There's no shame to be had in being so bright

The Hourglass- Another song I hadn't gotten around to. Unlike Testament's though, I don't think I missed too much. It ties nicely into Sol's theme by being relatively basic. Not bad, just not anything stunningly original. The piano gave it some energy, but I don't think there was anything to make it have a clear identity of its own. Like you said, fun but simple in the way that Sin himself is. The fact that I've only heard it twice now probably doesn't help but I couldn't tell you any of the lyrics, it's that dry. Interested by the return of the radio/vaudeville voice, I hope it isn't meant to have the same implications as Faust's use of it.

The Circle- I'm starting to believe the crack theories that Happy and the bed siblings have something to do with each other because they both have themes with a lot of slapdash elements that don't mesh together. And, again, it's possible that was intentional, but by this point not even the mishmash is original. I still don't get why the chant is there, it adds nothing and feels like they're trying to fill space. Talk-singing is a staple with a lot of these, but this one feels the most egregious. I've warmed to it a tiny bit, I like a couple parts of it, but I think this feels less like a proper song and more like slam poetry. I want to like it. I really do. But when it came around to listening to this one again it felt more like a task to endure rather than be a song I genuinely enjoyed looking up and listening to for fun. I'm just confused how at how Does the Sheep Count the Sheep manages to do so much better at indicating who Bedman is as a character without having any words whatsoever and still having a good melody that flows well. I'm sorry for both of them, it's just such a nothing song to me.

[thedeathwitchescats]

What if we took out the manipulative and borderline abusive aspects of neil and andrews relationship in cannon??

These are just the major things that I think made their relationship really toxic

1) practically kidnapping and then drugging neil

2) andrews overtly controlling nature

3) andrew choking Kevin

4) neil grabbing andrew without his consent to look at his sh scars after andrew was literally brutally assaulted

5) andrew pulling knives on his family anytime they piss him off

6) andrew almost punching neil after neil was fucking kidnapped and tortured bc he was upsetty spaghetti

Now how do I think they could have had the same impact without being fucking abusive?? Lets go point by point

1) instead of Andrew fucking blackmailing neil he could have just, fuck, asked???? And also I really wish the drugging thing had been more of an overtly nikky thing bc even tho I firmly believe andrew would have killed nikky had he known he had kissed neil noncon it was explicitly stated that andrew told nikky to drug neil and aided in him being drugged. Had that been a nikky exclusive thing that would have been a big step in overall giving andrew more sympathy points. I know he was protecting his family and thereby the rest of the foxes too, but he went about it in a really shitty way and then for this never to be later addressed is just icky

2) so yea by book two neil more or less goes along consensually with andrews chaos but it is very much implied that andrew would not be taking no for an answer ((outside of intimacy)) if he didnt feel like it. If the "I asked" thing neil has went both ways that would have taken the controlling shit right out and that would have been really good for andrew bc the upperclassmen would see that he isnt forcing neil to do shit neil doesnt wanna do, neil is just insane

3) if the upperclassmen see that andrew is willing to choke Kevin when, as far as they know, Kevin isnt directly tied to where neil is then wtf are they gonna think about what he might do to neil???? This is very much just a, looking in this seems sketchy, type deal but i think the upperclassmen really didnt get treated like actual characters half the time and this was one of them. They basically just went "well its andrew so meh." Had andrews whole "dont touch my things" persona been just that, a persona for the outside and internally he was just concerned about keeping the monsters, and to a smaller extent the upperclassmen, safe then that would have severely improved him. And Andrew not choking Kevin the fuck out would go a long way for that

4) so overall yes andrew has the mostly abusive tendencies and, no, I dont think this was abusive it was just, rude??? Like if people fucking look at my scars I get pissed let alone when people touch them??? I have and will continue to throw hands. Let alone in the situation andrew was in??? I am surprised he didnt kill neil. I think this would have been far more rational had he simply looked at andrews scars and internally thought things in his own skull. Andrew could have been like "staring" and neil could have looked the fuck away and it would be much less gross tbh.

5) andrew pulling a knife on nikky for harassing neil was fine. No comments or concerns. But we see later in the series he oddhandedly pulls knives on nikky and kevin ((not so much aaron)) whenever the fuck they piss him off and thats just ew. If he pulled knives on other people thats one thing, but on his family??? Wtf no

6) I like to pretend this didnt happen. Not only bc contextually it makes no fucking sense but bc it really damages not only andrews character but the perception EVERYONE in the room should have. Again, the upperclassmen arent being treated as characters in this scene so its a little iffy but realistically this should have been a damaging point in andrews character and the fact that it wasnt is ridiculous. Either way, had this small detail been taken out it would have been a lot more of a heartwarming scene like it was supposed to be