#i commited the sin of looking into the comment section

[fulminatethesun]

"Dont punish people for asking questions" "I am brainwashed!" "Nobody taught me-" at some point ignorance does become insulting I think

[oreo-oro-orero]

Ekko and Mel are really stuck between a rock in a hard place when it comes to how they're perceived by the fandom.

The grievances that black Arcane Fans have with how Ekko and Mel are and were treated by the fandom will either never fully be understood or outright ignored by non black sections of the fandom. I think a reason for this is because Arcane as a setting is very much a broad look at class disparities, it's something everybody regardless of race or ethnicity can relate too and that's great in its own right because it does allow for more general discussions about the show but I think that because it's so broad that when POC fans start to point out things they may not like or problems they have with this depiction they often get ignored because of the general setting.

Ekko and Mel already have a hurdle to cross just by being black characters in general but I think because of the setting and because of their roles within the story that this is sorta amplified. Bad faith interpretations, cruel headcannons, like the fact that people unironically think that Ekko is "getting in the way" of Zaun's independence I think shows how far the plot has been lost (this is prevalent on reddit mostly tbf).

Ekko and Mel also committed the cardinal sin when it comes to being a black character which is getting in the way of a ship between two white characters. Mel is just either outright ignored or demonized to the fullest degree. I mean the way she talked about you would think she is the main villain of the show. Ekko on the other hand while not forgotten is still met with a level of disdain and look I get it, if you had a ship you really liked and another ship comes along and not only starts to get popular but also have the slim chance of becoming canon I get how you can get defensive over your personal ship but commenting on Timebomb ship art and post with counter ships or how it "will never happen" is just rude and uncalled for and it's not even like Timebomb is a new thing, it's been a thing since Ekko's release and maybe it's just me but the fact that Jinx has like five other ships but the one where she happens to be shipped with a black character is also the one that seems to get the brunt of the ire does make me side eye a bit.

Overall this was just a little rant I had in my head for a while now and I know at the end of the day all of this probably isn't as serious as I'm making it out to be but look I just really like Ekko and Mel okay😭

[nonagesiiiimus]

eden's tlt reread: chapter two

finally getting to write up my chapter two thoughts! let's gooooo!

starting off strong with some numbers! this is gideon's 87th escape attempt (p.25). interestingly, harrow is also the 87th nona of her house. when looking into this, because everything means something with tamsyn, there's an interesting bible quote from Judges 8:7: "So Gideon said, "Well then, when the Lord has given Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, I will flail your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with briers." (adding Orange here as my biblical references color!) of course this feels extra significant because of Gideon's name mention, but the promise of violence and demise ties back into the Tamsyn's comments in the naming guide, about someone's demise being written in Gideon's name ("Gideon is a prophetic name: someone named their own demise in her" (468)). i also think it's worth noting the quote from John 8:7, "When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” while it doesn't directly tie into any events, i think it relates to some of the overall themes of forgiveness for sins/perceived sins in this series- especially harrow, who is always seeking forgiveness and striving for perfection to make up for where she feels she has sinned.

harrow comes to gideon as the last of the three temptations, in our Gideon-is-Jesus framework. the devil tempts jesus three times in the desert, and each time jesus refuses... "The temptation in the desert shows Jesus, the humble Messiah, who triumphs over Satan by his total adherence to the plan of salvation willed by the Father". except, in our case, Gideon doesn't refuse. she gives in to her own personal temptation- the idea of freedom, and of savagely beating Harrow's ass. she is not immune to temptation, for sure...

i liked noting all the references to harrow's hands leading up to the battle between them, which in looking back makes it SO much more obvious Something Is Up. first one is on the first page of the chapter (25), but we chalk it up easily to harrow being cloistered in fabric because of her supreme gothiness. then, her massaging her hands (26). she's clearly sore from digging all night! (why, harrow, no shovel? why no shovel harrow? why?)

also the first instances of understanding the true War Crimes committed by Harrow's parents, and Gideon's understanding and role in them/covering them up: "That’s the moment I squeal,” said Gideon. “I squeal so long and so loud they hear me from the Eighth. I tell them everything. You know what I know. And I'll tell them the numbers. They’d bring me home in cuffs, but I’d come back laughing my ass off” (26).

“rattling both their prayer beads and their unlubricated knee joints” (26): prayer beads are clearly an allusion to rosaries!

“How coarse and ordinary,” she said. “How effective, how crass. My parents should have smothered you" (26). @hauntingofthewoods and i were also talking about how often Gideon is referred to in a way that is like how someone would talk to/about an animal or something lowly that casual cruelty, like one would dole out to a pest, is a common and building theme in how Gideon characterizes herself throughout the series. we saw this in c1 with Aiglamene slapping her carelessly like "a barking animal", and here again i was reminded of that with the smothering comment. also, the description of Gideon squealing in the section before is also quite animalistic, even if it is a saying already. Gideon sees herself as a mistreated forgotten animal, and one of her core motivations seems to be To Be Seen as something More. horrible, heartbreaking. moving on before i cry.

banging ass quote (by banging, i mean heartbreaking) that will come back to haunt us: "All because,” said Gideon, checking her clock again, “I completely fucking hate you, because you are a hideous witch from hell. No offence.” There was a pause. “Oh, Griddle!” said Harrow pityingly, in the silence. “But I don’t even remember about you most of the time" (27). this sentence comes back to haunt us twofold, as we'll see.

there is another repetition of three temptations from Harrow to Gideon: the muster, Gideon's sense of duty, and then a bribe. which, ultimately, Gideon falls for.

"Paper- real paper!" (27). completely fascinating to me, and something that i'll continue to track mentions of.

"She’d lose rights to Gideon forever. Gideon went absolutely cold" (28). i love the double entendre you can read in this quote: Gideon's understanding that Harrow being willing to lose her hold on her is super serious, and also the potential that the cold feeling is from Gideon not knowing how to feel about complete and utter freedom from the Ninth once she is actually handed it. shock and disbelief, and maybe a little unsurety?

"You threaten my House, you disrespect my retainers, you lie and cheat and sneak and steal—you know full well what you’ve done, and you know that you are a disgusting little cuckoo!” “I hate it when you act like a butt-touched nun,” said Gideon, who was only honestly sorry for one of the things in that lineup" (29). Gideon is only sorry for disrespecting Aiglamene :(

also! a cuckoo is a bird known for laying its eggs in the nests of other bird species, leaving those unsuspecting birds to raise its young. As the cuckoo chicks develop, they often push out the host bird's own offspring. this is another gideon-as-animal description, referencing her 'adoption' into the Ninth house. tysm @hauntingofthewoods for pointing that out!!

i like seeing Gideon's first stripped-down description of Harrow at the end of p. 29, as a "cropped black head and her face pinched with wrath... a desperate girl younger than Gideon, and rather small and feeble" (29). it's so interesting to see how Gideon views Harrow, sees into her soul, but also still underestimates her in this moment.

"Gideon had seen Harrow in this mood only once before, and had thought she would probably never see her in this mood again" (30). when would she have been so desperate for a raw fight? in the instance Gideon describes in HTN, when they are fighting before Harrow decides to commit suicide via the tomb? when her parents kill themselves?

"Cruz stared back at her with the hate of an exploding star: the empty hate of pressure pulled inward, a deforming, light-devouring resentment” (32). at first this is just a sick and wicked simile. and then i went- wait. hatred of a dying star… dying planets... RESURRECTION BEAST REFERENCE??? ALECTO??

"I gave her my whole life" (31). kill me, gideon. kill me. this hurts so bad.

i like the contrast between what Gideon thinks should happen in their fight- "What ought to have happened was that Gideon raised a booted foot and knocked Harrow ass-over-tits"- and what DOES happen: Gideon, gets her ass beat by Harrow's secret and spiteful skeleton army below the drillfield, and is ended with the final sentence, "Harrowhark kicked Gideon in the face" (31-33). the callback to Gideon wanting to kick Harrow but instead getting kicked BY Harrow is so good.

their banter at the end of this chapter is so good. so mean. and i hurt so badly for gideon. seeing this: "She couldn’t; she was too winded still. She couldn’t even raise a shaking middle finger to the victor: she just kept looking at the shuttle, and her suitcase, and her sword" just HURTS.

that's all i have on chapter two! i thought i wouldn't have much to say, and still wrote a fucking book. sue me!!!

[llostwriter]

系统错误 | SVSSS Fanfic

CHAPTER 1

Yuhong, a typical daytime female who had just graduated from college, boarded the bus as usual after visiting her friend's home. She looked through her phones as she searched for anything to do to pass the time. Novels. She wasn't a huge admirer of novels, but she also didn't consider herself to be a hater; she only read them because they were fascinating. The protagonist of the book "Proud Immortal Demon Way" is a young male pupil who killed his Shifu as a result of ongoing harassment and hostility. After Shen Qingqiu's passing, the majority of the novel was just plain pornographic with no discernible plot, which made Yuhong lose interest in the book. 

Yuhong doesn't seem to have been the only one who was unhappy with it, as numerous more complaints were posted in the main comment section.

Luo Binghe had the option of choosing to be happier without the urge to exact retribution, but resentment and anger dominated his thoughts. He ultimately turned out to be no better than the monster he had previously battled. That's why it has a "abused becomes the abuser" vibe. Shen Qingqiu doesn't show Luo Binghe the affection he craves; instead, he is met with hostility and glares. Perhaps this is why he had so many affairs. That, however, does not justify his nasty behavior. 

Shen Qingqiu wasn't deserving of being turned into a human stick and placed inside a pickle jar. Or maybe he did. Everyone has a different way of looking at the scenario, and some people believe that Shen Qingqiu's difficult upbringing should not be used as an explanation for his mistreatment of Luo Binghe. Others could choose to remain impartial because they think that both sides have committed sins. Others would counter that Shen Qingqiu was just jealous of Luo Binghe because the latter had a happy childhood while the former did not, as opposed to the main character. 

Shen Qingqiu was initially only known to Yuhong as the villain, a cold-hearted Shifu, and as someone whose death was merited for torturing Luo Binghe. There is no history at all. Why would Shen Qingqiu abuse Luo Binghe in that way? Perhaps Shen Qingqiu was simply looking for someone to use as a punching bag for all of his issues, and Luo Binghe was the one he ultimately settled on? 

Before moving on with her thoughts, Yuhong scowled at the idea.  

The novel centers on Shen Yuan, a misfortune guy who was reincarnated into the body of Shen Qingqiu, otherwise known as the antagonist of the original book, in "The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System," an alternate version of the book with more plot than "Proud Immortal Demon Way". It provides further Shen Qingqiu background information.

Shen Jiu never experienced his own happy ending, as the saying goes.

•••

Yuhong was startled awake when she felt something, or more precisely someone, pulling on her arm. She was unable to recall anything that occurred after getting on the bus, and the ringing in her ears wasn't exactly helping either. She tries to open her eyes, but it takes her a few tries before she is able to see a hazy dark figure and an unfamiliar setting. As her sights grew clearer, she was able to make out a long, silky brown haired woman with lovely gray eyes that had a mixture of innocence and worry in them.  She is no longer in the bus; instead, she is in a medium-sized room that is furnished with items that resemble those in manga, where the historical period is set in ancient China. She was lying on what seemed like a western four-poster bed. 

"Ah, A-Ji! Finally, you're awake."

Yuhong offers the other woman a bewildered expression in response to the strange nickname she was given. She doesn't recall ever meeting the woman, yet the woman calls her with a familiarity that suggests they have been friends for a long time. 

"Sorry, ma'am but I think you confused-"

Her surroundings were still, and the other female was standing still. She was somewhat startled as a blue screen suddenly appeared in front of her before she turned to face the screen. 

【ƦᴇᴀᴅᴇƦ ʜᴀs ʙᴇᴇɴ ᴛƦᴀɴsᴘᴏƦᴛᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ "ᴘƦᴏᴜᴅ ꞮᴍᴍᴏƦᴛᴀʟ ᴅᴇᴍᴏɴ ᴡᴀʏ", ᴄᴜʀʀᴇɴᴛʟʏ ɪɴʜᴀʙɪᴛɪɴɢ xᴜᴀɴ ᴊɪ's ʙᴏᴅʏ. ᴅᴏᴇs ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ᴠɪᴇᴡ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴏᴅʏ's ɪɴғᴏʀᴍᴀᴛɪᴏɴ】

                <<< ʏᴇs>>> ᴏʀ <<<ɴᴏ>>>                    

              ᴏɴʟʏ ᴏɴᴇ sᴇʟᴇᴄᴛɪᴏɴ ᴄᴀɴ ʙᴇ sᴇʟᴇᴄᴛᴇᴅ 

Yuhong tapped on the 'ʏᴇs' selection, with just one tap the words in the screen quickly changed. 

【xᴜᴀɴ ᴊɪ,  ᴀ sʜɪᴊɪᴇ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴀɪɴ ᴘʀᴏᴛᴀɢᴏɴɪsᴛ ʟᴜᴏ ʙɪɴɢʜᴇ. sʜᴇ ᴡᴀs ᴀ sɪɴɢʟᴇ-ᴄᴜʟᴛɪᴠᴀᴛᴏʀ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴡᴏʀᴋ ᴏɴ ᴅᴇғᴇᴀᴛɪɴɢ ʙᴇᴀsᴛ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴀᴅ ʙᴇᴇɴ ᴘᴇsᴛᴇʀɪɴɢ ᴛʜᴇ ᴠɪʟʟɪᴀɴᴇʀs ᴀɴᴅ sᴇʟʟɪɴɢ ʜᴇʀʙs ᴛᴏ ᴇᴀʀɴ  ᴀ ʟɪᴠɪɴɢ. ᴅᴜʀɪɴɢ ᴏɴᴇ ᴏғ ʜᴇʀ sᴇᴀʀᴄʜ ғᴏʀ ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛᴜʀᴇs, sʜᴇ ᴍᴇᴛ xɪʏɪɴ. ᴇᴠᴇʀ sɪɴᴄᴇ ᴛʜᴇɴ, xɪʏɪɴ ʜᴀs ᴀʟᴡᴀʏs sᴛᴜᴄᴋ ʙʏ ʜᴇʀ sɪᴅᴇ. xɪʏɪɴ ᴡᴀs ᴜɴғᴏrᴛᴜɴᴀᴛᴇʟʏ ᴋɪʟʟᴇᴅ ʙʏ ᴏɴᴇ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ sᴏᴡᴇʀ, xᴜᴀɴ ᴊɪ ғᴏᴜɴᴅ ʜᴇʀ ʙᴏᴅʏ ʀᴏᴛᴛɪɴɢ ᴀᴡᴀʏ ɴᴇᴀʀ ᴀ ʀɪᴠᴇʀ. ʜᴇʀ ᴍᴀʀ𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥sᴋɪʟʟs ʟᴀᴛᴇʀ ᴄᴀᴜɢʜᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ɪɴᴛᴇʀᴇsᴛ ᴏғ sʜᴇɴ ǫɪɴɢǫɪᴜ, ᴡʜᴏ ᴍᴀᴅᴇ ʜᴇʀ ᴏɴᴇ ᴏғ ʜɪs ᴅɪsᴄɪᴘʟᴇs. sʜᴇ ᴍᴇᴛ ʜᴇʀ ᴅᴇᴍɪsᴇ ᴀᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ʜᴀɴᴅs ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴀɪɴ ᴘʀᴏᴛᴀɢᴏɴɪsᴛ ʟᴜᴏ ʙɪɴɢʜᴇ】

Yuhong was able to determine the name of the other female and her present body using the information the machine had provided. She was awakened and welcomed by a woman named Xiyin when she first entered the world of this tale. 

"Why was Xuan Ji killed by Luo Binghe?" Yuhong enquired with the system in the hopes that it might provide her with some additional context. 

【sʜᴇɴ ǫɪɴɢǫɪᴜ ɪɴᴠɪᴛᴇᴅ xuan ᴊɪ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴜᴘᴄᴏᴍɪɴɢ ᴅɪsᴄɪᴘʟᴇ ᴄᴇʀᴇᴍᴏɴʏ sᴇʟᴇᴄᴛɪᴏɴ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ǫɪɴɢ ᴊɪɴɢ ᴘᴇᴀᴋ. ᴀғᴛᴇʀ xᴜᴀɴ ᴊɪ ᴡᴀs sᴜᴄᴄᴇssғᴜʟʟʏ ɢᴀɪɴᴇᴅ ғɪʀsᴛ ᴘʟᴀᴄᴇ ᴅᴜᴇ ᴛᴏ ʜᴇʀ ǫᴜɪᴄᴋ ʀᴇᴀᴄᴛɪᴏɴ sᴘᴇᴇᴅ ᴀɴᴅ ᴀᴛᴛᴀᴄᴋs, sʜᴇ ᴡᴀs ᴏғғɪᴄᴀʟʟʏ ǫᴜᴀʟɪғɪᴇᴅ ᴀs ᴀ ᴅɪsᴄɪᴘʟᴇ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ǫɪɴɢ ᴊɪɴɢ ᴘᴇᴀᴋ. ɪɴ ᴀ ᴘᴇʀɪᴏᴅ ᴏғ ᴀʀᴏᴜɴᴅ 𝟸 ᴀɴᴅ 𝟷/𝟸 ʏᴇᴀʀs, ʟᴜᴏ ʙɪɴɢʜᴇ ᴍᴀɪɴ ᴘʀᴏᴛᴀɢᴏɴɪsᴛ ʙᴇᴄᴀᴍᴇ ᴀ ᴅɪsᴄɪᴘʟᴇ. xᴜᴀɴ ᴊɪ ᴋᴇᴘᴛ ʜᴇʀ ᴄᴏʟᴅ-ғᴀᴄᴇ ᴄᴏɴᴛɪɴᴏᴜsʟʏ ᴄʀɪᴛɪᴢᴇ ʜᴀʀsʜʟʏ ᴏɴ ʟᴜᴏ ʙɪɴɢʜᴇ, sᴏᴍᴇᴛɪᴍᴇs ᴇᴠᴇɴ ɢᴏ ᴀs ғᴀʀ ᴀs ғᴏʀᴄɪɴɢ ʜɪᴍ ᴛᴏ ғɪɢʜᴛ ʜᴇʀ. ᴅᴜʀɪɴɢ ʜᴇʀ ʟᴀsᴛ ᴍᴏᴍᴇɴᴛ ᴀʟɪᴠᴇ, sʜᴇ ᴡᴀs ɢ��ᴠᴇɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄʜᴏɪᴄᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴇɪᴛʜᴇʀ ʙᴇ ᴀ ᴏʙᴇᴅɪᴇɴᴛ sᴇʀᴠᴀɴᴛ ᴏғ ʜɪs ʜᴀʀᴇᴍ ᴀɴᴅ sᴜғғᴇʀ ᴛʜᴇ ʜᴜᴍɪʟɪᴀᴛɪᴏɴ ᴏʀ ᴅʀɪɴᴋ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘᴏɪsᴏɴ. xᴜᴀɴ ᴊɪ, ᴛᴏ ᴋᴇᴇᴘ ʜᴇʀ ʀᴇᴍᴀɪɴɪɴɢ ᴅɪɢɴɪᴛʏ ᴅʀɪɴᴋᴇᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘᴏɪsᴏɴ, ᴛʜᴇ ᴘᴏɪsᴏɴ sʟᴏᴡʟʏ ᴇᴀᴛ ᴀᴡᴀʏ ʜᴇʀ ғʟᴇsʜ ғʀᴏᴍ ᴛʜᴇ ɪɴsɪᴅᴇ-ᴏᴜᴛ ɢɪᴠɪɴɢ ʜᴇʀ ᴀ sʟᴏᴡ ᴀɴᴅ ᴘᴀɪɴғᴜʟ ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ】

This simply serves to highlight how vicious and evil the actual Luo Binghe truly is! Just when Yuhong had a chance to settle down, become friends with the book's characters, and spend the rest of her days as a minor figure she had no idea even existed in the story. But since she couldn't recall how she died, she had to be reincarnated. Wait, does it even count as reincarnation? She must now live out the remainder of her days as Xuan Ji before dying at the hands of the main character, Luo Binghe. Oh wait, perhaps she could be more considerate toward Luo Binghe than the actual Xuan Ji, and one can only hope that Luo Binghe will remember her generosity and spare her life. 

It as if the system could read her mind, the system immediately changed the word on the screen. 

【ᴜsᴇʀ ɪsɴ'ᴛ ᴀʟʟᴏᴡᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ᴀᴄᴛ ᴏᴏᴄ ᴏʀ ᴇʟsᴇ ᴜsᴇʀ ɪs ɢᴏɴɴᴀ ɢᴇᴛ ᴅᴇᴅᴜᴄᴛ ᴘᴏɪɴᴛs ғʀᴏᴍ ᴛʜᴇ sʏsᴛᴇᴍ. ɪғ ᴘᴏɪɴᴛ ᴡᴇʀᴇ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴄʜ ɴᴇɢᴀᴛɪᴠᴇ 𝟷𝟶𝟶𝟶𝟶, ᴛʜᴇ ᴜsᴇʀ ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ᴀᴄᴄᴏᴜɴᴛ ᴡɪʟʟ ʙᴇ ᴛᴇʀᴍɪɴᴀᴛᴇᴅ】

Terminated as in completely gone from existence? That seems like a bit of an overkill. For Yuhong, being slain is one thing, but having her existence completely obliterated... wouldn't that imply that her soul couldn't experience another reincarnation? 

【ɪғ ᴛᴇʀᴍɪɴᴀᴛᴇᴅ ᴡᴇʀᴇ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴘᴜᴛ ᴏɴᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴜsᴇʀ, ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴇᴍᴏʀʏ ʟᴏɢs ᴏғ ᴜsᴇʀ's ᴇxɪsᴛᴇɴᴄᴇ ᴡɪʟʟ sᴛɪʟʟ sᴛᴀʏ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ғɪʟᴇs ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ sʏsᴛᴇᴍ. ʜᴏᴡᴇᴠᴇʀ ᴊᴜsᴛ ᴀs ᴛʜᴇ ᴜsᴇʀ ʜᴀᴅ ɢᴜᴇssᴇᴅ ᴏɴᴄᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴇʀᴍɪɴᴀᴛɪᴏɴ ᴘʀᴏᴄᴇss ғɪɴɪsʜᴇs, ᴛʜᴇ ᴜsᴇʀ's sᴏᴜʟ ᴡᴏᴜʟᴅ ɴᴏ ʟᴏɴɢᴇʀ ʙᴇ ʀᴇɪɴᴄᴀʀɴᴀᴛᴇᴅ. ᴅᴇᴄɪsɪᴏɴ ғɪɴᴀʟ】

Being too kind is therefore not an option. Yuhong let out a frustrated sigh that had a whiff of annoyance. She was not having any fun at all, and it was clear that the system was making things tougher than they needed to be. 

"Wait, Xuan Ji is already a disciple of Qing Jing Peak?"

【sʏsᴛᴇᴍ ᴀɴsᴡᴇʀ ᴛᴏ ᴜsᴇʀ's ǫᴜᴇsᴛɪᴏɴ: ɴᴏ, xᴜᴀɴ ᴊɪ ʜᴀs ʏᴇᴛ ʙᴇᴄᴀᴍᴇ ᴀ ᴅɪsᴄɪᴘʟᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ʜᴇʀ ғɪʀsᴛ ᴍᴇᴇᴛɪɴɢ ᴡɪᴛʜ sʜᴇɴ ǫɪɴɢǫɪᴜ ɪs ᴀʀᴏᴜɴᴅ 𝟻 ᴍᴏɴᴛʜs ᴀғᴛᴇʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴜʀʀᴇɴᴛ ᴛɪᴍᴇ】

"Can I just avoid meeting Shen Qingqiu?" 

Yuhong only needs to stay away from the setting of the plot and Shen Qingqiu in order to avoid seeing Luo Binghe, and if she did, she wouldn't be recommended for the disciple selection ceremony. 

【ᴛʜᴇ sʏsᴛᴇᴍ ʜᴀs ʏᴇᴛ ɢᴇɴᴇʀᴀᴛᴇᴅ ᴀɴ ᴀɴsᴡᴇʀ ғᴏʀ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʀᴇᴘʟʏ】

What kind of slow internet connection system is this based on to not even generate an answer for that???

【sʏsᴛᴇᴍ ɪsɴ'ᴛ ᴄᴏɴɴᴇᴄᴛᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ᴀ ɴᴇᴛᴡᴏʀᴋ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴜᴍᴀɴs ᴜsᴇ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏᴅᴇʀɴ ᴇʀᴀ ʙᴜᴛ ɪɴsᴛᴇᴀᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴀɪɴ sᴛʀᴇᴀᴍ ᴏғ ᴏᴛʜᴇʀ sʏsᴛᴇᴍs】

"A stream of other systems? So aren' t the only system around? Also I would gladly appreciated if you don't read my mind without my permission", Yuhong knew arguing with the system wouldn't work, but the fact that her every single thought is being monitored is basically a invasion of her privacy. 

【ʀᴇsᴘᴏɴsᴇ ғᴏʀ ᴜsᴇʀ's ǫᴜᴇsᴛɪᴏɴɪɴɢ ʜᴀs ɴᴏᴛ ʙᴇᴇɴ ɢᴇɴᴇʀᴀᴛᴇᴅ. ᴍᴀʏ ᴜsᴇʀ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴀ ɢᴏᴏᴅ ᴅᴀʏ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇɪʀ ɴᴇᴡ ʙᴏᴅʏ】

 "Not been generated...you got to be kidding me right now!" 

【sʏsᴛᴇᴍ ʀᴇᴘᴇᴀᴛs: ᴍᴀʏ ᴜsᴇʀ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴀ ɢᴏᴏᴅ ᴅᴀʏ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇɪʀ ɴᴇᴡ ʙᴏᴅʏ. sʏsᴛᴇᴍ ʀᴇᴘᴇᴀᴛs: ᴍᴀʏ ᴜsᴇʀ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴀ ɢᴏᴏᴅ ᴅᴀʏ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇɪʀ ɴᴇᴡ ʙᴏᴅʏ. sʏsᴛᴇᴍ ʀᴇᴘᴇᴀᴛs: ᴍᴀʏ ᴜsᴇʀ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴀ ɢᴏᴏᴅ ᴅᴀʏ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇɪʀ ɴᴇᴡ ʙᴏᴅʏ】

The blue screen vanished, leaving a frustrated Yuhong alone with her thoughts. 

Clearly ignoring her inquiries, the system then abandoned her and left her to fend for herself. You crappy system, damn you! 

She turned to check and noticed that the pause mode was still active. 

"System, hey! You neglected to press the unpause button", the system stopped showing up, Yuhong yelled at nothing. She would be thought to be nuts for shouting at the air, if the environment weren't in pause mode. 

Maybe she infuriated the system? Oh no, despite Shen Yuan cursing the system repeatedly, it continued to function. Therefore, it is implausible that the system actually abandoned her and put her surroundings on indefinite hold. Right??? Yeah, she wouldn't have to worry about being killed by Luo Binghe, which would seem good, but she doesn't want to live out the rest of her new life in a paused world!

【ᴜsᴇʀ sʜᴏᴜʟᴅ ɢᴇᴛ ᴜsᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ʜᴇʀ ɴᴇᴡ ᴀᴘᴘᴇᴀʀᴀɴᴄᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ʟɪғᴇ ᴀs sɪᴅᴇ-ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀ xᴜᴀɴ ᴊɪ. ᴜsᴇʀ's ʀᴏᴏᴍ ᴄᴜʀʀᴇɴᴛʟʏ ʜᴀs ᴀ ᴍɪʀʀᴏʀ ɴᴇᴀʀʙʏ, ᴜsᴇʀ sʜᴏᴜʟᴅ ʙᴇ ᴀʙʟᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴜsᴇ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴍɪʀʀᴏʀ ᴛᴏ ᴠɪᴇᴡ ᴛʜᴇɪʀ ɴᴇᴡ ᴀᴘᴘᴇᴀʀᴀɴᴄᴇ】

Oh, thanks god...

Yuhong seems to have worried needlessly. She took a look around and saw that, as the system had predicted, there was a long, rectangular bronze mirror with lovely swirling curves on its sides. A beautiful woman with a slim build and dark black hair is reflected in the mirror. She is dressed in soft white fabric that suggests a clothing for a feminine cultivator. 

She encircled a lengthy strand of hair with her thin finger. She was met with a long strand of black hair instead of her customary medium length straight brown hair. The hair was plainly considerably longer than Yuhong's typical hair length and had wavy ends without any broken ends. And finally she turned her gaze to the crimson eyes in the mirror. She noticed something dark near the wooden table in the backdrop out of the corner of her eye. Before moving toward it, she turned around with a her current body, spotting it was a black blindfold...

[nicomrade]

On being lost in the Labyrinth; a Souichi Kiruma and Kaoru Yukiide joint analysis.

I've been wanting to write about Souichi for a while now, but Usogui is BIG and DENSE and goes a LOT of places and Souichi (/Hachina Naoki/Hal) has unstable memory and his role in the story varies a lot (sometimes antagonist, deuteragonist, love interest, side-kick, … ) so... To properly talk about this in one coherent, whole way I had to limit my scope by A LOT so I'm going to look at Souichi through the lense of Kaoru Yukiide, the ways they mirror each other, where they differ and what it means for the broader themes of both Souichi's story and Usogui (manga) in general. And try my hardest to stay on topic.

The full piece turned out almost 7k words long so join me for a bit of a journey under the cut! I included as many images as tumblr allowed me to and it's sectioned in 6 parts including the short prologue so it's hopefully not too hard of a read. Cheers! 🐜🐝

0. Prologue

Kaoru Yukiide is a minor antagonist for the 1st part of the Labyrinth gamble (chapters 83 to 104) of Usogui. His active participation feels almost cut abruptly short but this is indicative of the kind of character he is. He’s no Sadakuni and no Vincent Lalo, he’s just Yukkii. But in those 20 chapters he’s given a full inner world and a full character arc. He is a complete character.

He was diagnosed at 12yo with Encephalitis lethargica (“sleepy sickness”) and at 15 he went into a coma. He’s the son of a police official involved in framing innocent people for crimes the wealthy committed, all for the sake of “keeping order”. His father framed his own wife in one of these schemes, and eventually took the blame for a higher-up’s crime himself. This is a duty and fate Kaoru inherited after waking up from his 10 years coma. He’s now the one who frames innocent people and he, too, will shoulder a death penalty for something he didn’t do. This catastrophic loss to Baku not only condemns his life it also made him realize how twisted his actions and his idea of order have been and it triggers another catatonic episode in him. He’s a character who’s been deeply hurt by following along with what his parents taught him was right without questioning it, and when this worldview crumbles, so does he. But his epilogue in chapter 147 is a happy one! Kaoru wakes up, and yes he now has to come to terms with all the harm he’s done and he feels like it would’ve been better if he’d stayed functionally dead, but he has people who care about him and who will help him. You are never truly alone, things can always get better, you CAN break free from your family’s Labyrinth.

I think Kaoru’s generally an easy character to find hope in- as someone who caused immense harm, but who was still a victim of his circumstances and got to have a second chance at life. In-story we have Marco who comments on the two of them being the same and a lot of what I will discuss here will apply in some measure to him too as a mentally ill character with an abusive dad. However, I find he has striking similarities with Souichi’s story specifically, and looking at the two together can help us shine a light on the complicated fate at the heart of Souichi’s character. I realize by using Kaoru as a tool to talk about someone else- a means to an end and not his own person- I’m perpetuating the very workings of his abuse. I’m sorry Yukkii :(

I. Inheritance

Souichi and Kaoru are both successors to their fathers and they were raised to follow in those footsteps. Souichi, as a Kiruma, is a member of a “sinful bloodline” and was always going to be 21st Leader of Kakerou. His dad raised him this way and put him under Eba’s guidance all so he could stand at the top of Kakerou- the ones who make sure the rules are obeyed perfectly.

[1. Vol 37 Ch. 404 Duwang translation 2. Vol. 9 Ch. 93 Easy Going Scans translation]

Kaoru was not strictly raised as a successor in this way but he inherited this vision of order from his dad, one where the ants that step out of line must be killed. Both him and Souichi are sons who took on that very heavy duty to “keep order” after their respective fathers, and they both became orphans from it. Kaoru’s mom was sacrificed by her husband, and then he sacrificed himself too, leaving Kaoru alone when he woke up at 25. Similarly, Souichi’s mom died before he was born and he will lose his father during the course of the story. He was orphaned, too.

This is not to imply that Tatsuki Kiruma (Souichi’s father) had a personality like Yukiide senior. Kaoru’s dad is characterized as borderline abusive, he is refused any real kind of redemption as we don’t even have a first name or a face to put on him during the Paper Labyrinth chapters. He is the shadow that haunts Kaoru, and he is talked about as the origin of this specific worldview. Tatsuki was an odd father but he was not responsible for his wife’s death and he, too, inherited this fate from his own parents. He is not the root cause of Souichi’s ill. Where Kaoru was lied to and manipulated into following in his father’s footsteps, Souichi became leader willingly. This is getting to the impact a heavy family history can have on someone (whether forced onto them or embraced by them) more than any one individual father’s harm.

The impact of that family history is shown in Kaoru with his sleepy sickness that makes him literally absent from his own life at times. It is a way for him to escape from the real world and the responsibilities and ideals pushed on him. I think it’s very meaningful that his big episode was triggered at 15, that’s right into his first year of highschool, soon an adult. And this mental harm is also seen in Souichi and his chronic memory loss. His own timeline is more vague than Kaoru’s but I think it’s fair to estimate Souichi was around 15 during the 1998 flashbacks, which is when he has a significant memory loss episode and also when he receives doctor feedback on this illness. It is first said to be without cause but later confirmed this is a way for him to remain “perfect” at all times, by throwing out the memory of his flaws and resetting himself back to a clean slate. This is how he is coping with this responsibility of being (or becoming) leader of Kakerou. In Kaoru, this weight puts him in a coma and creates a 10 years gap in his memory, for Souichi it will lead to him forgetting a length of 10 years after the Tower of Karma arc. Sounds familiar?

[vol42 Ch 454 Duwang translation]

What they’ve inherited from their fathers is not just this responsibility towards order, it is also more literally a spot where they have to resort to playing rigged games. Kaoru’s routine with the Paper Labyrinth game is revealed in the manga to be nothing more than a well-practiced script. We see a similar resort in Souichi for the Flying Vehicles bet where he simply has Baku’s (Kakerou appointed) men betray him. This way of approaching games goes against how the Usogui manga portrays gamblers. As shown in Drop the Handkerchief when Souichi admits re-using these sort of means for this game would not give him a “perfect victory” and when Baku congratulates him on “gambling” for the first time, a gambler in Usogui is not just someone who participates in gambles. They are a kind of person who is able to cling to a low chance of victory and keep to their unlikely plan the whole way through all because they aspire to something better than they already have. They are moving forward with no certainty of what will come of it because the reward is worth the risk to them. We see it in Kaji’s character arc, first someone who is the perfect prey to various scammers but who is then able to keep to his convictions and win the Contradictions game without killing his opponent.

Souichi and Kaoru are much closer to the Kaji in that 7-Stud Poker gamble (who is totally out of his depth the second things don’t go as he thinks they should, who loses large sums of money without truly registering it’s happening) than to him in his face-off against Floyd Lee. Think of Souichi accepting and then losing the bet with Baku on the Missile Launch for a grandiose sum, or how he hides behind Yakou in the tunnel. Kaoru is a volatile character during his games, incapable of thinking on his feet (he freezes completely when Kaji interrupts him), think of his outbursts against Kaji or Kadokura that he frames as righteous. The two of them are only performing for the sake of rules and order. They aren’t gamblers because they don’t have that thirst for something better, their drives are completely extinct. They have accepted their situation despite the harm it’s causing, all for the “greater good”.

[Vol48 ch523 Duwang translation]

Their common obsession with puzzles (Kaoru’s Labyrinths and Souichi’s Rubik’s Cubes) is part of this drive for rules and keeping order. Chapter 101 gives us this narration: "Upon first glance, the bewilderment and fear of not knowing what lies ahead reminds one of disorder. But, in ancient times, people created and solved these [mazes and puzzles] to acquire the feelings of relief and order." This text is illustrated by a jigsaw puzzle, a sliding block puzzle, Picross, Tetris and, on the next panel, a Labyrinth as Kaoru knows them. This explains the symbolism behind the Labyrinth Gamble for the Police Department (“The Labyrinth [...] doesn't just solve unsolved cases, they are being solved at the hands of the police.") but also for Kaoru himself. This is a way to fulfill his own need for order, and this idea applies to Souichi too. The Rubik’s Cubes give him relief throughout the story with too many appearances to list comprehensively. We see it as a memory exercise (post-memory loss in the Hangman tunnel, chapter 64), as a motif on a childhood T-Shirt (chapter 412), it simply helps him think (he’s seen playing with one at Gakuhito’s, chapter 273), and the imaginary cubes in Drop the Handkerchief. This culminates in the Rubik’s Cube becoming a symbol of Souichi himself as made explicit in chapter 521. By seeing himself reflected in the cube he is made to be the object of his own obsession. Solving the Cube then becomes his urge to “solve himself”. It is dehumanizing and belittling of his own (very real!) mental problems to view himself as a puzzle that exists for the only purpose of being solved- and that CAN be solved at all. What’s the “true ending” of the human mind? This is not something that has any answer or exit. We know that by the end of 2008, Souichi has resetted his memory 138 times. Souichi and Kaoru are trapping themselves in their own Labyrinths here.

[1. vol10 Ch101 Easy Going Scans Translation 2. vol48 ch521 Duwang translation]

In a way, Kaoru IS the Minotaur: a son who was locked away to his Labyrinth where he is fed innocent victims regularly, both victim and executioner, all because of his father’s sins. Along with Souichi, they are two kids who were groomed into taking their father’s place and have shouldered the weight that came with it from a very young age, and this weight has formed cracks in their minds. This is their way of coping with their fate: they stop being fully present in their own lives, they stop wishing for more, and they blame themselves.

II. Worker Ant and Prince Bee

It’s made clear during Kaoru’s breakdown that ultimately, he too, was an ant. In that final moment before losing consciousness he remembers how, as a child, he did not crush the ant that had strayed out of line. He’d tried to guide it back with its peers, but it did not follow and was accidentally killed. I think both Kaoru and Souichi are acting a version of this story on themselves, both as the child and as the ant. They are forcing themselves to stay in line, hurting and killing themselves slowly for “the greater good”.

[both vol10 ch102, easy going scans translation]

Souichi is likened to an insect as well within the story, he’s Hachina (“蜂名”, 蜂 “hachi” meaning bee), the Prince Bee, the Lost Bee, etc. From that shared bug symbolism we have to remember Souichi’s super-organism speech- a kind of organism that necessitates the loss of individuality for the well-being of the hive. Tatsuki brings this concept up to say the Private Funeral Division and the police as a whole are in such an organism, which would include Kaoru too. Even only going by the definition it’s easy to interpret him as in such a place, “just a cog in a machine”, and the same can be said of Souichi. They are both included in the ones losing their individuality to keep the system alive: “Even the Queen will draw her blood or sacrifice her life for the system.”. This self-sacrifice is something Souichi takes pride in: “[He] isn’t even worth an insect”. He rationalizes his own resolve to harm himself (��being prepared to bleed”) as something he is doing right.

[both Vol 24 ch 257 Duwang translation]

This loss of individuality is seen in how Souichi’s identity has been fragmented. He is “Souichi Kiruma” when he is acting as Leader and “Naoki Hachina” for public-facing matters- disregard that the two often overlap as seen in chapter 68. He was taught not to "build too deep a relationship with anyone" (chapter 273), and his memory loss routinely erases the memory of his bonds anyway. He allows his personal history to be rewritten for the sake of Kakerou (accepting that he did not face Baku Madarame but Kaoru Yukiide on April 9th 2001) and lastly he positions himself as non-human in his introductory scene with the Alien Invasion speech. This speech will come back a 2nd time during Air Poker when he gains full control of his memory, it is iconic of Souichi’s character and it is worth looking more deeply into.

[Vol6 Ch55 Duwang translation]

The image evoked here is that of an alien leader, “we” means the alien society as a whole- in this case it’d be Kakerou. Just like in the super-organism speech, he views himself as only one element in something much bigger than himself. This really puts the dehumanization into perspective. He’s a bee, he’s a super-organism, he’s an alien. He’s just barely a name, and not even a face. It takes the manga until the very end of chapter 68- the conclusion of the Hangman gamble- to show us Souichi’s face properly. It is completely obscured during the Alien Invasion scene and the referees do not call him by name. He’s just a faceless leader. He’s so little of a person already, and digging into the alien analogy only furthers this idea.

Alien Invasions as a trope also come with the “take me to your leader” shtick, that IS reflected in the story if we look at who Souichi has directly interacted with in the manga. He’s first introduced outside of flashbacks when he personally comes to the Hangman gamble to see Sadakuni, the leader of a terrorist organization. He gambles with Commissioner Sasaoka during the Tower of Karma arc. He invites Vincent Lalo, leader of Ideal, to meet him. He seeks out and shadows Nobuko during Protoporos, who will be crowned King and is shown as the strongest player on the island. Only then does he seek out a meeting with Baku, after he’s won the Ban and has earned that right. The point is, he only really interacts as a Leader and with other Leaders- it’s from one super-organism to another. He only deals with other people as parts of their own collective, this is the same world view as Kaoru’s with his ants that cannot exist outside of the collective. They both dehumanize others and themselves and this is something they’ve inherited from their fathers (the super-organism speech being started by Tatsuki Kiruma).

The dehumanization inherent to their places is also seen in the shadowy figures that haunt Kaoru and Souichi. Kaoru’s represents the memory of his dad, it tells him what to do and what to think, he looks to it for reassurance. Souichi’s takes the shape of a stretched version of himself that act upon him (as an alien does the human it kidnapped, and like Kaoru does to his ants.) These are two strikingly similar manifestations of the inner workings of their suffering minds. More than that, Souichi and Kaoru’s goal, here, is to fully BECOME that shadowy figure that haunts their psyche. That faceless, nameless existence is representative of what’s already succumbed to the super-organism. It’s something that takes over Kaoru when he gives in to the idea that anything can be justified for the sake of order and it’s the part of Souichi that dictates the memory resets. Their shadow is the part of them that’s “prepared to bleed”. It is the ideal ant. Let it be noted, then, that Kaoru becoming one with his is drawn in the same way as Souichi is when we first see him.

[the shadowy figures. Vol10 Ch98 Easy Going Scans Translation + Vol42 Ch454 Duwang Translation]

[Vol 10 ch98 Easy Going Scans translation + Vol 2 Ch 14 Duwang translation]

This is where the comparison takes its full meaning. It is obvious from Kaoru’s story that he is a victim of his situation; that he was manipulated into taking his father’s place by someone he trusted during his most vulnerable moment. He had just lost all that remained of his family, of course he’ll chase after the only thing he has left of it (his father’s spot in the Labyrinth game). Telling him not to is only making him believe that he had more agency in this decision than he really had. Can we say the same for Souichi?

Compared to Kaoru’s worker ant, Souichi holds much more power and freedom. This is reflected in his family situation being healthier and in him willingly stepping to the Leader role instead of being manipulated into it, as discussed previously. It then begs the question, since Souichi realizes that this is harmful to him, that his very humanity is being taken apart, why doesn’t he leave? Being Leader of Kakerou is not a lifelong duty, his dad retired and became referee almost 10 years before he died. Even without an heir to succeed him, couldn’t Souichi find a way? Is the system really worth all this harm?

III. November 23rd 1998

In 1998 Souichi has a memory loss episode and wonders around, following the instructions Eba gave him to find his way back. During this period he meets Baku Madarame and as per the Prince Bee narration they filled the hole in each others hearts.

[Vol30 Ch323 Duwang Translation]

Baku also gave him a new name- Hal- and generally showed him another way of living. One that is much more chaotic, dangerous, but also much more free. This is his alternative to Kakerou and being assimilated into the super-organism. After some time he gets his hands on the clue that will allow him to meet up with Eba, but before that there is a gamble he decides to take. That is the Russian Roulette Poker game against Fukurou on November 23rd. Souichi- Hal- usurped Baku’s place and decided to take the gamble himself. Despite the common in-story interpretation, this was not a sacrifice he made for Baku (see chapter 455). It is something he did for himself.

The reason he takes that gamble is because he’s a man of rules. He wants to stay by Baku’s side but he can’t just abandon his duty at Kakerou like this, and most importantly, he doesn’t want to make the choice himself. To decide for himself has consequences, it’d mean he, on purpose, betrayed his bloodline. It’d mean he broke the unwritten rule that it is his duty, as a Kiruma, to lead Kakerou. So instead, he turns to leaving his fate to a gamble. If he wins, it would be his sign to forsake his Souichi Kiruma life and stay by Baku’s side, but if he loses Hal would die.

There is a suicidal drive in this. We know Souichi did survive his loss and that the gamble took place in the building owned by Eba; there were preparations in place to facilitate his survival. Despite this, it is my reading that he was truly, fully, prepared to lose his life if he couldn’t keep being Hal- if he had to go back to being Souichi. Regardless of his intent at the time (if he did bet on his survival or not) there is weight to that symbol. Hal- Souichi- put a gun to his head because he yearned for something else, and in chapter 321 as Souichi in 2001 explains that he’ll kill himself if Baku wins Surpassing the Leader, we are then shown a scene from November 23rd of a black-suited man laying on the floor, presumably dead. This was suicide, if not on a literal level, on a symbolic one. It really did “kill Hal”- the only part of him that didn’t belong to Kakerou.

[Vol 30 ch321 Duwang translation. Notice the date on the clock.]

This leaving of things to fate brings us back to the Alien Invasion speech again, but in a flipped perspective of it. Another big part of alien stories is the alien abduction. Its appeal as a trope is the fantasy of being forcefully taken away and changed forever. Now, Souichi would no longer be the alien but the human the aliens act on. It’s an inversion of our original reading of it and it does position Hal in the picture instead. In a way, he has already been “taken away and changed forever” in 1998. His thread to return home was intercepted by Baku (the Prince Bee picture book) and he had to follow him into this new lifestyle. He feels like he “will never be able to become [himself] again” (chapter 321). But the aliens always bring the person back home in the end, and they have to carry on with that memory (and alien abduction stories also come with their share of memory loss, another one of Souichi’s motifs). What I really want to get to here is this duality of the invasion speech. On one hand, Souichi is the Aliens and a part of something greater, and on the other, Hal is the individual being taken away.

[Vol30 Ch321 Duwang translation.]

Souichi will try to escape his fate of being the alien again. During the Lost Bee arc, he has another major memory loss incident and he flees so he can meet with Eba secretly (having forgotten that Eba is now dead). During that escape he meets Baku again and from there the Protoporos arc starts, an arc where Souichi willingly takes on the name of Hal again. He will cling to this identity, seeking out his missing memories (chapter 449 for one exemple), looking for that place outside of Kakerou’s reach once more. Just for a little while, he is indulging in this special permission he is given to be Hal until the Ban ends. Then, the game is over and he has to be Souichi Kiruma again. Hal goes back to the dead, reburied, it’s over, it’s gone.

[vol43 ch469 Duwang translation]

This is also relevant to the end of Air Poker. During the game, he realizes that his systemic erasure of memories under stress will make him lose, that this aim to be perfect has rotted his brain, and that it’s nothing but a pipe dream (chapter 455). He finally accepts the fact that every person is flawed- only to then turn around and decide that therefor he has to try even harder to be perfect. He views his newfound control over his memory, of what he forgets and what he keeps, as proof of his extraordinary being. He thinks that even though no human can, HE can get close to perfection. It’s Icarus building himself a 2nd pair of wax-wings and giving the sun another try. The mythological comparison applies a bit further than that too. Icarus is the son of the architect of the Labyrinth. His father warned him not to fly too low or too high, which is to say not to want too little or too much. Tatsuki taught Souichi that “to be able to enjoy a delicious meal, to feel pain when you see blood, or wanting to avoid being hurt and hurting others" that is the default state of being he should seek. Instead, Souichi embraced his hubris, as discussed this role where he is “prepared to bleed” is something he takes pride in. He is no longer flying to escape the Labyrinth he was put in but to reach the sun itself despite having already fallen into the sea once before. It’s a fool’s errand.

[1. vol42 ch455 Duwang translation and 2.vol46 ch496 Duwang translation]

This contradiction arises from the fact that he did try being human and flawed before! He is not naively refusing to change. He already tried being Hal and he died for it! He died. He has no other option: “A dead person cannot be revived." (chapter 496). There is no alternative for Souichi, yes he is the Prince Bee, yes he is the ruler of the mind-breaking machine, son of the Architect, but he cannot escape his bloodline on his own. No matter his place in the system he cannot win against it. He is powerless to change things for the better as long as he is navigating within its rules.

IV. The Place That You Belong

There is a recurring idea in Usogui (manga) of the place that people belong to. It’s presented as something everyone has, and that as long as they’re there everything will turn out right for them. It’s “the stage that you shine on” (chapter 539), etc. Souichi explains this idea himself in the epilogue. Are you where you’re meant to be? Are you betraying yourself by refusing to stand in the right place?

[vol49 ch539 Duwang translation]

This concept is relevant to every character in Usogui but it’s best illustrated by Baku and Kyara. In Kyara’s fight against Jonglyo it is his bond with Baku that makes him win, the place that he belongs is by Baku’s side (chapter 384). This is why he lost against Marco during the Hangman arc, and never lost again. Baku’s only ever lost the Flying Vehicles bet, which he lost on purpose: he is already at the place that he belongs. This why they are the two characters who “keep on winning” no matter what, because they are following their “correct path”. It is why you want to be where you belong and why you belong there in the first place, because as long as you keep to it you will keep on “winning”.

For Kaoru I think it’s obvious the Labyrinth gamble is NOT where he belongs. As mentioned, he’s gambling while not being a gambler himself and he’s completely out of his depth when things are out of his script. He’s not even fulfilling his wish to “keep order”- he’s never solved a single labyrinth, he’s never saved a single person.

After his failure against Fukurou, Souichi resigns himself to accepting Kakerou as the place he belongs. But is that really true? As discussed, you know you’re on the right path because you keep on winning. In Hangman he had this to say: "A life in which I continue to win forever... I guess that's just my destiny?" (chapter 56) but it’s demonstrably not true! Souichi does lose! He lost his bet for the book in 1998, he lost against Fukurou, he didn’t manage to take over Tipa, and he lost Drop the Handkerchief. If it was his place to be Leader of Kakerou at that time he wouldn't have lost Surpassing the Leader. He isn’t Baku or Kyara. He is not where he belongs.

So if it’s not by Baku’s side and it’s not at the head of Kakerou either, where does Souichi belong, then? There are times that Souichi miraculously “wins”. We see it in Air Poker where he overcomes his memory loss and regains ALL discarded memories, and we see it when he wakes up in the hospital during the epilogue. These miraculous recoveries, I think, are indicative that he was doing something right at those times. The common thread between the two is that Souichi (or Hal) was acting in Baku’s interest without totally disowning his ties with Kakerou. He invites Fukurou to become a referee at the end of Air Poker and he steps up to being Leader again during the epilogue, but in the 1998 flashbacks he was hiding his bloodline and denied knowing what Kakerou was. This blatant lie is the narrative reason that made him lose against Fukurou, and his rejection of ever having been changed by Baku is what made Kakerou wrong for him afterwards. He does not belong anywhere until he stops living these lies. He cannot abandon Kakerou OR Baku, he needs both.

This is the reason Souichi and Kaoru became prey to the Lie-Eater. They were living their respective lies, and so Usogui came and ate them up. “It all began with a small lie” (chapter 535).

[vol6 ch 64 Duwang translation]

Kaoru should’ve died from this defeat after he was made to shoulder Baku’s loss at Surpassing the Leader, but he was saved in extremis by his own mental illness. He fell unconscious and this was judged as “collection on his life” enough for Kadokura so he was spared. He got to wake up in a hospital post-canon, free of this place he did not belong to, and still living. This is also the pattern Souichi follows. It is his mental illness that makes him lose Drop the Handkerchief, his memory loss episode that made him forget about the leap second and that Baku exploited. This defeat at Surpassing the Leader means he is now free of his duty to be Leader, and it allows him to later wake up in the hospital like Kaoru did. He can now be his own person, without any lies, without killing his mind to stay perfect- the very thing he’d tried to do on his own and failed. In a way, wasn’t he saved by his illness, too? And isn’t it their respective flaws that let them become their own person again, that re-humanized them?

In a lesser way this is also reflected in the Referee who presides over the Labyrinth gambles, Yuudai Kadokura. He’s characterized as a man of restraint during the arc. He, too, is obsessed with carrying out his job perfectly and tries his best to contain his emotions. “Please excuse me... Momentarily, I, Kadokura Yuudai, have unintentionally made a face that was a little indiscreet." (chapter 91) and this self-restraint will be lifted after he suffers (and recovers from) brain damage. It’s their mental ill that saved Souichi and Kaoru and that lifted Kadokura’s chains.

Usogui (manga) as a whole has more to say about this idea that it is our flaws that make us human. We see it in the Hangman gamble, when Sadakuni is hanged. He first claims he’s not afraid of death but in his final moments he thrashes and struggles and admits he doesn’t want to die here. Baku comments: “I won't let you die as a monster. You should at least die as a human.” (chapter 66). This explicitly conflates someone’s humanity with this display of desperation. It asks the question, can you accept your own death gracefully and remain human? What is being human but to fight tooth and nails for more out of life? Isn’t being alive inherently grotesque? This is also reflected in the ending of Air Poker in Vincent Lalo’s final, ugly, moment, just to name one other example. We are back to Tatsuki’s definition of what being “normal” is like, and it is this human fear of death and blood that makes the gamble against Commissioner Sasaoka work. Generally, it is the thirst for things that you don’t have and the willingness to fight for them no matter how unsightly you get that makes us truly alive- like a gambler is. This is reflected in the Protoporos arc when Champ chooses to stay on the island because he feels alive for the first time after having gambled with Baku as well as in Kaji’s character arc more broadly.

[Vol7 ch66 Duwang translation + vol38 ch 412 Duwang translation]

For all that Souichi tried to erase his failures and reach perfection he was only making himself less and less human. It’s only when he let his true desires show in Drop the Handkerchief and that he truly fought to “one up” Baku that he started to approach something that rings true. To be human is to be flawed and to accept and remember this, and grow stronger from having tasted defeat. And it is this defeat, that honest and bitter defeat, of Souichi at Drop the Handkerchief that leads to the realization of the Prince Bee story’s happy ending- the Prince Bee Duo rising up.

On a surface level, if Baku had lost again there was no way for him NOT to die this time with how weak we know his body to be (see, the Labyrinth Minotaur game and the Dotty game). But more than that, Souichi had to lose and stop being Leader so he could be himself, so he could stop lying about who he is. He cannot change his bloodline, he cannot stop being a Kiruma, but he cannot stop yearning for something more either. He’s a flawed, weird little guy and he will always be changed from Baku’s presence in his life. This defeat returns his humanity to him and it allows him to reconcile the contradictory positions he was in. He can then embrace that he IS Baku’s ally, and he IS Kakerou, too, and come back as his full self and no longer forced to keep people at arm’s length. That is the true place he belongs, both Leader of Kakerou and Baku’s friend.

[all three are vol49 ch 539, Duwang translation]

Both Souichi and Kaoru had to bear the weight of their fathers’ inheritance so much so that they hurt themselves and lost their very humanity, all to stay somewhere they shouldn’t be. It is their flaws that free them, but it is also the people around them who saved them. It’s Baku speaking up that Kaoru is “pretty much already dead”, it is the summon for Hal to wake up because “if it’s you, it will be alright.”. They woke up knowing people cared for them and sincerely wished for their recoveries. They were accepted fully for who they are, sinful bloodline and flaws and all, and with their curse lifted they can now return that care, too.

→ You are never truly alone, things can always get better, you CAN break free from your family’s Labyrinth. If it is forcing you to harm yourself and is keeping you isolated, then it is not the place that you belong.

[vol 14 ch147 Duwang translation + vol49 ch538 Duwang translation]

V. Conclusion

We see this loose pattern ripple in other characters. Kaji and Marco are grappling with what they’ve inherited from their parents too (namely, abuse) and it is through Baku’s support and help that they could set their minds free from this influence. As symbolic of the turning point where they can truly start to heal is their stay in a hospital (Marco post-Labyrinth gamble, Kaji on bed rest during Protoporos). To truly break free comes with being hurt deeply before becoming anew. It will be different but it will be okay.

The motif of dysfunctional or fragmented families generally runs rampant, most characters with known backstories have some sort of family troubles from our main characters to one-off antagonists (Marco and Kaji as mentioned but also Kyara, Satoru Suteguma, the Yakou twins, Voja, Jonglyo, Mitaka, and so on). Usogui (manga) features a lot of parents who suck absolute ass, yes, but it also more generally touches on the way parents shape their children even in healthier families- think Ranko taking over her dad’s mafia, the sons who’ve never faced consequences because their fathers are powerful, etc.

In light of this, the fact that our protagonist is someone who is seemingly completely devoid of family starts to stand out. We do not get to know anything about Baku’s parents, his childhood, how he was raised, etc, anything from before he was already a well-established gambler within Kakerou. This is very significant in a main protagonist, who we’d usually know a lot more about. It separates him from the weight of inheritance, only he is free of those bonds that tie someone to their family (or lack of it)- for better or for worse.

This feeds into the repeated use in the story of Surpassing the Leader as a way to lose your “bonds”. It’s stated Baku lost that 1st STL bet to get rid of this past that tied him to Hal, when Souichi loses Drop the Handkerchief he escapes his bloodline, and it’s the thing that’s pinned on Yukkii and frees him of his Labyrinth. This is the big “reset” button featured in the story but its point is not to go on with life devoid of relationships and ties to other people. No, Baku does rebuild his bond with Hal, Souichi comes back to Kakerou a healthier man, and the last scene Kaoru sees before falling unconscious is himself as a child holding both his parents’ hands. Loss is always painful but it often cannot be avoided (may it be to break free of an abusive family or a toxic job, or because a loved one dies, etc) and bonds are what shape us. The two ideas coexist. You cannot go on without any attachment to anyone. This is seen in the “planting seeds” imagery of chapter 320, all lives are interwoven and ripple against each other to grow and become something else.

Bonds are also the strength and support you gain from other people, it is how Kyara wins against Jonglyo, and it is Souichi’s parting words in Handkerchief: “It is you who made us stronger.” (chapter 530). Who can ever hope to leave the Labyrinth without Ariadne’s gift of yarn to guide them out? It is the two Bees’ friendship that’s at the core of the picture book, and it is also those relationships between people (good or bad), and love, that’s at the core of Usogui, too. To be loved and to love someone is to be changed.

[Vol 35, ch384, Duwang translation]

[thatdebaterguy]

Usually I would go anon but I am at the point where I don't care what people think anymore. I would rather be honest and have these people off my blog than keep doing it in secret.

Anyways, I was scrolling through a post (because I hate myself). Tumblr wouldn't let me put the link for some reason:

This isn't the whole post, but 2/3 of it. It's about how Israel was "tricking" children into picking up bombs that looked like food cans. Someone corrected this in the comment section.

And in response to the correction (there was more than one person correcting):

This is a massive issue I've seen with that side of the conflict. They don't care if the information they spread is true as long as it fits the narrative of "Palestine = weak, helpless, 100% good and pure victim. Israel: evil, colonists, eats Palestine babies for breakfast." And it's almost scary the lack of critical thinking to make sure everything fits into this mindset.

I once corrected someone's mistranslation on Pinterest of all places, where someone said a Hebrew translation was ""May this (bomb) lands on innocent people". It was just the company name. I was attacked and told I was a "genocidal zionist" and there was my favorite, "well it doesn't matter if it's true or not, it's what they mean".

So basically, "yeah it doesn't matter if it's fake information, it fits with MY beliefs, so it's okay."

I hate the Pro-Palestinian cult.

It is genuinely depressing to see blatant misinformation spread, for example I've been given the link to a site that takes supposed quotes from Israeli officials completely out of context, half the time a complete lie, and told it's some kind of proof Israel is the epitome of moral sin, despite being the most equal state in the middle east. I saw this post and saw another one debunking how the imagine has been altered in a misleading way, just as I saw a post of a server room that's linked to a Hamas database under an UNRWA facility, and someone said it powered a solar panel. Keep in mind they didn't lie for the Palestinian civilians, that was to straight up cover for Hamas.

The screenshot of someone calling Hamas 'freedom fighters' is actually scary.

this is the first thing you see when you search for the ideology of Hamas. Yk the worst part? This would be called zionist propaganda just because it says Hamas have committed terrorism, and October 7th happened. These are literal facts though, Hamas are proud of October 7th, proud of killing thousands, kidnapping hundreds, committing acts of terrorism. If you have any sense of morality, you cannot defend Hamas, even if you see them as on the right side or as freedom fighters, their methods alone make them a monstrous organisation. They wear plain civilian clothes in war, a war crime, they have been verified to use civilian buildings for cover, a war crime, they've killed thousands of innocents purposefully, a war crime, they've openly called for the annexation and occupation of Israel, a sovereign country with millions of ethnic Jews who would be 3rd class citizens in a Hamas ruled Palestine.

Israel doesn't want Gaza. They don't want to destroy it, to own it, they wish they never had to hear about it again, let alone invade it to remove Hamas from power. And the fact that people are scared to voice their beliefs against a literal terror group, against misinformation, is insane. You know, the only reason I'm on Israel's side is because when it comes to debates I follow the science, the figures, the statistics, a fixed code of morality and logic, and that leads to me to Israel because they've never instigated a conflict in their entire history, they've voluntarily surrendered land in pursuit of peace, aided the countries that have invaded them, they're by the definition not committing genocide, they're legally and factually in a war of self defence to topple an extremist dictatorial government, the figures show as far as modern urban warfare goes, the civilian-military death ratio is lower than most conflicts, they factually have a historical claim to the land, they built Tel Aviv, built Jerusalem, 400,000 Jews lived the region of Israel before its existence as a modern state, it just all points to Israel.

But I support the people of Palestine, I empathise with them, I want them to be free of the dictators who lead them to this war and suffering they must endure, and I pray they'll get the liberation they deserve. They deserve better than the nightmare of a government that rule over Gaza. And yet none of the Palestinian supporters protest Hamas. They don't realise, protesting against Hamas doesn't weaken the right for civilians to receive aid, because they're forced into this mindset that the Palestinian government and movement has always been one of perfect ineffable morality and one that you must be insanely villainous to even have any contradicting thoughts on. I'm a more conservative guy who's best friend of 4 years recently told me that they're genderfluid, in a polyamorous relationship with a trans man, and have a 'fursona' but since I know they're a person with good intentions in life I support them in finding happiness and getting better. I'd say that makes me fairly open minded, without tooting my own horn too much. But I will never be open to the idea that Hamas have ever wanted what's best for Palestine. Their actions are selfish, their goals are psychopathic, their behaviour is unwarranted, and their care for being a successful governing body is minimal. Gaza, whether prospering before October 7th or not, was legally an independent, sovereign region of the nation of Palestine, who have their own government, constitution, voting system, currencies they operate with, culture, freedom of movement, unless it's to Israel of course, and have been so since Israel pulled out of Gaza.

Israel actually occupied Gaza once. It was better maintained, the people were more looked after. In the years before Israel pulled out of Gaza, the Palestinian economy grew by the largest margin in at least 20 years, and then under Hamas, became incredibly stagnant, with foreign aid being the only thing propping it up. They let unemployment skyrocket despite the opening of more high tech facilities, once again thanks to foreign aid. Now, Israel doesn't want Gaza back, nor should they have it, but when the people of the nationality that Hamas wish to destroy, governed their land even better despite not even being the sovereign owners of that land and just the occupiers, it says a lot. Don't be afraid to speak out against Hamas, since you have no love for the Palestinian people if you don't want them to be free from the suffering Hamas has brought.

[iantimony]

last tuesday of 2023!

i thought about making this my Yearly Roundup for last tuesday of the year but i think instead i will make this a normal tuesdaypost, and do a big yearly reflection on friday or saturday for last shabbos of the year :)

listening: twilight mirage, still in that holiday special, episode 23. the way that there are eight fuckin episodes for that special........in part 1 or 2 they make a comment how they might have to do three parts and i was like. lol. lmao, even. i'm in the bit right now where they're doing an election and it's very funny. thisbe as the debate moderator made me laugh out loud.

reading: the best part of the game awards this year was the fashion, alyssa mercante: i looooved some of these looks. love the art corset on slide 4, jay-ann lopez on slide 15, the pleated dress on slide 17, the MATCHING BABY ON SLIDE 19, and the author's whole everything on slide 20.

sff's big fat problem, r. k. duncan: i was already aware of some of the stuff talked about here but i am definitely guilty of having less overt things - i.e. goblin emperor reference in there - totally fly by me. i feel like i saw a lot of people talking about rowling's fatphobia after she went mask-off but she is definitely on the more malicious end of the spectrum, it's a much much much more baked in problem than people give it credit for. thinking also about the locked tomb, which i love, but also makes some very weird comments about ortus that i did not clock at all until someone else pointed it out. just something i'm thinking about lately.

the world is hard, dinner doesn't need to be, julia turshen: what it says on the tin. some recipe ideas, cut down to mental bare essentials.

old growth, brawlite: saved the fanfic for last. obsessed with this. it's so so good. the format is a really neat idea that i don't know if i've seen done before. like, using the 'comment section' to point out 'things in the background of shots'? genius. i am eating it up. i should have signed up for this exchange. maybe next year.

playing: fallow. i might buy some games that are on sale tho lol, i've seen both pyre and ghostwire: tokyo recommended this week. latter is no longer on sale unfortunately but i am noting it down for later.

watching: the fashion industry hates older women, mina le

history of bathing, bernadette banner

aaaand a short film that a grad student in my department made as a project. it's. not good. like i'm happy that he's doing hobbies or whatever but this short film commits the cardinal sin of being neither good nor bad, Just Boring. 2/10.

making: the [redacted project] is almost done!! i have 10 rows left. each row takes me about 15 minutes. i will definitely finish it by the end of the week, fringe and all. no pictures yet for obvious reasons but it will be in the first tuesdaypost of the year for 2024! the biggest challenge now is the point of contact on my left hand where i rest the knitting needle against my middle finger is aggravating on a sensory standpoint from overuse, so i have been knitting with one glove on that hand which has helped a lot.

there was a preview of these last week, but i added finishing touches to my gavle goat holiday cards! i used a metallic sharpie to add some horn embellishments and wrote a little note on the back, and mailed out a bunch :)

misc: the first christmas eve/day of my life where i didn't get chinese food!!! shock, horror, etc. i'm at my roommate's family's place so i experienced a real christmas situation. it was fine. her family & their home is like ... hallmark card vibes and idk how i feel about it. i want wonton soup :(

[bisonofyesterday]

Hey if you're ever blocked by me on here you either:

> suck eggs/are a terrible person/etc.

> I misinterpreted something while doomscrolling comment sections and you were in my crossfire

> unless you were being intentionally annoying in said comment section then I have committed no sin

> Tumblr forced me to look at something I didn't care about in the For You tab and I think blocking random people is easier than trying to find the Preferences tab to block yet another keyword

> were slightly annoying in general

> are an algorithmic robot created to sell me something

[crof-fwf]

What the….?! and this alucín?

Okay, I can't blame anyone for looking for content on the "fun social network". However, the comments of a certain person have caught my attention. And it wasn't until my curiosity have rewarded me with something that really left me with "My honest reaction". And this was My honest reaction:

And specifically, this was the "compilation" of posts that prompted me (in these moments) to simply share my thoughts on his comments. NOTE: It seems confirmed that the user is probably CanonSeeker [yeah, "Ese loco del centro de la ciudad"] so the "exposure" to his twitter profile can be useful for Content Creators or simply fans who want to avoid him. So do not think about debating with him since it would be in vain,and in addition to wanting to talk about his comments.

Now yes, to the posts that I want to dissect

First the antecedent

"Everytime somebody triest to "FIX" RWBY" ?

Here he expresses himself on how the "Fanworks" of the "Fix Fic" category are based on misrepresenting every aspect of the canon.

Although here I will say that I have no references regarding "Fix Fic" in general beyond Celtic Phoenix's "Fixing RWBY".

I start about how he falls into the "generalization" that he gives to the "Fix Fic". And my comment is about how prejudiced he is when talking about said FanWorks.

Although, it may be that before I fell into this fandom there was a time when this type of FanWorks abounded but coming to sin the same or worse errors than those of the series or simply wanting to be pretentious.

But even so, it is not about invalidating that at the end of the day a "Fix Fic" can be considered a fic where the author has to be committed to fixing aspects of it without having to separate so much from the canon, being like a challenge for the author.

And now let's get to the subject.

This user has commented on suggestions to consider for a "Fixing RWBY" and here is the "short" list of suggestions that Dori/CanonSeeker has shared...

My quickest and most sincere reaction:

It is an exaggeration to consider this list as very long, but it is the specifications shown that are "eye-catching". So well lets see line by line the list. My points are mainly focused on the "Fix Fic" section. In which, from my perspective, a "Fix Fic" tries to stay within the events of the canonical series, while at the same time deciding to rewrite elements that were not satisfactory within the canonical execution or additionally add elements that do not try to unbalance of the canon. So, let´s begin:

"Try to focus on the female protagonists." "jaune is a side character. " "Do not make a cis white male have more of a role than them."

For a "Fix Fic" section it is somewhat understandable to keep what would be the main cast, but still it would not be bad to have to explore other characters (and yes, also include the male ones).

"Do not have a straight white male shame them for their actions."

I don't know what he mean by "shame". But if he mention it as a form of "consequence" for the cast for non-positive actions. I don't know what to say, that the team is can be "shame" by any character that doesn't fall into that category… and in case we take it into account I doubt that's the answer, because imagine if other characters [outside this "category"] "shame" the cast, and Doris/Seeker gets angry anyway, it only makes it more ironic.

"No straightwashing. " "keep bumbleby canon."

At this point I don't know what it means, since let's say that the "Fic Fix" is in charge of "fixing"… this "Ship", either due to the lack of growth, moments, or rewriting the "conveniences" of its development.

At this point I can't find a purpose for it because… "A Fix Fic" would not seek to carry out that type of "washing"

"And NO Fanservice. "

Short: If it turns out that he was always Seeker, then this would be… laughable.

But in no short: I think that such situations would not be necessary for a "Fix Fic"…

Don't make evil men "morally grey"

Here I have a question for my estemeed…. If there can be gray morality in the male antagonists or not?

And the answer: Honestly, it's ironic to settle for "cartoon" for the male antagonists but both the fandom and the series want to take it upon themselves to give depth to the female antagonists…

Don't have jaune or adam date anyone in team rwby.

Okay, and I ask again: Is a romnace necessary for a RWBY Fix Fic? And I want to apply this in general. Because if you are going to make a "Ship" in a "Fix Fic"... it would be with too much care and detail

Ruby is to be idealistic, and it shouldn't be a character flaw.

Doesn't the fact that a character has no mistakes make her a "Mary Sue"? and even more so for the fact that he wants Ruby to be idealized.

Yang is not a party girl, not alcoholic, and not a slacker.

From a "Fic Fix" point of view, ok, it's well aimed to NOT downgrade a character to be a "party girl, alcoholic, and a slacker."

BUT : ) , they can simply be aspects or defects so that there is a challenge or a purpose to overcome, but not reduce the character to what was mentioned

(But ironically to reduce it to half a Ship, there they are quiet)

Adam taurus is irredeemably evil. So is torchwick.

… I don't have anything relevant to comment except for the fact that you can make an "irredeemable" character, BUT : ) the same is how it is written / handled…

One (Adam) being able to offer more crumbs and (Roman) the other would be a "enough but I wouldn't complain if there were more"

Don't call it a rewrite or a fixit fanfic. Call it an AU. A fan AU.

In short: Depending on the story you write, as well as the one you want to "tell" is what would classify the "Fanfic" as an AU or "Fic Fix". As I said, the "Fic Fix" in the end would enter the category of FanFic but its purpose would be a more ambitious one. (in the sense of giving yourself as a challenge to "improve" the deficient aspects of a series)

That will show your respect to the show and its writers. And showing CRWBY writers Miles and Kerry that respect will cause others to give your work a chance.

And the only salvageable thing at this point is basically: "The impression", honestly you would cause a lot of distrust to most of the fandom by being "rude" with the CRWBY, but hey, it's not like it's not a guarantee that the fandom will give a chance to a "Fic Fix" for the same reason that the fandom is also very "defensive" when it comes to aspects of the series, to such a degree of humiliating or harassing the author because "he had ideas that could hurt the canon" . A good impression does not guarantee a positive reception from the fandom to your "fix fic".

And to give a quick conclusion: Apparently the "Fixed" version or idealized for Doris/CanonSeeker is the "over exaggerated" representation (or flanderization) of what RWBY is... And last: I know that I argue when it is a "Fic Fix", and in the case of an "AU" I will only tell you that: Have fun as you also have fun when structuring and making your AU story.

Now to "Mimir".

[vinceleemiller]

My Problems Are God’s Fault | James 1:13-18

It’s easy to point fingers when things go wrong in our life: We think, "It’s their fault," or sometimes we dare to think, "It's God's fault." But James cuts sharply through these excuses, showing us another way to look at our situations.

Welcome to the Daily Devo. [Get ready for a chapter study on the Vince Miller Show]

If you are new here, we are excited to have you. Get your James Scripture Journal now so you can take notes as we study this letter together. Our text today is James 1:13-18:

Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.  — James 1:13-18

In this section of chapter one, James turns inward. He is no longer talking about external trials but internal temptations. The challenges that derive from our devious desires. And I think James' sexual-fishing metaphor is spot-on. We get lured and enticed by our own desires. We get hooked and then commit adulterous affairs in our hearts. Then, these adulterous expeditions result in sin that we birth. We are on the hook for them, and they kill us and others.

God is not on the hook for temptation. We are. God is good, and every gift he gives is good.

You can't blame the hook when you're the one chasing the bait.

Today, James is challenging us to take responsibility for our temptations. Instead of pointing fingers at others or God, we need to own our desires, hook, line, and sinker. The correct response is not to blame God for our desires but to surrender our desires to Him.

So, what desire has been hooking you lately? Don't skip past this question. Think about it. Identify it. Confess it. Share it [in the comments below]. Surrender it. Pray about it [like we talked about yesterday]. Then, take intentional steps to replace it with God's desires.

Remember, the Father of Lights fills your life with good gifts—so ask him for a heart that desires his very best.

#OwnYourChoices, #GodIsGood, #GuardYourHeart

Ask This:

What desires have been hooking you lately and leading you into temptation?

How can you surrender your desires to God today?

What good gifts has God already provided in your life?

How can you replace tempting thoughts with God's truth and promises?

Do This:

Stop blaming God.

Pray This:

Father of Lights, thank You for every good and perfect gift You provide. Help me surrender my desires to You and pursue Your best for my life. Amen.

Play This:

Hooked On A Feeling.

Check out this episode!

[hotpinkandlimegreenlovinfangirl]

People Need To Make Their Messages Online Easy For Other People To Understand

I'm not going to post this on my blog, The Autistic Catholic. But I am going to post it on several other platforms.

I needed to get this off my chest. There are some Catholics who claim to be mystics and use platforms like the YouTube comments section to rave about the fruits of Catholic mysticism. But the content of their comments or posts are not coherent.

Let me be clear: I will not accept  that the things of God don't make sense as a justification for incoherent comments or posts. The mystic saints were able to write entire books on mystical spirituality and explain things coherently.

I will not waste my time in prayer asking God to clarify other people's gibberish because they refused to deliver their messages in an intelligible manner. God does not give people signs and then laugh mischievously or get angry when they miss them or fail to understand them. Please don't send me on a wild goose chase. More than likely, I'll get annoyed with you and won't thank you for sending me after a red herring.

If someone communicates that they don't understand your message, it is not courteous to tell them to ask God to explain your inane message. Don't post a message and then go into passivity when the other person doesn't understand what you have to say. Either word your message in a way that others can understand, or don't post a message at all.

Also, self-proclaimed Catholic mystics who slander people online are not people I will listen to. I already have trouble reading people due to my autism as it is and I do not need people muddying the waters by committing spiritual murder. Because that's what slander is: spiritual murder.

In fact, St. Francis de Sales would look at the lives of those who claimed to be mystics and if he saw that they were engaging in sinful behavior such as slandering their neighbors, he was skeptical of them and deduced that their experiences in contemplative prayer were from the Devil.

So I will now go over the text in the mockups and "respond" to the mystic's comments.

SelfProclaimedCatholicMysticWhoLovesPrivateRevelation: Only those speaks of them who can obtain Heaven. Not human, what conjured. Animals do not roam Heaven. They are gone in a moment.

"Only those speaks of them who can obtain Heaven."

This is very confusing.

"Not human, what conjured."

More incoherence.

"Animals do not roam Heaven."

According to Colton Burpo, this isn't true.

"They are gone in a moment."

True, but so are humans. And that doesn't mean we shouldn't care for animals and respect them.

Waldo4Jesus: Have you been to Heaven or if otherwise, why do you sound so sure?

SelfProclaimedCatholicMysticWhoLovesPrivateRevelation: Have I been to Heaven? Yes. But fell, rose. To show you HELL is to gain Earth to cleanse it. Love is to be vulnerable that He is. NOT. NEVER. Always. I hate HIM most.

"Have I been to Heaven? Yes. But fell, rose."

I can't understand what you're trying to say here. You're too vague here.

"To show you HELL is to gain EARTH to cleanse it."

Again, you're not making any sense here.

"Love is to be vulnerable that He is."

I agree, but it takes a lifetime to be vulnerable with God.

"NOT. NEVER. Always."

What? You're not making any sense again and you're too vague again.

"I hate HIM most."

Who is the "HIM?" Again, you're being too vague and incoherent.

Waldo4Jesus: I frankly don't understand what you're trying to say.

SelfProclaimedCatholicMysticWhoLovesPrivateRevelation: Responding to "I frankly don't understand what you're trying to say." Please ask GOD. HE only and alone knows EVERYTHING. Humans just fake it most. Amen. When have you understand you? And others, aimed at you. Perception is coming to you soon that you will not enjoy. Keep praying the HAIL MARY and realize that SHE saw HER SON on the Cross. Nothing GOOD comes easy by way of the human heart. 1 Thessalonians 5: 17.

"Responding to "I frankly don't understand what you're trying to say." Please ask GOD. HE only and alone knows EVERYTHING. Humans just fake it most. Amen."

I'm sorry, but I'm not going to waste my time in prayer asking God to clarify your inane message because you refused to make your message coherent and intelligible and just because only God knows everything.

Second, I have autism and you're telling me that trying to read humans is pointless because they fake it a lot. I'm sorry, but no. You do not get to make reading people impossible for me when it's already difficult for me.

And your last sentence was an assertion, not a prayer. So leave off the "Amen" next time.

"When have you understand you? And others, aimed at you."

What is this gibberish supposed to mean?

"Perception is coming to you soon that you will not enjoy."

Oh, really? I don't believe you.

"Keep praying the HAIL MARY and realize that SHE saw HER SON on the Cross."

No thanks.

"Nothing GOOD comes easy by way of the human heart. 1 Thessalonians 5: 17. "

More gibberish. And no, I'm not going to read a Bible verse because you told me which one.

SelfProclaimedCatholicMysticWhoLovesPrivateRevelation: Humans are more important. I don't care what the demons taught you.

"Humans are more important."

Who said humans aren't more important than animals?

"I don't care what the demons taught you."

This is deeply uncharitable. What's up with Catholics who are proficient in the spiritual life saying demons are the cause of things or that people are being snatched by demons?

And if scrupulous people read this, they'll get tightly wound and start looking for a demon behind every bush when that's not productive for them.

CatLovingChristian:@SelfProclaimedCatholicMysticWhoLovesPrivateRevelation LOL, what? I never said animals are more important than humans. Is it my fault that people in Africa don't have anything to eat? I'm just saying to love all living creatures and it goes without saying people are more important than animals.

So, Miss Self-Proclaimed Catholic Mystic, you just spiritually murdered someone. Because that is what slander is.

DogLovingChristian: Two years ago, God brought Aurora, via the pound, to save my life. She is a brown and blue-eyed Siberian husky. It was after thru-hiking the PCT. Oh, how God provided what I needed. Tomorrow, I am getting confirmed at 48.

SelfProclaimedCatholicMysticWhoLovesPrivateRevelation: Christ only saves YOUR life. Animals actually have no heart or soul. Read Genesis 1: 26. Asking the Holy Spirit to reveal your wounds to your heart, never learnt to live within. The definition of HEALED. In Christ, Alone.

"Christ only saves YOUR life."

Pal, the OP literally just said that God brought the dog to save her life. This shows that you didn’t actually read what the OP wrote.

"Animals actually have no heart or soul. Read Genesis 1: 26."

OK, I just read that verse and this is what it says: "Then God said: Let us make human beings in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the tame animals, all the wild animals, and all the creatures that crawl on the earth."

Your claim that animals have no heart or soul based on the above verse is pure speculation.

"Asking the Holy Spirit to reveal your wounds to your heart, never learnt to live within."

This is wrong on so many levels. First, it is way overstepping personal boundaries. God does not reveal someone's wounds to their heart without their permission. Second, your criticism of them for never having learned to live within is jumping the gun, especially since God brought the dog to them after they thru-hiked the Pacific Crest Trail, which runs the entire west coast of the US. You don’t know what condition they were in after that hike.

While it's good to pray for someone in hopes of their repentance and conversion, it is not OK to overstep like you're doing.

"The definition of HEALED. In Christ, Alone."

Did God or the OP ask for you to ask the Holy Spirit to initiate healing? NO. It sounds like God's got the situation under control without your way overstepping.

And people solve problems through legitimate human means all the time. It doesn't mean Christ isn't enough.

P.S. The comments above are mockups to give an example and to preserve the reputations of others.

[fruitcoops]

could you PLEASE write the fic where coops break the bed bc I would love to read how that went down

I'd love to! This is a reference to part three of this fic, and the prompt was combined with asks for another jealous Sirius and seeing Remus in his game day suit for the first time. SW credit goes to @lumosinlove!

TW for smut (including blowjobs)

The lock slid home and Sirius’ knees hit the floor.

“Wh—okay,” Remus laughed as Sirius fumbled his belt open and yanked the zipper of his dress pants—fucking dress pants, is he trying to kill me?—as far as it could go without ripping straight down the middle. Slender fingers combed through his hair; some of the shock must have worn off, because he could feel a growing bulge under his cheek as he nuzzled the dip of Remus’ hipbone.

“Nobody looks at you like I do,” he said, licking a broad stripe up the front of Remus’ boxers. They were the nice kind, soft and tight—he wanted to tear them off.

Remus, for his part, looked both baffled and quite happy. “No, they do not,” he agreed, giving the back of Sirius’ hair a light tug. “And nobody looks as good as you down there.”

“You’re goddamn right they don’t.” Without further ado, Sirius pulled his dick out of his boxers and did his best to inhale it.

“Jesus fucking—” Remus’ hand slammed into the wall with a sharp gasp. His knee buckled, but Sirius gripped his thigh and pushed it against the wall. “Holy shit, baby, give me some warning.”

Sirius leaned back and let the tip slide out through his lips for just a moment, reveling in the slackjawed awe on Remus’ face. “No.”

“What did I do to deserve this?” Remus’ voice cracked as he thudded his head back against the wall and began lightly rolling his hips per Sirius’ request, huffing each time Sirius tightened his hold on his ass.

“Game suit,” Sirius managed as he slid off to bite the hollow between Remus’ hip and thigh, drawing a whimper from him. His heartbeat pounded in his ears, shouting mine, mine, mine with each pulse. “Game suit and those fucking fans.”

Remus’ chest heaved as he took him all the way to the base again, holding Sirius by the hair the way that always sent lightning down his spine. He spread his knees slightly on the floor and palmed himself through his pants without breaking pace. “Are you—ah—are you upset or happy? ‘cause this is great and I’m not complaining but—oh holy fuck.”

Warm, slightly sweaty palms shoved him away by the forehead. Sirius made a noise of protest that turned into a grumble when his mouth was finally empty, and he batted Remus’ hands away. “What?”

“Two seconds.” Remus’ pupils were dilated so far they almost hid the pretty amber that turned dark with lust. “You look so good down there, baby, but I’m gonna come and I’m really confused why.”

“I want to make you come,” Sirius explained, moving back towards him only to be guided away again. Obviously. “Remus!”

“What is the occasion?” he asked, a little desperate. “What did I do?”

Sirius sat back on his heels with an irritated exhale and held up three fingers. “You, in general. Game suit. Fans. May I please finish what I was doing.”

If possible, Remus looked even more lost. “The fans? What about the fans? Why do they entail an amazing blowjob?”

“Because.” Sirius pulled his pants down enough to suck a mark on the thickest muscle of Remus’ thigh. He was salty and sweet and perfect. “Because they were looking at you like they wanted to eat you, and that’s my job.”

“I—” Remus opened and closed his mouth twice, then leaned back against the wall with an aborted muss of his hair. “Yeah, okay. I kind of want to get you off too, though, ‘cause you look like sin on legs in that blazer and I would hate to waste it.”

Sirius Black, why did you commit yourself to someone so selfless. He took his mouth off the underside of Remus’ dick and hauled himself to his feet, wincing at the protests of his plane-tired muscles. “Then we’d better get upstairs.”

“Upstairs? But—” Remus’ eyes widened and a slow smile spread over his face and he pulled his pants back up. “Yeah, yeah, okay, yes, right now.”

“Right now,” Sirius confirmed, taking him by the wrist to hustle them both up to their bedroom. He gave Remus’ ass a solid smack before scooting around him to flop backward on the bed, tangling their legs together until he could wrap himself around Remus and kiss him like he deserved. Hard and sloppy and so dizzying Sirius had to catch his breath when they broke apart. “Now.”

“Huh?” Remus coughed, still ruffled and red-lipped.

Sirius took his face between his hands and felt Remus go weak on top of him. “Fuck me. Right now. I’m yours, and you’re mine, and you don’t do this with any of those people undressing you with their eyes today.”

I’m the one that’s going to be walking funny tomorrow, Sirius reminded himself as he expertly unbuttoned Remus’ shirt and shoved both that and the navy jacket off his golden shoulders. Not the moon-eyed women twirling their hair, not the chiseled men with their fucking smirks, not the people in the comments marveling at that pretty face. Me. Mine.

Remus made a funny sort of whimpering noise as he pushed Sirius’ shirt open and attached himself to his neck, biting and licking in equal measure as Sirius divested them both of their pants. He leaned back to catch his breath, but Sirius reeled him back in by the blue tie still around his neck and tangled his fingers in Remus’ tawny curls, crushing them together while he pushed his hips up for any friction and basked in Remus’ moans. Mine. Yours.

“Lube,” Remus said against his mouth, breathless. The temperature of the room had to be a hundred degrees, Sirius was sure of it; they were both sweating already, but he couldn’t let go of Remus for more than a second at a time. He needed the contact. Needed the feeling of drowning in his touch.

“Mine,” he said, nipping Remus’ bottom lip before letting him go enough that he could reach the nightstand.

“Yours,” Remus promised. He kept one hand splayed over the side of Sirius’ neck as they kissed; the other popped the cap off the lube and hoisted Sirius’ leg further to the side. “Ready?”

“Go.”

He threw his head back when two—two!—slick fingers pressed against him, opening him at the wonderful intersection between a snail’s pace and an uncomfortable sting. Remus moved his free hand down to hold Sirius’ hip; his weight pressed him into the mattress, and Sirius was sure that he would burn up at any moment.

“Yes,” he hissed through clenched teeth when Remus’ fingers found his prostate. His ears began to buzz as Remus rubbed the pads of his fingers over it in relentless circles, not pushing, just giving him enough friction to go mad with it.

Teeth skimmed his collarbone and Sirius shivered when wet lips trailed over his nipple. “Get on your stomach.”

“Wanna see you.”

“Sirius.” Remus’ hand wasn’t damp when he curled it around Sirius’ jaw and guided him to meet his eyes. “On your damn stomach.”

Sirius was not proud of the half-breath sound that escaped him, but he wasn’t ashamed either. He got on his damn stomach, and he did it with a smile. “What now?”

“Hold the headboard.”

He obliged and felt Remus run a hand down the curve of his spine before sliding two fingers back into him. Sirius arched, grinning at the waves of pleasure rolling through his stomach. “We don’t have games for two days,” he said, flipping his hair back to look at Remus over his shoulder.

Amber eyes roved up and down his body with an appreciative gleam before Remus pressed a kiss to the small of his back. “I know. Hold on, baby.”

A shiver ran through Sirius’ limbs; he flexed his fingers on the wood of the headboard and sighed when something much more blunt than a few fingers pushed inside him in a slow, continuous motion. “Tabarnak,” he muttered, mouth agape as Remus found his seat and pushed down even harder on his lower back. His spine was going to ache in the morning, and he didn’t care a bit.

“Why were you upset about the fans?” he asked with a slow roll of his hips that left Sirius shuddering. “You know I don’t pay attention to that.”

“Comment section,” he panted, gritting his teeth against a loud moan. “And I could hear them when you walked by.”

“What were they saying?”

“Everything.” Sirius’ thighs trembled on the hard thrust that followed. “Everything, everything—how good you looked. That suit, Remus, I can’t handle it.”

A beat of silence passed, save for the creaking of the bed beneath them. “Say it again.”

“You looked—”

“Not that,” Remus interrupted, sliding his hands along Sirius’ sides and back down his thighs. “You want me to be yours? Then say my name.”

“Remus,” he breathed.

“What was that?”

“Remus,” he repeated, a little louder. It came out as a whine and Remus bent down to bite the junction of his shoulder as he gripped the headboard with white knuckles.

“Again.”

The word was punctuated by a yank on Sirius’ hips paired with a thrust that sparked fireworks in his eyes. “Remus!” he almost shouted, half in shock.

“Atta boy.” Strong arms wound around his abdomen, pulling him impossibly closer to Remus’ front as he rocked in and out and stole Sirius’ breath from his lungs. Feather-soft lips traced from one shoulder to the middle of his back, leaving open-mouthed kisses in their wake that were cold against the flames in Sirius’ gut. His arms were already shaking.

“Remus,” he begged, though he didn’t even know what to ask for. He was so hard it almost hurt—spreading his exhausted knees to try and sink down onto the mattress did absolutely nothing to help him. “Remus.”

“No,” Remus ordered when he tried to take one hand off the headboard and stroke himself to relieve the pressure. Sirius let out something akin to a sob despite the distilled joy and pleasure running riot through him. “Headboard. Now.”

“I am.”

Remus’ breath was hot against his ear. “Don’t get bratty with me.”

Sirius had never come untouched before, but he wondered if it felt like this. Unfortunately, he was still painfully close to the edge and Remus insisted on dragging over his sweet spot every—fucking—time, so he was stuck in a horribly fantastic limbo that bent every cell to Remus’ will.

It was exactly what he had been after from the second the front door locked behind them.

“Come on, baby.” Remus made a low sound in his throat as Sirius clamped down around him at the nickname and upped his pace by a degree. “Come on, you can do it.”

“Quoi—what d’you want?” Sirius asked, dropping his chin to his chest with a moan.

Fingers wound into his hair and pulled his head up again, gentle but unyielding. There was never any pain when Remus was in charge, only the feeling of being entirely encompassed. It didn’t matter what position they were in—Sirius could be on the bottom, top, sideways, anywhere, and still feel cared for in every aspect.

“Fucking love you,” he mumbled, voice breaking as Remus’ hand slid through his hair to trail along his neck and wind around his chest.

He could feel the smile pressing into his shoulder blade as Remus left a mark there between world-shattering rolls of his hips. “Love you, too. You know you can come whenever, right?”

“Touch me.”

“Tell me three things and I will,” Remus all but purred into the arch of his neck. Sirius nodded frantically. “What color was I wearing today?”

“Blue,” he managed through clumsy lips. “Dark blue, ‘s perfect on you, oh.”

“Two: how many times have I worn that suit?”

Sirius stifled a moan in the crook of his elbow. “Once.”

“Last question.” Remus licked the salt from the crest of his shoulder and Sirius’ vision went for a moment; he gripped the headboard like it was his only anchor on earth. “Who is the only person in the world I will ever love like this?”

“Oh, fuck, me.”

A palm, broad and callused, wrapped around his shaft and gathered the precome that had been dripping onto the sheets for a glide so smooth Sirius thought he was dreaming. Then the world caught up to him at light speed and he was gone, tumbling over the edge with a shout and throwing his weight forward while Remus guided him through every ripple down his back as he reached his own peak.

Crack—crunch.

Sirius yelped as his knuckles hit the wall, pulling back on instinct despite the fact that he had nowhere to go but down. Remus cursed into his shoulder and they hit the pillows in a mess of limbs and sweat; Sirius pulled his hands to his chest as the smarting pain began to fade. “Ow,” he said, bewildered and pitiful.

“Oh, oh, oh.” Remus pulled out with a slight wince and carefully took his hands, pressing kisses over the reddened skin before horror overtook his face. “Did I—was that sound your hands?”

“No,” Sirius said quickly, kissing his flushed cheek. “It wasn’t me. I think…”

Remus blinked at him. “Did we…”

“That was the headboard.” A smile tugged the edges of his mouth until Sirius gave in and began to laugh, shifting back onto his stomach for a proper look. Sure enough, the wooden board at the top of their bed was both sideways and several inches further down the wall than it had been when they started their venture.

“Oh my god,” Remus spluttered, still laughing as he tried to pull it back into the right spot. “Jesus, this thing is heavy.”

“We broke the bed,” Sirius snickered. It was so beyond unbelievable that he couldn’t help it. “After all this time, it finally gave in. Mon dieu. I can’t…I don’t even know where to start.”

“We broke the headboard,” Remus corrected with a grin. “Well, you broke it.”

“If you try to pin this all on me—”

“I had you pinned pretty well a minute—”

“Remus John Lupin—”

They dissolved into laughter, bordering on hysteria as they fell back onto the sheets. The headboard groaned at the impact, setting off a whole new round with no hope of letting them catch their breath.

“So,” Remus managed once his lungs were functioning again. He quirked an eyebrow at Sirius with a troublemaker’s smirk. “The suit?”

“The suit,” Sirius huffed, shaking his head. “I thought I was going to die.”

“Now you know how I feel all the friggin’ time.”

He sighed through his nose and stared upside-down at the cracked wood. “We’ll need to replace that.”

“Mhmm. And never tell the guys about it, ever.”

Sirius ran a hand down his face. “They’d bring it up at our funerals.”

“Is there a way to get just the headboard? Do we need to buy a whole new frame?”

His jaw crackled as he yawned, wrapping both arms around Remus to drag him over for a snuggle. “Those questions can wait until tomorrow. Or at least after a nap.”

“How about a shower and a nap?”

“Definitely a shower,” Sirius agreed, burying his face in the bend of Remus’ neck. “After a nap.”

“Come on, cuddlebug,” Remus groaned, giving him a halfhearted pull. “You hate the feeling of cum on your legs.”

“I just broke a plank of wood with my bare hands,” Sirius mumbled into his soft skin. “I can handle a few extra minutes of cuddles.”

[butwhatifidothis]

So. Took a look into that fic @nilsh13 is going through the comments of. Dunno if I’ll actually go through the entire thing - 300k words is certainly a lot of words to read through, especially with it still updating, but I’ve read through/am reading through longer ones - but I jumped to the latest chapter to get a feel for where the fic’s at now.

I’m not halfway through the chapter and I have Words To Say lmao, under the cut

This is going to be as serious a critique about the sections I’ve selected as possible - I want to be clear why I think what is being written is not of high quality, pointing out specifically what I have wrong with it. 

Here are some snippets of the fic (boldened), and following those snippets are my thoughts on them:

“My actions have caused immense turmoil, pitting friend against friend, mother against daughter, and brother against sister*,” muttered Edelgard, desperately trying to drive any hint of self-pity (emphasis mine) from her voice. “My best friend has been disowned by her family, Hubert and Ferdinand’s fathers are dead or imprisoned, and the woman I love is now deemed a heretic by the Church that once offered her shelter. The weight of my decisions seems to pull down all who are caught in the shadow of the Imperial crown.” The Flame Emperor gave Professor Hanneman a wan smile. “Whatever imagined slights you believe you have committed against me, they pale in comparison to the carnage my own words and deeds have unleashed.” 

""I made my choice, the only choice I could make, and dragged this continent down to hell with me. It makes me a poor ruler, and an even baser person, but that was the path I knew I must take."" 

“"It is funny you use the word ‘choice’, Miss Edelgard. When I resigned my title to study at Garreg Mach, I lost marriage prospects, became penniless outside of a small stipend…I even renounced the opportunity to have a family.” Hanneman smiled, his whole body suffused with melancholy. “Really, how could I dare to dream of bringing a daughter into a world this senseless and cruel, knowing that someday, she too, could be hurt in such a way? I…I would not survive it.” The man’s body shook. “I sacrificed those things, things I desperately wanted, because the chance to allow my sister to rest in peace was more important. And I would make that choice again, despite all that it has cost me. You are much the same.”"

"“But your sacrifices were your own,” protested the Emperor of Adrestia. “Thousands bleed for the choices that I have made, and sacrifice themselves for the cause that I have placed before them. There is a profound difference-“"

"“We are both wise enough to know a painful truth,” said the scholar with a melancholy smile. “No matter how grave the sins, no matter how many innocents suffer…there will be countless individuals who will defend the law not because it is just, or righteous, but because it is the law. They will permit a hundred Abysses, and a thousand women to be raped, and a million dead children, as long as such actions do not disturb their order.” He placed a hand on Edelgard’s shoulder. “To stand against such moral rot, knowing that the world will despise and vilify you for it, is the truest sign of not only a just ruler, but a good woman.”"

"The academic’s words blazed with the passion of both a scholar and a man who had watched his world crumble to ash. A man who had been forced to live in the remnants of a life forever altered by the cruelty of both society and of humanity. And yet he had fought, the only way he could, to make the world better. It gave the Flame Emperor new resolve."

"“I…” He turned and looked away. “I believe in you, Miss Edelgard. When I see you, and your determination, your spirit, your bravery in choosing not what is easy, but what is right…it reminds me of her.” Fingers clenched around his locket. “I will fight for you, in the way I should have fought for my sister, long ago. My strength is meagre, and my courage more meagre still. However, all of it is yours.”" 

The author writes Edelgard as one trying to give pity onto herself for her actions, despite how negatively they affect her, due to the immense ramifications those actions have had on those both around her and those under her care. This is the appropriate response to someone who has done as morally dubious an action as starting and spearheading a war that has led to the deaths and suffering of countless innocent people, some of whom were undoubtedly already going through immense suffering without war compounding itself onto their already existing pain. She - rightfully - points as, as a negative towards herself, that she has forced thousands of people to sacrifice their lives, livelihoods, friends, family, homes, etc. in order to continue with her war. Edelgard's canonical self-justification - that she had no other choice to do this - is properly utilized, and further characterization is given to her when she herself recognizes that performing such horrendous actions on the people under her care makes her a poor ruler and terrible person. This is, in truth, a decent set-up for her to go onto a possible path of redemption or self-realization.

However, that progress is forcibly stopped and reverted by Hanneman justifying her actions and recontextualizing them in a morally good light. In fact, the entire story does this, as characters act wildly out of character in order for Edelgard to be seen as good in comparison to them. Focusing on the quoted lines, however, Hanneman relating him giving up nobility and going into momentary poverty - whether true to canon or not - to Edelgard's war actively paints her actions as something that she had a right to be making, which she does not, as they force others to make sacrifices for her cause. When she herself rightfully points this discrepancy out, Hanneman excuses her actions by pointing to another - supposed - source of turmoil and essentially saying "You are more right than x, therefore your y actions are not only better, but objectively good, and make you a good person." He says nothing of the inherent injustice of taking away the choice of the people to live as they want and fight for who they want as well as deliberately taking away any semblance of safety from them, and makes objective statements about Edelgard's moral righteousness despite her taking actions that would, by definition, make her moral righteousness a subjective matter at minimum.

Hanneman is projecting the image of his sister and his own personal sense of justice onto Edelgard, and thus sees her as just as much a victim of the war and society as everyone else. Edelgard is a young woman who has gone through trauma due to Crests, as was his sister, and he himself (in this story, though not within the quoted lines) wanted to beat the man who abused his sister to death, and so he sees Edelgard using violence as a means to achieve justice as not only not questionable, but morally good and brave, as he felt he was not brave enough to enact "justice" onto the man that caused his sister's death. Instead of this being settled, focused on, or even mentioned, despite its obvious nature due to deliberate connections Hanneman himself makes, it is used as a means to showcase that Hanneman is a, for lack of a better term, "expert" on what he is saying when speaking to Edelgard. He knows what it's like to want to force change, he has by-proxy experienced the apparent injustice of the Church - not human society, not his family's decision to allow his sister to be married off, not the man who caused her death's decision to discard her, but strictly the Church and only the Church - and so he can "rightfully" justify and excuse Edelgard's morally questionable actions and paint them in a solely positive light, with no nuance or gray whatsoever.

Edelgard, in the first quote, attempts to say her actions without a tone of self-pity, and yet the narrative itself pities Edelgard. She should be allowed to feel bad about her actions - not because they are causing unfathomable suffering on people who were underserving, but because they’re just hard decisions that she was good and brave to make and maybe she can feel a little bad for herself for making them. She shouldn't feel responsible for choosing to start the war - in fact, did she really have a choice, or did everyone else in society force her to? She shouldn't question whether she's a good person or not, because she simply is - no debate, no question. She is - “justly” - standing up against "moral rot"; that she does so with even more moral rot is irrelevant, because, according to the story, it is not as rotten as that she's up against, therefore it is no longer rotten in the first place. War has been completely justified, as it is now not the last resort of desperation that could only ever be morally grey at its absolute best, but an objectively morally white decision of an objectively morally white person who is facing an objectively morally black opponent.

The actions of other characters attempt to paint Edelgard as someone closer to the former, but I will - maybe - eventually go over how those characters are extremely mischaracterized in order to prop Edelgard as their moral superior. 

[astaroth1357]

Unpacking the Angel Event (Through My Own Perspective)

Okay so uh… this was a very uncomfortable seat the Devs have offered us today and like all things that give me moral uncomfiness, I HAVE to analyze it. Blame the ethics classes. A full disclaimer, this is not spoiler-free and is pretty much entirely just me unpacking my own feelings here. What may bother or not bother me could really affect you and there is nothing wrong with that. You are entitled to your own perspective. This is just me trying to walk through all the stuff in this event that just… rubbed me the wrong way. So let's get to it.

The Costumes

So. Let's start at the beginning. Diavolo apparently had the bright idea to put everybody in magical costumes of their angel forms (or something like it in Satan's case). This is… problematic.

The reason the brothers lost their angel forms was because they fell after the Celestial War… who's greatest causality (in their eyes) was their sister, Lilith. So one could imagine that their memories as angels aren't particularly happy ones… By this point in the "continuity" (this is Post-Attic, more on that later), they would have known that Lilith didn't actually die which may soften something like this a little. I dunno, I'm not one of them and trauma is uniquely personal to the individual, but the bigger issue is that Diavolo thought this was a good idea to start with to which I say! - I'm not at all surprised by that. Hear me out.

Diavolo is heavily implied to have had a huge ass crush on Angel Lucifer. He's also uh… probably a little sheltered (as sheltered as the royalty of Hell can be) and probably not used to think of his subjects' feelings on the things he does before he just does them. This is fairly evident in other events where he'll order the brothers to do XYZ task even if they want no part in it. It doesn't surprise me at all that Diavolo would want to see them (Lucifer) as angels again and not take into account how that could affect them. I don't think that'd be malice on his part, just shortsightedness, and he likely would have apologized if any of the brothers expressed an emotional problem with it to him directly.

Do they have problems? Yes. But since the event kind of wipes them of their true selves, that's better discussed elsewhere. Moving on.

The Bangles 

Holy fuck, how do we even approach this? So Simeon, in conjunction with Michael (probably, at this point I have to wonder if he's telling the truth about this) gives the brothers jewelry, presumably to wear to the party, that would… I'm not even sure. Curb their impulses? Force them to be mannered? The important thing is he did not tell them about that little detail before they put the bangles on…

This is… also problematic. First, we can try to establish Simeon's intentions versus what actually happened: 

The bangles were (likely) intended to be removable. It was the mixing of the magic that locked them in place so we can assume he didn't mean this to be a permanent change.

The magic on the bangles was probably amplified by the angel costumes. What this means is though we can assume that Simeon never intended them to become quite so… different, we'll never know just how much influence he was actually trying to put on them. It could have been anything from suppressing their sins to full blown force you to say please/thank you. We'll just never get to know now… 

I won't be the first person to liken this to mind control (nor the last) because… that's kind of how it turned out. Even worse still, it would have been completely involuntary on the brothers' part. Simeon DID NOT tell them what the bangles were going to do. Now, he claims later that he would have eventually, but we don't get to know when that would have been. I presume at some time after the party, because like. These are our boys. They're not going to consent to wearing something like that, they're just not.

This poses all kinds of questions and problems ranging from issues of consent to anatomy and even the worth of good deeds done out of obligation vs. free will and… I mean quite literally when I say Jesus Christ, Simeon, what the hell?!

I could write a completely different post debating whether or not what Simeon did actually had any moral merit but I won't because it'd be very dry and boring. I think the most interesting thing to take away here is that Simeon thought it was okay to do like, at all, and with approval from Michael (maybe) no less… That reflects something on angel society that I doubt will get explored but I need to ponder farther…

This section is all kinds of sticky so we need to move on.

The Development(?)

First off, to new players, don't worry this probably isn't canon (at least to the main story continuity). The Brothers should be back to normal in the new chapters and this won't have a long term effect on anything (aside from maybe a tie in to the next event ala Beach event-> Games). That's how Obey Me has always treated their events it seems and I sure hope they stick to it now. But, these are still the same characters going through a unique situation and that can offer some insight so… Let's discuss.

I mentioned earlier that the brothers had problems with this… Unfortunately, I think we only get to see Lucifer and Satan's thoughts in any detail because everyone else is too far gone by the time we reach them… Lucifer can pretty much be summed up as troubled and unhappy because (you know) not a lot of great memories as an angel. I presume that his wounded pride after the fall may also contribute. 

Satan is… more complex. I’m honestly more bothered by his change than anyone else’s because even he expresses how weird this is for him... (We get confirmation that he never in fact had an angel form, btw). Poor baby is going through a full on identity crisis and there’s a certain part of his mind that he’s not even allowed to use right now... Anger. The Avatar of Wrath, born from Wrath, can’t get angry and… Something about that just bothers me at a deeper level, not even I can express properly…

Everyone else is too far gone once we reach them. Their personalities are completely different and they can’t even acknowledge that’s the case. They think that they’ve turned a new leaf but we know that’s not the reality, that leaf was very much turned for them and it doesn’t make anything feel any better…

This may be my own opinion, but part of me thinks that this portion (and only this portion right here) was actually what the Devs were going for. They wanted us to be uncomfortable by all of this for like, story reasons. It’s a narrative trick. Think of the phrase “You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.” I think they were trying to use the absence of the brothers’ usual flaws and traits as a weird way of celebrating them. Kind of like saying, “We could have given you guys these perfect brothers, but they’re not perfect and we know that’s why you like them. Look at these perfect guys, doesn’t it feel wrong?” The answer is, yes. It does feel wrong. And under other circumstances, it would be affirming like they’d be intending, “I don’t want this emotionally-open non-otaku, give me Levi dammit!” But when you add this intended discomfort with the already sketchy way we got here it just makes it all the worse… 

And absolutely NONE of this is helped by...

The… End?

I think the thing I hate about this event the most (actually legitimately hate) is how it ends. In that it doesn’t. It kind of just… abruptly stops right after Lucifer starts coming to himself again. Though I suspect that’s because they’re putting incentive into getting the event cards, this in NO WAY does the narrative any favors.

Most people are not going to get those cards. Even with Lonely Devil as an option, it’s a huge time/resource commitment to get there. Because of that, the majority of people are not going to get to see the aftermath of what happened. We don’t get to see how the brothers feel about what happened. We don’t get to see if they do, in fact, come to and if they have any takeaways from the experience or if they’re utterly disgusted by it. The player character doesn’t even get the option to comfort them after something that was probably terribly traumatic. It. Just. Ends.

What that means is all of that discomfort that we had just lingers… There’s no resolution or pay off. It just… stays… This is the worst possible thing they could have done. If you want your audience to feel uncomfortable, that’s one thing, but unless you’re telling like, a psychological thriller you gotta settle them back down again! Deep moral conflict is not a turn on!!!

Personally, I don’t hate that this thing exists. I don’t. The part of me that majored in Philosophy loves analyzing media like this so I can’t say that I didn’t get anything out of it. I don’t think all media should play it safe, it’s okay to leave the audience with no good answers or a feeling of unease, but you really got to be self-aware of it. The biggest flaw of this event, in my opinion, is that it rarely comes across as self-aware of its own horror. You get a very brief glimpse of it from Solomon when he comments on how creepy things are, but Simeon’s happy. Diavolo’s happy. And though he’s a little uneasy, Luke’s pretty content, too. Add that to the abrupt ending and we never get to know if ANY of them realize how awful of a thing this was to do to the brothers... It makes it all come off as an endorsement of mind controlling your friends into better people and (to me) that feels really, really wrong.

So in conclusion… I dunno. If the next event isn’t something along the lines of “Angelic Demons Part 2: Fixing What We Fucked Up!” then I think they really botched this one guys… I hope somebody was taking notes.

[shihalyfie]

Hi :) If it's not too much trouble, could you please share your take on why they'd continue the Adventure brand after tri. was such a flop? (and a tangent: what does "dark history" even mean?). We got Kizuna, the reboot, and a 02 movie. Logically, it doesn't really make sense they'd keep investing in it.

This is a thorny topic, and I'd like to reiterate that although I've ended up making more posts related to this series and the discourse surrounding it recently (probably because it's even more on the mind now that another movie is on the horizon and a lot of people are apprehensive for various reasons), I do not want this blog to be making a brand out of being critical of this series. I’m writing this here and in public because I figured that there is a certain degree I need to clarify what I mean about audience reception/climate and how it might impact current or future works, and I’m admittedly also more than a little upset that I occasionally see Western fanbase criticisms of the series getting dismissed by people claiming that the only people mad about it are dramamongering or ignorant Westerners (which could not be further from the truth). However, this is mainly to address this and to answer your question, and is not intended to try and change anyone's existing opinion or impression of the series as much as it's me trying to explain (from my own personal reading of the situation) what practically went down with critical reception in real life; no more, no less.

The short summary of the matter is:

The series was a moderate financial success (albeit with some caveats; see the long version for details) and definitely outstripped a lot of prior attempts to revive the franchise;

However, the overall Japanese fanbase-side critical backlash from tri. was extremely and viciously negative to the point where even acknowledging the series too much could easily result in controversy;

Kizuna’s production and the PR surrounding it very obviously have this in mind with a lot of apparent “damage control” elements.

The long version is below.

Note that while I try to be diligent about citing my sources so people understand that I’m not just making things up wholesale, I’m deliberately refraining from linking certain things here this time, both because some of the things mentioned have some pretty crude things written there -- it’s not something I feel comfortable directing people to regardless of what language it’s in -- and because I don’t want to recklessly link things on social media and cause anyone to go after or harass the people involved. For the links that have been provided, please still be warned that some of them don’t really link to particularly pleasant things.

I am not writing the following information to suggest that anyone should agree or disagree with the sentiments being described. I know people tend to take "a lot of people like/hate this" as a signal of implication "it is correct to like/hate this" when it's not (and I especially dislike the idea of implying that Japanese fanbase opinions are the only correct ones). There's a reason I focus on "critical reception being this way" (because it influences marketing decisions and future direction) rather than how much this should impact one's personal feelings; this is coming from myself as someone who is shamelessly proud of liking many things that had bad critical reception, were financial failures, or are disliked by many. As I point out near the end, the situation also does seem to be changing for the better in more recent years as well.

Also, to be clear, I'm a single person who's observing everything best I can from my end, I have no affiliations with staff nor do I claim to, and as much as I'm capable of reading Japanese and thus reading a lot of people's impressions, I'm ultimately still another “outsider” looking in. These are my impressions from my observation of fan communal spaces, following artists and reading comments on social media and art posting websites, and results from social media searches. In the end, I know as much as anyone else about what happened, so this is just my two cents based on all of my personal observations.

A fanbase is a fanbase regardless of what part of the world you're from. There are people who love it and are shameless about saying so. There are people who have mixed feelings or at least aren't on extreme ends of the spectrum (as always, the loudest ones are always the most visible, but it's not always easy to claim they're the predominant percentage of the fanbase). That happens everywhere, and I still find that on every end I've seen. However, if I'm talking about my impressions and everything I’ve encountered, I will say that the overall Japanese reaction to tri. comes off as significantly more violently negative on average than the Western one, which is unusual because often it's the other way around. (I personally feel less so because the opinions are that fundamentally different and more so because we're honestly kind of loud and in-your-face people; otherwise, humans are mostly the same everywhere, and more often than not people feel roughly the same about everything if they’re given the same information to work with.)

This is not something I can say lightly, and thus would not say if I didn’t really get this impression, but...we're talking "casually looking up movie reviews for Kizuna have an overwhelming amount of people casually citing any acknowledgment of tri. elements as a negative element", or the fact that even communal wikis for "general" fandoms like Pixiv and Aniwota don't tend to hold back in being vicious about it (as of this writing, Pixiv's wiki refuses to consider it in the same timeline as Adventure, accusing it of being "a series that claims to be a sequel set three years after 02 but is in fact something different"). Again, there are people who openly enjoy it and actively advocate for it (and Pixiv even warns people to not lord over others about it condescendingly because of the fact that such people do exist), and this is also more of a reflection of “the hardcore fanbase on the Internet” and not necessarily the mainstream (after all, there are quite a few other Digimon works where the critical reception varies very heavily between the two). Nevertheless, the take-home is that the reputation is overall negative among the Internet fanbase to the point that this is the kind of sentiment you run into without trying all that hard.

I think, generally speaking, if we're just talking about why a lot of people resent the series, the reasons aren't that different from those on the Western side. However, that issue of "dark history" (黒歴史): there's a certain degree of demand from the more violently negative side of the fanbase that's, in a sense, asking official to treat it as a disgrace and never acknowledge it ever again, hence why Kizuna doing so much as borrowing things from it rather than rejecting it outright is still sometimes treated like it’s committing a sin. So it's somewhat close in spirit to a retcon movement, which is unusual because no other Digimon series gets this (not even 02; that was definitely a thing on the Western end, but while I'm sure there are people who hate it that much on their end too, I've never really seen it gain enough momentum for anyone to take it seriously). If anyone ever tells you that Japanese fanbases are nice to everything, either they don't know Japanese, are being willfully ignorant, or are lying to you, because there is such thing as drama in those areas, and in my experience, I've seen things get really nasty when things are sufficiently pushed over the edge, and if a fanbase wants to have drama, it will have drama. This happens to be one of those times.

(If you think this is extreme, please know that I also think so too, so I hope you really understand that me describing this sentiment does not mean I am personally endorsing it. Also, let me reiterate that the loudest section of the fanbase is not necessarily the predominant one; after all, as someone who’s been watching reactions to 02 over the years, I myself can attest that its hatedom has historically made it sound more despised than it actually is in practice.)

My impression is that the primary core sentiment behind why the series so much as existing and being validated is considered such an offense (rather than, say, just saying "wow, that writing was bad" and moving on) is heavily tied to the release circumstances the series came out in during 2015-2018, and the idea that "this series disrespected Adventure, and also disrespected the fanbase.” (I mean, really, regardless of what part of the world you’re from, sequels and adaptations tend to be held to a higher bar of expectation than standalone works, because they’re expected to do them justice.) A list of complaints I’ve come across a lot while reading through the above:

The Japanese fanbase is pretty good at recordkeeping when it comes to Adventure universe lore, partially because they got a lot of extra materials that weren’t localized, but also partially because adherence to it seems to generally be more Serious Business to them than it is elsewhere. For instance, “according to Adventure episode 45, ‘the one who wishes for stability’ (Homeostasis) only started choosing children in 1995, and therefore there can be no Chosen Children before 1995” is taken with such gravity that this, not anything to do with evolutions or timeline issues, is the main reason Hurricane Touchdown’s canonicity was disputed in that arena (because Wallace implies that he met his partners before 1995). It’s a huge reason the question of Kizuna also potentially not complying to lore came to the forefront, because tri. so flagrantly contradicts it so much that this issue became very high on the evaluation checklist. In practice, Kizuna actually goes against Adventure/02 very little, so the reason tri. in particular comes under fire for this is that it does it so blatantly there were theories as early as Part 1 that this series must take place in a parallel universe or something, and as soon as it became clear it didn’t, the resulting sentiment was “wow, you seriously thought nobody would notice?” (thus “disrespecting the audience”).

A lot of the characterization incongruity is extremely obvious when you’re following only the Japanese version, partially because it didn’t have certain localization-induced characterization changes (you are significantly less likely to notice a disparity with Mimi if you’re working off the American English dub where they actually did make her likely to step on others’ toes and be condescending, whereas in Japanese the disparity is jarring and hard to miss) and partially due to some things lost in translation (Mimi improperly using rough language on elders is much easier to spot as incongruity if you’re familiar with the language). Because it’s so difficult to miss, and honestly feels like a lot of strange writing decisions you’d make only if you really had no concept of what on earth happened in the original series, it only contributes to the idea that they were handling Adventure carelessly and disrespectfully without paying attention to what the series was even about (that, or worse, they didn’t care).

02 is generally well-liked there! It’s controversial no matter where you go, but as I said earlier, there was no way a retcon movement would have ever been taken seriously, and the predominant sentiment is that, even if you’re not a huge fan of it, its place in canon (even the epilogue) should be respected. So not only flagrantly going against 02-introduced lore but also doing that to a certain quartet is seen as malicious, and you don’t have as much of the converse discourse celebrating murdering the 02 quartet (yeah, that’s a thing that happened here) or accusing people with complaints of “just being salty because they like 02″ as nearly as much of a factor; I did see it happen, or at least dismissals akin to “well it’s Adventure targeted anyway,” but they were much less frequent. The issue with the 02 quartet is usually the first major one brought up, and there’s a lot of complaints even among those who don’t care for 02 as much that the way they went about it was inhumane and hypocritical, especially when killing Imperialdramon is fine but killing Meicoomon is a sin. Also, again, “you seriously think nobody will see a problem with how this doesn’t make sense?”

I think even those who are fans of the series generally agree with this, but part of the reason the actual real-life time this series went on is an important factor is that the PR campaign for this series was godawful. Nine months of clicking on an egg on a website pretending like audience participation meant something when in actuality it was blatantly obvious it was just a smokescreen to reveal info whenever they were ready? This resulted in a chain effect where even more innocuous/defensible things were viewed in a suspicious or negative light (for instance, "the scam of selling the fake Kaiser's goggles knowing Ken fans would buy it only to reveal that it's not him anyway"), and a bunch of progressively out-of-touch-with-the-fanbase statements and poor choices led to more sentiment “yeah, you’re just insulting the fanbase at this point,” and a general erosion of trust in official overall.

On top of that, the choice of release format to have it spread out as six movies over three years seems to have exacerbated the backlash to get much worse than it would have been otherwise, especially since one of the major grievances with the series is that how it basically strung people along, building up more and more unanswered questions before it became apparent it was never going to answer them anyway. So when you’re getting that frustrated feeling over three whole years, it feels like three years of prolonged torture, and it becomes much harder to forgive for the fallout than if you’d just marathoned the entire thing at once.

For those who are really into the Digimon (i.e. species) lore and null canon, while I’m not particularly well-versed in that side of the fanbase, it seems tri. fell afoul of them too for having inaccurately portrayed (at one point, mislabeled) special attacks and poorly done battle choreography, along with the treatment of Digimon in general (infantilized Digimon characterization, general lack of Digimon characters in general, very flippant treatment of the Digital World in Parts 3-5). If you say you’re going to “reboot” the Digital World and not address the entire can of worms that comes with basically damaging an entire civilization of Digimon, as you can imagine, a lot of people who actually really care about that are going to be pissed, and the emerging sentiment is “you’re billing this as a Digimon work, but you don’t even care about the monsters that make up this franchise.”

The director does not have a very positive reputation among those who know his work (beyond just Digimon), and in general there was a lot of suspicion around the fact they decided to get a guy whose career has primarily been built on harem and fanservice anime to direct a sequel to a children’s series. Add to that a ton of increasingly unnerving statements about how he intended to make the series “mature” in comparison to its predecessor (basically, an implication that Adventure and 02 were happy happy joy series where nothing bad ever happened) and descriptions of Adventure that implied a very, very poor grasp of anything that happened in it: inaccurate descriptions of their characters, poor awareness of 02′s place in the narrative, outright saying in Febri that he saw the Digimon as like perpetual kindergartners even after evolving, and generally such a flippant attitude that it drove home the idea that the director of an Adventure sequel had no respect for Adventure, made this series just to maliciously dunk on it for supposedly being immature, and has such a poor grasp of what it even was that it’s possible he may not have seen it in the first place (or if he did, clearly skimmed it to the extent he understood it poorly to pretty disturbing levels). As of this writing, Aniwota Wiki directly cites him as a major reason for the backlash.

In general, consensus seems to be that the most positively received aspect of the series (story-wise) was Part 3 (mostly its ending, but some are more amenable to the Takeru and Patamon drama), and the worst vitriol goes towards Parts 2 (for the blatantly contradictory portrayal of Mimi and Jou and the hypocritical killing of Imperialdramon) and 4 (basically the “point of no return” where even more optimistic people started getting really turned off). This is also what I suspect is behind the numbers on the infamous DigiPoll (although the percentage difference is admittedly low enough to fall within margin of error). However, there was suspicion about the series even from Part 1, with one prominent fanartist openly stating that it felt more like meeting a ton of new people than it did reuniting with anyone they knew.

So with all of that on the table: how did this affect official? The thing is that when I say “violently negative”, I mean that also entailed spamming official with said violently negative social media comments. While this is speculation, I am fairly certain that official must have realized how bad this was getting as early as between Parts 4 and 5, because that’s where a lot of really suspicious things started happening behind the scenes; while I imagine the anime series itself was now too far in to really do anything about it, one of the most visible producers suddenly vanished from the producer lineup and was replaced by Kinoshita Yousuke, who ended up being the only member of tri. staff shared with Kizuna (and, in general, the fact that not a single member of staff otherwise was retained kind of says a lot). Once the series ended in 2018 and the franchise slowly moved into Kizuna-related things, you might notice that tri.-branded merch production almost entirely screeched to a halt and official has been very touchy about acknowledging it too deeply; it’s not that they don’t, but it’s kind of an awfully low amount for what you’d think would be warranted for a series that’s supposed to be a full entry in the big-name Adventure brand.

The reason is, simply, that if they do acknowledge it too much, people will get pissed at them. That’s presumably why the tri. stage play (made during that interim period between Parts 4 and 5 and even branded with the title itself) and Kizuna are really hesitant to be too aggressive about tri. references; it’s not necessarily that official wants to blot it out of history like the most extreme opinions would like them to, but even being too enthusiastic about affirming it will also get them backlash, especially if the things they affirm are contradictory to Adventure or 02. And considering even the small references they did put in still got them criticism for “affirming” tri. too much, you can easily see that the backlash would have been much harder if they’d attempted more than that; staying as close as possible to Adventure and 02 and trying to deal with tri. elements only when they’re comparatively inoffensive was pretty much the “safe” thing to do in this scenario (especially since fully denying tri. would most certainly upset the people who did like the series, and if you have to ask me, I personally think this would have been a pretty crude thing to have done right after the series had just finished). Even interviews taken after the fact often involve quickly disclaiming involvement with the series, or, if they have to bring up something about it, discussing the less controversial aspects like the art (while the character designs were still controversial, it’s at least at the point where some fanartists will still be willing to make use of them even if they dislike the series, albeit often with prominent disclaimers) or the more well-received parts of Part 3; Kizuna was very conspicuously marketed as a standalone movie, even if it shared the point of “the Adventure kids, but older” that tri. had.

(Incidentally, the tri. stage play has generally been met with a good reputation and was received well even among people who were upset with the anime, so it was well-understood that they had no relation. In fact, said stage play is probably even better received than Kizuna, although that’s not too surprising given the controversial territory Kizuna goes into, making the stage play feel very play-it-safe in comparison.)

So, if we’re going to talk about Kizuna in particular: tri. was, to some degree, a moderate financial success, in the sense that it made quite a bit of money and did a lot to raise awareness of the Digimon brand still continuing...however, if you actually look at the sales figures for tri., they go down every movie; part of it was probably because of the progressively higher “hurdle” to get into a series midway, but consider that Gundam Unicorn (a movie series which tri.’s format was often compared to) had its sales go up per movie thanks to word of mouth and hype. So while tri. does seem to have gotten enough money to help sustain the franchise at first, the trade-off was an extremely livid fanbase that had shattered faith in the brand and in official, and so while continuing the Adventure brand might still be profitable, there was no way they were going to get away with continuing to do this lest everything eventually crash and burn.

Hence, if you look at the way Kizuna was produced and advertised, you can see a lot of it is blatantly geared at addressing a lot of the woes aimed at tri.: instead of the staff that had virtually no affiliation with Toei, the main members of staff announced were either from the original series (Seki and Yamatoya) or openly childhood fans, the 02 quartet was made into a huge advertising point as a dramatic DigiFes reveal (and character profies that tie into the 02 epilogue careers prominently part of the advertising from day one), and they even seemed to acknowledge the burnout on the original Adventure group by advertising it so heavily as “the last adventure of Taichi and his friends”, so you can see that there’s a huge sentiment of “damage control” with it. How successful that was...is debatable, since opinions have been all over the board; quite a few people were naturally so livid at what happened with tri. that Kizuna was just opening more of the wound, but there were also people who liked it much better and were willing to acknowledge it (with varying levels of enthusiasm, some simply saying “it was thankfully okay,” and some outright loving it), and there was a general sentiment even among those who disliked both that they at least understood what Kizuna was going for and that it didn’t feel as inherently disrespectful. (Of course, there are people who loved tri. and hated Kizuna, and there are people who loved both, too.)

Moreover, Kizuna actually has a slightly different target audience from tri.; there’s a pretty big difference between an OVA and a theatrical movie, and, quite simply, Kizuna was made under the assumption that a lot of people watching it may not have even seen tri. in the first place. An average of 11% of the country watched Adventure and 02, but the number of people who watched tri. is much smaller, in part due to the fact that its “theater” screenings were only very limited screenings compared to Kizuna being shown in theaters in Japan and worldwide, and in part due to the fact that watching six parts over three years is a pretty huge commitment for someone who may barely remember Digimon as anything beyond a show they watched as a kid, and may be liable to just fall off partway through because they simply just forgot. (Which also probably wasn’t helped by the infamously negative reputation, something that definitely wouldn’t encourage someone already on the fence.) And that’s yet another reason Kizuna couldn’t make too many concrete tri. references; being a theatrical movie, it needs to have as wide appeal as possible, and couldn’t risk locking out an audience that had a very high likelihood of not having seen it, much less to the end -- it may have somewhat been informed by tri.’s moderate financial success and precedent, but it ultimately was made for the original Adventure and 02 audience more than anything else.

I would say that, generally, while Kizuna is “controversial” for sure, reception towards the movie seems to be more positive than negative, it won over a large chunk of people who were burned out by tri., and it clearly seems to have been received well enough that it’s still being cashed in on a year after its release. The sheer existence of the upcoming 02-based movie is also probably a sign of Kizuna’s financial and critical success; Kinoshita confirmed at DigiFes 2020 that nothing was in production at the time, and stated shortly after the movie’s announcement that work on it had just started. So the decision to make it seems to have been made after eyeing Kizuna’s reception, and, moreover, the movie was initially advertised from the get-go with Kizuna’s director and writer (Taguchi and Yamatoya), meaning those two have curried enough goodwill from the fanbase that this can be used to promote the movie. (If not, you would think that having and advertising Seki would be the bigger priority.) While this is my own sentiment, I am personally doubtful official would have even considered 02 something remotely profitable enough on its own to cash in on if it weren’t for this entire sequence of events of 02′s snubbing in tri. revealing how much of a fanbase it had (especially with the sheer degree of “suspicious overcompensation” Kizuna had with its copious use of the 02 quartet and it tagging a remix of the first 02 ED on the Hanareteitemo single, followed by the drama CD and character songs), followed by Kizuna having success in advertising with them so heavily. Given all of the events between 2015 and now, it’s a bit ironic to see that 02 has now become basically the last resort to be able to continue anything in the original Adventure universe without getting too many people upset at them about it.

The bright side coming out of all of this is that, while it’s still a bit early to tell, now that we’re three years out from tri. finishing up and with Kizuna in the game, it seems there’s a possibility for things improving around tri.’s reception as well. Since a lot of the worst heated points of backlash against it have a very “you had to have been there” element (related to the PR, release schedule, and staff comments), those coming in “late” don’t have as much reason to be as pissed at it; I’ve seen at least one case of a fanartist getting back into the franchise because of Kizuna hype, watching tri. to catch up, casually criticizing it on Twitter, and moving on with their life, presumably because marathoning the whole thing being generally aware of what’ll happen in it and knowing Kizuna is coming after anyway gives you a lot less reason to be angry to the point of holding an outright grudge. Basically, even if you don’t like it, it’s much easier to actually go “yeah, didn’t like that,” not worry too much about it, and move on. Likewise, I personally get the impression that official has been starting to get a little more confident about digging up elements related to it. Unfortunately, a fairly recent tweet promoting the series getting put on streaming services still got quite a few angry comments implying that they should be deleting the scourge from the Internet instead, so there’s still a long way to go, but hopefully the following years will see things improve further...

In regards to the reboot, I -- and I think a lot of people will agree with me -- have a bit of a hard time reading what exact audience it’s trying to appeal to; we have a few hints from official that they want parents to watch it with their children, and that it may have been a necessary ploy in order to secure their original timeslot. So basically, the Adventure branding gets parents who grew up with the original series to be interested in it and to show it to their kids, and convinces Fuji TV that it might be profitable. But as most people have figured by now, the series has a completely different philosophy and writing style -- I mean, the interview itself functionally admits it’s here to be more action-oriented and to have its own identity -- and the target audience is more the kids than anything else. As for the Internet fanbase of veterans, most people have been critical of its character writing and pacing, but other than a few stragglers who are still really pissed, it hasn’t attracted all that much vitriol, probably because in the end it’s an alternate universe, it doesn’t have any obligation to adhere to anything from the original even if it uses the branding, and it’s clearly still doing its job of being a kids’ show for kids who never saw the original series nor 02, so an attempt to call it “disrespectful” to the original doesn’t have much to stand on. A good number of people who are bored of it decided it wasn’t interesting to them and dropped it without incident, while other people are generally just enjoying it for being fun, and the huge amount of Digimon franchise fanservice with underrepresented Digimon and high fidelity to null canon lore is really pleasing the side of the fanbase that’s into that (I mean, Digimon World Golemon is really deep in), so at the very least, there’s not a lot to be super-upset about.

[priyastandon]

Lead a life to make the ‘Father of fathers’ proud

As a child, I thought that God was someone who lives in Heaven, which was a place beyond the seventh sky. Having studied in a missionary school, I remember being told about a place called the ‘Kingdom of God’. Our morning prayer in school started with the words, “Our father in Heaven …” Suffice it to say that God was a father figure who lived in Heaven. If we did not commit any sin, we would join Him there on the conclusion of our Earthly sojourn.

(This is a picture of my parents Mrs Meera Punchhi and Justice MM punchhi with the Father of fathers, Bhagwan Sri Sathya Sai Baba.) 

From the time we become aware that Divinity is immanent within us, life becomes a beautiful journey of looking within. Most of us grow up with the fear of God. As we get on in years, if we acquire a spiritual bent of mind, we understand that there is no need to be God-fearing. All that is required is to be God-loving. Love is the most potent force in the world. It is more powerful than hatred, anger, jealousy etc. ‘Love’ here does not refer to the physical love between a man and a woman. That can at best be termed as attraction or even lust. Love is all about giving, forgiving, caring, sympathising … love that focusses on the other person, as opposed to lust which is about self-gratification, is what Divine love is.

Divinity is present in every living organism in the ‘waking state’. At the same time Divinity is present in every non-living thing in the ‘sleeping state’. One thing is for sure; it is definitely present in every atom of the universe.

God’s plan is immaculate; each one takes his own time to comprehend it.

We often hear people say, ‘God is nowhere’. If only we pause to comprehend this, we can realise that, ‘God is now here!’ Over the years, I grew to realize that God is here and now. He resides in each one of us. He is present in each form as the formless essence. He is the power by virtue of which we are alive. The forms in which we worship Him just make it easy for us to connect and visualise.

God can be thought of as a father, mother, friend, guide, Guru … I have always looked up to Him as a father. With a father, one can share everything; ask for anything, confide, seek guidance, rant like a child and so much more … There is an old saying, “Sau daaru te ek gheo; Chaalee chache, ek peo!” Meaning thereby - What a hundred bottles of medicine or wine cannot do, can be done by desi ghee alone; what forty uncles put together cannot do for you, a father alone can do! That is the greatness of a father! That is the magnitude of a father’s presence in our lives. This proverb pertains to the physical father. How many times would this be multiplied for the Divine father?

A child would pray every night, “Dear God! I want to grow up, to be like my father.” The father would listen to the innocent prayer every day and think, ‘Am I as good as my child thinks I am? Oh God, make me such that I can be all that my child thinks I am!’ The prayer of the child made the father self-introspect and improve! As we pray to our Divine father, let us also emulate Him. God created man in His own likeness … let us live our lives to make our Divine father proud of us! Happy Father’s Day!

Well! If this write up strikes a chord with you, do leave a message for me in the comments section below ... I would be happy to hear from you. 

(This article was published in the HindustanTimes on 19.06.2022 on Father’s Day.)