#i don't think this is a spoiler really just something funny i noticed while playing

[luifaro]

one thing i appreciate about the sadnesses is how they're so polite. like if i'm talking to my friends they'll just stand there and wait instead of continuing to chase me. i know this probably wasn't intentional and is just a side effect of cutscenes but it's still so funny bc today we were yapping and this sadness was behind us right. when we left the convo it just ran in the opposite direction instead of chasing so it looked like it wanted to join the conversation but got too scared and ran off instead...

anyways sadness ocs when!!!

EDIT: googled it and YEEAHH ODILE coming in clutch they're actually the remnants of people defeated by the king so yeah this idea actually makes sense (kind of)

[nerdy-prude]

‼️SPOILERS FOR HATCHETFIELD LORE AHEAD ‼️

Let me introduce you to what I like to call The Lords in Black theory

Notice how in NPMD during The Summoning each of our remaining main characters are told something by a lord in black.

Blinky says: 'We've been watching you, Gracie. Someones been a naughty girl'

Tinky says: 'Oh boy! A Spankoffski! I'm gonna have the whole set in my toy box!'

Nibbly says: 'Stephanie, yum yum!'

Now, as we already know, Hannah is kinda like 'The chosen one' of the Hatchetfield universe. She plays a major part in BF, from the very begining she hates Wiggly. Wiggly on the other hand, is kinda like the leader of his brothers.

In Yellowjacket Hannah is fighting Pokey but she can't defeat her until Lex, a powerfull, MAJOR CHARACTER and her own sister shows up.

It seems as if all of the brothers are somehow connected to one of these major characters. All of these characters are important parts of the story and have shown to be powerful in some way. With Lex and Hannah their power is more clear since they have the gift, but think about it, we don't really know that many people who have had the Black book, even less good people who have had it.

But there is one very much good character who has had and used the Black book. Miss Holloway, everyones favorite witch lady who in every universe fights Wilbur Cross, the guy who has been described as the ultimate bad.

Now some of you might be thinking: "Okay, well that doesn't yet prove anything. There should be bigger evidence if they were actually connected. Their stories should be tied together" Well, funny you should say that! Lets take a deeper dive, shall we?

Wiggly-Hannah

Both are the 'leaders'with the most power. Hannah and Wiggly says to her: "We just keep running into each other, don't we Hannah"

Pokey-Lex

In Yellowjackect it was made very clear that Otho was incredibly powerfull and no one could defeat him. Lex did just that. Also, I am not trying to say any of the brothers are more powerfull than others (well, maybe expect Wiggly) but the thing is, we know that there is a world where Pokey wins. We know his powers. We also know Lex' powers. It would make sense that out off all of them Lex would be connected to her.

Tinky-Peter

Tinky hates Ted with a burning passion, that is why he trapped him. It makes sense that he would be after his brother too. Also kinda unrelated and doesn't prove much but it would be funny that when Peter says: "I have been waiting for what feels like five ducking years and I still haven't gotten my hot chocolate" would have more meaning than just a funny bit. Almost as if he could feel that in another universe five years agohe ordered a hot chocolate and never got it. Like he could sense TIME and SPACE differently?

Nibbly-Stephanie

Whose dad has had the Black book? Oh right, Stephs! And what did mayor Solomon Lauter say abou the black book again? Wasn't it something like: " ...It comes with a price, a terrible price" and "No! I am not touching that book ever again"?

And who has a major part in organaizing the Honey Queen festival? That's right, the mayor! Who has shown multiple rimes they will do anything to keep getting elected? Who has shown to be interested in power? Who has shown to be 'Hungry'?

What if he cast a spell and Nibbly wanted her daughter as a sacrafice? What if he then gave something else. Something that made him bury the book. It might have worked for a while. But Stephanies fate was already sealed. Nibbly still wanted to have Steph tho, he tought she'd be yummy.

Blinky-Grace

Ahh, Grace, Grace, Grace...

I have to admit, she was more of a mystery to me but lets SEE what we can FIND. (Laughs in Jigglypuff)

Grace is the perfect Christian girl. She never does anything wrong! But then she just snaps? She very quickly comes up with a plan on how to hide a body. Then at the end she goes after 'the souls of the pervs'. But to everyone around her she still looks like an innocent young girl. Makes you wonder what else she has hidden. Makes you wonder about the other alternative universes. Maybe Blinky was referring to many different Grace Chasities. He ment the many different things Grace has done bc of her faith and hidden from anyone elses eyes. Only problem for her is that you can't hide anthing from Blinky.

[electronickingdomfox]

"Demons" review

Novel from 1986 by J. M. Dillard.

It started promisingly, with a story about demonic possession, hints of "The Exorcist", and a sense of creeping horror. At Sarek's and Amanda's house, of all places. But I didn't like much the direction it took afterwards. The later sections are split between scenes in the Enterprise, where Kirk punches possessed people and locks them in closets, over and over again. And the (somewhat more interesting) plot of Spock, McCoy and Mary Sue, searching for a solution to the problem, where most of the adventure comes from McCoy being a constant damsel in distress. It doesn't help that he puts himself and the others in so much danger, just because of a really uncharacteristic and childish behavior on his part (though he kind of redeems himself at the end). The key to defeating the titular "demons" is also quite anticlimactic. And I feel that the plot of "Kirk vs. mutinous crew" was better done in previous novels, like "Mutiny on the Enterprise", with a more nuanced villain and satisfying resolution. There are some good scenes, though. In particular the final showdown at Sarek's house carries quite the emotional punch.

This is the second Star Trek novel by Dillard, and there are several things in common with the other one ("Mindshadow"). Sarek and Amanda also figure prominently, this time in the unusual role of enemies. And large sections of the story are set on Vulcan, including an appearance of the masters of Gol. Lieutenant Ingrid Tomson returns as well, with a greater protagonism in the story, helping Kirk to fight against the murderous crewmembers. As also happened with "Mindshadow", there's a Mary Sue stealing the spotlight and having a romance with McCoy (which has as much chemistry as inert matter). But while Dr. Saenz at least played a key role, here Dr. Anitra Lanter has no real business in the story, other than doing the things that Spock could perfectly do himself. The romance is also incredibly shoehorned in the middle of the story, as it comes from nowhere, and by later sections it has basically disappeared (and with this, I think there's been three McCoy romances in the TOS novels so far: all of them sucked, all of them reminded us that the woman was young enough to be his daughter, and all of them ultimately pinpointed just how gay he is for Spock). So yeah, I can't say I liked this Anitra character at all. And her personality traits don't quite mesh together: she's a brilliant scientist with a doctorate (in her early 20's), she has studied among Vulcans to control her telepathic abilities, she's a practical joker that pranks the Captain with her "haha! so funny!" jokes, she's a barroom brawler, she behaves like a child... I don't know, make up your mind!

As a side note, and even if I didn't like this novel all that much, it has a distinctive quality: Uhura kicks a possessed Kirk in the balls, and that's something that doesn't happen everyday.

Spoilers under the cut:

Some scientists have recently returned to Vulcan from Beekman's Planet, where they unearthed ancient artifacts that seem like boxes, impossible to open due to their magnetic fields. The artifacts suggest an older, more advanced civilization than all others in that sector. Among these scientists is Silek, Sarek's brother, who's staying at his house, and who lost his wife under strange circumstances during the expedition. And there's also Silek's father-in-law, Starnn, who gifts Sarek one of the mysterious boxes. Soon thereafter, Amanda starts noticing disturbing things at her home: uprooted rose bushes, portraits upside down, and a not-quite-himself Sarek.

Meanwhile, the Enterprise is headed for Vulcan to drop there more scientists from Beekman, and have shore leave. We're introduced to brilliant Dr. Anitra Lanter, who's currently working in some secret project with Spock. However, during the trip, Lieutenant Tomson finds her security team member al-Baslama brutally murdered in his quarters. And the description of his corpse is really, REALLY gruesome; so much that it made me feel lucky that this was a book and not a film... The murder investigation returns nothing, but nonetheless, Kirk decides to go ahead with the shore leave at Vulcan, because why not (and this is something that also happened in "Mindshadow": Kirk granting a shore leave under absolutely unreasonable conditions). Also, Kirk feels like singing in the shower after seeing the horribly mutilated corpse. And everyone aboard hears him singing through the intercoms, since Anitra thought it would be very funny to violate the Captain's privacy with a hidden microphone (hahaha...ha?). Kirk punishes her by sending her with Scotty to overhaul the engines, but she does it in no time because she's brilliant. So she gets to enjoy shore leave at Sarek's house, with Kirk, Spock and McCoy.

During the visit, they find Silek murdered in the garden, and later Starnn impaled in a sword, as if he had commited suicide. That same day, Anitra wakes up in the middle of the night and sneakes into Sarek's study. The strange box begins to open, and she averts her eyes from the light inside. First Spock, and then Sarek, follow her, and she alerts Spock through their mind-link to not look at the light, or Sarek's eyes. They evade Sarek with excuses, and confer at Anitra's room: she tells Spock that his father has been taken by the same entity that's possessing the Vulcans, and forcing them to commit those murders. And it's apparent that Anitra and Spock have been investigating this problem for a while. Nonetheless, the next day Spock and Anitra go to the Vulcan Academy, while Kirk and McCoy go to a bar (because why not?), leaving Amanda alone with the possessed Sarek (what could go wrong?). Amanda finds a warning note from the late Silek, and tries to contact the Enterprise, but too late. Sarek has found her... Fortunately, Uhura was suspicious of the cut transmission, and alerts Spock, who rushes to his home and saves Amanda from Sarek. It turns out that Sarek (or whatever has taken control of him) murdered Silek and Starnn.

Everybody has returned to the Enterprise, and Amanda is put to sleep with a sedative, after her traumatic experience. Finally, Spock explains what's going on. The researchers at Beekman were infected by parasites that mesh with the brain at subatomic levels, and force the victim to commit unspeakable acts of sadism. Anitra is specially sensible to the entities due to her telepathic powers, and can sense who's possessed; but those same powers make her specially desirable for the parasites. The major problem now, is that the infection spreads quickly through contact, and thanks to the very intelligent actions of everyone (from Starfleet to Kirk), now both Vulcan and the Enterprise are infested.

Amanda is one of the first to appear possessed, when she attacks Anitra. The parasites speak through her, telling Anitra that, if she stuns Amanda, they'll kill the host. She's forced to stun her, however, and Amanda is put in life support, apparently dead. Things get worse, once it's revealed that Scotty (currently commanding) and the whole bridge crew are also possessed, and are bringing the ship to Rigel to further spread the infection. Kirk goes to the hangar to secure a means of escape, while Spock sabotages the engines to put the Enterprise adrift. Meanwhile, Anitra and McCoy barricade themselves at auxiliary control, with Amanda's lifeless body. The situation is of course very romantic, so they start to flirt. When Kirk returns to auxiliary control, he finds out that Amanda was just playing dead and attacked Anitra again, so McCoy put them both to sleep with a hypo. Then, McCoy notices something weird about Kirk... The Captain has been also possessed! But before Kirk can attack them, Spock storms into the room with Uhura (who's also free of parasites) and stuns Kirk. Uhura stays at auxiliary control, to watch over Kirk and Amanda, while Spock, McCoy and Anitra run to the hangar. In the end, only Anitra gets into the shuttle and flees away, since McCoy and Spock stay behind to secure her escape.

Somehow, evil-Kirk has recovered and escaped, and captures Spock and McCoy, showing them how the Enterprise destroys the shuttle. Then Spock and McCoy are put together in the brig, but are rescued by Anitra. The shuttle was just a decoy, and now they're free to take another and return to Vulcan. The objective is taking a live subject with parasites, and study him at the Vulcan Academy in search for a cure. They land on the Vulcan desert, far away from the city, and have to traverse it on foot. McCoy is attacked by a tentacled man-eating plant and sprains his ankle. But he's too stubborn to be carried by Spock so they proceed very slowly, and once the sun rises, McCoy collapses from the heat. They find shelter in a cave, inhabited by the Kolinahr masters of Gol, where McCoy recovers a bit. Spock asks the masters to take care of McCoy while he and Anitra solve the parasite crisis. But he should have asked them to tie the doctor up instead, because McCoy is determined to come along, so he follows them secretly across the desert... And then a le-matya attacks McCoy, so now he's poisoned (face palm). Anitra has to go quickly to the city, get an antidote from a local healer, and hitchhike her way back in a flying car, to cure McCoy.

In the Enterprise, Uhura catches the naughty Kirk again, and after stunning and locking him up for a day or so, Kirk recovers from the possession. After this comes a lot of Kirk sneaking through corridors, punching people and all that. It's a bit messy, but suffice to say that at the end, only he and Lieutenant Tomson are free from the parasites. They notice that people who've been unconscious and isolated for a while tend to become themselves again. Thus, they flood the entire ship with sleeping gas, and problem solved, for the moment.

Finally at the Vulcan Academy lab, Spock leaves McCoy and Anitra there, while he goes fetch a test subject for the experiments: his father, who's still at home doing... possessed things, I guess. Spock confronts Sarek, but he's no match for him and is rendered unconscious. At the lab, Anitra feels the severed mind-link with Spock, and rushes to help him. McCoy, of course, wants to go too (but it's okay, this is the only time he ends up being useful). At Sarek's home, McCoy tends to the unconscious Spock, who's suffered a fracture in the head and will die without immediate surgery. While Anitra goes after Sarek, armed with a phaser. And just then, the doctor notices that Spock's phaser is missing... uh, oh! Sarek returns triumphant, with a now possessed Anitra in tow. They try to force McCoy to revive Spock, so they can torture him later. McCoy offers himself instead, if they will just leave Spock alone, but the demons laugh at this (everyone in this novel reminds poor McCoy that he's useless, even the parasites!). The doctor is put in a very difficult situation: on the one hand, he can't just let Spock die; on the other, if he revives him, the entities will just kill him in a horrible way. Thus, he resorts to trickery, and injects Spock with something that stops his heart for a moment (I guess it's the same thing he used on Kirk in Amok Time, which may prove that he just carries one of those hypos everywhere...). McCoy focuses on his grief for Spock's "death", knowing that Anitra's telepathy will make her feel that, and believe Spock's truly dead. When she enters the room to check it, McCoy incapacitates her, takes the phaser, and stuns both her and Sarek.

A while later, Spock wakes up in the Academy lab, recovered from his injury. As it turns out, McCoy brought them all there, and now has Sarek and Anitra in isolation chambers to begin the experiments. They try several compounds on them, but nothing works, and both subjects are dying... Until they're not. Sarek wakes up, and he's again himself. As it turns out, a bit of waiting was all that was required (which Kirk had already discovered in his own way aboard the Enterprise). The parasites need to feed constantly on others, so after a day or so of isolation, they just simply disappear.

In the final part the Enterprise, with its crew back to normal, puts some bombs filled with sleeping gas over Vulcan, so everybody is eventually freed of the parasites. There's also an explanation for the boxes found in Beekman; they were containers for the entities, that would keep them indefinitely alive after all hosts in the planet had died. That way, they had waited for millenia, until new potential hosts appeared.

Spirk Meter: 0/10*. Nothing that comes to mind, unless you count Kirk's confidence in Spock finding a solution for the infestation, no matter what... But c'mon, you can do better than that!

The Spones, however, is veeeery heavy. At the beginning, McCoy is hilariously jealous of Anitra and Spock spending so much time together. He confronts first Anitra, and then Spock about it, warning the Vulcan that Anitra may have a crush on him. The response of both is that he should mind his own business. Later, McCoy confronts Spock again, when he finds him leaving Anitra's room in the middle of the night, and he's again suspicious and angry. Sure, the narrative later tells us that McCoy was jealous because he liked Anitra all along. Only that... it doesn't look like that in the slightest. At this early point, there's been no sign whatsoever that McCoy is interested in her. His only concern for Anitra was that she was developing an ulcer, and McCoy had even suggested to her that she should date young men her own age (which obviously would exclude him). So the later explanation seems more like a retcon than anything, or a bad case of "tell and not show". But there's much more. Throughout the entire novel, Spock and McCoy are protecting each other, and in fact, whenever there's a choice between staying with Spock, or going after Anitra, McCoy somehow ends up always with Spock, having some emotional conversation about how thankful they are for the other's help, or how sorry they are for having hurt each other. At times, it seems that Anitra is just there to fulfill Spock's duties, so Spock's free to be alone with McCoy and have angsty scenes with him. It happens first when Spock chooses to stay with McCoy, unnecessarily, while he treats Amanda. Which prompts Kirk to comment that Spock only did it to protect McCoy (of course, Spock quickly denies it). Then McCoy lets Anitra go away in the shuttle, because he's that stubborn about protecting Spock, which leads to another emotionally charged scene in the brig (very similar to the one in Bread and Circuses). And once McCoy discovers that Anitra's alive and Spock knew all along, he feels "the ridiculous urge to kiss the Vulcan or kill him". It's Spock who rescues McCoy from the tentacle plant, and gives him the vine to eat something. And later, when McCoy kisses Anitra in the cave, Spock interrupts them with a cough, and Anitra leaves them alone once more. Then McCoy acts all embarrassed, and looks guilty at Spock (why guilty!?), while Spock feeds him. In fact, Anitra could take a bath in a cave pool, since Spock was so concerned about McCoy, that she knew they'd leave her in privacy. After the le-matya incident, it's Anitra who leaves, and Spock stays to nurse McCoy. Then the doctor apologizes (to Spock!) for being in love with Anitra, and that he didn't intend to love her... See a pattern already? It's even more evident at the climax, after Anitra has been possessed and McCoy protects Spock against her, offering himself to be tortured in his stead. Spock also wonders why McCoy took the trouble of bringing Sarek to the lab too, since testing with Anitra was enough. McCoy can't tell him the real reason. So yeah, there's something curious going on here. Is Anitra a genuine love interest for McCoy? Or is she being used as a device to underline Spock and McCoy's closeness (in a similar way that the woman in the novel "Triangle" was used, to emphasize the same between Kirk and Spock)?

On a lesser note, there's a bit of McKirk if you want. Kirk and McCoy are given the same guest room while staying at Sarek's house (though we don't know if they shared a bed or not). Which is frankly unnecessary; the author invented a separate guest room for Anitra, so it's not like she couldn't have invented a further room in the house, right? The way that possessed Kirk talks to McCoy is also kind of... suggestive:

"If we need to take someone, we take her. If we don't need to take someone, we can still use him... for other purposes." He smiled menacingly at McCoy, who quickly lowered his eyes. "We don't just... leave him alone."

And later:

He leered at them. "I want you to think--really think about what happened to people on this ship who were uncooperative." "Such as al-Baslama," said Spock coldly, "and Liu..." The remark seemed to please rather than anger him. "To mention only two. We don't need you, gentlemen. But we can use you… at our leisure, and for our own pleasure." His chilling smile was the last thing McCoy saw as they left the bridge.

Sure, it's the parasites talking, and not the real Kirk. But they don't seem to say these things to others, or while possessing other people.

[room-surprise]

Dungeon Meshi Anime Review, Season 1, Episode 11 review

Red dragon part 1!!!!!!

Absolutely fantastic episode. No real complaints. Spoilers below! NO REALLY THERE ARE SPOILERS.

Sometimes the camera is too close to the characters and I really don't like it, examples are when Marcille and Laios are talking before Laios goes to try his final attack against the dragon, and when Senshi is helping Chilchuck pick up the sword and throw it to Laios.

The camera is zoomed in so close to Senshi that it's genuinely hard to understand what's happening, especially with all the sakuga speedlines. I'm sure that bit of animation was gorgeous but I couldn't see enough of it to understand what movement Senshi was making!

Didn't like how multiple times they zoomed in on character's eyes while they were talking so you couldn't see their mouths for the entire shot - normally you'd start with a shot that shows the mouth moving and then cut to the closeup without the mouth to save budget, but just going straight to the eyes closeup... Made it hard to tell if they were speaking out loud or thinking. This is just sloppy storyboarding IMO and not the end of the world, but it was noticeable and bugged me. Maybe it was like that in the manga? But then there are dialog bubbles vs thought bubbles so it's clear if it's a thought or spoken out loud. Anime doesn't have that.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the way the magic words written on surfaces are being animated like they're a gunpowder trail/wick for a traditional explosive. WONDERFUL detail, so inventive and fun! I don't think that was in the manga but it fits in SO WELL with the vibes of dungeon meshi. Fantastic addition.

Loved Marcille's little bouncing spell.

The jokes in this episode all landed so fucking well. Just incredibly funny and good, pacing was immaculate.

Marcille healing Chilchuck and Senshi rofl.

Funny that they put Marcille on TOP of the building she exploded, I think it was more ambiguous in the manga or she was off to the side. Putting her on top of it was certainly a choice, and funny lmao.

The pathos and the drama... god. Laios' final attack on the dragon. Losing his leg. It was all incredibly well done. The way the sound and color cut out, Laios hyping himself up to do something he knows will be excruciatingly painful.... top ten Laios moments for sure. This episode captures his character so wonderfully. That's my boy!!!!

(thinks about if they're going to handle Kabru's moment of falling into the dungeon with this amount of intensity..... ohgodplease.)

I love how gory they get with the dragon, the butchering sequence so far is fantastic, I hope anime onlies are like "haha... ha..... what the fuck this is kind of intense? and gross?" because they do not know what they're in for lmao.

While I DO LOVE the way they revealed Falin's skull (what an incredible pov shot!!!!!!!) I kind of miss the panel that was in the original manga... Where Laios pulls the skull out of the clump of hair in a way that looks like a baby's head coming out of the vagina during childbirth. That panel was REALLY intense in a quiet horror sort of way in the original, and I miss it.... BUT they replaced it with something equally cool so I can forgive it.

They had new dub actors for the Touden father in this episode, and some random villagers. Since those characters have VERY few lines, I'm wondering if these actors have been double-cast and if we'll see them again playing other roles later, since this has been the case for most of the other minor characters so far.

[nikolaidelphiki]

Since a total of zero people asked me: here are my opinions on Palia non-romancable NPCs after playing the game for about 100 or so hours. And as always SPOILERs:

Ashura: You are my dad. You're my dad. Boogie-ooogie-oogie. I actually don't take to him as much as I should.The fact that he was the chill one in his family makes so much sense. He's such a calming presence. But of course there's the Regrets.

Delaila: Ok but why is she the few Older adult Majiri OG in Kilima? Like have you noticed that she's kinda the only one that's originally from the village? Like, where did she come from? Is she the real leader? Did she secretly take everyone out that she didn't like and replace them with people lured in my her homecooking? Things to think about.

Kenli: What happens when you don't give a nepotism baby a coming-of-age redemption arc. This guy is just trying his best. He likes sandwiches and cute fluffy animals. His best friend is the town priest. But despite it all man understands capitalism like no other (see Maji Market).

Caleri: She's a fav. Maybe I'm projecting but I too would die for my books and eat sleep and breathe in the library. Intelligent, unbothered by village happenings. Yet, keeps a detailed leger of each book bowers status upon the borrowed book's return. However, deeply unhappy with the cards life has delt her. I try to bring her all the glass bulbs so she can read into the night.

Elouisa: The only real G's out there. Sending me on impossible tasks to prove her theories and beat to cryptid allegations. Of course she's the older twin. Intelligent, bothered by village happenings when it comes to her projects. Still watches over her sister and cares in her own way. I love her.

Badruu: Comedic genius. I'm pretty sure when he gave up the bard life for farming, he realized he needed to put his funny guy hat on and has been spitting puns ever since. And yet despite the dad jokes, he asks me me, the amnesiad human for parenting advice. The absolute honor. Also, I just need to see him talk with Einar, PLEASE. The comedic fallout would be unmatched.

Najuma: I make the journey to Bahari Bay every day just for her. Because 1) thanks for the glider I use that every day 2) we are besties and 3) it's good to keep a genius that can blow stuff up on your side idk. We may have different types of Momma Trauma but we are still going to bond over it.

Chayne: I don't interact with him much idk. His dad's raised him right I think. Basically, caretaker for the entire village. Also my Shepp-in-law, grand-Shepp?? idk

Hekla: Jina's caretaker. A bit aloof at first. I also don't interact with Hekla much, but one day I'mma find out what's in the tent.

Sifuu: That's my Shepp! Also a problematic mother that doesn't really understand her child and yearns for days of adventure. And ripped. There's something to be said that she gave me an ornamental sword as a gift. Like insta-loyalty from me even if I wasn't romantically pursuing your son.

Auni: We babe who needed someone is his bug hunting club but mysteriously sucks at hunting most bugs if his item requests are anything to go by. The fact that he ran away from home for the exact length of time that his delivery shift is and wondered why no one was worried is absolutely hilarious and yes I read his journal and laughed.

Zeki: First of all, why is Zeki the only one selling toilets and they are contraband? Has anyone asked this? Is it like illegal to use indoor plumbing and Zeki has the monopoly?? Secondly, I know this fool is scamming me and when I finally get enough gold I'ma buy out him and his whole underground establishment. Respectfully, of course.

Eshe: If Eshe has zero haters, I'm dead. Just because she didn't get with the politically powerful sibling, she makes it everyone else's problem while somehow still efficiently running the village. Even I gotta admit no one's doing it like her. Another member of the problematic mom club but don't tell her she's been grouped with Sifuu. She'll pitch a fit.

Tau: The fact that there's only one of him is a crime. The only good boy.

[lordsovorn]

Horror of Shapes

I am OBSESSED with borders and angles, with the language of shape and form.

There is nothing quite like the admiration I feel for the art of dissecting and then reassembling the core sensory components of different things.

I do not mean cosmetic coatings or costumes. I do not mean stiching together equally recognisable, pure parts, like a griffin or a furry. No, I mean the shapes and borders, the silhoette, the weight, the sound envelope, the motion, all talking directly with your reptile brain - and saying different things. Using the language of recognisable forms - but mixing them to say something new. And more often than not, something disturbing.

Our brains don't like things between categories. If they are absurd enough, that's funny, that's just a combination of normal things - but if the contradicting parts are interwoven properly, that's just... real. A wrong, stressful kind of real that doesn't contradict itself, but rather, contradicts our deeply ingrained sensory and emotional catergories.

So it's not at all surprising that this kind of shape mixing - successful or not - is especially common in horror media.

One shape speaks human, and the other doesn't. And it is moving in your direction.

...

For example.

...

And that's why we're all here - to talk about the Stalker from Amnesia: The Bunker a bit.

(Medium-heavy spoilers for Amnesia: The Bunker)

(I'm discussing in detail the design of THE monster of the game. You'll hardly get a good look at it normally, and I will also inevitably reference its nature a bit. Without any story or gameplay spoilers)

...

When you think of the Beast and its defining shapes, what comes to mind first?

Long, terrifying claws? Rows of needle-like teeth? A twisted, contorted visage, from which a snarl of unprecedented hate emanates?

I think of its neck. I'm in love with that fucked up neck as a subtle, yet powerful design choice. If you're surprised you've never really noticed it - google its model and marvel at the huge, thick, long neck of the Beast.

And think for a moment what it means in terms of silhoette.

...

The unnatural length of the neck is invisible from the front - the direction you're most likely to *really look* at the creature when you are cornered and have to shoot. When it stands up to howl before dashing, it keeps its inflexible neck behind the head as well - but the head appears disjointed and disproportionate, moving in a way it's not supposed to in a humanoid creature.

The Beast is quite front-heavy - with huge claws and massive head. This is only emphasized by the perspective trick at play - the head looks bigger because it is actually closer to you than you think, thanks to the neck.

From the front it looks humanoid, like a monstrous gorilla, standing on its knuckles. But when you look at it from the side, while it crawls along the half-lit corridors, you see just have elongated it is. The neck ruins the humanoid silhouette, breaks the shoulder line, lowers the head and emphasizes the arched back, creating an image of a predatory, confident beast.

But the two bayonets sticking out of its spine disrupt even this image. Of course, you're unlikely to even distinguish that those are bayonets in normal circumstances - it's just two strange spikes, breaking up the smooth line of the predator.

...

The back is different too - it is the least deformed part of the creature. Its legs are almost... normal, in the proportions at least, and it's from this angle that you clearly see the ragged remains of torn clothing on a disturbingly hunched back.

It kind of makes sense that from the least dangerous angle in the gameplay sense, the Beast looks the least threatening. Almost like a big, awkward, miserable human - more comfortable with this part of itself than with the huge claws in the front, but incapable of balancing itself any other way.

...

The claws deserve attention too, as they are the first thing you see as it reaches out from its burrow. They are grotesque in their absurd size, that suggests something huge is about to emerge from this tiny hole.

They are bigger than they have any reason to be - it is very clear how awkward moving with them is, as the Beast constantly switches between full-palm run, knuckle-walk and standing on its two legs.

It is the claws that disrupt the "beast vs human" duality - no beast needs such unwieldy claws that are good only for killing. No beast prowls constantly and leaves dismembered, not eaten corpses. No beast constantly vocalizes its anger and frustration in uncontained growls and hisses as it hunts.

...

Finally, this contradiction is also true for left vs right, as the right half of its face is torn and twisted into an almost crocodile-like form. This lateral assymetry, visible also in its uneven shoulders, sends a very clear message - sickness.

Nature is symmetrical - this monstrocity isn't. It is distinctly not natural - not even in terms of lore, but in terms of basic shape language.

Normally, the game does an exceptional job of hiding the Beast - even when it kills you. This contradiction of unwieldy mass, dangerous length and terrifying speed; of awkwardly human, confidently bestial and sadistically demonic never goes away - precisely because the Beasts' very proportions read differently from different angles.

...

Devs at Frictional seem to have been searching for this image for quite some time. The contradiction of human and unnaturally demonic is visible in the concept art of The Dark Descent, but, I dare say, not in the game itself, where enemies look like wax torture mannequins.

A Machine for Pigs tried to do it more explicitly, but failed to properly bind together the disparate shapes, and instead created ugly furries. SOMA did monster design wonderfully, utilizing the strengths of the engine and avoiding its weaknesses - but, of course, not in THAT way. While Rebirth put the horror of shapes back a bit, focusing on ramifications and pacing.

The Bunker seems to be the culmination of this search - a rather elegant solution, one that must have taken a lot of time to get just right. And in the end it is not just simple - it is persistently hidden.

It is the culmination for Frictional of the art of hiding the monster, while letting the shapes do their thing - speak terror into your mind in the most basic language possible.

[xandriagreat]

My thoughts about the bad guys Halloween special

Since I've talked about my thoughts about the Christmas special last year (This post), I thought I give my thoughts about the Halloween special.

So, here are my thoughts and theories about the special, along with different ending(s) to it. This has Spoilers for the ones who haven't watched it.

Also, I'm sorry but this is very long, I had a lot of things to say/type and different sections.

Thoughts

I thought it was very interesting, though the ending made me have mix feelings about it.

It was funny and had very good scary points. But there were moments where I was like "That's not how that character would say" and "This feels more like a fic that went off topic".

I do like that the animation is a bit cleaner. It's still a bit messy but it's cleaner and pays more attention to detail. Almost like some video games.

When the gang mentioned trick-or-treaters coming over, I was like "They are in a hide out! Nobody is coming to their hide out or they would have already been arrested and the things they have stolen would have been given back! Unless they go to an abandoned house within the city then ok."

When the 'haunted' piano started to play, I was like "Bendy and the Ink Machine?" I don't know why my mind went there but it sounds like it!

At the near end, I was like "Wait- What happened to the Westside Wallabies?! I need answers! Also, gang, those pranks were just mean!"

Now, for the twists...

The first twist that it was a prank from the gang was cool but also mean. I know that it's a prank and to teach Wolf that he went too far but it's also gaslighting. I know that the word has been over used but they made Wolf think that he was going crazy. Even when Snake starts to do Reginald E. Scary voice "I told you so" to Wolf before going back to his normal voice to say "I told you so" to Wolf again. THAT WAS REALLY MEAN!

The second twist that Wolf knew the whole time was weird. With him using Webs' tech to do when turning into bones and ash, that went too far too. Then when Wolf is telling the group how he knew the whole time was weird too. With Wolf being behind the white board as the group, acting freaked out to the gang would leave so he would have access to Webs' computer (which is just laying about on the coffee table). Also his prank was really mean!

It would make more sense if Wolf overheard that the gang were planning to prank him.

Out of character characters

I know that I've mentioned it earlier but some of the things that were acted or said from the characters were out of character that it caught me off guard or confused me.

Examples (from somewhat in character to very out of character)

Shark and Piranha were somewhat in character in this special, the only thing that they were out of character was when they were trying to remember how the piano tune music was playing. Also, (even though it's a bit funny), Piranha farts when he's nervous of lying. Sure, he did lie in the car and then fart. But at the knight chasing them, he fart a lot, though I can understand nervous/scared farts.

Webs complaining that Wolf took her youth was very out of character for her. To my knowledge, she hasn't complained about her youth. Also, leaving her computer out in the living room while doing a prank is also out of character for her (unless it's something that she normally does, have her computer out in the living room. So, she continues to do that to not look 'off' or 'out of character'). ALSO, SHE WOULD HAVE NOTICED IF THERE WAS A NEW CGI ANIMATION ON HER COMMUTER!

Wolf being a prankster was something I didn't see him acting like that. (I know that he's "the big bad" wolf like in the fairy tales but those are more of crimes and how hungry the wolf in those stories are than pranks.) So, him also being a prankster caught me off guard a bit. I can see him being impressed by the prank that the gang pulled on him but I can also see him being mad and close to crying, since the gang is the only family he has.

Snake saying (after when Wolf seemingly turned to ash) "He deserved a dignified death, like being backstabbed by his snakiest friend! I missed my chance!" ... HE WOULD NOT SAY THAT! And I'm not the only person who thinks/knows that! If (The Bad Guys 2022) movie Snake saw Wolf (seemingly) turned to bone and ash, he would scream, he would cry, he would mourn the loss of his friend as he cussing out Reginald E. Scary's name for taking his friend away. Then he would go on a full on cussing spree on Wolf after Wolf pranked the team. (I don't know why but I just see Snake cussing a lot after that.) Also, Snake is, well, a snake. He would have tasted the air and noticed that the bones and ashes were not real.

the Villain: Reginald E. Scary

I wish we did get to know Reginald E. Scary a bit more. He looked interesting and I would have liked to get to know him a bit more.

HE COULD HAVE BEEN THE NEXT HATBOX GHOST! (the Haunted Mansion 2023 movie).

He could have been very scary but he wasn't.

Theories (again theses are mine, don't get mad at me if you don't like them, please.) (They're about Reginald E. Scary)

Reginald E. Scary would have been alive in the late 1800s, mostly the late 1890s. The reason I say that is because his clothing, his house/mansion, and the piano puzzle.

Reginald would have started to like jazz before his death.

Reginald E. Scary would have also been an inventor, that's how the piano would have playing and that one knight armor moved on it's own.

Different Ending(s)

I'll say thing again, the ending made me have mix feelings.

Here's the different ideas I have of a different ending.

The Embarrassing Ending What could have really happened at the end!

We see what the gang does to Wolf after the second twist, like dress him up in a granny costume or something that would make him embarrassed.

The gang is laughing while Wolf is just being grumpy and being like "Ok! I get it! I understand what I did was wrong!"

The Ghost Ending The ending we wanted to see!

The gang is about get the amulet and leave, but before Wolf could take the amulet from the stand again, the same music tune starts to play in the main room. The gang starts to freak out/think that Wolf is pranking them again but he tells them that he's not.

Then the REAL Reginald E. Scary ghost show himself to them.

The gang screams when seeing him but stops as he raises his hand before says "Very interesting, I am impressed. As much as I like tricks, you five are trespassing MY property and put silly contraptions and tricks all over my house!... But I'm feeling nice at the moment and I'll let you five leave. Just leave my amulet be... NOW LEAVE!"

The gang screams again and run out of the mansion. They get in the car and Wolf quickly drive them home back while Scary watches from the window or main door before closing the door.

The Angry and Sad Wolf/"Leaving without the Amulet" Ending This is based on Wolf part of the out of characters

Wolf stares at his friends, who just told him that they pranked him, for a moment and he start to laugh before he starts to cry and shout at them "What's wrong with you!? I would never do a something like this EVER!"

The gang stares at him as they realize that they went too far.

Wolf calms down after a moment and looked at his team again, saying in a dead tone, "We are now leaving. We're not taking the amulet. Just. Leaving."

The gang gasp at that. They were about to protest but Wolf cuts them off by shouting "This is your punishment!...And mine... We don't deserve this after what happened. Now lets go!"

The gang slowly nodded.

The five go outside and get in the car.

Wolf starts the car and drives them back home. He starts to calm down as he drives.

When they get back home, Wolf goes to his room to cool down as the gang apologized, "We're sorry, Wolf..."

Wolf stops at the door before turning around at them and saying, "I forgive you... and I'm sorry for the pranks..." Then he goes into his room and closes the door, starting to calm down and rest after what has happened as he gets on his bed after getting his shoes off.

Final thoughts

I do sometimes like that it was full with halloween pranks but I wish it was a real haunted heist, to see how the gang would deal with a ghost!

Anyway, theses were my thoughts and theories of the special. Overall, I give it a 6/10. It's not the best but not the worst.

Again I am so sorry that this is very long. I had a lot of thoughts about this.

[bloodgulchblog]

Alright fuck it, s2e1 liveblog.

I'm watching this with people later so the goal is just to get through it enough to sate my impatience, so I'm back to ye olde standby of watching it at high speed with subtitles on. (...Only I guess I'm gonna be slowed down by making comments, huh?)

Spoilers and uncharitable opinions and unfunny jokes will follow.

Not going to talk about stuff in the episode opener until it comes back bc there's not enough to say anything about.

5 minutes in and we're already doing whatever this is huh?

6:30 - Alright okay, fuck, Vannak took his spine pellet out and gets to have one (1) personality trait and it's animal facts and I kind of don't hate that. TV Chief is very unlikable but characters like Kai and Vannak playing the angle of having very youthful quirks bc having emotions is new is cute.

~10:00 - I have nothing to say yet about spooky shapes in the fog but I think this shot of Chief back to back with a marine is fun. Also I wonder if Corporal Perez (this character) will still matter 5 minutes from now.

Also looks like the foggy sword fight from the trailer is here, too difficult to get any kind of cap that doesn't suck out loud. I'm thinking about how I heard someone making a big deal about how Season 2 feels "less like a video game" (whatever that means), meanwhile "fog full of stealth sword guys trying to kill you" feels very very video game level.

~13:00 - Man, and I really thought that sword fighting stuff in the trailer was a solid indicator they were dragging Thel 'Vadamee into this mess. Hey guys look, Arbiter's in this season. 4,000 of him!

Additionally, if a bunch of people decide this is a ship the fandom owes me twenty dollars.

~15:00 - Congrats to Perez for surviving five minutes. Also, we're still doing whatever this is:

16 minutes in we finally get the show's opener. (It has the Halo in it now, I don't think it was there before but let's be perfectly honest it's not like I cared a lot.)

~17:30 or something, reminded once again that a lot of people are attracted to this actor

Also guess what, Keyes is an Admiral now I guess????

Do we think he still gets to get eaten by the Flood eventually? Do we think the Flood will even be in here? Place ur bets at the counter.

Anyway, they're basically diving into a big timeskip here where a bunch of planets have been glassed since last season (including Madrigal). This whole AU is weird to the bone in terms of how its timeline is shaking out.

Anyway anyway, aww here we go

"I'm not here to replace Dr Halsey, I'm here because I believe in you!"

Ohhhhh he knows all the Spartans' names already, ohhhhh they want the audience to like this mf so bad, they want it to be such a tweest that he sucks shit-

Moving right along, at 22:30 we have the Rubble having a crowd decide whether various refugees should be spaced or taken into indentured servitude, because of course we do.

tl;dw the nebbish redhead knows where Catherine Halsey is and there's a big bounty out for her and he's trying to use it as a bargaining chip to not die and everyone thinks that's very funny, also Soren is here. I guarantee he decides to go after her, but first we have to have a scene cut back to whatever TV Chief is doing.

Man I'm really noticing they haven't shown the weird ridged rubber tech suit yet this episode, I wonder if they decided to replace it.

Anyway here's Perez, I still think they want people to start shipping:

Then Jimmy Rings has a meeting with tv show's new guy they want you to like so bad.

Also he says "The O-N-I" like a complete tool. (This is how you know he sucks.)

And while I'm talking trash about him: Ackerson stop flirting, didn't they tell you nobody's allowed to be gay in Halo? Get your shit together.

Thus ends the dream of the funniest possible universe where we just had Cortana: The Show forever. Someone get the penny whistle. My heart will not go on. 😢

Fuck, I was doing timestamps, right? I'm like half an hour in.

THEY STILL WANT YOU TO THINK ACKERSON CARES, BY THE WAY, IN CASE YOU DID NOT NOTICE

They're laying this on so thick so fast there's no way he's not a shitweasel in this AU, but also that would be the funniest possible thing to me.

(If anyone ships this, the fandom owes me forty dollars and therapy.)

ANYWAY... Action figure time. (Remember to boycott Jazwares!)

Soren's kid is playing with a MASTER CHIEF ACTION FIGURE and being weird, meanwhile Soren's wife is calling him out on shit and reminding him that refugees being turned away is, you know, bad.

Congrats to Soren's wife for continuing to be the most unexpectedly sympathetic supporting character I guess, but they made Soren so unlikable off the 1st season it's hard for me to feel investment of any kind here.

35 minutes in: the Spartans are watching a space TV broadcast. They have Ca-ADMIRAL. Admiral. Admiral Keyes presenting the Colonial Cross to Corporal Perez for blah blah blah you saw the start of the episode. The shape of the ceremony and the hovering tv drone thing are obvious H2 references.

(Does this mean Perez is our Sergeant Johnson now? Vote with your phones.)

Get your face out of here, Ackerson, I know what you are.

Oh god there's another team of Spartans (Cobalt) and having adult Spartan-IIs call each other names like children is fucking weird.

Aaaaand tumblr is capping the number of images I can post here and I'm still only about half way done. Fuck. I am not doing this this way for Episode 2 I can promise you that.

(Also hey look the tech suit is back, I guess Silver Team doesn't use it so much anymore to show you they're more human now or whatever?)

[phunockery]

Trigger warning allergic reaction, random etymology facts pertaining to sexual acts, talking about death, the melodrama of trying not to die.

(Spoilers) If you're reading this, it means I survived the night.

This is a timed log after finding out I poisoned myself. I don't think I'll die from it but this sucks and I'm feeling emotional and melodramatic.

11:00ish

If I die tomorrow, I didn't mean to. I promise. I just wanted a drink. I usually don't, it usually upsets my stomach. But tomorrow I turn 34 and I was feeling frisky and wanted something to drink while I play my traditional birthday (and sad mood) game: Sonic 2. So I grab a Kirkland hard seltzer from the fridge. Never tried the brand, but it was black cherry and I like that.

I decided to try to time some of my runs, nothing serious. Beat a couple of my pbs feeling good.

After drinking about 1/4th of the seltzer and I notice that my head is feeling funny and I wonder how a 5% drink was making me feel like that. My game play gets bad, but I beat my PB on Chemical Plant 2.

Aquatic Zone is a mess, mild improvement in act 2... And I start feeling itchy. Hives are building. I grab some Benadryl, chew two and as my chest tightens I look up what could be causing this.

11:15

Apparently there is a filtering process called finning that run the alcohol through animal products, like gelatin.

That comes from pigs.

That I am deathly allergic to.

The company does not have to disclose this information and honestly this a best guess, because what else would make me allergic to an alcoholic beverage?

Now I am sitting here, trying to differenciate anxiety and anaphylaxis. Taking deep breaths, epi pen in hand. I'm not going to call 911 because I can't afford it, if you're mad, join the club. (🦅 Insert screams of eagles and freedom here 🇺🇲)

It's almost midnight. I am almost 34 and I am live blogging my allergic reaction because I have nothing else to do

'call 911' that is far too expensive and I don't want to leave my kids with massive amounts of debt because I decided to get treatment (eagle screaming and freedom noises here 🦅)

I messaged a few friends, but they're busy. My friend is probably going to kill me in the morning when she sees this if I'm not already dead.

I'll probably live... I once survived a wedding where the brides mother unintentionally tried to kill me. I was lucky then because there was a doctor in the house... But that was worse. I had lost my ability to breathe immediately.

I'm just itchy. Soooo itchy. I am covered in hives... It doesn't help that my other friend made dinner and no one put cast iron that has cooked bacon and allergy together yesterday... Which I suffered for. Granted I suffered less then than I am now. Now now, but still itchy and cramps.

11:30

I hope to make it to cramps. I should. I can still breath. I am just so itchy. I hate this. I should be getting rest so I can pretend to have a good birthday. Instead I will pretend to have a good birthday and deal with aaaallll the fallout of having a full allergic reaction.

11:35

Chest is no longer feeling tight. A friend has message saying they are going to bed. I sent a message asking if they have a few moments to just sit with me. I think it was too late, they're offline.

11:40 I'm still itchy. My legs, my arms, my scalp, my chest, my armpits... It all itches. This really sucks. (Remembers that sucks used to be a euphemism for bjs and this fact gives me the chuckles of strength).

11:45

double checked messages to other friends. All unread. Some are online, some are not. But I am still alone so you, future reader, remain my emotional support pen-pal.

The skin around my eyes is itchy like I was crying. I don't think I've been crying. I'm upset, but not like that.

Good news: this won't be my worst birthday.

My worst birthday was in 2009. I was BMT for the USAF and on my 19th birthday, two days before graduating, I was acting unusually confused, was sent to the hospital and diagnosed with viral meningitis. I was booted from the USAF shortly after recovering.

11:50 Hell this isn't even as bad the last 7 years that just got progressively worse. I was let go of my job on my 30th birthday and became disabled two days later. (Barely related). Last year I was coerced into going to a water park (I don't do good with loud noises any more) and I wound up breaking a tooth trying to swim in the shallow waters. My ex was not comforting about it and suggested that I not make a scene in front of my kids because they would get upset.

11:55 I can breathe a bit easier. Still left unseen and I turn 34 in 5 minutes.

3 minutes to go and I am trying to fight the sleepy of the Benny's until I feel less itchy.

2 more minutes, I really hope I don't die, my friends don't deserve to have a corpse in their guest room

12:05 made a happy birthday post on TikTok. My voice is definitely affected, but I can talk and breath.

Still left on unseen. I feel bad that they're going to wake up and find out that a friend reached out for help and help wasn't available. That is going to suck. Hopefully I'm still alive and can tell them they're good and deserve sleep.

12:20 a rando has become the first to wish me a happy birthday. A friend messaged to let me know they're glad I'm safe and they're going to bed so they can work in the morning. They hope I find someone to talk to. It looks like it is just you and me

12:23 the stomach has put in its bid for attention. I will spare you the details. The Benny's are taking effect. I am soooo tired and the body itches slightly less. Except around the eyes, it still feels like I've been crying

12:29 my apologies to my friend: I fear I have destroyed your toilet. It should be fine in the morning.

12:30 the stomach still hates me. I hate me. I just want to go to bed.

12:40 tired. Imma go to bed with my Epi Pen on the bedside table. I wake up to everything anyways. The sudden inescapable lack of breath should be more than enough to wake.

I could really use a 'there there's and a hug. And now my eyes are itchy again, at least I know why this time.

Good night.

[ikeprincest]

Hi, I'm just curious, what made you ship the princes with each other? This trope is usually frowned upon and is considered taboo, but I just want to know what attracted you to incest

:O *excited noises* Thanks for the kind phrasing, anon! Also thanks for the chance to walk you through my feelings on the ships

First off, it's just a bad(?) habit of mine to ship the love interests together in otomes. (Might be because I'm a trans guy, tbh. I have no issue playing as a girl if it's my only option, and in fact some of my favorite visual novels are otomes) Also, really, incest shipping isn't an issue to me, since it's fiction, but I also don't seek out incestuous ships intentionally - the characters have to have good chemistry, related or not.

It started with goddamn Yves and Licht. Yves' fussing over Licht that could be seen in some scenes really had me in a headlock, and for a while they were my only real ship in IkePri.

Then, though, I started imagining other ships. For instance Nokto and Sariel (not the same thing as pairing the princes together, but I love them) are a duo I imagine hand-in-hand with Yves and Licht (world's most awkward double date. Your twin and your half-brother, vs you and a guy who used to babysit all of you). I also thought that Clavis/Chevalier would be interesting since I already enjoy what little parts of their dynamic I see now (haven't gotten around to playing either of their routes, but I think Clavis might be next) and it'd be funny to see either Clavis' teasing/jokes turning more flirtatious to a deadpan Chevalier, or Chevalier just bluntly returning those comments in a way that has Clavis turning beet red somehow

("Clavis, why do you want to switch to the Domestic Faction?"

"Because my alternative is to tell Chevalier I want him to step on me next time he calls me a fool."

"What?"

"I said none of your business.")

My decision to make this blog, and the interactive fic series, didn't really solidify until recently. When the Yves & Licht & Nokto collection event was up and running was around the time I was toying with letting them be an OT3 in my head, which I basically took as a sign from the universe to be a 'go-ahead' in that area.

At some point, then, I was noticing other ships I liked. Leon/Luke was one that I toyed with after reading a spoiler about the former's route (the prince who's not a prince vs the prince who didn't know he was a prince) and plan on including in the initial release of the main interactive fic. Jin/Luke I started giving eyeball emojis to as I got further into Luke's route, and I feel like Clavis/Nokto would bang if they thought it'd piss off the right person/thought it'd just be fun in some way.

This isn't my first time doing something like this, though it is the first time doing it outside of my main gamedev account. But I have a rule I stick to: Even if I don't particularly care for a ship, if I make it a public project and I know there's people who'd want to see the ship, I will put the ship in. So not all of the ships I'll include in either the main or side stories are one I might care for a whole lot, but I'll include them because of that rule. I do my best to keep them up to par with the ones I like, though - I've actually been told before that my writing for ships I don't care much for sometimes turns out better, which is weird to think about.

...TL;DR: I don't actually ship all the princes with each other. But the ones I do, it's because of chemistry, or because I like the way they interact, or even just because I like imagining how they'd get together/be as a couple. Really, that's all it is - that's the same way I end up shipping all my ships.

[aloesarchives]

Kengan Omega Thoughts

I finally caught up with Kengan Omega now and I... Um, What?

*Spoilers for the lastest chapter!*

I know I shouldn't be rooting for him because he's supposed to be a villain but for all things under the fucking sun he's hot. Look at him, he's pretty for being over like a hundred years old or some thing like that. Fucking aging like mf wine, jesus christ.

Mukaku dying is good because while he did care to some extent, he was overall terrible person. It's funny how he could've done something if he actually never gave up when dark Niko defected to the worm if he still trained our Niko and try to stop the worm. But his flaw of giving up when he knew he lost probably got him to where he was. Plus his motives to kill and get rid of the worm wasn't for virtue or the greater good, it was to get revenge on the connector for murdering his clan which resulted in him having people die because he instigated them.

It sort of falls under the theme of conviction, tenacity, and motive that Kengan has. People with strong convictions and wholeheartedly believing in their motives to fight gives them power and strength in matches and training.

Just something I noticed when reading the "save Ryuki from the inside" arc in the manga. (which I left of from)

If this chapter came out early 2022 or 3 years ago, I would be frothing at the mouth right now seeing Joji and Waka interact. I'm happy that it's canon that the two of them actually know each other. Dude, even Waka knows Joji is a troublemaker, lol. Though I'm out of my Joji and Wakatsuki phase, I still love them dearly. Especially Joji, the man is funny, empty-headed, nonchalant. I personally want to thank Sandrovich for including Joji more in Omega and making him as comic relief. He so himbo-coded, I love it.

Ugh, I love them so much! They have come a long way since the beginning of Omega. I'm so happy for them. Ohma, Ryuki, and Koga, nice development and growth.

I'm sorry, but this fucking panel had me cackling. I know it's meant to be serious and all but it reminds me all too much of this picture below:

Dude, you know it's serious when four of the most powerful people are in an absolute state of shock. The Worm and the Death Dealers don't play around. But I kinda wish they didn't make Shen be this over powered because we don't know who's gonna beat him. I mean, they already stated that Lolong, Agito, nor Raian could defeat him. Hell, we don't know what happened to Ohma since he witness that even the fangs of Metsudo are no match for him. I mean, it'll probably go down to more of Koga fighting him if anything but he'll get his butt handed to him. I wouldn't be surprised if Ryuki fights Shen because it's hinted that there are more then one connector since Mukaku put two and two after realizing that Ohma looked more like Ryuki then with Shen. I think it would be fun to hear that Ohma is a clone of Ryuki and Ryuki is a connector but was sealed away in one of those tube thingys in like the movies. That could explain why he doesn't remember much of his past besides training with Mukaku unlike Ohma who was remembers being a child in the inside.

So we know that Ohma is definitely a clone. Unsure if he's a clone of Ryuki and unsure if Ryuki is a connector himself. I guess we'll wait and see because it seems like the Omega is getting close to the end, like 75% done.

Nogi really is playing with fire and a hydrogen bomb. I understand and like his spirit. But Idemitsu makes a good point about all of this. I also liked how his reaction of shock is different from Yamashita, Nogi, and Katahara. Obviously it's shock but more of like "What the fuck? What the hell just happened?" versus the three's reaction being "Oh my fucking God, how did this fucking happened? What are we up against?" Idemitsu was aware of the worm and of its existence but only recently interacted with them. Whereas Nogi and Yamashita know what they are up against and how dangerous they are to the entire world. Katahara, on top of the two, has even experienced the Worm and even seen their atrocities as he had came across a Gu ritual where he ended up meeting Agito as he was the only survivor.

I just wanna see how this all goes down and what will happen to Ohma and Ryuki.

[phospadparadscha]

my thoughts on persona 5 playing it for the first time (and right after giving up p4 because it made me mad lol) ((also spoilers up to the start of madarame's palace, i'm not far yet but want to write my thoughts down)):

pros- i really love combat and the baton pass mechanic. the protagonist has a great design and personality, the main cast actually has great chemistry, and the story is very captivating. the idea that we actually fight our personas now as shadows is very interesting. the locations are beautiful and i really like morgana (wayyyyyy more than teddie). also i love that finally i can see available social links, it makes the game feel much more fair, bc before i struggled keeping track of where everybody was at all times and even missed out on fulfilling some links just because it wasn't clear they were already available to me. the dungeons are really fun, i love prowling around like a thief and doing cool moves, its incredibly satisfying. honestly everything about this game is a drastic improvement upon persona 4 and the sour taste it left in my mouth after, before that, persona 3 blew my expectations clear out of the water. oh, and i like that the game isn't sexualizing its highschool girl cast as much as the previous games (at least so far). like ann has a sensual persona and outfit, but its empowering for her, not embarassing her like the bikini beauty pageant in persona 4 (shudders)

cons- the game feels really railroady, especially in the beginning. i want to explore and see all these locations and i'll constantly have morgana telling me i can't do something or that i can't even walk down a specific area because its the wrong way, when i just want to see this giant ass map. the characters are always telling me what to do, which for a game about disobedience and going against the grain, is pretty funny lol. it was rly hard to navigate the train station the first time, and i still struggle with how big the maps are. maybe because i played persona 3 portable before p4, i'm used to cozy maps, but at the same time i do enjoy the vast world, it might just take some getting used to but i was getting frustrated that first time trying to get to school. i feel like the character designs are more bland in this game compared to persona 3, and that the characters all have a bit of same-face syndrome. also, there's this weird yellow tint to all the portraits that looks really nauseating at times. i haven't made too much progress yet with madarame's palace and story, but as someone who has done nude modelling for figure drawing, i feel like its being framed in a really weird way like Ann will lose something virginal if she does it which is a bit of a stereotype for nude models, especially women in the field. but that's just a very niche thing i think very few ppl would even notice or be thinking about, lol. while i do really like the personas being enemies in palaces, i do really miss the old shadow designs because they were just so cool, even if they were becoming repetitive. also, i reallyyyyy miss the tarot cards flipping mechanic. it was my favorite part of dungeons in persona 4 actually but i guess i understand why its no longer there? and, maybe biggest of all, i can't get past igor's new voice. its really not what the character sounds like and i realize the voice actor passed away, but i just can't get used to it, it doesn't match his face and personality at all. he's supposed to be this impish character and he feels so solemn in a way that i don't like as much as previous igors.

that's about it sorry for the long post, i just wanted to share my thoughts because i love this game but there's also some things i can't get used to quite yet lol...

[aeghina]

⭐

*evil cackles*

Spoilers for the most recent chapter of The Blessed

So in the most recent chapter there was a festival for the faeri called Farore's Day. It was mostly through Wind and Wild's pov, but focusing on Wind's part when he noticed that Malon looked amazed by everything.

It was based on my own experience watching a samba school for the first time. It marked me forever not just because of the crowd because that's something else. The moment when the band stopped playing and everyone just burst into song together during the chorus while the dancers continued. When the chorus was over and the band played like the first beat of drums again, fireworks exploded in the same moment everyone raised their hands (it wa spart of the choreography). Honestly that was one single moment that felt magical and so I wanted something similar to them. The faeri dance and the movements are what gathers and directs the magic around. And they crash afterwards because I had cramps for days after one night just watching, so they will feel it too. It's also why not all of them dance or drink, they need a decent amount of faeri able to walk, cook, clean (and in the boy's case, fight if needed) when so many of the others can't move for the whole day.

I think I mentioned changing shoes to dance this chapter or the previous one. It's based on my friend that can dance through a whole party and change her shoes while dancing. It's something I found funny to imagine the boys doing, like kicking their boots off, grabbing one a new pair of shoes and putting them in place without stopping. So imagine like those spins you can do to lift a person off ground? Yeah, they use those to change shoes.

Three of the boys have mates/partners (Wild, Twilight and Sky). Faeri with more animal traits have a bigger need for groups/families, the others were not directly mentioned because otherwise it'd be too big but they're there with them. The faeri's concept of mates is more about partnership, trust and magic compatibility.

Wind is excited to show Malon around because (1) he really hopes she can become Time's partner, as Time is a wolf faeri so he feels the need for family, (2) Wind thinks if she knew more about their world she'd be convinced to come live with them.

Until that moment they don't know the whole truth about time travel and the loops. They know Time's version, that he looped one week for a little more than a year and that Malon saved them but they don't know her version, that she was killed by different versions of them.

But now Wild got a tip. And they will know.

No spoilers for that because the next chapter is almost ready :)

But yeah, this festival scene was fun to write!

[wafflesinthe504]

The Rookie 5x12 Thoughts

Spoilers for The Rookie 5x12 below. If you've watched the episode or don't care about spoilers, please enjoy!

Before I really get started can I just give a shout out of appreciation to all the The Rookie gif makers out there. Y'all really snapped tonight. Honestly, I think this is the quickest work you guys have done! Chef's kiss to all the gifs out there.

The cold open of tonight's episode was great. Seeing everyone just pile in all dirty and bruised up due to whatever happened beforehand and a flustered Kelly Clarkson was cool to see. Nyla and Angela being the only ones not covered in dirt because they're detectives was the best part. Their little fist bump was so cute.

But honestly I would really like to know what happened that led to almost everyone being covered in dirt and leaving the scene with cuts and scrapes. Like did something explode, were they in a derelict warehouse and had to fight some bad guys, like what happened?

Anyways, onto the rest of the episode.

I was so happy to see Tamara again. Her just chilling out doing yoga with Lucy trying to play off the fact that she got home late. It doesn't matter how good of a liar Lucy is anybody with eyes can see that her and Tim are dating. The relief that Lucy expressed when Tamara told Lucy that she knew she was dating Tim. Lucy was just happy for someone else to finally know and be able to talk about her relationship with Tim. Our girl was ready to talk about the amazing relationship she has with Tim. Also, Tamara being the reason that Lucy decided that today was the day. Honestly, I want to see Tamara and Aaron meet at this point. Its only right that the captains of the ship get to hang out for a bit.

The return of Oscar Hutchinson is always a delight. Look I know that man has committed plenty of atrocities (mainly stabbing Wesley), but I find him pretty funny. I really like how he's the one antagonist that has really been shown to actively get under John's skin. Any time Oscar is even mentioned is basically becomes the worst day of John's life. Even though Oscar has proven to be a dangerous criminal I just find it funny that his main character trait is to be as annoying as humanly possible. I also really like the fact that even though could have just been born this way every time we meet him its made clear that he just chooses to be this way. As great as sympathetic villains and antagonists are I really enjoy seeing a someone who is just clearly irredeemable and doesn't want to be redeemed either. Oscar just exists to be chaotic and I love it.

As much as I like Celina's character I really do wish that the writers would sort of abandon the idea of Celina having some sort supernatural ability. I feel like the other times were a little bit more believable since there was at least evidence that something was off, but Celina just instantly knowing that Oscar was somehow in danger really threw me off. I mean unless Celina was just messing with him I don't understand why it was necessary to put that in there. At the time there really wasn't any way she would have really known that Oscar was in danger.

I think a better idea would been to just let her notice how off the doctor seemed when she was being threatened.

Bonus: I just love how Nolan is absolutely in love with Bailey and loving the fact that she can totally beat him in fight.

I know I probably say this every week but I just can't get enough of Angela and Nyla. Honestly if wasn't so invested in Chenford they would easily be my favorite duo on the show. They're just so many great layers to them. Both of them are amazing detectives who are also moms and wives with beautiful families. They're both the protectors of their respective families, but they still get to show a full range emotion and complexity and I just really appreciate that.

A lot of the time spent this episode with Angela and Nyla are while they're on a stakeout of a criminal who turns out to be none other than Elijah Stone. When Nyla first found out that Angela lied to her about who they were following I was worried for a little bit that it would be dragged out for dramatic reasons but I'm really glad that they didn't let it fester and had Angela apologize at the end with Nyla accepting the apology. I also really liked seeing Angela be honest about how terrified she is of the current situation and how much pressure she feels on herself right now to be the protector of her family which is something that we know Nyla can relate to with her having to protect James from a robbery in a recent episode.

I just love how much these two have each other's backs. Its great representation of a great friendship that extends beyond the workplace and can healthily work through rough times in their friendship.

Bonus: Angela is pregnant again and Jack is going to be a big brother. The scene at the end with Angela telling Wesley was really cute.

Today was an official end of an era and a beautiful beginning to a new one. Tim and Lucy rode together for possibly the final time (for the best possible reason). Oh, how the tables have turned. We have gone from Tim Tests to Lucy Lessons and it was amazing. Seeing Tim be the one in denial about how objective he can be about Lucy was amusing to watch. That man hasn't been objective about Lucy since season 2. The only one he was kidding was himself with that one.

Lucy doing things just slightly off but knowing that they were things that Tim would usually nitpick about just to prove a point and swiping the earrings just to prove to Tim that he wasn't able to be objective any more when it came to her was an absolute genius play.

I really enjoyed seeing them working together at the house where the doctor's family was being held hostage. Even before I really started shipping them I always liked how well they worked together due to how well their able to balance each other out. Its most definitely something I'll miss, but hopefully we'll still get a few scenes of them together working together later on.

I will say that I am really excited to see what's next for both of them in their careers. For so much of the series their careers have been tied to each other in some way, shape, or form and I wonder what its going to be like seeing them pursuing their careers separate from each other.

I hope that we actually get to see Tim in his new desk job for at least a little bit. For the whole time we've known him he's always been a very physical character and I think it would be interesting to see how he acts be in a much less physical job. As a court liason I could see Tim interacting with pretty much every lawyer we know including the red hair one defending Elijah which could be an interesting dynamic.

Lastly, but absolutely not least the end scene Tim and Lucy succeed in getting 'naked time' with each other. Everything about the last scene with them was just perfect. Lucy cooking them dinner, Tim telling Lucy about his job change, the gentle kiss turning passionate. I loved everything about it.

I can't wait to see more domestic Chenford. Here's hoping the next time we see them they'll be at Tim's place and we can see Kojo again.

Bonus: Tim and Lucy in the parking lot literally could not be any more obvious short of them making out right then and there. Them trying (unsuccessfully) to play it cool in front of Wade.

______________________________________________________________

Hope you enjoyed. If you want come chat with me in the comments about anything The Rookie related.

Until next time have a good day or night.

[luce-speaks]

Hi pal! I sent over a passage for director's commentary on Laid To Rest Chapter 4, I'd love to hear your thoughts! :3

i've never watched a DVD director's commentary so i actually don't know what's supposed to go here. i have taken the opportunity to be incredibly long-winded (what else is new). enjoy!

to preface: these are screenshots directly from the original google doc! every major writing project i work on starts in the notes app for drafting, then moves to google docs for editing. once in the google doc, it gets its own background color to help me tell them apart. laid to rest is green for forsyth!

forsyth’s inability to just “do nothing” is a running theme in this story (not to mention something i personally relate to), and this is totally one of those moments. it’s a nice contrast to python, who is great at doing nothing and generally thinks forsyth needs to get better at it.

python has no reason to believe that forsyth even has a book with him. he just says things. forsyth’s answer is also a hint that this story happens before the forsyth and lukas support.

i had a whole talk with my beta reader about this bit and "sir ghost", because forsyth, as a very proper aspiring knight, would not be inclined to use the title incorrectly! but there wasn’t anything good to replace it with (“mister ghost” sounds weirdly anachronistic and a little british), and i didn't want to take it out, so it stuck anyway. the line about forsyth being relieved was basically a retcon fix to that issue! also, i think it’s funny how much python hates the nickname...

…and how quickly forsyth switches to ‘oh, no, sir is only for knights’. forsyth doesn’t see the irony here. i do.

python has no idea how much the stealing comment offends forsyth, but if he did, he’d say it anyway. i don’t think the same goes for the second insult—it’s very personal to forsyth, and it might be a bridge too far for him. but he has no idea, so he just goes ahead with it! also in this part: i wanted lukas’s presence to be felt as a character even though he wasn’t around for most of the story. in this case, we see how forsyth looks up to him for being level-headed and tries to follow his example in a social situation he doesn’t know how to handle :)

“Oh my god, Forsyth, you can’t just ask people why they’re dead.”

i don’t think it comes across clearly, but this was supposed to be a real autism moment for forsyth. the original draft had something like “forsyth notices a sarcastic edge to his voice—he doesn’t mean it.” like, this is a cue that forsyth successfully picks up on, but he does it very consciously / it doesn’t come naturally to him. i ended up changing it because i couldn't get the original to flow right, but i hope it still carries the general feeling.

python is snarky. what else is new

ok nerd time SO!! you know by this point that python has lost his memories, right? well there are actually two types of memory, implicit and explicit! explicit memory encompasses facts you know and things that have happened to you, while implicit memory includes reflexes, muscle memory, and how to do things. it’s common for amnesia patients to retain their implicit memories but not their explicit ones—so, for example, you might remember how to ride a bike, but you wouldn’t know how or when you learned that. i’m playing a bit fast and loose with the rules here, but as you can see in this scene, python’s instinctive reactions about things stay the same (dislikes nobles, likes archery, etc), even though he doesn't necessarily know why he feels that way about them, which makes for some interesting dynamics. more on this later in the story!! also, this plotline takes some inspiration from the game Ghost Trick, though I can't really go into detail about how for spoiler reasons :)

one other fun thing about this scene is python starting to be more visible! i had an interesting conversation with a friend about how ghosts would convey themselves. if it were the other way around and forsyth were the ghost, i think he would tend to be more upright and would stand on/near the ground to emulate a living person (sort of in denial about being dead). python's default is either doing little flips in the air (showing disinterest) or laying "like in a hammock" (humorously making the most of his ability to fly).

thanks for the ask!! this was really fun!

[radiantlyrey]

Doctor Who Review: S1/S14E05 - Dot and Bubble

Note: this review is a little all over the place. I tried to cover the important stuff. Please let me know if this comes off as self-centered or whatever. Please.

Something is wrong in the city of Finetime. People are going missing, but the disappearances aren't really noticed. Lindy Pepper-Bean hasn't noticed, and it's only when she's contacted by the Doctor and Ruby Sunday that she begins to peek outside her bubble and find out what's really going on. Slug-like creatures are eating the people of Finetime, and it's up to the Doctor and Ruby to get as many people out as they can before the entire populace is devoured.

SPOILERS (and also discussion of my white cluelessness) AFTER THE CUT

At first blush, “Dot and Bubble” seems to be slightly preachy in tone, exhorting the apparent evils of living in a social media bubble (in this case, a very literal one) and relying on technology to the point that one's self-reliance disappears. From what chatter I've seen online, these parts of the story are meant to be a sort of riff on the usual Black Mirror plot of "technology bad". (Having never watched Black Mirror, I'll have to take the internet's word on this.) It turns out that this is a feint, because the episode is actually about racism.

It's at this part of the review that I have to be frank and honest with you: I did not realize this episode was about racism until I saw people talking about it online afterwards.

I'm white, and I didn't notice that everyone in Finetime was white until someone else pointed it out. And it's funny, because I do usually notice and am pleased when a show or movie I watch is diverse. But as "Dot and Bubble" has revealed to me, I don't usually notice when a show or movie I watch is populated entirely by white people, which means I've got some internal biases I've got examine.

In fact, me not even realizing what this episode was really about until someone else pointed it out says a lot about me. It says that, just like the people of Finetime, I live in a bubble. And I do! I live in a largely white town, and my few friends are white, and I mostly live in this bubble of whiteness and don't question it or try to expand my horizons! I like to think of myself as progressive, and I try my best to not be actively racist--but racism isn't just an activity! It's also, for a lot of people like me, a passivity. I benefit from racism every day as a white person! And I've never really stopped to examine this and what it means for me, nor have I thought about what I've got to change about myself and my thinking in order to let go of these internal biases and prejudices. “Dot and Bubble” called me out very effectively, and it left me with the realization that I have to do better.

And that's what Russell T Davies is trying to say with this story. Lindy and the other people of Finetime live in bubbles that are both literal and figurative--the digital bubble that holds their social media, the actual bubble that protects their city from the "Wild Woods", and the bubble of whiteness that permeates their entire society. On a rewatch, the racism throughout this episode becomes obvious. Lindy reacts with disgust when she first sees the Doctor, and she thinks everything he says to her is condescending. She thinks the Doctor is a different person when he reappears later, saying that she "thought [he] just looked the same". While she's much more lenient with Ruby, Lindy is still aghast when she realizes Ruby and the Doctor are in the same room. This plays into her speech to the Doctor in the final scene, when what has thus far been subtext becomes, all at once, text.

Part of what makes this episode so effective, I think, is in the way that it doesn't overtly focus on the racism. It doesn't make it into A Thing at all. Instead, the script and the visuals lay it out for us without drawing overt attention to it. The racism is there, but the episode waits for the audience to discover it. Compared to how previous episodes of Doctor Who have dealt with (or outright ignored) racism, it's a refreshing strategy, not least because it asks the audience to be aware of how their biases make them perceive things.

Another thing I found interesting about this episode is the way it positions Lindy (portrayed by Callie Cooke in an excellent performance) as the de facto main character of the episode. It uses her position within the narrative to obfuscate the primary theme a little; I know I was more inclined to forgive her shortcomings because of that. At first, Lindy just seems overwhelmed about her situation and maybe in denial that anything is wrong, but as the episode continues, that mask starts to slip a little, and then a lot. We learn that Lindy and the people of Finetime are, in essence, the rich kids of their homeworld, which explains a lot of her general attitude of snobbishness (repeatedly calling Ruby "stupid" for example). But when her Dot loses power and she's on her own, we start to see a little of what she's actually like. She thinks meeting Ricky September makes this the greatest day of her life (even though, as Ricky points out, thousands of people are dying horribly all around them). As the Doctor and Ruby figure out the methodology of the slug creatures, Lindy's overall self-obsession becomes clear. She wails that the creatures are coming after her, rather than realizing that she's just the next person in a very long list of people.

But the final nail in the coffin comes at the episode's climax. Lindy's Dot has gone rogue and is trying to kill her. Ricky fights it off, but it knocks him in the head to slow him down and comes after Lindy. Without hesitation, Lindy tells the Dot that Ricky changed his last name, and that the Dots and their creatures should have killed him much earlier in their alphabetical rampage. While Ricky is summarily killed, Lindy escapes and walks away to freedom. She lies about what happened to Ricky, and that, apparently, is that.

Of course, I'd be remiss if I didn't talk about the final scene. The people who escaped from Finetime have decided to strike out for the wilderness. The Doctor offers to take them to safety in the TARDIS, but Lindy and the others reject him for no other reason than that he's Black, and that's unacceptable to them, and against the "standards of Finetime". Ncuti Gatwa has been a powerhouse thus far this series (excepting "73 Yards", which he was barely in because of prior filming obligations), and his performance in this scene is electric. The Doctor desperately tries to get the Finetime group to come with him, but they walk away, taking their boat down the river. He laughs in disbelief that turns in an instant to anger. He leaves in the TARDIS with tears on his face. He could be mourning the people of Finetime, but it seems more likely to me that he can't believe they care more about maintaining their prejudice and racism than their own survival.

This ending is what cements the greatness of "Dot and Bubble" as an episode. It doesn't end happily. There is no fanfare of success. The Doctor couldn't save the people of Finetime from their intolerance. It's a bit of a bummer, but it needs to be to drive home the primary theme. Racism is insidious, but it's also a choice, and people like me have to choose to be better if we're all going to survive.