#i haven't watched ren's videos for a while

[sometimesrendog]

[day 165] just ren holding doc. that's it

[minecraft-sideblog-tm]

Hilarious dichotomy in Hypno's new video as he fights for his life on level 3 of Decked Out, meanwhile Ren is in chat, uh *checks notes* having a child? Yeah, sounds about right lol

[theminecraftbee]

why hbomb94 should be the next new hermit: no listen this isn't just me being ridiculous listen listen--

okay but like. after today i am ON THIS TRAIN. i am FULLY CONVINCED that hbomb94 would be one of the BEST POSSIBLE CANDIDATES for "new hermit for hermitcraft". and please, just listen to my case for this:

so, after today, i'm fully convinced hbomb is a perfect vibes match for many hermits. he gets along well! he's actually pretty good at staying at hermitcraft levels of pg in videos (like, not swearing--he makes like, the catmaid jokes, but that's nothing worse than whatever ren gets up to on a given day). he's also relatively chill, already friends with a lot of the hermits, and connects well with them on a content creation level. like, he's excited for them, he slots into the bits well, the bits he brings to the table are picked up easily by the other hermits.

and the thing is... okay i KNOW hbomb isn't a huge base builder. i watched vault hunters smp too. but the thing is... he doesn't have to be! you see, there's a certain hermit niche they haven't invited a new hermit into in a while, and that's the niche that someone like joe hills or zedaph (or i'd argue etho or cubfan) occupies. it's the 'weird' niche. i don't think hbomb would be a builder hermit. i don't think he'd be a redstoner either. what he'd be good at is things like... hermits helping hermits! building minigames! have you seen hbomb actually, half of what he did on dsmp or on his main youtube is building minigames and escape rooms. he'd have good vibes! he'd show up to all the events! he'd probably RUN some events!

what he'd be is a new chill, friendly niche hermit, and i think we need more of those? more of the hermits who WON'T be building megabases, but WILL be building games, helping collect resources, and inventing new strange things to do. yes, sure, once again: i know hbomb isn't a builder, and next to someone like joel, that probably puts him out of contention, but... the last two hermits they invited were builders. they need a hype guy. an event guy. another team player. the escape rooms would be ENRICHMENT. it would be wonderful.

plus, i don't think he'd ever stop being a delightful audience insert about the other hermit projects. plus plus, i think he and scar and cub would definitely do a catmaid bit we'd all regret. plus plus plus i think he could do his rant about how weird beetroot is and the hermits would appreciate him for it.

as such i actually think hbomb slots in BEST of the visitors from today as a new hermit. (this is also in part because the empires crew tends to prefer much shorter seasons on their servers than hermitcraft has if they don't want to get bored and the hermits have pretty definitively decided they don't like short seasons. it's also a vibe check. skizz for hermitcraft fans, i am shaking your hand and saluting you, my guy who can't build and your guy who can't build should be hermits who join for similar reasons, we are friends.)

anyway will this actually happen? probably not. but like. listen. for the first time since hbomb hermit adoption arc started this feels VIABLE and i feel the need to make my case for why i want him on because the moment the season rolls over and we start speculating about new hermits this is the guy who has my vote please do you understand now please he'd be so fun--

[epic-arc]

''The Kabedon Technique''

Jaune was in his room alone while reading a book that Nora had given him called ''How to make a perfect kabedon'' and he was reading it with curiosity.

Jaune: I don't know why Nora would give me this but maybe it has something useful. Well let's do some tests. Then I can invite all my friends to watch animated films with me!

Ruby was walking eating cookies until she was pinned against the wall by Jaune which made her face turn slightly red.She could see a confident expression and smile on Jaune's face.

Jaune: Hello my red reaper. Do you want to spend time together for a movie night? Just the two of us~ and some friends, To chill and netflix.

Ruby, after hearing that invitation, had her face completely flushed like her cape. She would be ganging up and confused and not knowing how to react.

Ruby: I- UH! What! Huh! Me and you ?! Yes!? Absolutely what?!..Yes?

Jaune would place two fingers near Ruby's lips and say shh with his mouth and move away but look at her smiling.

Jaune: Its a date then?

Jaune(Mind): Cool! Having managed to convince Ruby to watch the movies with me, now I'm going to test it with the others!

Jaune would go to the library and see Weiss reading and then he would catch her attention and look at him a little irritated.

Weiss: What do you want Jaune? Can't you see i'm busy here.

Jaune approaches and pressed Weiss lightly against the table, which would make her blush slightly, but she was still irritated.

Jaune: Hey snow princess. Will you join me and the others for a romantic movie night? Would you do it for the teams and for me?

Weiss would have her face flushed and would pick up the book she was reading and lift it up, covering her face, preventing Jaune from seeing her flushed face.

Weiss: W-well, if it's to h-help with the r-relationship between the t-teams, I'll agree to go to this film session!

Jaune would leave with an expression of happiness on his face and meet Pyrrha in the hallway and taking advantage of the opportunity he placed her against the wall with a gentle smile on his face. Pyrrha was confused and happy at the same time.

Jaune: Hey partner would you be in-

Pyrrha: Yes! I'm interested in anything you're going to do with me but please be gentle jaune!!!

Jaune: Oh ok then see you later!

Jaune released Pyrrha and she ran away blushing and with a huge expression of happiness on her face. Jaune was slightly confused by her response. Jaune was going to the dorm until he saw Ren cooking and then he would go to his side helping him and then he would take his hand and look at his face.

Jaune: Hey beautiful lotus if I haven't been bothering you but do you want to watch movies with me and the girls later?

Ren would blush and look at Jaune with a gentle smile and nod and Jaune would see this and leave the kitchen heading towards his dorm.

Ren(mind): My god I'm a bisexual disaster!

Jaune was walking until he was pinned against the wall and what he saw was Yang who had a mischievous smile on hers face.

Yang: Hey vomit boy~ I saw that you were calling people to watch movies in the dorm and you still haven't come to me.

Jaune was blushing and confused thinking about what he was going to say but Yang saw that and let out a little laugh and let him go.

Yang:I'm not mad just know that I'll be there too I hope you enjoy action movies heh~

Jaune(Mind): Is she the creator of kabedon?!

(Base of this video)

[onebraincell-itmiebcraft]

Liveblogging real life part 2: Joel (it's been 12 13 days) (already watched)

Okay so maybe we'll do the liveblog-every-five-minutes-unless-something-crazy thing also idk if I should link this up to my intro post (idk how) or reblogged my og one with this oh well we'll figure it out why am I eating AGAIN doing this

I got inspired after rewatching secret life my beloved for the umpteenth time :P

Okay ep. 1/finale is hilarious and new "series" 😭

Joel why did you point out the cursor I can't take my eyes away

First batch

Joel jumping then immediately keeling over in nausea:

Idk how to respond to that but it struck a chord within me, how true

BigB wholesome waving but it also looks like his arm is BENT I can't get over VR arms man 😭

Punching BigB because he's so tall is so real tbh + love the smash cut to Gem being salty

Headpatting + baby-ish voice "little gem/Ren/skizz" what a gentleman makes me think of the try not to cry challenge or Jimmy's crazy christmas series where he says Joel is a crybaby and Gem says he's a romance guy in a mental gymnastics train of thought

Grian throwing his head back from the outside?! Cryptid behaviour

The real life vids don't make me motion sick but Joel making retching and vomiting sounds does NOT help it makes me sick by proxy or something I hate being disoriented and nauseous too buddy

There's probably a video out there of someone comparing regular mc to vr because vr just hits different like proportions wise

Joel noises

Love this Joel-Gem duo already idk how to describe it just fun

Also Joel having to process out loud he won't throw up on Gem I remember playing Richie's plank experience or whatever years and years ago shit was REAL

Joel's inventory becoming disorganized with things that can be stacked together :(

Hey what gem said kinda reminds me of what grian said :D at the end of his episode awful :DD

Poor Joel he's battling his height complex alongside his motion sickness (rip bozo poor little meow meow)

I think almost everybody had the problem of facing the wall dude, it's okay it's very silly

Water foreshadowing (he will swim with his future gang and become incredibly sick)

Geminislay that pig

Wait till Joel learns about lying down‼️‼️

JOEL STOP MAKING NAUSEOUS SOUNDS I'M GONNA FROW UP 👹

"...Falling in powdered snow" kinda reminds me of this short story I read in grade 9 English class "The Bamboo Trap" protag fell in The Bamboo Trap™ and got bitten by big ass spiders or something the idiot, also I think got published in the same anthology as the most dangerous game 👊

Joel admits to weakness

Weird ass snow, someone built this or something?

Joel with his arms out looks so silly, so does gem

Oh gem how graceful with the figure skating history 👊👊👊✌️👉✌️✌️🤜🤛🤛🤜🙏

Lol they learn about the wrist chat

Second batch

Jimmy, oh iconic Timmy

Shield (why did I write this again?)

Bi shoes, love seeing gem's skin wearing the bi shoes I forget about it every once in a while and when I see it again it's a pleasant surprise

Vr players learn to pvp

When you use the shield to block in first person it looks kinda stupid dude

Campsite vibes tbh, I really like it.

Bee spotted 🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝 what is it doing

Shaky controller cursor over top chest plate I feel you

Falling irl indeed (recursive mention about plank)

LOUD holy moly Joel is loud (not negative)

Healf being something people can't look at at all times is actually a kinda funny mechanic

Smajor friendship aww when will they team up (did I forget about a series)

The poor beg for bread, we live in a society ✊😔

Grian killing??? Since when??? (Sarcastic)

Batch three

Peace and love is why they haven't died yet 😘

Arms again! Weird looking things

Hand gesture reminds me of that one diamond scar short with etho's greedy "I want the diamond" voice

Flint and steel? Weird looking thing

Omg red club looks like bugs, the way the trio gossips about them ♥️

Right no out messages...

Can't believe the most motion sick man gets in the water not once but TWICE this ep

Does he know

Where did the horse thing come from

Can't remember if I mentioned this but when the sword swings without critting in VR it looks so silly it pokes

A bugs life: the sequel

Club: deadly euphemism

Sword 😐

Something about jimmy doesn't get burnt...

Why is Jimmy jiggles the only one with a wooden sword???

Strong words from a man on the verge of mania 👀

Lol knowing impulse breaks the ground under Joel big brain man going for the kill

Something about the disappointed way Joel says "scar!" And scar stabbing him in the first caused this

Tim is so British he says "get in" so much

Joel, again exasperated, cries out "where's all my stuff?!"

Funny Minecraft men, my favourite funny Minecraft men

My god seeing from Joel's perspective his second death is from zombie

I think Joel was about to saying bluming + the cover behind house + the constant begging for his stuff back + violence as an answer (he hits men)

4

Oh scar up to no good again

JOEL GETS IN THE WATER AGAIN!!! MOTION SICKNESS WIN!

Joel and scar just did mitosis stop being scared of biology 🙄

What was Mr solidaritygaming doing in that hill and said yes to did he finally get iron?

Aw the silly arm motion I love greeting people with spirit fingers reminds me of that

GOON SQUAD?! (neuron activated)

Famous moment

Oh more famous moment here comes the smallidarity kiss

Love Tim's body language once again the sharp smooth head turn to grian he's like a cartoon character

(what grian mean they are suited and booted he cut this part out I don't remember the other povs 😢)

Leave it to solidaritygaming himself to be the most homoerotic straight man there is of course + Joel is still patting him on the head? + Timsel being cringefail needing to jump multiple times on ONE BLOCK + Joel did NOT need to lean that much he looks like he's powered by springs + Jim's arms always being so tight together. Makes him. Look like. An old granny??? + Joel IMMEDIATELY checking his wrist afterwards like it's a Tuesday and he's on break + homophobic GRIAN + impulse's dad delivery one liner

The more I watch smallidarity kiss the more bizarre and asinine it becomes to me 😀

When did Joel learn to button jump (he WAS mental for jumping irl irl)

Okay Joel cut out that canary comment why don't you 🙄🙄🙄

WHACK 💀 SHAKE YOUR HANDS REAL FAST 💀💀 JOEL SCREAM #3997 💀💀💀

Fond of Joel's cadence of saying "hello guys!" And "I'm coming in boys!" And "HAHA!" oddly musical

Okay aaaaaaand he dies worst ranking ever good for him the end

Idk if I should liveblog scar next or watch Ren because I've already watched up to skizz + me 'ead 'urts oh well

[roleplay-abiogenesis2]

Questions 7 and 8 for the ask the mundane meme. I'm mobile and can't copy/paste, sorry!!

Multimuse Asks || Currently Accepting!

which one of your muses has the most ships?

I am going to assume you're asking about ships I have partook in. I do not really involve myself in the fandoms I roleplay (like forums, twitter, reading fanfictions or watching videos), so I wouldn't know what people outside of my own sphere of involvement ship. Anyways with this premise...

I believe Sephiroth is the one I have written the most ships with. Which is not a lot, if you can believe it? Most of my RP partners haven't gotten to ship with me because of how slow I am in my approach to chemistry building.

With Sephiroth I have at least two ships established, which is my highest record for a single muse so far. I know, not a lot. Told you I'm Mr. Slow Burn!

what is each of your muses otps? notps?

Akihara Ren: no OTP or NOTP decided

Auron: NOTP with anybody, leave him be

Hakkai: OTP with Gojyo, NOTP with Goku, sorry, but he will cook him treats!

Cyno: Too soon for me to decide on OTP, but I am very weak on pairing him with Aether, Candace, Nilou and possibly Tighnari. Too early to decide on NOTPs.

Fushimi Niki: OTP with Kisa, as OTP as that means- NOTP with Saru and that should be a GIVEN.

Fushimi Saruhiko: SaruMi OTP forever and always, NOTP with Suoh. It gives me the heebie jeebies, please don't.

Sanzo: No OTP, but no NOTP either, really?

GLaDOS: OTP with science, NOTP with cake.

Hazel Grouse: OTP with teasing Sanzo while completely unrequited because those scenes are the best; NOTP with Sanzo because then I wouldn't get any more disgusted Sanzo reactions and where is the fun in that?

Kenshin Himura: no OTP or NOTP decided

Hisui Nagare: no OTP and definitely NOTP with Iwa he is his SON

Hope Estheim: he's a child so I don't really think about ships with him

ZEN: JuZen OTP!! Juzen OTP!! NOTP with Yoosung- and tbh... Jaehee. I'm sorry.

Iwa: Strangely OTP with Fushimi Niki, it's a personal verse in my brain and probably will never see the light of day again. NOTP with Nagare

Jet Enduro: OTP with Virginia Maxwell, who I will never find to RP with and that makes me honestly sad. NOTP with Gallows.

V: OTP with Jumin, yes, I said it. NOTP with Saeran or Saeyoung, he loves them as surrogate kids or little brothers. Also NOTP with Yoosung for the same reason.

Jumin: JUZEN OTP!! NOTP with Jaehee because that is just wrong, and NOTP with Yoosung. What do I have against poor Yoosung?

Kjat: Nothing established.

Syaoran: OTP with Sakura, obviously enough. No real NOTPs so long as age limits apply.

Yukari: no OTP or NOTP decided

Munakata: no OTP decided but DEFINITELY NOTP with Saruhiko... please don't make me do that. I will cry.

Neji: no OTP or NOTP decided, he's a child

Ran: no OTP or NOTP decided, he's a child

Red XIII: OTP with Deneh, NOTP with anyone not his species, you weirdos.

Roy Mustang: I will gloss over this guy for my own safety-

Sephiroth: Sefikura OTP as fanon as it is. NOTP with Hojo, Hollander, President ShinRa, Palmer..., NOTP with Vincent. NOTP with Jenova.

Sesshomaru: No OTPs. Definitively NOTP with Inuyasha or Rin. And I will deal with the consequences of this stance.

Squall Leonhart: No OTPs or NOTPs decided.

Totsuka: OTT with the Homra Founders, of course! No real NOTP decided.

Warrior of LightL No OTP or NOTPs decided.

That was almost painfully shameful to go through. I swear I am not anti-shipping! I just... don't really think about ships much until I am thrown into one through roleplay?

Ace problems I guess.

[sssn-neptune-vasilias]

RWBY RWDE/Discourse Bingo 2

PART TWOOOOO. Again, I like stirring the pot, so here's a part 2 for anyone brave enough to try.

Explanations down below!

"Ironwood's plan was to abandon Remnant entirely." People think that Ironwood's plan after finding that chess piece in his office was to lift Atlas up into the atmosphere and just exist up there until the end of time. Abandon Remnant entirely and just float up there indefinitely, at least Salem wouldn't be able to get the Staff.

"Adam was significantly older than Blake." To me, this feels like one of those things that got retconned into the series after Adam's initial retcon. We still don't have an official age for Adam, but in the comics it was revealed he's like, maybe 5+ years older than Blake? And considering they met when she was 12... Is this something you gathered from the beginning? That Adam had always been intended to be significantly older than her?

"Neptune's "keep your hands above the waist" comment was sexist. People really didn't like that one at all. During the tournament he tells NDGO to do that and a lot of the FNDM went >:T

"Arryn and Barb are fetishizing lesbians." Basically the way that these two are constantly promoting the ship and talking about the characters- also the fact that they even read some Bumbleby fanfics on stream a while ago- seems fetishizing.

"Emerald's redemption was poorly handled." I don't think anyone was expecting a Prince Zuko level redemption but do you feel they could've at least done a little more?

"WoR's worldbuilding should've been explained in the show." Kinda self-explanatory. They made us do homework and took a week off every 5 weeks for like 3 whole volumes just to drop lore videos that should've been incorporated into the show.

"Ruby isn't allowed to be sad." Again, kinda self-explanatory, but I think most of this discourse happened pre-v7. There were a bunch of moments where Ruby could've been sad or upset or frustrated and she really wasn't allowed to feel those emotions. I haven't seen this one since v7 so I think people are happier with how she's been emoting in recent volumes

"Ren was bootlicking v7." Did you feel Ren was kinda Ironwood's Pet during v7?

"Raven wasn't a bad person." This one got me yelled at a few years ago 🤭. Basically people believe that Raven isn't really a bad person. That everything she's done has an explanation that excuses her behavior. What do you think?

"Jaune and Neptune's v2 conversation was sexist." People felt that that entire conversation was objectifying Weiss. Specifically the "you can have her" line.

"Jaune harassing Weiss = bad, Nora harassing Ren = good?" People felt that Jaune's harassment of Weiss wasn't being treated the same as Nora's harassment of Ren. Basically "why is it okay when Nora does it but not when Jaune does it?"

""Monty's vision"" The thought here is that some of what RT has done with the show contradicts some of what Monty had said would be happening and had laid out when he was still alive.

"Pyrrha's death only affected Jaune until v6." Pyrrha's death was only referenced once before v6, and it was through a recording Jaune was watching while training during v4. It never came up again until v6. Did you feel that Pyrrha was basically fridged for Jaune's (and maybe Ruby's) growth?

"Penny's unroboting was bad." This one has a couple reasons behind it. People either felt that it was handled really poorly (a lot of the language that RWBY used to convince Ambrosius to do what he did treated Penny as if her robotness was some external entity and not an intrinsic part of who she was), or that because Penny's story really fit in neatly with a trans narrative that her "becoming human" in the way she did felt kinda squicky. If you agree with either of those, this one's for you.

"RWBY men are purposefully written to be irrelevant and useless." I used to hear this SO MUCH in the past but haven't heard it much since Qrow's become a recurring character. Basically all the dudes in the show are purposefully written to be useless. Jaune has no combat experience, Ren gets folded every fight he's in, Team SSSN hardly exist, etc.

""BMBLB is about the bike"" I am trying so hard not to present any of these in a biased way, but basically people were legitimately, 100% non-ironically arguing that the song BMBLB was about Yang's bike "Bumblebee" and not the ship. I am not making this up.

"Prom arc was wasted time." The argument here was that prom arc was like... almost thirty minutes of screentime that was pretty much wasted time of Jaune trying to convince Weiss that he should have a shot.

"Penny's death was nothing more than a plot device." So the finale of season 7 and the entirety of season 8 all took place in less than 12 hours. And all that really happened in terms of Penny's growth was that she became the Maiden, got unroboted, then died and passed on the powers to Winter- the woman who was supposed to receive them in the first place. Do you feel that there was a better way for Winter to get the powers besides killing a popular character like Penny off for a second- and probably final- time?

"Adam's brand." Do you hate the way Adam's brand was revealed, or the backstory behind the brand? Basically RT said in the director's commentary that some rando "gave Adam a good one" with the branding iron during a fight because "Adam's always been such a bad person" and that's how he got that scar over his eye. Do you absolutely hate that explanation because you know how brands work? Do you think that further vilifying Adam that he was branded as SDC property in a way that he was the aggressor in the altercation is garbage for the racism subplot?

"Ilia was introduced as a "psycho lesbian" trope." The first time we meet Ilia she's working for Adam, and ready to literally kill Blake's parents and best (boy?)friend and cart her off to her abusive ex that's already threatened to kill her numerous times.

"Vine didn't have to die." Vine was able to stop that nuke's shockwave from leveling Mantle from the inside of his stretchy arms... why couldn't he do it from the outside?

"Weiss never apologized." Do you feel that Weiss never apologized for what she'd said to Blake during Black & White? Do you feel that she should have?

"V4&5 Quality drop." Kinda self-explanatory. Do you think there's a drop in animation and fight choreography quality? Or instances of the lore contradicting itself? Some people's least favorite volumes were 4 and 5 for this reason.

"Jaune endangered his team throughout the Beacon arc." This dude literally has no combat experience and every time he and his team go out for missions he's putting them in danger, especially considering he hadn't officially told Ren or Nora about this until way later.

"Shane's letter." PHEW. This is a big one that's definitely gonna start arguments. Here's the whole fucking letter so you can read the thing yourself, but basically Shane Newville- Monty's... I guess "apprentice" would be a good word, was fired from RT in 2016, about a year after Monty's death. This letter goes into some detail about him working with Monty, and goes into further detail on how things were like after his death while working on RWBY, and how RT fired him. This letter was also corroborated by Sheena Duquette- Monty's wife who was also let go by RT (and the inspiration for Neo Politan), and Kathleen Zuelch- Glynda Goodwitch's and Tex's (RvB) VA who also had a falling out with the company in 2013. This whole letter is super controversial, and it's discussing a LOT (it's 36 pages), but do you think that Shane's discussion of RT stepping on toes to get the people closest to Monty (including himself and J.J. Castillo (Mercury's first VA before Yuri Lowenthal took over) out of the company to have full control over RWBY has any merit to it?

[leslyepenelope]

Human art with an impact

Nick Cave wrote that ChatGPT has no inner being. And Joanna Penn talks about doubling down on being human in an AI world. I've been thinking about that a lot as I learn more about what other writers have been and are planning to do with the technology. There are things that I think cross a line, at least for me, though of course I can't control anyone else. I've been thinking that my boundaries have to do with why I write and create in the first place.

I believe that writing is spirit work, that what I do requires a soul. But for the people buying outlines and synopses and character arcs online to write books from, and those generating all of the above from AI, they obviously feel differently. For those who plan to use this technology to publish hundreds or thousands or tens of thousands of books, they feel differently because they write for different reasons.

I don't operate from a scarcity mindset, so while all this is concerning for many business reasons, I try not to be threatened by it. Because they can't do what I do. One of the reasons I write is to make an impact. Art that makes an impact changes lives. It changes hearts. That's what I want for my career.

All of this was underscored this evening when I watched the video "Hi Ren" by the musical artist Ren. (If you haven't yet seen it, I implore you to watch it.) I've followed him for quite a while now and this is the kind of art that is impactful. 10 million views in 4 months is impact. Dozens of reaction videos with people breaking down into tears is impact. The comments section is full of lives being changed by this art. This man baring his soul is changing lives.

This is what I think of as having an impact. Being vulnerable and sharing your human truth. Something AI can never do.

[thistaleisabloodyone]

Finally managed to watch Jiggy Paradise and Leiya continues to be in all of the MVs - at this point, I won't be surprised if he's in Habanero, even if I really can't think of a reason for it.

Unsorted thoughts:

Ryota finally showed up with his crystal! He has a green one. So now we're only missing 4 Psychic Fever crystals - Tsurugi, Ryushin, Kokoro and Ren. We'll probably see those tomorrow. There haven't been any repeats - no one has a crystal twice.

Ryota didn't have a crystal in Beautiful Liar, but got his in Jiggy Paradise; Kazuma had a crystal in Beautiful Liar and didn't have one in Justice is Blind; Riku didn't have a crystal in Justice is Blind, but had a crystal in Black Magic.

Unsure if the crystals are an Aesthetic thing, I'm not sure what theme is or is not happening with them. I just know everyone has them. Jiggy Paradise introduced at least one new color - Yoshi has a blue crystal. For the 'at least' part, I'm not sure if Ryuta or Ryusei have new colors. Ryuta's crystal could be yellow or orange - if it's yellow, it's a new crystal color; if it's orange, Jimmy and Weesa had orange crystals in Black Magic yesterday. Ryusei's crystal honestly looked more like a hunk of silver than a crystal, which would - be unique and new. So if it's silver, new color. If it's white, which is the only other possibility in my mind, then it's not a new color.

I have a document tracking who has what color crystal and what video they got their crystal in, but I'm again on mobile and that document is inaccessible at this time.

Kazuma showed up in Jiggy Paradise, much to my surprise! He had a shot unsheathing a katana.

Fanta showing up around Miku surprised me at first, then Itsuki showed up and I remembered that Miku's character, Future, has ties to both Astro9 and Kisaragi (Itsuki's character) - Future and Kisaragi both grew up in the same wealthy social circle. And Future's father is, I think, the owner of the park where Astro9 performs. Future's father is, at the least, Very Important to the park.

That shot of Masa grabbing Ryushin intrigues me - the facial expression he had seemed to be some form of "Got you", but not like - a surprised got you? A I know you and I've caught you kinda got you. Ryushin's expression also didn't catch me as "Oh, no, a strange enemy has grabbed my arm!"

I really need to, like, rewatch the prior MVs to look into the lion's head pen. It's been in all of them so far and Ryuta capping the pen is the shot that transitioned into Kazuma unsheathing the katana, which may be related, may just be the best place to do the transition.

Also, there was a shot that looked to me like Miku was having a clairvoyant moment and it included a shot from one of the 2019 videos - I'll have to rewatch those three to figure out which one eventually.

I think the background object is some sort of vault door, maybe? Other option is big ass turntable, but that doesn't seem right. Every other background is tied to the novels in some way - Mad Jesters have one of the Books of Chaos; Rowdy Shogun has the Black Diamond; and Astro9 has the mirror (that I cannot recall the name of) - and I'm fairly certain there is a vault of importance, while there aren't any big turntables.

Once again, there was the page flying through left to right with everyone watching it go. This has been a shot in every MV so far, since Ryota tore a page out of the book and threw it, and I'm wondering if the page keeps flying in Habanero or if maybe someone grabs it? Either one would work, but I feel like grabbing it would be a better ending. There haven't really been any - returning themes in the music videos between generations of BOT, so I feel like the flying page would be ending in this BOT generation.

But those are my initial, unsorted thoughts on this bad boy. Can't wait until Habanero's out and I have the full set to repeatedly watch for details. 😂

[yaffles-world]

Sleepy Time with Taka and Wawa

Like 700 words of headcanons lol

Well

Serizawa is a night owl, and so is Reigen but we try and stick to a reasonable ISH schedule you know 

I'm kind of a night owl like idk

Anyway, because Serizawa and I have that anxious, autistic glory, and Reigen has whatever the hell is wrong with him, bed time routines for sleepy are important 

From when we get home from work til when we go to bed, we're together - once seri has graduated school at least. Reigen and I are together, when he's not working back which he doesn't do often. So sometimes we do have nights alone but 99% of the time we end up in the same bed

If we're together we usually divy up the kitchen chores in some way, cooking, cleaning, etc

Either watch a show, a movie, play video games, sometimes I'll draw while they do their own thing etc, or read

Anyway when we actually go to bed

We all get into our pajamas and will go to the bathroom to brush our teeth

Then, especially if its later, we'll shuffle like one big lump of cuddle into the bed

Sometimes one of us will read to the others, sometimes we do our own thing, sometimes we just talk

Various cuddle positions 

All spooning each other in a row

One of us on our back and the other two tucked under each arm

Lying on top of eachother :3

One of us facing one way, the other two facing the one (typically seri cos long) with arms around the two 

Just. Sprawled. Everywhere. Unknown where one limb ends and another begins 

They are sprawled out sleepers, particularly Reigen 

He's like a cat he's the smallest but he fricken spreads his arms and legs out and takes up half the bed

I'm exclusively a side sleeper i must be on my side to sleep, this is a true fact about me

Serizawa prefers to be on his back but he can sleep on his side or whatever particularly if it makes for better cuddling

Serizawa sometimes uses Reigen or me as a weighted hehe

Reigen is so clingy its ridiculous 

This little bitch he has so many needs 

I love him

He's like… without inhibition in the middle of the night

So there's lots of clinging to me and seri and lots of like… love hehe

"Ren… play with my hair… Seri… come here and cuddle me…"

We don't sleep until he does lol

Which is fine cos he's out like a god damn light 

Like we'll all be talking and he'll fall asleep mid conversation or even mid sentence

Reigen's favorite sleeping position is sleeping with his stomach on the bed face down on the pillow like some sort of freak

God bless

He SNORES he SLEEP TALKS and he DROOLS

I LOVE HIM SO FUCKING MUCH 

Sleep talking is cute the drooling is fucking adorable if not kinda gross hehe  but the snoring its like taka shut up 

As soon as he starts snoring if he's too loud i wake him up

For a bit. Eventually we just get used to it. Serizawa likes the noise

Oh and also, night lights

We have a little light above the bed shaped like a crescent moon

Serizawa needs it pretty baby

Reigen needed one til he was 14 and he still prefers one so 

Serizawa also has nightmares :(

Which is about the only thing that will wake Reigen up 

He kinda freaks out a bit but it's mostly manageable 

Generally nowadays it just makes the lights flicker, maybe something floats a bit

We hold onto him and give him kisses which usually calms him down

Sometimes if Serizawa can't sleep he gets up to make some tea

If it's after a nightmare, Reigen's also awake usually so we all shuffle into the kitchen all hanging all over each other 

We'll cuddle and cling to him as we make the tea and speak softly 

Lots of kisses and softly spoken "I love you"s

If seri just can't sleep he'll get up on his own but I either haven't been sleeping either or get woken up so i join him

I think… thats all…

Sleepy kitchen dances :) Serizawa is a really great dancer and its so nice and quiet and UGH

Will probably update with more later :)

[sodantics]

I've been working through a bunch of perspectives aaall weekend and am watching through some more right now while I'm working on a commission, and bdub's ep was SOO good. His editing is so lovely! I love the serene and cinematic vibes, an absolutely delightful episode to watch. Amazing interior on his build as always. Very cozy. Hope the mailbox thing takes off, hermits crawling out of their bases and holes to check their mail every morning... such a wholesome and mundane everyday event to think about.

Also, Grians wheat & sunflower field.... such a lovely image. I hope it gets kept for the rest of the season, I absolutely love crop and flower fields. Really makes me wish minecraft wheat and sunflowers both grew a bit taller!

Tango also FINALLY getting to do regular ole' minecrafting again after being locked to a dungeon for months and months is gonna be super fun. I loved decked out of course but his regular minecrafting is where its at for me, he always blows me away with how good at everything he is...

Joel was also a very silly little goofy boi. I love his longer series so its gonna be exciting having an excuse to catch his videos more often now that he's on HC! I click very well with his sense of humour I just prefer him interacting WITH people!

Hmm what else... Pearlie a little Silly as always. Gem's skin design for this season is so cute can't wait for a good chance to draw it. Zed... gonna be interesting to see his antics as always. Mumbo's starter base is cool and his GRAPHICS! for this season. So amazing (yes I saw the binary yes I am crying)....

There are probably some I'm forgetting and still a few eps I haven't even caught yet (Ren, False, Impulse, Cleo...), so its a lot of fun to have a long watch list like this :0 I hope I get to catch them before peoples ep2s start rolling out!!

[mumbo-wumbo]

spent yesterday evening watching a bunch of hermits' first s10 videos while building a mini room diy kit and it was so nice. i might have to make that a tradition - saturday crafts & catching up with any new povs that have come out during the week.

thoughts under the cut:

Fav POVS so far: Gem and Zedaph!

I'M SO HAPPY FOR SKIZZLEMAN dude seemed so excited to be there ;__;

Gem I've been meaning to watch for forever but haven't so I thought: why not now? and she is SO CUTE AND FUNNY and that boat starter base! what a perf little build!

and ZEDAPH. what an ENERGY. another hermit who i've always loved to see in other hermits' POVs but never got around to watching. and he's so fun!!!!! might have just rocketed up to become one of my fav hermits, flat out.

I love the editing Mumbo did in this first episode - the new title sequence cards are so charming 🥰

& Fuckin project manager Ren lmaooo. RIP to a real one. 'you hate to see it \_u_u_/'

I'm soooo so excited to see how magic mountain develops and all the interactions we hopefully get. They are RIGHT on top of each other! i think that's wonderful!

[princeoftheroses]

i know that i am far from the first person to say it, but i really am disappointed thinking abt the wasted potential in nora’s story arc in volume 8. 

[more under the cut, but disclaimer, i am mostly rambling] 

like, before vol. 8, i didn’t really care much for nora either way. i thought renora was fine & a good background ship, and sometimes nora got a laugh out of me, other times i thought she was annoying, but in general i just was pretty ambivalent abt her and wished she got some more character development which she never seemed to (besides for a little bit in vol. 4, though that was more of ren’s arc than hers, but still i will take what i can get. it’s probably my favorite part of vol. 4 considering mostly i find 4 & 5 to be very boring)

then in vol. 8 they sort of tried to give her her own character arc! i thought it was sort of weird timing & kind of sudden but hey! i’ll take what i can get. and it was also a sign of the writers trying their best & remedying some past mistakes (they did this with cinder, too, trying to fill in the blanks by giving a character arc now - no matter what i feel abt these characters, i do appreciate this. better late than never, right?) 

but like a lot of other aspects of rwby, nora’s story arc suffered from bad writing and lack of direction. it could’ve been much better thought out. it started out strong, with nora’s feelings of not knowing who she was and her worth when she is not with ren - which makes sense, considering those two characters have been joined at the hip & a package deal since vol. 1, but with the circumstances of the plot in vol. 8, they finally separated. even the fact that she talked abt these feelings with weiss and blake was really good in my opinion, because in some way it showed that she was close enough with these other teammates of hers that she could talk abt these feelings.

then she goes maximum  because she thinks what she is good at is “be strong & hit stuff”. i have mixed feelings on this because while i do think that this was a cool scene and was very crucial to this character arc, we have never seen nora having a limit on her powers before (or at least i don’t think we have?) considering she has been hit by lightning multiple times & also lightning shots from dust, but considering vol. 8 tried to mess with multiple characters’ semblances i was willing to put up with it.

the real pinnacle moment of her arc was, while injured and recovering, penny is getting taken over by watson’s interference, and nora is able to comfort penny and help her with the “it’s just a part of you- don’t forget about the rest” moment. that was probably my favorite moment of all of vol. 8. it was really meaningful and emotional in a way that i don’t think the rest of the volume managed to successfully do and the framing of the scene was fantastic. it showed a new side of nora, where she is using her own struggles to empathize and help her teammate and friend. really great stuff.

from then on the arc kind of... fizzles out? 

my least favorite aspect of nora’s arc is the fact that they use her getting injured as a reason why ruby’s team doesn’t really do anything else until after they are reunited with yang’s team. 

they try to conclude it with her and ren’s reconciliation and her going “i need time on my own to figure out who i am without you” kind of thing. but then they don’t take the excellent opportunity for her to be someone who falls at the end of vol. 8? instead, she and ren are one of the very few characters that make it to vacuo! if she had fell instead of jaune (or they both could’ve fallen) you really could’ve had her go on more of a journey of self-discovery without ren by her side. OR! ren could’ve fallen and nora could’ve made it to vacuo. she wanted time by herself to figure herself out, but how would she react to knowing that she will only ever be by herself now that (she thinks) ren is dead? it could’ve been some compelling stuff! 

the biggest waste of potential is the fact that nothing comes of her interaction with penny. for such a pivotal moment in her arc, nora and penny really don’t have a meaningful connection for the rest of the volume? 

penny’s death was already a really badly written moment meant more for shock value. in my opinion, her dying and making winter the new winter maiden was a big waste of future story potential and made the fact that penny even came back at the beginning of vol. 7 a real waste of time (if penny hadn’t been brought back in the first place we would basically be at the same place we are in now. penny would be dead & winter would’ve been the winter maiden. nothing really changed much abt winter to warrant her getting the maiden power now instead of earlier. she would’ve just had a change of heart and left ironwood to join the main cast as the winter maiden at the same time as the heroes left ironwood instead of afterwards.) it would’ve been so much more meaningful if, after her interaction with nora, penny decided to make nora the winter maiden. it would’ve been a change of pace and actually made her character arc MEANT something. her feelings, her development, and her interactions with penny would have been significant and meaningful, instead of just one nice scene that wasn’t really addressed again and becoming a waste of potential. 

it would’ve also made penny coming back in the first place only to die later mean something to, because nora definitely never would’ve become the winter maiden without it. 

overall, nora’s arc in vol. 8 really just felt like a vague attempt at writing something for nora without actually changing anything. it felt like busywork, something for her to do without much real thought behind it. i do not have much high hopes for them continuing her arc next volume, especially considering the arc they already gave her. i hope i am wrong, i hope that what they did in vol. 8 with nora has some actual consequence (either good or bad) but genuinely i feel like they only gave nora an arc because they realized she hadn’t done anything interesting in a while and threw something in there for her. like a lot of rwby, it suffers from the rushed writing. if they had more time to write and develop the script more, they might have realized how meaningless nora’s interactions with ren and penny were this volume because of how she basically ends in the same place she started, and might have done something abt it. i’m hopeful that since they aren’t putting vol. 9 out after only a single year like they did with the rest of the volumes, there will be better writing, but i’m not too hopeful considering all the other projects crwby is working on at the same time as vol. 9. 

[theminecraftbee]

oh oh oh oh i have a question thats kinda adjacent to the current topic: do u know which hermits stream on the server and what their vibes are? i only got into hc right at the end of s8 so im curious what im missing from a livestream standpoint. (i had far too much fun watching foolish dsmp lose his mind over that giant statue and i wanna see if i can get that from the hermits ngl)

hermit livestreams are more common from certain hermits than others! before we continue, know that while livestreams are typically considered "places you might get spoiled", hermits tend to try to be polite and not give away pranks or big projects on stream before the people they apply to put them in a video. how well this goes... depends. but generally, don't expect brand new things live that often. with that said...

my guy, joe hills, is by FAR the most frequent streamer on the server; it's typically his nightly show. it's really interesting to watch him stream because its also how he films his episodes, so you end up getting a look at somewhat behind-the-scenes stuff. if you're awake/able at 10 PM est most days, then there will be a joe hills stream that takes place on the hermitcraft server!

others who are less deeply consistent than him, but who stream hermitcraft fairly regularly: xisuma streams on the server fairly regularly from what i can tell; i think he has a specific day during the week he normally schedules his hermitcraft streams for. he's normally morning in US time. cubfan streams pretty regularly from the server; he tends to be mid-afternoon. he tends to stream grinding a lot. for example, when he had to mine all that raw iron last season, he streamed a lot of the caving he did for that. jevin streams in the evening, and tends to stream hermitcraft. i don't watch enough jevin to tell you what his streams are like, though. pearl streams pretty regularly, normally in the morning us time. sometimes those streams are from the hermitcraft server. finally, impulse streams three times a week at 1 PM est. normally, at least one of those was hermitcraft. presumably, that schedule will continue in season 9!

as for the other hermits: bdubs has been streaming occasionally, i know hypno streams but i haven't spotted it enough to know if he's on a schedule or not, i know gem streams and that it's been hermitcraft from time to time (i watched her build trees once it was relaxing). scar streams and tries to do it as much as possible, but his health issues mean that they're pretty rare. they're fun streams, though, when they happen. doc has said he wants to stream more again, ren has been streaming more lately thanks to that hardcore achievement hunt he's been doing and maybe that will continue into hermitcraft? cleo streams hermitcraft from time to time, although she streams variety more often in my experience. tango streams occasionally on hermitcraft, and may stream on hermitcraft more when he has things to stream for decked out 2.0. iskall streams very regularly. in the past a large number of his streams have been vault hunters, but i think he streams hermitcraft sometimes as well!

and those are the ones i've spotted/know off the top of my head!

as for a few more scheduled hermitcraft things: on mondays, normally around noon est, there's a stream held called hhh, aka hermits helping hermits! normally, the gang includes hypno, joe, cleo, and xisuma, plus a group of other people who rotate in and out. normally, this is for a variety of grindy tasks that are easier to get done with a large group than a small one. if you want to watch people

lastly, hermitcraft will hold stream weekends! normally its announced on their social media, and will spread on tumblr when they happen. they're weekends where they have hermits scheduled all day, sending raids to each other at the end of the day! it's a great way to watch hermits stream with each other, as they normally pass a "torch" between each other all day and have specific tasks planned!

and that. ended up being longer than i expected, but yes, there are the hermits who stream that i am aware of/have seen around! i hope this helps!

[maybe-your-left]

I need dr ren to spit into my mouth lovingly

How would the different Ren's spit in your mouth? A short story, by me. <3

Doctor Kylo Ren M.D. (HIPAA Violation AU): crawl to me, on all fours like a good girl. Ren leans back in his office chair, watching you with his chin in his hands. Intense as you fall, naked, in the middle of his office. This was the third time this week you'd visited, palms sticking to the polished linoleum floor underneath. Surely to bruise your tender knees as you angle your way between his beefy thighs. hands resting on your shivering lap, you look up from under your lashes. Ren smirks before cooing in a soft tone, open.

Kylo Ren (What Goes Up Must Come Down AU): Ren freezes from across the room, shirt unbuttoned as he stands there. Blinking at your smiling face, you hadn't said anything too strange. you just said that if he wanted to give you a taste before the rest of the evening, you'd be fine with whatever. you'd been craving him since putting Nyx down for her nap, the nanny was here and now was just the time for the two of you. dressing up for a nice dinner, followed by dancing, its what you truly needed to start over as a couple. just a taste? he echoes, you raise a cocky brow, nodding in agreement. readying yourself to drop to your knees. suck on his cock like it was no tomorrow-reservations be damned. Ren saunters over to you, a smirk growing on his face and he finishes with the top button. Zipping a tie around his neck, you quickly help him since his big fingers are a joke at it. his hand on your chin takes you aback, opening to protest. only to stop as he spits down your throat, giving a loving kiss before patting your cheek. there's a taste.

Kylo Ren (Happily Ever After AU): Like-right now? Kylo stares at you from across the kitchen island. You'd just been sitting eating cereal when a gif came across your blog. The idea thrilled you-and it had been so long since he'd done something truly depraved. You smile and nod, met by him shrugging and rounding the counter. Quickly grasping your face and wagging his brows, are you sure? I haven't brushed my teeth yet. just do it, you snap, open with tongue out like the video. the small string that slides down is met with his tongue. The two of your locking lips in a passionate moan, tasting like his boring bran flakes.

Kylo Ren (YOUNG LOVE AU): You want me to spit on your face? Oh-yeah. He brings his hands carefully to your cheeks, halting mid-thrust. You're eyelashes flutter shut as he purses his lips, hocking onto your steaming skin while you gasp. Fingers rub it in, bringing them to your waiting, open mouth. Hot on your tongue, Kylo moans as you take a big swallow. Opening your mouth to prove you took it all.

Ex-Con Kylo Ren (Broken Pieces AU): oh darling, you're shaking... could it be that you're afraid? Ren won't hurt you-why don't you come out from the closet. You've closed yourself in there for too long and Daddy's getting tired of waiting. Just a peek-there you are. Ren's hand clasps around your bruised jaw, digging into the torn skin that you'd been trying so hard to heal. Gasping as his lips come to hover over your own chapped pair. Good girl, he purrs, pressing a long kiss that leaves a string of spit in its way. You lick at the seams, tasting before he commands you to open. Yanking your mouth open with a force that makes you squeal in agony until finally. The heady taste falls on your tongue. Swallow.

Supreme Leader Kylo Ren (Canon & Better off Dead AU coming SOON!): little one, Ren cooes as he caresses your face from the edge of the bath. filled to the brim with red roses and swirling mica powders to help keep your skin supple. The leather is smooth on his fingertips, from days spent in battle. So far away from you, you slump towards the edge, naked shoulders barely out of the warm water. just a tease for his dancing eyes, so expressive despite him being unable to form words of his devotion towards the very fiber of your being. i've missed you, his voice a whisper, but you lean into it anyway. you missed him dearly. worried for his safety on the battlefield. you wrap your hands around the edge of the tub, moving to lean out and kiss him with all your strength when a finger to your lips stops you. Ren shakes his head, popping the leather tip into your mouth. you moan, savoring the taste of it. only to be brought back by his playful words. open wide, angel.

College Kylo Ren (Triplet AU - Good Intentions): No. you slump in your seat. You'd slid him a note during personal finance, just to see if he'd bite. Kylo gives you the side eye, readjusting in his seat before pointing at the front of the class. The lecture still droning on while you thought about it over and over. it's not a weird request, just a little taste-he liked being in control. it was a control thing! You pressed on his shoulder again, earning a heavy sigh in annoyance. Kylo gave you a look, if I do it, will you stop it? You nodded eagerly, looking around. No one was paying attention to you, it would look like a quick kiss between a couple. Nothing weird...

______

please check out these WIPs!

also SL KR is stupid in love with his little wife. it's gross and I love it.

no taglist because who cares ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[votederpycausemufins]

Alright, the hc hiatus is getting to me (because other series have also gone on pause and i'm suddenly starved for content) and the other day i was thinking things over and I had a bit of a theory regarding season 8 and its ending.

Starting off by saying I haven't watched every hermit and their videos for the season in depth (though i have started because it's Content(tm)) so if there's stuff in other videos that heavily goes against this, whoops, my bad.

but onto the theory:

Evil Xisuma was the virus

The ending to season 8 was different depending on who you watched and we won't really know how canon some of them are until we get to the next season. If we go along with Doc and Ren's endings, Season Eight was all a simulation to help the hermits fight off some sort of virus.

Where it came from:

The virus is mentioned as being a trojan virus, meaning it obviously came through a supposedly trusted source. While we don't have any in depth knowledge about how the hermit stasis or hermatrix works, I don't think it's too out of the question to assume that the virus came through another hermit. That hermit being Jevin.

Before season 8 started, Jevin had an Evil Encounter (roll credits) with EX that left his appearance changed. This would likely be the origin of the virus. When all the hermits went into stasis, the virus had the opportunity to start infecting other hermits. Since Jevin wasn't the only hermit to change their appearance and there were new hermits joining the group, Renbob and the Goatfather couldn't easily figure out the source, so they started the simulation to give the hermits a way to fight against whatever the infection was.

Making the Evil Empire:

When making the evil empire, EX started to influence a number of the hermits, one of which being Beef. Specifically, Evil explains he was the one who planted the canister of the mysterious substance (it even has his name on it). Technically, planting it beforehand should have been mostly impossible since the world itself wasn't real, but if the Evil Xisuma we were seeing was actually a virus, it would have been a way to spread it that was planted in the virtual world.

That's also how EX was able to mind control Xisuma, since it was more of a virus infecting him. Meanwhile with Welsknight, the appearance of Helsknight would poke some holes, but he does appear again with the hels kitchen bits with an altered voice, so it is likely part of the virus.

Derpcoin and the Octagon:

Outside of the Evil Empire, Derpcoin was most seen in Octagon, so much so that there were derpcoin expansions made over there along with the octagon pair proudly showing their derpcoin. This seems like it would be the opposite thing to happen since all the octagon buildings were made to fight the virus. The opposite is mostly true as the only visual we have of the virus (at least heavily implied) appears in octagon, that being the pairing of warped vines and amethyst. I'll go a bit further into that part later.

Losing his powers:

The first time we really see Evil Xisuma losing his control over Xisuma is when they were at Octagon. Though this was after moon's big had begun and the moon was featured heavily in the background, it did still take place at the octagon buildings which were, of course, made to fight the virus.

After another visit to octagon, EX's power weakened even more down to just being confetti.

Moon's Big:

Now I just said that the moon wasn't the cause for EX losing his powers, but that doesn't mean it didn't have a part to play in everything. With the crashing of the moon in Ren and Doc's videos, the scene changed to show the fact everything was a simulation. The first words to go along with it all are the Goat explaining that the Hermatrix Defender Firewall was successfully installed, followed by a video showing the crashed moon. After that, the simulation was shut down, so the last thing to be done was the firewall being implemented, which again, points to that being the moon.

Because of that, the moon really should have only affected one world, so in Evil Xisuma's escape, he left to a different world. But instead, he was surprised to see the moon was falling there too. Since anything outside of hermitcraft would also be a simulation, it would make sense that the moon would fall there too if it was really just a symbol of a firewall, especially if part of the virus was there.

Back to Reality:

With the end of the simulation, all of the hermits are shown off in stasis. Upon showing them off, there is no sign of Evil Xisuma anywhere among them, meaning his appearance would have to come through other means. Technically, one could argue that it was something made up by the hermatrix, xisuma specifically, but that doesn't feel right.

Another thing to happen with the scene on the hermitcraft ship was a message of an intruder, which is explained away as the it being from the hermits just waking up, but that likely wasn't the case. Especially with the appearance of a physical form of the virus having attached itself to the ship.

When running a check on the ship after the report, nothing is found a second time, so either there was an error and the virus has hidden itself, or there was an intruder there that left, possibly Evil Xisuma having planted a back up with the original failing.

I will say that part has less proof, but the appearance of the virus was made to be a bit of a cliffhanger so there's not much to go on for that.

Other details I'm not sure how to otherwise fit in:

The whole moon's big arc was planned by Grian and Doc, meaning that the hermatrix ending is likely going to be pretty canon. That along with the fact that putting it altogether would need Xisuma's approval, him being the server's admin means he would have been in on everything and could make Evil Xisuma act to fit.

I don't know too too much about the early days of all the hermatrix goings on, but I do recall that Xisuma was pulled into the arg portion when Doc and Ren had him help look for the cave that was filled with axolotls and a code, giving more of a connection with the hermatrix and the goings on of Xisuma and his connection to the evil empire.

The first appearance of Helsknight does leave me a bit unsure, though he also said he had plans and then only appeared again in the EX animations, so maybe he was somehow part of the virus that got killed off and remade or was just weakened or what.

In Evil Xisuma going around and showing off the derp coin to the hermits, he never went out of his way to visit Zedaph's area. Evil Xisuma has worked with Worm Man in the past to the point that EX claimed to stop being evil and the fact that EX was very excited to get Worm Man themed items as a gift in the past. While many of the hermits have had some interaction with the hero in the past, Zedaph seemed to have the closest interaction based on the interview he managed to get with WM. This is a slight stretch, but possibly EX knew about this connection and didn't want to hurt WM through Zed so made it so Zedaph wouldn't be hurt.

aka, EX knows Zedaph is Worm Man and wouldn't want to hurt his hero/person he looks up to.

Conclusion:

I'm not sure how to actually conclude this other than summing up that I think the virus that was affecting the hermits and the hermatrix was made to fight against was Evil Xisuma as he appeared in Season 8.