#i haven't watched this movie in ages but its still such a good basis for an au

[oldxenomorph]

now that it's been a while since romulus came out, i can incoherently talk about my thoughts and feelings and what elements i'm incorporating into my canon. enjoy!

for all my friends new and old, here's my personal stance on the alien franchise thus far. my own opinions, of course, some of which may be controversial. i'm very picky about my alien media, i guess.

alien and aliens are my personal, all-time favorites. nothing in the franchise can really be better than these two. they’re the gold standard. they're our introduction to the xenomorph and the xenomorph queen. these are two incredibly tight, well crafted films. i saw alien at a very young age and it was truly thee formative influence. (more like my mom let me see it at a young age and it started our tradition of watching horror movies together.) the first time i saw the xenomorph it altered my brain chemistry permanently. the xenomorphs live inside my brain at all times. these two films will always have a special place in my heart.

alien 3 is a polarizing film in my household. i don't like it, my mom loves it. first it was stuck in development hell and then there was too much studio interference. i don’t care for the writing. but i did like the royal facehugger from the special edition cut, i think that was interesting. (also i’m glad david fincher moved on to make truly great films because he’s one of my favorite directors.)

i'm a certified resurrection hater. i think it's the worst of the franchise. it's just..... so bad. i hated the way it looked. i hated the writing. i hated the acting. i absolutely hated what they did to the xenomorph queen. i hated the newborn. the only thing i liked about resurrection was seeing xenomorphs swim. (i understand that there are queer viewers for whom this movie means a lot to them, and that's fine. it's just not for me.)

i don't care for the alien vs. predator movies.

i haven't read the comics because i have too much to read already.

on the opposite end of the spectrum, i'm one of those freaks that LOVED prometheus and covenant. despite their flaws, i think they set up really interesting thematic elements to the franchise and add a lot of interesting depth. i loved the look of the engineers (so much so that i made their body the basis for the emperor's). i love the trilobite, the deacon, the neomorph, and the preatomorph. i love david 8 and all his weird idiosyncrasies.

alien: isolation is the only video game of the franchise that i've played and its one of my favorites, of all time. it's right up there with mass effect and hades.

and now: romulus.

this was pretty much everything i wanted from a new alien film. (fede alvarez, king, you have done it again.) i absolutely loved the use of practical effects. i loved the atmosphere and the tension. the facehuggers and the xenomorphs were plentiful but still terrifying (and beautiful). andy and his actor really stole the show for me, what a great performance. I EVEN LIKED THE OFFSPRING.

i think where romulus really shines is in how it utilizes the themes and elements that were set up in prometheus and covenent. especially covenant. the connection between david reciting ozymandias and the station being named after the creation myth of rome, is a straight line. (also huge moment for us prometheus/covenant enjoyers when the black substance returned!) while romulus is less about faith, the themes of godhood, horrific godhood, creation and destruction, humanity's hubris, exploitation and expansion, are still, in my opinion, at the center of the film.

romulus was also smart in bringing back weyland-yutani as the evil corporation that influences the events of the films. pairing weyland-yutani with the romulus and remus myth was such a good choice, i think it speaks a lot to the central themes of the franchise. (i know fede alvarez said that the romulus and remus motifs are Not That Deep, but that won't stop me from finding deeper meaning and symbolism and context.) something about weyland-yutani's hubris to exploit the black substance to expand its corporate empire. weyland-yutani has always been an indictment of capitalism, in the way it views all life as being exploitable, expendable, in the name of capital domination and profits.

(also, i totally thought that the painting in the hallway was a version of les sabines by david, but i wasn't sure because it didn't look quite right. luckily someone on reddit pointed out that the painting is actually view of the hotel de ville marseille during the plague of 1720 by michel serre. still thematically tracks especially re: the offspring both nursing from and devouring kay at once. incredible imagery and symbolism in a single shot.)

romulus is by no means perfect. i didn't like all of the callbacks to the previous films. i definitely had a 'he would not say that' when andy said "get away from her, you bitch." when they showed the rook android i was like "oh no.... they gave ian holm the peter cushing treatment." i think those were mostly my main complaints, that the callbacks felt a bit forced.

anyway. things i'm adding to my canon.

the cocoon. i'm so glad we got an addition to the xenomorph life cycle! loved this thing.

the offspring. not the offspring itself, but it's giving me ideas for the princes of entropy.

i'm really intrigued by how the offspring looks (not just its resemblance to the engineers). i've always imagined the princes of entropy has being perfect balances of nyx and the emperor's genetics; generally the emperor's body and signs of nyx in their faces, eyes, and hair. after seeing the offspring, i'm envisioning them not having carbon copies of the emperor's body, but something that's has more xenomorph qualities: dorsal tubes, tail, metallic teeth, that retractable tongue with a jaw. they be embodiments of the 3 possible ways the universe will die, but they still meant to be reflections of their mothers.

they wouldn't come into their fully formed shaped until after the finish their n7 training (hard to blend into humanity when you're 7'7"). but yes, i'm envisioning them as being perfect versions of the offspring, sharing lots of characteristics with their sisters. deep down i just want them to look even more fucked up and unsettling. they are my special little guys.

(something about the princes being, in many ways, the diametric opposite of the moirai, nyx's oldest children. not just in what they represent, but the fact that they get to be so close to their mother. i know i've touched on this before, but it's something i like exploring. we know that, according to achilles, nyx created her children alone, and sometimes under great stress, even if the great family sent their midwives to help her. she loves her children, but even she acknowledges that motherhood wasn't always a success. when she had the princes, the first of her children with the emperor, she was surrounded by the great family, the xenomorph queens, the rachni. she had them in the black palace, with the emperor's true shape next to her, holding her hand. every time she looks at them, she sees herself and the emperor.)

the scorched xenomorph. i imagine her being one of the older drones, and received her scorched scars protecting her sisters. love thinking about her taking pride in her scars because the emperor has scars and she is a reflection of her. also her more mechanical design, i loved so much. thinking about her taking on such qualities because she dreamed about the reapers when she was born, maybe her facehugger impregnated someone with high level indoctrination.

not only did i love how terrifying the facehuggers were, i loved their spider-like behaviors. raising their forefingers up like the way tarantulas do. also they were so fast! look at them go!

anyway, alien: romulus good. sensational. fantastic even. thank you for my life, fede alvarez. i've already bought two romulus shirts. i am going to be the best dressed person in my department.

[cheswirls]

AAAAAAA OK BUT THIS IS SO CUTE???

you are tugging on my heartstrings with the past sabolaw aaaaaaaa to see sabo say that all his love was buried with law was so heartbreaking.

idk if it's the translator i'm using or if i can jus tell this is written in your first language but i think i do like the bahasa indonesian version better jus slightly???? besides a few verb tenses in english i don't think there's too much of a difference to matter tho.

speaking of, i ran by work last night before close and asked a coworker abt the movie basis. i think our consensus was it's too new and still in theaters to be subbed in english and out on the internet but he did know a few friends who watched it at the beginning of the month and said it was good - so it's on my list!!!! i will watch it eventually + thanks for the movie rec (:

that being said i haven't even watched the trailer so i have no idea how much this is like the movie - i'm jus purely going off of the story which is so good. its so good. cannot stress that enough. i am in love w this idea.

i'm glad i did go back and read the original because i wouldn't have picked up that the italics were english words haha. ace being kinda fed up at this point in his career is rly cute. at least it's shanks he's working with and has the support of!!

the fact that he's using his and sabo's actual names tho is so ;u; !!!!!!!!!! idk idk. like obviously i feel its going the direction where the movie will come out or sabo will get hold of the script somehow and put the pieces together either/or and thats how ace "confesses" but at the same time if its a love story i feel like it would need to be complete before ace finished the script and filming starts?? unless its a hopeful original ending, which i can also see being a plot point. obv this is like an intro or starter to a grander idea so my speculating is worth nothing. unless you write more for it which i will be here for absolutely <3

the fact that their friend group only updates w sad news is so ughhhhh i feel it but it pulls at my heart nonetheless. not big news like jobs or weddings or such but sad news like deaths. why. why do this to me. why lawwww waaaaaaaaaaa

"people our age can't fall in love like in the movies, ace" he says, and then 100% eats those words later on hehehehe god but this reminds me than in america, it's very casual for 30s to be considered "old" already which makes my blood boil. every time i catch a 30-something saying they're old i have to counter that out loud (but it always makes them feel better so i'm happy to continue) it's jus sad that people think living a third of their life makes them so ooooooold already when it's not the case. so i really like the premise of this one already w this.

sabo working at a flower shop owned by a friend makes me wonder what he did before law died, when they lived somewhere else. i'm thinking back on the line abt his dreams dying with law and that makes me think maybe he gave up on whatever career he had four months previous. :((( it would be interesting if it also had something to do with the film industry and maybe ace reigniting his passion for work is what leads to him "discovering" the movie plot. or maybe i'm thinking too much on that angle and it's a cute movie ace takes sabo to see once released after they're already in a relationship. like a cute easter egg thing at the end. maybe. idk

deuce and robin as shanks' choice actors is interesting !! i wonder if ace has any deeper connection with either of them, maybe along the lines of friends, or if he jus knows them by name. (actually i wonder if sabo knows either or knows one of the actors that will get a starring role and might tell him about the "new movie" they signed on for and "what it's about" and sabo will connect the dots that way. i'm so obsessed if you can't tell erhghweglwegw)

your writing is so cute and playful too!! i really enjoyed reading it both times. tho it's been so long since the two have talked meaningfully, they seemed to fall back into old habits and routine pretty easily :) i love fluff like that. if you do more you will have my entire heart

acsb jatuh cinta seperti di film-film!au

an english version of acesabo fanfic based on an indonesian movie; jatuh cinta seperti di film-film (literally translated into falling in love like in the movies)

warning: spoilers for jatuh cinta seperti di film-film, past sabolaw, minor character death, grammar mistake as english isn't my first language (but i did try my best!).

you can find the indonesian version [here]

enjoy!

-

all things fell off from ace’s hold onto the floor right after he opened the door to the producer shanks’ working room. a worried voice coming from outside, offering to help picking up his things. 

“it’s fine, i’m good. just a little bit nervous,” ace replied while reaching out to his water bottle and put it in between his left arm. 

after closing the door, ace's eyes wandered around the room that was already familiar to him; a working space with warm yellowish lights with wallpaper-covered walls on the top half and brown wood panels on the bottom half. ace took a deep breath, then moved to face producer shanks who would be his debate opponent for the next few hours. 

"ace, ace," before ace had fully sat down and prepared himself, shanks had already held out three stacks of manuscript towards him. "i'm already thinking, your next work will be a soap opera adaptation again." 

ace frowned, “uh, shanks? didn't you say that this time you wanted to use my original script?" his voice was a little hopeful; hoping that shanks’ words were just a joke. 

the red-haired man before ace folded his arms over his stomach. "that's how it was. but now that i think about it again, you're really good at making film adaptation of soap operas. it's better to just adjust to market tastes than taking risks, ace." 

ace mustered up half his courage as he removed three stacks of adaptation manuscripts to the side. “shanks, i bring my original manuscript. don’t you want to listen to it first?" this time, it was ace who held out a thick stack of a slightly crumpled manuscript with black paper clips struggling to clamp all the papers at the corner. 

shanks took the manuscript that ace offered, flipping through the pages–but ace was sure, shanks didn’t read a thing. one side of shanks’ eyebrow raised as he looked at ace, giving permission to ace to continue speaking. 

"well, shanks. first, before i start, imagine the film was made in black and white–" 

(the dimly-lighted working room lost its color in ace's eyes, tuning into ace’s imagination which was starting to seep out of the crevices of his brain. the interior wallpaper and wood panels were no longer green and brown, but gray.) 

“black and white? our audience doesn’t like it, ace. only 15 minutes into the film, they will come to the staff, ‘is the film broken?’. how come you came up with an idea as if you didn’t know what our audience was like!” shanks immediately closed ace’s manuscript and put it back on the table. 

ace rolled his eyeballs, “there’s a meaning behind it, shanks. i promise. the colors will be back at the half-end! this is romance, romance!” 

shanks' eyes narrowed. “romance?” ace nodded. romance, suitable for the largest target market in this country. it was also easy to ask for promotions from the cinema side. “this isn't an art film, is it? commercial?” ace nodded again at both questions. "okay, try me." looks like shanks were sold a little bit. 

"this film tells the story of a film writer who wants to get his highschool crush by writing his love story into a script–" shanks looked at ace, starting to get interested. ace gave a little pause to escalate shanks' anticipation. “–but his highschool crush just lost his husband.” 

"don’t tell me, this is a sad story? no way. the audience won’t like it. make it a happy ending, man, so we can make a stunt about someone proposing to his crush after the film ends. it will be viral, for sure.” shanks looked up, already imagining what gimmicks and marketing techniques could be used for this film.

“you’ve already thought too far ahead, sir… but, yeah, it will have happy ending. calm down!” ace chimed in. after making sure shanks was convinced, “shall i continue?” 

shanks nodded, allowing ace to resume his story. 

-

sabo met ace again in the supermarket cashier line.

-

“ace? you use your name as your character’s name?” 

“shanks, this is only draft, and, yes. you want to have a personal story as an original story, right?” 

“so, this is based on your personal experience, huh?” shanks grinned widely and ace was ready to continue while holding his smile shyly. “but, anyway. why supermarket, ace? it’s too ordinary. not romantic.” 

"maybe the first meeting seems too ordinary. but if we look deeply, there is sadness in our main character's eyes, sabo."

-

sabo met ace again in the supermarket cashier line.

the last time sabo met ace, as he remembered, was at sabo and law's wedding. after that, sabo's contacts and meetings with his high school friend faded along with their respective busy lives; sabo with his newlywed life after moving to another city and ace focusing on his filming career in the capital city (sabo didn’t know the details). 

at the front end of the line, ace looked confused. sabo vaguely heard from the cashier that ace’s apples hadn’t been weighed. ace turned around while apologizing to the queueing line that was forced to halt because of him.

the corners of sabo's lips lifted slightly, apparently ace's carelessness hadn't changed either. 

ace, who had stepped aside on the side of the queue line while saying sorry, suddenly stopped and met his gaze with sabo’s. the confusion in ace's eyes turned into a warm glow like greeting an old friend. 

“sabo, right?”

there’s an air of certainty edging around ace’s voice in sabo's ears. as if ace knew, he couldn't be wrong, because there were only a few blonde haired people with a big scar on their face.

"hi," sabo greeted back. the confusion that was shown on ace’s face now had shifted to sabo’s, he didn’t know what he should say to an old friend whom he met again in the middle of a waiting line like this. "hurry and weigh those apples, many people are waiting." 

hearing the familiarity in sabo's voice, ace put the apples randomly on the side display case, as if he didn't want to lose any time with sabo. “i'll just cancel the apples, come, you can check your groceries out with mine.”

before sabo had the chance to refuse, ace already brought sabo's shopping basket. leading sabo to the cashier, cutting the line.

“uh, ace–no need to! really–" sabo gave up on taking back his shopping basket because ace had already arrived in front of the cashier. sabo could feel other’s eyes on his back, staring sharply as he cut the line. “so sorry, yes, excuse me..."

he arrived in front of the cashier whose face was already annoyed. sabo could only apologize once again. "please separate the payment, thank you."

again, before sabo could stop him, ace had brought several of sabo's shopping bags. there was only one shopping bag left for sabo to take with him, which only contained vegetables. the lightest bag. sabo sighed, good-ol'-ace just like back then. 

"ace, let's grab some coffee."

at least sabo should give ace something as a gratitude for saving sabo’s precious twenty minutes, on sunday afternoon, that could be gone in a flash just for queueing on the grocery line.

-

"that's great. i can already imagine deuce as the actor."

shanks' voice disrupted ace's flowing imagination.

"isn’t deuce too handsome? ace, here, is a script-writer... i don’t think there are any script-writers that look like deuce?” ace was half annoyed because shanks interrupted him during the fun part of the story.

"well, we just need to make his co-star no less beautiful. nico robin for example," shanks turned his chair to the left while holding his chin, in his mind there were already several possible suitable actresses and actors. “iconic couple.”

not as sweet as sabo, though. ace thought, but that would be a matter for another time. ace took the opportunity to continue his story while shanks was thinking of any potential candidates. 

-

instead of coffee, sabo took ace to the bubble tea shop (at an age where you should cut back on sugary drinks, it was fine to taste it sometimes). after all, you didn't meet high school friend coincidentally very often. their chat started with the casual pleasantries and life updates such as current business or asking for a new address.

sabo answered with a little bit of hesitation, he’d been back here for four months. without needing ace to ask why sabo was back, he felt like ace already knew the reason; the information had been spread in their high school group chat, which only got active when there was an obituary.

but sabo didn't want to dampen the mood between them, and ace also seemed to catch the look on sabo's face, even though sabo was the first to change the topic of conversation.

"what about you?" sabo asked, folding his hands on the table before continuing, "how's work?" ace looked at sabo, not sensing any bad intentions from the question. ace chuckled, scratching his black hair.

"aw, shit, we are reaching to this topic, huh?" ace leaned his back against the backrest. he felt unable to escape from sabo's curious gaze which, for some reason, ace had never been able to avoid since high school. "yeah, business as usual. write a film script adaptation from a soap opera."

“oh yeah, yeah. i watched it, your film adaptation of that soap opera, through the link that was shared in the group chat. what's the title? reincarnation remake?” very wrong, but sabo was enthusiastic.

“reborn.” ace corrected.

“reincarnation... reborn?”

ace hid his face in his arms which were folded on the table.

"what’s the difference?"

ace raised his head. "yeah, i don't know, my producer said it was catchier." his right hand shook his plastic earl gray milk tea cup. "huh, hang on. did you say you watched it from a shared link? was it a pirated site, sab?"

this time it was sabo who couldn't avoid ace's shocked gaze. “it was an official link, i swear! the quality was HD when i watched it!” sabo panicked, but for some reason, ace laughed even louder at sabo's answer which made sabo smile.

"you're a mess, man! how come you don't support your friend's work." ace shook his head, his hand was holding his left chest, pretending as if sabo's actions were very offensive to his feelings. it was sabo's turn to laugh now.

this was his loosest laugh in the last four months.

"sorry, okay? i don't really understand that kind of thing." sabo replied while taking a sip of his bubble tea drink, an attempt to get rid of the awkwardness after being caught watching a pirated film in front of his friend who worked in the film industry. "next time i'll watch your work at the cinema. what are you working on now?"

ace was pondering his decision, before finally answering.

“this time i was asked to work on an original manuscript. romance, of course. because it is always on high-demand. i'm still in the process of looking for ideas, though. but i'm thinking about making a romance for our age."

“romance? if you want it to be easy, just make it about teenagers school romance, right? at our age, we have a lot of other things to think about," sabo answered, noticing the disapproving look on ace. "isn't it? sweet and cute love belongs to teenagers, ace.”

ace shook his head as he hastily downed his drink, his tongue clicked before wagging his index finger in front of sabo's face, not sharing the same thoughts as sabo. "no, sab. people of our age can also be sweet and romantic."

"god, i can't imagine going into the cinema and watching a romance film where the main characters are already in their thirties like us," sabo raised both of his hands slightly, curling his fingers. "people at our age just need to talk nicely and discuss it if they have a problem, ace. there's no beating around the bush or kissing under the rain, we can’t be sweet and cute like school romance."

sabo saw the man in front of him chuckled, "no, no, i'm going to make a romance story between adults that can beat the sweet romance story of teenagers!"

there was a moment of silence between them before sabo broke it, "people our age can't fall in love like in the movies anymore, ace."

ace was silent, not wanting to reply back anymore. sabo had his own thoughts which he was sure cannot be shaken, but ace also had his own.

-

“you just put the title after TWENTY MINUTES IN? you're crazy, ace. and the first twenty minutes are just casual talking?"

ace smiled.

"that's romantic, shanks. the romance of adults.”

-

they talked for almost two hours until they were interrupted by a call from hack, an employee at sabo's flower shop, which made sabo remember that he had to go home. from the corner of his eyes, sabo saw ace still wanting to catch up. actually sabo did want too, there were still many things that sabo wanted to hear from his old friend. but now that sabo was back living in the capital, he could meet ace any time again, right?

ace offered to take sabo's groceries to the car, which of course, ace had lifted before sabo could refuse.

after all the shopping bags were stored into his car and sabo said thank you, they were silent for a moment as if they wanted to stretch the time.

and that was when ace spoke up.

"do you really... won't fall in love again? have you ruled out the possibility that there might be someone else in your life?"

sabo was stunned-still. suddenly, it felt like there was a lump stuck in his throat which made sabo unable to speak. his eyes and brain tried to find the meaning behind ace's gaze and question, but to no avail.

"i... i am fine of being alone... because after–" sabo cleared his throat, swallowing the bitter taste that came from nowhere, gathering his strength to answer ace. "after law passed away four months ago, all my love and dreams were buried with law, ace."

sabo closed the door of his car, trying not to see ace's expression at that moment.

“thank you, ace. let's meet again sometimes soon." sabo smiled and waved, before driving off in his car, leaving ace in the parking lot, like the end of the first sequence of a film.

-

ace fiddled with his fingers anxiously, while shanks leaned forward on his desk. ace's anticipation amidst the silence was rewarded with the producer's words;

"i'm waiting for the next development, ace."

ace's eyes widened, he wanted to jump right here right now, but he held back. the celebration can be done any time, at least, the initial stage of the manuscript was finally accepted

"thanks, sir!"

ace withheld his smile, not only because the initial stages of his original manuscript were accepted by the ever-impenetrable shanks, but also because ace was finally able to make a reason to meet sabo again.

at least ace could used 'surveying florist for his new film' as an excuse to visit sabo’s flower shop. because ace needed to understand sabo better and his entire background, including sabo’s feelings and grief. 

[grinchwrapsupreme]

the nature of Me is always mapping out a The Baker!AU for every piece of media I get invested in.

So anyways, here’s The Baker!AU for BBC Ghosts:

The Captain is a special ops soldier whose work is starting to really destroy him mentally and physically, so when his old MIA partner, Havers, reappears with an Intent To Kill he calls in a favour and retreats to a friend’s abandoned bakery in a small village where he assumes the pseudonym “Captain” and does his best to lay low

By running the bakery

Which he isn’t very good at

While trying to bury the last bit of evidence of his former life in a remote field he gets hit in the head and blacks out

Fortunately there happened to be a scout troupe nearby and Scoutmaster Pat puts his first aide badge into action, taking the Captain back to his house and taking care of him until he wakes up

Naturally the Captain is very suspicious at first, but this Pat guy seems Extremely trustworthy and they quickly form a friendship that teeters on the brink of something more

But as with all small towns, gossip spreads fast, and Mary, who happened to see the Captain burying his service revolver before he got knocked out while she was tending her crops the next field over eagerly shares the opinion that this “Captain” may be some kind of secret agent or hitman or something because she googled the gun and it’s definitely not civilian issue

Some of the other townsfolk take this idea and run, building it up to the point they believe if they can figure out the secret code the Captain will kill the people they don’t like

George Button orders a chocolate cake for his wife, Fanny, and, by sheer coincidence, she falls out the second story window of their home the next day (and survives, but the damage is done) and tells everyone he’s cracked the code

Next thing you know everybody’s ordering chocolate cakes for everybody and a few unfortunate accidents only confirms their beliefs

The Captain, unaware of the rumours, is just enjoying the sudden jump in business and making some really bad cakes

Business is so good, in fact, that he hires local girl Kitty to help him and with her assistance he actually starts to get quite good

Between Kitty and Pat, the Captain is actually becoming quite contented in his new life even as chaos is rapidly building among the community

Unfortunately nothing lasts forever and eventually Havers turns up

Things happen and everything comes to light - the Captain’s past, the chocolate cake hits, everything he didn’t want getting out - and in turn he learns that Havers believes the Captain betrayed him on some previous mission in what was actually a massive misunderstanding brought about by unrealized feelings and trauma

With the town defending him, the Captain is finally able to explain himself to Havers and, at last, put things to rest

The Captain officially retires from the armed forces and puts his full efforts into the bakery and he and Pat fall in love everyone gets a happy ending blah blah blah

The End

[nocompromise-noregrets]

What three cartoons (if any) do you enjoy?

Good question. I don't really watch animations, not out of any particular aversion, just that it's been a long time since I've had the mental energy to get into anything new, and of the snippets of various things I've seen on here, none of them have grabbed me enough to make me want to check them out (also I'd have no idea where to look, we have all the streaming services and I still haven't a clue). I do have a deep and abiding fondness for the 1990s X-Men cartoon series, which I discovered in the early 2000s when we had cable TV at about the time the original movies came out and I fell headlong into the comics fandom, partly because it actually does justice to the comic book characters and gives me my Gambit/Rogue fix on a regular basis. I was hoping to enjoy the Marvel What If...? series, but with the exception of a few characters I was disappointed because almost every episode was world-ending grimdark in-every-other-universe-everything-goes-horribly-wrong, which I am Not In The Mood For at the moment (although it was evidently all setting up for the final episode, but the payoff...didn't make up for it).

I loved the original Animaniacs, although I haven't quite figured out how to watch the new series (I am fairly sure I didn't hallucinate there being a new series...or did I?), and way way back I loved the old Looney Tunes. But animation hasn't really been a huge part of my life in general (I am of the generation who grew up in between Disney's old heyday - I saw The Fox and the Hound in the cinema when I was about six, and then they didn't produce anything for ages - and the new films that came out in the 90s when I was already a student, and so I didn't start there, or with the Dreamworks animations or any of the others; I never really started anywhere. I also grew up in the middle of nowhere and basically went to the cinema a maximum of ten times between the ages of about six and 20, and we didn't rent videos, which was slightly in its infancy at the time I believe, ditto satellite TV, so I basically grew up on whatever was on terrestrial TV. I never had the watching-favourite-videos-over-and-over-again thing...)

Okay, that was a very long way of saying I've never really been into animation, wasn't it? XD Sorry! But thank you for asking! <333333

[doorbloggr]

Friday 28/5/21: Media Recommendations #4

Its Friday again, so that means I gotta nerd out about things I've had on my mind lately and recommend other people go enjoy them too.

Today's topics of interest will be:

Manga/Anime: Fullmetal Alchemist

Videogame: Monster Hunter Rise

Music: Kiss from a Rose; Seal

In past weeks, I have picked my recommendations based on shows/music etc that are not as mainstream as I think should be, hence I am recommending them with the intention of increasing the audience. But this week, I am sure these three pieces of media are very widely known already. And its not wrong to like popular things, they got popular for a reason. So this week I'm gonna gush about why I like these popular things.

Fullmetal Alchemist (Fullmetal Alchemist)

In the vaguely European-esque country of Amestris, those gifted by natural or acquired powers can reshape the world around them using the power of Alchemy. In this world, magic users, called Alchemists, are publicly known and acknowledged. The government even employs many State Alchemists, who receive funding for their specific alchemic research, in exchange for their cooperation during military conflicts.

Fullmetal Alchemist has one of the most well put together and interesting fantasy settings in all of fiction (in my opinion). It is both medieval fantasy but also late 1800s europe, and this helps create a world where magic has very strict metaphysical and political rules.

The story within this world focuses on the brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric, who become the youngest known State Alchemists as part of their quest to restore Edward's limbs and Alphonse's entire body which were lost to a tragic alchemic experiment gone wrong. Ed has classic napoleon complex, and detests anyone looking down on him, but he often has more than enough bite to back up his bark. Al is much more calm and collected, but despite his soul inhabiting an imposing suit of armour, he is the younger brother and often emotionally immature. The two have an interesting dynamic, where the older brother is small and snappy, but still feels responsible and protective over his towering, intimidating younger brother who speaks with a very child-like voice, but could easily knock you out.

FMA is not a very complicated story, but it has depth. Its rich world, with a variety of interesting and endearing characters, make for a very engaging time. It is a story of growth, trust, bonds, and rebuilding what was once lost, while maintaining what you are still working on.

There are 3 ways to experience this story. I have gone back and read the original Manga, and if you prefer Manga as your story form, it is a very fun read. There are two anime adaptations, one that was in production and finished before the manga was complete, and another that came a few years later. The former has a different ending to the latter, and I can only recommend the latter, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, seeing as I never watched the original series. But I have heard on good authority that both are worth the watch, so it is up to you. I can't really decide on a definitive favourite anime, but Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood is easily always top 3.

Videogame: Monster Hunter Rise

Sometimes, the rich lore and story are what makes or breaks consumable media, but sometimes, all you need is pure stupid fun. Monster Hunter is a series built on a simple premise that does not need much fluffing to be enjoyed. You are a hunter: a very skilled and powerful warrior who weilds, often oversized, powerful weapons of many types, and it is your duty to go out and hunt monsters: powerful creatures who can co-exist with the world but on a case by case basis, put the people and wildlife around them in harm's way.

Monster Hunter Rise is the newest game in the series, and is on the Nintendo Switch. Many players I've talked to have said that this is the easiest game to get into, but that does not make MHR an simple, boring game, and top-level play is definitely a grind. The draw of Monster Hunter is that every "level" is a boss battle, and that battle takes place over a huge map. In this game, the hunter is tasked with finding the monster, and then using their own gear, plus the help of nature around them, to incapacitate the target monster.

This game has fourteen weapons to choose from, and using each is like playing a completely different action game. They can be grouped as Heavy, Light, and Technical Weapons, but the truth is, all weapons are unique, and depending on which specific model of a weapon you use, they can be even more unique within that weapon. Monster Hunter games are RPGs, but rather than gaining EXP, and stat changes indicating growth, Hunters use bits of the monsters they've hunted to make themselves stronger.

Both new weapons and armour require monster parts, and you're never guaranteed to get all the parts you need from one hunt. So the game encourages you fight the same monsters multiple times, learning patterns, honing your skills. When you have made your ideal weapons and armour, you have gotten significantly better at hunting those monsters. Monster Hunter Rise introduces Wire Bugs, a resource with a variety of uses ranged from spiderman-ing up and across mountains, to lending themselves as super moves for your weapons. Breath of the Wild held a place in my heart for ages because of how good it feels to traverse, but honestly, Monster Hunter Rise's wall-running and grapple-hooking blow BotW out of the water. Its just fun to move! If you enjoy action games and boss fights, Monster Hunter Rise is 100% a game you should check out.

Music: Kiss From a Rose; Seal

In my very deep Spotify library, there's a lot of music I will just sometimes skip. Not because I don't like it, but because I need to be in the right mood. But there's also a select handful of songs where I will never skip because I will always be in the mood to shout those lyrics, no matter when or where. Seal's Kiss from a Rose is one of those songs.

The song was originally part of the soundtrack for Batman Forever, but it is not a song explicitly about that movie. I didn't even know this myself until a while after I was obsessed with this song. Kiss from a Rose is an emotional, almost melancholy song with a very hard to place meaning. Seal has said it could've been about a difficult relationship, but I feel it is up to the listener how they interpret it.

The instrumentals are subtle yet powerful, soothing yet exhilarating. It is just a very engaging song and the lyrics are just hard to not sing along to. If you've heard it, you know. If you haven't, take a listen and meet your favourite song this week.