#i'll save you from this franchise. boy

[spyfoxindrycereal]

sorry for the dr posts. i have byakuyautism.

[perseidlion]

This is why streaming is dying.

I'm Canadian, and I used to watch Star Trek on Crave. Crave saved us for awhile from the fracturing of the streaming landscape because it stayed as an umbrella service for quite some time. I used to get Star Trek, HBO, WB shows, Starz, Sony stuff...basically Hulu + HBO + Paramount. That was actually worth it because for the same monthy fee I could get House of the Dragon, Star Trek and more.

But that wasn't going to last forever. When Paramount+ launched in Canada, Star Trek got taken off Crave. I'm a huge Star Trek fan but even I couldn't justify a FIFTH streaming service just for Trek.

So I waited until Discovery was finished. And then I binged it and season 4 of Lower Decks. And then I cancelled. I won't get it again until S3 of Strange New Worlds and Season 4 of Lower Decks are finished, then I'll binge and cancel again.

There is literally nothing else on P+ I want to watch. I looked, because if there was something I'd cancel Netflix for a bit. But it's all movies I've seen and don't want to rewatch, shows I already have access to on other streamers, or things I have no interest in.

When the networks were working together to put lots of tasty treats under one streamer, it was absolutely worth it. I'd pay $20 a month for Crave if HBO kept making good shows (instead of cancelling them, RIP Our Flag Means Death) and if P+ had lots of Trek (and...didn't keep cancelling those shows like they did Lower Decks and Discovery.) Between that and Trek that would mean I always had a show releasing on the platform that I wanted to watch.

As long as there isn't a steady diet of things that appeal to me, I WILL keep subscribing, binging, and cancelling. Churn is the reason these networks aren't profitable. But there is literally no incentive for me to NOT do that when the things I want to watch are scattered across 5-6 different streamers, each charging $15+ a month.

In trying to get their slice of the pie, the networks have guaranteed there isn't enough food on their buffet to keep people coming back for more.

It creates a vicious cycle. This fracturing means there's not enough budget to support the flagship shows/franchises. Then, they get cancelled and/or budget reduced. So they take away or vastly reduce the thing I want to watch the most.

PLUS none of the networks are nurturing the cult hits/franchises of the future. Shows that have the potential to be the reason I subscribe are being cut off at the knees after virtually no promotion.

I watch every new show like Dead Boy Detectives knowing there is a very high likelihood that this will be the only season I'll get to watch. So much potential is left on the table. If there were four or more shows like Dead Boy Detectives and Kaos getting ongoing commitments from Netflix I wouldn't even consider cancelling my subscription. Instead, I know that any show that isn't an immediate cultural moment is probably getting the axe, or getting two seasons, max. Especially if it's SF&F. Especially if it's queer.

We live in the world where even the critically-acclaimed and franchise-based House of the Dragon is getting truncated episode runs and reduced support.

Regardless of how you feel about how Game of Thrones ended, that franchise is a cultural juggernaut. House of the Dragon is legitimately good and packed with talent. The rough patches of Season 2 can be easily traced back to reduced budgets/cut episode run at the last minute that forced the production team to scramble and adapt.

Honestly. Is there anyone actually committing to their series other than FX, AMC, and Amazon with Rings of Power? Although RoP can also be considered a sunk cost fallacy since Amazon invested a SHIT TON into the IP and the series, so they need it to work. They also have a wobbly track record supporting other shows. (I will never forgive them for cancelling A Leage of Their Own.)

FX and AMC are the only networks that feel like they're actually supporting their content. And what do you get for that? Shogun, one of the best shows in recent memory. The show absolutely swept awards season (and rightfully so) and is now setting itself up to be a tentpole show in the mold of such classics of the historical fiction genre like Deadwood, The Tudors, and Rome.

Interview With the Vampire, is an AMC show which has a very active and passionate fandom eager for more of it and Anne Rice's Immortal Universe. This is a rare example of a new franchise (albeit based on an existing, well-know IP) is really finding its feet and its audience. The audience for it is not of the size of something like House of the Dragon, but AMC is feeding the audience it does have unapologetically, with queer camp horror full of messy, toxic relationships.

Then there's What We Do in the Shadows, which seems to be ending on its own terms this year. FX is a Disney subsidary which somehow manages to commit to the series it creates, which proves it can still be done.

I do hope that FX and AMC continues to support their weird and wonderful shows, and I hope they keep getting rewarded for it with high ratings and awards so that the rest of the networks will smarten up.

If we hadn't just come out of a golden age of streaming where every network was producing excellent TV, all of this heavy cancellation and fragmentation wouldn't be quite so devastating.

Entertainment seems like it's constantly in a feast or famine churn. Right now, we're careening toward famine, which is full of one-season shows, overextended franchises, flagship shows being cut/restrained and a whole lot of cheap dreck.

It's the reality TV heyday all over again and I hate it.

[frankenwolf1564]

Transformers ONE: a quick overview

I'm fresh off my second viewing of TF ONE (at the time of writing) (yes I am that kind of nerd) and I really gotta get my thoughts out on it because it is such a spectacular film and easily one of the best pieces of media this franchise has seen, like, ever. This first bit will just be some general thoughts and full on spoiler-y stuff will be below the line in case you still haven't seen it, which is something you should go and fix, like, right now. Do it. Go watch the movie.

First off, the whole thing is just. Gorgeous. Nearly every frame is its own work of art. Cybertron is realized beautifully, both in Iacon and on the surface. Buildings hanging from the ceiling, endless layers and impossible heights, it's so easy to get lost in it all. It contrasts amazingly with the grungy, cramped mines and the harsh, living crust that's constantly changing and shifting. The visuals alone sell this film.

Orion and D-16's friendship is handled impeccably. It's really fun to watch them bounce off each other and it's easy to see why they're friends. What's even better is watching them fall out. This is your spoiler warning, because even if you know exactly where they're going to end up (which is likely if you've consumed nearly any Transformers media in the like, past decade?), the fun part is seeing how they get there.

oh and like. Bee and Elita are alright. I guess. They're probably not why you're here but y'know. Scarlett Johansson was ok. I thought some of her deliveries were kinda weak, especially by comparison to Brian Tyree Henry and Chris Hemsworth, but she wasn't bad. Neither was Keegan-Michael Key. I found Bee a bit grating but that was kinda the point and he was still funny, so.

Alright. You've seen the movie? You don't care? We're clear? Good.

You can see the exact moments that turn D-16 into Megatron. Yet even before those you get these tiny little hints that he's a bit off. He goes off about killing Orion or straight-up mutilating him, but it was a joke guys, he didn't mean it! "I'll melt your face into slag" isn't a sign of a sound individual, no matter how casually it's said. He's only convinced to go on Orion's quest for the matrix by the allure of praise and adoration. Everyone else is shocked or remorseful when they hear about the Primes getting killed, while D-16 is angry. The second he saw Sentinel's betrayal he was thinking about what he could do to him. How he, personally, was betrayed by what he'd done. How he could get his revenge. He took every single slight against the entirety of Cybertron, the betrayal and selling out of their race, as a personal offense. He slaved in the mines to fuel the Quintessons. He had his T-cog ripped out. His hero was killed. His idol was a traitor. Why shouldn't he be the one to set it all right? Then there's his declaration to kill every one of Sentinel's followers. Right before they're captured by the high guard, he's telling Orion that none of Iacon would turn their backs on Sentinel, that even when shown his lies like they were, they would ignore it. They would continue to follow him. He was fully comfortably slaughtering every single person that even for a second believed in the system like he did. There was one bot that tried to talk sense in to him, but he had stopped listening long ago.

Orion Pax is great. He's (going to be) the boy, he kinda has to be. Right off the bat you're shown that he's a rule breaker and not contempt with the system. He wants to find the matrix not to please Sentinel, but to help his fellow Cybertronians. He wants to bring back the flow of energon to make everyone's lives better, especially for those down in the mines. He's eager to do a good job in them because he wants to help. He's a little self centered about it all, certainly, but it always comes off as for the greater good. He broke protocol to save Jazz when the mines were collapsing. He broke into the Iacon 5000 to show the city that all miners were capable of more, not just that he was. He knew that there was more for everyone than just mining more energon. He's looking for a way to make things better. This is one of the many things that helps set him apart from D-16, who, while not happy with his place in the world, was content. He believed it would all work out as long as he stayed in his lane and did his part, even if that lane sucked. Then there's his reaction to the truth. He feels sorrow and anguish when he learns the Primes were betrayed and killed. He mourns the loss of life. He's put off by how eager D-16 was after killing one of Sentinels guards. He tries talking him down but it doesn't work. He's dead set on that path and there's no getting him off it. You can see the fear in Orion's eyes that there might be no turning back for his friend as he's fighting Starscream. It's a side of him he's never seen before and he doesn't like it. The rage. The unrestrained, unfettered violence. The sheer brutality in both his blows and his words. But there's still a shred of hope that, once this is all over, he'll have his friend back.

That last scene man. I cried in both my viewings. Orion is desperately trying to talk D-16 down, hoping that maybe, just maybe his friend will listen one last time. Sentinel is beaten. He's been completely exposed. He can't run. He can't fight back. There's nothing left for him except to be taken in and shown justice, but D-16 isn't having it. He will give Sentinel what he feels he deserves. He will tear down everything that traitor has built. He will rebuild their new world. He. Will. Have. His. Revenge. And he's not letting anyone get in his way. Orion jumps in front of Sentinel in a final bid to do the right thing, to preserve some sense of right, to get his friend to see the light, but it's not enough. He takes the blow. He gets knocked to the edge, and out of instinct D-16 grabs him. Then he lets go. He lets Orion fall to the depths of Cybertron and. Man. The music swelling as the planet itself parts to bring him to the core. D-16 tearing Sentinel in half. Any and all remaining clutter and debris clearing as the core comes into view. D-16 declaring the traitor as finally dead. That the age of Primes and their impersonators is gone with him. Primus himself grabbing Orion and saving him. D-16 tearing the stolen cog from Sentinel's lifeless torso. The Thirteen Primes coming forth from the core to induct Orion. D-16 upgrading himself into his new form while Orion is healed and blessed with his. D-16 declares himself as Megatron at the same time that Orion Pax is given the title of Optimus Prime. It's powerful stuff. Any other flaws this movie has are rendered completely null and void by that one moment. It's that good and I can not wait to see what comes next.

I want to end the review there because *gestures broadly* but I still have more to say. I am. SO fucking glad Optimus isn't the reincarnation of one of the Thirteen or anything like in IDW(?) and the Aligned continuity. It's Orion Pax's destiny to become Optimus Prime, don't get me wrong, but he still has to earn that. He shouldn't be handed it on a silver platter because whoopsie daisy yur the reincarnation of one of robot god's direct descendants kid. So I am very happy to say ONE Orion worked for his new title. He stood up for what was right. He fought against injustice. He didn't take the easy way out. His creator saw that he was worthy of more and granted it to him. And it's such good contrast to Megatron, who took the power that he wanted, not caring who got hurt in the process. Just. God damn it I love having actual themes to dissect and analyze and character arcs and stuff. Feels fucking good man.

so go see this movie I need a sequel

[self-indulgent-paw-patrol]

You know something I don't see anyone talking about? In the climax of the Mighty Movie, when the giant meteor is coming down, Ryder's response is to tell Skye to save herself, that meteor probably would've destroyed all of Adventure City and maybe even beyond, and there's no telling if they were able to evacuate the whole city by that point, I doubt it, Ryder was willing to let a whole city get destroyed and potentially a bunch of citizens get killed all for the sake of his pup, just goes to show how much Ryder cares for the pups, cause when it comes down to it, he'd choose them over a whole city

Dude THAT SCENE FROM THE MIGHTY MOVIE HAS SO MUCH TO UNPACK I WANNA SCREAM EVERY TIME I REWATCH IT

Also as much as that might sound weird because "he would sacrifice the city for his pups" (it DOES sound terrible), THAT WAS PROBABLY THE HARDEST DECISION EVER IN RYDER'S LIFE SO FAR and I'm gonna explain now why I'll always defend this boy with my life

Under the cut bc it gets long and I'll be talking details about a still kinda recent movie and I know some people who didn't get to watch it yet XD

First, YEAH, they were NOT able to evacuate the city on time. There were still a lot of people on the streets, including the very Paw Patrol team. Just like in the beginning when the first meteor came down and when they needed to secure a landing path for the plane, we see they first make sure the streets are empty before they look for shelter themselves. Same thing happened in the first movie, remember? During the storm, they secured the streets around the skyscrapers first, and only then the pups went for shelter in the building as well. This time, though? There was just not enough time for that. It wasn't about emptying a whole avenue or a few blocks, that giant fucker was going to obliterate AT LEAST HALF THE CITY.

Man, Victoria was indeed crazy. Just where the fuck was she planning to have that shit land as she pulled it down to Earth???

Which brings up another point...

The Paw Patrol was still there too and none of them had a crystal to power up and use their powers to escape. All crystals had been handed over to Skye just a few minutes before.

DO YOU GET WHAT THAT MEANS???

Ryder knew that was it. If Skye wouldn't be able to stop that giant meteor, they were all going to die.

Skye could die trying to stop that meteor.

If she would be successful and save everyone, she could still die while at it.

If she failed, she would die along with everyone else.

Ryder refused to let her sacrifice herself like that, even if there was a chance to save everyone, the risks were just too high. The biggest chance was that they would ALL die there- so if there was one way to save at least ONE of them, he was going to take it.

As much as the franchise relies on crazy and surreal odds (Dinosaurs? Merpups? I think Dragons too, I didn't get there yet? We can just keep going lol), Ryder is still a realistic kind of person. He's a dreamer, sure, but he's also realistic. He's a science kid. He knows the numbers, he calculates odds very quickly, he analyzes every situation faster than you can think so he can choose the best course of action and instruct his pups on where to go and what to do.

The best case scenario there? It was to ensure at least Skye would survive. She had the crystals, she was already out there in the air, all she needed to do was to get out of the way and fly far to stay out of the impact shockwave. No biggie. Anything else, any other idea to try and save the other pups, it would take too long and they wouldn't get away in time, and it would only bring Skye to die as well. Skye wouldn't be fast enough to fly all the way back to redistribute the crystals. She would get there, but then they wouldn't have enough time to run or hide, only Chase would be fast enough to get away and he wouldn't be willing to run and leave everyone else behind.

And there's also the fact that Ryder always puts his pups' safety and well being above his own too. He will make sure they're safe and sound in any given situation before beginning to consider about his own safety. It's his main duty to make sure they'll be okay. They're his responsibility.

And if even just one of his pups would be left behind to die, he wouldn't go either. Even if that meant letting the city get destroyed and taking several other people with them in the process.

The world be damned, his pups are well trained and always putting themselves at risk for the people, but when it comes down to it, their lives will always come first for this kid. And if one stays behind, he's staying too.

On a last note, I don't remember how it is in the English dub right now, but in the Brazilian dub his voice CRACKS SO HARD when he's telling Skye to save herself. He sounds SO DESPERATE and, and, like, he's trying so damn hard to keep his shit together, to get his point across and he knows they have zero chance of escape and survival, he knows these might be his last words to her, IT HURTS SO FUCKING MUCH--!!!!

[goginaporter]

rina + iconic couples in media

this is my fun way of responding to the alternate universe prompt for @rinaweek <3. rina and their parents in every universe, finding each other and falling in love. alsooo this post was slightly inspired by this absolutely brilliant edit linked here (x) and if you want rinatroyella or rinajacey edits, please lmk and I'll send my favorite ones <3333

troyella

the essays that can and have been written about troyella and rina are extensive (and I'm happy to do a longer form one in a separate post). but from being the new girl x boy who's never moved, girl encouraging boy to audition for the musical and actually commit, kissing in the rain, starring in the school musical together, to making a huge commitment to the other person on a stage in front of a bunch of people, rina is quite literally troyella reincarnated. and yeah, lots of people can argue that troyella is perfect as is, that they didn't need another version. and on one hand, i agree. but the way in which rina takes core parts of troyella's story while standing on their own as a ship is beautiful and truly does justice to the original franchise by anchoring the story around these two, both individually and as a couple, just as was done with troyella in the original trilogy. my favorite troyella parallel moment from s4!

4x01 - ricky sneaking into gina's room just like troy would come into gabriella's room through her balcony

4x02 - the note ricky gives gina in the hallway to meet in their secret staircase is just like the note troy slips in gabriella's locker in hsm to meet on the rooftop. (honorable mention to them auditioning for and getting the roles of troy and gabriella in this ep as well <33)

4x03 - of course, it has to go to their rendition of can i have this dance. their voices sound gorgeous and though the choreo they do has similarities to the original, they've made it their own.

4x04 - this one is kinda reaching but I wanted something for each ep! in hsm2, sharpay forces troy to sing a song with her, one she prepared for the talent show, instead of allowing him to go on a date with gabriella. in a similar vein, though with considerably less scheming from dani's side, dani is selected to replace gina as gabriella because she is so busy with the movie, though this is done behind her back.

4x05 - has to go to the rain kiss obviously. although troy and gabriella only ever kiss under sprinklers, it's the same vibes. there's also a still (not included in the scene) of the rain kiss of ricky holding gina's waist as she throws her arms up that's so reminiscent of troyella in the rain during cihtd.

4x06 - ricky and gina running down the hallway at the beginning of the episode feels like a direct parallel to troy and gabriella running to auditions in hsm. also rina fighting to save the show is super similar to gabriella (and troy once gabriella convinces him) pushing for the theater department to put on a show about them for their spring musical.

4x07 - they're literally playing troyella in this ep so I could say so much. i'll just use this space to talk about how much I love them in a night to remember and how much it looked like they were dancing at their wedding. I will say that terri, gina's mom, telling ricky about gina's movie with a smile on her face, reminds me a lot of gabriella's fans setting troy up to talk shit about her on camera to convince her to focus on the decatholon. also reflects sharpay telling troy about stanford, again with a smile on her face.

4x08 - again, this ep is rife with toryella coding because they're literally playing troyella, but the show goes super meta in having them sing the right here, right now reprise as ricky has just found out that gina is potentially moving across the world to film her movie, just as troy finds out about stanford and struggles with gabriella not being there for the rest of their senior year. on a much less angsty note, ricky singing love you forever to gina has the same vibes as troy choosing gabriella and going to school close to her, not to mention that lines in the song directly reference the song "high school musical" (which you can read more about here <3). gina also deciding to move the movie to salt lake is very much her "I choose basketball but I also choose theater but more than all of that, I choose gabriella" her version is "I choose filming this movie but I also choose theater but more than all of that, I choose ricky" just a beautiful perfect scene all around.

these s4 moments only scratch the surface of the troyellarina tether but i'll stop ranting for now and move on to rina's teen drama parent sets.

jacey

after s1, tim federle did an interview where they asked him about him about the ricky / nini / gina triangle, he directly mentioned dawson's creek in guiding his writing process, stating that at the center of his thought process was "how do I surprise audience members with who they're going to ship?" (x). for those who don't know the jacey lore, to make a long story short, their love triangle centered around joey, pacey, and dawson. joey and dawson were childhood best friends and joey has a crush on dawson. pacey and dawson are best friends and joey and pacey do not get along initially. after events of life, dawson asks pacey to "look after joey" at the beginning of s3, the two get super close and eventually catch feelings for each other and they secretly date as they figure out a way to break it to dawson (sound familiar?). they do break up but come back together at the end of the show and are endgame. the parallels between jacey and rina exist both on and off screen. dawson and joey were the initial endgame for the show, just like rini was the show's s1 endgame. however, electrifying chemistry between katie and joshua (jackson) & sofia & joshua (bassett) in their respective shows changed everything. rina is one of the strongest examples of continuing this legacy of disrupting the initial plans concocted in the writer's room to make way for insane chemistry. some of my fave jaceyrina parallels

rina and jacey having a formative, chemistry presenting moment in a car (rina in 1x05 during homecoming, joey and pacey in 1x during their science project)

the sheer parallels between them in 3x19 of dawson's creek and 3x08 of hsmtmts with their kiss scenes. just watch here (x) and here (x) to see. the "stop me" "wait" parallels actually make me go crazy

joey tutoring pacey in 3x09 and gina (presumably) becoming ricky's tutor after 4x06

i'm rewatching 3x09 in preparation for this and jacey has a scene where dawson catches them talking about pacey helping joey with a ballroom dance scholarship thing in exchange for tutoring and he asks them what no one can find out about and a) pacey sucksssss at improv just like gina it's like that 4x02 scene with rina and ashlyn and b) it also feels like rina with the chocolates, again with ashlyn LMAOOO in 2x04

ALSO in this ep (wow it's a goldmine), when dawson and jen catch joey and pacey ballroom dancing, they're forced to join the class and the instructor psychoanalyzes both couples. for jacey, she mentions that the tension and bickering between them suggests their underlying attraction for one another. this is literally what val (their choreographer!!) does after watching rina perform wdykal in 3x05

too much to explain for the final scene of this episode but i just encourage everyone to watch 3x09 to get the same sense of a major scene in a coat check and an ensuing apology

pacey telling joey he remembers everything in 3x22 and ricky telling gina he's never forgotten a thing she's said in 4x03

pacey telling joey that the simple act of loving her is enough for him and that she's "off the hook" and ricky telling gina that of course she has to go and be a star, as well as singing lyf not knowing that she was staying in slc, so he just wanted to let her know that he loved her for the sake of it, not to convince her of anything

pacey having to tell joey something but lying to protect her (and ricky having something to tell gina but lying to protect her (3x07)

naley

another paragon of teen drama royalty is naley. literally the best people ever and it makes sooo much sense that rina is similar to them because they're actually rina's grandparents. naley birthed troyella, who birthed rina. a beautiful family tree. anyways, naley doesn't seem to, on the surface at least, seem to have a lot of parallels to rina. a shy tutor girl and a cocky basketball player who get married after knowing each other for less than a year? (though I will go down with my headcanon that rina gets married super duper young, will not be taking any arguments). despite this, at their core, naley's love for each other is so reminiscent of rina's love for each other, not to mention some incredibly direct parallels that the two have, listed below:

nathan dropping haley home after a party & ricky dropping gina home after homecoming ("yeah, this is my house" & "so, this is where I live")

connecting over dubious circumstances (nathan requesting haley as a tutor/getting close to her to get back at lucas & gina convincing ricky to stay in the show so she could get gabriella, attending hoco with ej to psych nini out but instead connecting with ricky)

nathan putting haley's hand to his heart after telling her it's racing (it was because of drugs but still, it beats for haley) and ricky putting gina's hand on his heart after telling her that his heart's racing (i'm telling y'all this scene is the same, just with the characters and setting swapped)

alllllll of naley's s2 angst is like the intense and more painful version of rina's angst in s4

naley invented rain kisses (even if they existed before them, no they didn't) and rina obviously does justice with their own rain kiss in 4x05

when nathan proposes to haley (their first proposal), he tells her that "I could love you forever." audience, what's the title of ricky's love song for gina? i rest my case

haley being nathan's tutor and gina being ricky's tutor <3333

nathan sneaking into haley's bedroom to study and makeout and ricky sneaking into gina's bedroom to sing and makeout

nathan and ricky being haley and gina's biggest fans when it comes to their careers, putting their success over their personal feelings (nathan collecting clippings of haley's tour, paying chris to let her record music & ricky decorating gina'ss trailer, encouraging her to go to nz to be a star)

rina served cheerleader x basketball player (though at different times and both were fictional but wtv) just like naley

this was super nonexhaustive as rina also has parallels to jam, mondler, sethmer, romeo & juliet, and so many other ships. however, I'm lazy and didn't want to write all of those out. maybe I'll return to them another time, but for now, pls enjoy this <3333

[dekuhotnugget]

Zelink Relationship in Breath of the Wild

In early 2022, I started playing Breath of the Wild and to this day, this game manages to win me over in a way I never imagined in a game of the franchise. One of the things that fascinates me about the game, beyond the whole world and exploration, is the relationship between Zelda and Link.

Notes:

This analysis is based on Zelda and Link's Diary cited in Breath of The Wild. Link's diary is quite subtle because, of the game's English translation but, I'll explain how it works.

In the game, there is a quest called "Captured Memories" where you have to go to various locations in Hyrule to recover your memories with Zelda from 100 years ago, which I will also use in the analysis.

The memories and the diaries in BOTW are crucial in deciphering the sentiment between Link and Zelda.

Part 1: Zelda's Feelings and Thoughts about Link

First Impressions of Link

First, let's talk about Zelda's feelings based on what we have in BotW. In BotW, precisely in Hyrule Castle, in Princess Zelda's room, it is possible to find Zelda's diary, where she expresses about how it was to meet the champions and about went to researched the ancient technology and below that she wrote "P.S. Tomorrow , my father is assigning HIM as my appointed knight..." and this "HIM", she refers to Link.

In the first memory of the game, we can see that Zelda wasn't happy with the idea of being followed and watched by Link.

Zelda also brings up the fact that Link spends most of his time in silence, writing this in his diary:

"And still, not a word passes his lips. I never know what he's thinking! It makes my imagination run wild, guessing at what he is thinking but will not say. What does the boy chosen by the sword that seals the darkness think of me? Will I ever truly know? Then, I suppose it's simple. A daughter of Hyrule's Royal family yet unable to use sealing power...He must despise me."

In one of the memories, Zelda is angry to discover that Link has followed her, going so far as to yell at him and with that, she adds in her diary "He seemed confused by my anger."

From that point on, this is where I believe her first impressions of Link were wrong because, after that memory comes another one where we see Zelda being chased by the Yiga Clan, then Link appears to save her.

After that incident, she writes in her diary:

"I am unsure how to put today's events into words. Words so often evade me lately, and now more than ever. He saved me. Without a thougth for his own life, he protected me from the ruthless blades of the Yiga Clan . Though I've been cold to him all this time...taking my selfish and childish anger out on him at every turn... Still, he was there for me. I won't ever forget that. Tomorrow, I shall apologize for all that has transpired between us. And then...I will try talking to him. To Link. It's a worth a shot."

The beginning of a big friendship and love

This diary entry starts to make more sense with the next memory we see Zelda worrying about Link's safety while still berating him, after defeating several strong enemies.

From that point on, Zelda begins to treat Link in a more friendly manner and shows concern for him as well and we can see this in the memory where they are both riding a horse, while Zelda thanks Link for his advice.

After that, returning to her diary, Zelda writes the following:

"Bit by bit, I've gotten Link to open up to me."

"When I finally got around to asking why he's so quite all the time, I could tell it was difficult for him to say. But he did. With so much at stake, and so many eyes upon him, he feels it necessary to stay strong and to silently bear any burden. A feeling I know all too well... For him, it has caused him to stop outwardly expressing his thoughts and feelings. I always believed him to be simply a gifted person who had never faced a day of hardship. How wrong I was..."

and then, in the last sentences:

"I wish to talk with him more and to see what lies beneath those calm waters, to hear him speak freely and openly...And perhaps I, too, will be able to bare my soul to him and share the demons that have plagued me all the years."

And with that quote in her diary, we found out that yes, Link can talk in the game and that's quite interesting to add. Another very interesting thing to add is how Zelda talks about how one day she will give her soul to him. I looked it up and it means to tell someone tell your secret thoughts and feelings.

For all these years, Zelda has been pretending to be a person that her father (the King of Hyrule in BotW) wants him to be and even, she tried to open up to her father and this happens in one of the memories too, when he found out that she was taking a break from her training to try to awaken the sealed power but, instead of acting like a father, he acts rudely, saying that she should focus on her training instead of wasting time on silly things.

If we go to her father's diary entries, he says:

"The reason her sacred powers still won't awaken is because, she's speding all her efforts playing at being a scholar!"

With that, we realize that Zelda during those years was pressured by her father and was never able to open up to anyone. During two memories, we discover that she was unable to contact two of the goddesses, the goddesses of power and courage. With that, she also mentions that she will go to Mount Lanayru, in hopes of being able to speak with the Goddess of Wisdom but, once again, she is unsuccessful and we see this in the memory, where she returns with Link from Mount Lanayru.

This is where things start to get interesting. Still in the same memory, Mipha speaks "If I may...I thought you...Well, I'm not sure how to put this into words...I'm actually quite embarrased to say it. But I was thinking about what I do when I'm healing. You know, what usually goes through my mind...It helps when I think-when I think about-"

Unfortunately, she isn't able to finish the sentence due to the Calamity Ganon waking up at the exact moment but, I strongly believe she meant "It helps when I think about..." (the person I deeply care about/love).

Skiping now to the last memory of the game, we see Link surrounded by several guardians while protecting Zelda. She begged him to run away and leave her to save himself but, Link wouldn't. About to die for the guardian, Zelda gets in front of Link to protect him and finally, after years without success, she finally manages to awaken her power.

Zelda ends up saving Link, sending him to the Shrine of Resurrection. 100 years later, when Link was fully healed, she aided him throughout Hyrule and helped him to defeat Ganon.

After having sent Link to the Shrine of Resurrection, in other memorie, Zelda goes to Korok Forest with the Master Sword to the Great Deku Tree. During this they have a conversation and in this, Zelda says:

"Great Deku Tree, I ask you, when he return, can you please give this message...Tell him I-"

"Now, then...Words intended for him would sound much better in the tones of your voice, don't you think?"

"Yes."

We never learn what her next words were but, with that scene and for me, it's the last detail that proves that Zelda didn't have a reason to find the power inside her but, when she did find a reason, protecting the person who she cared/loved about, she was finally able to accept who she was and with that, she finally awakens her power and in the end, saves Hyrule from the Ganon Calamity. Until now, Zelda's feelings for Link were just a theory but, I discovered more solid evidence which clearly shows that Zelda is in love with Link. After you complete the game, in the village of Rito, you will meet Kass and he will tell you about his master, who was part of the Sheikah Tribe and who was in love with the princess, better known as Zelda, however, Kass himself mentions that "But the princess herself only had eyes for her escort, her own knight attendant."

More evidence, in the lyrics of the game's ending song it says "An ancient hero, a Calamity appears, Now resurrected after 10,000 years. Her appointed knight gives his life, Shields her figure, and pays the price. The princess's love for her fallen knight awakens her power. And within the castle, the Calamity is forced to cower" and with that, i say checkmate.

Part 2: Link's Feelings and Thoughts about Zelda

Intro

BotW world is an absolutely huge and expansive one that contains many secrets. Some of them may be obvious and can even be found in the game itself but, there are others that only you will be able to find if you do research outside the game.

Unlike the other diaries of the characters in the game, Link's diary is not found in any location in Hyrule but, in the side quests themselves but, this diary is only exclusive to the Japanese version. In other words, the version translated from Japanese to English, they decided to change and put the translation of the side quests in 3rd person but, in the original version, the Japanese one, the game presents the sides quests in the 1st person, that is, in the Japanese version of the game, the side quests are told from Link's own perspective and not the player's, thus creating a sort of Link's diary. blowing minds

But first, before talking about what Link thinks about Zelda, I think it's important to talk a little more about the character itself. In Hyrules Warriors: Age of Calamity, 100 years before the events of BotW, Link is introduced to us as a Silent Knight and Skilled Swordman who is renowned for his figthing skills courage and his devotion to the Royal family of Hyrule. Slowly but surely, Link is becoming much more expressive with his emotions as time progresses. In BotW, there is a cutscene where we see Zelda and Link riding their horses together. At this moment, Zelda thanks Link for his advice on how create a bond with her horse. This means that some point, Link must have shared his expertise on horses with Zelda, in order to help her to do that he needs to speak or at least, write it down for her, although we don't see this in game. It's very possible that Link directly spoke with Zelda here so, it's not like Link is incapable of speaking or of any communication at all, is just that he chooses not do but why? Well, the answer is in Zelda's own diary. In her diary, Zelda says the following:

"With so much at stake, and so many eyes upon him, he feels it necessary to stay strong and to silently bear any burden. A feeling I know all too well... For him, it has caused him to stop outwardly expressing his thoughts and feelings"

Link tells Zelda that the reason he doesn't speak is because, he feels it's necessary to stay strong and to silently bear any burder so actually, our beloved protagonist has fell strong emotions all along, he had just decided to keep them all bottled to himself in order to appear reliable and strong to Zelda. What else can we find out about Link? What does he really think of Zelda? Well, Link actually has an extensive character description in BotW. We can find the answers to these questions and more as Zelda and the King of Hyrule aren't the only ones with diaries. Link has written a diary of his own.

Link's Diary

So, Link's diary where is it? Well, as I mentioned before, Link's diary is hidden in the side quests of the Japanese version of the game. In japanese version however the answer becomes clear all of the entries in the adventure log are entries that Link has written himself to keep track of his own adventure. The English version of the game, the journal entries are written in 3rd person and refer to the reader as you but, upon loading up the japanese version, instead of being written in 3rd person, the journal entries are written in 1st person from Link's prespective. All of the entries in the journal were written by Link but, the surprises aren't just limited to this in his diary. Link doesn't just record his current objetive, he also has written down some of his own thoughts and feelings. With a lot of views and yours in comparasion the same quest "Captured Memories", in the Japanese version can be translated to something like this:

"I've acquired the legendary Master Sword, the legendary blade of evil's bane. Somehow, I get the feeling that the sword itself is delighted that I've come to retritive it.

Zelda is still battling to supress the evil Ganon at this very moment...She believes that I will defintely come for her!

I wonder if...As I am now...Am I really strong enough to save her?"

While in the English version of the game, the quest is described like this:

"You've visited all 13 of the locations shown in the old pictures and recovered the associated memories of your days with Princess Zelda.

In your memories, Princess Zelda always seemed burdened by her task...

Go and save her as quickly as you can to finally ease that burden."

The quest text in the Japanese version essentially reintroduces Link to us as someone who has normal human emotions rather that the silent knight or silent hero decipted through the games knowing that the adventure log belongs to Link as his diary. Suddenly, the seemingly trivial text reveals more hidden sides to our hero, especially the last part "see her smile again with my own eyes". They completely omitted this from the English version it's words like these that add so much more to Link's character. After Link has conquered the lost woods by not getting lost, he reaches the inner sanctum of the forest where he meets the Deku Tree who has been guarding the Master Sword, legendary sword of evil spain. When Link has regained enough of his former strength, he pours the Master Sword from his pedestal. Once more, after he obtains the Master Sword, the adventure quest text for heroes in English versions, reads:

"You've acquired the legendary Master Sword, that which seals the darkness. You feel that the sword itself delights to be in your possession...

Even at this moment, Princess Zelda is within Hyrule Castle, figthing to suppress the Calamity. She endures, believing you will come for her...

Will you be able to save her as you are now?"

When comparing it to the Japanese version is quite similar apart from one word which points towards more evidence of Link being the author. A Japanese word can mean "myself" or "yourself" and it changes the text a first person's narrative. This means that the text would read something like:

"I've acquired the legendary Master Sword, the legendary blade of evil's bane. Somehow, I get the feeling that the sword itself is delighted that I've come to retritive it.

Zelda is still battling to supress the evil Ganon at this very moment...She believes that I will defintely come for her!

I wonder if...As I am now...Am I really strong enough to save her?"

With that, we can really get a feel for how strongly Link wants the power to be able to save Zelda. In the quest "Destroy Ganon", the last section in English is written:

"The ghost of King Rhoam told you that Hyrule is on the brink of annihilation.

Princess Zelda is currently fighting to contain Calamity Ganon inside Hyrule Castle, but her power cannot keep him at bay forever. Eventually, Ganon will regain his full strength and destroy the world.

Your ultimate task is to aid Princess Zelda in defeating Ganon before that can happen."

But, in the Japanese version is written:

"The spirit of the King of Hyrule has told me that the land is on the verge of being obliterated.

It won't be long until Princess Zelda reaches her limit in containing the destructive power of Ganon at Hyrule Castle. When she does, Ganon will completely regain his power and everything will come to an end.

I really hope I'll be able to save Princess Zelda before that happens..."

Link really wants to believe that he can stop Ganon, stop his power in time and puts an end to everthing. After falling once already, it's no surprise that he may have some doubt in his ability.

Happiness

I was given a bunch of gems from Hudson as a sign of his gratitude for everything that I've done for them so far.

After Link has helped Hudson's establish Tarrey Town and after Hudson's and Rhondson are married in the quest "From the Ground Up", Link shows us his warm-hearted side, he is glad for other people's happiness as a conclusion to from the ground up and in Japanese version, he writes:

"Hudson's and Rhondson's wedding ceremony has concluded and Tarrey Town is really prospering.

I wish those two can live in happiness together forever."

The English version like the others is again written in third person and is directed at telling you the player that you wish the couple eternal happiness rather than Link.

In the quest "Test of Will", Link is challenged by three Gorons to train his tolerance to extreme heat in an endurance contest. After besting the Gorons at their challenge, he records the events in his diary, adding a little of his own humor into the mix in his recorded entry, Link mimics the way Gorons speak by attaching Goro to the end of his sentences:

"Ah! Is that all I'm getting out of you, Kabeta brother Goro? That's too bad, Goro..."

While in the English version, it says:

"Oh, that's all from Kabetta? That's too bad, brother..."

Else, does Link think about Zelda? Well, he thinks her voice is really pretty. In the quest "Follow the Sheikah Slate", which Link recieves at the benning of the game, he seems to quite like Zelda's voice. The last part of the quest text, in English simply reads:

"From Hyrule Castle, off in the distance, you hear the woman's voice speaking to you again..."

In comparasion to the Japanese version, goes a little like this:

"From the top of that giant tower, I could once again hear a girls beautiful voice coming from the castle that looks so far away."

"Follow the Sheikah Slate" is another one of those quests that has had parts submitted in. It's English version counterpart the original is much more descriptive and it allows us to finally connect with Link and his feelings.

Thoughts of a Failed Hero

In BotW, Zelda and Link's relationship is quite the dynamic one. In the very first memory, we see Link who has been appointed as Zelda's knight by King Rhoam. In this cutscene/memory, Link is already welding the Master Sword with the weighty responsibility of being Zelda's personal knight as well being chosen as the hero by the Master Sword itself. There is no doubt that Link is under immense pressure and expectation here. Zelda and the others conduct the ceremony of legend to celebrate Link in fulfilling his destiny despite being a huge step towards spending off the Calamity. Zelda, as mentioned before, doesn't seems too enthusiactic and the whole thing feels tainted with despair. Zelda's resentment towards Link continues to worsen as her insecurities and fear of being unable to awaken her powers.

Urbosa points out that Zelda's, Link is a living reminder of her own failures. Like Link, Zelda is also under immense pressure and responsibility to protect Hyrule. Link dedicated himself to his nightly duties and was able to fulfill his destiny and wield the Master Sword. Whereas Zelda was always told that because she was born into the Royal family, she had to dedicate herself in awakening her powers. Urbosa tells Link that every time Zelda sees him, reminds her how she still hasn't achieved her own destiny.

Zelda and Link's relationship hits a turning point when Link saves Zelda from the Yiga Clan. Zelda and Link begin to develop a genuine bond, Zelda realizes that she is not the only one with doubts, she had originally thougth that Link's silent and stiff behavior was a result of him not liking her but actually, as mentioned earlier, it's because he feels it's necessary to stay strong and silently bear any burden. Zelda's thought that Link's sucess was purely out of natural talent. In her diary, Zelda's says:

"When I finally got around to asking why he's so quite all the time, I could tell it was difficult for him to say. But he did. With so much at stake, and so many eyes upon him, he feels it necessary to stay strong and to silently bear any burden. A feeling I know all too well... For him, it has caused him to stop outwardly expressing his thoughts and feelings. I always believed him to be simply a gifted person who had never faced a day of hardship. How wrong I was..."

Zelda feels guilty for how she had been treating Link so, she tries to talk to him which results in a significant improvement in their relationship. In part 1, we've seen all about what Zelda thinks about Link, but what about Link himself? What does he think of all this?

Still determined to get stronger, Link once again visits the Deku Tree in the Lost Woods. Link returns the Master Sword to his pedestal and is thrown into "The Trial of the Sword" quest where he must survive an onslaught of enemies, starting with none of his own equipament. After finally conquering all 51 merciless levels and making it through to the very end, Link is rewarded with a full powered Master Sword. After he has awakened the Master Sword's full potential, the quest text for try of the Master Sword, in English version reads like this:

"You conquered the merciless Trial of the Sword!

You now have the physical and mental strenght necessary to use the Master Sword to its full potential.

Princess Zelda is no doubt quite happy with your achievement."

But, in Japanese version is a little different:

"I've conquered the relentless Trial of the Sword.

I've obtained the physical and mental strenght necessary to control the full power of the Master Sword.

I'm sure that Princess Zelda would also paise me for how much I've grown."

After enjoying countless hardships and striving to get stronger for so long, it is not until this quest that Link is finally pround of himself and has enough confidence in his ability to face Zelda.

In one of the memories, we see both Zelda and Link running, through the rain, fleeing Hyrule Castle. Meanwhile, Zelda ends up slipping her hand from Link's and ends up tripping. This scene is further proof that Link has feelings for her and that he clearly cares about her. After Zelda says that death of the Champions, her father, the Divine Beasts was her fault, it cuts to this scene where, you clearly get the sad expression on Link's face. If he didn't like her, I don't think he'd stop running to hear her.

With all this vent, Zelda simply surrenders in Link's arms, who accepts her without hesitation or thinking twice.

Then, after defeating Ganon and at the end of the game, Zelda finally granted Link's greatest wish, giving a beautiful smile to Link.

Thanks for reading this far. 😊 Really, it was one of the longest and most laborious analyses I've ever done so far but, it was worth it because, it made me love this ship more and see Zelink in other perspective.

[minzart]

What's Kamen rider about?

Great question without an easy answer!

I'll do my best to try and explain it since I'm just starting to know what Kamen Rider is too XD

So, the best way I know to exemplify to someone is "like power rangers but with, most seasons, 2 heroes instead of a big team" and also more serious yet without losing the silly factor.

Each season has it's own cast, story, rules of the world, and villain, so Kamen Rider Den-o, doesn't work by the same rules as Kamen Rider Wizard, even if they are in the same franchise, think Final Fantasy, were each new FF has it's own world instead of a continuos long plot.

So you can jump into any interation of Kamen Rider and not be lost, the question is if you'd like this version and keep going.

[More bellow and more about the two seasons I watch]

My first Rider is Den-o, and I fell in love with the silliness AND the characters, bc that story has a weak villain, good mystery, but mostly focused on characters, in specific the Taros with our main boy Ryotaro and the mystery of Ryo's older sister' lost memories.

Now I'm watching Wizard, and it is a completely diferent plot, I heard it has a mid story but I'm very interested until now so I'll see it for myself, were our protagonist is a survivor of some kind of ritual to create phantoms(for best understanding think evil monsters) and gained the power to become a wizard through magic rings, what's keeping me interested is how i'm slowly realizing Haruto(protag) isn't helping people and keeping them from dieing bc he's kind, but bc of his survivors guilt, and I want to see how this will change bc it will change for that I'm sure Shunpei(his new friend and ray of sunshine) will change him I bet.

The last post I made was about Rider Gavv, the new Rider released this week! And I'm intrigued already by the world it's building and it's protagonist, for the first episode(I'm patiently waiting for our fan-translators to get to the second episode and for the show runners to release the third in japan next week i think?) We know that our protagonist, Shoma, is at the very least a hybrid of a monster, the Granute, or is a complete one, or was experimented, anyways he has a weird mouth in his stomach but it is diferent than the other Granutes , he escapes his dimension and turns up here, a little boy saves him, feeds him, and when a Granute tries to EAT THE LITTLE BOY ALIVE-, he jumps in, gets beaten up over and over, refuses to keep down, learns and finaly transforms in Rider Gavv.

At the end of the day it is a children's media, so it is wacky and silly, but the topics they revolve around are what keeps me interested, it has heart.

See, in Den-o Ryo is possessed by an Imagin, the monsters of this universe, creatures that came from the future to grant wishes for people in the present, so they can go for the past that those wishes originated from and destroy the curent timeline.

The theme in this Rider is memories, fighting for the future even if it doesn't looks bright for you, accepting change, loss, friendship and becoming stronger and bolder with the right incentive. And the presentation of those themes are really well done for me.

You see there's this character, Sakurai Yuuto, our secondary Rider, he is two characters, we got Sakurai the older man who's integral to the plot, who mysteriously disappeared and the only person who remembers him is our protagonist, and Yuuto, a new Rider a younger man, hot headed, grumpy, but with a heart of gold, the younger version of Sakurai who can transform, but each time he does the memories of himself are erased from people who knew him, and he has to cope with the fact that the future he'll have is this, no-one to remember him, and yet he still fights

And all of that is played straight, there is no punch line, these characters will still be goofy and then have emotional break downs and deep conversations that almost say nothing but conveis everything to move you to tears.

To choose your first Rider can be anything that catches your interest first, be it:

In Wizard there's this scene between our protagonist and the a girl he is friends with, I don't know if it's a sister, a protégé, or just the person he saved first, but. I know that she was part of the same ritual that tried to transform him, she, unlike him, succumbed to the despair and "died", but he saved her and now she's alive only bc she has to consume his magic to keep on living.

She's sat in a lake, water almost up to her torso, and she's saing how she's a monster and how can she move on, and Haruto, instead of calling for her to get out, he moves in, he sits with her, he listens and promises to keep being her hope, and this whole scene is such a metaphor for grief, loss, depression etc, that it made me tear up, it's really simple but effective.

the suit design(what made me chose Wizard as my second season),

a silly gif(one gif of Momotarous that circle around 2022/2023 made me curious to start),

the main esthetic,

the story summary, etc.

I hope this explains it well enough and if you got curious I suggest starting with Gavv and waiting for the new episodes with the fandom or Den-o bc it was my first so... it would be the first that I recomend to people, or just search for a summary for the other and their themes, finishing Wizard I'm between starting OOO, Kiva, W or Ghost. All bc of suit design, so I have no idea what they are about XD

What I know is that Kamen Rider is a younger franchise than Ultraman, and older than Super Sentai (The serie that Power Rangers is based off) all of those are Tokusatsu(live action films/shows with heavy use of practical effects and special effects).

The older seasons are more serious, while the newer one are more colorfull and silly -Rider Gavv literaly gains his power from eating candy man XD- there's always a group of monsters to fight against, the villains are kinda mid but the heroes and deuteragonists are really good, with diferent esthetics and lore each season, many seasons don't have official translations -Den-o is one of those- but the fan-translations are around and done with good faith and plenty of bromance.

[goldensunset]

Hey. Pspsps.

I don't 100% know who your favorite characters are.

If I asked you to pick one and go ham telling me about them, would you?

*grabs you* ok today i’m gonna change it up and talk about a pair of characters i don’t usually talk about

loooong story short (i'll dm you the story if you want or something) roxas and xion were the reason i got into the kh franchise. their story and their unique indescribable connection to our wonderful protagonist singlehandedly took me from the mindset of 'haha kh is a dumb wacky disney fanfiction' to 'this is genuinely a stunning and heartwrenching piece of media full of so much honest and serious emotion and love and i'm insane now'

here's a boy who was never meant to exist, a mistake, someone who doesn't even possess the full capability to experience emotions, someone who's just the inferior resentful shadow of another who needs to die so that the precious original can come back. but he wasn't gonna take that lying down he fought tooth and nail until the bitter end against his fate and defiantly proclaimed that he was human and he was himself and yet it was all in vain. but it still mattered. it mattered to us and it mattered to those who knew him. the love was there even if it couldn't save him it still mattered.

meanwhile, here's a girl who's just a patchwork mess of pieces of other people. a clone of both sora and roxas, meant as a backup vessel for xehanort, wielding what used to be riku's key, having accidentally absorbed select memories of kairi from the magic naminé wove. it's a miracle she exists at all. does she exist at all? she was an 'it', an empty thing designed to mimic the fighting capabilities of another, who gradually started absorbing that other's memories of some girl until it subconsciously tricked itself into thinking it was that girl. suddenly 'it' became 'she.' but she had her own life experiences and therefore was not that girl but someone new entirely. what exactly did her mind look like? what did it feel like to be her? her mind was just a fragment of sora's mind and she didn't even know who he was. the insane headaches and crises that came free with her very existence drove her to seek answers and eventually made her realize she shouldn't even be alive.

but she was so brave. she was so so brave and resolute and made the firm decision to sacrifice herself for the greater good even though she should've never had to. it was the only agency she had and she took hold of it. she knew there was never any hope for her but she at least wanted something good to come out of her demise. roxas didn't really have that same agency even though he seems more proactive as a character at first glance. roxas fought and fought but was constantly being dragged here and there by the narrative up until the end. he fought his fate and xion accepted hers and they both met the same tragic end.

in kh2fm we saw what was left of roxas, angrily fighting back inside of sora. he was full of hate and anger and who can blame him? he should've won. he was stronger. almost. but victory eluded him once more. it was all for nothing and roxas faded again and sora was so confused and full of sadness he didn't even understand.

then in ddd we again saw roxas within sora's mindscape, but that time he was so so different. that time he was calm and smiling and gentle. roxas had surrendered. but sora told him what we'd all been wanting to tell him- he was his own person and deserved to be treated as such. to which roxas said like the best line in the series: 'sora, see? that's why it has to be you.'

roxas wanted things his way, he wanted his own life, he was bitter and sick of people telling him he had to make sacrifices for others. roxas would've gotten rid of others for his own sake. meanwhile sora had always been intensely loving and selfless. sora was always reaching out to people, seeing the light and humanity in them, caring about them. i'm not saying roxas was bad for wanting to live or that sora's insane constant self-sacrificial behavior isn't deeply worrying but the point here is: sora was the hero roxas wasn't.

roxas recognized this. that's why it had to be sora. if it was the other way around, roxas wouldn't have had the strength to be the person sora was. he would've never surrendered on his own. he had to be forced to surrender and then spend time within sora's heart to begin to understand him and to begin to love him.

roxas resented sora because roxas had to be sacrificed in his name. he didn't want to die to save someone he didn't even know who was apparently his real self and the only person who mattered. roxas was sick of hearing about him. but then once roxas met him he couldn't help but love him too. both because sora is just that easy to love, and because something in roxas resonated with- well, his other. that was him and that wasn't him and that was who he used to be and that was who he would be and they each held a piece of each other within them and even though they were their own people they would obviously be forever linked.

the bond that was created between sora and roxas transcends anything i really even have the language to say. or anyone who speaks this language to say. or possibly anyone in existence. that's self love and love of another in one. they're part of each other. i'm really normal about it

[blueboybracket]

The Ultimate Blue Boy Bracket 2023!

Welcome to the Blue Boy Bracket! This tournament is for all of our favourite blue boys, a common design trait that we all know and love.

Submissions will run from today, the 10th of April 2023, for one week until the 17th of April 2023.

Requirements:

Fictional characters only.

Characters must be male.

Blue must be featured notably on their design/be their 'signature' colour.

I will consider anything in the below range as blue enough (including all different shades that fall into this)

Submission form: https://forms.gle/fKV8aJ2B9jWd9F8P9

Restrictions:

No headcanons.

Characters must be from an existing piece of media. Please don't submit your OCs/FCs (original characters & fan characters), unless you do have an established piece of media that they are featured in, such as a comic.

No real world objects/people/websites/etc.

Additional info:

The character cap will likely be 200, when I say ultimate I mean ultimate lmao. I'll allow submissions beyond that until the deadline, but the final tournament will probably be limited to 150 - 200 characters once the representitive polls are done too.

Characters can be any age, species, etc.

They can be from live action media, so long as it is fictional.

You can submit as many characters as you like, but please don't spam submit the same character repeatedly.

I will limit each franchise/series to 1 - 2 characters each, depending on how big the poll gets.

There may be a few "representitive polls" for certain franchises, for users to decide who should make the cut if there are too many different submissions for one series.

Characters with official visual images are preferrable. I will accept characters from media without images, such as books, provided that they aren't too obscure and there is at least some fanart I can credit.

Please use the image submission feature (either the file upload or link version) if you can, it'll save me a lot of time. If you're submitting fanart, please credit the artist somewhere in the submission!

The bracket will be seeded both randomly and manually to ensure for - hopefully - fair starting match-ups.

Please note that it may take a while between submissions closing and the tournament starting. It will depend on how many submissions there are, and the admin's own schedule.

The admin is in the BST (UTC+1) timezone.

This poll was most notably inspired by @ultimatepinkgirl (concluded)!

Other inspirations include; @ultimate-rat-bracket, @ultimatepokemontournament, @blueandorangebracket (concluded), @britishaccentcharacterpoll, @thiefbracket, @sexymanotd-archive (concluded) and @mfshipbracket!

Most of these are still going as of the 10th of April 2023, so please check them out while you can!

[lunatic-pudge]

Duke Nukem General (and Relationship) Headcanons

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Hey, gang, I'm deviating from Postal and TF2 for a sec and giving a little bit of attention to Duke Nukem. Seeing so much Dude x Duke fanart has started to make me grow a thing for Duke. I'm still learning about the franchise and the character so my interpretation of him might be a little OOC. These are general headcanons and some relationship stuff. Gott work on my Duke Nukem skills. If you enjoy these and want more, feel free to hit up my comments (or ask box) and I'll gladly deliver. And, as always, I'm dutifully working on my Postal and TF2 requests. I'm gonna have some posted before the month is over. And if you wanna request Postal or TF2 stuff, you are always more than welcome to! I enjoy getting asks. :D

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-Duke is such a goofy guy to me. This macho guy that' jacked, kills aliens, saves the world, and is "totally straight". Yeah, I'm starting this off by saying that I aggressively refuse to believe that this man is only into women. This man is RADIATING pansexual energy. Originally, I was gonna say he's bi, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that he really wouldn't care about gender.

-But that also extends to, he does not understand these things. The type of person to be like, "What's a nonbinary?" and even when you explain it to him, he still doesn't really get it but goes along with it. (This might also just be me craving himbo Duke) He's the hero we need in these bleak times, frfr

-He's such an interesting guy. Like Dude, Duke has a very extensive knowledge on weapons, even alien weaponry, and is very adaptable when switching weapons out. Even though this man is a himbo to me, he's way more smarter than what you'd expect. Having military knowledge and even knowing about differing types of aliens (and how to kill them obviously). Sometimes it's scary with how much he knows about these things

-Autism be damned, my boy knows how to work a grill. It's a shocker that this man is actually talented in the culinary department. It's impressive. Duke can make even the nastiest of things edible. If you have food allergies or sensitivities, it'll take a bit for him but he'll learns to cater to your dietary needs. He's very big on spicy and savory foods. Not really a sweets person. Tending to avoid sweets and only having them as a rare treat (he's got a physique to hold up here). He's not someone who's gonna tell you what foods you need to eat but will encourage you to stay on a more healthier diet. He's very health conscious

-Very big on working out and staying in shape. He would like it of you joined in with him on it but is understandable if you are unable to. I can also see him just flat out using you as a weight. Doesn't matter what your size is, you WILL be picked up by him.

-His love language is definitely physical touch and gift giving. Man is loaded with cash and won't hesitate to spoil you. Taking you out on lavish dates and getting you anything that little heart of yours desires. He also loves having you cuddled up in his side. Duke's a big guy, if you ask, he will carry you around. And since he's very into physical affection, expect some PDA from this guy as well. He'll usually have an arm wrapped around your waist and won't hesitate to give you a big ol' smooch or even a hug.

-Again, Duke is a goofy guy, he's always finding ways to tease you or to get you to laugh. He's a good guy with a good heart. He wants what's best for you and can be rather overprotective at times. He doesn't like people trying to hit on his partner. He know he has nothing to worry about, just finds it annoying that someone thinks they can take you away from him. Good luck trying to keep him from kicking some ass though. He can be hard to convince to turn the other cheek and ignore the offender

[thegayhimbo]

Stranger Things x Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Crossover Review

If you haven't yet, be sure to check out my other Stranger Things Reviews. Like, Reblog, and let me know what your thoughts are about the show or the upcoming final season! :)

Stranger Things Reviews/Theories

Stranger Things Comics/Graphic Novels:

Stranger Things Six

Stranger Things Halloween Special

Stranger Things The Other Side

Stranger Things Zombie Boys

Stranger Things The Bully

Stranger Things Winter Special

Stranger Things Tomb of Ybwen

Stranger Things Into The Fire

Stranger Things Science Camp

Stranger Things “The Game Master” and “Erica’s Quest”

Stranger Things and Dungeons and Dragons

Stranger Things Kamchatka

Stranger Things Erica The Great

Stranger Things “Creature Feature” and “Summer Special”

Stranger Things Tales From Hawkins

Stranger Things Tie-In Books:

Stranger Things Suspicious Minds

Stranger Things Runaway Max (Part 1 of 3)

Stranger Things Runaway Max (Part 2 of 3)

Stranger Things Runaway Max (Part 3 of 3)

Stranger Things Darkness On The Edge Of Town (Part 1 of 3)

Stranger Things Darkness On The Edge Of Town (Part 2 of 3)

Stranger Things Darkness On The Edge Of Town (Part 3 of 3)

Stranger Things Rebel Robin Book and Podcast (Part 1 of 2)

Stranger Things Rebel Robin Book and Podcast (Part 2 of 2)

Stranger Things Hawkins Horrors Review

Stranger Things Flight Of Icarus

Stranger Things Lucas On The Line

Stranger Things Episode Reviews:

The Vanishing of Will Byers (Part 1 of 2)

The Vanishing of Will Byers (Part 2 of 2)

Synopsis: Set before the events of Season 3, Mike, Will, Lucas, Dustin, and Max take a field trip with Mr. Clarke's class to New York City (with El secretly tagging along) to explore all the sights in the Big Apple. However, when the group gets separated from the class and encounters an old enemy, they're forced to join with some unexpected allies as they attempt to stop a world-ending threat........

Observations:

This is one of those comics where I wish I had been in the writers room so I could understand what their thought-process was.

The premise: Sometime in 1985, the Party is in New York City on a field-trip with Scott Clarke's class (why and how they get this trip arranged is never explained). Along the way, they split from the main group and end up lost in the underground subway. As they try to come up with a plan, they hear sounds coming from the tunnels and go to investigate. Guess who they end up running into?

DEMODOGS...........except with robotic parts attached to them?!

To make this more surreal, the Party gets saved by (you guessed it) the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMMTs for short):

Later on, after introductions are made and explanations given, the kids and TMNTs (with encouragement from their sensei Splinter) discover that:

a.) The robotic demodogs (referred to as Demomousers by Dustin) are being controlled by Baxter Stockman, a mad scientist who's one of the Turtles adversaries.

And b.) There's a gate in NYC allowing demodogs and demogorgons to come through, and the Mind Flayer is preparing to invade.

Realizing they need to join forces, the Party and TMNTs attempt to take down Baxter and the Mind Flayer before they bring ruin to the city.

If all of this sounds weird, you now know how I felt reading it.

I'll admit when it comes to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, I'm not an expert. I have some knowledge of the franchise from when I was growing up, mainly from the 1987 cartoon and the first two live-action TMNT movies (no, NOT the Michael Bay produced ones), but as far as the comics go, I've never read the original ones. In terms of my knowledge:

I know the 4 turtles are named after famous Italian Renaissance artists: Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, and Michelangelo.

I know they have a sensei named Splinter, a former human martial arts instructor from Japan named Hamato Yoshi who was transformed into a rat via a chemical mutagen (since the chemical mixes the DNA of living beings who've been in contact with one another, and Splinter had constantly been in contact with rats while living in the sewers).

I know that the turtles were originally ordinary turtles that Splinter adopted in the sewers before they also got infected with the chemical and (because they were in contact with Splinter when he was human) became humanoid turtles.

I know Splinter named and trained the turtles in ninjutsu, adopting them as his students/children.

I know Splinter and the Turtles arch-enemy is Oroku Saki, aka The Shredder. He was responsible for dumping the chemical that transformed them, he runs a criminal ninja organization called "The Foot Clan," and (in the 1987 TV show at least), he has two animal/human hybrid henchmen named Rocksteady and Bebop. Also, Shredder aims for world-domination.

I know Shredder was allied with an alien brain named Krang from Dimension X, and they operated from a station called the Technodrome.

I know there was a scientist named Baxter Stockmam (who's one of the main antagonists in this comic) who created MOUSERS (also present here) that did his bidding and reeked havoc.

I know about April O'Neil, the news reporter who is an ally to the turtles, and Casey Jones, a violent vigilante who wears an ice hokey mask and has a bag of weapons, who is also an ally to the turtles. They make a brief appearance in this comic towards the end:

Finally, I know about this earworm of a song:

Like I said, my knowledge primarily comes from the 1987 show and the first two movies. What little I'm aware of about the original comics is that the turtles all wore the same red-eye masks before later media would color-code each turtle (likely so audiences could tell them apart). In typical 80s fashion, the comics were dark and gritty. Judging by how the Turtles are depicted here in this crossover, it appears they based the Turtles characterizations off their original comic book iterations:

This brings me to one of my problems with the crossover: Because it's dead-set on portraying the characters in a grim fashion, it doesn't leave much room for humorous interactions between the turtles and the kids. What little humor is present is either forced, or just recycled jokes from the show. Stranger Things is rooted in the science-fiction/horror genre, but it balances it out by having funny moments between the characters to level out the tension. Same thing can be said for the 1987 TMNT cartoon: Part of what made that work is the creators realized how absurd the premise was, and embraced the weirdness while having fun with it. This comic expects the reader to take the story solemnly, and all it does is highlight the ridiculousness of its premise.

Another issue I have is the whole crossover aspect. I know this isn't unique to TMNT and characters from this franchise have done crossovers with Batman, Power Rangers, Street Fighter, Transformers, Archie Comics, etc. The difference though is that 1.) These were usually done with other superhero or cartoon characters franchises, and 2.) To my understanding, most of those crossovers weren't usually considered canon in either universe.

This comic on the other hand tries REALLY HARD to make itself canon in the Stranger Things universe by setting it between seasons 2 and 3, before The Battle of Starcourt:

On top of that, when the kids and the Turtles finally confront Baxter at his lab about his motivations, he reveals he was a colleague of Dr. Brenner, which is how he knew about El:

This ends up creating several plot-holes:

1.) You'd think that if the events in this comic took place in the show's continuity, the kids would have talked about it at least once during seasons 3-4. I have a hard time imagining, for instance, that Dustin wouldn't have been chatting Steve's ear off about encountering a bunch of humanoid turtles living in NYC sewers, or the Demomousers they had to fight off.

2.) Same problem with Baxter Stockman and Dr. Brenner's relationship: No mention of it on the show? That's not even including how this relationship is at odds with Brenner's character since he considered other people (even fellow scientists) to be beneath him in terms of intellect. Brenner was NOT a man who saw others as his equal.

3.) Since Stranger Things is a show set on referencing 80s media and paying homages to it, and since the TMNTs were a big franchise in the 80s, does that mean the first volumes of the TMNT comics that came out in 1984 don't exist in this universe? Especially when the kids reactions to first encountering the TMNTs is not knowing who they are:

I get that Stranger Things is a fictional show that requires suspension of disbelief when it comes to its science-fiction elements (i.e. The Upside Down, El's powers, etc), but for the most part, it was grounded in a believable way. By that, I mean its universe was set up to be one that could conceivably take place in this reality. From its references to historical moments that occurred in real life, to its disturbingly realistic portrayals of bullying, bigotry, Cold War paranoia, homophobia, racism, government corruption, abuse, forced conformity, trauma and grief, and other social issues, to the whole dynamic of the Party being outcasts trying to survive middle school and high school. It's a coming-of-age story that also acts as a deconstruction of the 80s, and uses science-fiction elements in service of that goal. I've talked before about the Upside Down being a not-so-subtle metaphor for Hawkins and the 80s as a whole: Things look shiny, bright, and appealing on the surface (especially since the 80s continues to be a decade our current culture is obsessed with romanticizing), but when you actually dig deeper, there is rot underneath.

By setting the Stranger Things universe in the TMNT universe, it breaks that illusion in favor of turning it into popcorn entertainment. Some would argue Stranger Things was already this to begin with, but considering how the Duffer Brothers incorporated the themes I've just described into their work when they could have ignored them altogether, and considering how Stranger Things has a passionate fanbase dedicated to analyzing the show, its characters, and how it acts as a commentary for events and situations in the present, I would argue the show transcends that in a way TMNT never could. This comic tries to achieve this, with the Turtles (and Splinter) preaching about the importance of friendship, how everyone has challenges, not being defined by where you come from, etc, but all of these themes were already examined on the show way before this comic ever came out (and in a much more satisfying manner). Here, it comes off as repetitive without offering anything new to the table.

This isn't to say that the comic itself is bad. It still has cool moments and impressive visuals, and the fights between the heroes and the monsters of the Upside Down are a treat to behold:

The levels of detail put into these images is impressive, and it's neat seeing each member of the Party take up weapons to deliver damage to the Mind Flayer and his monsters.

On top of that, there were elements in the comic that (whether intentional or not) tie into the show and leave a lot to chew on.

For example, the whole fight against Baxter Stockman's forces and the Mind Flayer gives an idea of what we might see in Season 5. Whether it's the main characters dealing with Colonel Sullivan (who's still set on capturing El) or Vecna's impending invasion.

Even Baxter Stockman and his ambush of the heroes reminds me of Colonel Sullivan and the soldiers under his command from S4:

There's also Will's description of the Upside Down being worldwide and how the dimension isn't just limited to Hawkins (which is something S4 also confirmed):

There's also the Turtles speculating that El's powers are tied to the Upside Down, which is something I've discussed in my reviews (specifically Six and Suspicious Minds):

Additionally, the comic introduces the idea that there are other dimensions out there besides the Upside Down that can be traveled to.

While I doubt the Utroms (i.e. the alien brains) that the Mind Flayer possesses will be making an appearance in season 5 (or the TMNTs for that matter), the idea of multiple dimensions is something the Duffer Brothers could explore in the final season. It could also give more detail about what the Upside Down is, and whether the Mind Flayer really was just black particles with no conscious that Vecna formed into his avatar, or it was a multi-dimensional conqueror (as I've seen speculated by parts of this fandom) and it was simply dormant until Vecna woke it up and started collaborating with it:

But like I said, this is all speculation.

Overall, my feelings about this comic are mixed: On its own, it's a decent read and has plenty of cool moments and creative imagery. However, when you look closely at the story and how it's supposed to tie into the Stranger Things universe.........it starts falling apart. I think fans will enjoy this crossover for the sheer entertainment of it, but I seriously doubt this is going to be counted as canon.

[eukaryotesrool]

Leucism and Kimba

So this is gonna be real life facts (ones I'd say are interesting) mixed with some fan stuff, you don't need to know about the franchise to understand this, but it will be long and only slightly hinged.

Grab a snack, a drink annnnnnd...

What is a Kimba?

(Kimba (1965) running)

This guy, the titular hero of Osamu Tezuka's Kimba the White Lion franchise (AKA Jungle Emperor Leo(direct translation), Janguru Taitei(untranslated title))

For now, all you folks need to know about him is that he comes from a long lineage of lions with uniquely white fur.

Gee, you know what else relates to lions, white fur, and genetics, oh boy, a segway into the next thi-

What is a leucism?

(Pronounced 'luke-ism')

(Animals with a leucistic disorder, leucistic peacocks look neat, though, they all do)

leucism is a variety of conditions causing a lack of pigmentation in animals.

"Isn't that albinism?"

They're comparable, but seperate, their causes are different, also no leucistic condition removes eye pigmentation, so, Kimba's blue eyes aren't a problem.

(Kimba (1965) running, he does that a lot)

Now I'd like to go over every major leucistic condition and compare/contrast them to what we can note about Kimba.

No, I am not joking.

(OH MY GOD ITS SO CUTE I- er, this is a real life white lion cub, owing its white fur to a leucistic disorder)

Something to remember, most of these conditions don't (or don't to our knowledge) affect lions and could be easily swatted aside as such, but KTWL (Kimba the White Lion) is a work of fiction which consistently does absurd things, for example, Great Mother, a surviving mammoth who lives on a magic mountain and has magic powers or a blue lion (no I won't tell you what makes him blue), so I'm willing to brush aside SOME realism... also I researched them so I want to talk about them.

Yes, there is a condition that causes real life white lions, buuuuut I'm saving that can of worms for later.

Easily disproven

These ones don't work for several reasons, I'll be using only the most glaring issues for the sake of brevity.

Vitiligo & flavism: These two conditions happen over the course of one's life, but we see Kimba near birth, and he possessed his white fur.

Chédiak–Higashi syndrome: Causes symptoms (including but not limited to: peripheral neuropathy) which Kimba almost certainly does not have.

Isabellinism: affects only birds and leads to a golden white, not a snowy one.

(An isabellinistic bird, majestic fellow, eh?)

Xanthochromism: Makes things fucking yellow.

(A xanthochromistic (pictured right) and normal (pictured left) Argentine horned frog, so cool.)

Axanthism: only affects things with light reflecting pigments, and can only make things with normally yellow color have white color.

Amelanism: Meaning lacking melanin, so those black tipped ears and tail would be a no-no, yet we observe numerous pelts of his ancestors all with the exact same ears, and, we have reason to believe, the exact same tail (his father also possessed the same tail)

Okay, that was the bulk of the list, we're making good progress.

Maybe

These ones are harder to disprove, but I'd still say they're obviously not what we're looking for.

Piebaldism: Now, this one seems convincing as it can generate black AND white fur, it is genetically dominant, therefore, could lead to the continous lineage (where at least one of few children seems to always inherit it) but it lacks the uniformity, as I said, every white lion posses the same pattern, with few inconsistently appearing exceptions within the franchise, we'll get to that later on, the point is, consistency is the rule, chaos is the exception, and piebaldism is too chaotic.

(Piebaldistic animals. That squirrel looks so neat! Like his back is covered in snow!)

Waardenburg syndrome: Specifically type two is a strong contender, most notably because it causes bright blue eyes (or a blue and brown eye, sometimes) along with its other effects, HOWEVER, it also causes congenital hearing loss, and in cats (Felis Catus or house cats, technically, but they're the closest comparison I have to lions) said hearing loss is more common and more extreme, I doubt Kimba has that. Type 1 and type 3 cause other malformities that Kimba visibly doesn't posses.

Not sure

I tried, but my research was not conclusive, if you have answers, I'd be glad to hear them.

melanophilin: it is listed, but isn't a disorder, it is a carrier protein, I did some research and disorders with this protein don't seem like they'd make the snow white color we're looking for.

Undisputable

Oh, uh, there's nothing here, we've gone over every major leucistic disorder, there ARE more, but we'd be here all day, and so little is known about them it'd be arbitary.

Well, we're not through with every leucistic condition on the agenda, there's still...

THE CAUSE OF REAL WHITE LIONS

That's right, we've made it.

There's obviously a myriad of similarities, Tezuka was probably inspired by the real life white lions.

For example

(Pictured left, Kimba (1989 anime series) and his love inyerest, Raiya, a fellow lion, but not a white lion. Pictured right, two lionesses, one being a white lion)

The jarringly (among other lions) snow white fur.

(Sorry the images of Kimba's paw sucks, you won't believe it, but it was SO difficult to find a pic online with his paw pads in it, real life white lions? Pfft plenty of pictures in an instant.)

(Yes, pink is the unpigmented color for paw pads)

The pink paw pads

(Pictured left, Kimba's father (2009 movie) pictured right OH MY GOD SO CUTE)

The genetic basis allowing for lineages that share the trait

So then, this is it?... no, no, no, no, sadly, no, not so simple, there is one glaring inconsistency.

Firstly, an aside: I tried researching the specific cause of white lion leucism (it comes from a mutation for tyrosinase) but very little is known about it exactly, though, I gleaned something just by using the oldest tool in the zoology briefcase, me own eyes.

Notice a difference between Kimba and EVERY image of a white lion I've provided? Here, have some more white lion.

(Look at 'em all!)

From male to female, newborn, to cub, to adult, one consistency that Kimba does not share, maybe you already noticed and want me to get to the fucking point, maybe I will, maybe I won't, okay, I will.

(Circles denoting where Kimba posseses the trait, 'x's denoting where the real lion cub does not)

Black fur, Kimba has black fur on the tips of his ears and tail, no image of a real life white lion that I've seen has that pattern, or ANY black fur (wait, did I just retread my point about amelanism? Damn), and I'm lead to believe that does not occur amongst real life white lions, so then...

Kimba is a an anomaly

(From top left to bottom right Kimba's aunt (1989) Kimba's father (2009) and Kimba's father (1989)

In the 2009 version the only white lions we see are Kimba and his dad, and his dad lacks the black fur, in the 1989 series the only white lions we see are Kimba, his dad and aunt, both of the latter lack the black fur, but Kimba retains it in all versions.

Perhaps the cause of white lions is the same as real life white lions, and Kimba is a very rare anomaly within an anomaly, I don't know a whole lot about genetics, but that sounds reasonable enough for KTWL standards.

Buuuuuut, every other version, including the manga that started it all has other white lions retain the same color palette, and even show dozens of white lion ancestors, and a DISTANT white lion ancestor who all have the same palette, so, this anomaly theory is ironically only relevent to anomalies, the 1989 series and 2009 movie, what about for the whole franchise, well...

I don't know

Here's where I'd like to pull something out my hat and save the day with the obvious and true answer... but, there isn't one, at least, not one I found, sooooo, yeah, everyone must come to their own conclusion, maybe you even disagree with some of my reasoning and come to a conclusuon I've disregarded!

I'd love to hear your take away, and what comes next is merely my own personal take.

I don't know (good ending)

i don't know, and that's the point, I like that conclusion, the Kimba franchise contains mystisms, but never delves into them, leaving them as strange mysteries, it is a story about the exotic, it is ever out of reach.

I choose to believe white lions are semi-magical, thus why Kimba's lineage is the ONLY white lions we see in a franchise that stretches from 1950 to 2009, with over a hundred episodes, thus why white lions seem to always produce a white lion cub, but usually only ONE white lion cub, and the rest resemble the mother, because it works by magic rules.

In the 1989 version(and possibly others) Kimba is directly or indirectly likened to the supernatural, the Great Mother, a huge mammoth who can summon powerful snow storms in tropical Africa treats Kimba as such.

Simply, it can't be explained IRL, that's pretty cool, not everything needs to be explained, and MAGIC!

Thanks for sticking around through my insanity, hope you learned something and had fun, I did!

(Normally I'd put a pic riiight here to close things off but I hit the Tumblr image limit, didn't even know they had one)

[akimojo]

I'm very happy I found your blog! I absolutely ADORE ff13. The story, the characters, the mythos... it's all so compelling to me. I get frustrated whenever I see people hate on this game because I honestly do not understand why some claim it's the worst ff in existence? I totally get that the combat is not everyone's cup of tea (I personally love it) and that the linearity can be tedious to players who enjoy big open worlds, but in terms of the story itself and its characters I really can't comprehend what all the negative backlash is about. Which sucks because I truly would like to understand where the hate is coming from. My only major criticism is that the exposition could have been better executed, since a lot of it is hidden in the datalog entries. But other than that, I think the characters are very complex and the way the story unravels around them is a wonder to experience. Also as a side note, I can't believe people still hate Hope and accuse him of being annoying and useless when he's arguably the character that evolves and shows the most growth in the entire game 😭 It's almost as if the people who hate on him didn't finish the game. But yeah, I was wondering if you have any criticisms regarding ff13? I'm very interested in your opinion!

GODDD i know right??? subjective opinion is all fine and dandy, but it's the people that claim the game is objectively bad that really frustrate me 😭 ESPECIALLY when they shit on any of the characters (hope my boy </3) because honestly??? ffxiii has THE best character arcs in the whole franchise and that's a hill i'll die on

as for criticisms? i actually do have some, believe it or not fdjsmf

as much as i personally love the gameplay i gotta admit i don't like how slow-paced it can be. boss fights are really really fun, but fighting regular mob enemies when you're grinding (and you really do need to grind a lot after reaching pulse) can get real tedious

i like that not everything is told to us directly and that we have to figure out a lot of stuff on our own, but i do dislike how some important information in the datalogs are not really brought up in the game itself. like the first time i played xiii-2 i was so confused when serah mentioned being saved by vanille once? and then in 2021-ish when i replayed xiii again and read the datalogs i saw that they actually wrote that vanille and fang carried serah out of the vestige after she was turned l'cie and i just!! why was that not at least hinted at some more!!

also, they did vanille's english voice actor so dirty 😭 she does such an amazing job in the sequels and i don't understand why the english localization team made her do all those noises in xiii lmao

speaking of vanille, i'm also really disappointed that her and lightning barely interact!!!!! they're the two most important characters in the first game but they probably have the least interactions together out of any other pair in the group and it bugs me so much ashdfjms

[tenebraevesper]

Five Nights at Freddy's (Movie Review, Part 1)

I had finally watched the Five Nights at Freddy's movie, and I the only thing I have to say about it is...

I LOVE IT! ☆*:.｡.o(≧▽≦)o.｡.:*☆

Honestly, this movie was everything I, as a FNaF Fan, could ask for. I will admit that there were some things that were missing that I wanted to see, mainly due to changes in the script and the characters, but as a movie adaptation of one of my favorite video games, there was barely anything I could find to complain about.

Like, I don't know what movie the critics have been watching to call this movie mediocre or bad or whatever, because it was far from that. Objectively, it wasn't peak perfection, but I personally adored every second of it. I believe that the criticism surrounding this movie is just another Super Mario movie situation, where the critics cannot handle a movie that gives fans exactly what they wanted.

While I cannot speak for non-FNaF fans, since I've been with the franchise since its humble origins, I do believe that FNaF Fans will love this movie and enjoy it. This movie is a love letter to the fans and it shows.

Now, this was the non-spoiler review. Below, I'll add the spoiler review because I need to talk about my favorite moments from the movie.

If you haven't watched the movie yet, you can skip it.

MOVIE SPOILERS!!!

Oh, boy, where do I start even?! *rubs hands gleefully*

I suppose I'll start with the main characters, Michael ''Mike'' Schmidt and Abby Schmidt.

I genuinely enjoyed their characters in the movie and I loved their brother-sister dynamic (as someone who has younger siblings, they definitely nailed that part). Mike is a very relatable character, having to step up as a guardian for Abby while also clearly processing his own grief in regards to losing his younger brother, Garrett Schmidt and his parents.

He is doing his best to protect his sister and solve the mystery behind his brother's disappearance, acknowledging that he is flawed, yet loves his sister. Once he is given the job as a night guard at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza Place, he not only learns about the Missing Children Incident, but also hopes that the Ghost Children could help him learn more about his brother's abductor. It is clear that he feels guilt for letting his brother getting kidnapped, because he was supposed to watch over him, yet got distracted, and now he is obsessed with fixing the past.

The one scene that made me incredibly emotional was when Mike started dreaming of his family again and the Ghost Children offered him to reunite with them in his dreams in exchange for something Mike would give them. Mike, in a moment of weakness, promises them anything, just to be together with his family, only to realize that he made a huge mistake when he learns that he gave them Abby in return, and he immediately regrets his actions and tries to save her. I believe that this is also the moment where he finally let's go of the past, because he needs to focus on the present and on Abby.

Speaking of Abby, she's definitely having the best time in her life being friends with a bunch of haunted animatronics, and honestly, I'd love to switch places with her (and yes, I know what happens later on, but we'll get to it).

Note, Mike, Garrett and Abby, are clearly parallels to Michael ''Mike'' Afton, The Crying Child (aka Evan Afton, according to what fans dug up) and Elizabeth Afton, even though they aren't related to William Afton. However, the things we know about them are present in their Movie!Selves, with Mike feeling guilty over the death of his younger brother and being obsessed to make things right, and Abby, similarly to Elizabeth, getting too close to the animatronics and almost suffering being springlocked inside an animatronic suit that resembles Circus Baby (or more accurately, Ella from the novels).

As for the Animatronics themselves, I absolutely adore them! X3

These guys have SOOOOO much personality and are really expressive, and I knew exactly what they thought and felt at every waking moment, even though they never spoke, unless it were the Ghost Children. There were a bunch of little moments, like Foxy's humming and Chica's Cupcake being an absolute menace that I loved, but I did miss Freddy not playing Toreador March or the animatronics having the game screams. Nevertheless, I enjoyed every single moment of them being on screen, especially since I knew these guys were real and not just CGI constructs.

I also love how they just switch from being happy and friendly (especially around Abby)...

...to going complete Murder Mode around everyone else.

Seriously, the look Freddy gives to Mike clearly screams ''You will be the next to get stuffed into an animatronic suit.''

I also loved the animatronics hunting down the thugs Mike and Abby's aunt has hired to get Mike fired. These guys were the highlight of the movie (along with another character, but I'll get to that soon enough). I know some people complained about there not being buckets of blood and gore, but to my knowledge, FNaF was NEVER about gore or being a slasher flick. The veterans of this franchise know that the main appeal of FNaF is its lore and the trail of breadcrumbs and puzzle pieces we are still try to understand to this very day. If you want gore, go watch The Banana Splits Movie or Wily's Wonderland. Or any other slasher flick.

Also, screw you Balloon Boy, you both jumpscared me and made me laugh. Seriously, BBs appearances were hysterical. X3

Speaking of which, shout out to MatPat and CoreyxKenshin:

I definitely had a laugh when MatPat was interrupted during his Food Theory on lunches and Corey always getting the weirdos entering his taxi.

Moving on to Vanessa Shelly....

...or rather, Vanessa Afton.

Yeah, I'm not gonna skirt around this reveal, especially given people were interested to why a character from Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach, a game that takes place during the 2020s-2030s is doing in a movie that adapts a game taking place during the 1990s.

The answer? She is the movie version of Elizabeth Afton (whether she has siblings or not is unknown, but I doubt it; after all, Elizabeth from The Silver Eyes didn't have any siblings either).

I will admit, I do like that the movie combined aspects of Security Breach!Vanessa being the Reluctant Follower and covering for her father's crimes (or rather, not wanting to get involved with them) along with her knowledge of Freddy's by virtue of being the daughter of one of the founders. Unlike Elizabeth, she manages to defy her father at the very end of the movie, and gets stabbed as a consequence. Don't worry, she is alive, but also stuck in the hospital.

Also, her being William's daughter in the movie opens a huge can of worms for her Game!Character, given how Game!Vanessa (aka Vanny) is known as Vanessa A.

Now, let's get to our main attraction... in part two, because Tumblr won't let me post more than 30 images.

LINK

Five Nights at Freddy's (Movie Review, Part 2)

[golldenvallion]

2012! April and Rise! April headcannons

So here's the thing, April is my favorite character in Rise and the 2012 series and I am DYING for some crossover content of them interacting but I havnt seen a lot of it out there so I'm making it myself.

I don't realy know how I want them to meant but let's just go with the scenario where rise! Leo is messing with his portals and somehow the 2012 gang ends up in the rise universe and thets when the aprils meet.

- 12!april had autism and rise!April had ADHD and they both make the autism and ADHD solidarity meme.

-12!april can't cook to save her live but rise!April is a great cook thanks to some prior job experience. Rise!April is 12!april's favorite cook (don't tell Mikey)

-Rise!April loves 12!april but she hates her outfit (she is right about that) 12!april loves rise!April's outfit but thinks the leggings and skirt are impracticable (she is right about that) so the both go shopping at thrift stores to look for stuff.

-rise!April was very freaked out when she discovered that her counter part was half KRANG (because let's be real. The Krang did just traumatize her and her friends)

-12! April on the other hand was a little surprised that rise! April had been possessed by Karai in the past but she and the boys have seen so much wierd stuff that she got over it real quick (she was more surprised that Karai was the boys grandma instead of their sister)

-12!april grew up with the original bratz dolls but she is more of a monster high fan and was hyped to hear that there are multiple reboots of the franchise and

rise!April is a bratz fan who grew up with monster high and she asks 12!april all about what the bratz franchise was like back in the day.

-Rise!April is a total theater kid thanks to donnie and Leo and 12!april is a movie nerd Thanks to Leo and Mikey. Where rise! april can sing almost every song from rent and knows the whole script and all the choreography and is ready to dance and sing whenever 12!knows where the movie was shot, how long it took, what the buget was, how much is made, what happened on set who played in it etc.

-12!april is a little jealous that rise!April has know the boys for so long while she met them when she was 16. She would have loved to have the boys in her life sooner.

-when rise!April learned about 12!aprils powers she asked her to help her mess with the purple dragons 12!april was totally ready to mess up some street thugs so she was hesitant about messing with some random highschoolers. That was until she met them and after that encounter she made all their tech levitate to spook them.

-12!april wasn't allowed to have any social media because her dad was scared that the Krang might find them but rise!April has introduced her to tiktok and pinterest and let me tell you the gilr is hooked.

I can't really think of more headcannons right now but these are fun to make so I'll think of some soon. If anybody has any crossover content of the aprils interacting please don't be afraid to @me cause I'd love to see it. Fics, fan art, headcannons, anything honestly.

[paperandhis-paper]

Arc-V Day 6 and 7

I'm a bit behind. Please @arcvmonth, spare me. Don't turn me into a card.

Anyway, for Understudy Spotlight I wanna briefly talk about Roger. I say briefly, because I'll save most of my thoughts for the Villains Prompt. For now, I gotta say, he's my vote for most underrated Yugioh bad guy. I LOVE villains who think they're hot shit, but turn out to be nothing but smug snakes. Plus, his voice actor NAILS his breakdowns. I was surprised to see so many people disliked him (probably Shōnen fans who can't accept a villain that isn't super-duper powerful). Finally, I love me some Disney Villain Deaths.

Anyway, Day 7: Of Amores, Per the Prophecy

Oh boy, does Arc-V have some banger ships. Some of my faves:

Fruitshipping:

Main-guy with Main-girl ships in most Shōnen anime tend to hit with the force of a wet fart, with Yugioh being no different. This is because they fall under the trap of making the girl be the only one who constantly thinks of protagonist-kun, whereas the MC is usually only thinking about fighting, eating, and their male rival who they're totally-not-gay-with.

Therefore, it's wild that these two idiots enamored the Arc-V so much as they, and it was via the use of a very simple trick: have both parties be clearly interested in one another. Seriously, Arc-V turns into an epic, interdimensional romantic drama from Season 2, and it's so strange for a franchise like Yugioh (even if it already happened in GX). Yuya spends as much time thinking about Yuzu as she does about him, and that's so refreshing.

One thing I love about this ship is how much they emphasize that the distance between them doesn't diminish their bond. In fact, it's the opposite, when they're separated that their feelings are most in display. Yuzu's duel with Chojiro is one such example: despite not being allowed near one another, Yuzu still had her feelings reach him.

Them being enemies in their past lives but lovers in this one also adds an extra element of brainrot for me.

Appleshipping and Fallenangelshipping:

I wanna re-emphasize this: we NEED more F/M ships where the guy is completely, stupidly in love with the girl. This applies more to appleshipping admittedly; seeing Yugo explode with joy from seeing Rin will never stop melting my heart. Male characters in anime are often shy of showing physical affection toward their love interests, but not Banana-boy. Plus, imagining how they grew up in poverty is interesting.

Serenadeshipping:

OMG THIS SHIP IS SO GOOD. LIKE I KNOW I HAVE MASSIVE YURI BIAS BECAUSE LOVE LIVE FAN BUT STILL. Ok so you obviously got badass and serious Serena with ray-of-sunshine Yuzu, so the dynamic is fun from the get-go. But we also have the fact that Yuzu became one of, if not the, first friends Serena's ever had. Plus there's the "changing clothes" scene and I'm sure you could do some gay awakening shit.

Also Yuzu is so happy upon seeing Serena late in the series. Just look at her!

And then when Serena betrays them she's so sad. DAMN IT ARC-V, THIS IS FROM THE FREAKING CAPTAIN SOLO EPISODE, WHY IS MY HEART IN PIECES?!

(Extra angst when you consider this is the last time they spoke before getting thrown into Arc-V)

Finally, I imagine she'd be happy to forever be with Yuzu at the end of the series

Lustershipping:

similar dynamic as Serenade, but with a rival-to-lovers tint. It's just cute, mmkay? Aesthetically, this is one of my favorites, Masumi's design is great

Genesishipping:

Sometimes, ships are more interesting for what they don't tell you than for what they do. The showrunners left the nature of Zarc and Ray's relationship ambiguous, which means there's a lot of possible avenues to take it. Enemies to Lovers? Sure, go ahead. Enemies that become lovers because of their new incarnations' unique souls? Works too.

Plus Zarcray fans make some Fire content.

Honorable Mentions: Guiltshipping, Candyshipping, Emblemshipping, Braceletshipping,