#imagine being able to forget aftg

[stevesnightmares]

I don't understand why people write about andrew being 35 and still being completely guarded and closed off and never genuinely laughing, even when it's only him and neil.

"that would be out of character" him being happy would be out of character? In aftg not only he's in the middle of experiencing trauma but he's also extremely close to the trauma that he's already experienced, that's why he's like that. But when he's older and in the process of healing he won't be as closed off and impenetrable as he is during aftg.

Why shouldn't he laugh? Why shouldn't he find things that he actually enjoys doing, even if it's something as simple as reading comic books or books or watching tv shows or anime or whatever the fuck else. I like to imagine that he will get better. I like to imagine that he will get happier, that he'll be able to genuinely laugh and enjoy things in life. He won't be "normal", he won't be perfect and shiny and sociable and lovely and sweet but he also won't be as closed off and impassibile as he's in aftg. And yet because that's how he's characterised in aftg many ppl just imagine future andrew just like aftg-andrew is. But I think he will heal.

Trauma is not something you just get over, it's not something you forget, it's somethings you have to learn to live with and heal from, but just because some of us were hurt it doesn't mean that we'll remain in that state of hurt forever.

[darlingbudsofrae]

Renee Walker Appreciation Post

Foxes Appreciation Series : 1 || 2 || 3 || 4 || 5 || 6 || 7 || 8 || 9 || 10 ||

All together now, let us all hold hands and say: ”All hail, Queen Renee”

Those who refuse to join this worship will unfortunately hit their little toe on one of their chairs’ leg. I’m sorry, I don’t make the rules.

No, seriously- Renee is the least problematic fox and if you have a problem with her, then you need some serious help.

Like how I start my other appreciation posts- I would like to start this by saying that I think people forget how badass Renee Walker truly is.

Friendly reminder that Renee Natalie Walker is an SA victim and also killed her abuser. 

Like, the reason why she’s so good with knives is that the horrible man who did horrible things to her was good with knives and so she trained herself to best him in a fight.

And best him she did. Also, she killed him. He died. As he should. 

This is a single man with many victims and Renee Walker put a stop to it.

Yasss Queen. 

This is from the extra content (which I admittedly only read Allison’s) BUT when Allison was recruited and Renee and Dan was discussing her-

Dan was lowkey judging Allison and dismissing her trauma while I do get where she was coming from it was just uncalled for and Renee was defending her and I’m all for that.

I’m also lowkey happy that they all became friends in the end to stand against sexism cuz yes- we need women standing together against sexism (would highly prefer just women being friends without the sexism part but hey, we can’t have the best of both worlds)

I need more of the girls bonding, like seriously.

Also, no one in the foxes hate Renee and I think it’s because she’s easily able to empathize with the others.

Like, everyone was so quick to label Andrew as soulless or a monster but then there’s Renee befriending him and just understanding him.

Like, Andrew trusts her so much that she’s actually the first person in the foxes he came out to? The only person he willingly came out to?? We do not talk enough about this.

Also, the way she and Andrew are sparring partners? That rocks.

Renee just gets along with everyone and I think it’s because while Matt and Nicky are arguably the friendliest ones in the team, Renee just doesn’t let prejudiced notions and all that shit get the best of her.

Her sense of empathy is just on a god-tier level. 

Also, apparently Renee did drugs? And the fact that in the series she’s been clean (like she doesn’t drink and all), I’m just so proud like-

She resorted to exy and Christianity and her mother actually being the best mother in the book (like let’s just appreciate her mom for a second). 

Also, this is a personal take but I love how Renee is a positive Christian representation- and just a positive representation on religious people on general?

Like most of the books I read that has religious people makes religion as either a plot device or villainizes it, but with AFTG, it’s a contrast to the experiences Nicky had with it.

Like it’s probably not that deep but I love how there’s both a negative and positive representation to religion because most books really make religion as a negative for some reason?

But yes, I appreciate that she found her outlet in religion and no I’m not religious but I can appreciate that.  

She majors in Religious Studies in college and good for her!

Also, I feel like no one talks enough about how Renee basically saved Jean from abuse?

Like she just drove there straight to the nest and took him out and gave him to Abby for treatment and I-

Like that is so badass.

Also, she’s the only one in the fox that doesn’t get affected by Kevin’s blunt criticisms and I think that’s cool! Like how??

I also love how she bets on “lost” causes? Like imagine wishing for the positive things and not caring how much money you lose in the process? I stan.

Also, I lowkey can’t, I’m too frugal for that LMAO

Renee is generally just a calm and respecting person and while yes, she can probably kill me- she is an absolute sweetheart.

“I am a bad person trying very hard to be a good person.”

I’m dying with that quote engraved on my grave. There’s Renee lowkey proving that yes we cannot erase the things we did in the past but we can always try to be a better person.

Renee Natalie Walker is such a queen and we love her.

[kevindayscrown]

Why Kevin Day is the most in-depth character in the All For the Game series

An essay by a Kevin stan, so you know it's at least 70% biased

Hello, hello everyone, welcome to another session of me, brainwashing you about the amazingness of Kevin Day. In this short essay, I'll discuss how our number Queen asshole striker is, in fact, not just a whiney bitch, but one of the most key characters in the AFTG series. I'll also discuss how Nora pretty much did him dirty and how much I appreciate the fandom for doing him better.

I've decided that it will be much easier to take things chronologically, so I can delve deeper into what makes Kevin the character whose stans won't shut up about.

Unlike the rest of the characters in the series, Kevin started off in a somewhat stable family condition. He was brought up by his mother, Kayleigh, but still probably had to live with the title 'Son of Exy' from the moment he was born. We've all witnessed what being on the spotlight from a young age has done to child stars. Kevin, upon growing up, would start feeling the burden of a whole legacy created by his mother. Because Exy, despite being a bastard sport, has a large fanbase around the US, and possibly further - since it's mentioned that it's also an Olympic sport.

It wouldn't be a surprise that Kevin more than likely looked up to his mother and wanted to play Exy for her. Suddenly though, Keyleigh died in a car accident (if it was even a car accident; knowing the Moriyamas, it could had been done on purpose) and left Kevin in the care of Tetsuji Moriyama, the head of one of the yakuza's branches, and his now adoptive brother Riko.

Let's be honest, both of them were just kids. They only had each other, so it was really easy to get attached. Kevin has lost his mother at this point and Tetsuji is not exactly a proper father figure, so Kevin had to cling on Riko. Despite us seeing him in the main timeline being an asshole who snaps at everyone, his willingness to submit into the position of 'number 2' even if he's better than Riko, shows how much he depends emotionally on people. Riko and Kevin had to meet certain expectations, had fans from a very young age, and Neil even mentions that he literally witnessed Kevin grow up from media outlets and coverages. Kevin had to stick close to the only other person who's going through the same thing.

As a result, it was easy for Kevin to focus on what he's taught to believe; he should aim for the stars, he should be good, great, but never the best. Because Riko is the best. Kevin accepts that.

I hate how people call him a spineless coward just because someone mentions it once in the book. Kevin isn't like Neil. Neil was given a chance to escape. Kevin could never escape Evermore. Even if he did consider it his home, he was still abused on a daily basis. Riko mentions in Raven King, when he's about to torture Neil, that Neil is basically in the same position as Kevin once had been:

People forget that, Kevin probably had to live through what Neil did ever since Riko turned into his fucked up self. Which literally means years of physical and mental abuse, with no hope of escape but the bright future he had ahead of him. So what did Kevin do? He focused on playing.

Stop making Kevin all about being an Exy freak or an alcoholic. Kevin was so obsessed with Exy because it's the only thing he has ever known. He probably couldn't even drink before he escaped Evermore.

Imagine being torn between loving and clinging on the boy you once called brother because it's the only family you've known, and being hurt by him, again and again at a later age, having him shatter all you think you are good at. Riko didn't just break Kevin's hand. He almost took away from him all he thought he had left, and possibly the only way Kevin had of feeling close to his mother.

Kevin loses all he's ever known, and he blames himself for it at first because he thinks it's his fault that he even dared to show he could be better than Riko. He's in pieces and the only thing he does is to cling yet on another person. Aka Andrew. And somehow like this, we come back to the point about Kevin not only being far from an emotionless asshole, but actually being the most emotionally attached character in the series.

Entering the timeline of the books, Kevin appears as the epitome of a narcissistic asshole. It's fair for someone (as a reader) to not like him at first, when we don't know all that much about him. But as the story unravels, a clear distinction is made:

Kevin is not a narcissist. He's egocentric.

Kevin knows and truly believes he's the center of attention. Because, admittedly, he is. The books could had easily had Kevin as the protagonist. Like mentioned before, being raised on the spotlight, has had a tremendous impact on how he sees himself. He's obsessed with what image he's presenting to the public. I don't think he said 'being heterosexual is easier' without a reason. Kevin has led a life full of suppression. He can flash a 'press smile' for the cameras, he can snap and be cold at the Foxes, when in reality, he's suffering from severe PTSD, with panic attacks that he's handling in the worst way possible:

Alcohol. Why? Because the Foxes are all assholes and hypocrites. Don't get me wrong, I love them. But the fact that they just ignored Kevin everytime he had a panic attack and simply thrusted a bottle of vodka his way and called it a day? Inexcusable. Kevin needed a lot more than that.

Oh jeez, I wonder why he didn't tell Wymack he was his father all along.

If I see another person saying that Kevin was an ass for not telling Wymack straight up, I might slap a bitch. Do you think that Kevin would have been able to handle another rejection, another loss of a parental figure? All he did, was in self defense. Yes, it was selfish, but it was probably the only time in his life he could really make a choice on his own.

But you know what? Kevin overcame all this. Maybe and most probably not completely, he will never be able to wash away some stains, but he became more confident and emotionally independent. He detached himself both from Riko and from Andrew, and became the best striker in the history of Exy.

One of the reasons why I love Neil and Kevin - especially Kevin - is because their healing journeys are more fleshed out than Andrew's. But in this case, Kevin's was not really given the attention it deserved, it happened on the side lines and he had to do it alone. Neil had the foxes, had Wymack and Andrew. Kevin had no one, because the foxes, despite being assholes themselves, kept dismissing him and his problems. I really do believe that, in the first drafts when Kandreil was canon, Nora had potentially explored his character more. I wish we had gotten that instead of this sloppy attempt to squeeze in his ark along with Neil's.

I'll end this with some highlights that also showcase how badass Kevin is. He's a mess, but he does grow some spine when he finally becomes his own person:

Oof, if you actually read through this, thank you for tolerating my probably incoherent thoughts. I actually barely scratched the surface of my thoughts on Kevin's character but for now, this will do.

[okneiljos]

aftg headcanons

sorry if this is a mess but i have a lot of feeling/thoughts about this

• matt has donned “true friend” by hannah montana his and neil’s song okay

• neil is a runner and goes on runs a lot when he needs to clear his head and stuff so like what if the foxes started running with him

— kevin goes with him first (nicky was chilling in the dorm eating some ungodly snack and kevin was glaring at him and had this disgusted look so nicky laughed and with a surprise attack got kevin to swallow two whole bites)

 • so kev is like no i need to work off these calories immediately and he sees neil getting ready for a run and just joins him 

       — he and kevin only talk about exy, it’ll take a while for them to actually be able to talk about anything else, but it does happen           

       • matt is second cause he sees them jogging out the window and is like “well shit i didn’t know neil was open to company on his runs (cause sometimes he’s not) and decides he’ll join him next time

— matt is neil’s best bro so they talk about whatever and neil is like since when has this happened but he’s fine with it and is actually glad for the company 

     • a few weeks later it’s dan, then nicky who won’t shut up and keeps blabbing his head off but by this point neil finds it endearing, then allison who tells neil how pretty he is and how she could make him look and i quote “bitchin’” if he let her do his make-up, he politely declines. renee asks him if she can join and neil was going to say no since she unnerves him but he’s trying hard to get over that and says yes and they don’t speak other than her occasional humming

• whenever “circle of life” from lion king and matt is anywhere neil he will pick him up and sing along and all the foxes have so many videos of this along with zoomed in pics of neil’s face while it’s happening and they all think it’s the funniest thing ever (they mostly put on the song just to see it)

• they all have so many videos and pictures of neil and kevin’s reactions to things. kevin mostly to their unhealthy food choices (so they purposely order the thing on the menu most likely to give them a heart-attack) and neil to like anything.

    — they have compilations of neil going off on press and then panning over to kevin who is standing with his hand over his face sighing and muttering things like “why does wymack even let him do this he knows by this point” and “i’m going to murder him at night practice” and “why do i even try like honestly god why are you so against me”

    — they all try to get neil to say his iconic “i’m fine” so they can record it and pan over to any one of the foxes faces like their on the office. they have to have hundreds of these videos by this point honestly. dan puts them all together and it’s more than an hour long, at one of the sleepovers they watch it all and neil is cursing them while they laugh and andrew is muttering “idiot, do you know the definition of that word?” 

• all of them have a lot of sleepovers. they’ll watch movies (they take turns picking) and eat snacks and junk food that kevin complains about and they sometimes play games and they fall asleep on each other and its just really wonderful 

• so when the upperclassmen graduate neil is proud but also feels a little lonely but he voice calls with them all the time but he decides that isn’t enough so he gets rid of the dinosaur (his phone that andrew gave to him so he doesn’t really get rid of it he keeps it in the drawer by his bed) and gets an iphone

— after that all hell is unleashed and he is always facetiming at least one of them. andrew mostly and then matt and dan (but he sees them the most cause of dan being assistant coach) and then nicky and kevin. 

— they all try to call each other at least once a week but theres a lot of them so they have a groupchat. they talk all day in this groupchat and at least three conversations are always happening at once and pictures from the good ‘ol days and recent ones are always being sent 

— bless the thing called skype and google hangouts because now he can talk to more than one of them at once and it’s really great and he loves it and them so much

• they also try to visit each other on any special occasion and when they can’t you best believe they send cards and facetime. 

• neil is most surprised by the times that kevin initiates contact with him after he also graduates. kevin will call and text him reminding him to train and eat properly and keep his reflexes sharp and to insult his skills because kev always records and watches his games. it’s few and far in between that kevin compliments him but when he does neil feels good and proud and awed but he’d never tell kevin that

    — kevin and neil become closer okay i don’t make the rules. they call each other and talk about things other than exy but lets be real these exy junkies mostly talk about exy and each others games and the players on their teams (usually to complain or insult them) and kevin gives him advice 

• when robin comes neil doesn’t feel all that lonely anymore and they are giving matt and neil a run for their money of the level of bro-ness 

• my wife allison plays professionally and you cannot fucking tell me otherwise i’m sorry i don’t make the rules, she becomes pro and is a badass and her team beats kevin’s team once and kevin is pissy about it but he can’t be that mad (although he makes his team practice twice as long for a week straight afterword)

      — speaking on my wife allison didn’t nora say she didn’t play pro and became a fashion designer or something? anyway she still does that and she makes sports gear and work out clothes that make you That Bitch but are also comfortable and practical and she becomes even more rich. everything comes in shades of bright orange, pink, and black

     — every time she sees any of the foxes she brings them clothes from her line and she promotes the line by making the foxes put them on and model them for her. 

     — the most popular ones are matt boyd in a bright orange crop-top and booty shorts, the second most popular being neil in tight compression pants that leaves nothing to the imagination and a pink muscle tee. as soon as the picture of neil is posted his phone is ringing and guess who it is, yes that’s right its andrew. allison shoots neil a wink

     —  eventually she gets a deal with nike and designs shoes and the same thing, though this time she makes dan and renee model them for her. nicky does it on his own and send her pics of him wearing them and she posts them

     — kevin adamantly refuses to model for her but he owns everything from her line but he would never tell her that and he shows his support by taking a picture of him at the gym in the gym mirror and he’s wearing them and allison reposts it and texts him a winky face

     — everything she designs she has them try it first to see if it can withstand practical use so even after they graduate more than half the shit in their closets is bright orange only now theres also varying shades of pink 

     — she also forces her current team members to model for her and they all don’t want to at first until they actually try them and now all her teammates are always sporting her designs while training or at the gym or on court and she’s so proud of herself because she’s made something of herself without her parents 

• now on to kevin, so he learns the piano i have a headcanon (i forget if its actually canon or not but) jean is like a piano prodigy so when he and jean have their bi-weekly calls he begins asking jean for tips and its hard but kevin picks it up a lot faster than he would have expected 

i have so many thoughts on these guys so i’ll do a part two more on like renee, dan, matt, the twinyards and kev. especially aaron cause i don’t think i mentioned him but i have so many about him also so that’ll be in the second part.

[deadmanzp]

aftg asks; questions by triquetrine

these are so interesting so i did all of them.. i want to come back after a year and see if id still answer the same! 

op is the post before this or also tagged “misc” 

neil josten: favorite/most iconic line?

first one that comes to mind I’m not sure is a favorite or iconic line? but it’s a line i think about a lot and it always hurts to read. it’s when they're at the cabin in TKM. 

“He didn’t care how much it hurt so long as he could pull Andrew closer, and he let Andrew take him apart until he couldn’t think anymore.”

that comes at the very end of Chapter 14 and gosh just the paragraph that line comes from and the paragraph before…. the fact neil thinks andrew doesnt care about him the way he cares/feels about andrew is like….. CMON MAN but also i just love the pining angst of it. i like this line especially because the line right before it mentions neil working his “bandaged fingers into Andrew’s hair”. so the “he didnt care how much it hurt” to me always carried a double meaning of 1. the physical pain he felt bc of his injuries but also 2. the pain of unfamiliarity abt his feelings towards andrew and thinking it was unreciprocal AND THAT HED HAVE TO “WARN” ANDREW like the implication.. of neil thinking abt their “relationship” possibly ending bc andrew doesnt feel the same and maybe wouldnt want to be entangled in whatever neil was feeling …… IM LIKE neil knows andrew so well and him being so sure abt this but hes like …. WRONG …. e

nathaniel wesninski: one thing you would change about the books? (plot, characters, etc)

there is very little id change about the books if at all. mainly bc while i know there are upsetting things that happen/the charas do, i think all of those things make the series really interesting to analyze and talk about. i will say a moment i hated was when neil touches andrews scars when andrew makes it clear he doesn't want neil to pry about them. i know neil offers his scars in turn when he's trying to convince andrew to let neil look over kevin but that was controlled. he let andrew touch them and find out about them of his own volition. neil touches something directly related to the trauma andrew had just experienced again when he had 0 permission to do so. while i always get mad at neil for this when i read it i still dont think id change it or get rid of it. im not really sure how id change it anyways and i think andrews relationship with his scars (and himself in general) is probably what allows him to brush it off(?)/never bring this up (plus maybe neil offering his scars was enough for andrew) but i havent thought too hard about this. but ya i remember i got rlly angry w neil the first time i read this scene and i still get mad abt it when i reread.

andrew minyard: if you could be friends with one of the characters, who would you pick?

i mean realistically i wouldnt be friends w jocks ILL BE REAL LOL and i think as much as i love the monsters, theres no way id be friends w them haha uhm but prob dan would be most realistic! maybe even katelyn tbh.. 

kevin day: if you played exy, what would your position be?

oh i think dealer! in sports i liked being able to do both defense and offense bc it made me feel i had more control over the field, like i could always do something if there were any holes

dan wilds: favorite moment/scene?

definitely the hotel reunion scene. theres so much to it; it drives me nuts!!!!! but honestly there are probably a lot of really good moments im forgetting. to me the whole series is really enjoyable and every scene has something i could say about it haha

matt boyd: song you would love to see in a live-action adaptation?

Oggghh this is so hard… esp since it takes place in 2007???? Idk.. iconic artists then i suppose ghfgkjhf BUT i think general vibes i think itd be so cool if paramore (time relevant), ptv (also time relevant), and mitski were on the soundtrack……. Ya…….. 

nicky hemmick: which made you more emotional, neil at evermore or neil in baltimore?

neil in baltimore for sure… neil at evermore i can't remember what i felt the first time i read it (maybe pain LOL bc he was doing it for andrew and i felt like riko wouldnt keep his promise) but in my latest reread i was unimpressed by it (mostly bc i think riko is boring and unimpressive). i think i mightve said evermore in the past though….. maybe... neil in baltimore is like … GOD neils emotions are so strong during all of that its really juicy haha. i think like him being angry bc he was on the cusp of having everything he couldve ever dreamed of; the desperation of wanting to fight back and get away; even just the fear of being in the same room as his father for the first time in so long... all really juicy 

aaron minyard: a character you will defend to your death?

defend…. im not sure is the word i would use and i dont think i really believe in defending any of these charas “to death” bc of how flawed and complex they are; id like to acknowledge when they did wrong. i think id “defend” any of the characters if i saw anyone misinterpreting or misunderstanding them.. theyre all really interesting even if they didnt get too much spotlight. except maybe riko. hes incredibly boring to me. and also nathan ig and any of his crew just bc there is Nothing abt them rlly...

katelyn: which minor character do you wish you could see more of?

uhhhmmmmmmmm hmmmmmm….. idk maybe… jeremy…. gjfjgkdngmdghs just bc him and kevin r so funny.. i was thinking maybe jean too but…… idk a diff kind of kevin relationship lol (yikes) (pain) but really im satisfied w jeans screen time. i think ichirou is interesting but again i think he didn't rlly need more. maybe erik actually. im interested to know what nicky is like with him :0

allison reynolds: favorite headcanon about the foxes?

actually something i recently thought abt was neil and photography. iirc? andrew gives neil a camera in the ec and i also imagine kevin eventually gets another camera too (i loved that detail when we saw his room at the nest) so i thought abt neil and kevin sharing/trading pics they take of (mainly) scenery. i imagine neil takes pics of anything he wants to remember/keep while kevin is more prone to taking pics of subjects related to some nerd history stuff (lol) so thats why they trade scenery pics mainly. but i like this small connection bc i want more to their relationship than their exy obsession and i imagine they have room for more now that riko is gone and i just like this other commonality btwn them. i think maybe they mail the developed pics to each other maybe w small descripts/notes but thats it. and i also imagine it kind of just is something that started happening.. neil and andrew r on a roadtrip and some building reminds neil of kevin so he snaps a pic and eventually sends it to kevin w some note. kevin replies 1. either a text being like that is nothing. > neil: shrugs brushes it off but figures he is welcome to send more when kevin sends his own picture back or 2. kevin simply replies back similarly w his own photo. i dont know.. maybe this goes beyond what their actual relationship would be like but i do like the idea of them just bein like… dude friends u know so i want them to have more than just exy and a traumatizing experience between them. 

as for common headcanons within the fanbase…. i do like the allison + neil haircuts thing.. although im not sure if i imagine it the same as most haha i feel neil would know how to cut his own hair from his life on the run (though theyre not Good or bad just like ok u know like passable generic w/e) i think hed definitely be tense the first couple times but he has experience w allison being close from needing to be covered up w make up after winter break so i think she would be allowed. 

renee walker: favorite non-canonical ship? (renison, jerejean, etc)

uhmm to be honest none really… im way too attached to canon to be able to dismiss any established relationships. i think kevemy (??? is that the name) is rlly amusing but i dont want them together necessarily haha i used to rlly like renison mainly bc im a lesbian and i want “main” chara wlw relationships lol but i recently read something abt how bi allison doesnt rlly sit well w some bc she outs andrew and neil during the hotel scene.. i also agree this is kinda :/ if she was bi Mainly bc i feel a lot of ppl (or at least this is what i gather from renison stuff ive seen) portray allison already being established bi? if this makes sense. i think if renison/allison realizing shes bi is a later development id feel better abt it but usually renison is already established so ya her outing them does bother me…. BUT aside from this, thinking about them as characters and what their partners (would) look like… im not sure if theyd rlly choose each other.. but i still enjoy seeing them together in art and in fic bc in the end…. im a sucker for women lol….

seth gordon: most underrated dynamic? (matt & neil, wymack & andrew, etc)

my first thought was wymack and andrew bc i rlllllyy like their dynamic especially after reading their ec stuff. i loved their first meeting (andrews terrible sandwich??!?fhdhfjd) and when andrew breaks into wymacks apartment BUT i think ppl mention them enough its not underrated. i Actually think renee and andrews dynamic/friendship is rlly underrated/overlooked!!! especially after reading the son nefes ec i love their dynamic a lot… 

some son nefes moments of them i liked:  tw // rape

renee convincing andrew to go with her to see matt after his trip to edens

how many knives do u carry / one more than u IS SO FUNNY and just andrews persistence abt fighting renee is also rlly funny to me

tw // rape : the moment when andrew asks renee if she killed her rapist/abuser that whole convo was good… 

their convo in the rain w their tea

i cant remember when this happens or rlly exaclty what was said but renee offers andrew something (some help??) and he says i dont need (w/e it was) and she says something along the lines of  i know but it wouldnt do any harm or SOMETHING like that.. i like this bc she acknowledges their abilities while showing shed still like to offer some help. im p sure she does this another time too (w neil???? or someone i cant remember maybe it was andrew again) and i remember liking it too. she has a way w words and talking (also seen in her convincing andrew to see matt)

BUT regardless of ec stuff i think their relationship/dynamic seen in the books is rlly good too. theres def enough to be intrigued by them and i always have been? so i'm reeeaallly happy son nefes exists i loved reading it..

david wymack: which ncaa team would you play for?

oh to be honest i dont rlly remember many of them but of the Three (ravens, foxes, trojans) prob trojans. i remember i even got them in a uquiz once… 

abby winfield: which character was the most realistically written?

first that came to mind was aaron actually.. i remember before when i didnt rlly like him or care abt him it was actually bc he was too “boring” to me. i always thought he had the most realistic reactions to things which is what made him boring to me amidst the ridiculousness of, well, everything in aftg lol… i still think he is really realistically written but now i dont think hes boring haha

besty dobson: how many times have you read the series?

fully i think…. only 3 times… i wish this were a higher count but i actually feel guilty everytime i try to reread it.

riko moriyama: coolest exy moment? (kevin’s last-minute point against the ravens, andrew shutting down the goal, etc)

uhhmm uhmm i def think kevin during the final game against the ravens…. hes so cool haha but i KNOW there were a lot of game moments that i thought were really cool so i cant rlly say…. oh also i love neil being defense in that game too rlly juicy wish i could pull up obscure moments bc i know i rlly enjoyed reading the games but terrible memory...

jeremy knox: which do you like reading more, domestic!foxes or chaotic!foxes?

uh i guess chaotic? not rlly sure exactly what that could entail but i do like… their chaos.. when they have fights and squabbles and stuff… this includes the high tension moments. ALTHOUGH i do like the tiny lines in the books when we see the monsters just doing like random basic everyday life stuff like playing video games or whatever. i like…. imagining them... fhdjfjshfjs… as for fic def chaos. i feel domestic is usually too softened….. 

jean moreau: favorite friendship?

oh i think this goes back to andrew and renee. but other than them… i do like neil and matts friendship.. though probably not the same as its typically portrayed 

[foxesrefuge]

your were tagged ;D What do you think of Riko as a character inside the books? (no HCs) / Any fave HCs you want to share? / Any pairings/ships you like with him? / fic recs? / art recs? / Kevin&Riko - do they have/had feelings for each other? / Thoughts on his finale scene? / Did you read Nora's extra content? // tag other bloggers you think have something interesting to say about him! (maybe someone we don't know yet??) #Thoughts on Riko Moriyama

HOO boi XD here comes the trainwreck.First of..all thank you @c-valentino for tagging me and…. making me uh ..work and think on my own (sobs) haha *nervous laughter (noreally tho, thank you, целую!!)I probably won’tcome up with super new or hyper interesting stuff and… actually, Icould just link CVal’s whole post here……………………but okay here wego, then!!Ugh, I guess I have to out myself now real quickbefore we dive in: I was always kinda very interested in the ‘BadGuys’. No matter what, I’d try to find out more about them, try tofigure out how their twisted brains work and why their Morales werealways a bit questionable, which doesn’t necessarily mean I’m okaywith whatever they’re doing or understand and support their actions(hell fucking nooo).I’m just finding it super interesting tothink and sometimes even talk about.

Now, since that’s settled:I think Riko is justas interesting as our MC’s, if not one of the most interestingcharacters, and maybe also one of the most tragic ones (imo). I don’treally think you get this impression after reading the series for thefirst time, though. He seems super flat and not interesting enough inthe books. I wouldn’t have given him a second thought if I didn’t getthe chance to read the extra content.

Which leads me now to my actually toughts on Riko, based  onextra Content and HC’s:The way Riko sees the world isobviously reeeally different from how our MC’s view the world,which is quite,.. understandable, regarding where he comes from, howhe was raised and trained and what he went through (bc hooo boi,that’s not a life I wanna live). This guy knows he’s the son ofExy, obviously The Number One and the actual King of the court. Thereshould be no way anyone could have the power or strength to outpacehim (oh and Riko is going to make sure of that). He is a Moriyama andthinks of his players as his property, he basically gets what hewants and who he wants. Sounds like a pleasant life, right? But Idon’t think he had one. He is living with this pressure form“above’, knowing that he always ‘has to be’ The Best of them all. Hehas to deliver otherwise he would be no use and therefore not worthkeeping in the nest, on the court and alive. I always picturedhim feeling the pressure and weirdly enough people tend to forgetthat Riko is not a robot… because being pressured like that,knowing you have to be THE BEST all the time, no matter what .. thatreally really really fucks with you and your brain. He isprobably under constant stress, giving more than just his best ,whichhe also expects from his players. There is no space for compassion,no place for weakness, nor failure. His live is Exy and there isnothing else than Exy keeping him alive. It’s his past, hispresent and his future for the rest of his life. His mentalbreakdowns always turn into violent outbursts because that boy can’treally cope with the mess in his head (probably not even aware ofthat) He never learned how to control his anger or himself. Why wouldhe? He is King, a Moriyama, he is the one controlling. So yeah, youbasically don’t want to be near him when he’s having his moments. Hisruthlessness makes him go overboard at times. A lot of times.He’salso never at fault. No matter what he does because.. what the hell??Such a concept doesn’t even exist. So how in the world is Rikoa tragic character, when we just settled that he’s nothing but anabsolute ruthless monster with no restrains???!!

Lemme explain ok. Riko was born into this world of Exy, Thesecond son, not the first(!!), growing up and having those insaneexpectations to life up to –  he would be a worthless piecenothing, not needed on the court. He had Kevin, the brother who wasalways by his side, on and off court; his number 2, his property,*his*. Riko doesn’t know how to treat people right though,doesn’t know the concept of actual friendship, It’s always just Exyand Exy and Exy, there is no time for friendship. I also believethat he deep down feared for his life, he just wasn’t aware of thatbecause his brain was too occupied with getting better.One of myHC’s is that: he was super restless the whole damn time, not able tocalm down, constantly under pressure.He basically barely slept.How is there time for sleep, when you can use that precious time ondrills?It wrecks him. The nest destroyed a perfectly fineboy, gave him the chance to basically develop this crazy god complexand also turning him into this Exy monster. And most of the time hewasn’t even aware of his problems because there is just no time andspace for that shit.

Now what happens if one suddenly takes away his Exy? Welp,there’d be nothing left of this fucked up guy. He is a mess, abroken soul, not good enough to be alive.He has nothing, not evenhimself because he was sold to the court and owned by the court.There are many many many demons living in his ribcage, twistinghis brain in the worst ways. I’m not even sure if he’d be able tolive a normal human life outside the nest, without being able to feelanything besides the need to do better and better and better. It madehim mad to the point of no return … so yeah uh .. don’t you thinkthat’s kinda tragic??

Fave HC’s: Mhh, I uh … you know what?

basicallyeverything CVal came up with and mentioned  in her post

…..…..(did u think I was joking, Val?)

Riko with freckles, I dig that!!

Riko playing an instrument.. preferably the piano (ok listen, just the picture of Riko, in a black suit … sitting in front of a piano…no?just me?ok)

Riko being an amazing swimmer

Also some Au’s

Riko and Ichirou → actually interacting with each other (Onii-san,y'all I’m chokiNG ( maybe some kind of Uchiha-Verse or something like that, why not? I dig it))

Fox!Riko ( @bvccvrdi  thank you for this and @shihoran for destroying me and my emotions daily w this)

Pairings/Ships and Feelings:

Riko/Kevin clearly. There is no doubt.

Especially after reading the extra content and old drafts.Thesetwo were boyfriends. Their relationship was hella unhealthy and probsreally violent but  … they just can’t live without each other(I mean can u imagine how obsessed Riko had been with Kev?? He wasHIS, okay? His and ooonly his.He didn’t even touch Kevin’s side of the room after all this time,can u imagine??). They were rivals for sure .. but .. they were alsoabsolutely obsessed w each other.I currently ship them likenothing else. Too invested. Even though I’m more than just conflictedabout this but I just cannot help it.

Thoughts on his final scene:….I have to admit thatI’m super unhappy with how the AFTG series ended. I’m glad to have ahappy end, couldn’t be more great full but everything feels so rushedand off. And I think it’s all due to Riko’s super quick death.Everything happened way too fast, I actually hate that he died, orspecifically how fast and easy that happened. It just didn’t fit atall, in my opinion.

Art Recs:

Give @shihoran a follow and you’ll be well supplied!!

And here are some other amazing pieces:

I ♔

II ♕

III ♖

IV ♗

V ♘

VI ♙

VII ♚

VIII ♛

IX ♜

X ♝

XI ♞

Fic Recs:

 I haven’t really read that many, mainly because I know there aren’t that many. But here are a few I really liked

♥       what if i did    MadHatterNO7

♠      Meant to be mine    shihoran

♣       bvccardi’s Fox!Riko

I also know @c-valentino is working on something reeeeally really nice, y’all. So You better stay tuned, pumped and hyped!!! because I suRE AF AM!!!!

Everyone I’d love to hear from was already tagged, I believe. But whatevs, I’m going to mention y’all again. Feel free to ignore tho:

@shihoran​ @viviena​ @still-waiting-for-godot​ @bvccvrdi​ @ziegenkind​ @mochis-mullet