#iris Cantus

[thestimendswithyou]

Noisepedia #82 / #90: Iris Cantus /  α

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[therosettasun]

Don’t get me started on their beef. 🥩

[shitpostingkats]

Pinning Down Every Shinjuku Reapers Hanafuda Suit

In The World Ends With You, there are a total of twelve (named) reapers, each corresponding to a member of the chinese zodiac. They continue this design philosophy in NEO, with all of the Shinjuku reapers being based off a different suit of Hanafuda.

Let's start with the ones we know.

(post does contain spoilers)

Tsugumi - January, Crane

Conveniently, most of the reaper's birth months point to their suit, as well as their noise forms, for the ones that have them. Tsugumi is a new years baby, and Grus Cantus is from the hikari card. (Each suit is divided into four cards, with higher point cards being marked with an animal or object, and I'm gonna be honest, this is about all I know. This post is not a comprehensive guide for how to play hanafuda.)

Ayano - May, Iris

Skipping forward a few months, we have Ayano, born May 18th, and using the iris. Every suit, along with having a month associated with it, also has a plant, which is used on every card in the suit. Ayano is pretty much the only reaper who uses her suits flower, rather than an image from a hikari or tane card.

Shiba - June, Butterflies

Born June 21, his noise form is butterflies. Not much to say. I guess I could point out how he's the only of three reapers who wears a symbol of his suit inspiration on his non-noise-form person (necklace). The other two are:

Susukichi - October, Deer

The deer skull is on his tshirt, as well as being able to see a little of his tattoos, which we see later is also a stylized skull and antlers. Birthday matches; October 13th.

Hazuki - December, Phoenix

Ah, the mysterious Haz. The first of our reapers to have a birth month that does not match his hanafuda inspiration. (According to the official guidebook, his birthday is May 5th)While the Phoenix Cantus isn't his noise form, it is mentioned in the secret reports that he is the one responsible for shaping the soul pulvis into that form. Also, like our previous two reapers, he wears his motif on his civilian clothes, in the little phoenix symbols on his jacket. Him being a phoenix is also likely to make him a further foil to Joshua, as they both are the only mythological animals in their respective groups.

Now lets get into the less clear cut ones.

Minamimoto - July, Boar

I know what you're thinking! "Minamimoto isn't a Shinjuku reaper! Also, he isn't a boar, he's a catboy." Undoubtedly true. But he is used caught up in their scheme, purposefully absorbing the soul pulvis and afterwards Leo Cantus manifests with tusks and a snout. What even more interesting is it's very likely his original noise form was a boar as well. But a boar from the chinese zodiac. While he is a lion in the original game, a lion kinda clashes with the Shibuya hierarchy. And between Sho being process-of-elimination the pig, as well as setting up during week two in Pork City. Which could imply that Leo Cantus Armo is a regression to a more berserk and less enlightened state, literally sending Minamimoto back to his roots, before he radicalized and broke away from the Shibuya Reapers.

Kubo - August, Geese

Like Haz, Kubo doesn't have a noise form, but he does have strong narrative ties to the Soul Pulvis, which manifest as a flock of aggressive birds that fly in a V formation. Also, his birthday is August 14.

According to Nomura, Kubo was added late in the writing process. Initially, Nomura wanted to add two characters, but the writer gave him a concerned look, so he settled for just Kubo. Not only is this incredibly funny, we'll be looping back to this.

Hishima - September, Sake Cup

His surname, Sakazuki, is actually the name of the specific sake cup pictured in the September suit. It's the one you see in used in cermonial exchanging of sake, like weddings or yazuka deals. Considering his subplot with Shiba, themes like "brotherhood" and "marriage" are pretty fitting. Once again, the birth month matches: September 7th.

Shoka - November, Swallow

Asterisk. Once again, the cat themed characters of Shibuya have it complicated.

Shoka's birthday is March 30, which is the suit of the cherry blossom. This is further supported by her surname being Sakurane, which was originally made for the protagonist of NEO, to go with Neku's surname being Sakuraba. However the name was given to Shoka as they thought it fit her better. Internally, she is sort of a dual protagonist, being labelled in the data as ch002 and getting billing right after Rindo's actor in the credits.

But her online alias of Swallow points pretty directly to the November suit, and its tane card which features a Swallow. As mentioned earlier, Nomura initially wanted one more Shinjuku reaper character than we end up seeing in the game, so its possible Shoka got some design elements merged together from two different suits so as to not waste any creative material. Or she's just meant to be both and I'm overthinking it.

Kaie - Febuary, Plum Blossom, Warbling White-Eye

We've got ten out of twelve suits catagorized! This, unfortunately, means we are gonna have to start making some guesses.

Kaie's birth month is no help, being November, where Shoka is already using the Swallow symbolism. If we're continuing the tradition of using animal cards, Kaie is either the warbler or the cuckoo. I'm gonna be honest folks, I'm partial to the warbler just because of Kaie's eyebags.

Anyone else see it?

Also, "warbling" could be a a reference to Kaie's preference to not speak, because while he communicates mostly through text, he does have a few voicelines near the end of the game, which shows us his voice is quiet and with a little bit of a stutter. Also, it leaves the last suit open for:

Tsugumi's brother - April, Wisteria, Cuckoo

I bet you thought I forgot about him! Yes, our last suit is the April suit, represented by hanging wisteria and the cuckoo.

Cuckoo's are, for better or for worse, famous for their brood parasitism: a cuckoo will lay its eggs in another birds nest, and when it hatches, the young cuckoo chick will attempt to push all the other eggs out, so it can have the parents sole attention. Tsugumi and her brothers' relationship does not seem anything like that, but it is worth noting that they are only reapers who are related. I think the cuckoo's parasitism is more likely a reference to how her brother was a high-ranking Shinjuku reaper who nonetheless "betrayed" the hierarchy and tried to defy Haz's schemes.

Wisteria is a symbol of love, longevity, and endurance. His final act in death was to protect his sister, ensuring she would survive.

[twewynews]

 It’s Trivia Tidbit Tuesday!

The Shinjuku Reapers' names, Noise forms, and birthdays are based on Hanafuda, which are japanese playing cards!

Tetsuya Nomura confirms this in the December 22nd 2021 Famitsu interview. (found here)

(Additional info under the cut)

Tsugumi’s noise form is Grus Cantus, the crane. Furthermore, the first kanji in her surname Matsunae means pine tree (松 matsu), both of which are associated with January (birthday 1st January).

We never see Shoka’s noise form, but the flower for March is the cherry blossom, which is contained in her surname Sakurane (birthday 30th March).

Similarly, Ayano’s noise form is based on the Iris, which is the flower for the month of May (birthday 18th May).

Shiba’s noise form is butterflies, as seen in the card for June (birthday 21st June).

The sake cup card for September specifically represents the ceremonial cup called sakazuki, which is Hishima’s surname (birthday 7th September).

The animal for the month of october is the deer, which is Susukichi’s noise form (birthday 13th October).

Lastly, the “rain man” card for the month of November is called Ono no Michikaze in japanese, and Ono is Kaie’s surname (birthday 3rd November).

Additionally, Nomura adds that the naming motif for the main characters is related to plants and sounds!

Rindo -> Kanade (to play an instrument, esp. string instruments) | Rindo (Gentiana scabra)

Shoka -> Sakurane (sound) | Shoka (Hydrangea)

Fret -> Furesawa (Fret=Guitar) | Tosai (Peach Blossom)

Nagi -> Usui (Flute/whistle) | Nagi (Nageia nagi, the Asian Bayberry tree)

[sho-minamimoto]

guys help im in desperate need of an opinion

Iris Sanguinea (left) + Iris Ensata (right) side by side comparisons:

iris cantus for comparison:

extra tidbits of info to consider:

iris sanguinea's japanese name is ayame, which sounds closer to ayano than iris ensata's japanese name (hanashobu)

iris ensata is the symbolic flower of shibuya

both flowers grow near water and prefer damp environments, which fit ayano's rain themeing in her battle

[deathsofglitter]

cantus

[jukureaps]

some twewy art i did a few days ago

[eldritch-composer]

oh my computer is at a shop (technically its at a community college type thing but the prof is the one working on it and hes licensed for repairs so whatever) so i started playing ntwewy again got all the reports all the pigs maxed the social network and got all clothes and cds ��

[whenthedawnhascome]

Watching The Walking Dead : World Beyond was like watching a bunch of stupid kids trying to open a can without any things useful but rocks. They look stupid but at the end they succeed because some miracle happened ? And I actually binge watched it ?? Because I knew what I was watching, I knew that it'd have what I hate in the TWD series but it's full of plot twists and such so yeah I'm trap in that show and I hope the season two will be released soon because why not. And the characters are actually cool, even if they don't use their brains.

[rcsitastark]

The Walking Dead Universe: New Series

[brokehorrorfan]

The Walking Dead: World Beyond: Season One will be released on Blu-ray and DVD on June 15 via RLJE Films. The Walking Dead spin-off limited series premiered on AMC in October 2020 and is currently available on Digital.

Created by The Walking Dead writer-producers Scott M. Gimple and Matthew Negrete, the show stars Aliyah Royale, Alexa Mansour, Hal Cumpston, Nicolas Cantu, Nico Tortorella, Julia Ormond, and Annet Mahendru star.

The Walking Dead: World Beyond: Season One consists of ten episodes. Special features are listed below.

Special features:

The Making of Season 1 featurette

A Look at the Series featurette

Meet the Characters featurette

Now a decade into the apocalypse, sisters Hope (Alexa Mansour) and Iris Bennett (Aliyah Royale) have grown up inside the walls of one of the few remaining first-world communities. Their home, the Campus Colony, is a satellite settlement with a population of just under ten-thousand, located a hundred miles outside surviving city of Omaha, Nebraska. The sisters' scientist father conducts research over one-thousand miles away in a research facility run by the Civic Republic, an ally of Omaha, but one that does not reveal its location to outsiders. When the sisters receive a message that their father might be in a danger, they defy their own community's rules and enlist their friends Elton (Nicolas Cantu) and Silas (Hal Cumpston) to embark on a cross-country quest to save him. Leaving their sheltered upbringing behind, these teenagers learn how to fight threats both living and dead as they travel through a beautiful but decaying and dangerous world.

Pre-order The Walking Dead: World Beyond: Season One from Amazon.

[therosettasun]

I’m fixating on Iris

She is hyper aware of her strengths and weaknesses. Girls fall for her because of her “gallant” and “prince” like demeanor. So she uses that to her advantage. Guys adore her for her “elegant” and “feminine” attitude.

None of these things describe Iris as a person.

She is a performer.

[tsunflowers]

bit wife

actually this is rare for me but I think I prefer the other cantus noise we've seen so far over the flower themed one. they took a chance with this design giving her something other than the standard 'petals of the flower are a skirt' but that's a classic for a reason. I do like the fleur de lis accents and the way the whole body is itself shaped like an iris or fleur de lis

[chaosangel767]

Lullaby OC’s: The Diamonds

Lullaby Masterlist II Neutral OC’s II The Clubs II Extra OC’s

Introductions to the All female Officer Army - The Diamonds

Azure Cantu: The Short but Passionate King of Diamonds and Protector of Lullaby

Age: 22 

Pairing: Ray Blackwell 

Description: She’s the shortest out of all the armies, with black hair that has colorful streaks that change depending on her mood or element she uses. Her eyes are heterochromatic, one silver and the other gold. Her skin is pale with freckles, and four moles make a diamond under each of her eyes. She likes Victorian or steampunk dresses in black or red, with roses as accents. Her style could be described as ‘gothic Lolita’. Black knee-high combat boots are always seen on her no matter what, even at formal gatherings. 

Summary: Having been born into the Cantu family, she was always destined to be the King of Diamonds. From the age of four, she’s been practicing with blades and weapons. She passed at the top of her class in Diamond Academy, and started choosing her officers as they all started passing the school as well. She’s very passionate about protecting Lullaby, and will do anything to protect her citizens. She is quite close with the children of the other four original families that came to Lullaby: Aspen, Soleil, Venus, and Divinate. 

Serenity Aspen: The Kind and Butterfly-like Queen of Diamonds and Head of the Barrier Branch

Age: 25 

Pairing: Lancelot Kingsley 

Description: Her skin is tanned and flawless, minus a birthmark on her arm. Her hair is dark brown with caramel highlights, and usually kept up in a high ponytail or braid. She’s tall and lanky, but toned. 

Summary: Like Azure, Serenity’s been groomed from a young age to become the Queen of Diamonds. She’s mastered all of the blunt weapons at her disposal, preferring to not draw blood. She is alright with a blade and can defend herself if the need arises. She has a natural aura that draws people to her, and is considered the ‘mom’ of the Diamonds. She’s always been a bit protective of her little brother, but lets him live his life who he wants, as long as he promises not to die before her. She’s like a butterfly, between being the Queen of Diamonds and working as the Head of the Barrier Branch of the IOM.

Lunarye Star: The Reserved and Kind Jack of Diamonds

Age: 25

Pairing: Edgar Bright 

Description: She has flawless olive skin minus a mole on her left cheek. She possesses amber gold eyes and has long wavy black hair streaked with a varying amount of blue, purple and teal streaks. She likes wearing white button ups and loose blue skirts, one that allows her easy movement. Prefers her hair down with just a headband keeping it out of her face. 

Summary: Calm and reserved, she is the older of a set of twins. She is the exact opposite of her sister, the Ace of Diamonds, in every way. Preferring to use dual blades among other weapons, she can catch air currents and move earth to make her swords look like an elegant deadly dance. Not originally from Lullaby she wishes nothing more than for Lullaby and Cradle to reach an agreement. Fun fact: despite being twins with Solaria, they’re technically considered born on different days since Lunarye was born a few minutes before midnight while Solaria was born after midnight, therefore different days but the same night. 

Mei Venus: The Girly and Fashionable Ten of Diamonds

Age: 26 

Pairing: Aro Shielde 

Description: Pale and fair skin that every girl envies, she looks just like a K-pop idol. Big warm gray eyes, a button nose, full rosy lips, and supple cheeks. Everyone is attracted to her looks, be it a girl or a boy. Her hair is originally black, but she’s dyed it a warm brown. It falls around her shoulders in fluffy waves. Mei might be the only girl in the Diamonds Army who always wears makeup and looks as if she’s on a runway instead of an army. She can pull off any look, from the sweet, innocent girl to the mature, sexy lady, to the messy college-girl look, and to the rich, high-end noble lady. Her makeup skills are scary, she can even pass off as other people form a distance. She’s the only one who can pull off fighting in stilettos. It scares all the other officers. 

Summary: Despite being born into the Venus family, one of the original five families that founded Lullaby and the family in charge of producing the Ten of Diamonds, she’s always loved fashion instead of fighting. From a young age, she aspired to be a fashion designer, and it didn’t help that her aunt was a fashion fanatic and a famous fashion critic. And so, to please both her mother who wanted her to be an officer and her inner self that wanted to pursue fashion, she’s incorporated both into her daily military life. She requires all her ladies to look presentable, whether it’s just making sure their hair is neat and straightened or putting on full-glam makeup. Her fighting style is also unique, elegant and beautiful instead of being a fierce battle. Quite captivating. 

Saiya Shade: The Official Night Owl and Vampiric Nine of Diamonds

Age: 26

Pairing: Avi Gatilin 

Description: Dark skin with piercing emerald eyes. She has dyed black hair that is usually up in a ponytail out of the way. She is lean and very toned. She wears a lot of black out of uniform, preferring to cover up as much skin as possible. She prefers trousers to skirts or a dress and doesn’t like heeled combat boots. Her only “girly” accessory is the moonflower pin in her hair she constantly wears as a reminder of who she is and her top priority. 

Summary: The daughter of two night mission based officers, Saiya was conditioned for nightlife. Only awake from the hours of 4pm - 8am, she runs one of the night units. She loves the darkness, embracing her dark/nature elements, and using the combo as a perfect advantage to be a sneak and informant. She comes off as a hardass and scary, but she is secretly a sweetheart who knows all about what happens at night, and behind closed doors. 

Floria Hanshaw: The Gentle and Pacifist Eight of Diamonds

Age: 26

Pairing: Married to Kayne Hanshaw

Description: Tanned skin that used to be ivory, she is short and curvy. She has blonde hair that varies depending on the amount of sun it sees and light jade eyes. She wears a lot of ruffles and cottage core dresses. She always dresses gracefully and looks incredibly sweet. She bounces between both the skirt and pants version of the uniform. Always wearing flat boots so she doesn’t sink in the mud. 

Summary: A sweet and gentle soul, Floria has an air about her that causes people and animals to flock to her for comfort. She is very sweet and gentle, rarely ever getting mad, unless Lullaby, or her family is threatened. Married to the three of Clubs and has a daughter named Lily. She is extremely charismatic and is considered the ‘ideal’ housewife.

Iris Breeze: The Naïve and Blind Seven of Diamonds

Age: 22 

Pairing: Luka Clemence 

Description: Flawless ivory skin with black hair, streaked in rainbow. She’s tall, toned, with curves for days. Her eyes are pure white, but rainbows dance in them whenever she uses magic or her abilities. She usually wears the Diamonds uniform with the skirt and kitten heels, rainbow colored accents everywhere. In her hair is a diamond hair clip that can reflect light in rainbows. It can store light for her to use in battle. 

Summary: Iris has a hint of naivety to her, a naivety and innocence, as if she hasn’t ever seen the terrors of the world. That’s a lie. Her sight was stolen from her before she was rescued by Lullaby, it was only because Serenity took her under her wing that Iris was able to adjust to life blind. She can see light and shadows, and has the ability to see the magical auras around her. Even those who aren’t born with magic give off faint auras for her to locate. Her blades have rainbow magic flowing through them. With her light and air abilities, she can create illusions to disorient her enemies. They have no effect on her, since she’s blind. 

Amari Darra: The Gun Maniac and Hot Headed Six of Diamonds

Age: 24

Pairing: Fenrir  Godspeed 

Description: She is extremely little and lithe at only 5’4”. She is much stronger than she looks though and has bright baby blue eyes. Platinum blond ringlets are kept out of her face with a red headband. She wears a lot of bright Lolita dresses, gravitating toward red, orange and gold prints. She pairs her look with white stockings and matching flats. For her uniform she wears black fingerless gloves, heeled boots and trousers with a cropped officer jacket. 

Summary: An absolute ball of chaos, she is hyper, energetic and friendly. Her friendly personality draws people in and makes her really easy to get along with.  She is a firecracker when set off though and has quite a temper when her friends are in danger and will do anything to protect them. In uniform though she is an extremely skilled fighter. Preferring guns, she summons twin gold pistols that shoot any type of bullet she summons. Her bullets always leave a silver residue behind, whether the target is dead or alive. Has limited missions with the Aces because those three are too chaotic together. 

Elizabeth Leilani: The Shy and Angelic Five of Diamonds Medic

Age: 23

Pairing: Harr Silver

Description: Average with curves and is really strong. She has Emerald eyes hidden behind silver round glasses and is pale with a ton of freckles across her cheeks. Long, auburn hair is pulled back in two French braids. She wears emerald green dresses with black heels and stockings. She always has a messenger bag with first aid supplies and extra crystals. She likes the uniform skirt and flats, choosing to trade in her officer jacket for a lab coat with her medals and crystals. 

Summary: The best healer in Lullaby, Elizabeth is an extremely strong hybrid, using nature, light and water elements. She is incredibly timid, with a calm aura about her. She will never take a life, and heals anyone no matter who they are or what they’ve done. She is very devoted to nature, being a vegetarian due to a meat allergy. Her brother is the Jack of Clubs and she worries endlessly for him.

Isabella Wynter: The Cold and Serious Four of Diamonds

Age: 26

Pairing: Jacob Raven 

Description: She is an average 5’5” with a bit of muscle and icy, glacier blue eyes. Her hair is naturally black, but she dyes it a platinum blonde. She wears basic casual clothes, usually opting for trousers over a skirt or dress. She likes the non heeled combat boots and always wears black leather gloves. 

Summary: She is very cold and serious, barely warming up to anyone. She has a fierce loyalty to Lullaby and will protect it no matter what. She is good with verbal fights, always knowing how to hurt the worst with her words. She is proficient in many types of weapons, often testing them out for Jacob. A bit of a tsundere, but the Lullaby officers know she means well and let her show her affections in her own way. 

Sylvia Pointe: The Elegant and Deadly Three of Diamonds

Age: 26

Pairing: Jonah Clemence 

Description: flawless fair skin that tans easily, but doesn’t have a blemish in sight. She is tall (5’7”) and lanky with muscles in her arms and legs. Her long dirty blonde hair with peach tips is usually up in a silver ribbon and out of her face. She wears high end dresses and silver heels out of uniform. In uniform she opts for flat combat boots and trousers. 

Summary: She is very calm and reserved, elegant and poised at all times. She was  a perfect lady and it shows in everything she does. She is a massive perfectionist, and very rarely loses her cool. She is very passive aggressive, but non confrontational. She is the best swordsman in Lullaby and her moves are elegant and poised, looking like a quick deadly dance. 

Violette Mercia: The Mysterious and Mature Two of Diamonds

Age: 23 

Pairing: Loki Genetta 

Description: Her hair is raven black, but there are a few purple streaks through it, to match with her name, Violette. Her eyes are a rare, silver color, something you don’t come across every day. She’s tanned and her skin is flawless, minus a few scars here and there. She isn’t fond of heels but does like wearing purple colored gothic dresses and outfits. 

Summary: Drop her in the middle of nowhere and she’ll be able to survive perfectly fine. That’s an ability that a lot of officers are puzzled about. How does she know which plants are poisonous in the Forbidden Forest as though she lived there her whole life? It’s a mystery. With a mature and serious personality, she seems hard to get along with, but has a hidden playful side that only a certain few (wink wink, nudge nudge) can bring out. She has a soft side for children at the IOL, and is quite close to the IOL Dean, Axel Divinate. 

Solaria Star: The Chaotic and Feisty Ace of Diamonds

Age: 25

Pairing: Dynite Spark

Description: Similar to her sister, she has olive skin with a mole on her right cheek. Her normally long black hair is streaked with all shades of orange, red and yellow, reflecting fire. She likes wearing black and gold steampunk skirts and corsets. The skirts have to fall above her knees and she will not wear a dress unless forced too. She keeps a holster on each thigh no matter what. One for her summoned gun and one for her tranquilizer. Her uniform is trousers and heeled combat boots.

Summary: She is the exact opposite of her twin. She is loud, wild and charismatic. She loves to spar and cannot sit still. She has a quick temper and is feisty when riled up. She is extremely protective of Lullaby and is not allowed to run missions with the Ace of Clubs because they are too chaotic together. She was ranked after graduating the Diamond Academy at the top of her class, beating everyone including her sister. She uses fire and air, becoming an extremely destructive force when riled up, changing her style to keep opponents on her toes. Fun fact: despite being twins with Lunarye, they’re technically considered born on different days since Solaria was born a few minutes after midnight while Lunarye was born before midnight, therefore different days but the same night.

[dailyfeartwdgifs]

The Walking Dead: Third Series Title Officially Revealed 

The Walking Dead fandom has traveled to Alexandria, the Hilltop, the Sanctuary, Woodbury… and next, it's time to visit the World Beyond. 

Scott M. Gimple, the AMC zombie franchise's chief content officer and the flagship series' former longtime showrunner, has officially announced a title for the third scripted series based in the world of the dead: The Walking Dead: World Beyond. The news was revealed Sunday evening on Gimple's verified Instagram account, alongside a first look at the script for the pilot episode.

In World Beyond, the universe of The Walking Dead opens up to focus on a group of young men, women and children whose experience in the zombie apocalypse has been much less immediately dangerous than that of Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus), Michonne (Danai Gurira) and the rest of the flagship characters. 

"They've grown up in the apocalypse," Gimple said about the series during an appearance at New York Comic Con earlier this year. "They're aware of walkers. They haven't interacted with them. They've been [living] beyond walls. That makes any journey they need to make incredibly dangerous. They are affected in different ways by what happened. They don't remember much of a world without walkers. This is the normal world for them, but they've been apart from it. They've been in safety. There's a quest aspect to this show. They're going somewhere. They have to leave this place of safety to put themselves in a position where they have to fight for their survival and what they believe in. It's a different kind of story in the world of The Walking Dead, and it introduces a new world." 

The cast of The Walking Dead: World Beyond includes Aliyah Royale as Iris, Annet Mahendru as Huck, Alexa Mansour as Hope, Nicolas Cantu as Elton, Hal Cumpston as Silas and Nico Tortorella as Felix. The series was co-created by Gimple and Matt Negrete and is set to debut in the spring.

[aion-rsa]

How The Walking Dead: World Beyond Expands the Zombie Universe with Its Unique Teen Characters

https://ift.tt/3kB7pU3

After its premiere was delayed by several months due to COVID-19, the two-season The Walking Dead spinoff series The Walking Dead: World Beyond finally makes its debut this week. The story expands the TWD universe in a unique way, taking place 10 years after the zombie outbreak and focusing on a predominantly teenage cast of characters. Unlike the battered groups of survivors from The Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead, these teens have been sheltered from walkers (or “empties,” as they’re called on this show) within the walls of a university in Omaha, Nebraska, a thriving colony that has afforded them a relatively normal, safe life post-outbreak.

But, as fans will learn from the very first episode, the Campus Colony (as it’s referred to) does have a seemingly precarious arrangement with the Civic Republic Military (CRM), whose ominous helicopters act as a narrative thread that ties the three shows together. It’s safe to say you’ll learn way more about this mysterious faction in World Beyond than ever before.

The show primarily centers on sisters Iris (Aliyah Royale) and Hope (Alexa Mansour), who leave the safety of the University in search of their father, brilliant scientist Dr. Leo Bennett (Joe Holt), who they’ve learned is somewhere in New York. Joining them on their mission are fellow student Elton (Nicolas Cantu), a resourceful scientist and historian (who also happens to know karate), and school janitor Silas (Hal Cumpston), a soft-spoken social outcast whose murky past has earned him a questionable reputation on campus. The teens are tailed by battle-tested adult guardians Felix (Nico Tortorella) and Huck (Annet Mahendru).

Last fall, I visited the show’s set in Richmond, Virginia, where filming was underway for episode 7 of the show (alas, there were no CRM helicopters in sight). The location was an old waterpark called Hadad’s Lake, which was appropriately creepy-looking. The abandoned facilities looked dreary and greyed-out under the looming rainclouds — the juxtaposition of a children’s park rotting in a post-apocalypse seemed to fit the show thematically as well.

Huddled around a table with other members of the press under a tent that sheltered our equipment from the occasional drizzle, we were joined by the cast members one by one to talk about their respective characters and what fans can expect from the show. Here’s what we learned:

Iris

“Iris is smart and caring and loving and doesn’t have a selfish bone in her body,” Royale says of her character. “She really wants to make sure that every single person that she encounters is taken care of and has what they need. At some point she realizes maybe it’s time to start doing things for herself and when she makes that switch, it is a roller coaster of events.”

Serving as the beating heart of the show, Iris is an overachiever on campus and a compassionate leader amongst her peers. She’s got a tight bond with Hope, and while Iris is generally viewed as the more straight-laced, level-headed of the two, the absence of her father compels her to make the drastic decision to venture out beyond the University walls for the first time.

“The mission for Iris is: where’s my dad at?” Royale explains. “I want my dad back. The other side of that is, Iris is following in his footsteps. She’s super involved in science, biomedical engineering, all of those things that her father’s brain is being used for…that’s exactly the path that she’s going towards. Saving the world.”

At the University, though the majority of students haven’t encountered empties, they’re trained by instructors like Felix to defend themselves against the dead, including with a weapon called an S-pole, a staff with a retractable blade at one end. Iris is a fast learner, although she quickly discovers that no amount of training can actually prepare her for the horrors that await in the real world.

“She’s got a lot of information stored up here,” Royale says as she points at her head. “But the minute that she encounters the first walker, it’s this just absolute fear. As much as you learn, as many books as you read, you could never feel [that fear] until you’re in that moment. You’ve got your four best friends next to you, and it’s you or the empty.”

Hope

“She doesn’t give a shit about anything,” Mansour says of the rebellious Hope. “She lives for today and I mean, realistically, she doesn’t think she’s going to live tomorrow. She’s pretty sure she could die at any moment and I don’t think she really cares. So she gets herself in trouble, doesn’t care what people say, and is always doing the opposite of what Felix tells her to do. It’s kind of ironic that her name is Hope because she really doesn’t have any of it.”

Hope and Iris have a tight bond despite their polar opposite temperaments and outlooks on life. “They’re complete opposites,” says Mansour. “Iris is the one that will be off studying until four in the morning while Hope would probably be partying until four in the morning. But they love each other. I think they really do balance each other out. Iris will bail Hope out whenever she is sneaking out and doing stuff that she should not be doing, and Hope would take a bullet for her sister.”

As for Hope’s lack of, well, hope, in human beings and their future prospects on the planet, Mansour made it clear that this speaks to a pressing real-world issue of mental health that affects teens everywhere. As someone who was bullied for her ethnicity (she’s half Hispanic, half Egyptian), she feels World Beyond and the platform it’s given her will allow her to help teenagers who are struggling like she has.

“I really hope they realize that they’re not alone,” Mansour says. “I think it’s important for kids who are watching this to take away that it’s okay to be open about what you’re feeling and it’s okay to feel what you’re feeling and it’s not the end of the world, it is going to get better.”

Felix

“Felix is the head of security detail at the university,” says Tortorella, who also reveals that his character identifies as queer. “He is kind of an adopted son to the girls’ dad. He had a troubled childhood dealing with his family coming to terms or not coming to terms with him being gay. He’s very much a hero. He protects the people around him in a way that’s contradictory to the stereotype of like what a gay character usually is on television. And that’s why I was really excited to play this role.”

Tortorella, who identifies as genderfluid, felt drawn to the show and the The Walking Dead franchise for its strong representation of marginalized communities. “The diversity was a huge thing coming into it, you know? We have people from all walks of life on this show. Genders, sexualities, race, religions. It was a no brainer for me.”

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Hope and Iris’s father took Felix in as family after the outbreak, and Felix’s made a promise to take care of the girls at all costs. Unlike the sisters, he and his partner Huck have seen action outside the Campus’ walls, which makes him a formidable fighter. When Iris and Hope escape the walls of the colony, Felix and Huck quickly give chase.

“Yeah, he’s in full dad mode all the time with these kids,” Tortorella explains. “I think that like after the first episode, the stakes are at maximum levels in terms of our safety and our fight for survival. And Felix is the one that has the most training in terms of any sort of military background that we know of.”

Huck

Huck is Felix’s right hand, dear friend, and confidant. She sports a sizable scar across her cheek, which all but confirms she’s been through some tough shit.

“Huck comes from a Marines background,” Mahendru says. “When you first meet Huck, you just know the scar. There’s a story [behind it]. She is an independent thinker. She’s really tough, but she’s really hopeful and really positive and warm and is adamant about bringing the world back to what it was. She wants as many people to live as possible.”

As for Huck’s relationship to the sisters, Mahendru says that she has a deep connection with Hope, who she sees herself in. “She was a bit of a rebel when she was young, [too]. They have a big/little sister relationship, and I train her how to fight. I want her to survive out there. I mean I’m going to send her out there and so I’m responsible for her. I really believe in her potential and I feel her pain. I’ve gone through the same similar things.”

Elton

“Elton is a very intellectually curious child,” Cantu says. “He has been sheltered from the world outside with a bunch of horrible, horrible things happening out there. So he’s kind of trying to understand the world for what it is and how nature is changing along with most of humanity. He’s on a journey to analyze and document and just see what this new world is about.”

A classmate of Iris and Hope’s who offers to join them on their quest to find their father, Elton admits that the outside world isn’t exactly foreign to him.

“Elton has been outside of the walls before because he does a lot of experiments outside,” Cantu explains as he motions to the mustard-colored, corduroy suit he’s wearing. “It’s bite proof, which Elton learned through controlled experiments. So he kind of has a little bit of a glimpse as to what the outside world is. But once he steps out there, it’s intense.”

Cantu says he sees a lot of himself in Elton. “I really do relate to Elton. I mean, he’s kind of got this view of the world where he’s very blunt with it. He knows a bunch of the threats out there. He realizes stepping outside of those walls is going to be a life changing thing. The world is brutal and he has just come to accept that. So if it’s coming down to survival, he’s ready, he’s prepared, he’s got everything on lock. And I feel like if I was in an apocalypse, I would prepare similarly to Elton.”

Silas

“He’s been shunned by the particular community they’re in. People refer to him as a monster or just completely shun him. It’s like a Boo Radley type of character,” Cumpston reveals about the quiet Silas. “No one knows his exact story, you know what I mean? When kids hear something then they exaggerate and that type of thing.”

Cumpston, a young Australian actor and filmmaker also feels he relates to Silas. “Yeah, everyone’s felt like an outcast. There’s definitely been situations where I’ve felt like an outcast. I’d be a funny kid at school. I joined a soccer team and there’s already these different funny personalities [on the team] and I’m just sort of like the quiet kid who’s also not good [at soccer]. I’m like, ‘Oh, fuck. I need to make up for it by being funny but there are no opportunities.’” 

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Unlike his three teenage counterparts, Silas isn’t a student at the school, and he’s got little excuse not to join the others on their quest, seeing as he hasn’t got much going for him at the Campus.

“He’s just a janitor who no one speaks to and everyone refers to as a monster,” Cumpston says. “When he walks past people on campus, you can hear that people don’t have very nice things to say about him. He catches wind that there’s an [opportunity] to prove to himself and these other people that he’s not a monster.”

The Walking Dead: World Beyond premieres on Oct. 4 at 10 pm ET on AMC.

The post How The Walking Dead: World Beyond Expands the Zombie Universe with Its Unique Teen Characters appeared first on Den of Geek.

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