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accirax · 3 months ago

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Danganronpa: Despair Time Chapter 2 Episode 13 Dissection

Jesus CHRIST, the hits keep on coming (/pos). I don't think anyone could have predicted everything that came to light in this episode. But, hey, at least we're finally cooking on the murder method a bit more...?

SPOILERS for Danganronpa: Despair Time though Chapter 2 Episode 13! Also, CW: discussions of suicide.

Similarly to last time, I tried not to look at too many other people's major reactions/theories as to not influence my opinions as they were when I watched the episode. (Although I think I failed to do that more than last week...) Here's what this episode got me thinking about!

Genocide Jack, Junko, Mukuro, Peko, and Korekiyo:

On that note, though, this is... debatably relevant lore about Hope's Peak as it exists in DRDT? We know from Chapter 2 Episode 2 that Veronika (and likely all of the non-Terukos as well) don't remember Trigger Happy Havoc, and, based on this, it's likely that they don't remember much of the history of the old HPA either. Ace being so adamant that HPA wouldn't scout a murderer implies that the new HPA has fully regained its spotless reputation, potentially even more than the Tokyo school ever had.

I want you all to know that I tried to write out a little theory about whether or not Levi could have killed any plot-relevant characters here, but I came to a dead end at every venture. Levi killed Mai? No, he has no motive, and the murder happened before everyone attended Hope's Peak. Levi killed Elliot? No, Ellie was probably killed by dogs, and the timing is all wrong. Levi killed someone at the North C and Chariton incident? That didn't even happen. I was just getting that confused with my theories about what Xander might have done at that incident in FF's DRDT Milgram AU. Not even what actually happened in the AU. Just my theories on what might happen.

The only option I couldn't fully rule out was the idea that Levi killed some of the ~5 missing members of the altDRDT cast, but, holy shit, can you imagine how funny that would be? Teacher and the gang get to the sixth Class Trial and ask all dramatically, "so, what happened to the rest of our class that didn't make it to the killing game...?" and Monowhatever is just like "actually, Levi Fontana just straight up merced those dudes years ago." Hilarious.

Anyways. That goes to show that I do think these were just random guys, and the only specific relevance they would have is in the realm of Levi's backstory specifically.

RIP to the "Levi used to be an assassin" theory. I actually kinda liked that one myself.

(Also, hijacking this image to point out the background music here. You hear the ticking clock motif? Very suspicious indeed...)

Yup, even more confirmation that HPA highly valued having an incredibly pure and righteous image. Of course this HPA was also corrupt. Is it even possible to make an HPA without some level of corruption?

(Levi. My guy. I need you to use a different sprite; the quadruple image combo is starting to look ridiculous.)

What I find really interesting here is that, even in the realm of forgetting about murders, Levi remembers the three random guys before his father. Like, I know that Levi says that he kinda equally doesn't care about everyone (and I believe him to be telling the truth on that), but you would think that, just by virtue of having spent more time with his dad or the people around him's reactions, Levi would have remembered killing his father before offing three random thugs.

I don't know if this is meant to A) really drive the point home that Levi sees no difference between those he "knows" and those he doesn't; B) imply that Levi might have sustained some greater amount of trauma from killing his father that caused him to block that memory out more; C) suggest that killing the guys was more recent than killing his dad, which might lead him to remember it with more clarity; or D) some combination of the former three. However, I think it's an interesting detail to note.

The foils are foiling........

This was hilarious. And lowkey evidence that Nico was the one who tried to kill Ace.

You know, I actually almost made a theory once that the clauses "you're a murderer" and "you have no remorse" could be read as two separate secret statements! Not to say that Levi didn't have no remorse for the killing part, but that having no remorse was a state of being not solely tied to the murdering.

Alsoooo... just gonna say, Levi on Drawing Pins is looking better and better all the time...

Eden: But you're a good person. Why are you saying these things when it's clearly not true? You're so kind to everyone. You're always helping others out, even when it'd be easier not to. Like that time Ace almost died. You kept trying to help him, even if he always pushed you away. Isn't that what "a good person" does?

WE ARE BACK AT IT AGAIN!!! "GOOD PERSON" SPECIFICALLY IN THE LEVI/EDEN CONTEXT AAAAAAAAA

Beyond the further "good person" jumpscare, I found this line interesting due to how Eden describes Ace. Someone who "always pushed [Levi] away." Sounds a lot like Arei, huh? In fact, a lot of it sounds like Eden is applying it to herself.

"But I'm a good person. Why am I thinking these things when it's clearly not true? I'm so kind to everyone. I'm always helping others out, even when it'd be easier not to. Like that time Arei yelled at me. I kept trying to help her, even if she always pushed me away. Isn't that what "a good person" does?"

Obviously, I'm reading into this in the "Eden is the blackened" context, but I think that it's still an interesting read of Eden's mental state even if she isn't the blackened. We know that, to some extent, Eden blames herself for both Min and Arei's deaths. Therefore, despite likely feeling like she's fucked up, she wants to cling onto the idea that she's a good person so she doesn't lose faith in herself.

That leads into some super interesting parallels when it comes to this speech versus what Arei said, but I'll talk about that more once we get to the Arei monologue.

This week, acevi shippers take the L. Really, Levi x anyone shippers, but I think acevi shippers got the worst of it.

Except, they also took the W. "Ace lowkey confirms he once had feelings for Levi" was NOT on my bingo card. Or Star's.

(Also I LOVE this new sprite)

I saw some people talking about Ace's friend (Taylor?) but I do not remember and cannot find any information about this character (so I can't even tell if they're just fanmade :( ). If anyone knows what I'm talking about and has a link, please send it to me. Anyways, "insult to his memory" definitely makes it sound like Ace's friend is dead. I wonder if the way in which he died has anything to do with Ace's fear of horses/cowardice in general.

I want to see more Levi and Veronika interactions so bad. It's no surprise that Veronika was the first to pick up what Levi was putting down. Both of them don't have the "normal" way of processing their feelings and interacting with others, but while Levi has decided to try to be what society deems as "good" anyways, Veronika has decided to fully live by her own creed. I wonder if Levi could be at all convinced by Veronika to go back to his old ways.

Veronika: You're always guessing as to what a normal human would do in your situation. You're so awkward in social settings because you can't tell what other people want.

I'm excited to see Levi and Nico interact too, obviously. I suppose Nico is kinda like the midpoint of Veronika and Levi-- doesn't understand people and wants the world to work the way they perceive it, but also has been bullied enough to feel forced to play along with how others want them to be. Characters like these have become some of my favorite archetypes to discuss. I'm so glad that DRDT has so many of them!!!

The foils are foiling AGAIN...

Why the fuck are you so pressed about the secrets now??? I thought you were all about privacy?????

Well, thank you for "confirming" that swap, ladies! This talk of a pact is very interesting, though. I guess Hu must have gone to Veronika pretty early to ensure that her secret wouldn't get out-- makes sense, as without that there's a good chance Hu could believe that Veronika would reveal her secret at the most unflattering time to create drama.

It does slightly recontextualize Veronika's "A little mystery makes this Trial more exciting, don't you think?", though. I wonder if that was just straight up a lie, or if that was the rationale Hu used to appeal to Veronika. I doubt we'll get a flashback of this scene now that this moment's passed, but I'd love to see it. FTEs...? 👀

David you have to stop this right now or you're going to become my new favorite character. Dude's been dying to don the mantle of the comic relief character, apparently.

Is The Motive Scoreboard Accurate?

I'm including this because I've seen some other people say that it is, specifically on Teruko's front. I strongly believe that this motive board is incorrect, and Teruko and Xander's secrets are swapped.

The blaming yourself secret mentions parentS and siblingS. Back in Chapter 1 Episode 4, Teruko says that she never knew her parents (and therefore may even just be assuming that she has two), and she only had one biological brother. Furthermore, she has no idea if they're dead or not. On the parents front, she could assume that being sent to an orphanage is confirmation enough that her parents are dead instead of just not wanting her. Being sent there with her older biological brother is a further implication of that.

However, Teruko specifically says that her brother "left with some other family." She makes no mention of believing he's dead at all. Therefore, for Teruko to have the secret she claims to have, Teruko would have to be constantly mourning parents and an additional sibling that she never knew, and to believe that all of them are dead despite having no reason to believe that her known brother died.

Obviously, all of these things were said aloud to Charles and Whit, so there is a possibility that Teruko lied about or concealed parts of her past to keep her walls up around those two. However, what does this face from David mean if not "I've caught you in my trap?"

(DRDT sprites are SO GOOD--)

To me, this sprite clearly indicates that David knows that Teruko is lying about something, but has chosen not to bring it up to save it for later purposes. I don't know if he has something specific in mind or just wants to hold the potential blackmail over her head, but I strongly suspect that we'll come back to this someday-- either in later daily life or a post-Trial scene in this chapter.

It's also interesting to note that, while David knows that this is Teruko's for sure, Charles and Whit also have the opportunity to recognize the discrepancy. I definitely wouldn't be surprised if Charles kept notes about what he knows about everyone somewhere. We'll have to see if either of them ask her about it down the road as well.

Eden: I know that she's dead!! I know that she's dead and that she's never coming back. I know that I'll never be able to talk to her ever again. But even then... I have to know that when she was alive, she was still trying to become a good person. That if she lived, then maybe there'd be a world in which we would both be friends. If you really say that you lied about making Arei kill herself, then tell me the truth. Tell me that you didn't make her lose hope. Please! Tell me what happened last night between you and Arei!

Oh boy.

Can Eden Still Be the Culprit?

Look. I understand if you look at this and believe that Eden couldn't possibly be the culprit-- or at least, not without being a completely different character than we know her to be. Because I almost did. Zel's performance did a really good job of selling Eden's heartbreak in a way that makes it feel like she couldn't have possibly been the one to end Arei's life. However, upon further review, I do think that Eden's words could be that of the killer, with minimal levels of intentional manipulation thrown in.

If it would cause you emotional distress to listen to me continue to accuse Eden, I'll write the rest of this section in purple so that you can skip it if you'd like. I don't want to make anyone sad, so I fully understand if you want to avoid these bad vibes. However, for those of you who are still on the fence, and those who have stuck with Eden!culprit all along, here's my justification. I think it'll be easiest to break it down block by block.

Eden: I know that she's dead!!

Okay, well, maybe skipping this section a bit. More points for Arei truly being the one who's dead, I guess?

Eden: I know that she's dead and that she's never coming back. I know that I'll never be able to talk to her ever again.

Alright, so, this can fairly easily be read as the same thing as what Eden was doing back when she was talking to Levi: reassuring herself.

Well, maybe "reassuring" is the wrong word. Basically, she's repeating the same mantra that she told herself when she was trying to justify her decision to kill Arei. When making the decision to kill anyone, the killer (if they care) has to process that they will have to kill every other person in the game if they want to escape for themselves. Therefore, if Eden is the killer, she already had to grapple with the fact that she can't turn back time. ("You can't go back, no matter how hard you try.")

I think that Eden might have it in her head that, even if it wouldn't fully erase her wrongdoings, as long as she doesn't just forgive and forget the whole affair, it makes things slightly better. That's why she was yelling things like "You forgot about all the things you did just because you didn't face any consequences for them? That's incredibly selfish!" at Levi.

Feeling bad about things is her punishment to make sure that Arei is never fully forgotten. She knows that, if she goes through with killing, she'll never be able to talk with any of these people again. However, if there's something more important to her than these 13 lives that she has to escape the killing game to reach, it's a consequence she'll have to accept. She knows it's selfish-- but she at least won't be so selfish as to also forget everyone else's sacrifice.

Eden: But even then... I have to know that when she was alive, she was still trying to become a good person. That if she lived, then maybe there'd be a world in which we would both be friends.

This is probably the part that feels the most damning. Why would Eden care about whether or not Arei was trying to become a good person if Eden is the one who killed her? Wouldn't it be better for Eden if she wasn't?

Well, that's what Eden is trying to figure out, too. In Venus' Narrative Defense of Eden Culprit Theory, Venus says that Eden didn't believe that Arei actually changed and wanted to be her friend. And, it really makes complete sense if she didn't-- Eden had no idea that David and Teruko continued to talk so seriously with Arei after her departure, and Arei saving Eden from Arturo literally happened the same day that Arei had her breakdown. It had probably been, like, 4 hours since Arei chewed her out for her worldview being stupid, and then Arei's suddenly turning around and declaring that she wants to protect Eden at all costs. Of course Eden might just believe that Arei was setting her up for a fall! (Murder pun not intended.)

Venus also adds that, at this point in the Trial, David knew something that Eden didn't: namely, that Arei actually wanted to change, and saw Eden as her inspiration for doing so. Under the assumption that that revelation has been bothering Eden the whole time, it makes perfect sense that Eden would want to know more about what David knew about Arei. She needs to know exactly how terrible she needs to feel for doing this terrible thing.

I think the quote becomes a lot less defendable if you just swap out the "that" for an "if."

"But even then... I have to know if when she was alive, she was still trying to become a good person. That if she lived, then maybe there'd be a world in which we would both be friends."

Now, obviously, you could say that this is an unfair point-- Eden didn't say "if," she said, "that"! How can you excuse Eden based off of evidence that isn't actually real?

My point is that, even if DRDTdev didn't have Eden phrase it that way, it would be an incredibly easy swap to make. Thus, the only way in which Eden would have to be lying is to swap out one word. With that one word, "if," we see how she's still doubting whether Arei really was trying to be a good person, and can read into why she's bringing that up at this time. To disguise it, all Eden has to do is trade "if" for "that"-- she doesn't have to be some masterful lying manipulator to pull off a quick exchange that makes her look more innocent.

Eden: If you really say that you lied about making Arei kill herself, then tell me the truth. Tell me that you didn't make her lose hope.

Eden needs the truth so that she can know how despicable she actually is (in her opinion). She needs to know how bad she needs to feel for taking Arei's life, so that she won't wind up as "inhuman" as Levi.

I also think that "tell me that you didn't make Arei lose hope" could be interpreted in a killer-ish way. There is a rhetorical device in English that sorta turns words like that on their head. Like, if I said, "don't tell me you spoiled DRDT for all of your followers!," it's often interpreted as "I know that you did spoil DRDT for all of your followers, but I don't want to hear it." In this case, Eden might not want David to tell her that he made Arei lose hope because she doesn't want to believe that Arei had any hope in the first place. It's better than if Eden was the one to directly crush those hopes, sure, but if Arei approached David talking about wanting to be a better person mere hours before her death, that still means that Eden was killing a hopeful Arei. She doesn't want David to confirm her worst fears.

I don't know if I phrased that section exactly how I imagined it in my mind, but hopefully you understand what I'm getting at.

Eden: Please! Tell me what happened last night between you and Arei!

In the end, though, Eden knows that she has to face the music to figure out how she wants to proceed with this trial, whether that's sinking the cost of her fallacy or owning up to her crime. And that's how I think you can justify this outburst of Eden's within the context of her being the blackened, without having to fully corrupt her character.

What Arei Meant

This part isn't a theory, exactly; it's more of an analysis of the point I think Arei was trying to convey in this section. I've seen some people be sad about the new note that Arei's character is "going out" on, but I actually think that this is a pretty realistic, thematic ending for where Arei's story and the themes of the chapter are headed. Time to praise DRDTdev's writing for a bit!

Arei: I'm a manipulative, two-faced bitch. I pretend to be cute so that I can treat others like trash. I only care about myself, and I always hurt others for selfish and stupid reasons. Of course I wanted to change myself. [...] Still, for the longest time, I thought it was stupid to even try. I'm rotten to the core, and I might as well be a different species from saints like you and Eden. [...] No matter what, I'll never be a good person. And yet, despite all that... David, you... It turns out that you might be a total piece of shit after all. If even a perfect inspirational speaker like you turns out to be an asshole, then there's no such thing as "a good person." [...] And that makes me relieved, because it means I'm not too far gone. It's okay that I'll never be a good person, because no one else can be either.

I don't think that Arei is saying that the world is a lost cause.

Instead, she's saying that no one is a lost cause. She's applying that Syndrome logic: "if everyone is a bad person, no one will be." Arei thought that, because of her upbringing, there was no possibility that she could ever Be Good, because she'd already done too much wrong. Good People are perfect, unerring gods who do nothing but help others and reach out to wayward souls. However, David's manipulations proved that that wasn't true.

Good People fuck up. Good People do good things for bad reasons, and bad things for good reasons, and, hell, if David is a Good Person, then Good People do bad things for bad reasons sometimes, too! Arei confessed to us that she felt like her life was over because she was given an unfair start. However, now she knows that the bar has been lowered, and that being a good person can be done by anyone, anywhere, at any time. Perfection doesn't exist. Now that she knows that there was never any need to be perfect, the chance she sought for so long has finally been granted.

(Dipping back into purple for a sec to talk about Eden culprit stuff)

After this, I feel like the theme of this chapter has to be about deconstructing the myth of "The Good Person." You think that Nico is just a soft and shy bullying victim? No, they're just as willing to kill as anyone else. You think that Hu is a gracious motherly figure? No, she has an angry streak and talks over other people. You think that Levi is a softhearted giant who just struggles with what to say sometimes? His kill count is higher than everyone who's died to the killing game so far, and he doesn't really care that that's the case. You think that Whit is just a silly guy who cares about others? Fuck, even he's willing to stall out the trial in an attempt to fulfill his own agenda.

The main person who hasn't yet been proven so be not as good as they seem so far is Eden, who in this episode has been clinging to the idea of being a good person harder than ever. I know that some people believe that Eden needs to survive to fulfill the role of the optimist, but I feel like this episode proves that that isn't true. We don't need A Hopeful Person because anyone can step up to the plate and believe in hope if they want to do so. Eden isn't A Good Person, but a real person, who's just as capable of laughing and crying and living and dying as anyone else.

A good person is not gold. That's why everyone who tried to cling to the idea that they were being A Good Person-- Xander, David, Levi-- has always wound up hurting others in the end. Xander believed his actions were morally justified, and thus decided to kill Teruko, causing Min's death and lots of anguish for Teruko. David wanted to follow in his footsteps, and beyond his inspirational speaker persona causing damage to himself, he was also about to kill everyone else to do "what's right." Levi (Arei pending) hasn't killed anyone since trying to become A Good Person, but pretending to follow those guidelines without actually wanting to change anything about himself emotionally hurt Ace, who was set up with false expectations.

If Eden is so convinced that she's a good person, she's only blinding herself to the ways that she's inevitably not.

Back to Arei, while it is sad that her development was cut off just as she made this revelation, I believe that clarifying this additional bit of content is a way to allow her to rest in peace. Even if she didn't get to transform as much as she wanted to, she at least got to die knowing that she wasn't as wretched as she convinced herself that she was all these years, and having done at least one good thing-- saving Eden from Arturo-- before she passed. It's an amazing character arc to squeeze in for your second victim.

Phew, finally, a chance to talk about objective lore instead of heavy and divisive character themes! Except, uh...

WHAT THE FUCK???

Remember when, at the beginning, I said that no one could have predicted everything that came to light in this episode? This was the main point I was talking about. I don't think anyone saw this reveal coming, especially in this moment.

For starters, even though this CG does appear in David's memories, I don't think that he or Arei actually remembers whatever this was taking place. Beyond me attempting to debunk the idea that David had additional memories of Hope's Peak last week, Arei or David specifically referring to this moment means that they had to... be there? When whatever this was happened?

I say "whatever this was" to briefly create suspense before connecting the dots everyone's already talked about: that Eden was probably the one to scratch out Xander's eye. This would make Eden the "she" that Xander (er, I mean, "the guy with the bloody hands") talks about in the intro scene.

It also gives some more context to the clock with the fork stabbed into it depicted in LGI.

I don't know if "non-functional" and "I didn't expect her to" mean that Eden could have been brainwashed or otherwise broken down into not acting like herself when this happened, but it certainly seems out of character for what we know of Eden. Even her facial expression seems to suggest that she might not have wanted or intended to attack anyone with that fork.

Anyways, for Arei or David to know about the contents of that CG, they would've had to both be there when Eden attacked Xander and then also have regained/had their memories of it, which seems unlikely given how both of them treat Eden. Like, even if Arei is sure that Eden "did something to hurt someone in the past," this seems a bit extreme, and David probably wouldn't be so neutral on her if he knew that she attacked his man.

Another really clever point that I saw someone make (AND THEN COULDN'T TRACK DOWN WHO OR IN WHICH POST IT WAS--) was that Eden is wearing her current outfit in this CG. Interestingly, I looked back at A History of Hope's Peak and Visiting Graves to see what Min and Xander were wearing, and while Min was wearing her typical killing game uniform, Xander was wearing something different. Given that Min's scene takes place in HPA and Xander's doesn't, this could imply that Min was wearing the HPA uniform? That's fitting, for her.

We also know that the DRDT cast were all wearing these outfits believing that they were headed for the HPA entrance ceremony. Therefore, we know that Eden would wear this getup to school, but we don't know if she'd wear it elsewhere. Once again, assuming it was Xander who got forked, we can place this CG some time between Visiting Graves and the start of the killing game. I have a hunch that Visiting Graves might have taken place during HPA's spring break-- in A History, Min and Mai (er, I mean, "Unnamed Student") are at school studying for a test with "Spring Break next week" on the chalkboard, while in Visiting Graves, Mai and Xander have traveled elsewhere-- but that's not confirmed, so we can't lock it down.

Maybe we can get more information about this in Eden's bonus episode! Because, well, I at least do think that most of the mysteries of this CG could be solved within a bonus episode and/or other characters talking about her posthumously in later chapters. Again, I understand if you want to use this CG as evidence that Eden is important enough to need to stick around, though.

AREI I MISS YOUUUUUUUUUU

Also, I didn't catch this at all, but credit to everyone who noticed how similar this scene is to the "Diana Chiem" scene in LGI! Fascinating implications that I have no additional thoughts on at the moment. Mostly because we don't know shit about Diana, if that even is her who's portrayed in that CG. I'm sure I'll come back to this someday, just not right now.

Oh, and I don't think you can really argue that Ace made up this conversation anymore. Idk how much of it he stuck around to listen to, though.

See like why is she so pressed about it???

I'd like to say that this is a win for Whit not being the mastermind (because he doesn't seem to know what MonoTV is talking about), but he could probably just be going "why are you saying that at this time?" or something like that. Sigh (/j)

Why Does Whit Know So Much About Hanging?

Alright, so, obviously, this could be a super-suspect hint that Whit knows all of this stuff about hanging and therefore decided to use that knowledge to kill Arei. But, I don't care about that! What I don't understand is how Whit came to know all of this in the first place!

Well, after a quick review, there's one option that stands out more than all the others: Whit's mom was killed by hanging, likely self-inflicted. The only thing we "know" about Whit's mom dying (assuming that secret really is his) is that she is dead, and Whit omits it. It's phrased pretty vaguely. We also know that Whit thinks his mom is awesome, but that doesn't tell us anything about how she saw herself. Sadly, I think this lines up all too well.

Whit's main character flaw, as we've seen throughout the story so far, is ignoring things that stress him out or make him sad. He represses, and chooses not to get involved in others' fights because it's "not his business." It would make sense if the same extended to what he was like before the killing game. If Whit always chooses to ignore things that worry him, there's a possibility he blames himself for his mom's death via not paying enough attention to any warning signs that her mental state might have gotten so dire. Of course, if repression runs in the family, she might have been doing her best to not make it obvious as well.

So, even though he hates himself for not giving his mom enough support in her darkest hour, he still can't (yet) make any changes in his life because ignorance is the only way he knows how to cope. Yet, he still won't let himself pass up on helping another soul in clear need of support, like Charles panicking over the blood, or Eden suffering over seeing Arei's body. He can push himself to help others that are sad, as long as he never focuses on himself.

Or, he's the time loop mastermind who's heard Class Trials discuss hanging a billion times before. You never know with this guy.

CONGRATS TO FF AND BADJOE FOR BEING THE SMARTEST PEOPLE IN THE WORLD!!! 🎉🎉🎉🎉 Man, even seeing Teruko explain this mechanism as the truth, I still don't know if I would've been able to come up with it myself. This fandom is so smart :D

(Also, why was Whit a dog? Goddammit, is this more MonoTV coding?! /lh)

FUCK YES, WE'RE ACTUALLY GOING TO GET ANSWERS ABOUT THE GYM MURDER IN THIS TRIAL? HALLELUJAH! IT'S ABOUT TO BE T A P E T I M E, MOTHERFUCKERS! (/j)

Phew, barely squeaked it within 30 images! I'm impressed and amazed that DRDTdev keeps managing to make such gripping episodes week after week.

Get it? Gripping? Like grippy tape?

I'd apologize, but you're almost certainly going to hear more of that from me next week. Until then!

#danganronpa despair time #drdt #drdt spoilers #drdt chapter 2 part 2 spoilers #fanganronpa #cw suicide mention #levi fontana #ace markey #eden tobisa #whit young #teruko tawaki #arei nageishi #btw i hope i didn't come off as at all rude or condescending to people who don't believe in eden culprit #especially bc i was the one who was saying that no one should use the trial results to be mean to each other #my goal was only to celebrate some of my friends for having their theories turn out to be true #but i do truly feel for anyone whose expectations aren't lining up with reality. i'm sure that must be hard after the long wait #(and also to be clear i'm not discounting that i'll be proven wrong not long from now i just don't think it's happened yet)#(or maybe i'm just still delusional)#my theories

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cas-of-apollo · 6 days ago

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This is my first time writing fanfic y'all please don't bully me I'll like it/jk inspired by this photo!!

Dean was sifting through the books of research Sam gave to him. On *Christmas.* How pathetic is that? It's supposed to be a break for them, the one day. His cup of lukewarm whiskey sits beside him as Sam scuffles out of the kitchen towards the room Dean's occupying.

"Hey, Dean?" He asks quietly, as if he doesn't want to broach the subject. Dean looks up from the page he was halfway through reading and sees that Sam's face is solemn. His eyebrows furrow and now he's slightly worried.

"Yeah, what's up, Sammy?" Dean keeps his voice steady as to not show that he's a little freaked out. He never likes it when Sam sounds like this. Him and those puppy dog eyes.

"Do you remember much of Christmas when we were younger? You know, with dad?" He sips his tea nervously, tapping and flicking the side of the cup.

"Why? Is there something buggin' you? Why are you worried about John?" My lip twitches down at the mention at the mention of him.

"I just—you know. . . It's Christmas! Don't you have any good memories with dad? Or with me," he tries to make it seem less of a big deal as he thinks it to be. Dean tries to bring his memory back to all those years ago and it takes him a moment to get it to the forefront of his mind.

Every year before 1987, they spent Christmas alone. Through the *whole* month. John never stayed or actually made an effort to. Sam tried his best to enjoy it with his brother and Dean tried to make it as exciting as a 12 year old could. The tree was a shitty excuse for design and Dean was lucky if he could scavenge up enough money to get Sam a gift. He tried to pretend that they came from John, but he doesn't think Sam ever believed him anyways. For eight, he was incredibly smart. He always was.

This year, John visited. They were holed up in the dingy motel that their dad kept them in every time they had to go to another state. Dean was sitting and playing with his mini fire truck he's had since he can remember. He always wanted to be a firefighter and he still does, but he doesn't really get the chance to. Not anymore. But if hunting is how he got to save people, he'll be damned if he quits.

John came back the morning after Christmas Day and smelled like the back of a dumpster. He even looked like it too. His hands were cut up, bruised, and was just a mess all over. Beer was gripped in his hand, already have empty. John's shadow was always big and intimidating but this time, it felt suffocating. Dean looked up at him, confused.

"Dad?"

——————————————————–

In the kitchen, Sam was eating the left over cereal they had stored even though Dean wanted it. He couldn't say no to him though. He poured both the cereal and milk for him and headed for the dishes to clean them.

"Dean?" He asks meekly.

"Yeah, Sammy?" He turned around, looking at him with his good eye. Sam frowns and looks damn near close to tears.

"What happened?"

"Ah, nothin' you need to worry about, Sammy. We're okay," He smiles at him and turns back to the pile of gross dishes. He hated doing them, made him gag, but if he did them, Sammy wouldn't have to. His left eye still hurts and felt like there's pressure on it. Doesn't hurt more than the headache that came with it.

Dean blinks back out of my stupor and smiles weakly at Sam, just as always.

"No, not really, Sammy. Sorry," he tells him as he goes back to the book but not before he sees the relief of air leave Sam. He smiles to himself—a real one—and goes back to researching. He thinks, 'I'm is his older brother and if John takes it out on me rather than Sammy, I'll take it.'

#what the fuck #dean winchester #sam winchester #sammy #spn #spnfandom #supernatural #dean #john winchester hate club

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gallavichsreddie1128 · 9 months ago

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Baltimore Part One (Will Graham)

Description: Will and his wife have a plan to take Hannibal's house from him

Warning: Oral sex

Word Count: 1,720k

I loved Hannibal. I loved him, I loved him, I loved him. But was I in love with him? My husband and I were both teachers and helped the FBI with cases. Will had this special power that he could see how people died and give it in very specific detail. Each time it seemed we’d catch somebody there was a copycat killer. Will had started seeing this physiatrist named Hannibal Lector. He was rich and had a huge mansion. He was very smart and helped us on these cases. He seemed to have everything. “He wants us to come over for dinner.” Will had told me. I was excited once I heard he was a good cook. We had gotten dressed up for the dinner as Hannibal requested.

I had a nice red dress that went down to my legs and showed some of my chest. Will didn’t have anything crazy fancy but we managed to make it work. I watched as he buttoned up the fancy dress shirt that I had gotten him for our anniversary years ago. We have been together since we were 16. He is the best man I've ever met and I love him so much. He looked so good in the shirt that it made me melt. I walked over to him and wrapped my arms around his neck. “You look wonderful baby.” He told me. I blushed everytime he complimented me. “But you look very sexy in this shirt.” I told him. I leaned in and whispered in his ear. “I wanna rip it off you.” His breathing picked up some and I gave him a little bite on his ear. “You can’t say things like that to me when we have somewhere to be.” He says.

Hannibal made us some really fancy dinner that I hadn’t heard the name of before. He had the most expensive wine and a crazy big kitchen. The food was amazing as was the wine. I closed my eyes and almost moaned at how good everything was. “You are a wonderful cook Mr.Lector.” I said to him. “Hannibal please and thank you!” He was also very handsome and charming. I loved Will but damn there was something about Hannibal. His accent was incredible and sexy. The fact that he could cook added to it. Will and him talked about the case we were currently working on as I ate the dinner in silence not really caring about the case right now. “So Will tells me you are very smart and almost went to Harvard.” Hannibal says now turned to me. I blush and chuckle “Yes but I took a different path.” I say. “Teaching is it?” I nodded as I chewed the rest of my food. “At least you’re putting your talent to good use.” “Cheers to that.” Will said, holding up his glass. I laugh as they both do it.

“Dinner was lovely Hannibal thank you for having us.” I said as we were leaving. “Thank you for coming Mrs. Graham.” “Y/N please.” He smiled and nodded. We left his big mansion and sighed. “It would be amazing to live in a house that big, especially with the dogs.” Will said. “Yeah it would.” I say.

I looked at Will like he was crazy. “You think Hannibal is doing all of the killings?” I asked him. “Y/N/N he isn’t the copycat he’s the chesapeake ripper.” I couldn’t believe what my husband was saying. Why did he think that Hannibal was the Chesapeake ripper? “Will that’s crazy. I mean what evidence do you have to support that?” I asked. “Babe, I've seen him do it in my visions and he drugged me.” I wanted to laugh at the first part but in reality Will’s visions were spot on. “How do you know he drugged you?” I asked. “I remember everything now from that night I couldn’t.” I felt like I had to believe him but he sounded crazy. “Ok let’s just say he did and is the Chesapeake ripper. What are we gonna do about it?” He shrugged. “Tell Jack?” I laughed at him “Baby he is sucking Hannibal’s dick. He wouldn’t believe that.” He sighed. “Maybe you’re right.” He said.

I stood in shock as the cops arrested Will. My body was frozen and my mouth was wide open. I couldn’t move as they took him away from me. Why the fuck was Will getting arrested? He didn’t even do anything. “He murdered all those people Y/N.” Jack said. Yet I knew he didn’t even believe that. “Bullshit and you know it Jack.” I said, “All the evidence points to him.” He tells me. “Hannibal did the killings, Jack not my husband.” I say. “Was that something Will got in your head?” I rolled my eyes. I’d rather Hannibal be in prison than my husband. “He might not remember doing it either.” Will did sleepwalk but I was always there with him. “I wanna speak to my husband, Jack.” I say ignoring him.

“God I miss you so much, being in here is a nightmare.” He tells me. I smile at him and sigh. “And how do you think I feel?” I asked him. “Sleeping alone, Having to wake up alone, having to touch myself.” I whisper the last part and he groans. “Trust me babygirl when I get out of here you won’t ever have to do that again.” I was dripping at his words. “Can’t wait.” He smiles. “So did they find evidence on Hannibal?” He asked. “No. They don’t even believe he would do something like that.” I say. “Oh but I would?” “Will I know you didn’t and whether or not I believe you about Hannibal, I'd rather him be in here than you.” “Yeah me too.” I hated seeing him locked up like this. “Maybe he’d let us take care of his house for him.” I joke but I saw something in Will’s eyes change. He didn’t say anything but I felt the tension.

“Will, are you kidding me? You hired someone to kill Hannibal?” I asked him. “He’s the reason I’m in here.” “So that doesn’t mean you get to have him killed!” “I’ve been thinking about what you said the other day.” He tells me. “What did I say?” I said a lot of things to him the other day. “About his house.” My eyes widened a bit. I was joking about it and after I said it Will had a different look in his eyes. “Will that was a joke I don't think-” “But it’s genius.” He shifted on the seat a bit. “Think about it. With all the dogs we have and the room we need.” Maybe he was dark and maybe he did kill all those people. “How would we go about this?” I was very curious about his plan. “We’d play him Y/N. We’d be friend him, fuck him, make him think he has us under his wing.” “Fuck him? You’d fuck another man?” I asked. He chuckled. “If it meant we’d have that house. I deepthroat him.” He told me with a very serious look in his eyes. “Well you’d let me watch right?” I asked with my lip in a pout. He chuckled and nodded. “Of course baby.”

Once Will was out of jail the plan was in action. Hannibal Lector’s house would be ours. “So I was thinking about how we’d go about this even further.” He tells me. “We act like we are having trouble in our marriage.” I hated that he thought of that. “Babe there’s other ways to do this.” I say. “But he’d think we are vulnerable. And that’s what we need.” He says. I walk over to him and wrap my arms around with neck. “It’s gonna be so hard to act like that baby. It better be worth it.” I say. “It will be baby.” “Oh and I wanna make the last move in our plan.” He shrugged. “Of course baby. I wouldn’t have it any other way.” He says.

I started seeing Hannibal days later. He agreed to be my psychiatrist after I told him that Will and I were having marriage problems. Will has been telling him that too. “He just doesn’t fuck me like he should anymore.” I say. “But he still fucks you?” I shrugged. “Barely. It’s all about him.” That wasn’t true, Will was a great lover. “I guess I just need to be fucked like I should be.” I made eye contact with him after. He clears his throat. “Are you implying something Mrs. Graham?” He asked. I stand up “Y/N and Do you think i’m implying something Hannibal?” I walk closer to him. “Well it appears to be that way.” I got on my knees in front of him. “What are you going to do about that doctor?” I asked. My hands take the notebook out of his hands and set it down. I undo his pants and pull his dick out. He was already hard. I started jerking him off and he groaned. I look up at him and smirk. He was breathing hard and his eyes were closed. Without warning I take him into my mouth and slowly take him to the back of my throat. His hands grabbed my head and forced me to take him deeper. I held back a gag as his dick was down my throat a little. He gasped out as I swallowed around him. He was twitching and his hips started moving. I could tell he was close. “Fuck i’m close.” He grunted and I went faster. Within seconds he was yelling out my name as his cum went straight down my throat. I swallowed all of it and pulled off him. After a few seconds he put himself back in his pants and adjusted himself. “Well that was something.” I smirked at him and stood up. “See ya next week Doctor.”

“So how was it?” Will asked me as I took off my shoes and greeted the dogs. “I sucked his dick.” I told him as I sat next to him. “How’d he taste?” I shrugged. “Like victory.” He laughed at my words and wrapped an arm around me. “Like in a few months that house will be ours.”

#hannibal #hannibal lecter #hannibal nbc #hugh dancy #mads mikkelsen #will graham #will graham x reader #hannibal imagine #will graham x you #will graham smut #hannibal smut

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twisted-will-au · 2 months ago

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Retrospective (2023-2024)

Given that it's been way over a year since I came up with the idea behind this AU (when it was still a take of another AU funny as that sounds), I think I should somewhat reflect on how it felt like getting to this point To the point of making the AU have its own identity, making it in the first place, etc. And given Halloween is coming up and I have something special planned for it, reflecting before that comes seems like a good thing to do To be honest, the creation of this AU was a strange one. I originally just made the designs and nothing else somewhere at the start of July of 2023. The reasoning behind it was... somewhat spite, I guess? Back when the AU was still JUST a take on Taletwist, I happened to stumble upon the wiki of the AU, which had a really funny fan made image of the characters, but it also motivated me to attempt to do a take on the designs based on the roles of the AU

After a few days of spriting, I eventually ended up with these, which...... I guess aren't THAT bad, it's just weird to look back on After making the sprites, I eventually ended up doing far more bigger concepts for situations that could happen, like the Mew Mew equivalent fight or the Amalgamates Until I eventually ended up creating a proper blog and Soundcloud for it as a whole I had a few friends to help me with the OST, and the original plan was just to make it a Soundcloud AU, since during the time I made it a lot of Soundcloud AUs didn't really focus properly on handling areas well, which was what I was trying to do with my take on the AU Many months pass of posting on the Soundcloud, I can't really say much here... Although I DID get ideas for the Deltarune equivalent around that time, so that's pretty cool? I still didn't have a FULL idea for it though, I just knew that Soltitureil (Ruins Dummy Ghost) and Shyren would be main characters Oh, I guess this was also around the time where I decided to change the designs. so, none of the ones shown above are up to date anymore, oops! But hey, that's just how it is sometimes. The more you work on so At some point, like a few months ago when I ended up getting to the Snowdin equivalent on the Soundcloud OST, I thought to myself "What if I made this a comic?", the issues there was, I couldn't do that. I was still under the name of "TALETWIST", and I didn't want to overshadow the original thing, since despite it being long abandoned, Taletwist still wasn't an AU I owned, but someone elses I had a few discussions with some friends until I eventually decided to turn it into its own thing, which you know now as "TWISTED WILL". This is also when I started putting more thought into the Deltarune equivalent, coming up with more concepts for it and proper ideas, you can probably see that with both the Fluke and Hailey concepts (both being Darkners) I showed, alongside Sol being a dog in the Dark World, Shyren's Dark World design and Darkner Mew Mew being headless. Oh, and Lepidoshy (the Whimsun) (And if you're wondering, Twisted Will is kinda like a... a series? That's kinda why the Undertale equivalent has "A GREAT TALE! ! !" as a subtitle. although it's only the Deltarune and Undertale equivalent, but I won't be touching the Deltarune equivalent in terms of any sort of proper story anytime soon, but I still enjoy making concepts for it) Anywho, after a few days of turning it into an original thing (which I was pretty nervous about), I ended up turning it into a proper comic, or well, at least something that you can read. It is a Google Docs thing and not a full-on sprite comic, but that's because I thought it'd be the easiest way to see it And up until recently, I also decided to make "Side-Stories", to both help with world building and also just to have more interactions shown with characters outside of just what happens in the main comic And now we're here! It's honestly been an incredible journey getting to this point, I couldn't thank everyone who followed this project enough... At some point, I thought it'd get demotivated of this, like I did with a lot of my other projects But never once have I felt like I didn't want to work on this thing For some reason, I really want to finish it. And even if I won't be able to finish the entire OST, the entire main comic, or whatever else I come up with in the future, I at least want to get to a point where I feel satisfied with it. My goal, even before the rebrand, even before making the OST, was always to at least get up until the Neutral Omega equivalent fight. I've had the design for it finished back when I first started the AU, it was one of the first few things I did. And not once did I feel like I could improve upon it or change it, it's one of the few things that I feel confident with keeping the same and showing everyone, even if the road to get there takes a while

I still have so MUCH more I want to show, but I am still just a person, if something takes me longer than I'd hope, it's not because I wanted it to take longer, it's due to things out of my control. But even so... I'll keep on doing what I love doing, and, hopefully, you'll enjoy seeing it, too And if you don't, that's fine! This AU isn't for everyone, I'm not expecting everyone to like it. But for the people that do, I hope it'll be worth the wait <3

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hrts4hanniehae · 1 year ago

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clutch || one

there are written parts :)

the good thing about being a game streamer was that when you were famous, your salary was kind of high. the bad thing was that the streaming platform wonwoo uses... started taking a huge cut of his earnings, leading him to this situation.

voice call

"okay to be honest, wonwoo, you were kind of stupid in the sense that you didn't buy your house but rented instead."- mingyu

"2 years ago, i was broke, mingyu. i just finished university and needed a place big enough for me and seollie. this place was very cheap for the amount of space." - wonwoo

"can't you buy this place outright? you have the money... right?" - mingyu

"my streaming platform started taking 30% of my earnings. and the building's owner changed, so there was a rent increase. it'll take me a long time to buy this apartment outright. by the time i can, i'll be in debt." - wonwoo

"so a roommate!" - mingyu

"why can't you be my roommate?" - wonwoo

"i already bought myself a place. plus your apartment is really far from my restaurant." - mingyu

"so how do you come by every morning to cook me food?" - wonwoo

"my restaurant is only open for dinner. i'm a celebrity chef, wonwoo. if it was open the whole day, i wouldn't get any rest. anyways, talk to the girl. she may be quite a good roommate for you." - mingyu

"sure..." - wonwoo

she fixed her hair and checked her face in her camera again. this was her 5th try at apartment hunting. when her ex-boyfriend decided to cheat on her and steal her studio apartment, she lost many things. apparently, no one liked rooming with an artist because they were "messy" and may dirty the apartment.

"i swear if this guy rejects me i have no options left... please oh my god PLEASE let me stay here... don't screw up the interview..."

"yn ln?"

mind you, she had never seen her potential roommate's face before and she definitely did not expect someone of MODEL STANDARDS to be calling her name.

"jeon wunwoo?"

"wonwoo. jeon wonwoo."

ah... i've already screwed up.

"oh i'm so sorry..."

"it's fine. come on up."

she's funny... who the hell monologues out loud?

"so these will be your rooms. they're connected by the closet." - wonwoo

"i get two rooms?" - yn

"don't you need space to do your art?" - wonwoo

"oh. oh yea. thank you." - yn

"oh yea. i also have a dog, seollie. she's my family dog. i hope your not allergic." - wonwoo

"i'm not. I love dogs!" - yn

"that's good. also, there's only one bathroom so please remember to knock before entering." - wonwoo

"ah okay. wait but i thought we were having an interview. you're showing me around as if you've already decided i'm moving in." - yn

"are you not?" - wonwoo

"oh i am?" - yn

"i prefer to deal with things quickly. this roommate idea was my friend's, not mine. so i would really rather the first "candidate" be the last." - wonwoo

"i have no complaints. when can i move in? i promise i'll be out of here by the end of next year." - yn

"we have a deal. you can move in starting tomorrow." - wonwoo

"any roommate rules or do we draft that out tomorrow?" - yn

"... tomorrow." - wonwoo

"great. thanks. I'll be back tomorrow with my stuff." - yn

ฅ^•ﻌ•^ฅ

a/n - i screw up the tweet dates A LOT so please just ignore them most of the time okay... I don't like the dates either but my app doesn't let me remove them also i'm assuming seollie is a sheepadoodle and a female and i'm so sorry if i'm wrong but there's too little info on wonwoo's family dog to be accurate.

synopsis: wonwoo is a popular streamer known for his incredible gaming skills and good looks. He turned heads. but he hates the attention. he just wants to play games and earn money. one day he receives a letter. his apartment’s rent has almost doubled. no warnings at all. his current paycheck from streaming can’t shoulder those bills. he has no choice but to rent out his spare room. to who? a fresh art university graduate who has… 1. a stable job ✅ 2. talent for art and sculpting ✅ 3. many friends ❌ 4. social anxiety ✅ 5. no filter ✅ when his iconic cat logo gets copystriked, she comes to the rescue with a new logo for him. when his apartment’s walls start peeling, she fixes it. whatever he used to struggle with… the empty space... was now filled by her. so what does he *last player standing* do when her ex *enemy spotted* tries to take her back? heh. *clutch* he clutches.

inspired by wonwoo's gam3bo1 streams, falling into your smile & gogo squid (has hints of valorant)

pairing: streamer!jeon wonwoo x fem!artist!reader (ft. jeongcheol, soonhoon, junhao, seoksoo, verkwan)

genre: fluff, comfort, slowburn, comfort, pining, bestfriend!minghao

warnings: stalker ex, toxic ex, mentions of abuse, guns (game), cursing, hate comments, panic attacks

started: 28.12.23 ended: ?

taglist: join from my masterlist

main masterlist

smau socials

previous I next

tags! @fairyofhour @megseungmin @sun-daddy-yoriichi @woozixo @euphoric-univers @christinewithluv @haowonbins @ocyeanicc @asyre @cynthiaaax13 @superhoshisvt @bangantokchy @chimmy-bts @angelarin @daisawa @writingbarnes @jeonghansshitester

@belladaises @wonwootakemyheart @wonwooz1 @luchiet @kookssecret @caratsland @peachescreamandcrumble @thepoopdokyeomtouched @isabellah29 @leah-rose03 @yandere-stories @coupshour

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kfkr1ze · 6 months ago

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[002-A06] Anemic Killer Horseshoe Crab～Night before the Counterattack～

Summary — ✈︎ Kaede visits the Lion Theater to watch the movie that Akuta produced by himself. When he enters the theater, though, he finds Akuta sitting there with a gloomy expression on his face.

Characters— ✈︎ Akuta

Location: Lion Theater

Kaede: Excuse me…

(This place is the Lion Theater, isn’t it?

I guess it hasn’t started yet. No one seems to be hereーー)

Akuta: ……

Kaede: Hee!

Akuta: …… Ah, it’s… Sensei?

Kaede: That scared me… Just what on earth is on your head…?

Akuta: I’m, the demonic, horseshoe crab. This whole world, I’ll curse it.

Kaede: I-I see… That’s a pretty unique way of talking…

Akuta: ……

Kaede: Umm… I came to watch the thing on this tissue…

Akuta: Human, if you, want tissues…

There’s, still some, in that, mountain over there.

Kaede: (That box is filled to the brim with tissues…!

He definitely ordered the wrong amount…!)

Akuta: Go ahead, and take, as many, as you like.

Kaede: Don’t be so hasty! You can still use them for the next screening! You should save them for later!

Akuta: ……

Kaede: (He has such a gloomy expression… It’s hard to see him like this, especially based on how he was before… I feel so bad for him.)

Is it fine if I sit next to you?

Akuta: Do what… you please…

Kaede: Thanks.

… They’re still doing screenings here, huh?

I thought this place was abandoned a long time ago.

Akuta: They’re not, it’s my, playground, that I sneak into…

Kaede: But isn’t the screening…?

Akuta: I rented, the projector… Got a bunch, of part time jobs… like, demolition, shopping for women, walking dogs, and stuff.

Kaede: I see… You worked really hard for this day huh.

But I don’t think it’s good to sneak in here though.

Akuta: ……

Kaede: (He’s shaking his sword tail sadly…

I wonder if I could do anything to cheer him up)

Let’s wait a bit longer.

Someone else might show up after all.

Akuta: … Mm, nah it’s fine.

My ass is starting to hurt… Ahaha.

Kaede: ……

Akuta: Y’know.

In the past, this place used to be where entertainment began in HAMA.

Kaede: … Yeah. I heard something like that.

Akuta: I wish I could’ve filled it with a lotta people again.

If only I were a more famous, a galactic filmmakerーー

If only I was the type of human… that could have an influence on people more.

Kaede: … Akuta-kun…

Don’t stay stuff like that, cheer upーー

Akuta: Then… I’d be so popular I could die… And I’d be swarmed by a loootta women…!

I wanna play tag shirtless on the moon～～～！

And I’d eat lots of mochi with Bunny-chan and Bunny-kun～～！

And then, we’d build a huge 365LDK [1] house up there, and we’d have a drinking party where we’d drink a lotta shots～～！

Kaede: Akuta-kun.

Akuta: Yup!

Kaede: Since I’m here, I wanted to watch the movie that was going to be shown. Is everything ready?

Akuta: ーーOf… Course!

Everything’s all set!

I’ll get everything started real quickly…!

Akuta: Hey hey, look look, this is a real projector! Isn’t it SUPER cool～～～!?

It’s so incredible. It has the weight from all these years… and the brightness is completely next level!

Didya know? When you’re talking about projectors, they project the film directly onto the screen. Directly! Isn’t that cool? It’s not data at all!

The colors from the film are projected exactly as they were from recording!

It’s the real colors, not ones from an electric signal , y’know?

That’s why! I put a lotta effort into making the visuals look good!

Now then, now then… Take a look!

“Mysterious! The Anemic Horseshoe’s Counterattack!”

Jessica [2]: “NOOOOOOOOOO!”

Philip: “What’s wrong!? I heard a scream just nowーー Nee-san!?

What’s wrong Nee-san!?”

“NEE-SAAAAAAAAAAAAN!”

Dr. Henry: “Yet again, there’s another dead body just like this…”

“The only common thread between them was that they were struck in the head with a terrifyingly sharp blade.”

“It’s almost like… they were stabbed with the tail sword of a horseshoe crab.”

Demonic Horseshoe Crab: “Guh… GUYAAAAAAAH!”

Dr. Henry: The demon is scared!? Just what on earth could scareーー”

“It can’t be… The syringe!?”

“I see… After having your blood taken for medical reasons for tens of thousands of years… You must’ve grown to resent humans.”

“I pity you, demon.”

“Butーー … This is goodbye.”

Akuta: Whatdya think!?

Kaede: … Um… It was very innovative… Like it’s Avant Garde… Or like a roller coaster.

It was unprecedented… It was…

… It was a bit incoherent.

(Ah. I said it…)

Akuta: OH, incoherent! Yayyy〜 I’m happy〜! WOOO〜!

Kaede: (Wah, I’m relieved… Even though I accidentally said what was on my mind, I’m glad you don’t seem to be hurt…)

( … But really, everyone…)

( Really, could they not have come to watch even just a little bit?)

……

( I need to calm down… I’m sure that Akuta-kun is a hundred times more frustrated than I am)

(Today, this kid was both the star of the film and the director. I didn’t really get the message, but it was a great film in my opinion.)

(I’ll just return home today without showing him the proposal. I wouldn’t wanna spoil the mood.)

Then, it’s about time I go.

Akuta: Stoーp.

Kaede: Eh?

Akuta: Didn’t you come here to finish talking about that thing?

Kaede: No, but…

Akuta: Let’s hear it. …As a thank you gift for watching.

Location: Cafe 369

Akuta: D-Delicious… Meat buns are SERIOUSLY delicious～～～～！

Heyhey! Is it okay if I get 20 more!?

Kaede: Yeah, get as many as you want.

Akuta: YAYYY! Thanks! You’re like a god, Sensei!

Munch munch, it’s too gooood!!

Kaede: (He told me he’d hear me out, but ended up asking me to get him something to eat instead…)

( I can’t believe he spent all the earnings he got from those part time jobs on equipment, costumes, and those tissues… He hasn't had a proper meal in days.)

Are you gonna be able to fill up on those meat buns?

Akuta: I will I will! They’re super tasty and big, and they’re fluffy and dense! It’s like eating a proper meal!

Kaede: I’m glad then… But what about your family? You didn’t say anything?

Akuta: Nah. I’m pretty much the only one there.

Kaede: … I see.

(Maybe he has a complicated family situation…)

Okay then, feel free to eat as much as you want.

Akuta: Thanks!

Kaede: Then you can just listen to me while you’re eating.

So the plan isーー

We have decided that the members of the Community Revitalization Club will participate in a study tour as candidates for Ward Mayors.

During this training, they will experience work that a Ward Mayor typically does, and thus gain a deeper understanding of the job.

By the end, they will be graded based on their performance and contribution to the missions assigned on site.

If you pass this test, you will be officially appointed as a Ward Mayor…

That’s how the plan goes.

Kaede: This is the plan and the parental consent form…

Akuta: I didn’t get it at all. It’s stupidly difficult.

Kaede: To make it a bit more understandable… Oh I got it.

Akuta–kun, you want to be a more popular person right?

Akuta: Eh, that’s what you’re saying…?

Kaede: Yes it is. Listen closely, Akuta-kun.

First up, I think that using videos as an expression is a great way to boost tourism.

Also, by having a lot of people watch the video, many more people will start to get interested in Akuta-kun’s work. You’d gain people who look forward to what you want to put out!

Akuta: ……

Kaede: What’s more, being a high school student as the Ward Mayor is sure to give you more attention at school too.

Andーー

The tissues that Akuta-kun worked so hard to make ended up getting treated so poorly.

Even though they were at a party, it was so carelessーー

Akuta: ……

Kaede: The people who let the equipment Akuta-kun spent all his money on go to wasteーー

I think we should make them look back on this day and regret not coming!

Akuta: ーーHaha!

Sensei, somehow you ended more fired up than I was～～!

Suddenly, you looked all fired up like a punk, it was crazyy!

You’re more interesting than I thought～～～!

Kaede: S-Sorry. I got heated without realizing.

Akuta: Nah. Thank you for that.

Kaede: ……

Akuta: Alright… Let’s do thisss!!

For the sake of movies! And to be more popular～～～！

The others are being kinda reluctant too aren’t they?

I’ll find a way to get them to agree, so it’s all good!

I’ll get them to go on that study tour thingy!

Leave it to me!

Kaede: T-That’s reassuring, thanks.

But tomorrow is summer break, isn’t it? Do you have their contact information?

Akuta: ‘Course I do!

Kaede: ( I see, so they stay in touch with each other.)

(At school they didn’t seem to be all that close at school when I saw them though.

They had a strange distance between them.)

Previous — ✈︎ Masterlist — ✈︎ Next

Notes — ✈︎

And LDK stands for "Living Dining Kitchen" Typically you'd say like 1LDK or 2LDK for a one or two bedroom house respectively. 365LDK is . a 365 bedroom house.

For the film, every character is voiced by Akuta.

#18trip #18trip translation #chapter 002 #bitter sweet sixteen #kfkr1ze #akuta isotake

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mostly-tame · 6 months ago

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A year ago I flew into Michigan to get *my* dog. As soon as I got in the car we clicked. I was prepared to earn his love and trust, but right away we loved each other. Since then our bond has only deepened and strengthened. My love and adoration and admiration for him has only grown.

We've both come a long ways since we met; and I'm incredibly proud of both of us for what we've accomplished. He's my first dog of my own and I couldn't have picked a better first dog for me. He's precisely who and what I needed, and I honestly find him to be a rather easy dog. I greatly enjoy working with him, he's incredibly smart and eager, and once he knows what I want from him he takes only a few repetitions to get it down. I want to try Rally and Agility with him, and we've already begun some parkour type training. We of course hike and walk often, and have done a bit of canicross, and I want to do so much more of that, as well as weight pull, bikejor, and some more packing (I still have his pack, just haven't used it much lately).

Of course I also still greatly want to hunt with him. He's shown great interest in squirrel, raccoon, and rabbit, as well as skunk and opossums lmao, and I greatly regret that the last hunting season was spent slowly escaping a toxic relationship and not hunting with him. I'd like to try him on bear as well, he certainly finds larger game incredibly enticing, but that probably won't happen this season.

It's somewhat strange now, all of my coworkers and friends know me for constantly talking about and showing them photos of Torch, and not Kit. I never really expected to out live her by long, and I wouldn't have if I hadn't gotten Torch when I did. Any other dog, from any other litter, pairing, breeder, I would have backed out of before I got them when I lost Kit. But I love his parents dearly, and his breeder is truly one of my best friends, and i could already feel that he was right for me; so the photos I'd seen of him and videos and photos I got of him before I flew to him kept me afloat while I got through the most lonely few months of my life.

Every day I'm grateful to call him mine, to curl up with him at the end of the day, to walk him, to train with him, to hike with him, to play with him, to bury my face in his thick ruff. He's my sunshine dog, through and through. He makes me smile even when I'm the saddest and relax even when I'm the most stressed. There's no better way to soften my sadness than to curl up with him, softly wagging his tail at first as I pet him, until he tries to entice me into play. There's no better way to work through the things that stress and overwhelm me than to walk, run, or hike with him, working out the excess energy, grounding myself in the world and my being, and thinking things through. I am the happiest when I'm doing things with him.

I was prepared for a dog who would make me earn his love, trust, and respect, a dog who would be a bit of a challenge to train, a dog who wouldn't be very cuddly or affectionate, a dog who would push me more. Overall a dog who would make me work for and earn things more. Getting a teenage laika didn't sound like my brightest idea on paper. But I was ready and eager for the experience and work. But honestly? We fell into place incredibly easily and work amazingly together. He's bizarrely cuddly and clingy and while I don't need my future laiki to be as sticky as him, I love him dearly for it. He's precisely what I needed.

While I'm not generally spiritual nor do I generally put much stock in the idea of fate and destiny; I have no other way to describe how it feels to have him. Who he is and his timing are too perfect. He came to me precisely when I needed him the most. He keeps the shadows at bay. He's the light at the end of a long tunnel for me.

He's been mine for a whole year, and I wouldn't change him or trade him for the world. He's my pride and joy, and I look forward to many more years spent with him. @losech I know you know how much I love him, how much I needed him. I still have to say it again and again and again. I can never thank you enough for trusting me with him.

This art was done by one of my friends several months ago and still makes me tear up to even think about. You can find my friend at fairywren.art on insta!

#west siberian laika #torch #torch art #west siberian laika art #art #laika art #i wont apologize for how long this is bc its still missing 7 photos and some photo captions that are on fb

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yandere-romanticaa · 2 months ago

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Ana, what would you say your top 5 anime are?

The only secure place shall we say is #1 but the rest really are not set in any particular order. Regardless, I've already answered this question a while ago but my opinions changed a little bit and these ones are definitely my favorite of all time.

#1 Bungo Stray Dogs.

My all time favorite anime is this one - Bungo Stray Dogs. It really hits hard for me because it just sucked me in immediately upon first watching it. I also really enjoy reading so being introduced to Japanese literature was just such a lovely bonus to me, so much so that I actually own two books which were written by Osamu Dazai.

If you've been following me for a while, this anime needs no introduction and you probably already knew that it's my favorite.

#2 Moriarty the Patriot.

Such an underrated gem...

Moriarty the Patriot tells the story of a math professor, William James Moriarty and how he wreaks havoc amongst the upper crust of British society as the secret Lord of Crime. He's a very morally ambiguous character who yes, does want to ultimately do good but his methods can be considered very extreme at times.

The anime is set in 19th century London and just the overall vibe of the show is immaculate. Every episode starts by setting the atmosphere which really gets you going, wondering how William and his associates will handle the chaos. His natural foil is the famous detective Sherlock Holmes and watching the two interact is a blast.

If you're in for anime which is packed with mystery, crime and some cool 19th century vibes, this one is incredible.

#3 Code Geass.

This is also another really popular anime that I don't think needs much of an introduction.

I've rewatched this show I think close to 10 times and never ONCE did I get bored. Keep in mind, I do NOT like mecha anime and this is one of two I've seen in my lifetime, the other being Aldonoah Zero.

Even so, despite my bias, it's still one of my favorites.

Literally everything is perfect about it and Lelouch is just... I'm speechless. He has my heart, I love that man.

All hail Lelouch!

#4 Re:Zero.

This is another one that had me on the hook since episode one.

I've always liked isekai anime but this one is just built fucking different. The author of this series really knows his craft both inside and out and I don't see enough praise for his world building.

Re Zero tells the story of a loser 17 year old otaku, Subaru Natsuki and how he got isekaid to another world. Since he's a dumbass, he thinks that he can have any ability he wants and that things will instantly go his way but Subaru is in for quite the rude awakening once he realizes just how horrible his situation is.

At the time of writing this, season 3 literally just came out and I am eagerly waiting for each new episode to drop.

#5 Puella Magi Madoka Magica.

Horror packaged in frills and ribbons is my whole aesthetic and this show feeds right into that.

It really does look like a simple little magical girl show upon first glance but by now, it has received the almost legendary status that it has for a damn good reason. The story manages to make the usually cheerful archetype of the magical girl into something much more sinister and tragic, exploring some interesting themes along the way.

Feel free to comment or share your thoughts on my fav list. Some honorable mentions would be Naruto, My Next Life as a Villainess, The Case Study of Vanitas and definitely some more shows which I can't recall at the moment.

#♥️ girlie says #🤍 anon asks

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m-jelly · 1 year ago

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Hello, Jelly ❤️

What about Levi and the reader where Levi is under a spell? Due to the fact that Levi broke a magical rule, he is forced to see a terrible monster in the reflection instead of himself. Levi closed himself off from everyone in the old mansion and there was no one to tell him that the spell was cast only on his reflection.

He mistakenly thought that he had been turned into a terrible monster for his sins. Because of his immortality, he spent many years in captivity until the mansion was bought by you.

Levi tried to hide from you at first, but you noticed him. You found the most handsome man you have ever seen in the mansion. You were able to break the spell and show Levi how beautiful and beautiful he really is and it was just his reflection, which has now become the way it should be. You calmed the crying and happy Levi, who was finally free.

Of course, you fell in love with each other and Levi almost immediately wanted to make you his ❤️❤️❤️

@ladycheesington <3

In your eyes

Levi x fem!reader

Fantasy AU, fluff, romance, falling in love, curses, possessive Levi, protective Levi, becoming a couple, magic.

Levi thinks he's cursed to look like a scaly human with horns and snake-like eyes, but really his reflection shows it. You move into the mansion and meet Levi as you do it up. You try to help Levi as much as possible and as you do, he slowly falls in love with you and so do you.

@ladycheesington @levisbrat25 @nyxiieluna @li-anne @galactict3a @youre-ackermine @thebobaprincess @2moth-anon2 @cypidity @nbinairyn @bts-spnlvr12 @notgoodforlife @demonic-bird

You shoved your hair up and stared at yourself in the broken mirror. Determination was written all over you. A month ago you had moved into the mansion and slowly fixed it up, but as you did you had started to notice someone watching you closely. It took a while to get him to let you get near. Today you were going to drag him out of his room and make him help you.

You stormed through the halls with your dog following you, his tail happily wagging. You petted his head and went to a back bedroom. You unlocked the door and kicked the door open causing the man in the bed to fall out of it in shock. You stormed into the room and ignored his protests.

With a big shove, you opened the curtains wide. "No more hiding! You are getting out of this room and you are helping me with this mansion!"

A hand slammed on the top of the bed and gripped the sheets tightly. Your heart raced in your chest at a deep growl. Raven hair appeared first before the most beautiful steel blue eyes locked with yours. A cute blush covered his cheeks as he admired you in your tight dress.

You walked closer to him. "I don't know why you are hiding so much. You're incredibly handsome." You cleared your throat. "Anyway, if we are sharing this mansion."

"It's my mansion."

You pouted. "It's our mansion. I did buy it and have papers for it. Now, get your butt out there and help me."

He stood up and growled. "You really want a monster like me walking around this place?"

You frowned as you took him in. "Monster? I don't see a monster at all." You walked up to him making him blush bright red. "What do you see?" You reached over and caressed his cheek.

He leaned into your touch. "A scaley monster."

"I don't see that. I see no scales." You smiled sweetly. "You are the most handsome man I've ever seen." You gave him your name.

He whined a little. "Levi."

You pulled back from him. "Now! Let's clean this house together."

Levi followed you like your dog did, the two of them cute puppies who followed your every command. You spent a week working together to clean the mansion and restore everything from top to bottom. You fed Levi with homecooked meals as he did a lot of the heavy lifting and used his magic to move and clean things.

One night you were struggling to sleep as bad memories were bothering you. So, you decided to walk the halls of the clean mansion that was mostly repaired, the only thing that probably wouldn't be were the mirrors, but you didn't mind.

Levi softly called your name. "Are you okay?"

You turned to him to see he was wrapped up in a long dressing gown, a blanket over his arm. "Mm."

"Can't sleep?"

You shook your head. "I don't know what's wrong."

He flicked the blanket around you and wrapped you up. "I will escort you to bed."

"Thank you."

He walked with you slowly. "Where is Buddy?"

You hugged Levi's arm. "Where do you think?"

"Snoring away in bed."

You gigged. "Yep."

He gazed at you. "You know, if you ever want to talk to someone you can to me."

You sat on your bed and hummed. "Thank you. I'd love to talk to you." You blushed a little. "I'd also like to kiss you."

Levi sat next to you. "I...I would like that too...but..."

You cupped the side of his face. "I see you as a handsome man. You are a dream to me. I know you see yourself as a monster, but have you maybe thought the curse is on your reflection? You see yourself as what you believe you are."

He tapped his forehead against yours and massaged your thighs. "Mm. I think you're right." He nibbled his lip a moment. "So, about that kiss."

You smiled at him. "You want to?"

He nodded before crashing his lips against yours and moaned in delight. He playfully tugged on your lips before slipping his tongue into your mouth. Your tongues moved together as one. He slowly laid you down on the bed as he sighed through his nose. He kissed along your jawline to your neck and nibbled a little.

Levi frowned when you went limp. He pulled back and saw you'd fallen asleep under him. "Must be my calm and soothing aura." He shifted you under the covers and tucked you in before slipping into bed next to you.

As the weeks went by, Levi checked the mirrors in the home less and less. His focus was always on you. He wanted to see you smile all the time. So, he'd do things for you and surround you with flowers and gifts. He cleaned the mansion while you cooked everything. He barely thought about his curse because you were his focus.

He couldn't stop smiling when you held his hand and ran with him around the garden, you were showing him a few things you'd grown. He felt his heart flutter when you showed him everything you'd grown. You gave him a few things to eat and he showered you with praise.

You smiled at Levi. "Are you okay?"

He walked up to you and held your hips. "I'm perfect. I love you so much."

You welled up a little. "I love you too."

He kissed you and hummed in delight. "Shall we take some of these foods and cook something good?"

You gasped in delight. "Yes!"

He grabbed a basket and started picking. "Tell me what you want and I'll get it, my love." He collected everything you wanted. "Lead the way."

The two of you walked together around the home. Levi stopped in his tracks when he noticed something. He slowly turned his head and looked at his reflection. He gripped the basket tightly as he stared at the real him.

You stopped and turned to Levi. "Levi? Everything okay?"

He looked over at you and smiled. "Yeah, yeah it's great. I...I don't see a monster anymore." He walked closer to you. "You made me see the real me again." He leaned closer and kissed you.

You smiled sadly. "I'm glad."

He called your name. "Why are you sad?"

"Does this mean you'll leave me?"

He put the basket down and cupped your face. "Never. I love you and only you. You are the love of my life. I am immortal and I am going to make you immortal too so we can spend forever together."

Tears rolled down your cheeks. "Really? You want me?"

"Always." He kissed you and hummed. "Always and forever. I'll even make Buddy immortal."

You giggled. "The perfect family."

"It is."

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jimothy-hopkins · 3 months ago

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So when I said o was taking a break from doing ref sheets I lied yall sorry. Have my new favorite OC I made less than a day ago!

Info about Abigail!

General Description:

Abigail stands at 5’0 with a thin build. She has a strong jawline and cheekbones. Her eyes are a vibrant shade of blue, that some find scary to look at. Abigail has wavy dark blonde hair with highlights bleached into it. Abigail wears layered clothing and tennis shoes, enjoying a simple style that she feels comfortable in.

Abigail exhibits a lot of social anxiety due to her autism. She has only recently gotten her diagnosis, and doesn’t know how to mask or properly regulate her emotions. This is one of the reasons she likes to keep to herself. There’s no pressure to socialize. Abigail would love to make friends, but has been discouraged to do that thanks to bullying in her younger years and how other students treat her at Bullworth. She is anxious when speaking, and fidgets as a way to soothe herself. In situations where Abigail feels threatened, she is likely to shut down. Behind her awkward surface, Abigail is an incredibly empathetic person, and wants to see the best in people. She is a loyal friend and a loving person.

Interests and whatnot:

Abigail loves to draw and make art. After school she will spend hours in the art studio with Ms. Philips working on pieces and projects she’s made. Art is one of the few ways Abigail has learned to cope with extreme emotions. She enjoys pairing colors and expanding on her ideas visually.

Abigail loves animals, mostly cats. Abigail has a few cats of her own, and frequently helps out the feral and stray populations in Bullworth. She has two cats of her own. They are two orange tabbies named Beaker and Gouda.

Collecting LPS is one of Abigail’s hobbies. She enjoys having them because they remind her of being a kid. She never remembered much of her childhood due to how chaotic her home life was at that time. LPS comfort her in a way and bring her happiness.

Abigail also enjoys watching movies, especially comedies. Her favorite movies are White Chicks, Heathers, and All Dogs Go To Heaven. Abigail likes animated movies as well, since she’d replay some VCR tapes so much that they’d burn out.

Reputation:

Abigail is afraid of the jocks. She knows they hardly get a consequence because of their hold on the school hierarchy. She does her best to stay away from them, but is frequently teased for being awkward and quiet.

The greasers don’t tend to bother Abigail. She is friends with Kate Valenti since they share some of the same interests. Abigail doesn’t hang out with the clique though, Johnny and the others intimidate her.

The preps don’t really care for Abigail. They thinks she’s weird and want nothing to do with her. Although, some members are a bit more empathetic towards her.

Abigail is relentlessly targeted by the bullies. This is why she is prone to shutting down. Everything she does in front of them is mocked. They have made her self esteem crumble, and she’s even embarrassed to talk about any of her interests because of them.

The nerds don’t really cause a problem with Abigail. They usually don’t interact outside of class. Sometimes she’s forced to listen to them rant about GnG.

BONUS: Abigail is favored by the prefects. She will run errands for them and tattle when she sees something bad happening. She stays close to the prefects on their patrols because she knows students won’t bother her when she’s near them. In a way, she’s friends with them.

Quotes:

“Give that back!”

“What is your problem?! Get away from me!”

“My life is like a Picasso. I don’t know what the fuck I’m looking for.”

“I’m not weird, maybe I just don’t wanna be friends with you cause you’re a jerk.”

“I feel like sometimes I’m the only normal person here.”

“All jocks do is play with balls I don’t understand the hype.”

“I’m gonna go see a movie with Kate. I’ll talk to you later.”

“We’re having an art show this week, if you wanna come and vote for my pieces. They’re not much- but y’know I’d really appreciate it if you did that.”

“Justin looks like Shrek in a derogatory way.”

“Those townies look like victims of DoodleBob.”

“I’m nervous.”

“I just wanna graduate dude please leave me alone before I tell a prefect!”

“Just leave me alone- I don’t want anything to do with anybody right now!”

“I could go for some dump cake right now. Damn.”

“One time Casey Harris shoved me in a locker so I put mustard in his cleats before a game.”

“Here, I painted a portrait of you. Thanks for being nice to me.”

#bully scholarship edition #bully canis canem edit #canis canem edit #bully anniversary edition #bully rockstar #bully cce #bullworth academy #bully oc #bullworth oc #canis canem edit oc #cce oc #bully cce oc #non clique #non clique oc #my oc #original character

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artist-issues · 1 year ago

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I just found out you like the Twilight Zone! Please talk about your favorite episodes, if you have the time!

Oh yay, sure! I started watching the Twilight Zone about five years ago and it’s become one of my top 3 favorite tv shows of all time. It’s creepy, and I have a low tolerance for psychological horror, so I take my time watching it. But my favorite three episodes are a lot of other people’s faves, too.

I think the very best one is It’s A Good Life. This kid is born with godlike powers—he can do anything—but he chooses to make everything the way he wants it. He transports his whole town out of the world or destroys the rest of the world—the townspeople aren’t sure which. Their lives revolve around keeping this kid happy, because if he’s ever upset, he does terrible things to them. He doesn’t like it when people look at him like he’s the monster he is, so he strikes them blind, or turns them into toys, or, if he even hears you thinking unhappy thoughts he sends you “to the cornfield.” Which is basically death. The whole town is constantly telling the boy that everything he does is good, and everything they feel is good, and they’re always telling each other to think everything is good. And eventually one guy stands up to the boy (the boy’s name is Anthony) and gets fed up, and Anthony kills that guy, then makes it snow, which kills all the remaining crops in the town, and the people just sort of go… “I guess we won’t have food now. That’s a good thing you did, Anthony.” And it ends.

Because the thing is, all of the stuff that sets Anthony off—all of his little pet peeves that everybody tiptoes around—they’re actual good things. He doesn’t like other kids because they don’t always do what he wants. He doesn’t like dogs because they are afraid of him. He doesn’t like music, or television, unless it’s what he creates. He thinks suffering is funny and he likes to make up vicious creatures, then kill them, and have everybody approve of it.

Anthony is forcing everyone to behave like what is really good is actually bad, and what is really evil is actually good. He flips right and wrong on it’s head, and everyone goes along with it out of fear.

I also love Eye of the Beholder, even though it’s on the nose. (HA. Get it) The Sixteen Millimeter Shrine is incredible too. That idea that nostalgia for whatever you thought was the best time of your life can actually imprison you…and you don’t even know it’s a prison. And it keeps you from embracing and growing in and loving the rest of your life.

And Where Is Everybody, for those of you who’ve never seen The Twilight Zone, is the very first episode, and it just perfectly captures the weird “what is going on” vibe that draws you into the show.

I think there are two things that make me love The Twilight Zone.

The first is that every episode “makes you think.” Usually they don’t have conclusions where everything is explained, or resolved; Anthony is not defeated, Barbara Jean stays in the movie screen with no explanation of how she got in there or what will happen to her now…but the fact that the storytellers leave it like that literally forces you to think more about what you just saw.

Your brain naturally goes, “yikes, the kid just gets to keep making life a nightmare? Don’t like that. If I were in there I would’ve just knocked him on the back of the head. Why didn’t anybody do that?” And by having to think about it more, you aren’t critiquing or arguing with the actual story. You’re thinking it over, trying to figure it out, because you naturally accept that there is something there to be worked out. The “message” of every episode gets under your mental guard, works it’s way into your worldview.

You watch “It’s a Good Life” and realize that not everything is “good.” Sometimes there’s plain evil that can’t be reasoned with or explained away in the world, and you just have to stop protecting yourself with pretending otherwise and do something about it. The townspeople should’ve all stopped pretending and worked together, or been brave enough to realize stopping the monster or dying trying was better than living in fear.

And that brings me to the second thing I love about The Twilight Zone: every episode has a message. It has something it wants you to think about. It’s not just tickling your suspense-responses, or giving you a brain worm about nothing but creepiness. It’s not trying to get you “in your head” to “figure it out.”

I know I just said it makes you think, but it specifically makes you think about something real, a concept that affects real life. The Twilight Zone answers enough of your questions with each story to make you think about the lesson, and doesn’t give you enough information to be like, “I’m going to figure out the Easter eggs, and the backstory behind how everybody in Eye of the Beholder got pig noses!”

The Twilight Zone makes it obvious that there are important questions to ask when you watch a story, (like, “Why didn’t everybody work together to kill Anthony?”) and there are useless, unimportant questions to ask when you watch a story. (Like “where did Anthony’s godlike superpowers come from?”) And it specifically engineers each story so that you’re more emotionally involved with the RIGHT questions, instead of the arbitrary questions.

Nowadays everybody’s like, “let’s figure out exactly where that Easter Egg came from! Let’s see if we can figure out what version of Arthur’s narrative is the REAAAL one in The Joker! I can’t actually verbally explain what Christopher Nolan was doing but I totally got Tenet.” 🙄

I’m tired of stories that are all shock-&-awe and no meat. The Twilight Zone might ask you simple questions, but they’re really good, important ones to have answers to. And the artfully suspenseful, show, don’t-tell episodes of The Twilight Zone make those questions stick in your head and your heart.

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