#its from when i read the book about a year ago and ive been stewing in this knowledge ever since

[rivalcobalt]

Okay actually yknow what, I'm just gonna do this on here cause I've been agonizing over this for too long

Firstly to prove I'm not insane, and I guess to his credit, the author has mentioned ONS as an inspiration-slash-thing-with-similar-vibes on twitter (archived):

That said, I feel like this really undersells it. Like, you can argue about how much inspiration you can take from a work, and ONS itself takes insane amounts of shit from Devilman, but even still it feels very much like a different story, and not like... the entire first half of the book being largely what you'd get if you just ported the plot of S1 of ONS over into a YA novel with and then altered who the love interest was.

This is long enough already (talking like nearly 4 pages point form on google docs) so I'm just copying it over as is. I only read the book once, so honestly this may have even missed some things. I'd put more effort into this but honestly idk how many people are gonna see this anyways.

Tl;dr no fucking way did you just "watch this while editing"

The Flood || unnamed apocalypse virus

Man-made virus

Kills most of the human population (ons' explicitly kills off 90%, the Flood has killed near 9 billion (earth's population when it was released)/appears to be a comparable rate)

Intentionally caused by Angels cult/Hyakuya Sect + JIDA (revealed in manga/LNs only)

Angels cult || vampires:

Signaturely wear white robes/uniforms + capes

Ons vampires are associated with (fallen) angels

New Nazareth/Sanguinem (city for cult/vampires that protagonist escapes from)

Don't want any more of their kind made (Angels forcing Angel parents to drown their newborns, vampires noted to be generally opposed to making more vampires for unexplained reasons; iirc only progenitors are able to sire and they're supposed to get permission from the vampire council first)

Angels cult || Hyakuya Sect

Religious cult

Doing human (S)eraph experiments

Benji & Theo/Yuu & Mika are children of cult members who use them as test subjects

Causes virus on purpose (manga/LNs only)

Responsible for creating Graces/Horsemen of John (manga/LNs only)

Benji || Yuu:

Only successful version of the (S)eraph experiments

Not fully in control of powers yet/powers emerge over the course of the story

Child of Angels/Hyakuya Sect cult members

Brought to New Nazareth/Sanguinem under the age of 12 and lives there for 4-5 years before escaping

Grow up in New Nazareth/Sanguinem with Theo/Mika during those years

Important family member dies as they try to escape together

Son of cult members

Posesses (S)eraph abilities from being experimented on by cult

Joins ALC/JIDA in their front-line forces after escaping and being found by Nick/Guren

Seraph || seraphs (humans possessing seraph gene and have ability to turn into them)

Aim to wipe out humanity (but this can be controlled by protagonist with effort)

Very powerful

Created via human experimentation on children by the religious cult that caused the virus

Picture of Yuu in complete seraph form in ons tweet from author

Theo || Mika:

Curly/wavy blond hair and blue eyes

Protagonist's childhood best friend

In love with protagonist, debatably reciprocated

Child of Angels/Hyakuya Sect cult members

Grows up in New Nazareth/Sanguinem with protagonist, but didn't escape with them

Wants to get protagonist away from ALC/JIDA and live with them

Seen in whites of the vampires/Angels for the majority of the story

Remains affiliated with the vampires/Angels (Theo sides with Angels & Mika is turned)

Soldier for the Angels/vampires

Protagonist often recalls memories of being in the cult/vampire city together as children

Protagonist thinks of them as someone they'll never see again after escaping (Theo stayed with cult, Yuu thinks Mika is dead)

Mika is revealed to be the son of the first vampire, a fallen angel, meaning he's also an angel (manga only)

Other (S)eraph besides Benji/Yuu, but not a fully functional one (Theo injects himself with a failed version of Seraph, Mika's seraph gene is dormant)

Theo's angry outbursts may be based on Mika's anger (though who they lash out at is very different)

Theo's character differences from Mika are almost all traits commonly found in other characters also influenced by Ryou Asuka (betrays protagonist, parallel to protagonist due to similarities but on opposing sides of conflict) (not sure if author knew about Mika being heavily from Ryou or just subconsciously knew the archetype via consuming other anime/manga/JRPGs/etc or just a really funny coincidence)

Upon escaping New Nazareth/Sanginem, Benji's dad/Mika is killed

Nothing can be done to save them

Bleeding out as Benji/Yuu tries to save them as a specific similar imagery (plus I guess gaping hole wounds specifically mentioned (from being shot in the head/arm thrust through stomach respectively))

Specific memories of looking at a map together to plan their escape

Yuu/Benji is forced to keep running alone to the only way out (only bridge out of Acheson/only tunnel out of Sanguinem)

Cult is using human experiments to create humans with the seraph gene/martyrs to turn into Seraph

(S)eraphs aim to wipe out the rest of humanity

The name. Are you kidding me

Protagonist is the only fully successful experiment

Main character and childhood best friend are children of parents in cult

(In the end) main character and childhood best friend are both (S)eraph experiments

The way the Flood is killing Benji has similarities to Yuu in his incomplete seraph form

Dripping blood and black fluid (Yuu: from wings and left eye, right sclera filled with blood and left eye may have burst upon transforming, Benji: from wounds from Seraph decomposing him)

Spitting up black fluid

at a later incident, Yuu's seraph form is triggered by multiple organs rupturing. Benji's organs are liquefying inside him and coming up in chunks as part of the Seraph transformation

Theo's death after injecting himself with Dominion-12 focusing on his shot-through left eye looking like a black hole is similar to Yuu's left eye blacked out by anime gore censor circle in incomplete seraph form

Same type of post-apocalyptic setting: 

Plants beginning to cover over a wrecked city (only a few years after the virus broke out, so not super heavily overgrown yet)

Skyscrapers and concrete brutalist architecture specifically shown. Downtown core type of stuff

Graces || Horsemen of John

Created by Angels/Hyakuya Sect (result of Flood virus/called by 6th trumpet (seraph) of seraph experiments)

Beasts that kill humans, just to finish killing off the population

Can be called upon/created/controlled by (S)eraphs

Described as both horselike and spiderlike

Ribs protruding out of chest, fangs, mouths in unusual places, and I think wings (not sure about Graces on that one) are common traits

Picture of a Horseman included in author's tweet about ons

ALC || JIDA

Wear all black

Surviving humans outside of New Nazareth/Sanginem

Fight against Angels/vampires

Rescue Benji/Yuu after they escape New Nazareth/Sanguinem

Secretly aim to use Benji/Yuu's (S)eraph abilities for their own gain

The Watch || Shinoa Squad

ALC/JIDA Moon Demon Company front lines squad

Comprised of teenagers

Protagonist joins them after escaping New Nazareth/Sanguinem to fight back against the Angels/vampires

Cormack is debatably based on Kimizuki (red/pink hair, asshole personality, rare bits of kindness show through exterior (when Cormack prioritizes giving Benji his jacket to block smoke while ALC is on fire, but not nearly as nice of a guy under it all as Kimizuki)

Aisha is like… maybe bastardized Mitsuba if you just take her emotional outburst parts, but I might be reaching on that

Nick || Guren 

Leader of ALC & the Watch/Moon Demon Company (strongest section of front-line soldiers in JIDA)

Black hair & eyes (Guren's eyes are dark purple, but could be interpreted as stylized black)

Finds Benji/Yuu after their escape and brings them into their group

Nick is literally just Guren in personality if you age him down a few years and add autism and make him nicer under the exterior. Like even the way he talks and him being mentioned dramatically stomping his leg up on furniture during speeches 

Heading ALC/JIDA's intentions to use Benji/Yuu for their own gain

Dehumanizes protagonist yet also having a bit of affection towards them (more debatable for Guren, but he has some rare moments of being caring towards Yuu in a more older sibling/fatherly way)

Erin || Shinoa

Another leader within the ALC/JIDA (though Erin isn't a soldier/in the Watch)

Sympathetic towards Benji/Yuu, protests against Nick/Guren directly for how they treats them

Pastel pink/purple feminine aesthetic

Wears hair at least partly in braids

Benji & Theo's reunion in Reformation Faith Evangelical Church || Yuu & Mika's reunion on the battlefield in Shinjuku

Reunite at first major battle protagonist participates in, but not their first (iirc both only have one minor fight between joining ALC/JIDA squad and this one)

One approaches other from behind, other only realizes who they are a moment after turning around

On opposite sides as ALC/JIDA vs Angels/vampires

"[Name]? Is that you?"

Benji holds a knife to Theo's throat || Yuu stabs Mika through the chest

Theo/Mika went along to fight specifically to find Benji/Yuu

"Abandon everything and run away with me" || "I came here to follow you. I couldn't let the city take you alone. If it wants you, it has to take me too."

Theo/Mika wants to separate Benji/Yuu from the ALC/JIDA (but Mika has good reason, while Theo wants Benji to come back to the cult)

Forced to separate again at end of fight

Picture of Yuu stabbing Mika from this scene is also on ons tweet from author

In general, first half follows the escape from Sanguinem/New Nazareth leaving behind a dying family member who tried to escape with the protagonist but died to let them get away -> get found by JIDA/The Watch upon escape and rescued by Guren/Nick with the intention of using Yuu/Benji as a weapon against those he escaped from due to his nature as a human experiment -> join JIDA/The Watch, meet other members and the leader Guren/Nick -> do some missions with them -> reunite with previous friend-slash-love interest they had left behind (Mika/Theo) at first major battle as soldiers for opposing sides and are forced to part again progression, which isn't super unique but still very specific, and given everything else... yeah

This is by far not the first time an English work has copied a Japanese work and was praised for originality, but "gay trans YA novel rips off mediocre gay vampire shounen" has to be conceptually the funniest and yet there still seem to be 0 google results about it

[amjustagirl]

heylu nikki jie!! im so glad to hear that your new job has been alot alot better than your old one cant believe youre really out here living ichika's life huh thats damn cool 😩 and eep i have a midterm tmr and one more next sat asfjfks its not as bad as it could be but still hoping i dont passaway 🤧

oh and for the ask game thingy you posted, i think one thing i remember you for would be your amazing imagery!! i really love how youre always so consistent with your themes in your fics and how you alway tie back to it and paint the most beautiful pictures in my head and im not a lit student but it makes me open a book full of your stuff and highlight and annotate them with color coordinated post its 🤣 as for scenes, i think the whole of who dares speak aloud these words lives in my head rent free ive reread it sO many times i love when yaku asked her to move in with him while they were eating and their convo when they bumped into each other on the corner of the street when they were coming back to apologise for their fight (i love you, i will say it as many times as you need, as loudly as i can until your heart is no longer broken <- idk if im quoting this right bUT IT WAS SOMETHING ALONG THOSE LINES) and obviously dream catcher was absolutely incredible all the poetry when akaashi realized he loved her and when he was losing his memories asfjsk i cant even quote cuz there were way too many amazingly written lines (sorry all this is like abit repetitive but i just love your stuff asfgjskdj)

i saw you were feeling abit down and aaa it sucks but i def get what you mean about feeling sad for absolutely no reason and feeling bad about it (usually i just read some of your angst in bed *ahem storm chaser* so then i would have a reason to be sad LMAO) but yea i think thats perfectly normal and all we can do is wait for it to fade hopefully (and you should totally bully mr nikki into giving you attention and cuddles at times like these 😤)

oH and i saw that ask about your nightmare and you waking mr nikki up asfjskjd BAHAHA YES I THINK YOU SHOULD DEFINITELY WRITE THAT 😛 and yES YOU SHOULD POST when the sun loves the moon iLL BE WAITING FOR IT 😋oH and i saw you have something stewing for osamu 👀👀 asfjfksj thats soso exciting

hope by the time youre reading this youre feeling better!! rest well this weekend nikki jie!! ❤️ ~ann:>

i really love my new job so much it's not even funny - i didn't know people could be good and kind at work until now! so haha yeah maybe i really am living ichika's life huh!! and all the best for your midterm, ann dearest!!!!

and it's amazing that you love my imagery - that's something i definitely work really hard on, idk maybe it's a bit nerdy, but yeah i really try to weave it into my stories, make it work narratively! and that scene omg - i thought it was cheesy, when yaku catches her and declares that he'll love her, that he'll keep loving her - i mean look, people aren't so eloquent irl but i like to think that the sentiment exists, y'know?

I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU FOR LOVING DREAM CATCHER TSM OMG. that scene - yeah when akaashi loses his memories, i think i personally cried writing it? it really let me go full out crazy with poetry, and i went to town torturing akaashi in that scene!!!

yeah - i think it's kinda good that we realise that we can be sad for no reason, and just process that emotion - BUT HAHA GOOD IDEA LEMME GO PRETEND BE A CAT and demand attention from mr. nikki!!! pls lor that nightmare, i was really q terrified, but i don't feel bad at all for waking him up, because a year or two ago, when he was still working at a law firm, he dreamt that there was a black widow ON MY DAMN FACE and i woke up to my HUSBAND SMACKING MY FACE OMG. the fact that i didn't punch him but kinda soothed him back to sleep is TESTAMENT TO THE FACT THAT I AM A GOOD WIFE but yes ahem. anyway.

[allywrites]

Tag Game

So I was tagged in this fun game by @younghearts-stories and I choose to tag @fortheloveofh, @showingthroughtome, and @booksncoffee

Name: Ally

Star sign: Gemini

Height: 5′9 (yikes yes i am the average height of men in america ik) 

Put your itunes(or spotify) on shuffle. What are the first four songs that popped up?

Ultralight Beam (Spotify Cover) - Local Natives

Sara - Fleetwood Mac

IV. Sweatpants - Childish Gambino

Memory - Andrew Lloyd Webber/The Cast of “Cats”

(lmao what a mix) 

Ever had a song or poem written about you?

Nope but that’s a goal of mine lmao - time to get to it ; ) 

When was the last time you played guitar?

I got a guitar for my thirteenth birthday and started taking lessons but then got too busy with sports and couldn’t keep up with it :( so not since then

Who is your celebrity crush?

Um everyone knows Harry Styles is # 1 and I am slightly concerned because I am struggling to come up with others... Shawn Mendes is quite cute, but I feel like he’s made himself to be so similar to Harry that it’s cheating by saying him.   Dua Lipa’s boyfriend is super hot and I recently started following him on instagram after seeing the pics she’d post of him... so I guess I’ll say Isaac Carew although idk how much of a celebrity he is - but he’s also a chef so that’s quite ideal.  

What’s a sound you hate? A sound you love?

I hate the sound of when people drag their teeth on metal forks when they’re eating... basically any metallic noise I don’t really like.  I also hate the sound of my alarm clock or anything that sounds remotely like it haha... also the sound my phone makes when I get an email sent to my school email because I’m afraid it’s from one of my nursing professors going on a tangent.  I love the sound of typing on a keyboard (but only when I’m the one typing which may be a bit self-centered).  I’ve been sleeping with a fan on for years so anytime I hear a fan my body automatically thinks it’s bedtime and I automatically get super relaxed.  I also am copying Tatum and writing that I love the sound of rain.  

Do you believe in ghosts?

I’m still figuring this one out!  I’m not a super spiritual/religious person so I feel like once our body dies... we become completely inanimate.  Which is sad but where I am currently.  I was raised in a Catholic family so it goes against what I was always taught but alas!   

How about aliens?

Definitely!  There’s no way we are the only form of life in the thousands and thousands of galaxies that exist.  The universe expands every single day - and with it, more planets, stars, solar systems, and the means to create life!  

Do you drive?

Yes I love driving. 

What was the last book you read?

The Hating Game by Sally Thorne.  It was great and I owe thanks to @goldbravado because I’m so in love with her fic Way Down We Go that I had to go read its inspiration for myself. 

Do you like the smell of gasoline?

No, not at all.  I’m somewhat sensitive to smells and it gives me a headache. 

What’s the worse injury you’ve had?

Possibly stitches?  I had to get them under my nose when I split my upper lip after tripping on a tree root and falling into a picnic table while camping when I was 4 (traumatic, I know, but I don’t even have a scar to show for it) 

Do you have any obsessions right now?

I recently started watching New Girl on Netflix and cannot for the life of me understand why I didn’t start watching it like 5 years ago!  

Do you tend to hold grudges against people who do you wrong?

I don’t at all!  Like I will literally walk away from someone who hurt me really badly and the next day treat them fine as long as they apologize.  Maybe I’m naive but I don’t have the time/energy to be stewing and upset! :) 

In a relationship?

Unless you count the late nights with the library and the ass-kissing I do to my professors, nope!  

[putridghost]

I WAS TAGGED! by Me i just wanted to do this ok

1. Are you named after someone? Nope, my dad just didnt like the name my mom chose so he picked a different one

2. When was the last time you cried? idk, months ago? i think?? i have a shit memory

3. Do you like your handwriting? Oh gods no, its so messy i cant even understand it sometimes, its a shock my teachers could even mark my homework

4. What is your favorite lunch meat? whats a lunch meat? like a sandwich meat or something to eat at lunch??? idk turkey?

5. Do you have kids? Hah no, i dont plan on ever having kids

6. If you were another person, would you be friends with you? probably not tbh, apparently i come off mean and unfriendly and i have no patience for small talk so the things i say arent normal? idk my friend says that it takes awhile to like me and im not patient so i wouldnt be friends with me

7. Do you use sarcasm? yes its usually my automatic response

8. Do you still have your tonsils? Yea

9. Would you bungee jump? maybe, i did something similar to that at a theme park (i think it was canadas wonderland) and after the initial fall it was fun

10. What is your favorite kind of cereal? i like cinnamon toast crunch or captain crunch

11. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off? no i usually tie my shoes loose so i can just slip them on and off

12. Do you think you’re a strong person? Im not that strong but a lot of the people im around arent strong either so i seem stronger than i am, my legs are pretty tough tho

13. What is your favorite ice cream? Im a basic bitch, i like vanilla or strawberry ice cream

14. What is the first thing you notice about people? usually i take in a persons face and hair first then the hands

15. What is your least favorite physical thing about yourself? my stomach, arms and ears, ive always hated those parts of me, i actually had surgery on my ears when i was younger but i dont think it helped

16. What color pants and shoes are you wearing now? black pjs with stars on them (my fave) no shoes or socks

17. What are you listening to right now? the moana soundtrack :)

18. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? I think either a yellow or an orange

19. Favorite smell? im not sure how to describe it but theres a particular smell at my grandparents house and when i smell it i feel home 

20. Who was the last person you spoke to on the phone? My sister, she likes to talk on the phone instead of text

21. Favorite sport to watch? i dont watch sports but i went to a lacrosse game once and that was actually pretty fun

22. Hair color? im bleaching it to get it pink but right now its a pale blonde

23. Eye color? dark brown

24. Do you wear contacts? yea i usually wear those to go out but at home i like glasses

25. Favorite food to eat? i like to snack on fruit but my fave food is probably stew or dry meat

26. Scary movies or comedy? comedy i hate being scared

27. Last movie you watched? Sing (great movie)

28. What color of shirt are you wearing? grey but its got the wonder woman logo so some red and yellow

29. Summer or winter? Um neither i prefer spring it gets too hot and too many bugs in summer and in winter my room gets freezing cold

30. Hugs or kisses? Hugs 

31. What book are you currently reading? I just started these books called red queen and the gathering

32. Who do you miss right now? i think maybe my dad its been about a year or longer since ive seen him but idk if i actually miss him or think i should

33. What is on your mouse pad? dont have one

34. What is the last TV program you watched? i dont watch tv just netflix, on that i watched brooklyn nine nine

35. What is the best sound? I love the sound of the forest and the river flowing, birds in the early morning and rain

36. Rolling Stones or The Beatles? i dont really listen to either but i like this one song from the beatles

37. What is the furthest you have ever traveled? Cuba, it was great, really warm, friendly people and a beautiful ocean

38. Do you have a special talent? um im a decent artist? i can paint my nails decently?? idk im decent at most things, im an amazing bullshitter 

39. Where were you born? Canada, nice place too many bugs but whatever, good weather

tagging anyone