#kinzo was born

[suinicide]

All these tags and I didn't even finish getting through the backstory. But it does contain a lot of spoilers.

[kushanna]

what gets me about the ushiromiya western names is that they're christmas themed. kinzo sir you do understand you named your sons after santa klaus and rudolph the reindeer right. you cannot have the names klaus and rudolph together and not evoke christmas. i hope you're aware of that cause if my father had named me santa klaus i would also not hesitate in keeping his dead body a secret from the rest of the family

[pochapal]

so if this was a known old story among the siblings during their respective childhoods (which given their approximate ages would probably be somewhere around the mid/late 1940s) that once again gives the obtaining the gold enough timeline wriggle room to have occurred during the second world war

[heartgold]

(incest, csa, suicide cw)

umineko is full of complicated and fucked up parent/child dynamics, so the way kumasawa and genji were like the parent figures sayo always wished she could have and then turned out to be the people who hurt her with the most intent often flies under the radar. but I'm constantly thinking about it.

they never saw her as more than an extension of her biological mother and a way to personally atone for failing her... by ultimately failing her daughter too and in very similar ways. kumasawa incentivised young sayo's beatrice roleplay and taught her magic bc "it was like it was meant to be". in kumasawa's eyes, it was as if beatrice's daughter unknowingly shared a connection to her mother thanks to the whims of fate. but to sayo, the magic she was taught became her primary way to cope and to find some confidence in the face of the hardships she was going through. of course the idea of no longer being 'yasu', the clumsy servant mocked by everyone, but rather the powerful witch beatrice who inspires their respect became so important to her! but then as she learned later, she spent all her life roleplaying as her dead mother who was horribly abused (and whose abuse was enabled and covered up by sayo's parent figures!) and by then she had all but absorbed her as part of her identity and sense of self, all while being secretly primed to ultimately play her part and finally "become" her in genji's bullshit redemption arc plan for kinzo. kumasawa knew everything and intentionally encouraged this while sayo had no idea. it's no wonder beatrice went from being something empowering to sayo to the cruel voice tormenting her in her head, reminding her of her worst thoughts. beatrice became an embodiment of trauma! not just sayo's trauma but also her mother's, which she took upon herself. all of the people who knew the truth manipulated her into walking the path of becoming her mother and saw her as nothing but that. a replacement, a vessel for the "true" beatrice. the very same idea behind her mother's grooming and abuse.

the cruel irony here is how all of this was done to prove a point about kinzo not repeating his actions and to relieve his guilt in time before his death, with genji/kumasawa/nanjo celebrating kinzo being "successfully redeemed" by not raping his daughter again... all while sayo comes out of this horrific situation terribly sexually traumatized regardless. all at once, she learns the depth of violation she suffered from some of the few people she thought were on her side. the way she was manipulated and gaslit all her life about the circumstances of her birth, her parentage, her body, her entire identity and personhood. how they were willing to risk her safety by making her work under kinzo to prove that he wouldn't sexually abuse her. the shock of learning what happened to the mother she was unknowingly raised to become, and how those people did nothing to help her back then either. how her mother, too, was groomed into playing the role of her own mother for kinzo!!! the horror doesn't end. the traumatic impact and consequences of all of this on her life were never in their minds, only making sure sayo would play her role in granting kinzo a peaceful death. putting kinzo's guilt to rest was always the priority, and by trying to prove he wouldn't repeat the past, they did so themselves by dooming another beatrice into becoming a vessel for her mother and shouldering generations worth of trauma.

there's this metaphor in umineko about the powerlessness of children before their parents and how many are born to fulfill a specific purpose for them, becoming an extension of their parents who project on their children and try to shape them into a specific kind of person to successfully play a role. having a child is compared to creating a fictional character which is compared to inserting a piece of yourself on a gameboard. this goes for every parent/child dynamic in the story including allegorical ones such as bern/erika, and of course this reflects the way the only people sayo could call her parent figures shaped her into an accessory in her father's narrative. she was always their means to achieve that, not even a person in the grand scheme of things. a piece of their own creation, shaped and molded into a role, without autonomy of her own. furniture in every meaning of the word in sayo's personal lexicon.

it hurts how she trusted them and even made fantasy versions of them to include them in her world! she wanted them to be part of it and that's a precious thing to her! and then turns out the characters she created were much better people than their human vessels. even more encouragement to reject reality altogether and immerse herself even deeper in a rabbithole of fantasy to cope with her real life being almost unsurvivable after nonstop betrayal and hurt!

the nail in the coffin is, after doing all of... That out of his fucked up sense of loyalty to kinzo, genji goes on to enable and help out with sayo's mass murder-suicide plan... as his way to atone for how much suffering he caused her? the results of his actions were a major driving force in her suicidality and furniture complex among all the many factors pushing her into a corner, and then he reasons that agreeing to help her kill herself along with literally everyone and providing her with the means to do it is the correct thing to do for her??? genji's undying sense of duty and loyalty is truly his worst and most terrifying quality. he'll stop at nothing to honor it.

[grassoftunnel]

On Genji…

The way its phrased in the ps3 Witch Hunt translation Genji says “I am a native of Taiwan”and let me tell you…the way my face CRACKED as an asian to read that and realise how hes so happily subservient as a BUTLER to this proud japanese fascist!

But then looking at the wiki it seems more unclear whether he said that because hes ethnic japanese who was born and raised there (as opposed to ethnic taiwanese who assimilated) vs kinzo who migrated with his family as a child.

I then looked it up and found the history of taiwan and its occupation by japan and how that affects its peoples identity, and for many people who lived through that generation, the memory of that time is complex and radically different from most other parts of asia (THOUGH DISCLAIMER IM BY NO MEANS AN EXPERT IM JUST SOME IDIOT WHO READ EXTREMELY SHALLOWLY AND BRIEFLY TO GET A ROUGH OVERVIEW). And ethnic japanese or not, his family were unambiguous shameless (proud, even) imperial collaborators and profiteers. Who were clearly embodying japanese ideals, culture, etc. even if they weren’t ethnically japanese, they had totally assimilated. Then after japanese surrender, Taiwan is plunged into political turmoil with the economic and political elites of which Genji was a part, being made to bleed and starve just like everyone else. Which is probably why in the manga, Genji is all disheveled and in a bad way when Kinzo finds him. Kinzo really did rescue Genji from having to continue to live through that.

Also…as a young master in Taiwan, of a family making their fortune off of imperial collaboration, Genji has spent his entire life turning away from difficult things and benefitting from a way of life built on the suffering of others. < edited to remove a line indicating that ryukishi deliberately named the ushiromiya siblings after nazis, this is pure speculation, as well as more lines of speculation about the intentionality, originally I firmly leaned toward it being unintentional, of Ryukishis critical portrayal of fascism in Umineko, I’ve since been told more about its portrayal in his other works and it’s changed my mind, see the replies if you’re interested!), but it goes to show Genji is a seasoned doublethinker…

It almost makes me laugh seeing him apologise to Sayo after everything, when really imo it only served to muddle up the painful feelings tearing apart her heart even more. It’s really incredible how he’s able to genuinely feel that pain for her while not regretting loving and serving Kinzo and really doing all of this for his sake. Sayo’s entire life was a pet project of his for Kinzo’s sake, or imo for Genji’s sake, since it’s very explicitly his way of “saving” Kinzo from himself. If it was really for her sake and not Kinzo’s he would have made it so she would live a life far away from Rokkenjima and never have to be burdened by this awful truth. While he cared for Sayo in his own way, she was ultimately a prop in Kinzo’s life, in Genji’s mind. Anything and everything to care for and protect and provide for this man who he loved so much...

Genji is such an absolutely evil bastard who ruined Sayo’s life (with not one waver in regards to his purpose for raising her like he did) and was an accessory to the almost unthinkably horrific life ruining of her mother. And not even for money like Kumasawa and Nanjo (who had his friendship with Kinzo but nothing approaching Genji’s Everything..). but out of an unmatched passion and almost fanatical identity revolving around servility to Him…

Theres really nowhere else hes happier or more fulfilled, than by his Master’s side. Double crunchy because Kinzo first loved him as his peer, and after rescuing him from Taiwan, Genji, as a point of principle, refuses to meet him as anything but his loyal servant.

Mrs Danvers and Max von Mayerling are actually individuals with normal psychological profiles compared to Genji Ronoue ahahaha. And if anything lmfao at least Mrs Danvers and Max von Mayerling got to hit! Genji the eternal service top in body and spirit but crucially not in practice….

[best-nun-tournament]

Grand Final

Krauss, Eva, Rudolf and Rosa Ushiromiya (Umineko) vs Cersei, Jaime and Tyrion Lannister (A Song of Ice and Fire)

Propaganda under break

Krauss, Eva, Rudolf and Rosa Ushiromiya

The four children of billionaire Kinzo Ushiromiya. Every year, they return home to Rokkenjima Island for a family conference. With Kinzo's health declining, to the point where he hardly ever leaves his room, the only topic on their minds is how to carve up his fortune.

Krauss is the eldest, and Kinzo's successor. Even if he's not the smartest of the siblings, his position as heir and imposing physique let him push them around. He even used to beat his younger siblings. Now, they suspect him of abusing his position as Kinzo's caregiver to embezzle their rightful share of the family fortune.

Eva is the second child, and incredibly resentful about it. She despises the fact that despite being so much more intelligent than Krauss, he's always above her just because he's older and a man. She's devoted her whole life to usurping Krauss' position, and then devoted her son's life to becoming the next heir instead of Krauss' daughter. When not scheming against her brother, she loves finding ways to torment and cruelly provoke her siblings, sister-in-law, and the servants.

Rudolf is the third, and with little hope of becoming heir, became a conman and a playboy (though he eventually settled down as a married man and white-collar criminal). Suffering from his sibling's bullying, he turned all their physical and emotional abuse on his sister Rosa. Though unlike Eva, he's stopped being cruel to her as an adult.

Rosa is the youngest sibling, and she's had a terrible life. Even as an adult, she's still terrified of Eva and acts dumb around her for fear of provoking her. But if she was given the opportunity, she could easily make them pay for what she's suffered.

Cersei, Jaime, and Tyrion Lannister

Cersei HATES Tyrion. Hes not a big fan of her either on account of her absolutely hating him. Cersei (and her twin Jaime, who is actually a good brother to Tyrion) were born a few years earlier than Tyrion, and blames him for "killing their mother," because she died in childbirth. Everyone in their family (except Jaime) hates Tyrion because he has dwarfism, but Cersei hates him more than anyone else and has wanted him dead since childhood. (spoilers beyond this point for the books and show both) When Cersei's son is killed, her immediate instinct is to blame Tyrion and throw him in jail. She does everything in her power to have him killed.

------

The incest for starters. The fact that Cersei doesn’t see Tyrion as human. All the backstabbing. And that they made their own family problems everyone else’s tragic backstory and present out of their own lust for power

------

here's a quote from one of tyrion's chapters: "When your sister cries, you were supposed to comfort her... but this was Cersei."

[batbeato]

One of my favorite parts of Umineko is not only how it talks about how difficult it is to break the cycles of abuse, but it also allows for characters to escape it and break it while still acknowledging the past and their (family/personal) history.

Battler's parallels to Kinzo are a signifier of how Sayo/Beatrice look to him as the next incarnation of Kinzo, just as Sayo is the next incarnation of Beatrice, and instead of Battler continuing the cycle, continuing to abuse Beatrice to overwrite her narrative with his and to make her a victim of love/obsession/greed, he instead refuses to make Kinzo's mistakes in Episode 6, where he is meant to invoke Kinzo the most.

Just like Kinzo, Battler is about to be trapped in a loveless marriage (Erika) when he is saved by Beatrice. His marriage to Beatrice, the way it makes their relationship official as well as inviting Beatrice into the Ushiromiya family and creating an equal partnership with her, is symbolic of how the cycle is broken. Beatrice is no longer a mistress who is not given a name, voice, or body: she is not the Beatrices of the past who took Kinzo away from his family rather than being a part of it, or who were abused by Kinzo without any legal identity in Japan or any recourse, a secret kept from everyone.

Battler's marriage to Beatrice is one that everyone witnesses, confirming her existence, their partnership, and their love. Rather than how Kinzo gave Sayo the Headship after his death, forcing them to reckon with a level of power that they never wanted to have, Battler offers it to Beatrice but ultimately keeps the Head's ring. Instead, he gives her her own ring, to mark them as equals, but to symbolize that she can hold her own position and power without being forced into that role.

This ring is also the one that Lion holds in Episode 7: a silver ring that marks Lion as the Successor to the family. Lion, like Beatrice in Episode 6, is freed from the cycle of Kinzo-Beatrice abuse. While Beatrice is freed by Battler, who refuses to re-enact the violence Kinzo caused and struggles with this horrific family history, longing to make amends for his personal sins against her as well as those of the Ushiromiyas overall, Lion is freed by Natsuhi. Lion is freed from abuse because they were loved and accepted and adopted as Natsuhi's child: Lion's freedom is one of ignorance, where Lion is not at all aware of their family history, or even that Natsuhi adopted them.

And Lion's happiness and freedom, born of ignorance, is ultimately cut short and ends in tragedy: they aren't aware of the darkness of the Ushiromiya family, and are killed by Kyrie. Without fully understanding the cycle of abuse, one can never truly escape it.

Regardless, that silver ring marks a position where Beatrice and Lion can move into the Headship position, but have not yet done so. It marks being given more of a willing choice, or at least gradually being lead to that position of power, rather than having it thrust upon them along with various horrifying revelations after Kinzo's death. It marks that rather than taking a position that they thought was always meant for someone else, perhaps even 'stealing' that position, they are taking a position that was always meant and set aside for them if they do become Head.

Meanwhile, Ange takes a different path: while Battler tries to help Ange and redeem the family by showing her a brighter side to them, perhaps even a flanderized one, she rejects this. However, the ultimate resolution is that Ange is able to learn in totality about the history of her family, and able to make a knowing choice about her future based on this new knowledge. And, in doing so, she is able to continue living, and, in the Magic end, willingly abdicates the power and name of the Ushiromiya.

Umineko ends with the cycle of abuse broken: in memoriam for Sayo, in perpetuity for Beatrice, and for the very last time with Ange/Yukari.

[queenoffishingandcookies]

I’m kind of curious as to when Kinzo’s wife passed away.

So (based on information from Legend, which I think is the most often she’s mentioned? Don’t own the visual novel myself so I depend on LPArchives and YouTube) -

Timeline-wise:

- When Battler looks at Beatrice’s portrait in Legend, he mentions (that at a glance) he almost thought it was his late grandmother, before getting a better look at her foreign features.

- Battler left the Ushiromiya Family somepoint between the family conference in October 1979 possibly(?), and whenever Asumu died in 1980, prior to the next conference.

- It’s stated he hasn’t seen the rest of his cousins or aunts or uncles since then, so it’s not likely that she died in the six/seven years that have passed.

- If his grandmother had died in the previous six/seven years, there’s no doubt he would have been expected to go to the funeral. Where the rest of the family would also be, if only for appearances sake.

- So, we can (reasonably?) assume at that she died before 1979/1980, before Battler left.

- We can also assume she died some point after 1973/1974. My reason for thinking this is that both Jessica and Battler have memories of their grandmother.

- I believe Jessica mentions her grandmother at some point in Legend, during the Besieged chapter.

- She mentions that her grandmother was always thinking Kinzo was cheating, and she (Jessica) assumed it was the imaginary witch.

- which I read as Jessica having actually met her grandmother, because I can’t see Natsuhi discussing the matter of infidelity, considering her extreme consideration in upholding family pride, with her.

(Can also be read as Jessica overhearing the matter long after she passed though, so arguably less grounding information to make an inference on).

- generally, younger kids below the age of five or six don’t really remember deceased relatives at all. So, for Batter and Jessica to remember their grandmother, they’d have to be a little older than that.

- both Battler and Jessica were born 1968, and would have been six/turned seven by 1975, which I think is a reasonably age at the youngest to remember someone?

- One fine Example of a young child remembering, however faintly, her deceased loved ones: Ange.

- so the range of time Kinzo’s wife could have died extends from 1975 to (early) 1979, or at the very least several months before the 1979 conference.

- Meaning Jessica and Battler would be anywhere from six at the earliest to eleven at the latest as their birthdays fall in the mid-later part of the year.

I wish we had more information on their grandmother.

[most-screwed-by-writers-tourney]

Propaganda:

Beatrice and Battler: This is not really a ship as this relationship is cannon. As for the fucked up part.... it is fucked on many levels, but it does involve major spoilers. TW: incest, rape Non-spoiler parts: In most of the games, Beatrice and Battler engage in a wit battle about the existence of Beatrice. Beatrice will show gruesome murders of Battlers to make him acknowledge that she killed his family by magic, and Battler will try to prove that a human did it without magic. While nobody forfeits, the game continue. This game is qualified as an "endless torture" for both. BIG BIG SPOILERS parts (please include a skip): Basically*, Beatrice is the persona of Sayo Yasuda. Sayo is the child of Kinzo (the grandfather of Battler) and Kuwadorian Beatrice, and Kuwadorian Beatrice is the daughter of Kinzo and Beatrice Castiglioni. Sayo was born after an incesteous rape. So Sayo is related twice to Battler. Also Sayo has a two alters: Shannon and Kannon. They are both dating a cousin of Battler (George and Jessica). Six years prior to the story, Battler and Shannon had a teenage crush. Battler promised to come next year to Rokkenjima and "with a white horse". He completely forgot it never came to Rokkenjima. Shannon, then Sayo, suffered a lot about this and sank deeper into depression. Finally, Sayo didn't actually killed Battlers family, but they was ready to do it. To conclude, this is a doubly-incestuous relationship between a suicidal system who is ready to kill the other's family, and a dummy incompetent who make other suffer by negligence. It also involves other members of the family. And rape backstory. * I know it's more complicated, Umineko fans don't kill me!

[natsuhi-kinnie]

basically rambling about eva in general, that i hc her as b cluster girlie, and how i perceive her relationship with self, kinzo and mainly Natsuhi

idk if she's actually b cluster, but i do hc her as such, and it's interesting how different it makes her in my head.

i think she really often splitting, and that's one of the main reasons her marriage with Hideyoshi works because he never doubts or really scolds her, he never questions her decisions and goes along with them. I feel like it might not be necessarily closely relevant to b cluster, I've talked with my sibling about that, and the sort of seeing other as "resources", as someone in relation to person and what that relationship means and symbolises rather than the actual relationship and actions towards her that matter, it feels like agglomeration of bpd and npd, maybe b cluster as the whole, plus cravings of affection and validation, support of identity, and support of social identity. Like, kinzo represents general parental figure, craving of being accepted and acknowledged, but also all of the humiliation people put her through because she was born as a woman and other various matters at different times. That's why, i think, in 3 game, evatrice had to tell eva to "forget and threw away the awe and respect for her feather" because of respect to her father she deem epitaph nearly impossible and complicated simply by the fact that kinzo have created it, because at that moment he represents the patriarchal system (and her belief in it) that holds her back from achieving what she desperately wants, what she "deserves" - the headship.

Also, beside the main point but the way Evatrice scolds and insults Eva and urges her to solve the epitaph because Evatrice is still part of Eva's heart, meaning Eva still crave what headship represents to her (being in position of ultimate power, being acknowledged, being respected, being accepted etc, most of it comes from her impression of kinzo as the head) but she tried to "grow" out of this by trying to make George into successor, missing the reasons why she wanted to be the head of the family in the first case. She is such tragic woman honestly.

That's why i assume that the reason why she so angry and quick to bully Natsuhi it's not just because Natsuhi is more emotional and easier to hurt than Krauss. I suppose it might be because Natsuhi meant to represent traditional femininity to Eva.

Natsuhi comes from an ancient aristocratic shinto priest family, Natsuhi herself is very rigid on being "yamado nadeshiko". (She even has incurable condition that makes her suffer immensely but not in "vulgar" way, headaches sucks, and i do not mean to disrespect that, i mean that it's not as inappropriate as having a tourrette syndrome, or something that is perceived as "inherently gross, disgusting, therefore = not feminine", it plays into sexist myth about how women are fragile and all). It sorta made worse by the fact that while she isn't rewarded or truly respected or appreciated by most people in the goddamn family, Natsuhi still has the power (or rather duty to be honest) over ordering servants, over the matters of inside the mansion, and she genuinely tries to be perfect hostess and sister-in-law for them, "like a good wife/woman should". I don't mean to ramble about how good of person Natsuhi is, only because it isn't about her at the moment, but she is trying to make every family member feeling welcome and cared for and a lot of times showed care and thoughtfulness about members of family, the way how she immediately tries to comfort and help people, even if they fought and insulted her before, like Eva in 3 game for example, when Eva panicked because Hideyoshi wasn't here, Natsuhi tried to comfort her without even being surprised or making any remarks about Eva's panicked, scared and very vulnerable state, the way Natsuhi was dumbfounded and also tried to comfort George upon Eva's and Hideyoshi's death in the first episode, and the way Natsuhi instantly suggested to bring and consult Kyrie on medicine that helps with headaches and many other examples that i will not remember right now. Since Natsuhi is of traditional upbringing and tries to do her best to be this "good daughter/good wife/good mother" in the most traditional and conservative way, it obviously will remind Eva a lot of what kinzo had said about what "women supposed to do". And since Eva internalised a lot of kinzo's beliefs (even though i don't think she internalised them completely), it wouldn't be surprising if she had some complicated feelings towards femininity.

Now, I do remember that Eva is shown being comfortable doing stereotypically feminine things (like cooking for example) around Hideyoshi and George, and it even being stated in narration that Eva instilled some cooking competition amongst the housewives of neighborhood or something like that, but I still think that its because she is around Hideyoshi and George, she feels comfortable being vulnerable around them, they support her and she's far away from anything and anyone related to feelings she had on rokenjima, and since going to the island stirs up the trauma, i would assume it would also stir up these particular feelings. Like, she isn't feminist at this point, but she still is (rightfully) angry that she's been treated as less than because she is a woman, that she was expected to be only what is considered feminine and appropriate and nothing else, but she also directs this frustration at Natsuhi because Natsuhi makes it appear/intensify by the fact that Natsuhi IS traditionally feminine and appropriate (at least she tries to be), whether Eva tried to resist against this to dismay of kinzo. So by bullying Natsuhi and trying to prove to her and herself that Natsuhi isn't "good enough of a woman/wife/mother/hostess/etc" she repeats her own humiliation inflicted on her by kinzo and supported by krauss, but now in position of perpetrator, in position of "power", simultaneously trying to apply the hampels raven or whatever, about how "if i can prove that every woman here is worse than me, that I am better woman, than i am «good enough woman»". That's my thoughts on that anyway.

[inky-scientist]

Naruto characters hypertranslated

Part 1: Team 7 and Team 9

Naruto

Uzumaki Naruto Uzumaki Naruto is a ninja of the Konoha clan. A jinchūriki is born with nine hearts. After a childhood accident, she gave up hope.

Today is Lalam's birthday, whom he has hated since childhood. It's dog time.

Sasuke

Sasuke Sasuke (本ちとさスけ, Sasuke Sasuke) is a member of the Sasuke clan in Konoha. Sasuke is the last son of the Kinzo clan. When Itachi's brother killed his parents. Sasuke then retaliated by killing Itachi's brother.Attaji gave a summary of SARS.

Sakura

Sasuke Sakura (Uchiha Sakura, Haruno Sasuke) is the protector of Konoha. After three years of training, Sakura Tsunade realized that she was not interested in becoming the best doctor in the world and became the seventh ninja. Sasuke finished tying his tie. Sakura is currently in 7th grade.

Neji

Hyuuga Neji (Hyuuga Neji, Hyuuga Neji) is a ninja from the Hyuuga clan who possesses a hidden sword. Only women can get respect in the family. Hinata (Hinata's wife) Hinata Neji.The Yucca family is complex, but not simple. This is the first time this has happened. Naruto didn't like that Uma's family brought Nachi home early. I know this to be true. asked Najib. Naruto didn't answer.

Tenten

This place is not far from Konoha. But I want to talk about the sand. But it was sad. Improve your tennis skills.

Tsunade's sister ran to help. But he knew he didn't have a team to help him, but Fujitsuno improved his equipment and approach.

Rock Lee

Like most ninjas, Hana's sister Rosario (Rock Lee) can't use magic. But you can go to a good school and make money.

As a Konoha ninja, Hans cannot use ninjutsu or genjutsu. After special preparations, the mattress entered the ring and won.

That's it. Thank you for reading.

[colourful-void]

umineko sliding scale as of rn for me to how sympathetic i find each character (not necessarily how much i like, just like. i get where they're coming from) as of right now bcs theres like a bunch more of the story so its bound to change.

"i was born to understand your visions" -> maria and shannon "i really feel for you here" -> natsuhi and kanon "yeah, i get it" -> kumasawa, jessica, kirie "parts of you i cannot resonate with, but others i am either compelled by or can understand" -> battler and rosa "no paticular thoughts" -> genji, the doctor i forgot his name, "more of you i dont sympathize with than i do, but there's still elements" -> eva, hideyoshi "you're gonna have to show me something more for me to understand where you're coming from" -> gohda, krauss, rudolf "i dont sympathize with you (as i understand you now.) -> george and kinzo

beatrice exists outside the scale bcs i dont understand anything shes got going on but i am compelled. maybe once let sjust let her win i wanna see where this goes

[kushanna]

a. 1952 mansion finished being constructed supposedly -> 1967 kuwadorian person dying -> 1968 battler is born -> 1976ish shannon starts working at the mansion -> 1977ish maria is born -> 1980ish asumu dying (?), rudolf remarrying, ange being born (?), battler leaving the family and being involved in some shit he doesn't seem to remember (?) -> 1984ish a lot of sketchy stuff like writing the epitaph, building the guesthouse and hiring gohda. shannon probably broke the mirror here too -> 1986 massacre, everyone dying many times -> 1998 eva dying

b. people we don't talk about enough:

asumu

kinzo's wife

[pochapal]

associating the gold with kinzo's occultism...thinking thoughts here. thoughts that correlate to some of the more obvious darker political associations of mid 20th century western aesthetics married with certain strains of occult practice and then also considering the intersection of gold with all of these things.

[dysfunctional-family-fight]

Round Three

Big Mom Family (One Piece) VS the Ushiromiya family (Umineko When They Cry)

Big Mom Family

Members: Linlin “Big Mom” Charlotte, Katakuri, Pound, Cracker, Big Mom's 82 other children, and her 43 husbands

Propaganda:

"They are a giant family that is also a pirate group. Everyone is married and born to fulfill Big Mom’s desire to have a family. Basically all of them hate each other." "Big Mom...so first let me note that this woman marries a man for her poliical convenience, gets pregnant, then divorces him as soon as she has his kids. She maintains complete control over the destiny of her children. They will join her pirate crew, they will fight for her, they will marry as she asks, they will grow up to serve her. They won't know their dad, or anything else, and she will even kill them when she doesn't get like a food she asks for, for instance." Note: edited for length, full submission here

The Ushiromiya family

Members: Kinzo, Krauss, Eva, Rudolf, Rosa, Jessica, George, Battler, Ange, Maria, Natsuhi, Hideyoshi, Asumu, Kyrie

Propaganda:

"PEAK weird family drama. Fighting over the inheritance leads to multiple people dying in gruesome ways" "The whole plot of the game is that they all are so dysfunctional it would make sense for any of them to commit murder" "This family is dysfunctional and abusive on every levels. The parents are fighting for the inheritance, because the elder embezzled money. The grandfather, Kinzo, hides in his room and never shows up. Not unusual, he neglected his family his whole life. Seems that he preferred a mysterious mistress than his family. When he talked to his children, it was to scold them for being incompetents. The atmosphere is oppressive. The children of Kinzo were bully. Krauss bullied Eva, who bullied Rosa. Concerning the next generation: Battler is in conflict with his father because he cheated on his mother. Natsuhi is putting pressure on Jessica for her to become the heir of the family, and is losing contact with her daughter. Eva has deciced what the life of Georges is becoming, and that he will not marry a servant. As for the relationship between Rosa and Maria, this is just the best mother-daughter love-hate relationship ever. And everything ends in blood, for ever and ever." More propaganda here

[misarem]

Umineko Episode 6 Thoughts or Where I Actually Lock In

Okay so im cursing myself at how long its been since the last one. After making it thru ep 6 i got to the end not feeling that.. elucidated on the whole thing even tho everyone says ep 6 is like the final stop biggest hint youre going to get on this mystery. Which genuinely left me feeling kinda sad and a bit stupid lmao. I could not tell what I wasn’t getting and the phrase “without love, it cannot be seen” being waved in front of my face did not help like I was being TAUNTED. To the point where I found groups that were into the game and actually talked through my ideas, refined my thoughts, looked back on many MANY parts of the story and slowly I’ve come to a conclusion I’m actually sorta confident in. So! After so long i think its time for me to take my sherlock hat off and just keep going with this game. But not before my little journal on this absolutely ridiculous but amazing episode. Spoilers below for the episode itself and what i think the answer to the central mystery of the entire game is which I will be immediately going into before talking abt some other points as well as Erika again because I'm contractually obligated to. this will be a longer one

So after everything. After butting my head against the wall every time Zepar and Furfur told me without love it can’t be seen. After pouring over text LPs and reading this episode twice and having people help refine my thoughts. What I think happened was. 1967. November 29th. A baby is born on Rokkenjima and taken in by Kinzo Ushiromiya, still deep in his mourning of the Golden Witch Beatrice. As this baby grows up, Kinzo shapes their identity under his upbringing and they grow up with a very stunted sense of self. EIther as some sort of disguise or to give themselves more fulfillment, they assume the identity of a young maid named Shannon and a younger servant named Kanon. This helps them navigate their life on Rokkenjima fine until the larger Ushiromiya family enters the picture, specifically Battler, Jessica and George, whose love for them begins to pull their identity apart. After a conversation with a 12 year old Battler about the kind of woman he likes, and getting even closer with George and Jessica in the years after, this person is at a crossroads on whos wishes get to be fulfilled: Shannon’s, Kanon’s, or Beatrice’s, and this all comes to a head on October 4th, 1986, where they facilitate a series of murders as an internal competition and as a demonstration to the person who affected them the most: Battler Ushiromiya.

….I THINK. I didn’t have the epiphany I thought I would have, more like a slow slow realization when I began to piece together the early-suggested possibility that Shannon was behind the appearances of Beatrice that Maria sees, the weird status of Kanon’s body at the end of almost every twilight, how Kanon had to bail Battler out in the first place, and the Love Duel itself, Shannon, Kanon and Beatrice all being on equal footing within it, and why Shannon and Kanon’s (and Beatrice’s) love had to be mutually exclusive in the first place. Plus more little details like the 19 paces coinciding with the perceived 19 people on the island (family + Beato) and the 19 years since the master of the game had been born, the narration and several characters like Featherine saying that the solution to the previous question or to the logic error could be the key to the whole mystery and is a part of Beato’s heart (her identity). George’s reminiscence of Battler and Shannon as a 12 year old with Beato’s own reminiscence of it coinciding with it. The fact that Battler has literally never seen Kanon and Shannon in the same room and the mystery of how Battler saw Beatrice after the murders of the fourth game. But I think that Shannon, Kanon, and Beatrice are all identities of one person, the 16th person after subtracting Kinzo, Kanon and Shannon from the initial 18, and that their disguises and faked deaths are the key to solving not just the logic error room, but the entire game and magic as a whole. Granted I don’t have *everything* figured out with this yet but I feel like I have my foot in the door finally.

Just starting with the logic error room, we know that Erika and Kanon entered and Batler left, the chain was reset when Erika entered, yet by the end of Erika’s search, Kanon was nowhere in the guestroom. Airtight locked room murder, practically no way to get out of this one, at least through the door. And for good measure, Hideyoshi, George, Nanjo, Kumasawa and Shanon are in the next room over while *everyone else* is in the cousins’ room, and during the escape, the seals to the doors of these rooms are intact. Genuinely the only in that I had on this one at first was the “everyone else” wording with Kanon’s status as furniture as my teeny little screwdriver I was trying to pry this thing open with. Of course the furniture thing is mostly a metaphor for the crested servants’ character arcs, and Genji is considered a person who would be included as “everyone else” but it was a start. Incidentally, my attempts before this episode had me reassessing the idea that Shannon could have disguised herself as Beatrice for Maria from the earlier episodes, and it was like I needed something to bridge these two ideas. And the fact of Kanon coming to save Battler being confirmed in red makes it seem useless to try to figure out how he got out of the cousins' room, but figuring that out was an important first step to my reasoning, as it helped me begin forming the idea that, somehow, to have been out of the cousin’s room, he would have had to be somehow less than one, to not be his own person, to not be included in “everyone else”. And taking this to the guestroom, it eventually dawned on me that, if *he* wasn’t his own person, and his love for Jessica couldn’t exist if Shannon was going to be with George, then maybe these two got in the way of each other because they were the same person, and if this was true, Kanon could escape the guestroom by discarding the disguised and identity of ‘Kanon’, removing him from the guestroom, since it was never specified that nobody was in there, only that Kanon wasn’t. ‘Shannon’ in the next room over could have gotten out through the window, since the status of the seals on the window is a hole that is pointed out in the episode, but Dlanor forbids it from being used, I think because bringing it up without solving Kanon’s identity would be solving the mystery incorrectly or at least out of order.

From here, you can take this to many of the other murders in Question arcs. I think I pointed out that Shannon’s body was hidden from George by Hideyoshi in episode 1, but rereading made me realize that not only had Battler not properly seen it either, but if Kanon was at the scene too, following my theory, the body could not have been Shannon’s. Whose it was I’m not sure. If Kumasawa got into her closet for this that would be funny. If they had a body prepared then sure. But this in conjunction with Kanon’s death not being seen by Battler later leaves this person without the identity of Shannon OR Kanon, free to run around the mansion murdering as they please. Even better if they are prepared to disguise as Beatrice as well, as this would have allowed them to have Maria turn around so they could kill Genji, Nanjo, and Kumasawa without harming her, and when the 4 others would come in and investigate, this person would slip out and kill Natsuhi. For Eva and Hideyoshi, since it was Kanon (and Genji who came upon the crime scene), I think it’s possible that the chain being locked was a lie on Genji and Kanon’s part.

As we know in Episode 2, Kanon’s corpse disappears after his death to the confusion of almost everyone, but this is because the body, as Shannon, is in Kinzo’s study “informing him of the murders” which after learning of Kinzo’s pre-game death means she can be doing whatever she wants. Since Kanon never shows up again, she operates as she needs to until she dies with George and Gohda. I think Shannon struggled with killing both of them. It seemed like there was a genuine struggle to even get the door open and overpower George and Gohda, so her and George could have killed each other, or she kills herself after killing George in mourning, because the final twilight is complete, or because she believes Genji or Rosa will take care of the rest. If Shannon was alive, Rosa stopping Battler from disturbing the body and then chasing everyone out would work for that, but Battler also witnesses like, the viscera of her head spilling out of the hole in it, which could constitute as a body check..? Maybe there’s some fuckery with how this Shannon looks to us and to the people inside the story, and that’s how she bypasses Battler’s body check? idk this one isn’t so solid but Kanon’s missing body is so damning to me. Battler does see Beato and Kinzo at the end and this could have been the culprit as Beato. Battler doesn’t get a good look at her and only sees Kinzo’s back as well. And the magic stuff at the end of every episode in my interpretation is Battler having died and the anti-magic, objective perspective being removed. So idk still working on that one lmao

The biggest thing for Episode 3 is the locked room chain, and having two of the servants being assumed identities really helps. Kanon’s body is ‘found’ in the chapel, a very remote part of the island, so his body is hard to confirm. On the other hand, Shannon is ‘found’ in the parlor, the easiest room to operate from and one that the adults were likely to break the locked room status of by shattering the window. Because Battler sees none of these bodies, the true nature of Shannon and Kanon's status is never confirmed, and it can be assumed that the culprit, having (momentarily) discarded Kanon and Shannon, once again has free reign over the mansion. This comes into play after Eva’s murders take the group into the mansion, starting with Rosa and Maria’s deaths as its unlikely the culprit would kill Maria this early. Kyrie kills Hideyoshi here, briefly surviving a shot to the stomach and either trying to hit Eva or retaliating against her where it would hurt (unwittingly damning her own daughter so yknow that’s not horrible at all). Back when I was a Kyrietrice truther (how I miss those days) I thought she survived much longer and killed George and Nanjo, but it turns out Battler checking her corpse in the metaworld means that Battler confirmed her death in the game too so bleh. But I think the culprit killed George and laid him in the parlor, possibly leading him in as Shannon. From here I think she writes the 8 digit code, plays dead as the survivors come in and while they’re distracted (Eva, Jessica and Nanjo are caught up in a fight while Battler overtly is checked out of the situation, not looking closely at the corpses at all), she sneaks out, only to be caught and shot at by Eva, which is what blinds Jessica. The shot isn’t immediately fatal but ‘Shannon’ is bleeding out fast and before she dies, she finds and kills Nanjo, “revives” Kanon, as Beatrice puts it, and leads Jessica out to where they will rest for the remainder of the game.

Chapter 4 is weird, it feels impossible to substantiate anything concrete when the whole island is a huge catbox to Battler, cooped up in the guest house, until after almost all of the murders are committed. WIth Shannon/Kanon in the dining hall with everyone, the best I can work out right now is the first six are shot down by them, the rest escape but are killed as well, at some point in between the 8th and 10th killings, ‘Kanon’ is discarded, making him the ‘9th death’, George and Jessica are killed, not before Jessica sees the dead bodies, is chased to her room and works out that if she gets caught, she’ll probably end up like the rest of them, which she tells Battler. At some point, Kyrie manages to get to a phone and call Battler before being killed. The most concrete thing I can deduce is that the hostage group was potentially never in the dungeon, the status of the dungeon’s existence in that space being up in the air, Kanon’s body is not at the bottom of the well that Battler cannot access, when Beatrice shows up to Battler at the end of the 4th and is spurned by Battler not remembering his sin, she finds a way to die as Shannon and be found.

Very hazy still obviously but idk how else Kanon escapes. Honestly "these clues and circumstances make one body unaccounted for so they can go do whatever" feels sorta cheap which makes me second guess all of this, obv theres some tricks to the locked rooms themselves still but I didn't anticipate that one possible theory would clear up so much. And I don't know why Jessica and George are killed either, sure their love is complicated for a reason but it makes me curious what conditions the culprit has to put themselves in to be able to kill them. This also relies on the cooperation of some adults and Nanjo. Even tho I believe he’s nice I think Nanjo isn’t difficult considering he lies about Kinzo’s death for so long, and I feel like it wouldn’t be.. too hard to get any of the adults in on it if related to the inheritance? They do all need a lot of money right now. I still think some of Eva and Hideyoshi’s ep 1 behaviors are suspicious and it would be really funny and interesting if Kyrie was fuckin shit up. To me. 

Overall if this is what the twist is, I think it's neat since Kanon and Shannon have been among my favorites from the beginning and the idea of them being so closely tied to the thematic core of the story is exciting. My idea of magic is so heavily informed by Ange’s story, it makes me wonder, since the Beato we saw in 67 seemed to live in a great deal of emotional neglect, neglect of her own self rather than of “Beatrice” (probably her mother lol), if this culprit is the same in that she was born from Kinzo and a Beato, likely the 67 one, and their personhood was ignored for the sake of Kinzo having Beato again, maybe “Shannon” and “Kanon” are similar to how Maria summons Sakutaro or Ange summons the sisters, and she summons the servants as a way of enriching her sense of self? Would be sort of interesting but it also feels like its crossing over into like DID territory and after playing like 2 danganronpa games worth of poorly handled stuff like that I dont know. I do kinda feel sad for Jessica not really getting to be with Kanon. They constantly get the short end of the stick, obviously because their love hasn’t developed like George and Shannon’s did over the past few years or even how Battler and Beatrice’s did over the past 5 games, but their love is so full of potential, and I love both of them so much. I’d love to just see them happy together but its not Jessica’s fate sadly lmao.

If we’re to believe that it was Battler’s sin that influenced all of this, I do find it to be really interesting how Battler tends to parallel Kinzo, as another extension of the idea that Kinzo keeps this very harrowing grip on all aspects of Beatrice’s/the culprit’s life. That Battler echos Kinzo’s yearning for the old Beatrice isn’t even solely tragic for Battler’s situation, it also has a lot of terrible implications for what we haven’t seen of Kinzo yet, if Battler’s projection of Beatrice as his former lover onto a girl who sees him as her father is any indication of what Kinzo was like. At the very least, I still love Battler and I think he differs from Kinzo by holding onto the love he had for his family. Even after six games, he’s still just as disgusted at the murders, especially so here, and the portrayal of the mothers of the Ushiromiya family in Battler’s game shows that Battler’s capable of a great deal of reflection and understanding, something that’s hard to believe Kinzo was ever willing to offer. For the sin itself it feels like it’s between Battler being like his grandfather, him neglecting the culprit in some way or him denying magic to her and by extension, her way of like and her worldview, like what we saw with young Ange and Maria.

My last thought on this theory is that it makes so much of the love game in ep6, specifically Zepar and Furfur’s commentary, incredibly funny with how on the nose it is, and shifting from the perspective of the elder Beato who doesn’t get it to that of Kanon and Shannon who are painfully aware, is very eye opening to how heavy handed their dialogue is. Yet another moment of the writers desperately trying to guide you to the heart of the mystery which is comforting as a staple of this whole story. 

Looking back at the last post, it is funny how little I had to say about Erika Furudo then. She’s like my second favorite character now, as horrible as she is, and everything she does is in line with how she acted in ep5 (with one caveat we’ll get to), but just way more severe and like mask off about her cold-hearted rejection of emotional truths and desire for complete domination and control of what is accepted as the objective truth which is. very entertaining! Obviously saying a ton about the more clinical, quote unquote “intellectual” camps of mystery readers and writers and about how objective truth really is, which is all incredibly important to understanding the overall mystery, almost like a what not to do when playing Umineko.

But just focusing on Erika herself, she just feels so steeped in every detective trope you’ve ever heard of, and in a story that takes the time to build such nuanced dynamics and relationships between characters, the way she operates can be so two-dimensional it’s actually delightful to watch. Even when she’s given a backstory, it almost feels pre-packaged and thrown in to hastily give her depth and personal relation to truth on a conceptual level, as she is a detective, altho I don’t know if it’s completely hollow. Her back and forth with Dlanor is neat and her final response to it is an early tell that her refusal to recognize the emotions behind people’s truths is a fatal flaw of hers, probably caused by her falling out with her boyfriend. And with the whole game trusting you to see the emotions in everything and to not be cold and clinical in your assessment of the story, I can’t wholly believe she’s completely flat as a character, altho the commentary is still very unsubtle so idk fully. It’s not like bullshit characters can’t be meaningful, and I think there is a level of tragedy in the way she was fashioned on the game board as Bernkastel’s piece, trapped in the position of servitude to Bern, constantly emulating her callousness and seeking her approval, as if she’s like an author insert begging not to be removed by the author herself. 

Like I said, she exhibits almost all the same behaviors she did in the last episode, just more brutally here. It’s almost like after failing to beat Battler at the end of episode 5, she’s trying to prove with everything she has that she really is a completely deplorable person, which she does when she fucking kills 5 people in what was supposed to be a non-tragic game, and she does this using the one thing that makes her different from last time: her lack of detective authority. Not only is is a cool trick that runs alongside her casting off the image of a noble seeker of the truth so she can debase herself in order to chase down a more twisted conclusion, it speaks a lot to her own capabilities that even without the privileges of a detective in a classic mystery story, she’s still able to bend the Ushiromiya family to her will and think miles ahead of Battler, making her all the more terrifying. Another thing that makes her different here is that she’s not just trying to solve the murders anymore, she is actively trying to catch Battler in a logic error, trapping him in the broken rules of his own game forever, and once she convinces him to give her seals to a few of the rooms, she does this incredibly easily, guiding Battler to his own damnation in what is, in my opinion, the best battle between the human side and witch side in the entire game thus far. It is absolutely fucking insane the lengths Erika goes to in order to completely destroy Battler. Her command of the game from the very start as if she had planned every mode both of them were going to make is just diabolical and after being a bit desensitized after the past 5 chapters of killings, her BEHEADING five people including a mom in front of her 9 year old daughter just to fuck up Battler’s game genuinely made me sick. And this is all heightened by how well written, translated, and voiced Erika is throughout the entire chapter. Before I got into Umineko, I’d seen videos of the <OH VERY GOOD> scene completely out of context, and slowly I was drawn into wanting to play the game by the voice acting, the incredible music and tantalizingly rich atmosphere that I would have readily indulged in a full game of. But knowing the context of the scene now, how it acts as the final nail in the coffin of Battler and as the peak of Erika’s twisted level of ecstasy as she gleefully destroys this family, not just for domination of the truth but for the joy of revenge against Battler for denying her that ecstasy in the last game. It is just such an incredibly gripping stretch of scenes so fucking good oh my god.

All of this leads to the wedding of Erika and Battler, which really is the most deplorable action of Erika’s in this whole episode. Just the most disgusting subtext going on here that if you’ve read the novel I don’t even have to spell out. Just the depths she plummets to so she can exercise complete control over Battler. In stark contrast to the way Beatrice let Battler into her game, granting him the tools to understand her and to shed light on the mystery of her existence, finally granting her fulfillment, Erika is an intruder into Battler’s game in every sense of the word, and it’s Bern that created this monster in the first place to further toy with the lives of the Ushiromiya family, not completely different from how it was Kinzo's upbringing that made the adults of the Ushiromiya family who they were, leading to how theyr raised their own kids. Luckily Beatrice is the one who steps in at the last moment to save Battler here, exposing the one thing Erika cannot control: the emotions that are inherent to the facts of the murders. She cannot fathom that the solution to the murder isn’t some one million iq 4D chess move of Beatrice's and after an epiphany about the nature of multiple truths that not only feels kinda fake but is something Battler had come to 3 whole episodes ago with Virgilia and the Braun tubes, Beatrice and Battler’s final red truth shoots her down. Troll officially slayed don't be like Erika Furudo kids. Also there’s only 16 people on the island now! Hopefully you paid attention to Zepar and Furfur earlier. It is actually a funny wink wink nudge nudge that Beatrice entering the chapel to save Battler from the marriage runs parallel to Kanon entering the guest room. As if Ryukishi isnt already on his hands and knees tears in his eyes screaming and begging and groveling for the reader to understand whats going on here.

But yea Erika is a fascinating case study on the nature of truth, its objectivity and how it should be pursued. “True” does not always equal “right”, and the pursuit of objectivity can do immeasurable and irrevocable harm to innocent people just trying to find happiness in their own lives. I didn’t even mention her beefing with a literal 9 year old over a beginner magic trick, but it's clear here that her values run opposite to the games and the writers have a very very fun time criticizing those values through her. I learned this from a YouTube comment but apparently in some WTC bonus material, Rika from Higurashi mentions deep sea fish as omens of misfortune, which absolutely evokes the image of Erika washing up on the shores of Rokkenjima, foreshadowing the ensuing disaster. But after everything, as astute as she is as a riddle solver, she really has not even gotten out of the shallow end in terms of what the heart of a mystery really is, how trauma makes people act and why people are even driven to do the things that they do, ultimately looking like a fish out of water against this very magical setting. Get it like solitary deep sea fish honk honk

Other thoughts. I’m so happy to see Ange again! If the meta aspects of this story weren’t obvious enough, her and Hachijo/Featherine have the most overt reader/author relationship, and it’s funny how Ange’s risen to Battler’s status of reader insert but in a different way. Battler and Beatrice have a combative, opposing relationship but the way she presents the murders to Battler and beckons him to figure them out very much reflects the writers’ desire for the reader to recognize their fiction. On the outside, it seems tricky but is actually very nurturing. Now, this late in the story, Ange and Featherine have a much more outwardly respectful relationship, likened to a miko and her guardian, although there is a little seedling of toughness that Featherine seems to hold for Ange, probably because of the latter’s stubbornness about some aspects of the story, with Ange also harboring contempt for Featherine sensationalizing her trauma with the message bottles. Funny inversion with Battler and I like the continued commentary on true crime. I also think Ange’s pursuit of the truth and trouble with emotions as Featherine’s reader slightly echoes Bern’s other piece, Erika, although to a much, and I cannot stress that Ange is not anywhere near as flawed as Erika, MUCH lesser extent, and Ange clearly has a higher chance of actually coming to an understanding at the end of the episode, plus its more understanding of Ange to want some power over the narrative as someone whose life was nearly ruined by it, rather than a piece who was just dropped in without any other relation to the Ushiromiya’s, despite being at the mercy of her master. Hate M Zakky guy plotting to kill her at the end altho I figured he sniped those Sumadera henchmen for her earlier and its not surprising but. le sigh

And because you know I have to always bring up Kyrie. That scene with her and Jessica was. Amazing. When Jessica's eyes glazed over and prison strip started playing I lost my mind. Genuinely such a compelling backstory for Kyrie and I love Jessica’s challenge to it, and her finishing line that, as much as Kyrie has been both empowered and terrorized by her jealousy, it does not make her a noble person, and this idea that trauma doesn’t automatically make you virtuous, I believe, will probably be very pertinent to the ultimate mysteries of the story. Besides that, one detail I caught is Kyrie talking about having worked up the nerve to kill Asumu over many many years, and she calls it a miracle that some other force took her the moment that she would have. Earlier this episode, and it’s been echoed in the previous ones, Featherine mentions that magic, as something limited by human ability, is the power to follow through with or get away with it. It really makes me think that. Kyrie could have just. Killed Asumu and is using magic to exonerate herself fdsfdsfds. I mean I’m always biased to my idea of murderer bastard Kyrie and the mountain of circumstantial evidence I thought I had with that and I do think its really funny!!! That she’s the only adult who seems to know how to handle the WInchesters well enough to do it one handed in her cg AND her portrait (og and pachinko not ps3). But hey idk. Every time she makes that closed eyes open mouth portrait it makes me think that she might not be any more savvy than the other adults about whats going on so

Overall probably my favorite episode so far! It's like 6 > 4 = 3 > 1 = 2= 5. Similar to 4, it's not consistently the strongest but it has some of the highest highs and that's really what makes a piece of writing for me sometimes. And now that I'm on the cusp of the answers of the """answer""" arcs, I'm very excited for my personal documentation of my experiences with the game to pay off