#like. some characters are just Like That. case and point base takumi.

[moe-broey]

I'm in so much pain.

[yet-another-haven-of-dollya]

It's actually more about the feelings of resemblance. All my teachers' designs or some named NPC, even LIs, were based on my first impressions of their descriptions.

For example, Doren, who's buffy and has shaggy red hair and laid back personality and well-intention, so I immediately remember Iskandar/Alexander from Fate franchise.

And River, he seems too strict and upright, the kind of teacher I would be too scared to make small talk during class, so I remember Lord El-Melloi ll / Waver Velvet. So I make him has thoes scrunched eyebrows and Waver hairstyle lol

And then we have these dudes lol

Sirris? Part of his design is based on Sydney's and the other part is referenced from Zen (Mystic Messenger). I really think Sirris's an attractive (read: fuckable) man, and Zen was my MysMes bias too lol and also I wanted to fuck Sirris so very bad

Mason? I dunno why but he seems so friendly and, like, I just think of him as another classmate, a good one at that, not a teacher, and damn that's a shame we can't fuck him (or any other teachers we like). His design came to me naturally, not any ref I could recall now, but if there's any character with the same style I used to like, must be Takumi from Shokugeki Soma.

Winter is a different case. I based him on my own Ivory Wraith design, and the Wraith has already had a spite ingame so yeah. One thing I didn't think of at first, was that he would look older. Damn sure this fine gentleman is immortal lol.

Eden, a tricky one since I don't really interact with him. But like I've mentioned earlier today on an ask, I do like the type of character who's "lonely to the point of desperate" so you can expect my Eden design to look like Totter from Arknights (read: I want to peg him)

And other School's LIs and Alex pretty much have their in-game description already and they're pretty clear, especially Sydney. You can already see that Sydney's fanart is almost the same, save for the length of their hair or the side of fringes, etc,...

The only free-to-imagine is Robin since they don't have any description about their appearance save that they have very soft hair, and I took it as an opportunity to mix a bunch of my fav tropes into creating one character: Too many freckles you can literally connect them into constellations, chwubby big build like a hugging pillow, green eyes like the translucent gemstone PC brings back to the museum and can touch it to feel calm,... Lol, it works wonders.

As a character design artist myself I have a pretty large mental library of character types and design tropes, and lucky me, this game is all about stereotypes lol.

I will always be in awe of fanartists who make designs for the characters considering they literally are just dialogue and we have very little to go off of in terms of actual looks.

its like homestuck all over again.

[mediocreauthor]

nana komatsu: how we surpass trauma to survive

tw: rape, sexual assault 

I recently wrote the way Hachi didn’t acknowledge or deal with her rape was one of the most realistic portrayals I have ever seen, whether that was Yazawa’s intention or not. 

Now you can say how Yazawa portrayed certain issues was wrong and potentially harmful for many young girls who read NANA and saw incredibly damaging behaviors brushed over or not even portrayed as bad. And you would be correct but this post isn’t about NANA’s affect, but rather story itself. 

The morning after Hachi’s pregnancy was revealed, which I consider as a turning point of the story, Takumi raped Hachi. I really don’t want to sugar coat or be poetic about this, he raped her. Now, I have been seeing some posts excusing Takumi’s actions therefore I will explain why this is considered as rape. 

In chapter 29, we don’t see Hachi explicitly saying no or fighting back, but hesitant and reluctant because Nana is right next door. Takumi first tries to convince her and when Hachi remains hesitant, what does he tell her?  “You should worry about making me angry.” I am paraphrasing but the message was this. Hearing this, Hachi gives up and people might think she ‘lets’ Takumi do whatever she wants therefore it’s okay somehow, it’s not. 

I read this somewhere and I want all of everyone to read it as well: A ‘yes’ only has value when someone is comfortable enough to say ‘no’. Hachi’s unwilling ‘yes’ means nothing because she was just very openly threatened by Takumi. Hachi, alienated from her friends, knowing Nana sees her as a traitor, Nobu as a cheater, Hachi who had no support for her baby, was given a clear ultimatum by Takumi, the only person she had by her side: if you don’t give me what I want, I will hurt you. You will be left alone. So she does. And then she doesn’t even acknowledge it as rape. She is angry and distraught after but it’s for the strawberry glasses and she just looks slightly annoyed with Takumi. That’s all. Where is that dramatic aftermath we usually see in media, where woman cries, breaks everything within reach then stares blankly at the ceiling?

Because most rape aftermaths don’t look like that. I am BY NO MEANS saying women whose experiences was as I wrote above as invalid. Most rape cases aren’t reported, we know that. But there is also a heartbreaking amount of women who can’t even decide if they have been raped or not. Women, who are  haunted by a certain memory but always pushing it to back of their minds.  I believe Hachi is one of them.  There is a high possibility Hachi was unable to register it as rape but we -readers can observe the effects of it through her behaviour. Hachi is terrified of Takumi. Fans give her so much shit for not contacting Nobu, even Hachi called it out of selfishness and no action is done with one mere emotion, but she also avoided it out of fear of angering Takumi. 

Hachi’s fear of him is displayed plain as day during Shin and Reira’s birthday party. Hachi knew she has angered Takumi by staying at the party, she even considers divorcing him and her inner monologue was pretty brave and promising. So what changed when Takumi knocked on Nana’s door? I would like to break down what for me, is one of the most disturbing scenes in NANA.

This scene right here, is a cry for help for someone who can recognize certain patterns in abusive relationships.

Hachi was in a good mood right before this scene, Nana even pointed out she was too cheerful for someone in the brink of a break up. However, at presence of Takumi, she immediately caves and apologizes for doing things without his knowledge while at the same time, still offering a way out. This way out isn’t for Takumi, it’s for her. I am %100 sure if Takumi said ‘okay go live your own then’, even though sad, Hachi’s predominant emotion would be relief.

She is terrified of Takumi. Hachi is unable to escape this unless he gives her an out. She regretted her ‘choice’ of being with Takumi the morning after but she had no one or nowhere to go. Now, you might think ‘she could’ve gone back to her parents!’ or ‘she could’ve lived on her own’ and I want to counter with: abused people’s mind don’t function like that. Even though you are somewhat aware that you are being treated badly, taken advantage of, it’s pushed way back in your mind. Your world consists of only you and your abuser, you can’t think of options simply because you don’t see any. 

And your abuser makes you believe what they are doing isn’t a big deal. They treat you with kindness right after abusing you while not acknowledging their behavior to leave you disoriented and unsure about the weight of what you have experienced. What Takumi did to Hachi was exactly that. So what did she do? She surpassed it and moved on.

‘I didn’t allow it for the sake of our future, but because I wanted to escape the terror and anxiety of that moment’ Read this sentence over and over again and process it. If I read one more take about how ‘what Takumi did wasn’t that bad compared to other NANA characters’ I am going to fucking slap them with this panel. Hachi learned that disobeying Takumi is pointless. She allows it even when considering separation, why? She is paralyzed by fear.  Because she tried to object Takumi once and learned her lesson. Obedience is so much easier than what you might face with your abuser. You bend and cave, do everything in your power to avoid their wrath. It’s safer.  Admitting that you haven’t received the best treatment from someone who is supposed to cherish you is an act strength by itself. I do not blame any victims of abuse who don’t want to admit or process their trauma. It’s hard, it’s terrifying and frustrating. Being able to process your trauma is a luxury most women don’t have. Hachi doesn’t have it with a belly up her nose at the age of 21. She is in a vulnerable position and don’t think even for a second Takumi isn’t aware of it. 

Next day, Hachi greets Takumi by the door as usual. Their home life becomes pretty stable since she takes all his micro aggressions,  his snarky comments and belittlement with slight annoyance, still with humor. Because the other scenario is losing herself. She surpasses her trauma to maintain her sanity. 

Why do I love this? 

Because a lot of women do exactly this. A lot of housewives who stick with their husbands despite years of abuse, young girls with their boyfriends do this. Because I read NANA at the age of 14 and didn’t even understand what Hachi went through but rereading it at 23, with what I have seen made me sob. Whether Ai Yazawa’s approach was irresponsible or genius I don’t know. But I took something valuable from it and if any minors or young adults especially are following me, I want them to recognize these patterns and behaviors too. 

And what should never be done is to take this tragic coping mechanism and turn it into an excuse to diminish your favorite rat boy’s behavior. You can keep saying what Takumi did wasn’t bad based on Hachi’s reaction, be aware it’s a survival instinct, not nonchalance.   To sum it up: Hachi is a survivor and what she lived through was just as sad and tragic as other characters, and  I am fucking sick of people invalidating it because she coped with a smile.

[klapollo]

as much I want aa7 I'm kinda stumped because I have no idea where they could go with it in terms of the story. I know it can theoretically be anything since the 3 games after the original trilogy have almost nothing to do with each other, but still. they had to invent a whole new country for SOJ, what's the next big thing? the only still relevant unsolved plot point is the trucy apollo sibling reveal but they haven't touched that in years and imo its not something they can base a whole game of new cases on anyway. not to mention the whole apollo in khurain situation. basically I would not want to be in the writers' shoes after this whole mess they got themselves into, because what are they going to do, introduce yet another fresh new lawyer to the wright anything agency just to have some anchor for a plot and then abandon their storyline when it's done again?

This hearkens back to the ask I just answered. I obviously have no idea what goes on at capcom but it feels like they've gotten into this rut of making it up as they go along, to the detriment of the writing. In my (harebrained) opinion, I'd let Takumi come in (should he want to) to complete Apollo's narrative as he intended, then maybe take over to give Athena a complete arc. Though tbh I have no idea if he'd even want to write Athena as she's not his character. I have no idea if he even wants to write main line games again.

I agree with you completely. My gut says I want aa7 but at this point and in this direction I don't trust them not to further go down this hole of surface level content that just can't measure up to literally any other game in the franchise.

[crystalelemental]

And now, ranking the Fates characters by how good they are as parents.  I’ll just be ranking the canon parent, since generic supports annihilated cohesive characterization by making all the parent dialogues identical.

Also, I do need to address this.  Every parent in Fates is garbage.  They throw their kids into an interdimensional time portal and essentially don’t raise them at all.  So comparing them like this is basically comparing turds by how rank they are.  It doesn’t matter that some aren’t as awful as others, you’re still not gonna find one that smells good, you know?

Corrin - Honestly, she’s got a strong Camilla-esque vibe to her protectiveness toward Kana.  I like it.  Also Kana knows when Corrin is coming to visit, and seems to imply that this is a routine thing, making Corrin one of the few known parents who actually makes a point to visit her kit.  A-rank.

Azura - Once again, your decision to be cryptic for no reason causes nothing but problems for everyone involved, and your son, who you didn’t raise on your own, had his entire village annihilated by foes that went after him to get to you, but you never warned him or them about anything?  D-rank.

Jakob - While hyper-critical, he’s not entirely off the mark, in terms of what Dwyer needs to be doing.  He’s not a bad kid though, so it does come across as more harsh than he really needs to be to make a point, since Dwyer is ultimately self-sufficient and capable.  C-rank.

Silas - Actually a pretty good dad.  He’s one of the few that just actively admires his child coming out of their deeprealm to help others, is fully supportive of them staying with the group, and is supportive of Sophie in general. It is Silas, so he’s a little generic with his praises, but it’s still a better parenting approach than most of them. A-rank.

Kaze - And here to completely outdo Silas is Kaze.  Again, Midori seems to know when he’s coming, meaning like Corrin, his appearance is a routine thing in her life.  Not perfectly routine though, which creates a bit of conflict between the two, in which Kaze is able to express that he always did his best to be there for her, but kept her here to be safe.  Willing to admit mistakes, accepting of her decisions, clear care for his child despite the poor general decision of leaving your children unattended in deeprealms, but is willing to actually be a parent and reprimand them for their poor decisions, while still being compassionate in his approach.  S-rank.  Kaze’s a good dad.

Ryoma - Honestly, I love that Shiro actually calls him out about not raising him at all.  Also the unnecessary secrecy about who he is and not letting Shiro know his status, and then being irritated when Shiro grows up without any direction in life.  Honestly I’m coming around on Shiro, who has so far been right on the money about how shit a father Ryoma is.  D-rank.

Takumi - Honestly Takumi’s pretty solid?  The support has him being a bit of a dick because he’s jealous of his own kid’s ability, but in the paralogue proper he’s honestly a pretty solid dad?  Like he shows up unannounced so we know he’s taking time to actually meet with his kid, and is fairly protective of him.  He does give in to letting Kiragi come along for dumber reasons, but on the whole he’s solid.  A-rank.

Saizo - He’s kind of a dick?  This is very much how Saizo is, but his entire thing is like...the honor of the family name to the point he doesn’t seem to have any connection to his kid, just his bloodline.  He does eventually let his kid be himself, but only in that, when he demonstrates “his own brand of honor,” Saizo gives him that freedom, but by basically disowning him as next in the Saizo line.  Which is I guess what the kid wanted, but still, it’s kind that “Grant your freedom, but you’re not my son” type feel.  D-rank.

Kaden - He’s alright?  He doesn’t do much, but he at least makes plenty of time to go visit his daughter just for the sake of visiting.  Still, he’s so bad at raising his child that she doesn’t know what dead means, and thinks poachers are there to play.  So present, but perhaps too permissive and uninvolved in actually raising her.  C-rank.

Hinata - Apparently just fucking forgot to make time for his kid.  He’s loving in his own way, but clearly not putting his child as a top priority in a lot of cases.  Not the worst, but certainly not good.  C-rank.

Azama - F-rank.  I don’t really need to explain this, do I?  Fuck Azama.  Even Saizo realizes how much of a callous fuckhead he is toward his own kid.  SAIZO!  Also you somehow gave your daughter a separate world from yours, in the attempt to give her a life of peace, which she achieves and is happier without you, so you storm in only when she’s in active danger, then insist on dragging her out of this peaceful realm into the world of constant war...just because?  Fuck Azama.  F-rank forever.

Subaki - He’s a decent dad.  It does kind of imply that he’s been away for a while, so questionable how much time he’s actually spending with her.  And while he’s generally doting and kind toward his daughter, there is that weird ending bit where he gets nervous about her outperforming him.  I’ll give it a B-rank overall.

Hayato - Honestly, he’s wishy-washy.  Either you fully support your daughter’s mad science or you don’t.  You can’t half-ass this, acknowledging she loves the dark arts and permitting her to mess around with it, and then step in and insist it’s off limits when it turns out the dark arts also have some potentially evil consequences.  Stepping in when he does to take things away feels more like backpedaling on a decision he already made to let her do as she pleases, which was probably too permissive as it stands.  C-rank, which is honestly pretty good for a teen parent compared to some of these other shitheads.

Xander - Finally on the Nohrians.  Xander actually like...talks to his kid.  Siegbert knows what his role is, and even if Xander can’t visit as often as he’d like in person, he keeps in contact through missives.  Now, there is the issue of his stance being “You have to learn to shoulder some burdens alone,” and thinking his son refusing to contact him about these fucking swamp demons was commendable.  So he’s definitely not perfect on this front.  But he does acknowledge that this is the burden of a leader having to make such choices, is accepting and understanding of his son’s autonomy and decisions while still being firm about keeping him safe from war and sending him back should he prove himself unready.  A-rank overall, I think.

Leo - Okay listen.  While I do recognize that Leo comes around and starts trying to be a better father, and I recognize the importance of growth and improvement. But the fact that Leo has spent most of his son’s life avoiding him because he disapproves of his interest in feminine fashion is just inexcusable.  The time to step up as a parent and learn this shit was a long-ass time ago, man.  You’ve basically been out of your child’s life this entire time, shown up only to angrily disapprove of how he lives his life, and now want to walk back in and expect that trying to change means he should give you that chance?  Why?  There’s no reason for Forrest to be the one who has to acknowledge you’re changing and growing as a person.  If nothing else, at least Forrest completely tells him off, and when Leo makes his attempt at reconciliation, his first thought is that he’s excited to get to know Elise.  Get fucked, Leo.  At least you go to save your kid, and don’t seem to express that you’re willing to let him die.  But you did stall on going, so like...fuck you.  F-tier.

Benny - And now for the exact opposite.  Benny’s an absolute sweetheart, and it’s no surprise he’s the same with his son.  He seems to care greatly for his son, is proud of his actions, and while protective, is willing to support his son’s decision to become stronger and learn to defend others with courage, while also teaching him that he’s not as fearless as he seems.  Honestly, maybe it’s just the feeling coming off of Leo, but S-rank.  We don’t really know how often he visits Ignatius, but I’d like to believe it’s often.

Keaton - Nothing too exciting, nothing too bad.  An easy, uninteresting B-rank.

Arthur - Apparently he’s never visited.  And openly stated that because he thought his son was safe here, his job was done.  This is the most intense version of just literally not being there for your child at all.  Still, at least he gives a shit, so D-rank, but a low D.

Odin - I think he’s solid.  Honestly there’s nothing outstanding here, but I really like Odin as a person, so A-rank.

Laslow - Okay, so in the intro to her chapter, Laslow mentions that Soleil has a band for town watch, and that she should be in her Deeprealm but goes where she pleases.  Which implies he knows she’s in his world already.  So he’s already letting her do as she pleases.  He’s openly aware she’s bi (let’s be real, here) and is fully supportive (LEO).  He taught her some great mechanisms for coping with difficulties in her life, and helps her realize it’s okay to not be positive when it feels forced.  And when confronted with the reality that Soleil is way better than him at flirting with the ladies, instead of being an insecure prick about it, he’s like “Hell yeah, that’s my girl!”  S-rank, easy.

Niles - I hate Niles, but as far as parenting goes, he’s not the worst.  It’s not clear if he’s been to visit her much (sounds like a no), but he at least has clear care for her.  He does try to emphasize to her what kind of life he’s had and that he doesn’t want her to have to live like that too, so I do appreciate that angle for him.  B-rank.

And that’s everyone.  There are some decent parents in all this.   The only real failures are Leo and Azama.  I think Azama’s a bit worse based on not showing any inclination to change or any particular care about his child, while Leo at least learns something and grows from it.  Though Leo’s issues are such a problem for me.  I think Laslow’s the best, though Kaze and Benny were also really great.

Shame about the Baby Realm thing, though.  That whole idea was just so stupid...

[yeonchi]

Kisekae Insights #18: Madoka Magica Part 1 (Takumi Magica)

(Art by dai)

The anime series that have had prominence in my personal project are at least ten years old now and this one is no exception as Puella Magi Madoka Magica celebrates its tenth anniversary in 2021. In fact, this post has been timed to be released ten years after the finale originally premiered (following a delay as a result of the 2011 earthquake).

This instalment highlights a complication associated with adapting series that are ongoing; some elements are implemented with the knowledge that something is the case, but then new material for the series comes out and it turns out that that thing is not the case anymore. Also, I do some male-centric gender equality because men are hated in current year thanks to SJWs and anime is sexist due to its constant focus on females.

How the involvement started

Madoka Magica was introduced to the project in 2012. In the mainstream series, they were introduced in the Series 7 Salacian Time War arc with seemingly no context, but they had a two-parter introduction in a spinoff series featuring the Fourth Doctor. I didn’t write the episodes, but I did use the titles in a couple fanfictions, titled Grief and Souls and The Girl Who Lives Forever, which showed my “interpretation” of the episodes, which was essentially the Doctor being involved in the plot of Madoka Magica. Looking back, it was a bit cringey and I’ll admit, I never watched the series in its entirety more than a few times, so my understanding of the series wasn’t as deep.

Much of the details I provide here may not match my initial visions back in 2012, not that it matters in the context of this series. On top of that, the ongoing state of the series has led to changes in the status quo, as this instalment details.

For the purposes of this project, Mitakihara is located northwest of Cardiff, past the Brecon Beacons along the A470 road.

Takumi Kamijō: The Magical Boy

Events here take place following the end of the TV anime. When the Salacian Time War happened, Parker enlisted Homura, Mami and Kyōko to be part of his army of 72. At the same time, Hiroki was kidnapped by Akari’s cousin, Daniel, and taken to his base in the Serra do Mar mountain range where he was subjected to the Dehydrator. Takumi was born from Hiroki’s sixth incarnation as a result of the ensuing meta-crisis regeneration. This left Hiroki requiring help to regenerate fully, resulting in Takumi’s “twin”, Kumiko, being born some time after.

It should be noted that at this point in time, Takumi appeared similar to Hiroki with black hair and he didn’t have a name yet. Also, due to the nature of Kumiko’s birth, Takumi would refer to Hiroki and Akari as his parents even though he would be considered Hiroki’s “sibling”.

After finding some clothes to wear, Takumi leaves the base and walks through the mountains to Santos, where he joins the battle against the Salacians at its climax. Following the battle’s end, Takumi makes his way to the Doctor and Parker, who entrust him to Kyōko and give him the task of working together with the magical girls to defend Mitakihara. At this point, Takumi moves on to his own spinoff series, aptly named Puella Magi Takumi Magica.

Upon arriving at Kyōko’s hotel room, Takumi sees her feeling sad and gets her to open up to him (somehow). It is then that he learns about Sayaka and her sad story, at which point he decides to “evolve” himself into a “reincarnation” of her by using the 15 hours of residual regeneration energy to turn his hair and eyes blue. Seeing his new appearance and likening it to the sea, he decides to give himself the name Takumi, though Kyōko states that while he may look like Sayaka, he will never be her, a fact which Takumi acknowledges.

Some time after, while exploring Mitakihara on his own at night, he encounters Kyōsuke Kamijō and Hitomi Shizuki, the two people who made Sayaka heartbroken. Following them to an alley, Takumi finds a metal pipe and beats the two of them up as revenge for Sayaka. He also decides to torture Hitomi by beating Kyōsuke up even more. They are only saved from certain death when Homura, Mami and Kyōko see the scene and pull Takumi away. This event leads Hitomi to make a contract with Kyubey and become a magical girl, wishing for the strength to fight back against Takumi.

After witnessing Homura, Mami and Kyōko fighting wraiths in the city, Takumi becomes determined to become a magical girl, or rather, boy, so that he can work together with them to defend Mitakihara like the Doctor asked him to. Though they initially laugh it off, the girls take Takumi to see Kyubey, but he refuses to make a contract with him because he is not a girl. After Takumi breaks the necks of a thousand Kyubey clones, he relents and allows Takumi to make a contract with him out of interest to see what would happen. Takumi wishes to honour Sayaka’s legacy by fighting in her place and as such, he gains powers similar to that of Sayaka’s. Unbeknownst to Kyubey at the time, fulfilling Takumi’s wish would be his undoing.

(These are just my impressions of what Takumi’s magical boy form would look like. Art by モリコ/とーま, purincipium/flaon and gureipu)

This ends the first major arc of the spinoff. Moving into the second major arc, Takumi learns that there are magical girls scattered all over Mitakihara and the world and makes it his mission to unite them as one. As such, Homura, Mami and Kyōko become the first members of Takumi’s team. Learning about how the Soul Gems and Grief Seeds work, Takumi uses this information (and latent Time Lord knowledge, yada yada yada) to invent the Incubation Cleanser, which would automatically purify any Soul Gems put inside it so that magical girls can fight without fear of falling into despair and disappearing/becoming witches. Think of it like in Rick and Morty when Zeep created the Miniverse as a replacement for the Gooble Boxes.

Hitomi, now a magical girl, finds Takumi and fights him as revenge for attacking her and Kyōsuke. After a couple of skirmishes, Hitomi decides to challenge Takumi to a battle – if he wins, she will join his team, but if she wins, she gets to take Takumi’s life. Takumi comes out victorious in the challenge and Hitomi joins his team, with Takumi forcing Kyōsuke to become a magical boy as security to ensure Hitomi’s loyalty. It is also at this point that Takumi takes on the surname Kamijō.

Takumi leads his team to Asunaro City in an attempt to recruit more magical girls for his team, despite being warned that they would be stepping onto the territory of other magical girls in the process. After some conflict, Takumi would gain the cooperation of Kazumi and the Pleiades Saints. He then found a place to establish a base for him and his group, which he names Torchwood Pleiades in honour of the two groups.

This is all that I have written for the series’ setting. Only two seasons of the spinoff were broadcast in 2012-13; the developments that follow are post-spinoff. During the course of the spinoff, Takumi and Kyōko’s relationship develops, but their resolution would be revealed in the mainstream Doctor Who series. Due to various factors, Kazumi Subaru, Kaoru Maki and Umika Misaki would be the only surviving members of the Pleiades Saints by the end of the spinoff.

The Rebellion Incident

Takumi’s character was created in 2012 during the development of the three Madoka Magica films. Learning that Sayaka would be revived in The Rebellion Story raised a conflict between her and Takumi, given that the latter was created as a replacement character for the former. As a result, Takumi did not have any involvement for most of my 2014 stories, mostly because I didn’t know what to do with them. I later figured out a solution and planned to write a special for Takumi Magica titled Afterrebellion, but I never got past the first chapter. What I’m about to tell you know is an impression of what that story would be like.

During the 50th Anniversary Series in 2013, Takumi and Torchwood Pleiades would have significant involvement in the stories. Takumi gained a sonic modulator from one of the enemies of the series and modified it for his own use. In the sixth block, the spirit of Sayaka transforms Takumi into herself for some temporary bullshit I didn’t write. In the ninth block, Takumi reveals that he is aware about the upcoming events when he says that there is a worse day coming for him, much worse than Hiroki’s death or Koshi Castle. Takumi and Kyōko get engaged at some point, but Takumi delayed their marriage in order to deal with the oncoming issue.

Around the events of The Rebellion Story, Kyubey came to regret making Takumi a magical boy because his actions subverted everything he was working for. He exiled Takumi to a pocket dimension, which he later came out of somehow. When Takumi came back, he saw Sayaka and quickly realised that he would lose everything, even Kyōko, if he allowed her to live as she was; after all, his main purpose for the past couple of years was to take her place and he couldn’t be left with nothing after everything he had done. Takumi proceeded to quickly confront Sayaka and absorb her into himself.

What follows is a fight between Takumi and Sayaka; since Takumi wouldn’t allow Sayaka to leave his body, she decides to fight him for control of his body. It was easy for Takumi to conceal the fact that he was having an internal conflict in public; since his face and hair wouldn’t necessarily be that different, he just had to wear a big-ass coat or something that wouldn’t show Sayaka’s breasts popping out every time she managed to gain control of his body.

Despite Takumi’s best efforts however, all is unravelled one night when Kyōko tries to have sex with Takumi. Kyōko discovers what is going on and after Takumi and Sayaka explain themselves, Kyōko gets them to find a way to cooperate. Eventually, the two distinct individuals become in sync with each other, allowing Sayaka to take control of or split from Takumi’s body. Takumi and Sayaka would later experiment having sex with themselves and having a threesome with Kyōko.

By the end of 2014, Takumi and Kyōko got married. This plot point wasn’t mentioned at the time, but in a way, Sayaka and Kyōko got married as well thanks to it. It’s honestly astonishing how much fanart I see of male Kyōko with female Sayaka but not male Sayaka with female Kyōko. I honestly think it would have been easier for Takumi to be in Kyōko’s place, but she’s not the dead girl at the start, Sayaka was.

Anyway, following the events of The Rebellion Story, which was nicknamed “the Rebellion incident” by Takumi, Homura exiled herself from Torchwood Pleiades in order to fulfill her role as the devil of the new world. Thanks to whatever Homura did (I didn’t watch the movie, I only relied on wiki info lel), the Incubation Cleanser was made redundant, but witches, wraiths and magical girls still existed and therefore, so was Torchwood Pleiades. Takumi reformed his team, with the exception of the Pleiades Saints, and somehow recruited Madoka to replace Homura’s place, giving her what was necessary for her to be a productive member of the team.

The Next Evolution

Alongside the Shinkengers, the Magirangers were one of the first teams to join UNIT’s Superhero Project during its beta testing stage in 2014, with two more magical girls joining them in 2018:

MagiRed: Kyōko Sakura

MagiYellow: Mami Tomoe

MagiBlue: Takumi Kamijō

MagiPink: Madoka Kaname

MagiGreen: Hitomi Shizuki

MagiShine: Kyōsuke Kamijō

Wolzard (Fire): Homura Akemi

MagiIce (Mother): Nagisa Momoe

While developing the equipment, Takumi accidentally created an extra MagiPhone because he forgot about Homura’s situation. He attempted to seek one of the remaining Pleiades Saints to give it to, but he was attacked by Homura, who stole the spare MagiPhone and used it to transform into Wolzard.

In one of the Superhero Project preludes, the Magirangers and Shinkengers worked together to defeat Hiroki and Narutaki, who had been turned into Grim Reaper vessels by Evil Death.

The Magirangers’ main feature in Gokaiger would be in the second episode, which follows the storyline of the third episode of the original Gokaiger. After the Gokaigers were separated by Salamandam’s volcanic blast, Takumi would test the Doctor and Marco to see if they were worthy of using the Magirangers’ Megazord Powers. Kyōsuke would give Kai a test as well by having him fight Wolzard, who defeats him in a Megazord battle.

The second part of the episode features Homura attacking the Gokaigers, Magirangers and Dekarangers as Wolzard with her Nightmares and Homulilly minions. Once the Magirangers and Dekarangers defeat Homura’s minions, the Gokaigers morph into the Dekarangers to finish off Wolzard. After the Gokaigers defeat the Centaurus Wolf Megazord, Homura fights them as Homulilly, only to be defeated by the Legendary Patrol Megazord. Following the battle, Takumi is insistent on having Homura rejoin Torchwood Pleiades, but Sayaka says that they “don’t need a demon like her”.

Later on, Homura fights alongside Takumi and her former friends in the crossover special when the Rangers and Riders are turned against each other. She would appear again in the series finale alongside Nagisa when they fight Prince Vekar’s invasion fleet with the other Rangers.

In the third Space Squad movie, Rassilon would accuse Takumi and his brothers of being homophobic due to them “taking” their girls away from their true (lesbian) lovers. Sayaka doesn’t blame Takumi for doing what he did; in fact, she is grateful to him for keeping her legacy alive when she wasn’t and now, she only wants to make sure that everyone can be happy.

Before I can continue with Takumi’s story, I will need to cover another story first, which is the story of the other magical boy, Yuki Yamaki. Once again, I’d like to remind everyone that Takumi’s backstory was retroactively written following his introduction because of the way I liked to write stories back then. See you in the next instalment for the continuation of this saga.

[eriisaam]

Ten for Ten for Ten

AFKL:jafklasfjj I have been summoned by @arlithenerd

(Just kidding thank you, now here’s hoping I did this right haha)

My responses will be posted under the cut (cuz I’m a wall of text monster and don’t know how to do read mores mid-post), but in the spirit of the meme, I’ll move my own 10 questions up first, and the tags at the bottom of it.

Now let’s see what to ask, UUUH...

1) Is there a character you really, really like? Could be waifu/husbando, could be just someone you really resonate with.

2) How about OCs? Is there an OC you’re really fond and/or proud of?

3) What’s your most favorite character trope, and what’s your least favorite? (Example tropes: Jerk with a Heart of Gold, Beware the Nice Ones, Amnesiac Hero, etc)

4) Now what’s your most and least favorite plot trope? (Examples: Rags to Riches, Hurt & Comfort, specific AUs, etc)

5) To complete the Trope Trifecta: What tropes do you most or least like in terms of character design (Examples: Capes, futuristic or fantasy style, how practical they are, how complex or simple they are, etc)

6) What are you the most proud of? (Like, something you made or an achievement)

7) Who/What has been your biggest inspiration? (Like an artist or celebrity, a fandom, maybe something you read or watched growing up, etc)

8) When you want to relax, what’s your go-to way to chill? What immediately calms you?

9) Any favorite myths, legends, folklore or themes you really like? Or what kind of theme or element would immediately draw you in to a new series if they have it?

10) How merciful or evil will you be with your 10 questions you’re giving? (Heheheheh)

And now to subject all of you to these questions, but especially you: @mdzs-tgcf-svsss-fanblog @miss-laney @moanderfe @abenignsmile @okamiryuu @flowerytrashpotato​  @milli-and-chika819​ @littlemissdash​ @grimastiddies @avistella (kidding, join in if you want, tag or no. Or don’t, even when tagged. It’s all cool, no pressure~ I have no idea who to tag and/or who is chill about being tagged for something like this, I’m sorry orz)

1) a personality trait that most people wouldn’t know about you (if you feel comfortable with sharing of course!)?

I’m kinda self-defeating. I tend to think of the worst about what I do as default and have to ease eventually to the idea what I did turned out at least ok afterwards. It’s still a mindset I’m learning to work on, though it trickles in from time to time.

2) what are you most passionate about?

Creating.

|’Dc Broad answer, I know, but more specifically, I love a lot of creative hobbies, and it’s hard to narrow it down to any specific one since I love them in different moods and different reasons. Things like writing, drawing(/spriting), textile things like sewing or crocheting or origami... It’s easier to say I like the core theme of knowing you made something, and it exists because of you, and “you did this” kind of feeling.

3) what is your favorite flavor profile? (sweet, spicy, sour, umami, bitter, etc)

Sweet! Depending on the food and my mood, I also like sour and spicy things, but I tend to gravitate more to sweetness with less fussiness of how so.

4) favorite series/franchise (from any medium) and favorite character within that series/franchise?

Oh gerd, there’s a bit, but in a vague attempt to narrow it down that let’s face it, I know I’ll fail, UUUH...

Fire Emblem (particularly Fates and Heroes) - I love both of them for just how easy it is to generate ideas for. It’s funny because I realize it’s admittedly taking a lot of things that frustrate or disappoint or leave me hanging with either games that I end up liking the two most by virtue for how many ideas it paves way for in terms of headcanons or fanworks or the like. I do like things on their own merits as well, but I think the “I wish things could’ve been better/elaborated on, and therefore I will create things based on that!” side to it was what made me appreciate them more (probably not exactly for the best reasons, but! It’s a thing.) In terms of favorite characters, there’s a ton inside and out of just these two games, but I’ll give the honorable mention to Summer Takumi specifically, because the paralogue he (among others) was released in came at a critical point in my personal life that had some effects on me that, tl;dr, led to me commiting to making this blog, and making more art in public, and eventually writing fanfics in public too. 

Pokemon - Was basically my childhood and went a long way into starting the first spark of a lot of the kind of hobbies I end up growing up and obsessing over/enjoying. Things like giving me a massive interest in coding and programming along with glitches and unused beta elements, or how it’s where I got my start in art back when I was little and trying to figure out how to do pokemon fusion sprite edits. I’d probably say my favorite character is a tie between Missingno and Celebi (in case the former doesn’t really count), the former for just how varied it is and being the main part of why I love how game coding works while being a gateway to beta content interests, and the latter for sentimental reasons spanning all throughout the entire time I followed the fandom game-wise.

Animal Crossing - It got me through ups and downs, it made up a chunk of nostalgia since the first game up to New Leaf (no switch, so now New Horizons, oh wellz), and I had a lot of memories both fond and low-key terrifying otherwise all throughout. I got a lot of favorites among villagers and NPCs otherwise, but if I had to narrow it down to one each:

 I love Whitney for being the only snooty-type villager back when I played Wild World who was surprisingly kind to me (and I’m sad I no longer have the original cart and imagine she long since moved out anyways probably), and so she gave me an experience pretty similar to Ai’s own experience with Whitney in the movie.

NPC-wise, I’m going to go with Sable (it was a really tough choice!) for the fact that in every game, she was among the first instances you can get to know a villager so closely that she was willing to explain to you more and more of her character. Usually in many of the games, once her arch is finished, she no longer elaborates on her life and goes right back to talking generally, but if it wasn’t enough that it was among the first times you see how her demeanor changes from ignoring or staying quiet with you, to going out of her way to find things to chat with you, it was also the memories she explained once you start befriending her.

5) how have your closest family members and/or friend(s) impacted your life?

I consider friends more as family than my actual family (to put it vaguely and/or kindly, my actual family did few to no favors for me). My closest friends have picked me up when I fell (multiple, multiple times), and they were much of why I’m still here, doing what I can. I owe the world to them...

6) if you could be anything (any job, other person, type of animal or beast, literally anything aside from what you are now) what would it be?

A multi-billionaire Maybe someone who shapeshifts. The possibilities with that are endless.

7) favorite beverage?

Coffee. There’s quite a lot of drinks I really love, but coffee is the most easily accessible for me.

8) i know this is a generic one but favorite subject/class you’ve taken?

Arts & Crafts and Computers, give or take. Pity they’re usually the least important for grades and also the shortest class semesters of the year. 

9) early bird or night owl?

I’m heavily inclined to be a night owl, which is unfortunate, because I’m in a place constantly forcing me to be an early bird.

10) favorite meme?

I’m completely in love with memes of cat pictures where cats have expressions that are beyond words, yet represents big moods all the same. If I had to narrow it to one specific meme, however...

My heart will always be with Anfisa. Aka Angry Cat No Banana.

[polar-stars]

If you could've furthered any plotline intro'd either before or during the BLUE arc, what would they be? I know what you think the BLUE plotline, (I personally give it a C+), but was there anything you think that could've been furthered elaborated on? I thought some ideas were better then others, but the execution was off. I blame Shueisha's poor business model. SnS could've gone 400+ chapters (along with some other titles)

If I could ask for an arc to be redone and overworked, it would be Central Arc tbqh. 

This might be a contentious point to have, as many fans regard Central Arc to be the point where Shokugeki began to crumble, as the sudden usage of actual villains instead of normal rivals was something that many considered not fitting for the tone Shokugeki held before Azami’s introduction. 

I do understand that criticism, but personally I do actually like Central Arc’s premise. Establishing an totalitarian regime and putting the protagonists in a position of struggling revolt is just an interesting conflict for me that also holds a lot of potential for intriguing clashes and compelling drama.

My problem is how it was executed and that the execution of the premise did not live up to the potential that said premise has imo.

Central vs. Rebels ultimately became very generic Good vs. Bad. For the most part we’ve just been told that Central is bad and has to be taken down, instead of being shown that it is. I mean, look at how Central was established: Members of the Elite 10 voted Azami into power. But who exactly were the members that voted for Azami? Eishi, Rindou, Somei, Momo, Nene and Eizan. The members who were against it? Megishima, Isshiki and Kuga. My point here is that, Isshiki is out of all the Elite 10 members the most familiar one to us (save for Erina) as he’s been introduced somewhere in the most earliest chapters. We know him and he is someone trustworthy to us. Then there’s Kuga, who got at least some insight during Moon Banquet Festival and while not overly familiar to us at that point, because he was still relatively fresh, he was still a lot more familiar to us than most of the characters we had on Central’s side. Somei, Momo and Nene had barely any characterization back then. They were pretty much strangers to us. Eishi and Rindou got a bit to do before Central’s establishment, but still had a mysterious aura to them. The truly most familiar to us who voted Central into power is Eizan, as he was also established a lot earlier. Eizan admittedly did not do all too much in the series at that point, but the things he did indeed do were not really the actions of a good guy. He threatened Soma and was also the one to orchestrate the whole Mimasaka-situation in the Autumn Elections, a situation that put one of the fan-favorites, Takumi, through strong suffering. So yeah, Eizan is not what you could call a sympathetic character. And that’s the point; the people against Central were the more familiar one to us who we come to trust, while the people who ultimately got Central into power were a bunch of mysterious strangers to us + the one guy who we’ve already come to know as jerk and antagonist. That all is just a very blatant way to establish Central as the “evil side” and to have the reader root for the rebels instantly, because that’s the characters we know and love, right?

Based on it’s premise, I always thought of Central as an ideology-war. However, that requires to actually explore the ideology and convince the reader that one ideology is better than the other. But what we got instead is that the people who are responsible for this arc happening in the first place (The Traitor Elites) barely ever actually talk about the ideology they supposedly stand behind. The individual reasoning for voting Azami into the position of headmaster was not really explored for most of the Elites, so it all never felt all too convincing to me. The major change we see Azami make on Totsuki is getting rid of clubs in such, but most of his reformation is also not really shown on us. (It’s an overall theme in Shokugeki that Tsukuda dismisses the show, don’t tell rule to be perfectly honest) Meanwhile the Rebels are presented to be 100% in the right, as if the old system of Totsuki truly was absolutely perfect. I would have liked an exploration on good and bad on BOTH sides. How the old system DID have flaws, how there’s possibly some good ideas in Central’s regime but their actions are overall terribly unjust or they take things to the extreme. It requires a lot of writing skills, I’ll admit that and I don’t think I’d be able to write such a thing….But Tsukuda is a guy who makes a living out of writing, if I am not mistaken. 

Maybe he should have actually make an detailed “Survivor’s Hunt”, instead of just showing us one battle and nothing else, to get a lot more substance and character into the Central-Regime than just “baddies, that’s all you need to know”. 

Central gets concluded through the Regiment de cuisine which is therefore still part of the overall Central storyline, despite being counted as its own arc, so that should be redone as well.

RDC is something I view as even more critical. 

I like Central’s premise as I said, but RDC’s premise is something I’ve always seen as rather problematic and here’s why: RDC’s end goal is to have the Elite 10 defeated and that’s kinda were I am already frowning. The thing is that the Elite 10 had more build up than anything else in this series and ever since Shokugeki started they’ve been made out to be the ultimate, competent GODS of their universe. And then just this arc has as end goal that said GODS will be defeated within just one arc by mostly first-years. 

So yeah, that was just a problem for me and as the rebels ultimately won, in the process only Eishi and Rindou got to look like actually competent while the rest felt a lot more like normal rivals which is a shame and disservice to the build-up that the Elite 10 received over the course of the entire series. I mean, not even the Elites on the Rebels side got to do stuff that would be justice for them: Kuga lost his only battle in it, Megishima (*cough* former third seat, that’s a high number) got a win against a character with little to none characterization but lost his next fight and Isshiki also just got one win against a newly-established character who was not even made out as very competent but also lost the follow-up fight. 

For me, there’s two ways to possibly fix RDC:

1. Arena 51 Raid, they can’t stop all of us: Don’t get rid of half of your cast for cheap tension and actually have a much huger mess face the Elites. The number of people participating in a Regiment de cuisine does not have to be equal, so do not make it equal just to add tension. Have more people on the rebels side, because that would have make a victory of the rebels over the Elites possibly a bit more realistic to me. DONT SHOW ME MIYOKO AND NAO IN THE AUDIENCE SMILING ABOUT THE REBELS APPROACHING VICTORY BECAUSE NOW I AM FORCED TO ASK WHY THEY WERENT APPROACHED BY SOMA TO PARTICIPATE IN THE RDC. The rebels should have recruited everyone they could get in their boat, it’s the Elite 10 they face off against for heaven’s sake. 

2. Lower the stakes and actually have Central win: Another problem with RDC are the ridiculous stakes for the rebels. Like damn, in case the Elites loose they loose their seats (which they can obtain again anyway, as presented to us by Nene and Eizan in 3rd year) and Central would have to dissolve. Which yeah, I guess, does kinda suck for them? But it’s not really something comparable to Erina and Jouichiro giving up their freedom as people to be in Azami’s clutches forever, plus Jouichiro closing the place that belongs to his wife’s family and all of the kids having to leave Totsuki forever. Given how immense the stakes were for the Rebels, it was pretty much inevitable that they’d win and therefore sucked out a lot of tension. So yeah, make the stakes something that does suck greatly (I mean, expulsion could still remain one I guess) but is not an ultimate destruction of an individual. And then, as I said, have Central actually being victorious in the Regiment de Cuisine, showcasing what actual monsters they are. What would follow up is the Rebels throughout 2nd year trying to win back the school, through other ways that could possibly interesting. Especially if they are possibly thrown off the school, but still don’t give up and seek their ways to make moves even from the outsides. 

MEEP

So yeah, I believe Central as well as RDC could have been done well and be interesting but ultimately were written very clumsily. I’d love to see a good rewrite of Central Arc. I’d to it myself, but I don’t consider myself skilled enough for it. However “Shokugeki no Kimiko” will have two arcs that very  strongly reflect what I would have wished for to be done with Central and RDC.

I hope that this ramble did make sense, although it was probably just insanely uncoordinated as always ; 7 ; And also me, not knowing how to word stuff properly. 

-

Aside from that, if you are to ask me, if there’s any arc Post-RDC I’d like to see redone, I’d say the Beach Arc should be stretched out a little as I think it was much too short but actually a very fun idea. 

[parfaitwaffles]

Finished my HUGtto! Pretty Cure rewatch! And what can I say than I’m a totally different person that I have been last year. While I have come to like HUGtto with the final few episodes last year, I’ve totally come to adore the season as a whole! And I am glad that I did this rewatch.

Over all, I think HUGtto! Pretty Cure is a season that needs (at least) a second watch as there’s so much happening in the season that it’s hard to get it all at first. Maybe, after rewatching for a third time, some things will get even clearer, who knows. Fact is, that many things, that didn’t make sense for me during the first watch, made sense and were well done as I rewatched the season. Of course, since I knew the show, there was nothing new for me and I knew what would happen, but it is not always a bad thing? After all, I really enjoy watching Pretty Cure seasons for more than only one time! Don’t ask me how many times I’ve watched Fresh Pretty Cure, Yes! Pretty Cure 5 or Yes! Pretty Cure 5 GoGo! Just like these seasons, I can see myself go to watch HUGtto! Pretty Cure in the future, if I need something nice to watch (same goes for HaCha and Go! Pri btw).

Note: I ended up typing a lot. Imma add a Keep Reading instead! :)

But as it always is, with everything you like, there are things you don’t like. It is always like that, and with HUGtto as well. For one thing, I didn’t like the short comings of several characters, such as Ruru for example. She might have gotten a lot of episodes with Emiru, but these were mainly to tell her “liking someone is okay, even if you are different than them”, which is not bad, but since she always got the same lesson, it felt like Ruru didn’t get much of development after she became a Cure - until Traum appeared at least. Their interactions were always funny and pure. I love them! 

Saaya’s development may have been rushed and at some point maybe forced, but she had her share of episodes where she slowly developed a new dream, which was wonderful in my opinion. Now, she didn’t really have a lot of episodes were she was the main-main-centered character, but she did develop in some other filler episodes that, if you think about it, are actually Saaya episodes. And I do not have to hide the fact that I love Saaya’s development very much.

I know a lot of people didn’t like Homare’s crush being her second plot, but I personally wasn’t bothered by it that much - during the second watch. I also hated it during the first watch. However, now I realized that this plot was well done. Whether you ship mouse and girl or not, the point is not the shipping, it is the strength that one gains. Homare’s arc is supposed to tell the kids that falling in love is not a bad thing, and that if your love is not returned, you can still be strong - just be cause you cry doesn’t mean that you are weak. Sometimes, lifting a secret is better for yourself than holding it back.

Emiru on the other hand, has gotten quite a lot episodes, in which she developed from her “It’s dangerous nanodesu” self into a girl, on which others can rely and which will never hold back her dreams - in other words will never stop playing guitar because that’s what she likes to do. While Emiru had a lot episodes, I think the least Emiru-centered episodes actually showed anything new. Emiru sure is a cute girl (praise my MaCherie doll) but she has gotten a lot of focused episodes, when she was already well developed and that, in my opinion could have been used on something else. But Emiru is fun and her faces are always entertaining, so nothing to complain here. (The best development still goes to her bro, though. Sorry Emiru)

And Hana--- I don’t know what to say with Hana. I love her - but I have already loved her and her development during the first watch. But imma be honest, with all stories that end with the pink character being the centered plot point; Hana has done the best job, as HUGtto wasn’t all about Hana from the beginning and Hana just simply deserved to have this final showdown with George (which I admit had to watch a whole of 3 times to finally like it, cuz it is - in fight terms - really lame. It’s more impacting based on the things that are said). For people who aren’t sure how Hana developed: Hana started off as a girl, who had been shamed by her old classmates and thus has been questioning herself a lot. Once she even wondered if “cheering on others” was the only thing she could do. But thanks to her experience, she could grow over her past self and fully accept herself with her strengths and weaknesses. - Or at least that’s my impression of Hana’s development.

I don’t know how to say that, but all the people that have talked with me about HUGtto once before know that I like Criasu, as a villain organisation a lot. I like how in detail Criasu as a whole is (and the fact that the main villain is basically the economy. Thank you Toei xD). My favorite villains of the season where the first three that were purified - or defeated, in Daigan’s case (it was over in 5 minutes) -, even though I’m not that solid on Charaleet, but he was funny from time to time, so I’m not complaining. (See that? Throw in some good humor and you got me) I think the problem Criasu had was the fact why I love it so much - every villain had their own reason to stop time. Each of them have their own story - but because of that... Each story had to be developed, and we hardly got the time to see the stories of all employees of Criasu, which is why, especially Listol and Bicine got almost nothing, and I can’t really say that I care much about Gelos, which is sad, since I do think she is an interesting character (JinJin and Takumi on the other hand.... eh...). And - I know that was never the goal of HUGtto as he was supposed to be somewhat a mystery - I wished we had learned a little more about George. Because, ... you know I shouldn’t, but I can’t help it? I feel sympathy for him and it’s weird but I do. Still no excuse to be a creep.

Glad that everyone of Criasu got somewhat like a new life. It is really refreshing and I like it when the defeated villains don’t just disappear.

Ah- actually, you know what? I wanted to continue with the episodes that I didn’t like as much (or at all), but since I’ve started with “I wished we had known more about”, I need to add in, something I kept complaining about the whole rewatch: I really wished we had known more about Cure Tomorrow. I never knew I liked Cure Tomorrow so much until I found myself complaining that we never even saw Tomorrow fighting. I guess, yes, it was not her story... but still! It would have been so cool! Better than the Minna wa Purikyua anyway...

Fure Fure Hugtan, may your future be bright.

So.. where was I? Oh yeah, with the episodes I didn’t like as much. I am surprised to say that there weren’t many, which I really didn’t expect, since I expected the second half to be a lot worse than the first was - the first half was better but the second still wasn’t a total mess. Among the 49 episodes we had, there are a total of 8 episodes which I didn’t enjoy, which didn’t have good pacing, where the built up was missing etc. 

Rules were; if the episode upsets me, it will be added to the list. Some episodes were better, some were the worst, for the story of HUGtto, in my opinion. But before I tell you what I thought was missing in/wrong with the episode, please note, that I really didn’t like how the Cures got the attack Minna de Tomorrow! The episode itself was good! But the whole Mother Heart thing was just too rushed in my opinion. This should have been a two parter. So in case you wonder why you don’t find the episode on my list: I did enjoy it and did think it was a good episode - until the Mother Heart stuff.

20: Cure Macherie and Cure Amour! Hooray hooray! The Pretty Cure of Love!

(I’m actually one of the people who think it had been better if HUGtto had stayed a 3 Cures team. But that is not the reason why I’m not happy with the episode). I love you Emiru, Ruru, but I just didn’t like how you got your powers. ... It’s not that you didn’t deserve it, but... I have an issue with Mother Heart in general - they should have explored the whole Mother Heart plot a lot further. “Miracles happen”, yeah, but do miracles excuse a story to be rushed? IMO, this either should have been solved differently, or should have been a two parter as well. 

But luckily the next Twin Love episodes were good stuff! So welcome to the team Cure MaCherie, Cure Amour!

28:  Catch That Heart? Hooray Hooray! Mogumogu!

I... have tried to explain my problems to my friends when I watched it, but I just cannot get it in words... Imma try again. So the episode... is a mess. Papple’s appearance was unnecessary but it rescued the episode. Whoop Whoop! Great comedy. I do get and like the message they tried to deliver. And Emiru and Ruru’s talk was very touching. But just .... the WHOLE way they delivered ... the episode as a whole...

I have got nothing to say. Next!

(Btw. the message I understood was that you don’t need to change yourself to make others like you. Being yourself is the best thing! And it doesn’t matter if you are different or not.)

34: The Great Detective, Kotori! The Big Sister Investigation!

Kotori!! Precious bean has become the third member of Team Yell! --- I mean Cure Yell-san fanclub. While it is an over all good episode idea... I didn’t think it was well done. I don’t know myself what was bad again or what could have been improved, but since it is HUGtto, it probably had pacing problems. And right now, I wished we had seen more sisterly moments between Hana and Kotori.

LOOONNGG SIGH The crossover disaster

Actually two episodes, I take it as one. Just... you know? They did really interrupt the flow of HUGtto’s story. And I really think they were not good for HUGtto at all. But we gotta advertise the 15th anniversary movie. Fine, fine, let’s get going. 

(ARGH PIKARIO. DON’T HYPE ME)

41: Emiru's Dream, Shout It From Your Soul!

(looks at notes: “had many good parts though”)

I suppose I liked the fun elements the episode had, like how everyone tries to talk to nyanko face Emiru or how everyone reacts to her. And the Emiruru talk was very touching (it always is very touchging) but I suppose I didn’t like watching it. 

No, actually, I did struggle putting it on the list, as it was a good episode for Emiru, but I felt like something was lacking, even if I can’t put it in words. Much like Emiru lost her voice that episode.

Best point of the episode goes to Masato though. May his jokes rest in potatoes.

42: One Yell For Another! This Is My Cheer!

(pls don’t hate me dear fandom)

Cure Infini was a great step in Pretty Cure history, and I will never act like it wasn’t!! The thing is... I was missing the built up towards Cure Infini. Yes, we had the one episode where Listol confronts him and then at the end of episode 41 we saw Henri fall. But that was all. I would have loved to see a little more built up towards this. I never asked Toei to put Henri in a car accident.. dear god Toei... just maybe... even earlier let Henri have obvious struggles. 

But looking at what we got, it was just too rushed for me, and Cure Infini had deserved better. Maybe even join Criasu for a little and then break free from it and become Cure Infini. Just... something!

45: HUGs For All! Merry Christmas☆

How to improve the episode: Take away the whole stupid “Santa falls from the Sky” thing and we are good. Thanks.

Long review, one thought: HUGtto! Pretty Cure is a good and very emotional season with amazing characters (minus JinJin and Takumi... though they were funny in the Christmas episode) and a touching plot! It also helped me a lot with having faith in my future... something no Pretty Cure season could have done since Yes! Pretty Cure 5 (please note that the first time I watched Go! Pri was in 2018. But Go! Pri also helped me a lot).

I hope that everyone can also look forward to the future. Stopping time is an impossible thing! You may never see the next episode of Pretty Cure if you do!!

With that said, Fure Fure Everyone!

[inbarfink]

To continue on from that last comment I made about Justice For All and Phoenix's internal monolouge, I'm gonna talk about it a little more. 

In 'Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney", Phoenix's internal monolouge is designed to be incredibly well-synced with the player. I believe Shu Takumi said that he based Phoenix's thoughts on his own thoughts and comments about what was going on in the plot. As someone who loves watching unspoilered LPers,  many times I've seen LPer's snark sync up with Phoenix - to the point I can't always tell which one is which. (I often put it on in another tab and I don't notice a line is Phoenix’s until it repeated in multiple LPers). The one notable time where Phoenix’s internal monologe was *wrong*, was when he called Miles a ‘liar’ for saying he’s a fan of Will Powers’ work. And I believe this wasn’t technically wrong at the time. I believe the idea that Miles is a Steel Samurai Nerd developed a bit after the first game was done.

By the time we get to "Justice for All", we're used to the idea that we're super-identifying with Phoenix's thoughts - but then JFA adds a wrinkle of... unreliablity to the mix. Phoenix's thoughts are no longer a reliable source to how we should feel about some stuff - and by ‘stuff’ I spesifically mean the character Franziska von Karma. It's not *obvious* in a first playthrough, most players are used to side with Phoenix\Player Characters in general that we're gonna side with his observations about Franziska at first. But replaying it after knowing Franziska better, it's clear that he's being very biased and trying to paint Franziska at a worse light than she deserves. Phoenix in JFA is emotionally-fucked-up due to grief and denial and he started out already deciding that he's not gonna like Franziska because he basically just see her as an extention of her father and maybe of Miles Edgeworth too. Once you realize it. It becomes really clear through Phoenix' internal monoluge. How Franziska is really Not All the Bad in ‘Reunion, and Turnabout’, but where Phoenix would note stuff about that with Miles (because he was searching for evidence Miles could change and improve), he keeps ignoring or misinterpeting it with Franziska just cause he wants her to be the Worst. Most notably, he compared Franziska’s act of concealing a photo from the court with Manfred’s similar action. But where Manfred was being deliberatly dishonest about incriminating evidence which he knew about cause he planned the whole goddam murder, Franziska was legit SUPRISED that the photo actually had case-relevant details. And that’s something that’s easy for players to miss when Phoenix just flat-out ignores it.

And it's just... an intersting decision for a sequal. To make the internal monolouge we already got used to, and make it a bit unreliable.

[loucifieri]

So I ended up drawing the rest of the v3 kids with their fam members/ important people and naming them (based off the canon) after I drew Kaede’s twin haha gdi.....

NDRV3 HPA AU Character Design Masterlist here and background information here

[Facebook] [Instagram] [Twitter] [Blogger] [Kofi]

Kaede’s twin: Akamatsu Shikimi Shikimi goes to Hope’s Peak Academy as a Reserve Course student. More easygoing but just as firm and assertive as her sister. Despite being mistaken as Kaede frequently in public, she doesn’t despise her twin, even going as far as pretending to her so Kaede can take a break from the limelight. Can play the piano (as well as guitar and violin) but only at a beginner level.

Rantaro’s 2/12 sisters: Amami Youko (2nd child), Amami Misaki (1st child, 3rd partner) Youko is Rantaro’s only full sibling. She attend’s Hope’s Pass High School, Rantaro’s old high school prior to being scouted. More mature than her older bro; has a no-nonsense attitude and quite studious. Easily annoyed by Rantaro’s childish antics but worries about him a lot whenever he travels. Misaki looks up to Rantaro a lot and strongly considers him a role model. She tags along with him frequently, except during his travels and is up to date with his vlogs. She is currently in 4th grade.

Shuichi’s Uncle: Saihara Yoshio Yoshio is the younger brother of Shuichi’s father. He takes in Shuichi after his brother and his wife move overseas, leaving their son to his care. He is a private investigator of a small detective firm, and takes Shuichi as his assistant. He lets Shuichi read confidential case files and would indulge him with a meal of donuts and hot chocolate on some afternoons.

Kaito’s grandparents: Momota Shou, Momota Asuka Shou and Asuka are the parents of Kaito’s father. Kaito was left to their care when his parents died in a tragic car accident. They have a tree house in their backyard where Kaito usually played as a child and Shou would often take Kaito to an open field to stargaze at night. They were quite traditional in their beliefs, and Kaito unconsciously absorbed some of their patriarchal views.

Maki’s favorite (in the orphanage): Shimizu Reika Reika is timid and shy, and mostly didn’t play with the other kids in the orphanage. She would often trail Maki whenever she had errands, and liked clinging to her. She aspires to be a “responsible big sister” like Maki to the other kids, doing her best to conquer her social anxieties. Maki initially disliked Reika’s clinginess, but eventually develops a soft spot for her (since she was mostly well-behaved anyway).

Korekiyo’s older sister: Shinguji Miyadera Miyadera is frail and sickly. Fearful of her short lifespan, she spoils her younger brother to no end. She would frequently visit Hope’s Peak to bring him food, random knick knacks or relics she manages to get a hold of. She would often message him to ask about his well-being, which sometimes irritate Kiyo but he lets his sister be. The siblings care for each other greatly (but not to the point that it becomes incestuous).

Kokichi’s organization D.I.C.E: names confidential A group of pranksters led by Kokichi. After being alienated from his family, he forms this ragtag group of outcasts to commit trivial crimes such as harmless pranks, vandalism and petty theft. They are basically a family unit to him.

Tenko’s Aikido master: Maeda Hikaru After the death of Tenko’s mother (at the hands of own father), Tenko was adopted by Hikaru, who is a good friend of her mother’s. Hikaru owns a dojo and trains Tenko with aikido. They invent a variation of aikido that they subsequently dubbed “Neo Aikido.” Hikaru has spent most of her life in a loveless rut, and she channels her bitterness with preaching to Tenko her biased views on men. Coupled with Tenko’s bad experience with her father, she develops a close-minded negative perception of men.

Kirumi’s mother: Tojo Kazumi Kazumi is a single mother, and doesn’t actually know who Kirumi’s father is. She had been completely drunk one night at a college party, and was too inebriated to notice she’d been having sex with a man. Her girlfriend subsequently left her while her family disowned her when she decided to keep the baby. She worked hard to be able to provide for Kirumi, taking up small part-time jobs apart from a day job during her early-twenties to her late-twenties. This inspired Kirumi to take a part time job when she was old enough. Currently, she works in a bookstore.

Angie’s late grandfather: Yonaga Arell Arell took care of Angie when her parents left the island to find jobs overseas and have not returned ever since. He teaches Angie obscure traditions of their island and the religion of Atua. An artist himself, he teaches Angie how to do visual art and sculpture, even teaching her how to apply incantations to her works of art. His eccentric way of speaking was picked up by Angie. Arell contracts a deadly disease when Angie was 9 years old, and unfortunately dies after 2 years.

Tsumugi’s little brother: Shirogane Takumi Despite sharing a lot of interests with her sister (video games and anime), Takumi teases his older sister a lot. He would also often bother Tsumugi when she is sewing a costume. Their parents are often too busy at work, and with his sister’s shut-in personality, Takumi feels lonely. He secretly admires his sister for her geeky attitude and talent for making beautiful cosplays. Tsumugi finds him annoying, but nevertheless pampers him when she has time. She would also try to dress him up, even in girl’s clothings and he doesn’t mind.

Himiko’s mother: Yumeno Chiyoko Chiyoko used to be a Magician’s assistant. Now, she works as a stage director while her husband works as a stuntman. She is very outgoing and bubbly. She would always recount how her day went during dinnertime with her family. During weekends, she likes taking Himiko out for a day at the park, or watch movies. Himiko is very close with her mother as she often brings her up in conversations, although she dreads being affectionate with her in public.

Keebo’s father: Iidabashi Manabu Prof. Iidabashi is a talented robotics engineer of Future Foundation. He fathered Keebo with one of his former subordinates, who left the organization after leaving him Keebo upon his birth. Not wanting to be an absentee father since his job eats up a lot of time, Manabu homeschools Keebo until he was enrolled to Hope’s Peak, bringing him along whenever he reported to his office. He is quite overprotective of his son and is very quick to defend him.

Miu’s estranged (real) father: Keane Bellerose Keane was a French tourist visiting Japan that had a brief affair with Miu’s mother. He lost contact with the mother after leaving Japan, and never knew he fathered a child. Being an illegitimate child, Miu’s stepfather mostly neglects her while her mother is mostly away from home. Keane eventually learns about his daughter and attempts to reconnect with her.

Ryoma’s family cat: Sunny A turkish calico, named after the same breed in the game Neko Atsume. Along with Ryoma, they are the only survivors of the massacre that claimed the lives of Ryoma’s parents, two siblings and an aunt.

Gonta’s wolf family They’re wolves, Harold.

[sparda3g]

Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma Chapter 279 Short (More or Less) Review

Soma and Erina shared a tender moment together at the balcony. Soma caught a glimpse of romantic feeling while Erina continue to enjoy the friendship that can go beyond. Sadly, she is taken hostage and Saiba got her where she wanted. What will she do now? What is Saiba’s next action? How Soma is going to react to her disappearance? How this breaking news will affect the exam?!

Actually, nothing. In fact, this chapter feels like the last half of the last chapter didn’t happen. Of course, we will get back to that when the plot is ready to step into high gear. In the meantime, there’s an exam to worry about. It’s another case of what if there’s no problem in the world of Soma and just work on class session; an amusing at that.

Since the news didn’t break through based on these characters’ reaction, it’s safe to say the idea of Erina’s disappearance won’t affect Soma throughout the exam. Instead, the problem still lies in the condition of the restaurant and that’s fine. It’s better to leave the handicap to be only that, rather than stack up more on top of it. It’s natural this way. With that said the Elite Ten has still yet to renovate the building, and what’s worse is everyone is arguing like spoiled brats. Good work, team!

Unlike the Moon Banquet Festival Arc, the team is completely out of loop and their chemistry is all over the place. Even though we have seen Hayama, Alice, and Ryo worked together before, the circumstances are different with the renovation, the ordering, and lastly, more members. Some are stingy on the use of electricity, some got the order wrong, and some are about to fight because one didn’t move out away despite the tiny space. And Nikumi thought she had it rough.

There’s this one random guy who acts like the big shot because his restaurant is doing really well. His design even got shadows for added coolness factor. The reason why he stands out is because his is close to Elite Ten’s and he wishes for them to fail. Come to think of it, if they do fail, all 6 Elite Ten members will be eliminated. That’s one way to make room. Hilarious that Alice buries him by presenting his character without a name mentioned, only the amount of defeats he had in Shokugeki. Alice and her treatment to side characters are always charming.

I find Soma’s response about being threatened by other students to be quite nice. It would have been out of characters if he moan about it, especially since he was the one that encouraged everyone to challenge Elite Ten all day, every day. Plus, it’s wise of him to reflect the past generation, knowing this type of competition would happen if they were in their shoes. I still remember how everyone was all fired up to take on Elite Ten a long time ago, so they should know others would feel the same way. It’s a good reflection and kind of sad to no longer see some of the old characters at Tootsuki Academy. I got to hope for a return one day.

Soma’s speech got everyone back together and coordinate like a proper team. It’s a bit comical how some are reacting to other’s duty, such as Takumi feeling a bit surprised at Alice working like an engineer. Bless her to be around; here’s hoping when the “serious” portion kicks in, she takes part of it. They waste an entire second day to finally get the job started, and yet the building exterior appears average. So all that hype for nothing?

It’s the good old classic Soma (series) with the use of teamwork and inventive way to draw in the customers with its clever use of the kitchen, I do miss this type of work ethic in this series. Case in point, the arranged triangle of cooktops. Surely, the other restaurants would have plenty of cooktops as well, but the arrangements do speak volume. It’s going to be a three-man tag within the triangle, so I can expect plenty of activity within. This ought to be good.

This was an amusing chapter despite not going forward with whatever happened with Erina. It’s a shame that we won’t have this kind of good feel moment once they realized her disappearance. It was amusing for the team to go from disjointed mess to greatest tag team. That is if they can sell $27,000 on the final day. Unless they sell each entrée for $500, they have to perform a miracle. Let’s see what Elite Ten is made of.

[gascon-en-exil]

I Liked Fates Before It Was Cool!: The Opening

Prologue

Here begins my run of Fates, in which I react to things that I believe merit either praise or criticism and that hopefully haven’t been thoroughly picked over yet hundreds of times by everyone else in the fandom. I’ll be doing each route in the sequence I used last time, with gameplay details to follow as they come up. To answer @damoselcastel, I’ll be doing an all-male run, and it does indeed suck that the game screws this over a bit at the very beginning by forcing me to take Felicia over Jakob first. Breeding will come when I feel like it, more to have extra chapters to play through than anything.

Prologue

In what I assume will continue to be a series trend going forward, all of the 3DS FEs open somewhat in the abstract, including a flash forward to a future event. Fates’s particular take is both the most surreal and the least dependent on shock value, as the events it depicts are only several chapters away rather than near endgame. Azura picks up her Lady of the Lake associations right from the start, there’s a very early glimpse at what will be eventually revealed to be Valla, and Ryoma and Xander and Xander’s ludicrously acrobatic horse square off to set up this setting’s central conflict. The chapter proper is (fittingly) dreamlike, with surreal music and a high-energy scenario that begins in medias res and doesn’t entirely follow the normal rhythms of FE combat. I have absolutely no idea how this would come across to a newcomer to the series - I got my hand held through Lyn Normal Mode, cut me some slack - but I imagine it would be disorienting.

Chapter 1

That’s apparently official concept art of Nohr. Reasonable worldbuilding, what’s that?

The in-game presentation starts off rather less absurd. Hell, if it weren’t for the ominous castle rooftop setting of Xander’s training session one could almost find Corrin’s slice-of-life interactions with their servants and their Nohrian family quaint. Xander is just a drama queen like that. This fight calls back to Path of Radiance and New Mystery, which also start off with training sessions against significantly more powerful named characters. For Birthright it also forms a narrative bookend, but I’ll get to that in due time. I have Feelings about the presentation of Xander...and not just because he’s my husbando either.

I like that Corrin’s retainers are domestics first and combatants second unlike those of the other royals, because it stresses that they’ve been isolated in a non-combat role during their upbringing, their exposure to Nohr’s allegedly spartan military culture limited to sparring with Gunter and Xander. I have no idea how that would be enough for them to survive when they evidently live in Mordor, but then Nohr is the source of the most consistently sloppy worldbuilding in Fates so at least we get that established right away.

Oh, and Lilith is here. There’s never a point anywhere in this game where Lilith’s character is competently handled, so I have a tendency to forget she exists unless she’s on-screen. Here she’s just an unassuming stable girl with an unusual design, and Elise makes an incestuous insinuation in her direction that’s only funny if you played the appropriate DLC. 

Chapter 2

Structural contrast with the towering Hoshidan royal palace aside, I don’t entirely get how Krakenberg works. A dragon did it?

Anyway, Corrin gets an under-explained and clearly evil magical sword from his shamelessly homicidal father only to balk at the thought of killing anyone with it. Leo salvaging this faux pas isn’t the silliest example of Corrin not understanding the basic concept of lying - it’s presumably easier to fake someone’s death with magic than with a giant sword - but it’s definitely up there. The Nohrian royals on the other hand have no trouble with such things based on their traumatic but mostly implied experiences at court. Important to note that everyone here up to and including the prisoners of war calls out Corrin for their sheltered worldview; their development from here on out really is dependent on the player’s choice of route. I vastly prefer this approach to Awakening’s for explaining why the Avatar is such a relatively blank slate - almost no amnesia necessary this time.

And while they appear in most chapters, I want to praise Dragon Veins here for being a really cool concept that doesn’t get as much love as it should. Draconic or otherwise superhuman bloodlines in FE are usually expressed in gameplay with the ability to wield certain legendary weapons, and while that also makes an appearance in Fates Dragon Veins represent more dramatically visible utility. They really make a difference in some chapters, and I’d like to see them reuse the concept in future games where it would be a logical addition (which would be most of them since humans with dragon blood pop up all over this series).

Chapter 3

I chose this image because I want everyone to appreciate as I do that Hans dresses like the world’s most tasteless leatherman. A harness and straps that show off all the wrong bits, and it’s in purple. Not even the overall weirdly fetishistic look of this game’s berserkers can excuse that.

But aside from that, Hans sucks. Iago also sucks. Less characters than plot devices that pop up whenever there’s a need for someone to act completely despicable to move the conflict along, there’s no way to spin them in a way that sounds like they contribute anything positive to the narrative. Case in point: in this chapter Hans single-handedly reignites hostilities between Nohr and Hoshido by Leeroy Jenkins-ing his way through the chapter and later (possibly) killing Gunter, with the only interesting caveat that he claims to have done so at Garon’s behest. And sure, Garon is also flat over-the-top villainy incarnate, but he at least has gravitas and a master playing a long game that arguably succeeds in two of the routes. Hans and Iago are just two more in the line of FE villains with flat motivations and personalities who lack even the good grace to be attractive, but unlike Desaix and Darin and Chagall and others like them they stick around in the story long after they’ve worn out their welcome. Did Nohr really need not one but three flat antagonists in its ranks around for most of the game?

I haven’t even gotten into the first appearance of Camilla’s...issues surrounding Corrin or whatever the dimension-hopping hell Lilith pulls with her invocations to presumably deceased dragon “gods” now that she reveals her true form. This is really the first chapter to offer a hint of how disjointed and frequently contrived Fates’s stories are going to end up, saved only by the very end when Rinkah puts this game’s new blunt weapon category to its logical use. Not like the game wants us to feel bad for Corrin....

Chapter 4

...because Hoshido is paradise. And also Takumi.

Everyone knows the story, both as it’s explicitly told and as can be read through the lines. The writers weren’t afraid to let their biases show, the localizers and the Western fandom did a fair amount to mitigate that with some bias of our own, and the final product is one big mess that fails to make logical sense in-universe and teeters on the edge of real-world two-way racism. Here we’re introduced to Castle Shirasagi, glimmering and verdant and awash in cherry blossoms, as well as Azura, Corrin’s foil in Stockholm Syndrome. But it’s all good, because Mikoto is tranquil and peace-loving and enforces her tranquility through a plot contrivance magical barrier that is just one of many examples in Fates of magic not working the way it does in the rest of the series (or at least I can’t think of anything else like this, correct me if I’m wrong). We don’t learn just why Nohr is so hellbent on invading Hoshido that they’d resort to summoning soulless monsters to do so until much later (and only in Birthright of all routes!). For now they just sound like unprovoked aggressors, and the Hoshidan royals Corrin’s true and loving family.

However, what I really wanted to bring up for this chapter is how oddly it’s structured, such that it never fails to throw me off a bit. It opens in an unnamed Fire Tribe village in a snowy area of Hoshido, which might I mention is the only point in the game we see anything of the Fire Tribe other than Rinkah herself. Considering all the time we spend in multiple routes with the Wind and Ice Tribes, that lack of detail strikes me as peculiar. Kaze then brings Corrin to the Hoshidan palace where Ryoma and Mikoto reveal the truth, then it’s immediately back to the snowy north to rescue Hinoka and Sakura from Faceless before returning to the palace to meet Azura. Was there any reason the Faceless fight couldn’t have happened before Corrin left the village, and the reveal and trip to Shirasagi left for after the chapter map and partially in response to Hinoka’s OOC crying fit?

I also hate maps where high-powered NPCs go around stealing kills. Kaze barely got to see any action this chapter, poor guy.

Chapter 5

Props to this manakete design, which is unlike anything else in the series and manages to work in elements of Anankos and Corrin’s weird outfit. No props to the scripting of the thing, as after this chapter Corrin may as well not even be a mankete except for gameplay purposes (which are minimal anyway unless you need them to tank something). You’d think learning that you can turn into a dragon would leave more of an impact on...anyone really, but nope. I guess it technically becomes relevant again in Kana’s paralogue, but that’s as tangential and ultimately irrelevant as everything else involving the kids.

There’s a lot else going on in this chapter, but I’m sorry to say that neither Mikoto’s death nor the obliteration of a large chunk of Hoshido’s capital lands as powerfully as they were meant to considering Corrin and the audience have spent all of 1.5 chapters with these people. This isn’t anything like Elbert or Greil’s death scene or even remake!Rudolf’s for that matter - at least that one came with a shocking twist that was responded to appropriately. It’s hard to even appreciate these events from the perspectives of the Hoshidan royals because they’re still pretty new characters in the player’s mind, though with the hindsight of Conquest I can maybe sympathize with Takumi here at the beginning of his downward spiral.

Corrin also picks up their legendary sword in a way that feels extremely random. I guess the Yato was inside the statue that got blown up? Weird place to keep a divine peace-bringing relic, that’s all I’m saying.

Branch of Fate

Despite some early warning signs and a few slight missteps, I’m happy to say that this story moment works. It’s a good thing that it does too, as this is the defining moment of FE14 in everything from its marketing to its game design to its core themes. The setup is rushed and tense and allows only Corrin, i.e. the intended player self-insert, full knowledge of the weight of the choice put before them, as none of the other royals are aware that they are all in a way family to the person they’re now abruptly forcing to pick a side. Familial connections (biological or otherwise) may not be a narrative hook that grabs me personally, but nonetheless this scene sticks with you. There is no easy choice, and the consequences of any of them immediately define the direction of the story.

This is not to say that all three of the iterations of Chapter 6 that follow succeed equally well, but that’s for other posts...including the next one, which will kick off Birthright.

Next time: Birthright Chapter 6 - 11

[unassumingvenusaur]

Eliwood/Lyn is just as bad for Lyn as her other noble option. The point of her abdicating Caelin in base ending, and returning to the plains to escape stifling court life is defeated by being with another noble. Not only is it sexist as a relationship reinforced by "Lyn changed her core ideals for ~love~" but its not a good romantic support simply because the interaction between them was pleasant, so saying its better in comparison is a stretch. Being in the base game doesn't make it okay yknow

this is baffling to me on so many levels, especially the last sentence... I know that? hence i’m critical of heclyn? and so many other things about the game?

You say pleasant interactions don’t make it a good romance in and of itself and I agree--but they’re absolutely a prerequisite for one. By this standard alone Eliwood and Lyn is leagues better than what you call her “other noble option.” They actually treat each other with mutual respect and don’t act like characters out of a tropey het rom-com. Hell, just take a peek at the sheer difference conveyed through their CG arts.

In Hector and Lyn’s, Lyn is visibly uncomfortable and startled. Hector’s put her in a degrading and embarrassing position in an almost possessive way. Respect for Lyn clearly isn’t present here.

In Eliwood and Lyn’s, they’re standing with each other on equal terms. Lyn is visibly happy, and Eliwood is looking at her in clear adoration. You don’t have to like the ship (I still prefer Lyn and Florina, as I said), but you can’t pretend that Lyn isn’t treated with more respect here, or that Eliwood treats her with much more respect in general.

And in regards to Lyn’s arc....I’d argue it’s more complicated than you make it out to be. Yes, the idea of a woman derailing her desires for the sake of a man is a common sexist trope. But Lyn is a complicated character with complicated motives, priorities and desires, and notably she grows differently depending on who she achieves an A Support with. She feels a tug between her roots in Sacae and her feeling of responsibility to her grandfather and Caelin. Most clearly in her Florina support, her yearning for Sacae wins out, and in every paired ending she has except with Eliwood and Hector she abdicates once her grandfather dies. Who she falls in love with has a great effect on where her priorities eventually land. Perhaps you can see her falling in love with Eliwood as the most decisive or final factor in her ultimate decision, but it’s not the only one, because it was always a complex decision for her. A woman isn’t less strong because she makes a tough decision you personally don’t find acceptable or to be approved of. 

I’d also briefly point out that Eliwood and Lyn’s ending mentions an uproar at their marriage. Lyn isn’t meekly acquiescing to court life--Even marrying Eliwood is its own form of defiance. She does what she wants, not caring for the wishes of these nobles who disrespect her and think less of her because of her blood. She’s sticking it to them, and carving out her own place of power and respect within a system that doesn’t respect her is a valid form of strength as well. 

Additionally, I’d complicate the idea that Lyn’s decision to abdicate is one free of sexist connotations. It makes perfect sense within her individual character arc, yes. But it becomes a bit more troublesome when you look at how FE treats its female rulers at large. Most either end up dead to advance a male relative’s character arc, or they explicitly express a lack of desire to rule and give it up. Sheena gives the crumbling Gra to Marth, Eirika, despite her better suited disposition to rule, allows Ephraim to become king, Camilla gives up the Nohrian throne to her younger brother Leo, Hinoka accepts the role of Queen with extreme hesitance and explicitly states she’d always assumed her older brother Ryoma or younger brother Takumi would be the one to take up the throne. The individual examples mostly make sense in terms of their characters, but taken as a trend there seems to be a clear message. Female claim to rule is often fleeting and undesired. There are notable exceptions to this trend, such as Guinevere and Elincia, of course. Though even in both of those cases they had to be installed on the throne by the heroics of a male lord, and were seemingly the last alternative in the bloodline. At least Lyn won her own throne, which few other FE women get the chance to do. 

tl;dr you don’t have to like the ship or something but it’s more complicated than you make it out to be. also ship wars are some of the worst things fandom has ever created it’s so tiring and pointless

[luminous777]

Team JNPR - Kamen Rider Comparisons

A little while ago, I saw a connection between Jaune and a Kamen Rider that I felt was pretty interesting so I thought I would try to do it with at least at least the rest of Team JNPR as well. Now the comparisons aren’t perfect matches with each aspect matching up I do feel they sync up fairly well. These are their personality traits rather than appearance or fighting style. Also interesting enough 3 out of the 4 are some of my favorite Riders, sorry Pyrrha. Lets get started in reverse letter order of the team:

Lie Ren: Takumi Inui - Kamen Rider Faiz

The connection are as follows

They both have very fucked up pasts. Ren losing his family in the  Nuckelavee attack and Takumi being in a fatal car accident the killed his family and himself, he got better. 

The two of them are both fairly quiet individuals and have helpful natures at heart.

While in the beginning of Faiz Takumi comes off as kind of a jerk it mainly stems from how the people around him treat him poorly. However as shown with characters like Kiba who don’t treat him in that manner he shows a personality very similar to Ren.

Pyrrha Nikos: Wataru Kurenai - Kamen Rider Kiva

This one was tough and the connection aren’t super strong

Both of them are extremely talented individuals. Wataru with the violin and Pyrrha with her gladiatorial fighting. 

However, both of them run away from their talents in a sense. Wataru is a shut in not sharing his gift and Pyrrha wanting to be far from her fame and aspects of that life, both of them do this because of pressure. 

They are both kind of awkward and have trouble saying no at times and as a result they are sometimes taken advantage of

However with all the shyness and awkwardness when it comes time to act those aspects are thrown aside to do what they have to.

A final connection to the two is both of their characters are linked in some way to the concept of destiny in someway.

Nora Valkyrie: Kousuke Nitoh - Kamen Rider Beast

I love these two so much so let’s get started

The two of them are both high energy, happy, goofy people with their fare share of quirks

Both of them have large appetites likely due to their powers, Nitoh confirmed this Nora up in the air.

They both have an almost obsessive love a particular food, Nora pancakes and Nitoh mayonnaise.

The two of them can be very passionate and extremely competitive.

Lastly the two them have a very poor relationships with details. Nora making her stories far more grandiose then they truly are as well as responding best to simple order rather than complex one. Nitoh has a habit of not listening and cutting people off when they try to explain situation to him to the point one of his catchphrases is “I got it I got it I got it” when he in no way has it, and just goes on his assumptions, often wrong. 

Jaune Arc: Shotaro Hidari - Left half of Kamen Rider W (Double) and Kamen Rider Joker

This is where this all started from so let’s get to work

Both of them are know to be very analytical people. Shotaro being a detective being very talented in finding clues for any case and Jaune leadership strategies involve observing the situation and making choices based around that. 

The two of them wear their hearts on their sleeves thus making them fairly easy to read how they feel and see how they view people 

Very often the two are mocked both jokingly and seriously for their various character quirks and goofy personalities that often make them seem bad at their jobs.

They both have dealt with the tragedy of loss of someone close them who were also mentors/teachers, Sokichi Narumi and Pyrrha, that they both view as their fault. The loss of these figures making them push themselves in honor of their memory

As well as that loss they had both lost their partner Jaune losing Pyrrha and Shotaro losing Philip, though one again Philip got better. But the these losses hit the two hard feeling they lost a piece of themselves.

They are both also know to be people who will always be their when they are needed responding to when they are called by those in need.

Finally Both of them can fight on their own to a good level but they truly shine when they are part of something greater which allows them to shine. Shotaro joining with Philip to become W and Jaune being far more competent when he has a partner or better yet his team which allow the two men to take true advantage of their specialties

So that is my JNPR Kamen Rider comparison like I said it isn’t 100% perfect but I do think my arguments are fairly sound. Like I said Pyrrha was pretty difficult and I feel her’s isn’t that great but that’s the way it goes. I may attempt to do more characters later on but Ill have to see.

[crystalelemental]

FE Fates Replay - Part 3

When we left off, we were ready to make the decision between the Hoshidans, and the Nohrians.  On one side, our peaceful blood relatives, who have finally been reunited with you after all these years.  On the other, the people you’ve grown up with, who serve a mad king that seeks only to subjugate other nations.  Now...we must choose...

The decision between the two is interesting.  Based on the Nohrian events at the outset, we’ve been given a glimpse of what the kingdom is like on the inside, and then we’re shown how brutal their tactics can be once we join the Hoshidans.  The Hoshidan segments prepare us for the inevitability of the choice, and frame things as a matter of which family you are siding with.  That’s an important distinction.  It’s not a matter of your ideals.  Those are never in question.  Regardless of whose side you’ve been on, Corrin remains true: she seeks to protect people, and create a peaceful end for both sides.  The question is, which family do you belong with?

The Hoshidans seem convinced that you are meant to be with them, by virtue of blood.  But really, what is family anyway?  Yes, they are your “true” family, for whatever value that has.  But what have they done as your family?  Mostly, they’ve just tried to assure you that, although you’ve been raised in Nohr, you are one of them.  Hinoka has a pure display of emotion toward Corrin, but beyond that, they offer almost nothing else.  Compare that with the Nohrian siblings.  Xander, your older brother, who helped you train, day after day, so that one day you could leave the tower you were kept in.  Leo, risked his own head defying your father, just to help you hold to your ideals.  Elise, who visited you every day and kept you company in your imprisonment.  Camilla, who looks out for you and the other siblings.  Though the few chapters we had with them, we’ve seen how devoted they are to you, and the bonds you share.  Comparatively, the Hoshidans offer nothing other than “the truth,” that you are part of their family.  There are no bonds, and Corrin herself remarks on how she feels nothing toward these siblings outright.  Though your blood relation is there, your bonds are in Nohr.  The reason to side with Hoshido is your ideals, the path that fights directly for peace, and doesn’t involve dealing with Garon at all.  But the game has insisted that the choice should be based on which family you belong with, and that being the case, the choice should be obvious.  We side with Nohr.

“But what about the true route?”  Shhh!  Later, okay?

When you pick Nohr, it politely informs you that you won’t be getting extra experience or gold.  That’s funny, because I have the DLC, so I assure you I will not go without.  “I thought you wanted to maintain the difficulty of the game?”  Yeah?  I’m not gonna power level, but I want my money.

Anyway, the Hoshidans are devastated, and Ryoma goes on a lot about how it was your destiny to be on their side, and the Nohrians must have brainwashed you or some shit.  This is honestly the point where we should just turn around and leave, but instead, the Nohrians are insistent on fighting.  If they leave, the Hoshidans might think they’re scared, or worse, might think that Nohr coerced you into joining them.  No, we have to fight to show them that Corrin picked them over the Hoshidan siblings!  ...guys.  Guys, this is really petty.  Like...really petty.  I’m starting to have second thoughts.

I will note that, if Corrin fights with certain siblings in this map, you get a bit of extra dialogue.  I didn’t get Hinoka’s dialogue with Corrin, but Takumi’s is mostly him being like “I knew you’d betray us.”  Yeah, I guess even Takumi saw how boring his family was and knew I’d go back to the cool kid’s club.  That said, your dialogue with Sakura is fucked up, man.  Sakura can’t even fight, you run up to her and she’s like “Corrin, are you really going to fight me?”  And Corrin just goes “No, I just...need you to take a long nap...”  I know you mean knocking her unconscious, but damn, that’s harsh.

After the conflict, Azura tells you that your choice can’t be undone, but you’re sure to see each other again.  Jakob arrives and tells you he’s been looking for you.  You also run into Lilith.  Jakob’s confusion here is great.  Anyway, this brings us into My Castle for the first real time, and we can start setting up.  You know what that means!  The entire rest of this is going to be me VIOLENTLY COMPLAINING about My Castle!

Fuck this goddamn shitheap.  I hate it.  I think half the detriment to gameplay is right here, in this fucking place.  Let’s start with the worst: artificial resource collection.  There are 12 resources and 10 kinds of food.  Resources are used to upgrade your weapons, with different weapons needing different types of stones.  The stones, I believe, are separated into 6 for Nohr, 6 for Hoshido.  You need a veritable assload of resources to forge one weapon, and the level you can forge is pretty low.  You also need copies of said weapon at the same level, in order to forge up.  So you may be wondering, if I’m playing Nohr, and money is tight...how do I get the resources for this?  Short answer: you don’t.  Forging is so goddamned expensive you can’t realistically do it without the DLC.  More importantly, you only get one unit of resource from your own castle, and only of one type.  To get others, you need to go to other castles with wireless features, and do all that.  Then, you can also get bonuses for how often you visit or battle the other castles.  Oh, and the cap is 9999.  So...good luck with that, I guess.

“Wait, battle?” you ask.  Yes, you can battle other players in their castle!  Finally, Fire Emblem has PvP!  ...kinda?  The other team is AI controlled, so it’s not proper PvP, but they’re trying, I guess.  Anyway, what’s really funny is no one really does that.  PvP in this kind of game is stupid.  Why?  Because when you win, you can buy a skill from your opponent at a discounted rate, if you have the same character!  So, remember having to choose an alternate class for Corrin at the start of the game?  Let’s take my choice, Samurai.  Samurai can learn Vantage.  However, by choosing this path, I locked myself out of, say, Knight class, so I can’t get Pavise.  I can rectify this by going to the castle of someone who did pick Knight, and learn their Pavise skill by beating their castle, and they in turn could get Vantage by beating my team.  Now, put on your thinking caps, kids.  What is most valuable for everyone: setting up a proper fighting team, or setting up your units to be far away from the Seize point and letting them just run up to capture it?  The second, obviously.  They get skills, you get more visits from people who want things from you, and everything is great.  If you actually defend your castle?  You’re an asshole, and are what’s wrong with society.  Now this also creates other issues.  Marriage options in this game allow you to reclass to the classes of the person you married as well.  This means that, in essence, you can get every possible skills on any unit, depending on your pairing choices.  So finding people who chose differently is imperitive.  But there’s no way to find people who chose differently with any sort of reliability, so you’re sunk.

Now, the flipside there is that Awakening didn’t have this.  You had the classes and skills that were inherent to you, and nothing else.  I do like the idea of better balancing the kids and adults by expanding what the adults can learn, but the problem is that this whole process is tedious.  The only way to find those other skills is to locate someone online who is sharing their information, hasn’t updated their castle since sharing that information, and is apparently in the same country as you.  But more importantly?  Half the enjoyment of this kind of system is that units don’t play the same.  But now...they kinda do.  Anyone can be anything, but certain skills are definitely better than others.  There are certain combinations, but mostly you keep to a few tried and true configurations and don’t deviate.  So when you randomly go to castles hoping maybe someone will have Nyx with something unique, they tend to all have the same characters (lords or kids), and generally have the same skills throughout.

That said, there is one hysterical outcome of this, and that’s hacking.  Apparently, they didn’t think it would happen to them, or just weren’t prepared, but people immediately found a way to hack Aptitude onto every character in existence, and it spread like wildfire through this system.  So in a way, for anyone who is anti-hacking (which should be no one, but I know better), this system allowed everyone to be a cheater!  Even when you didn’t directly cheat, you still have cheats on!  Hell, even Hoshidan Unity is floating around all over, and I’m pretty sure that was an exclusive skill too!  Anything can be anywhere thanks to hacking, and this unnecessary system!

Then we have the Dragon Points, which you need to upgrade facilities.  You only get them from clearing maps and visiting other castles.  It’s another slow resource you need a lot of, because eventually you get statues of your units that, when created, increase their specific boon stat by up to 3 points for everyone who is well-supported with them.  So have fun farming dragon points out too!  Technically, you can do a bunch of these things at once, but it’s astonishing how, in a game all about quickly going from map to map and figuring out the strategy, their best idea for a central hub was a location that required you to stop actually playing the game for hours to farm materials.  Brilliantly done.

And this doesn’t even get into the controversial areas.  Prison is one, where you can capture enemy units and convert them to your side through...apparently torture?  I’ve heard that some lines suggest rape as torture, but I don’t know that for sure and I am so not willing to find out.  I don’t think Prison is actually necessary to improve, so I won’t even be building it.  Oh, right, fun facts: you need to upgrade some of these facilities to their max to recruit specific characters.  Flora won’t join you unless you have Fire Orb at rank 3, for some fucking reason.  I’m all for hidden characters, but that’s just obtuse.

The other is the most notorious one: the face-rubbing minigame.  I...god, what the hell were they thinking with this?  Guys, it was only cute in Pokemon because you want to give your little pupper Growlithe head pets.  They’re animals, and you’re petting animals, as is good and proper.  But these are humans, and you’re inviting them into your bedroom to stroke their face.  The US version got rid of it for your general cast, and only allows it for your wife/husband choice, but that’s...really not any better.  At all.  This mechanic never should’ve been in the game in the first place.  It’s creepy and uncomfortable, and I hate knowing it’s there.

I’m sure there will be other things for me to complain about, but for now, that’s all that immediately comes to mind.  The short of it is, I hate My Castle.  It was a terrible idea that does nothing but stall out gameplay for far too long, and completely invalidated the concept of making people choose a sub-class in the first place.  Half the fun should’ve been working with the pairings to get the shared skills to work in some combination, and instead you just play My Castle until you have the access to things.  Which costs money, so good luck with that.  I know, I know.  I can always play without those elements.  But the fact that they exist at all, and that I need tremendous amounts of resources just to forge weapons or upgrade the facilities here, means I may as well get skills while I’m doing it.  “Why don’t you just not forge weapons and use the stronger ones as the game progresses naturally?”  Ooohoho, friend.  Buddy.  Listen.  That’s another shout-fest for another day.  Safe to say, there’s a damned good reason you can’t just do that.

Ugh, this is making me irritable.  I think I’m gonna sit the rest of the evening out on this one.  If I’m gonna be fair to the game, I can’t be this riled while playing, so next part tomorrow, because tomorrow is, thankfully, a holiday.