#meanwhile with kensuke

[koushirouizumi]

Meanwhile with DigiAdvs 02 [...and some O.C.s]

Inter-national O.C. Chosen Shane, whom is now fully ? ?? 'revived': ... ... ... Shane: ... (While I'm {Still} Here) Shane: I need ... to... swing by 'that' place again. Daisuke, didn't hear: Huh? Shane, to Ken: Uh, I'm going for a "walk"--- KEN, FLATLY: No You Aren't Shane: ("SH*T") Ken: I'll call for someone to take you... to where you 'want to go'. (Though we technically 'can' drive, we don't own a car, and...) It's dangerous to try "walking" there on your own, you're still physically weak. Ken: (You've already almost been hit ONCE.) Shane: ... I'm not a child. (I'm *your* age) Ken: ... Ken: (*sends message Ken was writing*) Anyhow... I'm sure they'll be here shortly. Shane: ... (*Short-ish time passes but still some time*) Takeru, entering Ken+Daisuke's 'place': ... SHANE: ... Takeru: Oh, hello. Ken told me you were "here". SHANE, Narrowed Eyes in Ken's direction: Ken, Shrugging: Takeru "knows Takeru's way around" here best out of everyone else, so... Shane: ... (It's not that Takeru 'can't know' but.) Takeru: I can call a taxi. I've done that before Takeru: ... Anyway, should we go ? Shane, Internally SIGHING: (Guess I Have To.) Daisuke: (Good luck, man...)

[dopscratch]

ok well it looks like there's a little more than five of you

so uh

i started writing a little bit and yknow when i said laios is literally me?

yeah i think i was born to write him

anyway here's a treat for you all, the very first draft of the first few paragraphs of A Culinary Guide to the Barbaric Archipelago

feedback is much appreciated this will probably look fairly different once i end up actually publishing :)

also keep in mind i've only watched the show so if anything seems inaccurate just tell me (preferably spoiler-free/spoiler-light) ___

Laios had no idea what these monsters were, and the thought only excited him. They had shown up as he and his party were traversing a high-ceilinged region in the fifth floor, and everyone was fumbling to fend them off. They were large, frighteningly fast, and were constantly in motion, enough that they were nothing but a near-indecipherable blur as they screeched through the air. 

Marcille had tried exploding them to no avail, the spells hitting nothing but a crumbling wall. Not a single swing of Kensuke had managed to so much as clip them, and fabric shreds floated through the air like autumn leaves as they tore through the party’s items with their talons. Chilchuck was screaming as he ducked and weaved, dodging the masses with some success. Meanwhile, Senshi busied himself trying to recover all of his fallen ingredients after one of the creature’s claws had torn off his pot and ripped open his supply bag, scattering its contents among the bricks. He didn’t even flinch when one sent sparks flying from his helmet. The only things that Laios could make out through the streaks were shimmering scales and sharp talons—either a reptilian or bird-type monster. Well, he’d read once that birds technically were reptiles anyway, but that was certainly besides the point, plus, monsters of either type generally still had their differences...though now that he thought about it, they often were encountered together—Basilisks, Cockatrices, and Coatuls were all combinations of snakes and birds, and white dragons had bird wings—wait, maybe that was why Falin had feathers! He’d thought it greedy at first, to have so many cool features together, but when he really considered it, regular birds had always had scales, on their legs at least! So then, maybe the feathers were just a natural part of it after all! Maybe...

“Maybe dragons aren’t just reptilian monsters, but a special type of bird monster!” Laios didn’t even realize he’d said anything aloud until Chilchuck turned his ire to him.

“What? How does that even matter!? Get a grip, Laios! We need to get the hell out of here!” the half-foot yelled. He grabbed onto Laios’s arm, but before he could try to tug the larger man away, he ducked to avoid an incoming blur. Marcille was having similar issues.

“Forget the food, we need to go!” She shrieked, trying to dissuade Senshi from the Sisyphean task that was collecting his things. Every time he made any sort of progress, a passing monster would swoop in to take a swipe at him, the passing wind sending everything flying once more.

__

first person to guess which httyd dragon is harassing them gets a doodle of your choice from me :)

ALSO, i am debating when in the books i want to set it. on one hand, setting it after the events of all the books could create some interesting dynamics with the main httyd gang and the touden party, though on the other hand that'd make it a lot less accessible for non-httyd readers and also just a massive spoiler fest. so i think setting it sometime before book 8 would also be fun and be able to accomplish what i want it to. and maybe even setting it before/during book 1 could be cool so i could play off of the interactions with the green death, though of course that would also be sacrificing the other httyd characters's development.

either way i think the main plot is that the touden party eats their way across the barbaric archipelago and hiccup horrendous haddock the third the hope and heir to the tribe of hairy hooligans just wants to find out why all the wild dragons are getting so agressive

also ziggerastica is just having a fit

[karizard-ao3]

Can you make up some shenanigans related to Shinji cooking / baking? Hikari, Asuka's best friend, also loves to cook if it helps

Okay, so I was thinking: what if it's Asuka's birthday? Hikari wants to throw her a party and Shinji does also so they join forces to plan her a German feast. The problem is that Shinji has tried to make her German food in the past but he put a Japanese spin on it because he followed a Japanese recipe and Asuka was kind of a bitch about it. So they are committed to authenticity, which means they have to make sausage and whatnot completely from scratch and a lot of the ingredients are not easy to get in Japan.

Asuka, not knowing why Shinji and Hikari keep traveling all over Japan together, is in an absolute snit. She's been talking about her birthday to everyone but no one seems to care??? Are Shinji and Hikari dating? Oh, she hates him so much!

They have to do the prep work at Hikari's house so she doesn't discover the strings of bratwurst and liverwurst or the jars of sauerkraut pickling.

Misato is charged with keeping her busy on the big day so she takes her shopping and Asuka complains the whole time and Misato keeps trying to gently imply she needs to chill but Asuka is not getting it.

Meanwhile, Toji and Kensuke have been enlisted to help cook and they are absolute disasters. Shinji has to keep dropping what he's doing to stop them from adding the wrong ingredients to the schnitzel or doing a complete hack job when they slice the cucumbers, which means Hikari needs to watch his pans as well as hers. Eventually, they kick Toji and Kensuke out of the kitchen and put them on decorating duty.

At some point Rei shows up with the karaoke machine and party hats and helps set the table. Kaji arrives with the cake right before Misato and Asuka get back. They turn out the lights and wait.

"Shinji is such an idiot!" Asuka is in the middle of shouting when Misato pushes open the door and Kaji flips on the lights.

"Surprise!" everyone shouts.

Asuka snaps her mouth shut, overwhelmed for a moment, then immediately starts chortling like, "I knew you were planning something for me all along! Of course you were! How could anyone forget my birthday?"

While they eat, Hikari tells Asuka how hard they worked to find everything for the meal, and that Shinji especially wouldn't give up, calling all these shops to see if they had what they needed to make Asuka's favorite foods from home. Asuka blows it off at the time, but after everyone goes home and everything is cleaned up (Kensuke and Toji are a lot better at washing dishes than cooking them), they turn on the TV. Asuka sits down next to Shinji and puts her head on his shoulder and mumbles, "thanks"

[themoonbunni]

Photos from Anime Expo Chibi!

We ended up seeing a Sphynx cat named Astro, he was so so cute!!! I loved him so much gngng 💜💜

And the Senshi cosplayer was so chill! Apparently his was a closet cosplay, you'd never guess!

Also yes I am wearing a maid cosplay lol

And ohhhh my goodness, how I wish I got the Laios and Falin cosplayer's deets, they were so so funny! He let me hold Kensuke TvT Meanwhile he used my cane like an old man LOL

And GIANT EEVEEEEE! MY BBY!

[autistictojisuzuharafan11]

Toji in a suit

*meanwhile kensuke and shinji having a gay panic*

[yeonchi]

Kisekae Insights #46: Kamen Rider Zi-O Part 4 - King’s Dominion

“The powers of the Kamen Riders have finally been inherited. Now, the curtain rises on the final battle to decide the true king of time. Joyful all ye nations rise, join the triumph of the skies!”

The finale arc of the original Zi-O was something I definitely wanted to improve on. Despite the series being about time, the finale arc changed focus to it being about Rider worlds, cementing its status of being Decade 2.0. With all plots and footage available from the entire series used up, the plots for the final arc of the series are adapted from the final episodes of Kamen Rider Zero-One, which still worked to my benefit despite the pandemic affecting production of that series.

Let’s dive into the final arc of the series and see how my adaptation skills fared.

Episode 31: Scaredy Boys and Fearless Girls ~ Between Quartzer 2019 ~

Adapted from the Hyper Battle DVD Kamen Rider BiBiBi no BibillGeiz and Decade episodes 24 and 25. This was originally going to be separate DVD extras/specials until I realised that I needed a filler episode and the specials were short enough that I could combine them into one.

The boys and girls get their own focus in this episode. In the first half, Sougo, Kazuto and Mark set up a haunted school for Geiz after he got scared the night before watching classic Doctor Who. As everyone realises that the school could be actually haunted, Geiz obtains the Bibill Ridewatch.

Meanwhile in the second half, Luna has breakfast with Akari, Narutaki and Veronica. They were originally waiting on Kayley, but she was being held up by a Makamou named Chinomanako who steals her Diend Gunmorpher (non-X). The Makamou uses it to transform into Chinomanako Diend aka Gedou Diend, a hybrid Another Rider who can summon monsters through the Gunmorpher.

Kensuke breaks his partnership with Swartz as he sets the Quartzer Riders on him. The girls manage to defeat Gedou Diend, but Swartz uses the non-X Gunmorpher’s power to create the Diend Anotherwatch. Despite this setback, the girls head for an overnight hot springs trip before Luna comes home to the boys who are still spooked over what happened at the haunted school.

In other scenes, the other Sougo becomes Ohma Zi-O; Changyue recalls how he paid two Soulbound villains to create a distraction so he can steal the technology for the Ridewatches, Ziku Drivers and Time Mazines; and Swartz meets with Heure and Ora and gives them the Diend and Gold Drive Anotherwatches…

Episode 32: An Eternal Party ~ Another World 2019 ~

Adapted from Zi-O episodes 44, 45 and 46, namely the Another Worlds arc but without Another Drive because that’s already been done. Sougo’s birthday is rejoiced in this episode.

Previously, we had Woz servants for Sougo and Geiz, namely Kazuto (Black Woz) and Kensuke (White Woz), but this episode features a new Woz named Akihito Hayasaka (Red Woz), who serves the queen of time Tsukuyomi ABC and transforms into Kamen Rider Woz The Next, taking the place of Kamen Rider Aqua in the adaptation of this arc. However, Luna makes it clear to Akihito that even if were to become the queen of time, she won’t rule unless Sougo and Geiz are with her.

Heure and Ora make their appearance as Another Diend and Another Gold Drive as they fight Tsukuyomi and Woz The Next followed by Proto Woz and the Quartzer Riders. This is just after Swartz sent them into another world to fight G4, Fuma, Dark Ghost and Rey.

Tetsuya Iwanaga reprises his role as Yūni Yamishima, aka Kamen Rider Eternal, and to be honest, I didn’t picture him hitting as hard compared to Mitsuru Matsuoka as Katsumi Daidou. Oh well, Iwanaga’s the only guy we could get who can fluently speak English.

E-Zen Tiforp returns from episode 2 and new OCs Rainbow Lightspeed and Alchemic Flower are introduced. Replacing Yukihiro from the Den-O tribute in the original is Another Fourze/Faiz from episode 3, whose Another World has him seeing his girlfriend alive and well. Proto Woz’s summoned Rider is Mad Rogue, who engages Tsukuyomi as Proto Woz fights Woz Ginga Finally as part of their plan to send the two of them into Geiz’s Another World. As part of this plan, Kensuke also steals his Future Note back from Narutaki.

Episode 33: The Power of ABC ~ [REDACTED] Would Bang 2014 ~

Adapted from the Over Quartzer movie.

The title of this episode is a reference to Akari Ichigo and her real name, which has been redacted for privacy reasons. Basically in Year 9, people continued to learn about my crush on Akari and one of the boys managed to rhyme a shortened version of her name with “would bang”. The year 2014 in the title is a reference to Akari Ichigo being the main villain of the two Doctor Who series I produced and broadcast in that year.

In the last episode, Kensuke went back in time and recruited two villains relating to Hiroki’s past in different timelines (as parallel isotopes); in 2014, he recruits Akari Ichigo, who had just killed her husband in their final battle, then in 2013, he recruits the main villain of The Name of Hiroki Ichigo, who had spread himself all over Hiroki’s timestream inside his grave on Trenzalore - let’s call him Hisahide Matsunaga. In case I haven’t mentioned him before, Hisahide was one of my fans at high school in Year 7 and 8 who started teasing me when he got put in my class in Year 9. Together, Hiryuu Kakogawa, Hisahide Matsunaga and Evil Akari Ichigo are Kamen Riders Barlckxs (pronounced “Barukus” but not like “Baracus”), Zonjis and Zamonas. The three Riders can use the power of the Ancient Kamen Rider Ridewatches to utilise powers associated with them. Hiryuu’s goal with Quartzer is to restart the Heisei era from scratch, not his Superboy-Prime attitude of “things were better in the Showa era!” which was what he said in the final stage show.

Later, Swartz has Heure and Ora recreate the remaining Another Riders that hadn’t been recreated previously by forcibly contracting people; if an Another Rider is created and destroyed twice, the Time Jackers can summon them as they please without requiring contracts. As the Time Jackers come into conflict with Barlckxs’ group, Kensuke confronts Sougo’s group and sends duplicates of the Sisterhood of Karn to fight them. The defeat of Sougo’s group in that battle leads Luna to agree to Akihito’s offer for a new power and he uses the power of Geiz Revive and Woz Ginga Finally to create the Tsukuyomi ABC Ridewatch, which combines with the power of Ohma Zi-O to allow her to assume her upgrade/super form, Tsukuyomi ABC.

At the end of the episode, Akihito gives Sougo the Woz Ridewatch. It is also revealed that Akihito is working with Kensuke and Quartzer as he is sent to go undercover with the Time Jackers…

Episode 34: Assorted Spirits of the Past ~ Villain of the Chaos 2013 ~

Adapted from Zi-O’s final stage show.

In a similar vein to the last episode, the year 2013 in the title is a reference to The Name of Hiroki Ichigo being produced and broadcast in that year. The tagline is a reference to how Hisahide Matsunaga prided himself as a villain in Samurai Warriors 4.

Akihito obtains two blank Ridewatches from Swartz, then uses one of them to turn the Dark Ninja into Another Ninja in 2022. Once Another Ninja is destroyed by Ninja, Okachi and Mizuna, Akihito uses the other blank Ridewatch to create another Ninja Anotherwatch, which he uses on Iroha Kagura in 2019. Kensuke makes contact with the three Riders and offers to help them stop Another Ninja as he brings them to 2019.

Back in 2019, the Time Jackers recreate Another Shinobi, Another Quiz and Another Kikai as well and set them on the Ninja Riders as they fight Another Ninja. Sougo and his friends arrive at the scene only for Kensuke to send the Dorks out at them. As Zi-O’s side manages to gain the upper hand, Kensuke demoralises Zi-O by revealing that in 2013 of the actual (Hiroki’s) timeline, he would murder the Dorks’ leader. Upon returning home, Mirror World Sougo berates Sougo for getting scared over killing one person in the future when he would end up killing many more people as Ohma Zi-O. Hearing his friends talking about his past, Sougo heads downstairs to explain himself, which is received by reassurance from the others that it isn’t his fault that people see him differently.

Elsewhere, Hiroki and Kayley are upgrading their K-Touches to be compatible with their X equipment, creating the K-Touch 21 for Hiroki and the Ultimate Complete Form upgrade for Kayley with the help of Firerose, Narutaki and Akari contributing their powers and assistance to streamline the Rider powers more efficiently.

Later, Akihito brings Lugiel, Copper Plume and Rally Flag to fight Hiryuu’s group while the Time Jackers and Another Riders attack the city, where they are met by Kensuke and the Ninja Riders, who in turn are met by Sougo and his friends. Sougo and Geiz use Zi-O Woz Armor and Geiz Bibill Armor in the ensuing fight alongside Woz Ginga Finally and Tsukuyomi ABC, though they end up having to upgrade to Grand Zi-O and Geiz Revive. Hiroki and his friends also arrive, with Hiroki and Kayley debuting their new extra final forms, Decade Complete Form 21 and Diend Ultimate Complete Form. The other Sougo sees this battle happening and summons Rentarou, Isamichi, Reimondo and Handles to help defeat their Another Rider counterparts.

At the end of the battle, Rentarou and Isamichi see that Another Ninja was actually Iroha and they encourage her to enrol in the Leapfrog Ninja Academy so she can protect herself. Akari Ichigo reveals to her husband that because the Future Riders didn’t originally exist in this timeline, they are contributing to the worsening distortions in time and space, which leads Hiroki to finally decide that this world will be destroyed. With this battle, the Time Jackers have their full Another Rider Army.

Episode 35: Sonika Unleashed ~ Second Coming 2020 ~

So, you know how I initially cancelled my plans for Crestor Calandia as Another OOO after Chris-chan’s arrest in late-July 2021? Nearly a year later, it was revealed that Chris was attempting to get his mother placed in an aged care home in order to be able to return to 14BC. I think you can see what inspired me to write this original filler episode.

Sougo and his friends are walking on the waterfront when they notice an island in the distance that was never there before. Sougo and Geiz go to investigate and they discover that Swartz and Kensuke are investigating as well. Agreeing to a truce for the time being, the four of them discover that they are in this project’s version of Cwcville, namely Hayasaka. As the four are attacked by the Sonikas and Rosekas within Hayasaka, their comrades are being attacked back on Minato-Sugaru Island and are forced to retreat after being overwhelmed. This scene’s battle features the main Sougo using Decade Armor Origin (because Decade’s power was given back to Hiroki though he still had a remnant of it for Grand Zi-O) and the return of Geiz Genm Armor. Yeah, I’m one to highlight lesser-used forms to get more value for money out of them.

Later, Hiroki and his group head to the mysterious island to investigate while Crestor Calandia goes to 9TO5 to get Mark to clean three medallions. From Hiroki requesting Shinbu Serizawa to do some research in the Reading Room and Crestor talking to Mark, we get the backstory of this situation; Megumi Sonozaki snitched on Crestor’s “soul bonding” with his mother Beatrice and was forced out of his home by police, at which point he also “borrowed” some money from his mother’s account. Crestor was arrested for this, but during the trial, his previous crimes and transgressions were taken into account because his universe is one that has no sympathy for eccentrics like Crestor. As a result, Crestor was imprisoned in Stormcage, the most secure prison in his universe.

Even though Crestor remained largely compliant and resigned to his fate, he managed to manifest psychic powers over time and escape with the help of Sonika and his comrades, eventually managing to commandeer a spaceship and escape to Sougo’s universe. The authorities in Crestor’s universe have authorised a shoot-to-kill order on sight because they have been unable to contain his power.

After meeting back up with Sougo, Hiroki overhears Mark’s call with him and upon hearing medallions being mentioned, they and their friends quickly rush to 9TO5, but they are unable to stop him charging up his medallions and prevent the second coming of Crestor. Following this, Sougo and Hiroki’s groups team up with the Time Jackers and Quartzer to fight Crestor and his forces. During the battle, Zi-O briefly notices Another Decade defending Another Diend and Another Gold Drive from being ambushed.

Crestor and his forces are all defeated, but the island where Hayasaka stands flies out of the ocean and to the location of the battle as it shoots at everyone. It is revealed that the Crestor they fought was just an avatar; the real Crestor is inside the mayor’s office, which is the cockpit for his spaceship that was disguised as an island. Barlckxs, Zonjis and Zamonas sabotage the ship with their Ancient Rider powers before the Riders destroy it with their Rider Kicks.

Episode 36: A Girl Named [Akari] ~ Showdown 2019 ~

Adapted from Zero-One episodes 34, 35, 37 and 41.

This episode was named after Akari Ichigo’s real-life inspiration like I didn’t do just that 3 episodes ago. During this final week of episodes, Kazuto begins counting down the pages until the end of the world.

After Sougo and his friends defeat some of Sougo’s old enemies that were summoned by Kensuke, Swartz confronts them as Another Decade, proclaiming that he will subjugate humanity and create a paradise for the oppressed. It is then that Button Mash comes from nowhere and attacks Another Decade; Another Decade shoves him off, but his father, Janbit, stands between them, not wanting to let his son be hurt. Later, Swartz recalls how he protected his family on separate occasions in the last few episodes. Sougo also realises this and decides to help Swartz remember who he really is.

Meanwhile, Kensuke goes to the 2012 of Hiroki’s timeline and creates another parallel isotope; namely that of Akari Ichigo around the time when the Hiroki of that time became Sougo. Using his Future Note, Kensuke manages to send 2012 Akari through an Aurora Curtain into 2019. As Sougo fights Swartz in an attempt to convince the latter that he was a father before he became a Time Jacker, Heure joining in the battle before Swartz ends up defending him, 2012 Akari suddenly appears. The sight of her causes Sougo to regain the rest of his memories (which he had been slowly regaining since episode 30) and he quickly takes 2012 Akari away, only managing to escape the pursuit of the Quartzer Riders thanks to Woz Ginga Taiyo.

As Parker and his army decide to make camp on the island following heated tensions on the mainland, Sougo introduces 2012 Akari to his friends at 9TO5. The reason why Sougo hasn’t fully regained his memories despite meeting Akari previously is because 2012 Akari is from the same time period as Sougo and thus is in sync with him. Kensuke tells Hiryuu’s group that 2012 Akari is Sougo’s lynchpin to becoming Ohma Zi-O.

2021 Akari tells her younger self about what will happen to her in the future despite Hiroki warning what would happen if she did that. Sure enough, 2012 Akari becomes horrified by this and runs off. Hiroki receives a report from his comrades back home, who inform him that paradoxes are forming in his world and having two parallel isotopes of Akari are causing them to expand faster. Meanwhile, Kensuke reveals Quartzer to the world in a press conference and announces their intention to eradicate the Time Jackers. As the two groups meet up with their forces and begin fighting each other, Sougo goes to help Swartz while the others help find 2012 Akari. This might go against Sougo’s character, but even if he decided to go find Akari, chances are she’d continue running.

Zi-O manages to defend Another Decade from Proto Woz’s Time Explosion to show Another Decade that despite his goals, he still cares for his family. The two of them agree to a truce and they work together to defeat Proto Woz, who angrily retreats. Though Swartz admits that he underestimated Sougo, he makes it clear that his stance on humanity still hasn’t changed.

Meanwhile, the others find 2012 Akari, who says that she doesn’t want to see Sougo again if it means he will become a monster (not the vilest and evilest demonic overlord, though). They convince 2012 Akari that 2019 is the best place for her to be right now because of all the paradoxes and she eventually agrees to stay at 9TO5 as their new tenant.

Episode 37: The All Riders All-Out Attack ~ Ohma Time 2068 ~

Adapted from Zi-O episode 49 and Zero-One episode 42.

2012 Akari dreams about being saved from Ohma Zi-O by Sougo, only to be shoved aside as Swartz transforms into Another Decade Complete and rushes at Ohma Zi-O. Akari wakes up after this and heads downstairs to find Sougo, who had woken up a bit too early. The two decide to go on an early morning walk when they are attacked by Hiryuu, Hisahide and Evil Akari, who defeat Sougo and steal the Zi-O II and Grand Zi-O Ridewatches.

As Queen Fifi, Angelina and Karen Brewer meet with Parker, Kensuke combines the power of the Grand Zi-O Ridewatch into the Zi-O II Ridewatch, which is the key to Sougo becoming Ohma Zi-O. He also adds in battle data from Sougo’s friends and the Quartzer Riders, which will allow the power of each and every Rider to be drawn to Ohma Zi-O like a magnet.

Sougo is brought back to 9TO5 as he is returned the Grand Zi-O Ridewatch in a package. Meanwhile, the first of the enemy fleets arrive on the island as Parker readies his army to defend it, with the Legend Riders assisting in the defence as well. Seeing the chaos happening, Swartz hijacks a news crew’s cameras and announces that the Time Jackers’ subjugation of humanity begins now.

Swartz summons half of his Another Rider Army, but 2012 Akari goes to him and tries to convince him to stop the fighting, telling him to look into his heart and believe in humanity. Swartz, however, says to 2012 Akari that he doesn’t need a heart because he never had one, before proceeding to kill her with an energy blast. Swartz was originally an AI program; an avatar created by Hiroki and placed in a supercomputer with the purpose of looking after his former wife and even his creator when the time came for it, only to go rogue and break out with his family to enact his revenge against humanity.

As Zi-O is fighting the Another Rider Army with his friends, he hears an explosion and goes to find the dying 2012 Akari, who tells him that if he loves her, then he should help Swartz find his heart. Suddenly, all the Riders who hadn’t given their powers away or had their powers stolen, save for Sougo’s friends, Decade, Diend, Kuuga and Shugo, suddenly find themselves detransformed as their powers are stolen; the only reason why it doesn’t happen to the latter four is because they voluntarily channeled a portion of their power into Ridewatches.

As the Time Jackers confront Geiz, Woz and Tsukuyomi, the battle is suddenly intruded by Ohma Zi-O; Sougo’s voice menacingly ordering Kazuto to rejoice is what reveals him to have become the ultimate king of time; the true Ohma’s Day has arrived. Another Decade tries to take Ohma Zi-O’s power for himself but the power overloads him as Ohma Zi-O easily shrugs him off. Ohma Zi-O launches an attack that detransforms everyone before being detransformed himself due to being overwhelmed by his new power. It is revealed that Evil Akari absorbed 2012 Akari’s body into the Zi-O II Ridewatch and gave it back to Sougo, who uses it in his Ziku Driver to turn it into the Ohma Zi-O Driver and thus transform into Ohma Zi-O. The end of the episode has Sougo breaking down into tears as Evil Akari tells him that she will be by his side, addressing him as her God Almighty…

Episode 38: Overlords and Gods ~ Judgement Dawn 2003 ~

Adapted from Zero-One episode 43.

Ohma Zi-O goes to the mainland and passes judgement on Sougo’s past-life enemies by using his powers to brutally kill them. Heure asks Swartz why he killed 2012 Akari, to which a guilt-ridden Swartz says that all he did was execute justice. Quartzer reveals to Sougo’s friends that Sougo has not only become the vilest and evilest demonic overlord, but he has also become the purest and dearest god and judge of humanity (最浄最愛の神様), much to Kazuto’s disdain of his overlord being addressed in such a manner. Akihito also reveals to Sougo’s friends that he was working for Quartzer all along.

Back at 9TO5, Geiz and Luna are hesitant to tell Mark the truth but Kazuto does it for them, saying that they can’t lie to him when the fate of two timelines is at stake. As such, the three promise that they will bring Sougo back to normal. Hiroki and his friends come in and they are filled in on what is happening.

Sougo later heads back to Minato-Sugaru Island where he is confronted by Hiryuu, who mocks Sougo for saying that he wouldn’t become the vilest and evilest demonic overlord before becoming one anyway. The two of them fight, but Ohma Zi-O manages to defeat him. Sougo’s friends try to stop him, but he brushes them off. The other Sougo calls him out for losing his way; the two Ohma Zi-Os fight and the other Ohma Zi-O is beaten; he notes that he could feel an even deeper sorrow in the main Zi-O’s attacks and offers his help, only to be met by silence.

Sougo then uses his powers to see into different timelines of himself and manipulate Hiroki’s timeline. This would be seen by Hiroki, who transforms into Decade Complete Form 21 to fight him, knowing the truth about who continually manipulated his timeline. Sougo responds in kind by transforming into Ohma Zi-O and projecting the memories around him into Decade’s brain. However, Decade retaliates by projecting memories of himself and his friends in his own timeline like how the Thirteenth Doctor escaped the Matrix (with the instrumental chorus to Journey Through the Decade playing in the background). The two of them defeat each other and Hiroki manages to escape.

Swartz assembles the other half of his Another Rider Army as Sougo confronts him in battle…

Episode 39: Find Your Heart ~ Twilight Dusk 2018 ~

Adapted from the Geiz Majesty special and Zero-One episodes 43 and 44.

Ohma Zi-O fights Another Decade. After making quick work of the Another Rider Army, Ohma Zi-O prepares to finish off Another Decade only for Heure as Another Diend to leap in and take the attack, which kills him. As Zi-O leaves, Hisahide arrives and uses a blank Ridewatch to absorb Heure’s body and create the Decade Complete Anotherwatch.

Swartz announces that Sougo has become Ohma Zi-O and because he killed Heure, there will be no place for him in his paradise of the oppressed, making his crusade against humanity personal. As Sougo runs away out of fear and guilt at Parker and his friends constantly asking him questions upon seeing him, Swartz goes to the mainland and does the same thing Sougo did when he became Zi-O, which is to initiate his powers by killing Sougo���s past-life enemies. Later, Ora meets with Swartz and tries to tell him that he has a heart, but his mind is too clouded by the desire for revenge to even realise it.

The Kamen Riders have split into two camps; with the exception of those affiliated with Sougo, Hiroki, Kayley, the Kougami Foundation, Torchwood North or Quartzer, the Riders are marching around the island to demand answers from Sougo regarding his actions and the loss of their powers. Among one of the protesting groups, Marcello pushes through the barricade and charges towards Yūki Tachibana, leading him to be held down as a result. Yūki orders Birth to fire at Marcello’s head; as Birth hesitates, Luna and Kazuto arrive and tell them not to shoot. At the town centre, Parker and his comrades also plead with another group of protesters to believe that Sougo will find the true way of becoming a hero.

Elsewhere, Geiz finds Sougo with the intent to carry out his promise of killing him when he became the vilest and evilest demonic overlord; Kayley arrives as well to ask Sougo if he is betraying his own dreams and the hearts of the Kamen Riders who entrusted their powers to him. Kayley throws a spare K-Touch to Geiz, which becomes the Geiz Majesty Ridewatch that Geiz uses to fight Ohma Zi-O, only to end up failing.

Later that night, Sougo recalls Geiz and Kayley’s words as he is lost in his own thoughts. It is then that he hears the vaguely familiar sound of a materialising TARDIS, with the Doctor coming out to talk to Sougo…

The next day, the Riders have agreed to stop protesting as Geiz and Hiroki’s groups meet with Yūki Tachibana. Ora is revealed to be present as well, giving them the Diend Anotherwatch in the hope that they can restore Heure’s consciousness because like Swartz, he was an avatar as well.

Meanwhile, Sougo and Swartz finally meet as they transform into Ohma Zi-O and Another Decade Complete to duke it out once and for all…

Episode 40: Parting in the Daybreak Hour ~ Apocalypse Over Quartzer 2019 ~

Adapted from Zero-One episode 45, Zi-O episode 49, the Over Quartzer movie, the final stage show, Reiwa The First Generation and the Geiz Majesty special along with Ryuki episode 50.

Fun fact: The Japanese translation of this title would be 彼は誰時に別れ (Kawataredoki ni wakare). Just as Ōmagatoki 逢魔時 refers to the witching hour, or the sunset, Kawataredoki 彼は誰時 refers to the daybreak hour, a time when you can’t tell someone’s presence in the dark, or the sunrise (I’ve seen it refer to the sunset as well, but Wikipedia seems to make reference to the the sunrise so it was a good complement).

Ohma Zi-O and Another Decade Complete fight to determine the true king of time, this battle being a reflection of their adapted roles as Aruto Hiden as Ark-One and Horobi as Ark Scorpion. During this battle, there are Legend Rider weapons scattered around which are picked up and used by both opponents.

Meanwhile, Geiz and the others manage to resurrect Heure, who tells Kensuke, Akihito and the Quartzer trio that they don’t understand the real reason behind this battle as they have lost their righteous hearts. Another Decade Complete manages to defeat Ohma Zi-O as the latter puts his life at stake to show the former that he has a heart like anyone else. This was inspired by the Doctor’s words to Sougo, that true strength isn’t about how much power one has, but about what is in one’s heart. Swartz finally realises the impact of all the people he killed and admits that it was his fault that Heure sacrified himself, that he was scared of all the human feelings getting in the way, because despite what he may say, he does have a heart. Ohma Zi-O’s power leaves the Ohma Zi-O Driver and creates the Zi-O Over Quartzer Ridewatch, allowing Sougo to transform into Zi-O Quartzer, appearing identical to his default form. Zi-O manages to defeat Another Decade Complete with the Quartzer Time Break, but refraining from killing him as there isn’t a need for it anymore.

Heure and Ora meet with Swartz as Andrew, Hiroki and their friends meet with Sougo; they were able to restore Heure’s body after the Decade Complete Anotherwatch was destroyed, plus the Riders have regained their powers as well. The Zi-O Riders, Decade Riders and Time Jackers are confronted by Quartzer, who have brought an army of Kachinebots from the future. The enemy armies from the mainland begin invading the island, but they are held off by Parker and his allies. As the group transforms, Sougo transforms into Zi-O Quartzer while Geiz transforms into Il Salvatore Geiz thanks to some of the former’s power going to his Ridewatch (again appearing identical to his default form).

Most of the Quartzer Riders are defeated, but Proto Woz, Woz The Next and the Quartzer trio manage to defeat the Decade Riders and Time Jackers, before defeating Zi-O and Geiz as well. The Quartzer trio summon seven Dai Mazines from the future (instead of bring them back up from episode 8) to launch into space and link up in the sky, opening a portal into the Time Vortex that begins to suck up everything and everyone born in the Heisei era. Sougo is thrown into the Time Vortex as well and after a quick speech from Ohma Zi-O, transforms the Zi-O Quartzer Ridewatch into the Ohma Zi-O Ridewatch, which he uses to transform into Zi-O Ohma Form, officially inheriting the demonic overlord’s power.

The Kamen Riders, Time Jackers and Parker’s army work together to destroy the enemy armies and Kachinebots. Kensuke still remains undefeated, however; the Quartzer trio combine their personal Ridewatches together with the Ancient Rider Ridewatches and the Zi-O and Zi-O II Ridewatches to merge into Another Ohma Zi-O, while Kensuke and Akihito combine with the Woz Ridewatch and Ohma Zi-O’s power to merge into Another Ichigou.

As the other Riders are defeated, leaving only the primary Riders (in their final forms) and Geiz, the other Sougo arrives as Ohma Zi-O and assists the main Zi-O in fighting Another Ohma Zi-O. Hiryuu, through Another Ohma Zi-O, tells the main Zi-O that it is his fault the Heisei era is such as mess and asks him how much more he wants to mock him before he is satisfied, to which Zi-O tells him that he will lose because anyone who doesn’t look forward is only doomed to be left behind in the past.

Another Ohma Zi-O is defeated by Zi-O Ohma Form and Ohma Zi-O; as a weakened Another Ichigou sees this, he absorbs Another Ohma Zi-O into him to evolve into Another New Ichigou, acting as the giant Barlckxs from the Over Quartzer movie. Zi-O, Geiz and the primary Riders finish them off with the Heisei Rider Kick, kicking through a shield that Another New Ichigou conjures to form the kanji characters for Heisei (平成) before each Riders’ series logos fly out from the explosion. Another New Ichigou is destroyed along with the Quartzer commanders.

The other Sougo farewells the main Sougo as he leaves on his own journey to the future. The main Sougo meets with his friends, including Hiroki, Parker, Swartz and Mark. Although they have saved the world and can rule over it together into glorious perpetuity, Sougo refuses as he decides to destroy this timeline and restore everything back to normal. Although he may never have a chance to be king again, he also wants to create a future where he can fight together with Geiz, Luna and Kazuto. Sougo farewells his future self and his friends as the timeline is destroyed. The Time Jackers are returned to the supercomputer with a new mission to watch over humanity and walk the path of kindness instead of revenge. The Kamen Riders (and any allies who originally came into the Ohma War) float away from this timeline as it disappears.

Time goes back to normal in July 2012 of the main timeline, but with some minute changes. The original Kazuto ends up back in the cell he was in when Ohma Zi-O rescued him, but it has now become a storage room after the war ended and Kazuto is a free man. The Hiroki of that time (who never became Sougo) makes an impromptu stop at 9TO5 where he gives something to Mark to repair, but just as he goes in, he encounters Geiz, who was just leaving, and the two look at each other with vague feelings of familiarity, like Shinji Kido and Ren Akiyama did at the end of Kamen Rider Ryuki.

The parallel isotope Kazuto witnesses Hiroki and Akari sharing their first kiss before farewelling the audience. He meets with Ohma Zi-O in a white void as his timeline is disappearing; the demonic overlord thanks Kazuto for his service and releases him to live his own life, but Kazuto says that his original self is doing just that and that he wants to follow his overlord to the end. Hearing this, Ohma Zi-O gives Kazuto his final order, which is to find the new timeline that Sougo created and look over the Sougo in it, for there may come a time when the demonic overlord must rise again. Kazuto thanks Ohma Zi-O and takes his leave as the demonic overlord disappears, finally free of his pains and burdens.

Although the series’ endgame was adapted from Zero-One, I thought it was paced better than the original Zi-O’s endgame. I strived to improve on the failings of the original series and in my opinion, did a good job despite 80% of the series being a carbon copy of the original and the rest being a walking ego-fest. If you think I could have done a better job adapting the series, feel free to share your thoughts and opinions.

While the main series of Zi-O is done, there is still more to cover, namely the Before Quartzer mini-series, the After Quartzer specials, the background to the series and some clarification on character details. See you for the last few instalments of this run of Kisekae Insights.

[lgbtqmanga]

New Releases Feb. 28, 2023

Hitorijime My Hero vol. 13 by Memeco Arii

Masahiro finds himself working day and night to save up funds again after his mom spends the money he'd been saving for the big school trip. Kousuke's desperate efforts to dissuade Masahiro prove ineffective, and he reluctantly signs off on Masahiro's nightmarish work schedule. Meanwhile, all's well between Hasekura and Kensuke...until Hasekura's mother makes a surprise return home and utters one dreaded phrase: “school transfer.”

A Home Far Away by Teki Yatsuda

In the winter of 1990, a young man name Alain finds himself lost and searching for direction. He currently cannot find it at home nor through the church. But when he meets Hayden, a free-spirited cook, he at least finds someone he can relate with. He may not know where his life is going but at least he has someone to lean on. But Alan's new life, filled with new feelings and many new challenging experiences, may force him to find his path on the road...

ROLL OVER AND DIE: I Will Fight for an Ordinary Life with My Love and Cursed Sword! vol. 3 by Kiki and Sunao Minakata

After risking her life to obtain a healing herb for a merchant, Flum Apricot is gifted with a house to use as a home base for her and Milkit. Not long after they settle in, Flum is reunited with her former comrade from the Hero’s Party, Eterna, who claims to know the remedy for Milkit’s disfigured face. Flum doesn’t have much time to enjoy this happy turn of events though. The villainous Dein who rules the West District has decided to make his move. But Flum will stop at nothing to protect her home with Milkit!

Shonen Note: Boy Soprano vol. 2 by Yuhki Kamatani

Now that Yutaka has officially decided to join the city opera, he's cast in a leading role in the ghost story The Turn of the Screw. Meanwhile, school choir president Betsuyaku struggles to prove that he and his choir are capable of winning the gold prize in the NHK All-School Choir Competition. But can he bring the choir together to achieve greatness, or will he alienate all of its members?

[phosphophy11ite]

Neon Genesis Evangelion Ep 3 "Transfer" -> Review/analysis ^_^

episode three opens to shinji training in the eva. he's being obedient, but he's got quite the dead look in his eye as he practices shooting targets. he's miserable, but he's not complaining.

maya asks ritsuko why he continues to pilot unit 1 if he hates it so much-- which is obvious from his expression. ritsuko pretty much hits the nail on the head and says that it's easier for him to please people and just go along with whatever they say. if shinji tries to rebel, it'll make life harder for him. ritsuko's in a pretty similar situation. she doesn't completely agree with the ethics of the evas, and she knows gendo's just using her as a tool, but it's easier for her to just block everything out and to continue doing her job.

the next scene features shinji waking up misato, who's just gotten back from a night shift, to tell her he's going to school. just after he leaves, misato gets a call from ritsuko. she tells ritsuko she's worried that shinji has no friends, as she bought him a phone but he never uses it to call or chat with other people. as misato expresses her concerns, shots of ritsuko's desk are shown:

she's a chain smoker and misato's an alcoholic. they both have their vices... another parallel between the two of them. along with two little cat figurines, one which is white and one which is black. do they represent ritsuko and misato? ritsuko speculates that shinji is the type who doesn't make friends easily as he's afraid of getting hurt. she introduces the hedgehog's dilemma: the closer hedgehogs come to one another, the more they hurt each other. she says this is the same with humans. this is also the same with evas and angels: in order to kill an angel, the eva must be close to get through its a.t. field and inflict damage. ritsuko's obviously talking about herself as well.

at shinji's school, two characters are introduced: kensuke aida and toji suzuhara. kensuke is a war-fanatic who's quite interested in the angels and evas, while toji detests the evas because his sister was injured in the fight with sachiel.

kensuke represents the glorification of war. later, it's revealed he envies shinji for being an eva pilot. he's cruelly innocent; kensuke doesn't understand what shinji has to face. toji, on the other hand, isn't as removed from the battles as kensuke is because of his sister, and therefore isn't excited about them. kensuke hints to toji that the new transfer student, shinji, is the eva pilot, which is later confirmed by the class. after school toji decides to beat shinji up. his anger is justifiable, though it's not really shinji he should be angry at. shinji doesn't fight back because he understands toji's anger, and only offers this as a response:

rei finds shinji lying on the ground, and tells him to go to nerv headquarters, another angel has appeared! this angel is far less humanoid than sachiel, and looks like a giant purple crustacean/fish type thing.

shinji gets in unit 1, and prepares himself to fight. he repeats the instructions from his training in his head, and confirms that in piloting the eva he is seeking the approval of his father. shinji isn't too concerned about the greater good of preserving humanity, which is what makes him a more relatable protagonist.

meanwhile, kensuke, toji, and the rest of shinji's class have been evacuated. kensuke tells toji they should sneak out and watch the battle, claiming that it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. the two of them watch as shinji gets his ass beat by the angel. shinji's (understandably) terrified, and it's not at all like his training. unit 1 is sent flying through the air and lands where kensuke and toji are watching the battle. kensuke's ignorance has nearly killed the both of them. shinji and unit 1 cannot fight back against the angel as it attacks because unit 1 is so close to kensuke and toji, and shinji refuses to risk squishing them. kensuke realizes the weight of his stupid decision.

misato tells shinji to let kensuke and toji into the entry plug, directly defying ritsuko who tells misato that decision is beyond her power. once the two of them are inside, sync rates drop and the situation becomes even more dire. unit 1 has less than a minute of power supply left, and misato orders shinji to retreat. shinji, however, stands his ground.

he faces the angel head on, and charges. his decision is quite stupid but also quite brave. shinji and unit 1 run towards the angel with a knife, and he manages to impale the angel (all while screaming-- it's quite a chilling scream, very emotional). now it's just a test of time: who will collapse first, the angel or unit 1? shinji pulls through with a narrow win, though the victory doesn't seem to make him happy at all.

in the next scene, kensuke and toji are back in school. toji says that shinji hasn't been to school in 3 days, and appears worried and guilty. kensuke gives toji shinji's phone number and tells him to apologize for punching him. toji dials the number, but decides not to call at the very last moment. he doesn't attempt to connect with shinji because he's afraid of getting hurt.

and the episode ends! this angel is named shamsel/shamshiel. the name means "god is my sun", and the angel could have mythological connections to the babylonian sun god shamash. i don't really know what this fishy insecty looking angel has to do with the sun i'm ngl...

[commander-minkowski]

[id: two-panel dungeon meshi fan comic in a simple, colorful style. in the first panel, a red-faced chilchuck with an intense, stressed expression, including veins popping out of his eyes and spit flying from his mouth, jumps on senshi's chest, grabbing him by the beard and yelling "Stop falling over, stop exposing your ass and bulge all the fucking time!" Meanwhile, Senshi is avoiding eye contact and thinking about his grocery list, indicated by a thought bubble reading "Grocery list: 1. smoked paprika 2. garlic powder." In the background, Laois hugs Kensuke, seeming oblivious, and Marcille looks on with a neutral expression.

The second panel shows a closer view of Chilchuck's intensely red face and grotesquely bared teeth, with Marcille in the background smiling slightly and thinking "aw, I've never seen Chilchuck so concerned before." An arrow points to Chilchuck, labeled "so horny he can barely function." end id]

Chilchuck is on borrowed time until the heart attack gets him

[causalitylinked]

Who dreams about a family, who would be scared of that amount of responsibility?

            unprompted asks. » always accepting!

Honestly, barring Sasara and Yngwie, who do already have families... I'd say the muses who would want a family one day is Ryuto (actually canon), Rana, Galdo, Herja, and Fiorito while the ones who would be scared of that amount of responsibility would definitely be Kensuke and Fang.

Kakeru, in particular, wouldn't exactly be scared, per say, but would feel a great deal of guilt about actually moving on and starting a family of his own, especially when his younger brother is no longer around to experience all that life has to offer. Like, he does not think he deserves to be happy when Mitsuru never got the chance to live past the age of 15, let alone experience love, so thinking about how he'd never get to meet his own children would make him quite melancholic for a while, but he would surprisingly adapt to parenthood quite well (even if his kids do tend to tucker him out).

Meanwhile, Kobato can take it or leave it, meaning while a family would be nice, it's not exactly a deal breaker for him if his girl doesn't want kids; in fact, I could see him being content, just being the cool uncle his friends' kids would flock to. But he doesn't have a very strong opinion about it overall and will defer to what his girlfriend/wife wants out of their relationship... but I can see him being the fun-loving dad who is surprisingly responsible.

As for Gin... I don't think the idea of a family ever even occurred to him? Like, he had been busy, grappling with work and other personal issues, that starting a family never once crossed his mind, but I imagine he would prefer going the adoption route to avoid the gender dysphoria that would come about with him actually conceiving. Rather than a father, though, he would be more like a 'best friend' to his kids but is the chill, mellow parent that would still be reliable enough to have around. He'd also be observant enough to pick up on a lot of his kids' habits/eccentricities and manage to foster a close relationship with them, to the point where they would probably come to him more than they would come to their mother.

anonymous

[koushirouizumi]

Meanwhile with DigiAdvs 02's Daisuke+Co. [and some O.C.s]

Daisuke, Once 'Home': So... Ken, Sitting: ... Inter-national O.C. Chosen Shane, ...'Digitally'... 'Sitting': ... Daisuke: Well, uh, since Ken's here... Daisuke, scratching head: Maybe now we could play some of {videogame, that I was working on bEFOrE ALL THIS Started} 'this' game??? (*Holding it up*) Ken: Shane: KEN: SHANE: Ken: Daisuke, give me the controller. Shane: (This will be Interesting.) Daisuke: Great! I'll start us off-- {30~50 min into the run} KEN: (*is literally speed-running*) KEN: (*speed-running a very BADLY GLITCHED Game*) Daisuke, to Shane: Seriously?!? SHANE: (THEY Wanted to--) KEN: (It was a Challenge) SHANE: (I can easily just turn the whole set off instead.) KEN: (I Challenged You.) SHANE: (Yeah, so I'm appeasing you for now.) DAISUKE: ??!?????! Ken, encountering a particularly hard glitched-up Boss fight: I'm going to win. (*FIGHTS*) SHANE: (*messes it up Further*) DAISUKE: (*has lost spectacularly at even playing*) Daisuke: (How long is this going to go on for?!??) Shane: (Until I get bored enough to leave Ken hanging.)

[kaluawoo]

Every time I spend time with Stork in this game, I feel like I need to take a shower.

[chilpilled]

i think. what if. wl was watching chil through kensuke thinking he’d be easy to corrupt because he keeps saying he only cares about money and then when he possesses him hes like whoagh this guy is so fucked up i like it. humans are so weird and fun! meanwhile chil is rocking in place being like i need to use my blood to cleanse these streets of their rot and build a better world for my daughters with my bones as the foundation of a cathedral so grand where we will sing hymns that will wash the world clean of disease and i will peel off my skin and drape it like a blanket over the world to shield us from whatever gazes down on us from the stars. i saw the moon blink. and the winged lion is like yes girl go do that!! go slay!!!

chilchuck/winged lion……..i need someone to hold me and pelt rocks at me before i do something i cant take back

[karizard-ao3]

About the college au. The following day, Shinji, Kensuke and Toji are together in class. Toji is talking about how he kissed Hikari at the end of the night while he was dropping her back home, romantic and cute. Toji thanks Shinji for “taking one for the team” for agreeing to a double date with “red devil” Asuka. Meanwhile Shinji is caffeinating himself awake after not sleeping a single second, having just spent the wildest most lascivious night of his life

Shinji doesn't even know what his own name is right now, much less who Toji means when he says "red devil". He just kind of smiles pleasantly and nods and makes a mental note to go get some Tiger Balm because every single one of his muscles is sore.

[sweetmaririn]

“I’m waiting for Ryuji-kun!!” - Shoutarou (171118)

[tyrorexdmzapp]

Lost recut plans part 2

Here, I’ll go over some story and character details regarding Recut 3. As an aside I forgot to mention, I’m looking over an old document I wrote, so apologies if things aren’t TOO crystal clear.

One thing I future proofed for was the main villain situation. More specifically, I prepared scenarios for if Bowser was main villain again, as well as if a new villain were used but underwhelming (like Antasma). If Bowser were main villain again, I’d retcon it so someone else was pulling the strings. In addition, Bowser’s forces would be against another past villain’s forces, hence the return of the mark system. To that end, if he were final boss again, I’d move the fight to earlier, and let him take on his stronger form for the first time since StSt Recut…with the trade-off of a nerf depending on where he was placed. There’d also be changes in the battle to account for an incomplete McGuffin inventory, or even a twist where maybe someone else weakens Bowser with that same method, casting a suspicious aura over the reworked fight. By that same token, if Bowser’s Castle were the final stage again, it’d be moved to earlier and cut in length, with an explanation how the heroes access it earlier despite not having all McGuffins. In reaction to this change, a new final level would have the other half of the obstacles.

Meanwhile, if Bowser weren’t the final boss or main villain, the new villains would simply have any unintentional flaws fixed, and themselves fleshed out for Recut 3. They’d also work for the behind-the-scenes villain, or coaxed into it at a certain point. The official new villain’s shallow personality would turn out to have been faked, with hints of their real, more bombastic persona before the reveal. Last, the official new villain would double-cross the behind-the-scenes one and take mantle of final boss.

Regarding what TOK proper did and if these plans would have worked…it already kind of did the former Bowser thing. The actual game indeed doesn’t have Bowser as main villain, with him against Olly (albeit due to the vast majority of his forces getting brainwashed and cursed into origami form). In fact, he’s only in the prologue and doesn’t return until the Chapter 5 boss. Speaking of, Chapter 5 (of 6) is where Bowser’s Castle is visited in TOK, so that wouldn’t need any tweaking for Recut 3 or TOK Retold. With the new villain thing, meanwhile, Olly does have a few problems I don’t believe the writers intended. He barely shows up (in his own titled game!), and his presence/whole motive seems to be a potshot at classic fans, which would never make it into any recut. So fixing Olly in whatever ways plagued him would work for any recut, and indeed, that is the plan for TOK Retold. That said, his personality would indeed be his real one- there’d just be more to it. As for the villain hierarchy thing…hard to say.

On continuity notes, the classic Ryota Kawade era would once more get callbacks up the wazoo where possible or appropriate. Meanwhile, as payback for how much CS skimmed over the classic era, Recut 3 would return the favor and ignore the official versions of the modern Kensuke Tanabe era as much as possible. To that end, unlike how CS Recut tried to be vague on whether the original or recut versions of StSt and Paper Jam happened, Recut 3 would only stick with recut and DMZ canon. To that end, there’d be a seemingly generic Toad character who’s a journalist, with his journal being the sole mention of the original eighth-gen games. In a twist, it would turn out this Toad is not only from the original timeline- he was actually female, unique, and not a Toad the whole time, with her transfigured into a generic Toad and sent across universes to prevent Black Bowser from learning certain (no longer planned) Fruit Shake-relevant info she knew.

While the actual TOK includes a small handful of classic era references, it still mostly fawns on and overglorifies the modern era, to a…rather disturbing fault. I can say that the Toad journalist plot, while possible for Recut 3, isn’t making it into TOK Retold proper.

Regarding NPCs, of course the generic Toads en masse wouldn’t be a thing. In fact, besides the above fake-out, only one new unique Toad would be in Recut 3. Instead, due to the guess that the story would be space or data related, the 8 NPC species chosen were all ones that could plausibly fit with the space or data theme. Gearmos, Lumas and Bob-omb Buddies were picked from the main series, while Beepboxers and a fully realized version of the Huey bottle prototypes would be picked from the Paper Mario side, bringing us to 5. As for original species of my making, 3 were planned, bringing us to a total of 8. Since I might have plans for a…silver parachute just in case I decide to “branch out” in the future, I’ll keep the full deets on them a secret. All I’ll say is two things. One- there’d be a setting appropriate replacement for the Toads. Two- similar to how the Vellbex were based on the memetic Goat Thing, there was a species planned based on the memetic Piggy Bank Thing, fully realizing something odd about it. This species actually had draft designs created (but not finalized). Again, though, due to the silver parachute thing, they’ll remain private for now.

With TOK out, it’s apparent Lumas wouldn’t make it in regardless of anything. I’ll also say the third new species would be the only one with a shot. Regardless, due to a different mindset with TOK, combined with a need to listen to CS Recut’s feedback, the seven NPC species chosen for TOK Retold are completely different from the mentioned ones, with the new Fetyflyes being the only new one and only one that’s not an audience member. That said, one element of the Piggy Bank Thing is getting worked into TOK Recut’s version of the Vellumentals- more specifically, their flesh forms.

Like with CS Recut, I was planning to have a vote on mainliners to include in Recut 3’s plot, with purely the top 3 making it in (no ties this time). The only rule- since they won last time, Waluigi, Daisy, Wart and Mottley couldn’t be picked again. As for Wario and Rosalina, they would’ve had a spot in Recut 3’s plot as well, so there’d be no need to vote for them.

Next time, I’ll talk more about the cast.