#might actually romance kaiden

[ferniliciousness]

Que the Mass Effect brain rot.... Again... Lol

My friend got me playing the best video game of all time yet again lmao. ME1 is my fav in the series and I just love it so much. Ugh. I have no clue what I'm doing this playthrough.... Honestly tempted to romance someone other than Garrus for once lmao.

[sol-consort]

Man FUCK that bitch ass fucking assassin motherfucker I hope he rots. Sorry he pissed me off to no end.

Also yeah FemShep’s VA is considered the better VA of the Shepards which makes sense MaleShep is voiced by Mark Meer who hadn’t done much voice work before, his biggest role being Cyric in Baldur’s Gate II, and FemShep was voiced by Jennifer Hale who had been at it for almost 20 years at the time. It wasn’t just Jennifer Hale either, Anderson being Keith David and Joker being Seth Green who had both been doing it over 20 years. I liked MaleShep’s voice though and never had a problem with it because it’s very main heroy and recognizable like I’d instantly know that it was Shepard if I heard it.

I knew that the series wouldn’t be exactly up with the times because it was 2007-2012 but Jesus I had no idea that FemShep gets harassed so much.

I didn’t get a reconcile scene on the Citadel since I didn’t romance anyone in ME1 I went into the series with Tali on my mind as my definitive romance.

I don’t think Thane praying for you instead himself is unique to his romance? Or at least I remember something similar happening maybe it was his son.

You can’t hit on EDI as MaleShep I’m pretty sure don’t remember that being an option however you can still hit on Joker as MaleShep I remember seeing that option and going “why would I say that?” Also I’m surprised you never mentioned the Joker segment of Mass Effect 2 where you sneak around the ship as Joker that section surprised the shit out of me.

Oh yeah a fun little fact, remember the show Once Upon a Time I’ve mentioned a couple times when talking about fairy tales? The actor who plays Kaiden was in that show and played the show’s version of Jiminy Cricket from Pinocchio. I don’t remember what happened to Cricket in the show though. He may have just stopped being relevant so they never brought him up again since the show just fucking loved doing that.

Is the hot assassin guy supposed to be unlikeable? I liked him so far, like ngl, plus he's pretty cool. Evil living weapons of destructions, my beloveds.

And yeah, i really like femshep, but it is pretty cool of them to give maleshep VA a chance for such a big character. Sure, it could've been better, but he probably did the best he could with the skills he had at the time, and it did appeal to some people!

And man I'm just lucky I actually enjoy these things ingames, like I am down to being a whore and flirting with everyone so it doesn't bother me when the npcs forcefully flirt with you bc you picked a woman. What bothers me is that the fact it's only bc you picked a woman, and just because I wanted it doesn't mean other people do and it might make them very uncomfortable. There are several mods to remove the sexual harassments femshep gets, I wish there was one to remove it for EDI tho.

We should all have a choice, is what I'm saying. It feels like femshep was made to appeal to straight guys who might play her as an outsider observer. Same with some lesbian characters, too, ngl- not all of them, but the game has its moments where it makes me realise oh this was put here for a straight dude to gawk at. Meanwhile, maleshep feels the proper self insert badass at times. Really hate that.

That's why I like picking NB options whenever they're present, you're free from expectations and the devs aren't sure what to make of you so they don't try to appeal to a certian demographic and just write your character as a character.

You did Tali romance? Hell yeah she is an amazing character and her relationship with Shepard feels phenomenal. Like a scientist princess and her knight in shining armour, amazing. Plus she is all adorable when she talks about engines and how we get to help her so many times.

Apparently her and Garrus end up together if you don't romance her, but I haven't seen it yet. She always felt close to Shepard, especially in the second game where she is the first friendly face you see.

I haven't met her yet in ME3, still doing side errands. I am very very broke and everything is very very expensive and I miss sugar daddy illusive man pls take me back, the alliance became more stingy than I remember or inflation is hitting hard.

Fuck I hat like 999999 something credits in the first game, why couldn't it tranfer over??

And Thane!! My heart! He even prays for you when he's not romanced??? That's it, he is legit the most precious character and no one else comapres. I would die for Thane, I would kill everyone on the Normady for Thane.

But I know Thane would forgive me If I picked Grunt over him bc my son which just makes Thane the most amazing man ever, DRELL ARE SUPERIOR I TELL YOU.

Also so far Drell worship Hanar (kinda) and Hanar worship protheons (kinda) and Javik likes humans(he is all current protheon population)

So by association! Drell and Humans are conncted, and no, I will not give up my tank of copium. Go buy your own. Idk what overdosing is, I have insomnia I forgot.

And aww we can't hit on EDI :( i would've treated her better than Joker.

Yeah I had the same reaction to the flirting with Joker line but just went for it because what's the worst that can happen? He says no and we laught it off.

Imagine if the worst was him retiring from being your pilot and you get soma rando driving the Normady around who now runs at half the speed and takes twice as much gas plus occasionally breaks down and you have to pay 100k credits for repairs.

Oh also then there is this one thing I am sure is exclusive to femshep.

You can sleep with Javik. The protheon. Yes.

But it's not a full romance :"(

He has four eyes I wonder if he has four-

I heard about once upon a time, the show. But never watched it.

I did however watch a random person talk about it in a video essay because I prefer that over watching shows.

This one.

It was fun, I'm not big on fairytales but I enjoyed hearing about it.

The Joker sneak section in ME2 didn't resonate with me much for some reason. It was nice but I didn't feel the pressure at all and with EDI constantly talking it got annoying and I just wanted it to be over.

His jokes were nice but the moment of trusting EDI didn't hit the same way it should've. It didn't feel endearing or earnest.

The sudden flip in their relationship afterwards was too jarring.

I prefer ME3 EDI and Joker dynamic over ME2. However I hate how EDI is becoming a "born sexy yesterday" character by the game when her core as a character is so profound and genuine. She wants to know her purpose, what it means to be alive and all the other characters mention about her is her body which is bleh.

Even some of her dialogues with Joker is just overplayed sex jokes. It's all of her amazing writing vanishes the moment it's not just her and Shepard in a conversation.

Kaidan's voice actor is great! He even stood out to me in the first game. You notice how much more convicnising and immersive his delivery was over the other characters, almost outshined ME1 femshep even.

It's like the dialogue and the way he delievers it fit perfectly. If I just read it, then I get a completely different impression.

The game doesn't have bad voice actors it just has very bad delivery from some characters. It's when someone keeps a constant tone and doesn't portray any emotions or adds any personalisation into the dialogue. It feels tone deaf a lot when what the character is speaking about is something intimiate, yet it sounds the same as asking about the weather.

Still, it is nostalgic in a way, this was extremely common in older games.

[sigmalied]

Something I’ve noticed in my playthrough of MELE is how gaining 10 years of maturity since originally playing it has changed my perception of many characters. Here are my conclusions:

Characters I appreciate more than before: Kaiden, Emily Wong, James

Characters I like less than before: Liara (not that I dislike her, but she’s dropped from “adore” to “like”), Joker (I’m mad at him re: EDI)

Characters I’ve always liked, but adore now: Tali, Mordin, Wrex, EDI, Samantha, Legion, Miranda (might have to do with the fact that I owed her my life on Insanity difficulty lol so we bonded from having her on the squad so much)

Characters I hate but used to be neutral toward: EDI’s body, Kai Leng

In ME2 I craved a Miranda/Femshep romance.

I also had a realization that Aria is not cool. I mean I still love her, but she isn’t cool. “Coolness” is an effortless quality, something that comes naturally and with subtlety. Aria is ALL effort and grandeur. She is the opposite of cool. She’s a tryhard edgelord who, interestingly, actually supports her edginess with action. Huge words, huge actions. She’s Shakespearean!! She’s a theatre character!! I love her but she’s so lame

[cobaltswriting]

Mass Effect 2: World and Culture Building

So, I recently got the Mass Effect: Legendary Edition on PS4, and I've been having some fun with it.

Like, the first game didn't 'wow' me as much as I was expecting from the hype (but I was kind of expecting it to underwhelm me a little, I'm used to games failing to completely live up to the hype... *side-eyes Smash Bros Brawl*) but it was a functional game. If a little buggy at times, but I can attribute most of that to me constantly jumping in and out of the main PS4 menu and leaving it on rest mode a lot.

So then, afterwards, I moved onto Mass Effect 2. First, just in case people are interested, or if it makes any real difference, I'll say what the choices I made in Mass Effect 1 were, the ones it reminds you of when you start Mass Effect 2.

I recruited everyone

My Shepherd was far more Paragon than Renegade

The game seems to think I romanced Ashley, but I did not. Her anti-alien feelings put me off her, honestly, but I guess the game thought I was more interested in her than in Liara.

I choose to let Kaiden die on Virmire... which might have contributed towards 'romancing' Ashley, come to think of it.

I calmed Wrex down, rather than killing him.

I THINK Garrus might be more renegade than Paragon, but I'm not 100% sure

I let Tali have the Geth data, for her pilgrimage.

I saved Zhu's Hope and Shiala.

I spared the Rachni Queen.

I spared Rana the Asari scientist on Virmire

I destroyed the fliers, meaning that Captain Kirrahe survived Virmire

I was kind to Conrad, although due to a bug, which I thought had been fixed, he said that I waved a gun in his face.

In 'Bring down the sky', I spared the hostages over killing Balak, and also spared Balak's second in command.

I let the Council die. Honestly, I wasn't really too interested in saving them considering all the stuff they'd done thorough out Mass Effect 1.

I chose Anderson over Udina for a place on the Council. Similarly to the Council, I wasn't interested in giving Udina any more power than he had before.

Apparently, that's all the important choices, so let's move on to Mass Effect 2 and what finally clicked for me, about why Mass Effect 2 is so loved. Although, if you read the title, you may already have guessed.

In Mass Effect 1, there is some information on the alien races, but it's mostly in text. You hear about the Quarian's flotila, you hear about the genophage and how a lot of the Krogan are more 'blood knight' characters who value strength above all else... I can't actually remember if you directly learn anything about the Turians, but I think it's implied that they are a race that is great at mechanics and engineering, and are also partially responsible for the genophage that all Krogans are infected with. You also learn a bit about the Asari but...

Honestly, it was kind of hard to care for quite a lot of it. Because it was just text. You get told, you don't get to experience any of it, partially because you're just a human.

In Mass Effect 2, this changes.

You encounter groups of Quarians twice, with Tali leading both groups. Tali is later on accused of treason, and you visit the Flotilla, which gives you a lot of insight into how Quarian culture works, as well as the trial itself. For instance, learning that a Quarian's last name comes from the ship they are from, or, if they are banished, the ship they currently inhabit, as displayed by Tali's name 'legally' having been changed to 'Tali'Zorah Vas Normandy' from "Tali'Zorah Vas Neema", and Tali commenting that it's like they've banished her already. You are then tasked with defending Tali, since you are the leader of the ship she is on. And you learn more about what the admirals want to do with concerns to the Geth, and learn more about what Tali's father was up to.

You also encounter a lab-made Krogan called 'Grunt' whom needs to go through the Rite of Passage. Since I spared Wrex, Wrex was the leader we encountered on the Krogan's home planet, and thus the one we talked to, and he greeted Shepard as an old friend. From what I've heard, if you killed Wrex, the leader instead is Wrex's brother, and he is a lot less... progressive, than his brother, and not as intelligent.

However, you find out that Wrex has managed to bring about quite a few changes, and is trying to basically unify the Krogan for their people to thrive. You find out about many rites, especially in regards to their shaman, who apparently does rites for himself every morning and every night.

It helps you see the Krogan as a lot less than the dumb muscle that they can be seen as in Mass Effect 1. While the Rite of Passage is basically what you would expect (fights against various creatures, ending with a fight against a Thresher Maw, which you would usually fight with a vechicle in Mass Effect 1) and also against a bunch of Krogan who were initially against Grunt going through the Rite (I shut them up by headbutting their ringleader, which, considering Wrex did it to them earlier for basically the same sort of reason, I assume is a show of dominance, basically a 'shut up fucker') wanting to recruit him for their clan, intent on overthrowing Wrex's clan who were trying to unify the Korgan, as mentioned.

You also get a lot more information on the Genophage, since not only is one of your crew members a Salarian, but is one of the scientists who made changes to the Genophage to made it more effective at controlling the population of Krogan. While he says that it was 'necessary', it's fairly obvious that he has guilt over it. You encounter him running a clinic for people who had been infected by a 'plague' on Omega, and he mentions his work on the Genophage often.

His loyalty mission (each crew member you recruit has a 'loyalty' mission, which ensures their loyalty and unlocks a new power for them) involves saving one of his former crew members, who has alledgedly been kidnapped and forced to do research on a genophage cure.

When you research the abandoned hospital, you find various corpses that show signs of having been experimented on, and a lot of dialogue choices where you can tell Mordin that he was wrong to do this, or that he was right to do so. And it does result in some... interesting information.

For example, the genophage was not meant to kill Krogan, just limit their population, for fear that if their population was allowed to grow too large, they would wage war upon all other species in the galaxy.

On the other hand, it's a pretty shitty thing to do.

You also find out that Mordin's former comrade was doing it voluntarily. Which makes Mordin very angry, saying that this wasn't what he taught his former coworker to do, and certainly not the way he taught him to do it. Basically, Mordin is more upset about HOW his former coworker did it than the why. If your Paragon score is high enough, you can stop Mordin from killing them.

By the end, Mordin doesn't seem to really know what he thinks about it any more. A lot of research that was done was at least viable, but it was done under terrible circumstances. You can either destroy the data, or you can save it.

I told Mordin to save it to help the Krogan. After all, the people who died during the research couldn't exactly be brought back by destroying the data.

Basically, in Mass Effect 2, there's a lot of world and culture building, especially in the three missions I've mentioned (Tali, Grunt and Mordin's loyalty missions respectively) and I can see now why people love Mass Effect 2.

The graphics are good, the gameplay is VERY solid, even if there are many other games that have similar gameplay styles (one that sticks out in my mind, oddly enough, is Gears of War, which I have never played but have seen gameplay off, and Shepard charging forward and taking cover definitely makes me think of it) that do it just as well or better, but the world building and culture building of other races in Mass Effect 2, especially with how it was in Mass Effect 2, is just *chef's kiss*

It's definitely gotten me invested enough to keep playing and to go through Mass Effect 3, even though the issues with the ending to Mass Effect 3 are... let's be nice and say 'infamous'.

Basically if you haven't played Mass Effect, I HIGHLY recommend it. While I would say to play the first one first, it DID turn into a bit of a slog near the end, so I wouldn't blame you if you decided to just start from Mass Effect 2 instead.

One last thing, although this is not necessarily as important as the rest of it...

Tali is a precious baby and must be protected and loved and cherished.

Also Garrus is a bro and I wouldn't blame anyone for wanting to romance him.

That is all.

[everseens]

if anyone could overhear their conversation, they might confuse it with an actual breakup. it made kaiden even more confused, and of course he wanted aster in his life-- but relationships and romance weren't his forte, especially with his current career choices. besides the point, he wasn't even sure if aster felt the same way, and he almost didn't want to know just to make things easier for himself. he scoffed quietly at her words and questions, sighing softly to himself as well. "ignore how i feel for you? aster, that's... that's not how that works. why would you even think that i wouldn't want something more with you? it's silly that i caught feelings in the first place, but it's even sillier that you think i wouldn't want that."

" then what? it's just over? " she asked as if it was ever really something. " i didn't... i didn't think i was going to lose you too. " aster hadn't expected that it was all going to blow up in her face. she wasn't sure why she expected that any part of their friendship could be saved when he told her she had to find another dealer. if their friendship remained then surely that wouldn't have to end either. " i don't know... i don't really know how it works. can you not just ignore it? you wouldn't even want this anyway, would you? "

[merrilldidnothingwrong]

one of the biggest mistakes bioware made in Mass Effect was making the player choose between Kaidan or Ashley because the fandom somehow makes it a battle between them, when in actuality they were friends! There was some banter between them that made it sound like they weren't, Ashley gave him some shit ("is that your professional opinion, sir) but she was like that?? that was her personality? and Kaidan in the beginning was wound up a little tight (and Kaidan fans know why! its not a harsh judgement!) and Ashley was just teasing him! She was just trying to loosen him up a little!

If they hadn't made us choose, i have NO doubts they would have been the best of friends, hell, if Shepard didn't romance either of them, they might have hooked up, like Garrus and Tali! It could have been a slow burn romance like Shepard and Kaidan, since friendship is important to him, and Kaidan is big on woo'ing and would have taken note on her importance of poetry! (but thats just my personal thought)

ANYWAY. my point is -- they were never enemies! so for the fandom to treat them like "oh i killed Ashely- LOL or i killed KAIDEN LMAO!! Is such a disservice to both their characters! Ashely mourned Kaidan! Kaidan mourned Ashley-- they were FRIENDS!!!!!! But this has been going on since the game came out. so i expect this to start up again with the Legendary Edition being released in May.

[nighttimepixels]

TALK TO US ABOUT MASS EFFECT I HAVE BEEN AN INSANE MASS EFFECT/SHAKARIAN TRASH PERSON SINCE 20-FUCKING-11 AND LEMME TELL YOU THOSE FEELINGS HAVENOT TARNISHED A SINGLE FRACTION IN THOSE TEN YEARS OH MY GOOOOOOODDDSSSS!!!!!!!

I DEMAND A PLAY-BY-PLAY UP TO THE MINUTE OF YOUR REACTIONS TO EVERYTHING!!!!

you are so valid and I totally see why everyone I've ever mentioned it to loves the hell out of it

aksdjlsdfj I meannnn if you want to hear my rambling about it then hell yeah

Okay, gonna put this below the cut to save everyone else XD also- since I'm not leaving this Mass Effect obsession anytime soon, if you're not interested in seeing occasional posts about it, please feel free to block the tag "night plays ME"~

(mild spoilers ahead??)

((also for real I mean it when I say this is rambling as hell lol, apologies and no stress if absolute no one reads all this))

OKAY SO Mass Effect 1-

Stars help me, I was honestly hooked right from the start?? Like even in Legendary Edition (the combined trilogy just re-released in one "can play it on one system + minor improvements", for anyone who doesn't know) where it's smoothed out, of course it's obvious that ME1 is a decade old... but the foundation for these relationships are all there and gods I love them already.

Like - Kaiden right off the top is a delightful good fightin lad, what the hell. I've heard that he's viewed as 'bland' by a good portion of the fan community but I dunno, he's a delight and even more complex by the time 2 rolls around and you encounter him on Horizon, it was honestly Ashley I was way more meh about - mostly because before you can learn about her family history/etc, she comes off as hella xenophobic and I was immediately offended for my growing space family that she didn't like/trust all the aliens around, pfff.

(she gets redeemed a bit through further actions/evolving thoughts, but I thought in retrospect it was a bummer that they didn't flip the order there, give her a chance to be liked before the complicating factor of being so rude about aliens >:c that then she could grow from... ah well. Apparently she has a good arc but uh, let's just say I chose Kaiden at the "key junction" in the latter part of the game so I won't be seeing anymore of Ashley uh... anytime soon, haha.)

Garrus??? Is??????? The ABSOLUTE best???????????

I liked him from the start, I'm always a bit of a sucker for a rogue-detective "the system won't bring this bastard to justice, so I've got to" type and all their moral shadiness XD But he just gets better, honestly, and where I'm at in ME2 (right before the Reaper IFF mission, as of typing this, with everyone's loyalty!) I am only digging myself deeper into this hole-

-*wheezing* okay anyways -

Wrex is AMAZING I love fightin' middle-aged krogan bastard, gods. Liara is great too, I'm a sucker for a wlw relationship (playing fem!Shepard, so) - buuuut I'll admit she's a bit more one-note in ME1. Last week while I was still on ME1 I remember hearing (while trying to dodge spoilers) that her arc is really good, though. I think they leaned a little hard on the 'innocent but sexy' sterteotype on her (so despite the yikes aspect of a few of the things I've learned in ME2, lol, I actually really like the complexity that's been added to her character.)

Saved Liara first, so by the time I got to Noveria and had the standoff with Benezia there was the chance to have emotions over Liara having to face her TwT and of course, I made the questionable but quality decision to free Queen Rachni heheh. no ragrets

More than a blow-by-blow of my choices though I totally wanna take the chance to say that even in the mild jankiness of ME1 (goddammit, the Mako.... please..... please just go up this impossible cliff I just want to resource hunt-) the way that the lore, both obvious/key to main plot and the lesser/filler/background/world-building kinds... I just love it. It incorporates it well, you can go ham in the codex learning more, or just dive into the basics - it's clearly a complex galaxy (and they do an even better job in 2 of fleshing it out further), and it never really felt overwhelming. It was pretty natural figuring it all out-!

Plus the interesting implications of resource hunting amongst the sapient races, and the little side missions you better bet I did every one of- there's so much rich depth in the story if you do 'em!! (And that lead with that Keeper side mission...? Looking back, damn, clever foreshadowing-!!!)

And oh my gods, Ilios??? hell yeah. I loved that mission so much, especially having Garrus & Kaiden with me when talking to the hologram/computer, and more than anything, that last sprint in the Mako trying to get to the jump before it closed-???

yeet the boi-

Also mannn I love a good setpiece, and having to go up the side of the elevator, space-side?? such a cool setup!!

Plus it felt good having been Paragon enough (as simple as the good v bad vibe system is, I don't hate it, lol) to avoid one of the Saren fights, ngl. And the er, "second fight" with Sovereign-Saren.... hell yeah

... I'll admit I had to double check my choice re whether to save the Council. I did in the end, but I swear, sometimes the way they phrase things I'm like ".... okay but Garrus is right, defeating Sovereign is more important than these few leaders??????" woops. Listen, priorities, is all I'm saying..... (￣ヮ￣|||)ゞ

'Course later they emphasize (in ME2) that there were 10,000 people on that same ship and I was like well I wouldn't have second guessed if I'd known that, I mean c'mon-

Also I did indeed romance Liara in this one, so I got that scene ;Dc But,,,, I also knew by the end that I was totally gonna romance Garrus in 2 since he's an option then finally,,,,, lemme tell you the guilt as I waffled over whether to romance Liara bc of it. hahaha.

Aaaaand Mass Effect 2-

So I'm only up to right before the Reaper IFF Mission, so I don't know the ending, etc etc lol. That said, I've just finished every side mission I've found with the exception of the Shadowbroker Quest and the Arrival Quest (I've heard the latter basically leads into ME3, and the former is best either right before the Omega 4 jump or in postgame).

So from the start - fuck yeah fuck yeah what a high adrenaline start Shepard noooooo but also yes save Joker aH-

The motion comic too hot damn nice job

I loved this setup, seriously - especially forcing Shep into this situation, having to work with/for Cerberus, and the compelling reasoning given behind "why" they do what they do (I especially found it a good point that the Salarians have the Task Force, the Asaris the Commandos, the Turians the- etc... like, true, when you put it like that, having a similar group advancing human interests/solving human interstellar problems is pretty reasonable...). That said, I love too that it really isn't shied away from how Cerberus is nonetheless fucked up - or its at least done fucked up stuff.

Listen, I still think some messed up stuff is gonna be revealed in 2's endgame......... after that Horizon mission and the Collector's ship???? TIM I SEE YOU YOU SHADY MF-

aaanyways lol...

I'm so so glad on a gameplay level they nixed the Mako style exploration. A few Hammerhead missions are fine and a lot more focused than the slippery ass navigation in that glorified ATV, pfff. The probes are a neat way of getting after similar resources - and more importantly, having good levels and some good hubs (the Zakera Wards, Omega, Ilium, etc) is way way more fun than having a more 'sprawling' space that is.... a lot of empty nonsense, lol.

Then there's the fact that we get Joker right off the bat and you can interact with him so much - and him and EDI??? Get out gods I love them. Kasumi is so right when she says they sound like a bickering old married couple lol. I have a terrible feeling that some shit is gonna happen with EDI..... but I don't think she's evil as-is, at least.

Side-eying the hell out of those "access forbidden" parts of her that she doesn't even know.... and the fact that her AI core has a locked door access................... something's gonna happen gdi LEAVE OUR ADOPTED AI ALONE.

(Also Joker pls stop fracturing your thumb on the mute button)

Also please save me there are so many hot aliens in this game,,,,, the xeno/monsterfuckers really comin' through strong in the sequels............... doin' the lord's work........................................

In general, I love how many levels ME stepped up in two with complexity and interwoven narratives!! Like, to the point it'd be almost a drag to replay ME1, even though it was fun going through it (if occasionally a bit tedious with the cookie cutter rando planet science/mine facilities, lol). Like, just from how fun and interesting ME2 is, mostly! more of all the pre-introduced races, plus new ones, plus more filling in of intragalactic politics, and more interesting implications of all these space-faring races mixing....

Also gods WREX and his planet holy shit,,,,, fuckin' hell yeah my man get their shit together and also adopt Grunt yes good-

And Mordin??? My singing semi-evil scientist best friend forced to confront his choices more than he thought he ever would have???? With some of the best ongoing general report chatter of all the companions??

(when I tell you I choked on my coffee when I talked to him after confirming romance choice w/ Garrus and that 'pamphlet' and 'anaphalactic shot if ingesting-' kajsldkfjsldfjk)

Like, fuck, the fact that they actually dive into the mixed morality and horrors of the genophage, and you can confront Mordin on it, for good reason, yet he still stands his ground, until finally some bits of his loyalty mission seem to... affect him, and I'm guessing might set up things for 3 with him? Unsure, but either way, damn, the fact that they start to dig into it...

And Taliiiii my beloved forbidden alien wife TwT her loyalty mission was SO GOOD. I love how varied they all are?? Getting to defend her and discover what she'd unwittingly been a part of-!!

Zaeed is a bastard but tbh I love that he is and that he's unapologetic in him - and Kasumi omg, best thief. A heist?? Gods, yes- I love our couch lounge chats XD

Samara is..... illegally.......... she's an illegally powerful and beautiful and eloquent MILF...........................

(.... listen I'm sapphic as hell and I'm kicking my own ass for picking her up last aksjdlfksjdfl - but her loyalty mission, damn. And seeing how there's this interesting cultural subset, and the struggle with the Asari in that they unquestioningly accept/respect justicars, but also know that the impact outside their culture is a diplomacy nightmare waiting to happen-)

,.,,,,,T,,, Thane,,,,,

I am weak for morally implicated murder dads okay?? And that voice??? His mannerisms?????? How you first see him, and that prayer after assassinating her...???????? And his history/his people's history with the hanar, gods I love how messy it is, it feels so much more real!

Also Jack is a mess and I love her (and want to get her some therapy, omg), and her and Miranda nearly duking it out after you've done both their loyalty missions??? so good and makes a lot of sense-! Honestly I would love more interactions between teammates on the ship, but there's already so much the devs had to balance I can't blame 'em for minimizing, heh. But suffice to say I also love Miranda and Jacob, even if I'm softest for my alien crew XD Hell yeah Jacob, we'll get loud and spill drinks on the citadel indeed TwT

.... I could write a whole essay on how much I love Garrus oTL Perhaps because he and Tali are the throughlines from 1 on your 2 crew, I have some of the strongest feelings about them... but genuinely, he was one of my favorite companions in the first game, and how you find him as Archangel in two? Getting to help him fight his way out after he's gone nearly 48 hours straight fighting off three gangs alone, jfc. His vengeance quest and what can happen there.... That line? fuck me, that line -

It's so much easier to see the world in black and white. Grey? I don't know what to do with gray...

How DARE you come for my heart like this, devs holy shit

(also, some other choice faves so far from the series from him include We can disobey suicidal orders?? and This wasn't in my training manual... [in 1, if you have him with you @ th Thorian fight] and his whole.... pop the heat sink - in his romance ;Dc)

asdasdfksadjfkl like I said I can write an essay on him PFFF suffice to say I'm very looking forward to his romance scene and where things go in 3

But yeah gods I'm just gonna keep rambling if I'm not careful lol. Gods I don't even know what to talk about it's all so good and while I can understand people roasting the obviousness of Paragon V Renegade (v neutral) choices/alignments, I think they do a pretty damn good job in 2 of pushing it further - to the point that there were some times that I accidentally got renegade points and I wasn't that mad, haha. There's so much fun in the interactions that I just have a good time anyways~

I have so many thoughts about TIM (The Illusive Man) and Cerberus.... theories evolving galore............... and like, what the hell!! Omega 4 going to the center of the galaxy is such a cool twist, goddamn - though my heart still breaks at losing Kaiden (his line if you haven't romanced him?? about feeling like he lost a limb when he lost you??? holy shit.... but I also can't blame him for not trusting Cerberus to the point of it affecting his ability to trust Shepard... like fuck Shep go after himmmm) I'm really excited to see where that goes since he comes back in 3, and what the fuck happens with Cerberus bc while I love the fact that obviously there are a lot of people in it for the right reasons, doing good work, there are those that are doing the opposite, and I have a very bad feeling about where TIM will end up landing....

All that said though I need to do the Reaper IFF mission (where I'm lightly spoiled as to getting That Boy, but not how/what happens to make it so - just that it's apparently wise to have all your side missions done before getting him...) and the actual Omega 4 jump. So we'll see what happens and what I think about it from there heheh!

.... major kudos and genuine props if you made it here to the end, I am so sorry for not editing on condensing all this, and appreciate you so much ;w;

[st-just]

Okay, so instead of doing...anything else today, finally sat down and finished ME1!

-Once you notice it, it really is kind of impossible to un-notice how there’s literally zero non-Asari alien women in the entire game.

-First time I’d ever actually played the DLC with the asteroid and the Batarians. It was a lot of fun!

-Just wandering through the map and seeing what I’d find was actually surprisingly fun! And I didn’t realize before, but not really appreciate that every system had some sort of sidequest or mini story in it.

-Skyboxes and environments just gorgeous, soundtrack still killer.

-I was accidentally not-a-dick to Kaiden one too many times and locked myself into his romance. And I mean, his and Shep’s flirting is actually kind of amusingly playful, so no huge loss. (Also, compared to all the ‘we’ve known each other for three adrenaline filled hours and I’ve decided you’re my true love!’ stuff, ‘lets grab a drink on our next shore leave, see what happens’ is refreshingly mature).

-He also gets brownie points for being literally the only person to express literally any distress after I had Ash shoot Wrex.

-Anyway, I killed him off on Virmire, mostly just to see if there’s any special content you get to see if you don’t have a LI. Answer: absolutely nothing. No one event comments on it.

-The whole finale sequence form Ilos on is still really incredible. I mean, 2′s Suicide Mission is probably better overall, but this doesn’t have the stupid-ass Human Reaper Baby Boss Fight to ruin the tone at the end.

-Saren might actually be the best developed and most sympathetic villain in the whole series for the, like, 2.5 scenes of development he gets. Also, convincing the main villain to shoot himself in the head is just very fun.

-Final space battle very pretty, mildly annoyed you don’t get to see the Destiny Ascension fire its giant main gun at Sovereign even if you save it. (Also generally that you don’t see any alien ships do anything once you start winning, but I’ve complained about that before)

-I find it very funny that the Renegade-flavored ending screen has Shep posing with an assault rifle. Like, I’m just assuming that’s an in-universe propaganda poster. My Shep’s an adept who made a point of never shooting anything heavier than her pistol. I’m pretty sure I still had the Avenger 1 or whatever the starter’s called equipped to that slot at game end.

[kda-chat]

If the girls and extras were in Mass Effect universe, who would be who (Shepard + his crew) ?

My friend, Kaya, and I actually talked about this because [her fault btw] we are obsessed with Liara T'Soni~ [with fem!Shep not bro!Shep]

Anyhoo~

Shepard - Sivir would make the best ideal Shepard in my opinion. She is strong, cunning, and fits the Shepard image more than, let's say, Akali. I can imagine her being either Paragon or Renegade, or both. Those options suit her more.

Liara T'Soni - Since Sivir is Shepard and I love Liara and she's my main love interest, Kai'sa might suit this role the best. They are both quiet and prefer their independence and solidarity. Kai'sa is pretty wise and observant and would make a great ally.

Ashley Williams/ Kaiden Alenko - I see that role going to Akali, more so on Ashley [except the xenophobic part]. Ashley lives up to the failed but great Williams in her family and I think Akali would suit that role quite well.

Garrus Vakarian - I honestly chose Taliyah because besides Akali, they are also close friends with Sivir. I can see Taliyah being someone who sees the flaws in the C-Sec and wanting to fight for a cause bigger than some galactic affair [you know...the fucking Reapers]. Also, Shepard and Garrus' friendship runs deep [especially when you play only Paragon, you can feel it] and I think that suits Sivir and Taliyah.

Miranda - Take a wild guess. Okay, it's Evelynn. Why? Bubble butt. And maybe the fact it coincides with my personal headcannon of Evelynn and her father, Edmund [oc], having a strained and broken relationship. Miranda is also resourceful and knows how to survive and I think that suits Evelynn. Also...

Jack - Ahri. Now hear me out, maybe this Ahri isn't as loud and crass as Jack but she will fight with Evelynn. I can see Ahri being this rare fox species that was experimented on to enhance her biotics.

Tali'zorah- I chose Sona because I think the Quarian design might suit her the most. [Ignore the fact that Garrus and Tali has a little romance thing]. Sona is wise, smart, and she can explain that she can not talk but she has a communicator in her body suit so she is able to "talk" [so her voice sounds very robotic]

Ashley Williams/Kaiden Alenko - Fuck it, my headcannon so I do whatever I want and they both LIVE. If Akali is Ashley then Irelia can be Kaiden OR vice versa [but I never let Kaiden live so idk his backstory as well as Ashley and I let Ashley live so I can keep giving her shit when she complains]. Irelia would be more stoic and by the book when it comes to it. But she would be willing to break a few rules when to comes down to it. Also, she would be promoted to Spectre and Akali would nominate her as well.

Tbh, my friend and I had a hard time trying to assign ME roles to K/DA. It could go anyway so just know this is just my opinion and even I had a hard time with it. But it's fun!

[natsunoomoi]

Holy crap. So like with the previous post I was thinking about Fushigi Yuugi again and kind of checking up on what was up with Byakko Senki cuz I haven’t checked on it in awhile and it looks like it’s on hiatus right now and she’s working more on Arata Kangatari, which is cool cuz I thought she finished that, but I guess not and she just took a break to like finish Genbu and do Byakko or something.

But also I was scrolling through her Twitter to find that she is really into this Chinese movie “Legend of Luo Xiaohei” and so I was checking that out cuz so ironic that Japanese mangaka that got her big break writing manga about an ancient China setting is interested in a Chinese movie. So just looking through her Twitter thread and apparently she found out about Luo Xiaohei from watching a CM while watching Modao Zushi. LMAO It’s amazing, but this situation just feels like an ouroboros eating itself because I have a high suspicion that her work on Fushigi Yuugi imported into China back in the 90s was probably a huge influence on Chinese creators and artists to write their own stories about their culture and helped to popularize the xianxia and wuxia novel movements in more modern times. On top of that MXTX said she was inspired by a D. Gray-man fanfic and while she mentioned that title specifically, I think in the periphery Fushigi Yuugi itself and more recently Arata were probably an influence too. Growing up a number of my Chinese friends also said they got into anime overall because of Fushigi Yuugi because it was an anime and work from Japan about their culture and arguably done pretty damn well. 

In terms of the danmei movement as well, I’m pretty sure Fushigi Yuugi was included in what started the movement as the movement was influenced by Japanese BL that came in via Taiwan, and the beginning of Fushigi Yuugi had the whole thing between Nuriko and Hotohori even though that kind of went nowhere, Nuriko dies to everyone’s depression (I have several friends who refuse to watch the rest of the series after Nuriko dies because it’s not the same), and that whole ship goes off a weird deep end with Hotohori marrying a woman that looks like Nuriko. Also, the exact reasons for Nuriko being in the harem and all that. There was a whole lot of shipping in the 90s from Fushigi Yuugi and it was one of the first series that had a male cast that was almost entirely ikemen and I think the actual first reverse harem. A number of shows probably simultaneously popularized the female gaze in mainstream anime, but Fushigi Yuugi was definitely one of them. Like literally one or two years before there was a lot of manly men and guy’s guys kind of anime characters, but beautiful ikemen, no, not really. In 2021, there are some things about the series that are a bit problematic, but it’s influence on the world is pretty significant. It was one of the first shows I’d seen that had any kind of reference to homosexuality or transgender in it and although it’s not necessarily portrayed well, the fact that it was there and that Nuriko was such a beloved character it started a conversation and helped us to get to a time where the topics she represents can be more discussed. I’m actually not even sure what pronouns would be appropriate for Nuriko because of her reasons for what she did and in Japanese the pronoun problem is actually really easy to get around because you just don’t have a subject or speaking in 3rd person is totally normal. But still, without her the minds of thousands or even millions of fans around the world would not have been opened as early to LGBT topics. Her existence, even problematic as it might be, allowed people to consider and love a character of a different sexual orientation or gender identity than their own and just open their minds to just not being a homophobic, biphobic (cuz relationship with Miaka?), or transphobic piece of shit.

Then also Genbu Kaiden and Uruki’s powers. Yeah.... I mean, also kind of with the earlier discussion, the idea of dual cultivation I don’t recall even being brought up much before in most media, but such ideas were also banned and repressed in China at a certain point. Documentation shows it was more of an ancient practice that suddenly became known about again. The book I was talking about that has it more explicitly written is banned in China has its only original surviving copy in the Japanese National Library as it was one of the books brought to Japan by scholars escaping persecution in China and bringing with them books to escape one of the many episodes of mass book burning. According to my Chinese lit professor who had us read an English translation of that book as a part of our curriculum anyway. Supposedly the translator of said book had to go to Japan to read the original in order to write the translation. There’s apparently a number of ancient Chinese texts like that because book burnings were a thing at different points in Chinese history, so if you are a scholar of Chinese lit if you want a complete picture of your field for some texts you do actually have to come to Japan to do your research. But yeah, that power mentioned in that very book Watase-sensei gave to Soi, and also the story of Fushigi Yuugi takes place in that very library that contains that ancient copy of a banned and would have been lost to the world book. If you’re asking why a “dirty” book would be something a scholar would grab to save, ancient lit scholars do regard it as a rather well-written piece of literature even though the content of it is basically taboo.

But also the Fushigi Yuugi Suzaku Ibun game is a hot mess when it comes to this same issue because if you romance Nuriko you can save her from death and my friend Hikari said she wasn’t sure if she was happy about fucking with the universe like that. (I’m not either.) Nuriko’s death was such a huge impact on the story and everything. Also, notably, most of the Suzaku Shichiseishi died, but Nuriko had the LONGEST tribute. Like Chiriko and Mitsukake’s was like a tag on of a few minutes. Hotohori’s was too even, but it was addressed more in the later manga chapters the publisher pressured her to write and in the OVA series afterward.

Also, like Fushigi Yuugi other than the Neverending Story was one of the original sucked into a book holy shit how do I survive stories. Idk if SVSSS is influenced by it in that way, but it’s fair to draw the parallels because of the similar theme. It’s just canonically Taiitsu Shinjin is not behind the the system in the book and in a number of ways Shen Yuan is more competent than Miaka. Miaka gets a lot of shit though and when I re-watched FY a second time I actually found the gripes people generally have about it make up only a small part of the series. People just talk it up so much that it seems like a huge thing when it’s not. Plus the technical canon is only the original TV series because that’s where Watase wanted to end the story and that is an emotional rollercoaster that makes you cry so good. But like there’s some other kinds of parallels as well like how toward the end and like the last two episodes you hate Nakago up until the exact moment you find out why he’s an absolute asshole, and characters straight up criticizing him about how he’s an asshole the whole damn series just gives the same kind of feels that SY gave criticizing the original throughout SVSSS. Can’t say for sure, but Fushigi Yuugi has a lot of clout in a general sense.

But yeah, Watase-sensei said that she was really surprised by the animation quality of Chinese animation these days and she thought Japanese anime was going down in comparison. Same, yo. Same. But still, her work was probably a huge contributor to the movement that allowed MDZS to exist because her art is damn beautiful, Chinese influenced, and she had one of the first works in Asia to like bring the subject of LGBT issues into the mainstream after years of oppression from mostly Western influence because in pre-modern Asia no one gave a shit before and there’s a significant amount of classical novels that address some form of LGBT issues at least in Japanese lit and like even academic documentation that notes Confucius saying that doing it with a guy was better than with a woman. And the author of the work that probably was very influential to BL back in the 90s watches MDZS. She noted that there wasn’t any in the actual anime, which is true, but I think she helped that series to exist and she watches the anime so it’s kind of exciting.

I hope it influences her to go finish Byakko, but OMG I want her to finish Arata too because I like Arata. I should try to find time to read more of it because the anime is too short and the wiki descriptions of what’s happening are so damn confusing and incomplete.

[unwiltingblossom]

Wow!! You love isekai too!! Here are some I think you'll like Moshi Fan Ren, Master of Ragnarock, Hataage! Kemono Michi, Gun x Sword, Citrus, My Sweet Sugar Life, Overlord, Magic Knight, Recovery of an MMO Junkie, Chaos Dragon, Arifureta, Mr Love Queens Choice, Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint. What animes do you like ? °.·~°·*.· ~ . *

Hello!

Lemme take a look at your list~!

As for Moshi Fanren, I’m not that much of a fan of zombies (I love post apocalypse for watching a world rebuild, but not much for zombies themselves)

I’ve actually already watched Master of Ragnarok - I remember there being a plot where his love from his life ends up getting isekai’d much later in the story, right? There was also a completely ridiculous and hilarious moment where a girl’s boob somehow just...came alive and knocked a piece of fruit off a platter she was holding. I don’t understand. it was surreal.

Kemono Michi was fun, though a bit strange.

I haven’t seen Gun x Sword before, but it reminds me of Trigun somehow from the description, I’ll give it a look when I get the chance!

As for Citrus and My Sweet Sugar Life, I probably wouldn’t enjoy them, as I’m not into yuri (or yaoi, I prefer gxb if it’s gonna be a romance anime) - that, and in the latter case I’m picky on thrillers

I really enjoyed Overlord season 1 and also 2, but season 3 really turned me off from the show, as Ains has started losing control of his villainous persona and starts doing harm to his own (human) followers. I do like Jircniv though.

If you mean Magic Knight Rayearth I really enjoyed that manga. It’s a classical isekai kind of format and I loved it. I never finished part 2, but that’s because my library didn’t have the rest. Anyone who likes isekai should try reading that, as it’s a precursor to modern isekai format

As for Recovery of an MMO Junkie - I absolutely adored that anime. I ship Moriko and Sakurai to death. They’re adorable, and I love Sakurai. Such a cutie. I really hope we get more of the anime.

I don’t think I’ve ever heard of Chaos Dragon before? I’ll have to give it a look.

As for Arifureta, I liked it at first, but his relationship with Yue speeds though at such a ridiculous pace it left be dizzy and completely disengaged with it, which is a problem because the rest of his relationships are dependent on the fact that his and Yue’s relationship is the most epic of epic. Also, Hajime is just a capital J jerk. It reminded me of Shield Hero if people weren’t constantly being like ‘Naofumi stop being a dick for five seconds pls’

I actually play Mr. Love Queen’s Choice! I’m caught up with the english release of the game and I know some stuff that happens in the future. Currently I’m trying to ease my father into watching the anime, since the story is so good but I won’t be convincing him to play a girl game any time soon, lol

I’ve never heard of Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint before but the power sounds really cool, so I’ll look into it and see if I can find it, even though the genre isn’t really my favorite.

As for anime I already like, hm...well I might forget some but off the top of my head some of my favorites are:

Dragon ball (all of them except GT, which had potential but really squandered it hard. Super has its issues, but it’s still ongoing and hasn’t started randomly throwing away characters, nor given Vegeta a buzz cut)

Fushigi Yuugi - the manga, the anime wasn’t done very well honestly. I actually hate the primary romance and Miaka’s just...almost unbearable, but I love the whole concept and world and the characters so much that it’s one of my all time favorites anyway. I of course read all of Genbu Kaiden and am reading Byakko Ibun too.

Video Girl Ai - There’s an anime running now called Rent-a-Girlfriend, but Video Girl Ai did this already, first, and way better. Just not the anime. The anime only covers the first three graphic novels of like...10?

Naruto is a given, obviously, it’s probably one of the best battle shounen anime there are, especially at accomplishing things other ones fail to do properly.

I also enjoy Black Clover and I kind of liked Fairy Tail but it’s a little silly, and I don’t like Natsu. If you don’t like the protagonist of a shounen anime that’s gonna be a problem. Though to be fair I read literally two panels of Asta and went “Wow, I hate him.” but he almost immediately gets better, and is one of the smarter shounen leads.

Other anime I enjoy...hmm. Tenchi, of course - not Tenchi in Tokyo - Inuyasha, Ranma 1/2 though I never finished either. I really wish I still had the PSX Inuyasha game where you could pick who Kagome dated, boohoo. Seven Deadly Sins, though the latest season has been boring, My Hero Academia though probably not as much as most people would, Rage of Bahamut was great and Favaro needs to get back with Amira already. Fate Stay Night, naturally, though I don’t care for heaven’s feel. I need more of Kuromukuro to be made, so the samurai and his girlfriend can finally be reunited again. Despite its weird ending, I also liked Chobits

I also liked Orange, CLANNAD, Steins;Gate (and 0) and SukaSuka/WorldEnd because I guess I like suffering. I was there for when .hack//SIGN was starting out, so I’m always going to be a fan of that bizarre, convoluted mess of a mystery.

I started Fruits Basket but dropped it as soon as I realized who Tohru would end up with, because I hate a love triangle where I already know the result from the beginning. I just don’t like love triangles at all, honestly, partly because I never prefer the canon ending. (and thus if I can tell it’s a triangle but not who will win - which is rare - I still don’t enjoy it due to anxiousness). I liked Free! but the fandom is so annoying I got tired of the show and dropped it. I enjoy Bleach, but I feel like it peaked in the Soul Society arc, and the filler kills me.

I’m sure I’m missing some, but it’s what I can think of right off.

[bunnyboybosom]

I am super hyped for this remaster, but some of the language here makes me upset. To be frank, I'm not going to buy the games again if they don't take the time to fix glaring oversights, my biggest gripe as of now being the lack of mlm relationships until the third game. If they don't make kaiden romanceable in me1 I'm probably just not gonna buy the games.

Other things that come to mind are the romances in me3. Thane's kinda makes sense but Jacob's falls flat and It's so disheartening to ever romance him. Ashley is a lot more flat and almost sidelined to just be another piece of eye candy. Also, there aren't any wlw romances in me2, other than liara who carries over from me1. That's actually why I haven't gotten the paramore achievement for me2 yet.

My expectations for bioware are low. New content might snag me anyways, but as I see it now, I already own the trilogy on ps3, I'm not gonna buy it again unless it fixes some serious issues.

[eruvadhril]

I have come to the conclusion that my enduring Stories What I Enjoy Going Back To* have the common characteristic of being more-or-less Incidentally Aroace. The stories and the characters therein just kind of fail to consider sex or romantic relationships as a factor that’s interesting enough to bring up most of the time.

A non-exhaustive list:

Discworld - It’d be quicker to list the characters who *don’t* read as aro and/or ace, and if sex is brought up at all it’s likely to be as a gag.

Protector of the Small - Even without Tammy confirming Kel as ace over on her tumblr, Kel is the platonic ideal (ha) of having a hormone-induced Straight Phase as a teenager, and her entire relationship with Cleon was so painfully “dating your friend because they made the first move and you have no concept of what attraction feels like so you don’t realise that you don’t actually reciprocate their feelings”.

Lord of the Rings - Rosie and Sam aside (and I’m tempted to put at least part of that down to the hobbit-like tendency to enjoy material pleasures), a lot of Jirt’s romances are kiiind of based around the dude kind of sitting and making heart-eyes at the lady all day when their eldritch-abomination-slaying schedules are clear, and very little of the heart-eyes portion is considered relevant enough to include in the actual story.

Horatio Lyle - Book 4 aside, of course

Leverage - While I could do without Nate and Sophie’s back-and-forth, it isn’t obtrusive enough to put me off. They don’t treat the eventual romantic relationship/s as some kind of Super-Special Bond that needs to be elevated above the strength or significance of the connections they have with the other people in the group.

Sherlock Holmes - An extremely cozy QPR that doesn’t know that’s what it is, and therefore is blessedly free of the standard Relationship Drama that an author might otherwise be tempted to include between the two leads.

Star Trek - Despite indulging in a lot of the aforementioned Relationship Drama and including a lot of one-off episodes where the plot involves Characters Having A Fling, there are also a good number of episodes where it’s friends solving problems in space and every so often John de Lancie is there.

My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic - Friends solving problems in a horse-themed fantasy world and every so often John de Lancie is there.

RPGs in general - Even with the questionable art-design choices out there, you can personally generally either opt out of or not engage in romantic and sexual content**, and most of the time there’s about fifty to a hundred hours’ worth of Better Things To Do.

* I hesitate to say “fandoms”, as in fandom circles it’s kind of taken as read that you’re at least partially there for the shipping or because you’re attracted to the characters, and a lot of the content and conversation is geared towards that aspect.

** When I first got ninjamanced by Kaiden I was so repelled that I chose him to die on Virmire specifically to avoid having to talk to him again.

[crassussativum]

Mass Effect Asks Masterlist- Cato

(Originally posted by thenerdcommander, credit where credit is due.)

1. What would their recruitment mission look like? ((Cato’s recruitment mission, if it even can be called such, would be after Menae. Primarch Fedorian has fallen. Cato finds Shepard on the Citadel after that mission and demands to come along with them. Shepard might be reluctant at first, but eventually allows it.)) 

2. Would they be a romance option?  If so, who would the option be available to and what would their romance look like?  Would there be any special scenes? ((Cato is a shy thing in the ways of romance and sex. And another species? That’s just too confusing for him).)

3. If there is one, what would their sex scene look like?  How would the scene change if Shepard or Ryder turned the sex down? ((On the off chance, we’d get to see a naked turian that’s probably never had sex before and certainly never with a human lol it’d be awkward but sweet with a quick fade to black.))

4. If left unromanced, do they hook up with another character?  If so, who is it?  Is it a canon character or another OC? ((Nah, probably not.))

5. Would they be available as a fling option?  What would that scene look like? ((Also probably not))

6. Is there any way Shepard or Ryder could get them to turn on them or betray them?  How?  Is there any way to get them to back down once the betrayal is triggered? ((Shepard would have to do something big and horrible for Cato to betray them. Like genocide big. And yes, not doing the right thing with the Shroud mission, but then how would Cato know that?))

7. What would their loyalty mission look like? (Cato’s loyalty mission would be simple. All he’d want is a day to pretend the galaxy might not actually be ending, a day to be normal. He’d want to go somewhere the Reapers haven’t touched yet and while that may be hard, he’d just need Shepard to pretend everything’s okay with him for just a little while.))

8. Is there any way to lose their loyalty after it’s earned?  How? ((No, I don’t think so.))

9. What would their relationship with Renegade Shepard look like?  Paragon Shepard?  If they’re from Andromeda, what’s their relationship with Ryder (pick any two alignments)?  ((I think Cato would greatly look up to a Paragon Shepard, the always doing what’s right would speak to him on a Spiritual level. Renegade Shepard would probably rub him the wrong way because sometimes doing what’s right in the moment in a way that’s not right is a grey concept he just doesn’t have the experience to grasp.))

10. What phrase(s) would they shout during combat? ((“Incoming!” “Outta the way!” for biotic attacks/charges. Otherwise I think he’d be verbally keeping count of enemy positions.))

11. Any squadmates they don’t particularly get along with? ((Honestly? I think it’s less that he wouldn’t get along with Jack but that she would scare the hell out of him. He’d find how powerful she is totally fascinating, and that her body is her own canvas would intrigue the artist in him. But she’s outwardly abrasive, crudely spoken, and volatile. Waaaay too intimidating for Cato. I think, were he to go along on her loyalty mission, he’d view her as something more of a kindred Spirit, but still be too skittish to make friends. ALSO since ME3. Javik. Javik would terrify him. He’s mean, he’s battle weary, he’s bleak and he finds no joy in the little things.))

12. Are there any instances where rivalries between them and another squadmate could potentially jeopardize their loyalty or views of Shepard or Ryder? ((Maybe? Like I can’t think of anything right now, but I’m sure there’s something. Cato mostly just follows along with the flow, but he’s moody so... it’s possible.))

13. Which squadmates are they likely to make friends with? ((Everyone but maybe Javik. Tali he’d adore. Garrus is a role model. Liara is asari and he loves their artwork and history so much. James I think he’d warm up to fast. Ashley/Kaiden are in the air but I don’t see why not.))

14. In which game would they be introduced to the franchise?  ME1?  ME2?  ME3?  Andromeda? ((In ME3))

15. Would they make multiple appearances throughout the games or are they limited to one installment?  If they reappear, do they remain as a squadmate or do they become an NPC? ((He’s just a squadmate in ME3 but maybe we saw him as an NPC in ME1 or ME2. He’d have been on the Citadel a lot then.))

16. Which skills are available to them?  If they’re from the OT, pick four active powers and one unique passive class power (ex: Turian Agent, Asari Commando, Turian Smuggler, etc).  If they’re from Andromeda, pick three active powers and two passive (one of which should be a unique class power). ((So... this is hard. Cato’s an Adept, so his top four biotic moves are: Warp, Shockwave, Throw, and a Biotic Charge just for fun. Idk what passive class powers are, sorry.))

17. Write a quick exchange of banter between them and one other squadmate of your choice.

Cato: “I could use my biotics?”

Mordin: “Yes. Turian biotics, burn bright, burn hot, strong in bursts. Sufficient.”

Cato: “Or you could reach up there and pull it down. ‘Cause you can reach.”

Mordin: “….Small for a turian youth. Still growing? No, stunted. Lack of nutrition? Genetic mutation? Hmm Could take samples….”

Cato: “No samples! Spirits, I’m still growing, everyone says so….”

18. What weapons would they use?  Pick 1 minimum, maximum of 2 firearms, 1 melee weapon, and/or 1 special or unique weapon. ((Cato’s got an M-3 Predator, a Phaeston, and an omniblade for close quarter emergencies.))

19. Name one thing that players would remember them most by (ex: Garrus’ calibrations, “Lola”, Mordin’s singing, etc).  (Folks would remember that Cato’s the baby! He’s so young and idealistic, kind and caring. Like… he’s great as a squad member bc biotics and small arms fire, but… but he’s still a kid that wants to do kid things. Like go somewhere and eat nothing but junk food, or hit the movies or whatever. He would always need to be supervised bc he has no impulse control either.)

20. If they’re from the OT, what ways could they be killed on Virmire, during the Suicide Mission, or the events of ME3 (pick one)?  If they’re from Andromeda, are there any ways they could die?  If so, how and how could Ryder prevent it if prevention is possible at all? ((So ME3 and I think he could maybe die during the final battle on Earth, but only if Shepard didn’t do his loyalty mission which reminded Cato “normal” was what they’re fighting for.)) 

21. Can they be Indoctrinated or Exalted?  If so, what would they be like?  What options would Shepard or Ryder have to handle the situation?  Would there have been options to prevent it? ((No, I don’t think so))

22. How would they react to other squadmates, Shepard, or Ryder being Indoctrinated or Exalted? ((Aghast confusion. Sadness, fear.))

23. When on the Tempest or Normandy, where do they like to stay?  Do they roam around?  What about on the Citadel or Nexus?  ((Cato likes to hang around Garrus or the galley on the Normandy. Turian biotics are always hungry and Garrus is another turian that he can look up to. On the Citadel, he either loiters near the embassy in hopes of visiting with his grandpa -pre 3- or he’s down at the docks praying to see someone he knows. ))

24. Do they have an opinion on the way Shepard drives the Mako?  Or how Ryder drives the Nomad? (At first, Shepard drives the Mako way too recklessly and fast…. but Cato is still a child in many ways and I think he’d gradually have fun with Shepard driving, if Shepard was willing to teach him how.))

25. Are they vocal about their opinions of the Council or Nexus Leadership?  If so, what is their opinion?  Do they make a passing comment to another squadmate or do they say it to Shepard or Ryder directly?  (I’d say Cato is vocal about his opinions. His grandpa’s the Primach, he kinda has room to be, lol. And I’m sure he’d willingly talk about it if asked. He hates how the Cabal/biotic turians are ostracized, he doesn’t really understand why. He hates how barefaced and outer colony turians are looked down on. He’s sure that the Turian Councilor has turian people’s needs in mind but how can you see the scope of the big picture if you’re not looking at all the pieces that make it whole too?)

26. What decisions could Shepard or Ryder make that they greatly disapprove of? ((If Cato was aware-somehow- that Shepard put the fake cure in at the Shroud mission, he’d really disapprove of that.)) 

27. What decisions could Shepard or Ryder make that they greatly approve of? ((Doing that mission for the new Primarch and SAVING Tarquin. Fight me on this. My biotic Shepard could’ve saved him, damnit.))

28. Would they have any special scenes or dialogue in the Citadel DLC or for Movie Night? ((Maybe to Shepard in regards to their clone and is that like having a sibling? Cato always wanted a sibling. He probably drinks too much at the later party and ends up passed out in a cozy, secluded spot.))

29. Would they have any special scenes or dialogue in the final battle against the Reapers or the Archon? ((The final battle against the Reapers, he wouldn’t be able to just sit on his hands, he’d be on the ground driving whatever vehicle transported the survivors to safe locations.))

30. How would they react to meeting Shepard’s clone?  Or Ryder’s twin? ((Much confusion. By that point, I like to think Cato would’ve intergated himself into Shepard’s day-to-day. And why doesn’t Shepard talk to him as warmly? Or joke with him the same? Clone? Oooohkay then.))

[mrmallardsmobileposts]

Back when I was first playing the Mass Effect games, my mind was firing on all cylinders on fan theories and predictions and stuff about what was gonna happen next. A part of this was because I was liveblogging my first ME run, from the first game to the last, on a GameFAQs forum - as I played through ME1 through to ME3, I gave my impressions, predictions and personal wants. For example, I wanted to romance Tali from the start of the first game, so I would basically be setting up my Shepard to be endgame with Tali. When the Geth turned up, my desire was to explore their society and mindset instead of seeing them as complete monsters for the entire length of the series. I wanted them to have a society, a culture, because their backstory is too rich just to have them be murderbots. Sure enough, Legion came along at the end of Mass Effect 2 and scratched that itch.

But the theory I'm most proud of - and the theory that didn't come true, for better and for worse -was my Jack theory.

In my first Mass Effect save, I spared Kaiden. I think my perception of Ashley was that she was a xenophobe, or kind of racist, and that was kind of a bummer. Part of that opinion came from the online reaction to her, but that's another story. But yeah - Kaiden. I saved him in ME1

In ME2, there's a quest to save Jack. And until I got to the facility where she was being kept, I thought she was going to be Kaiden.

Here's the reasoning: when you ask the Illusive Man about Kaiden, he says that his file is surprisingly classified - he's still with the Alliance, working on a top secret mission. Anderson tells you as much, too. Jack's bio has almost no info on her except that she's a powerful biotic, and her name is Jack - which tends to be a more masculine name, y'know. And then with Archangel, it turns out to actually be Garrus the whole time. So there's precedent there.

So - no personal info on Jack. They're a powerful biotic being kept in a shithole prison. Masculine name. Garrus ended up being Archangel, which means that Jack (no last name given) could just as easily be the game trying to deceive me. Kaiden's on a top secret mission with a blank file, and no-one will tell me where he is. As such - Kaiden might just be using Jack as a code name, going undercover at Purgatory to save someone for the Alliance, or bust the warden or something. He has to act all hard-ass to Shepard to avoid blowing his cover.

Which, IMO, would have been fucking awesome.

[phoenixmakeswords]

Dented AU

Chapter 4 of the AU. Gotta say Kris is generally less of a butt.

Ransom’s already waiting at the Cajun place for me. It has the best crawfish etouffee in the city, and it reminds me just enough of Home to be nostalgic without being painful.

“You had a bad day. It’s all over your face,” he remarks by way of ‘hello.’

“Horrible. How was yours?” I pad after him into the restaurant. There’s no point in trying to keep up with him.

“It was good. I, um, I have something to show you when we get inside.”

“Do I wanna know?”

“I got my first tattoo.” He pauses at the hostess station. “Booth for two please.”

The hostess leads us to a booth near the bathroom. I don’t miss the way she ogles him. He doesn’t notice.

“What’d you get?” I ask, sitting across from him.

He holds his right wrist out, letting me see the black bird cage with a bird in flight leaving it.

“I like it. Who did it?”

“Kaiden. It’s to symbolize coming out.”

“Your family knows now?” I know he’s been waiting to tell them. He’s been afraid to tell them. Being adopted means he’s afraid of disappointing them.

“Yeah. It went over decently. I need to have a talk with my mom, though. She, uh, has the mindset that my being gay means instant shopping buddy. And girl talk. And that I'm automatically into any other gay or bi guy. She does not know about you or any other guys. As far as she’s concerned, I'm still her innocent little boy.”

“She does realize you’d rather have teeth pulled than go shoppin’, right? And that attraction doesn’t work like that? Your mama’s gonna kill you when she finds out you lied.” I tap my short nails lightly against the tabletop. I do everything in my power not to lie to Mama. She’s very scary when she’s mad.

“I think she forgot that. I know, right? I mean, she’s not into every guy she sees, so why would I be? What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her.”

“What she doesn’t know might put you in an early grave.” I nudge his hand playfully.

“Kristoff, what’re you doin’ here?” Mama calls, startling me. “Is this your friend?”

I might be imagining the extra emphasis she puts on ‘friend,’ but, judging from the way Ransom arches a thin brow at me, I don’t think I am.

“He’s my tattoo artist,” I explain. “Ransom, this is my mama, Elena.”

Mama grins like the Cheshire cat as she shakes his hand.

“So, where’s your person?” I ask before she can say something embarrassing.

“Bathroom. If things go decently tonight, we might have a dinner with his kids and you three.”

“Family dinner? With Regan? I thought I was good son.” Why am I being punished for her finding a guy?

“You can bring a date. She’ll be bringing her boyfriend.”

Oh, yeah, bring Ransom to family dinner with my sister who went off on him and called him a racial slur. Even if Ransom was my least favorite person, I wouldn’t do that.

“Um, I'm gonna be out of town that day,” I tell her quickly.

“You don’t even know what day it is.”

“Put me and Regan in a room with knives right now and one of us is gonna get stabbed and it ain’t gonna be me.”

“Kristoff, that’s your sister!”

“Not accordin’ to her.”

The waiter’s arrival pauses our conversation. I order the same thing I always get: Cherry Pepsi, the shrimp and grits appetizer, and the crawfish etouffee.

“I’ve never been here before,” Ransom whispers, glancing hurriedly over his menu.

“D-did you pick this place ‘cause of me?” I ask. I don’t have words for how happy his slight nod makes me. “Um, they have really great gumbo. The jambalaya is good too.”

He orders the vegetarian jambalaya.

Mama and her date have been seated at the booth behind ours. Great.

“Have they done anything with Regan’s app?” I ask.

“They’re not hiring her. Thankfully.” Relief lights up his green eyes.

“I'm glad.”

“So, what happened today?”

“Eight hours of being harassed. He thinks it’s fun. My boss knows. She doesn’t care. She thinks I'm makin’ it up. That it’s not that bad.”

“You don’t lie about stuff like that. I know you. Are you okay? I mean, I know you’re not in the greatest place right now.”

“Honestly? I wanna move far away from him and start over.”

“Can I go with you? Start my own studio. Be my own boss.” He smiles shyly.

“You wanna run away together?”

“Yeah. Whatcha think?” He grins easily.

“Why does this sound like you’re tryin’ to romance me?”

“Can’t two gay guys run away together platonically?”

“Platonic, huh?”

“We could be.” He smiles pleasantly when the waiter brings our food. “Your shrimp and grits look really good.”

“I’ll share. You can have shrimp, right?”

“Um, shrimp sorta falls under the ‘meat’ category. Thanks, though.”

Their shrimp and grits are like none I’ve ever had before. For one thing, the grits are formed into patties and fried. And the shrimp are breaded and fried. It’s the bomb.

“Okay, how ‘bout I share my dessert?” I offer.

“Which is what exactly?”

“Their hot fudge beignet sundae. With extra whipped cream. Vanilla ice cream, surrounded by fresh beignets, drowning in hot fudge, and with whipped cream and cherries on top. It might actually be better than sex. Well, maybe not sex with you.”

“I'm not saying anything.” He has the biggest grin, though. “I'm completely down to share. Are you feeling better?”

“Fake it till you make it, right?”

I wince when Mama asks the waiter if they can move to our table. I don’t want them to join us. I am not having a double date with my mother. This isn’t even a date! But, if it was, that would be weird. I mean, it’s weird now.

Ransom scoots to sit next to me, leaving the opposite side of the booth for Mama and her date. Ransom looks as thrilled as I feel.

“Ransom, did you say you know my daughter?” Mama asks.

“I, um, I did a tattoo for her.” A careful edge slips into his voice. “We don’t get along.”

“One more kid and you’ll have tattooed all of mine. Not a lot of people do get along with her.”

“I thought we were the only ones.” He gestures between the two of us. “She pushes Kris’s buttons really bad. Which is why his kitchen has been overrun by bread.”

“It’s not that—Okay, it is that bad. But who doesn’t love bread?” I respond.

“You bake bread when you’re angry?” Mama’s date queries curiously.

“It’s cheaper than a punching bag. I'm Kris, by the way. I wasn’t tryin’ to be rude.” I reach across the table to shake his hand politely.

“Grant. I’ve never heard of someone doing that before. Now, what do you do?”

“I work at a bakery. But I might be quitting to work with Ransom.”

“I do tattoos for a living. I, um, I'm not into drugs or anything. I just like making art on people,” Ransom explains. “I’ve done all three of Kris’s pieces. He’s actually my favorite customer. Especially compared with his sister.”

“What’d Regan do?” Mama asks resignedly.

“Your daughter called me a racial slur. Told me I was stupid. My boss stepped in.” He toys anxiously with his necklace.

“She knows better. I didn’t raise her to behave like that. Kristoff doesn’t, I hope.”

“Do you think he would’ve done three tattoos for me and been staying with me if I had?” I retort. And now it sounds like we’re a couple. Or at least having lots of sex.

“How long have you been dating?” Grant asks. He doesn’t sound judgmental, which is more than I expected.

I glance at Ransom, hoping he can come up with something, because I'm freaking out. I feel like they’re all expecting me to say we’re a couple. I'm almost wanting Ransom to say we are, even though I know we aren’t and we wouldn’t work anyway because I'm too much of a mess. But the lie would be better than the truth. I don’t want Mama’s potential boyfriend to know what happened.

“Not long. We, uh, kinda rushed at first, but we’re taking things slow now. He’s pretty special to me,” Ransom replies easily, squeezing my hand gently.

“You look good together. Are you happy, Kristoff?” Mama says this like it’s the most important thing in the world. I don’t think she realizes I can be happy and depressed at the same time.

I smile and nod the best I can with a mouthful of grits.

“I thought you guys weren’t going out until Friday?” I ask once I can speak again.

“We were both able to get time sooner. Why’re you leaving the bakery? I thought it was your passion,” Mama replies.

“Because my boss doesn’t care I'm bein’ sexually harassed. And that it escalated today. She laughed at me. Said I was lyin’. Called me an attention whore. Felt like I was dealin’ with my sister.”

“Wait, escalated? You didn’t tell me that.” Ransom touches my hand gently. I don’t like how worried he sounds. I don’t like worrying him.

“I was gonna tell you at home.”

“Are you okay?”

“You’re funny.”

“Do you mind if we stay at my place tonight? It’s the first night of Hanukah.” He smiles uncertainly, like he thinks I might say no. Or might rip into him.

“No problem.” I brush my fingers lightly over his.

It’s a relief when we leave. I’ve never been to Ransom’s apartment before.

“You’re not upset with me for lying, are you? If you are, I get it. Will the futon work? I don’t have a spare room,” he says in his Blazer after picking me up from my apartment. I can barely hear him over the rumbling engine.

“Not really. I can sleep just about anywhere, as long as it’s flat. Bathtub, table, doesn’t matter.”

“What happened today?”

“He assaulted me. And I almost walked out, but I didn’t because I need the job and I don’t want you to think I'm some spoiled, lazy rich boy who doesn’t wanna work.”

“I’ve never thought that.” He grimaces when the car jerks into gear.

“Just put gas in, didn’t you? We could’ve taken my Mustang.”

“Yeah, and I would’ve had a dead battery. Kris, I meant what I said back there about you being special to me.”

“I know. And I know you think us dating would work and we’d be happy and all that, but my life’s never been a fairy tale. Maybe I don’t get a happy ending. I’ve never planned on one.”

“So, what, you’re not even gonna try?”

“Why bother? Hurts less. You’d get attached and I’d fall for you and something would happen and it’d fall apart. That’s what happens when I get settled and comfortable. It goes to crap. And I don’t wanna lose you.” And none of that was supposed to come out of my mouth. It’s all true, but that doesn’t matter. He wasn’t supposed to know.

“Things are falling apart now and I'm still here. I'm not going anywhere, okay?”

“Yeah, well, right now you’re afraid I’ll kill myself. What about when I get through this? When I'm not some tragic excuse of a human being? Because the only time a guy has ever given a fuck about me when we’re not sleeping together has been to play the hero. Because screwing and rescuing are all I'm good for.” My voice trembles with anger. I'm so tired of being seen as pitiful. Of being used and thrown away. I'm not angry so much with Ransom as I am with his idea that he’ll be different.

“I was planning on asking you out when you got through this. I'm not shallow, Kris. You know me better than that. Or you should. If I wanted a guy to boost my ego, I’d be at a bar.” He sounds as angry as I feel, but I don’t turn to look. I can’t look at him right now.

“Why do you want me so damn much? There’s better guys out there. Not-broken guys.”

“I never thought you were broken. More like a dented can at Wal-Mart. You’re a little bit banged-up, but you’re still so good and so deserving and amazing and I’d give you the world if you’d give me half a chance.”

Banged-up fits. I feel battered. Like I’ve been through a hurricane. Made of lava.

“I think you need your eyes checked ‘cause that ain’t what I see.”

“I’m not the only one that sees you like that.”

“Mama doesn’t count.”

“Have you always been this stubborn?”

“Yes. You just haven’t been around me long enough to notice.”