#my favorite boss is the Sisters of Battle‚ btw!!

[throughpatchesofviolet]

CONGRATS ON BEATING THE GAME!!! Also getting all the achievements. That's such a feat omg I'M GENUINELY IMPRESSED AND PROUD

I remember wanting to beat Pantheon 5 back when I still played the game consistently (it's been around 2 years now I believe? Since that. So it's been a LONG time now) and seeing how u beat it yourself is honestly awe-inspiring /gen

Your completion makes me wanna go back and play the game again and complete any achievements I haven't done + do Pantheon 5, but I'll definitely be rusty if I do hsjahsjs STILL... thought I'd share because your post reminds me how much I used to LOVE and be insane (/pos) abt this game too

Would u ever pick up Silksong if it ever releases? Since you loved HK so much 👀

Thank you!! I got the game back in 2023, but only really locked in again, this month ... it was completely random, too--I just opened the game, started a fresh save, got obliterated by Flukemarm, then decided I needed a guide because I was very good at getting lost asdfghjkl

I watched a lot of boss guides, and ended up following along with multiple video and written guides, but I did like how, even with them, success depended on my own skill. One of my favorite moments was learning a speedrun skip so I didn't need to pick up the Monarch Wings, because I'd never performed a skip, before.

I basically learned that when I want something really bad (i.e., unlocking all achievements), I both learn the game very quickly AND get very motivated to succeed. I cannot tell you how many times I lost to certain dream bosses at first, or how many times I got obliterated in the Pantheons, but finding the charm set that worked for me (Fragile/Unbreakable Strength, Fragile Heart, Long Nail, Mark of Pride, and Steady Body up until Pure Vessel, when I swapped MoP for Shaman Stone) did a lot. Also I highly recommend the stagger timer reset trick for the False Knight/Failed Champion--sets you up nicely in the Pantheon for the coming bosses.

EDIT: Also Descending Dark!! Do not sleep on the invincibility frames that spell gives you--saved me many times when fighting Absolute Radiance.

That was a lot of rambling, so to your question--yes, I would love to play Silksong, should it release! My friends were joking that whenever I beat a game and unlock all its achievements, news about it--or a sequel--would drop, so maybe we'll at least get some news about it? /lh /hj

Hollow Knight was genuinely such a fun experience, and I mainly got it because you and others were talking about it back in 2023--it's not my usual type of game, but I've always been able to overlook game play if the story is good ... turns out HK is both fun to play AND has great lore. Even if I had to learn most of it from videos, since I was more focused on completing the game (which means the game play definitely won me over, in the end). /lh

[somer-writes]

I meant like Zelda games but if you wanna talk about like R6 or something then pop off king

Lmao i got you homie

Excluding the CDI and Japan exclusive stuff, I've played every Zelda game except for Triforce Heroes and the Warriors titles.

Four Swords Adventures was my first Zelda game <3 I was like 9 or 10 the first time I played it and I've beat it more times than I can count. I used to play it on sick and snow days.

Twilight Princess is my favorite Zelda game. It has my favorite art direction, my favorite dungeons, and my favorite bosses. Plus I love its dark tone and the way it demonstrates good and evil being a willful choice.

Currently working through TotK but I have an arm injury thats caused me nerve and tendon damage so holding a controller is hard after 20-30 min :( I like TotK more than BotW for gameplay.

Also on my "currently playing" list is FE Three Houses which is incredible btw (dmitri my beloved) and Baldur's Gate 3 (astarion my beloved).

I play a lot of sims. Like multiple thousands of hours of sims. I've been playing since sims 2. Sims 3 is my favorite for gameplay but Sims 4 has an amazing build mode (except i miss auto roofing). im jellypop on the gallery if anyone wants to check out my builds!

and bc its a snow day and im feeling Nostalgic and Wistful, as a kid my older sister and I used to play games together. We've beat Battle for Volcano Island (i want a switch rerelease) so many times. She always played as Sam once we got her and I always played as Danny. we used to watch each other play games by one of us having a walkthrough pulled up in case the other needed it. I watched her play Epic Mickey multiple times this way XD

regarding R6 i actually dont like shooters save Crysis, Deus Ex, and Half-life. I like dungeon crawlers and single player rpgs. i also enjoy point and clicks, match 3, and puzzlers. I hate online games although Guild Wars 2 is pretty dope.

I really enjoy stardew valley and skyrim/oblivion. Also Firewatch and What Remains of Edith Finch are both incredible games

non video game wise i play a lot of Magic the Gathering. Primarily commander but sometimes pioneer. I dont play arena and i'm not into the lore XD my most serious edh deck is a rat colony deck and my least serious deck is an esior/falthis voltron build. my first build was kalamax <3

I also really enjoy board and card games! Azul, pitch, canasta, hanafuda.

i play killteam sometimes too but im more into the hobby side of warhammer than the actual game

[stormvanari]

Current designs:

OC-tober: Day 19 (Inspiration)

Dynoraptor/Will Sharplock (Left): The initial idea for his creation was to make a “Dark Mario.” Not the evil kind rather playing on the idea of a not-so-happy-go-lucky protagonist. However, I didn’t want to make Dyno entirely edgy or whatsoever, so I gave him a “ticking time bomb” personality while balancing a typical detective nature (he’s trying to hold his cool is what I'm saying), and lighthearted facts such as having a sweet tooth and a boxing hobby. In addition, Dyno is the master of chemical warfare and wields revolver gauntlets that can be powered up by various types of chemicals.

In addition, I wanted to make more dino species alongside Yoshi and raptors are my favorite. Therefore, Dynoraptor’s species is a Rapto.

Giulia Jumpman (Right): She originally started off as an empress. But as years go forward, I began to twist that title around and make Giulia the cruel mastermind of a criminal monopoly and the culprit of a cold case that haunts the Primus Empire (she's not an actual empress, btw). Also, I wanted to give an aspect outside of her criminal personality, which is being a lover for aviation and piano. Giulia’s also the older sister of Stanley the Bugman, an existing Nintendo character. Additionally, her design is inspired by the unnamed protagonist of an unreleased rom called Super Donkey, which is part of the Nintendo Gigaleak.

Giulia also has an abominable-cloud form as part of her final boss battle in development.

Both OCs: Both Dynoraptor and Giulia are inspired by Darkwing Duck (series) and RWBY. There is also a tablespoon of early 20th century influence, especially the 1920s-1930s. Though, the Industrial Revolution (19th Century) also has a role in the making of DD along with dieselpunk.

[heshemejoshi]

one of my favorite niche things is knowing the soundtrack for the licenced gba and ds barbie game called 'barbie and the 12 dancing princesses', a videogame adaptation to the movie.

in general the game hits you with an incredible empty feeling from the start. you get an intro screen with scrolling text that explains the plot and the moment it ends the first line of dialogue ever spoken in the game is this:

then your cat, same cat from the movie called Twyla, tells you he's been poisoned by the duchess Rowena who wishes to usurp his throne. she has trapped all of your sisters in strange kingdom behind locked doors, as well, and you must rescue them all. this is the song that plays while everything is happening btw.

listen as a tutorial level when you're 9 years old this gets you. it's an immediate feeling of doom that continues onto the next levels which are barren of other humans. the only humans you ever see is like one enemy in the castle tower level, 3 bosses, your dad in the tutorial and your sisters when you "rescue" them (they're honestly doing pretty good, just standing still in an open area in each level). the enemies otherwise are falling pots, floating teapots that drop liquid and for some reason deal damage, weird insects and crows. which is honestly just whatever but it all feels oddly mechanical, they have very stiff and cyclical attacking patterns and it feels weird to play through.

first boss fight is this guy who drops bottles of poison at you which for the longest time i thought was blood LOL . it's pretty simple you just hit his bottles with the first power some of your rescued sisters gave you, break them, and he runs over the spilled liquid and eventually kills himself. while this banger plays.

yes the songs are usually THIS short. i had never seen such short loops in a videogame but this is a licenced game so what ever. you keep progressing through levels that feel very empty.

the stable/farm level is probably the one with my favorite theme and it also unlocks the last skill, which breaks almost the entire rest of the game making you skip most platforming sections (makes you run and therefore jump very far). it’s very useful as well because the default walking speed of the character is soooooo slow.

you then have a boss fight where you drop crates on a dude's head for some reason and the next level has you in a clock tower to sneak up on the duchess.

the mirror level is painful to go through because after you accidentally skip huge chunks of the clock tower level with the running ability you are forced to not skip and to use all of the skills you’ve unlocked throughout the game (makes sense, it’s the final level). you fight Rowena and beat her and it all gets solved. Your sisters dance in the same short loop until you press the final dialogue and the credits appear.

idk how to properly explain the uncanny/liminal vibes of this game without you playing it for youself but it kinda sucks so i also don’t recommend doing it unless you have absolutely nothing else to do lol. but it definitely is an interesting licenced game.

[novelmonger]

The World Ends with You - I'm not too surprised this one didn't win, because I feel like it's...kind of obscure? I mean, it can't be that obscure, because it's gotten a sequel and an anime adaptation (which is REALLY GOOD btw 8D). But I never hear anybody talking about it, which makes me think nobody's played it. Which should really change! It's such a good game. Really good story with great characters, many more twists than I was expecting, and an excellent art style inspired by graffiti. What with all the graffiti and skateboards and rap music and such, it feels like a throwback to the early 2000s, which does this millennial's heart good <3 It's an action RPG, where you attack using pins that require various kinds of motions with the stylus - for example, with one pin you tap the screen to shoot bullets, for another you swipe up to make spikes shoot out of the ground, with another you grab a piece of debris lying on the ground and move it around to hit enemies. It's unique and there's lots of ways you can customize your play style, and it's challenging without being too frustrating (except for maybe the final boss battle x.x). If any of this sounds interesting, do yourself a favor and find a way to play this game - or at least watch the anime, which is a very good adaptation (though it's much shorter than the game, so unfortunately some great stuff got cut).

Myst IV: Revelation - Aw, nobody voted for this :( I'm actually playing this right now with my sisters! Personally, I think this is where the series should have ended; it has a really satisfying conclusion to all the threads presented thus far, and still has that pre-rendered still images + live-action footage charm that makes Myst consistent, unlike the changes they made with Myst V. Some of the acting is a little disappointing (especially Yeesha) after Brad Dourif's stand-out performance in the previous game, but it's still really nice to see where this family has ended up after all you've done to help them over the years. Like any Myst game, there are some puzzles that make you want to just rip your hair out, but all the same I feel like I've been taking fewer notes in this playthrough. Maybe that's because we're following a walkthrough more closely, though ^^'

The Last Guardian - Oh. My. Word. I love this game so much <3 Made by the same people who made ICO and Shadow of the Colossus, this game is about a boy who befriends a huge gryphon-like creature called a trico, and together the two of them try to escape the ruins they're stuck in. I feel like this game combines all the best things in both of the other Fumito Ueda games: You spend a lot of time climbing around, both on crumbling stone and on the back of a huge animal, but also the whole point of the story is that two characters who are very unlike each other have to learn how to work together to survive, even though they can't communicate with each other in the same way. The game is beautiful, sometimes soft and other times epic, and through the process of playing the game, I feel like I really developed a bond with Trico. I've played the game twice, and both times the ending had me bawling like a baby - partly because of the bittersweet nature of the story, but also partly because I was saying goodbye to a friend. AAAAAHHHHHH, more people need to play this game, it's so good! T^T

Professor Layton and the Curious Village - Wow, this barely beat out Transistor! This one is actually probably my least-favorite Professor Layton game, if I'm being honest ^^' It's the first one they made, so I feel like they were still working out a few of the kinks, and the story wasn't quite as involved or interesting as some of the later installments. Still really cute and charming, and I always love Layton and Luke and their addiction to puzzles XD

The Path - Huh, this was the one I wasn't expecting anyone to have played, but I guess I was wrong! I was really excited to play this game, but ended up being kind of underwhelmed once I actually got around to it. It's a horror game that sort of plays on Little Red Riding Hood, where you have to lead several characters down a path to Grandma's cottage. You're warned not to stray from the path, but you unlock different endings if you stick to the path, or if you leave the path and explore the somewhat desolate forest. There's a subtle story told in the things you find, but I was expecting things to come together in a different way than they did. Still, a cool aesthetic and a cool way of telling a story.

Uncharted 4: A Thief's End - Hands-down my favorite of the Uncharted series. The story is awesome, tying things up so satisfactorily, and including some really gut-wrenching and emotional scenes. Plus, I mean...this one is a story about brothers, so of course I'm going to like it XD Also, since this game was made for the PS4, the graphics are leaps and bounds ahead of the first three games. Also, the music was done by none other than Henry Jackman!!!!! I kept on noticing how both epic and emotional it was while I was playing it, and then I saw his name in the credits and was like, "Captain America, of course!"

The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit - *sigh* Not surprised that no one voted for this, since it's an unnecessary spin-off of the Life Is Strange franchise. But it's really good - and it's free on Steam! It's a short little oneshot where you play as a kid and take him through his typical Saturday morning. It's starts out as just cute fun, a kid playing with his toys and using his imagination to its fullest potential. But then you start to detect a darker undercurrent to his life, one that really tugs at your heartstrings. The boy is a character who shows up in one chapter of Life Is Strange 2, but you really don't need to play any of the other games to understand this one. Also, mercifully, this game is a lot cleaner than the main ones, so I actually feel like I can recommend it to most people I know ^^'

Transistor - Almost won, but not quite! You know...this is one of those weird instances where I can say that a game is objectively good, but for some reason I just didn't like it that much. I'm not sure why - maybe I just played it at the wrong time or something? But I just couldn't get invested in the characters at all, and the gameplay was good, but not fun enough to make up for how little I cared about the story. The aesthetic of the game is really cool, though.

Arbitrarily-Chosen Video Game Tournament, Round 1.23

Welcome to the Arbitrarily-Chosen Video Game Tournament, where we will find out which of the games I've played is the best game of all time!

Why? Don't ask. Just vote and reblog!

[sonicasura]

Danny Phantom Surprise Dads

An idea that popped into my head involving my childhood favorite Danny Phantom and spiting the shit out of the creator Bitch Hartman.

Let's give Danny some father figures with questionable backgrounds.

How this will work is simple. They have to share an aspect similar to our lovable ghost boy or can relate. Superpowers(preferably ghost or spiritual related), not human or previously human, socially awkward, some role in good or evil: Remember the hour special Ultimate Enemy if you need any clarification, etc.

Here are my picks.

Snatcher- A Hat In Time

Yep! We're starting with the soul eating ghostly noodle of Subcon Forest. So far, I've never seen Danny with a father figure even close to a ghost much less. A VERY disappointing fact despite the fan art and fanfiction with all sorts of dad! characters like @the-stove-is-on-fire 's Spiderdad and Dadpool, or the multiple Irondad fics on AO3 especially "How Tony keeps adopting Ghost sensitive kids". So my Snatcher choice is viable.

The bean will have someone to help him get a better hold of his powers and Snatcher having someone to relate too. If you don't know or haven't played Hat In Time, I will just say that Snatcher was a good loving person until a traumatic experience turned him into this wisecracking malevolent soul eating ghost.

Cracking jokes can be a coping mechanism btw, even the morbid ones.

For alignment, the Subcon Snatcher is Chaotic Neutral. He only really causes trouble in his domain which is Subcon Forest, he cares about his minions to an extent (he uses them for one attack in his boss battle) and kills any trespassers on his land but do give them a chance to live through contracts.

The bonding will no doubt start out slow especially what point of time Danny is, the biggest is when he has his Ice Powers. But I can see Snatcher being someone Danny can go to if life in Amity gets hard to handle. A driving point to help Danny is so the halfa doesn't end up like him.

Also, I just want to see Snatcher and Danny a Ghostly Wail like combo or the ghostly noodle beating the shit out of Vlad. Bigger bonus is if Hat Kid's around, Danny has a little sister figure he can cause mischief with while giving Snatcher a headache. Or all three team up and prank everyone.

Sukuna Ryomen

Now you can say I'm insane for picking him. One of the Ultimate Evils from Jujustu Kaisen but hear me out.

Once again, we have a character closer to the ghostly spectrum specifically a Curse. Curses are a type of entity born from negative emotions such as: sorrow, angry, fear, etc.

Sukuna was once human before becoming the 4 armed, two faced, tattoo King of Curses. After a 1000 years, Sukuna at the moment is split into 20 fingers with Itadori Yuji as his vessel.

Encountering someone like Danny is definitely gonna grab Sukuna's attention. Danny's assortment of powers but also pun loving attitude in battle will drive him wild. Interest is there but just like Snatcher, it'll take time for a bond to form.

The jumpstart would be a friendship with Itadori which involves goofing off or training. And seeing a good look at Danny's personality, the times our ghost boy gets awfully quiet do the alarm bells ring. Think Sukuna would rather have a happy Danny than a depressed one.

Sukuna would be a huge ass tsundere about his growing bond with Danny before it hits him like: "Damn it, now I'm attached to this brat." Once again, the Ultimate Enemy episode will play a huge factor. Considering where he is, Sukuna definitely wouldn't want Danny to end up like him.

Also mentioning the Pariah Dark episodes, you can bet Sukuna would be impressed upon Danny practically being the King of the Ghost Zone due to the rules. Would Danny get a Domain Expansion similar to Sukuna if his powers adapt the King of Curses'?

Sparring matches would be a definite and Vlad would be so screwed if he did something to Danny. I'm pretty sure an angry four arm, four eyed, stomach mouth horror of a father figure be haunting the fruit loop might the perfect repellent.

Plus Danny has a Two in One deal! A father figure in Sukuna and a brother with Itadori! If Sukuna did get out, would he adopt Itadori under circumstances? 🤔

Also, I sorta had this peculiar idea now that I see we have two ghostly father figures. Can Danny's ghost form adapt from a paternal relationship with a ghost or supernatural entity? His power allows him to adapt against opponents and even copy specific abilities so why not his physical form too?(Looking at you Bitch Hartman.)

I can actually see Danny's form slightly shift or even evolve depending on the current bond. For Snatcher, he could have minor fire magic with a slightly shadow appearance, his hair be messy with violet tips or his suit becoming a cloak to mimic shadows.

And for Sukuna, his own tribal like tattoos, slits under his eyes that could become eyes, or even four arms too! His clothes could shift to something like hakama trousers, an obi or yutakata. Inherited powers being his own Domain Expansion and curse fire.

That's all I have on the topic! If you guys have a character suggestion to be Danny's father figure and how it would go, just reblog it here!

Until next time folks! Going Ghost!

[paranoia-assault]

Fate/Stay Night Review

I've been meaning to get around to this for a while, so this post will contain my thoughts on Fate/Stay Night. I'll be going in order of how you're supposed to play the routes. Massive spoilers btw. Also this is copied over from Twitter, so sorry for any weird formatting.

Keep in mind I enjoyed every route, so any negative points I bring up never made me think the route wasn't worth reading. That said, UBW > HF > Fate, so we'll be starting with my least favorite route.

There's 2 reasons why the Fate route is my least favorite. The first is that is has to explain a lot, so it feels like not much happens in it compared to the other two routes. The second is Shirou's "girls can't fight" bullshit. I can't stand Shirou in the 1st half of the route.  Shirou does get better, but this is probably my least favorite version of him. I cannot stand every moment he tries to hold Saber back from fighting and almost gets himself killed because "girls can't fight." It is extremely aggravating.

That said, Shirou is fantastic in the second half of the route. The Fate route is Saber's story, and he plays the perfect part in it. His dream of being a super hero goes perfectly with her wish of being a great king. Seeing these ideologies clash, then come together, is amazing. It's why I like the Shirou/Saber ship despite Shirou/Rin being my favorite. These two were practically made for each other. Last Episode only adds to this, and it made me retroactively like the Fate route more. Saber's ending was beautiful and their eventual reunion even more so.

Illya was also great as a villain. I do think Gilgamesh and Kirei both have routes where they shine better as villains, so when I think "the villain of the Fate route," it's Ilya who comes to mind. Berserker was the perfect threat, and the two together were genuinely terrifying.

Summed up thoughts on the Fate route: Good starting point. A bit slow, and Shirou is very annoying in the first half, but the Saber/Shirou dynamic in the second half makes the route worth playing. 7/10.

Time for my favorite route: Unlimited Blade Works. I fucking adore this route. When I think "Fate/Stay Night," this is the route that comes to mind. If I were to recommend one route, it would be this one. I even plan on watching the anime for it at some point.

The main reason I love this route is Shirou. UBW Shioru specifically is one of my favorite Fate characters. He is confronted with a massive challenge to his ideals. He's pretty much shown they're flawed. But rather than toss them aside, he strengthens his convictions. He denies his future self, determined to be different. Yeah, his ideals might have flaws, but why should that matter? Carrying on Kiritsugu's dream is meaningful to him. The pain is worth saving those he can. Even if it's a thankless, miserable task, he won't turn away from it.

Oh, and let's talk about Archer. I love him. Seeing a pessimistic side of Shirou, a potential result of his ideals, was fascinating. I was genuinely shocked when the twist happened, and it made me deeply appreciate Archer's character. Archer is another of my favorite F/SN chars.

Now, let's talk about my favorite F/SN character, Rin. Rin is great. She was trained to understand and accomplish what has to be done, but has a soft spot not unlike Shirou's that leads her to help others. She had a painful upbringing, but doesn't regret a second of it.

She is the perfect foil for Shirou. She recognizes the pain his ideals are putting him through, but rather than force him to throw them away, she decides to stay with him to make sure he doesn't push himself too far. She tries to help Shriou learn to enjoy himself. Shirou/Rin is my favorite ship in the VN for this reason. They compliment each other so well. Their personalities clash in a way that lets them both grow, and they're genuinely cute together, though you can say that last part about any of the 3 main Shirou ships.

The villains are also great. Caster isn't the same type of threat as Illya/Berserker, but her backstory and dynamic with her Master is really interesting to see. I enjoyed her moments on screen. Gilgamesh was the perfect final boss for this route though. Specifically for Shirou. Gilgamesh' powers match Shirou's reality marble perfectly. Infinite Noble Phantasms. Gilgamesh calls Shirou fake, but that leads to Shirou showing how an imitation can outclass the original. It's such a smart hero/villain dynamic, and the perfect end to Shirou's story in UBW.

Saber even gets some closure in this route, though not as much as in Fate. She gets to be Rin's Servant at the end (which I adored btw), and once again chooses to destroy the girl, moving on from her past. Also, she lives in the good ending which makes me happy.

I also need to talk about Illya. Her scene with Berserker is one of her best scenes in the entire VN. She's barely on screen in this route compared to the other routes, but somehow she made just as much of an impact with that time. I felt so bad for her in that last scene.

Summed up thoughts on the UBW route: This route is where all the characters shone their brightest. Shirou's ideals are handled perfectly, almost every Servant gets the attention they deserve, and the writing is overall high quality the entire route. 9/10.

Finally, Heaven's Feel...I think my thoughts on this route will be the most controversial, as I have very mixed feelings. 

I do want to say this first. I love Sakura. She is a fantastic character, and she deserves the world. I'm glad she gets the spotlight in this route.

I also think Kirei was at his best this route. His backstory, along with his final confrontation with Shirou, were both extremely well written. He went from a despicable villain to a despicable written I love to hate. He almost stole the show as much as Sakura did, honestly.

Rider was great this route. I love the twist that Sakura is her true master, and her protective nature over Sakura was great to see. This is the only route where she manages to stand her ground against Saber for a decent period of time, too. I'm glad she lives to the end.

The highlight of the route, however, has to be Sakura and Rin's bond. Learning that they were sisters, and seeing them slowly and awkwardly get closer, is fantastic. That final confrontation between the two of them blew me away with the spectacle & Rin using the second sorcery. Of course, the hug that ended the fight was the best part. Rin realizing she can't kill Sakura after all, despite everything she said to Shirou, was beautiful. Sakura's horror at thinking she killed her sister, showing she's not a full monster yet, was tragically heartwarming.

Them bringing the sorceries in with Illya and Rin was nice. I like how we got an epilogue that took place two years after the final battle rather than a few months. There is a lot to like about this route. 

...But there's also a lot I don't like.

Zouken and Assassin are just...okay villains. I don't think they're terrible, but they're not as interesting as any of the other villains in F/SN. 

My main complaint is that this route introduced too much. So many elements are here that aren't even touched on in previous routes. Zouken, true Assassin, the crest worms, the true Holy Grail, Angru Mainyu, these are all elements of the route that I'm just supposed to accept only come into play under these circumstances. Sometimes it feels like they came up with it all after the other two routes were written. None of them are badly written per se, it just feels so out of nowhere that I couldn't fully get into the story here. 

As for what I do think is badly written...I don't like Shirou in this route. He feels more selfish than in the others, often pushing aside others' feelings. The main moment that comes to mind is when Illya goes with Sakura. When Shirou finds her, he slaps her and yells at her, not accepting her feelings of wanting the end of her life to be meaningful. And there is no way to escape her death. The route makes that clear. Shirou also throws away his ideals for Sakura, which I don't like. The route before this one had him stick to his ideals despite being given evidence of the despair it will lead to. Yet here he tosses them aside without that, simply for one person.

Maybe badly written was too harsh. Shirou's fine, I like him more than in the first half of the Fate route, but he just doesn't seem to fit with the other instances of Shirou, and there were often times he frustrated me. Again, I did love his confrontation with Kirei though.

Now for the romance of this route. Shirou/Sakura. I'm sorry, but...I'm not a fan of this one. It's cute, even made me emotional at times. I think these two can have a great relationship. The thing is, I don't like how it happens here specifically. I think these two are way too dependent on each other, to the point that one can't live without the other. Just look at the bad ending where Rin kills Sakura and Shirou gives up entirely, or the normal ending where Sakura wastes away her life after Shirou's death. There's even a physical dependence due to the state of Shirou's body at the end of the route. It's honestly worrying how much they need one another.

I think they can grow past this, and I'm sure they do since the true end is a happy one. I don't hate their ship. It's my least favorite of the three, but I can easily see it being someone's favorite. Hell, I know someone for who it is. The ship isn't awful, just has some issues.

Back to the route as a whole, it is certainly the most ambitious, but I think they got carried away at times. It's certainly more geared toward horror as well, especially with those bad endings. Not that that's a bad thing, even if I'm not often into horror.

Summed up thoughts on the HF route: A spectacular finale to the VN, but it has a few hiccups along the way. There are a lot of great character moments and interesting ideas that make it worth the time. The true ending is beautiful as well. 8/10.

Overall thoughts on F/SN: A great time that I would recommend to anyone who can get it working on their computer. Fantastic characters and cool concepts drive what can be just decent writing at times, and the high points are really high. Definitely worth the lows. 8/10.

Quick add on for my thoughts on the prequel, Fate/Zero: An amazing first half that got me attached to so many characters, but it falls apart in the second half due to Gen Urobuchi's more problematic writing tendencies. Those have been discussed to death, so I won’t go into detail on them here, Still, the show has enough moments that make it worth watching. 6/10.

That's my experience with Fate so far. I'm about halfway through the first arc of FGO, so I'll make a thread summarizing my thoughts on each singularity when the time comes. Also I want to read Fate/Hollow Ataraxia if I can. Overall I can say I’m glad I got into this franchise, and I’m excited to engage in more Fate content.

Anyway, this review took me 80 minutes to write, and another 15 to copy over here. Clearly I’m pretty passionate about this franchise.

[scarletwelly-boots]

Books Read 2020

I started off really good this year, what with quarantine and all. And then I got sidetracked by reading one hundred and forty-nine fanfics (and counting) (mostly Destiel; CW can kiss my ass). 

I read 30 books this year, which I thought was bad, but apparently I only read 24 last year, so not awful. I did the Popsugar reading challenge for the fifth year. There were 50 categories this year, so 60% isn’t too bad. So without further ado, let’s get started under the cut.

1. The Mermaid, The Witch, and the Sea, Maggie Tokuda-Hall (a book that’s published in 2020). This book, y’all. My god. It has it all: pirates, queer relationships, genderfluid characters, an intense plot. This book was so good. I definitely recommend this book. Pirates!!! And gay!

2. Somebody Told Me, by Mia Siegert (a book by a trans or nonbinary author). I don’t know how Siegert identifies, but I know they use they/them pronouns. This book was... okay but frustrating. A bigender teen, Aleks/Alexis, has a traumatic experience and moves in with their aunt and uncle, who is a newly converted Catholic priest. I liked the queer rep, but sometimes it felt like the author had these assumptions or prejudices about the Catholic church. Some of them were right, granted, and I’m not a practicing Catholic anymore so I don’t know why it pissed me off, but it bugged me anyway. So I guess if you don’t mind it seeming like the author did little to no research on Catholicism, then it’s a good book.

3. All the King’s Men, by Nora Sakavic (a bildungsroman). Who, me? Rereading my gay comfort trilogies during quarantine? It’s more likely than you think. Love the All for the Game trilogy. This is the third book in the series. It’s the best book in the trilogy. It is a series about a college sports team who play a made up sport called Exy, which is basically a more violent version of lacrosse. I’m not a huge sports fan, but the way she writes Exy matches had me on the edge of my seat. The team is made up of all “at-risk” students, the main character being a kid on the run from his mob boss dad. Trigger warning for the series for violence, sexual assault/rape, abuse, drug use, I may be missing some things. It was so good though.

4. Captive Prince, by C.S.Pacat (a book with a map). Back again with the gay comfort trilogies. This is the first book in the Captive Prince trilogy, and whoops, did I say love All For the Game? Love this series more. It’s awesome. It’s fantasy and gay and romantic. But the romance isn’t even the central part. Laurent is my favorite asshole. Damen is so sweet and sassy as fuck. HIGHLY RECOMMEND. Seriously. I can’t do this series justice.

5. The Foxhole Court, by Nora Sakavic (a book recommended by your favorite blog, vlog, podcast, or online book club). First book in the All for the Game series. What are you still doing here? Go start this trilogy!

6. Ella Enchanted, by Gail Carson Levine (a book that passes the bechdel test). This is such a good book. It was one of my favorite books when I was a kid. It’s basically a retelling of Cinderella, and if you’ve seen the movie version with Anne Hathaway, the book is way, way better. 

7. Loki: The God Who Fell to Earth, by Oscar Basaldua (a book with the same title as a movie or TV show but is unrelated to it). God, I cannot WAIT for the Loki show. Anyway, this is a new comic about Loki (obviously). I love anything with my disaster wife in it, so 100% I recommend it. 

8. As Drowning Men Clutch at Straws, by EA Roisin (a book by an author with flora or fauna in their name). Okay, so. Roisin is an Irish name that means rose, and EA Roisin is my (unpublished) pen name. In my defense, the manuscript is 186 pages long and it felt like an accomplishment when I finally finished rereading it for the first time since I finished it in 2015. Do I recommend it? I’ll let you know if it ever gets published.

9. Red White and Royal Blue, by Casey McQuiston (a book that won an award in 2019). I’m still rereading this book. I got interrupted because my sister wanted to read it and then I got a new book for my birthday. But this is, far and away, my FAVORITE BOOK. It’s so beautiful. It was very romantic (once they stopped “hating” each other), and gay. The premise sounds far-fetched: First Son of the United States falls for the Crown Prince of England. But, guys, it’s soooo gooooood. Highly, highly, highly recommend. 

10. A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor, by Hank Green (a book with only words on the cover, no images or graphics). This is the sequel to An Absolutely Remarkable Thing. This was just as great as the first, but I spent a good chunk of the book vibrating with anxiety. The stakes were way higher, and I don’t think I’ve been scared while reading a book since reading Jade Green (Phyllis Reynolds Naylor) in junior high (which was fucking terrifying, btw). But I definitely recommend it!

11. Crush, by Richard Siken (a book with a pun in the title). Guys. I read this book almost every year, because it’s quick and gorgeous and the title is accurate because it absolutely crushes me. This is a collection of LGBT (more specifically, gay) poetry, and OH MY GOD. This is in my top five favorite books. I read it all the time. This is the book that made me fall in love with poetry, back in high school.

12. The Raven King, by Nora Sakavic (a book with a bird on the cover). The second book in the All for the Game series. Trigger warnings for All the King’s Men apply to this one, too. 

13. 1014: Brian Boru, by Morgan Llewelyn (a fiction or nonfiction book about a world leader). If you know me, you know I’m a complete Irish history nerd. This book is about a very important battle that took place in Ireland, and the last great High King of Ireland, Brian Boru. High Kings are mostly just an elected title, who get paid via taxes from provincial kings and chieftains, but Brian was the only one who saw as close to a united, free Ireland as it got until 1921 (although since the island is split between the North and the Republic, it’s still not totally unified). I recommend if you like history.

14. The Magnolia Sword, by Sherry Thomas (a book by a WOC). Oh. My. God. So this is a retelling of the ballad of Mulan. Mulan is a very important story to me anyway (tomboy as a child, genderfluid, bisexual as fuck), and this retelling was so good and interesting. It also features one of my favorite tropes, Surprise Gays. I highly, highly recommend.

15. My Own Ways Through This Life, by Chris Viau (a book with at least a four-star rating on Goodreads). Okay, so it miiiight have a four-star rating because of me and my camp family all rating it, but it counts. This is a mixed media autobiography by one of my camp friends. He has written at least three books, and all are available on Amazon. This is the only one I’ve read so far, and it was really interesting. I definitely recommend it. 

16. Insomniac City, by Bill Hayes (a book you meant to read in 2019). This book was beautiful and heartbreaking. It was a Christmas gift from my brother. It’s a memoir about Bill’s time in a relationship with Oliver Sacks, a famous neurologist. It’s sweet and melancholic and funny. Huge recommendation.

17. Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens’ Agenda, by Becky Albertalli (a book about or involving social media). Still such a wonderful book. Better than the movie, I’m telling you. It was really good, and I definitely cried. If you liked the movie, read the book. It’s different in several ways. I think if you’re thinking in terms of trueness to the book, the movie was maybe not as good, but they’re both good as their own standalone things. But I highly recommend both.

18. Loki: Agent of Asgard, by Jason Ewing (a book that has a book on the cover). This is such a good series. It’s a great characterization of my disaster wife.  I love this graphic novel series. I love how they depict Loki, how he finally gets a goddamn redemption arc. It’s a really fun read. Check it out.

19. Kings Rising, by CS Pacat (a book with a made up language). This is pushing it, since they never actually speak in the made up languages on paper. But UGH. Third book in the Captive Prince trilogy, and hands down the best. Laurent and Damen finally let go of the goddamn longing and actually do something about it.

20. The Deep, by Rivers Solomon (a book set in a country beginning with C). This is pushing it, because it’s about mermaids (basically), but I think they’re in the Caribbean. I loved this book. It was so interesting. It’s based on a song by clipping., Daveed Diggs’s group. The premise is the wajinru (the mermaid people) originated as the infants from pregnant Africans that died and were thrown overboard during the slave trade. So like, it’s a pretty heavy book. But it’s heartfelt and sweet, too. Also more Surprise Gays, which came at an excellent time (November, post-Supernatual finale) for me. I highly recommend.

21. Written in the Stars, by Alexandria Bellefleur (a book you picked because the title caught your attention). I just finished this book tonight and it was so. good. It’s basically a modern, lesbian, fake dating rendering of Pride and Prejudice. And let me tell you, if there’s one thing I love more than Pride and Prejudice, it’s lesbians. It’s really really great. I highly, highly recommend. 

22. Running with Lions, by Julian Winters (a book with a three-word title). Thanks to All for the Game and movies like Handsome Devil and Boys, I have discovered that I have a huge thing for queer sport stories. So this book was really, really good. It’s got friends to enemies to friends to lovers, which is great. It’s got soccer, which is way more homoerotic now. And it’s got gays, which is really why I picked this book up. But it’s well written and the story is interesting, too. I definitely recommend.

23. The Prince and the Dressmaker, by Jen Wang (a book with a pink cover). Oh my god. AHHHHH!!! This book is amazing. It’s a graphic novel, so it’s a quick read. It’s fantasy and feels a little Cinderella-y, but that’s not the best part. The queer relationship is amazing, but that’s not the best part. The prince is genderfluid! Like me! And his mask name is Sebastian! Like me! (Okay, so my name is Bastien, but close enough) This was so so so good. I got it at a convention in February, and I was practically vibrating with excitement as I read it. I highly highly highly recommend. 

24. Girl Crushed, by Katie Heaney (a book by or about a journalist). I think I’d have liked this book better if it wasn’t so...similar to my life. The main premise is the main character is getting over a sudden and painful break up, after being dumped by her long-term (maybe first? I can’t remember) girlfriend. The ex has the same initials as my ex and acted very similarly, so maybe I ended up picturing her when the character came up in the book. The ending pissed me off. It was very gay and that wasn’t the entirety of the book, so maybe you’ll like it more than me. It was just too true to life for me and opened up some old wounds I didn’t want to open up. The author is an editor at Buzzfeed, so that’s how it fits into this category. 

25. Date Me, Bryson Keller, by Kevin van Whye (your favorite prompt from a past POPSUGAR Reading Challenge--a book published this year). This might be my second or third favorite book, goddamn it’s that good. It’s queer, obviously, and sort of fake dating? Bryson is dared to date someone new each week. He’s assumed to be straight, so all the people he dates are girls until Kai asks him. It’s really sweet, and there’s some issues with coming out to your family that don’t always sit well with me, but overall it was really good and it ends well. I definitely recommend.

26. Loki: Where Mischief Lies, by Mackenzi Lee (a book written by an author in their 20s). AAAHHHH!!!! Fuckin.... Okay, y’all know I have feelings about Loki. He’s my spouse and I love him to death. This book was so, so good. Loki gets sent to Victorian London to solve a mystery and meets a group of humans who know about Asgard and basically keep Midgard in order for Odin. Loki is canonically pan and genderfluid (as he should be), and Theo is a sweetheart. I wrote a 10k fic coming out of reading this book (Phantom Limb by Irishavalon on AO3, check it out.). I seriously recommend!

27. Because of Winn-Dixie, by Kate DiCamillo (a book by an author who has written more than 20 books). I read this with my third graders at the beginning of this year. Such a good book. I read it as a kid too. The movie is great but as always, book is better. Recommend.

28. Adventures of Charls, the Veretian Cloth Merchant, by CS Pacat (a book with more than 20 letters in its title). This was a reread of a short story that comes after the Captive Prince trilogy. Charls, the cloth merchant, was such a great side character in the CP trilogy, and telling the story from his perspective was great. It doesn’t have to be read after the other CP short stories, but at least the trilogy should be read first.

29. Fence vol.1, by CS Pacat (a book from a series with more than 20 books). I’m pushing it with this category. I read the first volume, but this is a comic book series, so the 20 books is more issues. This is very good too. It’s another gay sports story, and is probably going to be enemies to lovers, but they’re still enemies by the end of volume 1. Still recommend. 

30. Prince’s Gambit, by CS Pacat (a book with a main character in their 20s). Book 2 of the Captive Prince trilogy. Very very good. 

[themattress]

Rewatch: My Bride is a Mermaid - Conclusion

The manga Seto No Hanayome was one that relied heavily on visual comedy and Japanese wordplay, as is common with most gag mangas, and it ended up being nigh untranslatable as a result. It’s anime adaptation, however, played to its unique strengths of movement and voice-acting, and the English dub version My Bride is a Mermaid is an excellent translation; I don’t think there was a single bad performance out of the main cast and I honestly prefer most of the dub voice actors’ portrayals to the original Japanese ones. And since it’s a Seiji Kishi anime which means a lot of screaming at top volume, these voice actors are to be praised even more for risking throwing out their vocal cords out of commitment to their work. 

Furthermore, I honestly believe that this 26-episode anime is superior to the manga, and to the four Japanese-exclusive OVA episodes it later got that adapted other manga stories. The anime stopped at the exact equivalent to the end of the manga’s first half, volume 8. The manga would go on until volume 16, and while there were good moments and even a few outright good stories in this second half, it suffered from an influx of new characters that lacked the charm of the ones we already had and were more often than not redundant. 

Satori Sarutobi, Chimp’s little sister, was at first a one-shot character in the manga’s first half, in a chapter that was adapted as one of the OVA episodes. It would have been fine if that was all of her, but in the second half of the manga she suddenly was brought back as a recurring character and part of Nagasumi’s “harem”, which really did not need a little sister type in it (does any anime harem?) The second half of the manga began with the debut of Saturn, which was the basis for another OVA episode. In said OVA, Saturn was toned down into an innocent one-shot character who didn’t mean to scare and attack anyone and only wanted to see her childhood friend Sun again, returning to the sea without incident after she does. But in the actual manga, Saturn was a horrible bitch and a lesbian yandere who was in love with Sun and wanted to sabotage anyone who she saw as in her way, male and female alike. Not only is she a rehash of the “Sun’s childhood friend who is a screwed up person and gay for her” concept we already had with Lunar except done in a far less appealing way, but she then rehashes Gozaburo’s role by becoming a teacher at the school and the most frequent antagonist for a good many chapters following her introduction.

Sugio is literally Kamata’s twin brother and it makes no sense to include him when Kamata could have just been used for whatever roles he plays. Tenchou is the owner of a maid cafe that Akeno is forced to work at to pay off a debt, which draws in most of the other girls to work there too for chapters upon chapters, the first of which was the basis for an OVA episode. He could have been interesting as the straight man to the merpeople antics around him, but he’s kept too much at a distance from them, to the point where his design is altered in the OVA and his role is a mute, stationary one. The last new character who got adapted into an OVA episode is a recurring school delinquent named Emperor, who eventually got an incredibly disturbing chapter where it’s revealed he’s a fully-grown man who got perpetually held back in middle school, and who lusts after Lunar up until the chapter’s end where he gives up and goes home...with his wife and daughter. Yeah, that’s not funny, that’s just uncomfortable. 

We later got Jupiter, a kind of counterpart to Saturn except that she’s in love with Akeno, has an absurdly androgynous design, and is characterized by how utterly useless she is. Her desperate, stalker-y antics to get Akeno to return her affections are more annoying than humorous, and she’s so pathetic as an antagonist that the Last Amazoness is made to be more dangerous! Fuki is later introduced as Maki’s lookalike sister (her redundancy is such that it’s said that she was literally called “Maki #2″ in her childhood), and she serves Maruko Okhotsk, a teenage yakuza boss and creepy religious zealot who is yet another childhood friend of Sun’s who is obsessed with her to an insane degree and who ends up becoming yet another member of Nagasumi’s “harem”. You see what I mean about the redundancy issue?

The only new character I really appreciate is Amano Edomae, Lunar’s mother who sheds new light on Lunar’s childhood and motivations for becoming an idol, and is an interesting character in her own right who compliments her daughter and ex-husband well. Shortly after her introduction we go into the final story arc, which gives us 1/8th Figurine, a pixie-esque mer-noble later revealed to be a goddess who has no personality beyond providing long, drawn-out exposition, and Maki Yuri, a pupil of Akeno’s who recycles the name of a pre-existing character, rehashes Jupiter’s concept as a potential lesbian love interest for Akeno, and basically plays the same role that Akeno did in the anime’s finale since Akeno had developed to the point where she couldn’t play it here meaning a replacement was needed.

The manga’s finale, btw, is nowhere near as impactful as the anime’s, since Yoshio is a very different character here (an out-and-out catfish who was previously just a one-shot from the manga’s first half, who wants Sun so that he can make her the new sea goddess and rule through her), his forces fight the heroes by invading the school rather than the heroes taking the fight to him in his stronghold, the charmless new characters are involved and there are weaker roles for many of the older ones (Kai and Gozaburo especially are worse off), the resolution is anti-climactic (Nagasumi and Sun impale Yoshio with that magic spear that was used on Nagasumi when he was turned into a giant, which purifies the evil in Yoshio’s heart and makes him reform), and all of the humans involved in the battle, Nagasumi included, get their memories of it wiped Mewtwo-style by 1/8th Figurine which means they don’t get to savor the victory. The last chapter is just a random beach day for everyone, and while all the characters are left on the most appropriate note for them, it still feels underwhelming and even kind of forced (Nagasumi asks Sun to marry him here after she saves him from drowning again just like in the first chapter, and it’s revealed that she’d given him CPR back then so Masa wasn’t his first kiss after all...because that really needed to be clarified, right?)

Aside from the events and characterizations of episode 13 and episode 18 being far better portrayed, the only thing that I think the manga truly has over the anime is how Akeno’s story and character develop. I think I came to love Akeno even more on this rewatch than I did the first time around, and it was kind of disappointing that the anime ends before anything more can come out of the reveals in episode 23. The manga actually continues that plotline and by the end Akeno finds out that Masa is her brother and they get to have a formal reconciliation, and Akeno in general feels like an even stronger character who’s grown so much more by the end of the manga when compared to the end of the anime. Which isn’t to say that she and her development in the anime is bad, because it isn’t at all - it just feels notably incomplete. I’d gladly trade all four OVA episodes we got for one long OVA about Akeno; she deserves it.

And now, to wrap things up, my top 10 favorite characters and episodes:

1. Sun Seto 2. Lunar Edomae 3. Mawari Zenigata 4. Akeno Shiranui 5. Gozaburo Seto 6. Nagasumi Michishio 7. Kai Mikawa 8. Masa 9. Ren Seto 10. Papa Edomae

1. Episode 8: Duel* 2. Episode 26: The Place You Go Home To* 3. Episode 19: There's No Business Like Show Business 4. Episode 24: Farewell, My Friend 5. Episode 11: Armageddon 6. Episode 2: The Lord of the Ring 7. Episode 23: The Man Without a Past 8. Episode 17: Cops vs. Thugs 9. Episode 22: Privilege 10. Episode 6: Faibles Femmes   * Honorable mention to episodes 7 and 25, which are the set-up for these ones.

What else is left to say but: Honor Among Thieves is Honor Under the Seas!

[nol-overwatch]

I just finished my first playthrough of Fire Emblem Fates: Birthright and here's what happened:

(SPOILERS BTW if u haven't played it yet)

• Oh wow, I'm surrounded by attractive people, can I date them?

• Yes, I can date them! Wait, what do you mean they're my siblings?

• That's uh, a little awkward. Moving on.

• Goddamnit, dad! You're looking way too evil to be my supposedly loving and paternal father; why are you making me kill these hot nice people?

• I KNEW YOU'D BETRAY ME YOU SON OF A-

• NOOO BUTLER GRANDPA

• WTF my maid turned into a dragon (this is an anime parody isn't it)

• I'm in Japan now no more England.

• Wait, hold up. So are you saying I'm siblings with the Japanese people too?

• Does this mean I can't date the giant lobster head Ryoma?

• Right, Takumi, you're going into the shit list.

• NOOO MY MOM THAT I BARELY KNOW

• Damn people die easily in this game huh

• Unknowingly picked the easy difficulty at the start

• I...see. I'm a dragon, rawr.

• I have a bad feeling I'm gonna have a love hate relationship with Takumi here

• Fast forward through a couple chapters, trying to get used to the battle mechanics and that weird triangle of colors.

• Met Silas. He's the one for me.

• Damnit I was kinda hoping to side with Nohr (because of Xander) but I apparently got the wrong version of the game.

• Met a ton more people. Really liking Orochi and Silas as they are my favorite to play.

• Chapter 15. Fuck.

• I'M SORRY KAZE I DIDNT KNOW WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE THAT CLOSE

• Surprisingly my avatar was really strong while I contemplated whether I should redo it or nah

• Continued to go through it, met a ton more people.

• Married Silas. Fuck I was just really into the 'childhood friends' schtick and his stupid charming grin

• Oh.

• Oh wow.

• Children huh, and they're nearly as old as I am now too.

• Damn.

• For the rest of the playthrough I just played matchmaker lmfao

• Their children are really strong tho. Shiro, Caeldori, Asugi that little shit, Rhajat, Kiragi, Hisame and Shigure are now my favorite go-to players.

• For some reason Takumi became my favorite archer, Kiragi my second.

• Abused Ryoma's crazy crit attacks.

• And people started dying left and right I HAD NO IDEA IF I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE HAVING A BOND WITH THEM OR NAH

• NOOO MY ICE MAID

• NOOO MY DRAGON MAID

• NOOO MY LITTLE SISTER

• NOOOOOOOO XANDER WHY WHY YOU XANDER WHY COULDN'T IT HAVE BEEN TAKUMI

• Leveled up to get crazy strong for the last boss fight.

• Finished it and then DAMNIT AZURA

I feel as if I missed something here. For one, who tf is Azura and why she disappear like that and two, what's wrong with my dad, I mean my ex-dad. I mean, my dad that killed my other dad and used me as a pawn, dad. I guess I have to find Conquest and that other game I forgot the name to figure out the whole story. In the meantime, I'll be playing through it again, SAVE KAZE, and live in peace.

[mdcbk-fanblog]

Ep. 64 Reaction (late addition)

I know I’m late but hey I’m here and ready to brawl so lets get on with this reaction!!!!

-Draw your sword!

-Oh don’t hit me with that eye shine Lieutenant

-Probs not lieutenant but I wish he would

-YA GO DEFEND MEI’S HONOR

-AND AT LAST KATSU SEEEEEEE’S THE LIIIGGGHHHTTTT

-AND IT’S LIKE A FOOOOGGGG HAS LIIIFFFTTEEED

-Ok lieutenant you obvs don’t know how the line to the throne works, your a bastard, you're not royalty and you have no claim to the throne so be a good butt hole and give it up

-Within his authority??? Do you not know how this whole bastard thing works or….

-TELL HIM KATSU

-BITCH DON’T YOU FLUFFIN DARE

-KATSU RING HIM UP A TREE

-Honestly he speaks treason, anyone in there right mind would have the lieutenant tossed in a cell by now

-DISGRACE NO ONE MY AND ONLY HEART!!!!!!!!!!

-He IS think rationally, he is finally seeing you for what you are, something Mei saw right from the start

-KEEP TELLING HIM KATSU

-Listen to YOU a person with NO known power besides the one that katsu has given you is trying to boss the BLOOD KING around

-Whether you like it or not Lieutenant Katsu is closer to the blood king then you will ever be

-I like that “grips~” thing

-Excuse you lieutenant lets see who is the king and who isn’t

-You see Katsu is noble- and that’s what makes him dangerous. The lieutenant just sees it as a weakness but in all realities it is a strength

-You know what you are right, lieutenant. That’s why you hide Mei away and lure Kozuke in so that way you are on your own home turf and not his you bloody idiot

-Ok ok ok, so you see as “Oh, Mei will be his eventually so lets server her up on a golden platter and hope that Kozuke so dumb as to not see that obvious trap, and BTW hope that Mei the ONE AND ONLY thing Kozuke wants (that we know of) doesn’t die in the process… BRILLIANT GOLD STAR GOLD STAR.

-NO DON’T BACK DOWN KATSU THE LIEUTENANT IS A FRAUD AND WE KNOW IT

-Dear friend like that chicken you cook for christmas dinner

-HMMM maybe you should treat her with a bit more care

-LEgacy wHAt LEGacY

-The legacy of a head on a stick thats what

-You view her as a pon and you deserve to rot in the center of the earth to forever be immortal and feel crushed under the gravitational weight of the earth

-MMMHHH toxic feels Lieutenant well GET AWAY

-Honesty Katsu’s askin all the REAL questions here

-I mean Mei told you, you just have your head so far up a beehive that you can’t even tell a bee from some honey

-Ok so let's get real here you are upset that he tries to get look alikes and you feel in love with a look alike so you are (intentionally or not) taking your anger out on Mei by putting her in a compromising position?

-Can you tell I’m down with this guy

-?????????????? wait this confuzzles me

-No it’s not you just refuse to see reason

-He can’t that's the thing katsu he can’t and that's why he need to pull some serious spy things to make sure you get a handle back on this situation

-Please give your life I’m so tired of you right now

-HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

-THAT’S MY BOY

-HIS NAME IS ASTUKE “BLOOD KING” KATSU

-AND HE GOING TO DESTROY THIS FAKE EMPIRE YOU LIKE TO THINK YOU RULE

-AND SHOW YOU DA’ WAY TO REAL POWER

-MAWAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHH

-Yep that my boy

-Going in for the kill

-Two can play at that game lieutenant

-You see Katsu actually thinks things through unlike lieutenant who can only see as far as his nose

-Yep and that is something that seperates a king for a delusional illegitimate son so TAKE THAT

-Honestly I’m just… so done with the lieutenant

-I just need like 10 eps away from him

-But that's not going to happen for a while so….

-Wait

-Is next episode… a flashback to when he REALLY met Mei??

-Again he doesn’t focus on the face first

-So did Daisuke like introduce his sister to him or….

-Wait…

-This can mean 10 different things

-Get that blush off your face

-I don’t even have energy for capitalizes right now

-Just get that blush off your face

-Daisuke looks very feminine

-Is it just or is it that every time we see diasukes face it changes a little

-Ahh so he swore to protect Mei

-He still a cucumber

-But ok I guess I see the motivation

-Oooooooo scary scary lighting

-Soo I guess we will see the to types of angry with katsu’s being cold with blood on his mind and the lieutenant’s being hot and more deliberate

Alright still don’t like lieutenant and it will take a lot before I start calling him by his name again, but the pieces are coming together at last and I can’t wait to see a good old battle scene.

Well that was my reaction! What was your’s? Who’s your favorite character? Tell me, tell me! Have a good day and I hope to see you on time next sunday!

[comicteaparty]

August 16th, 2018 CTP Archive

The archive for the Comic Tea Party chat that occurred on August 16th, 2018, from 5PM - 7PM PDT.  The chat focused on Raison d'Etre by Cloud Fourteen (Funari and Leigh).

Featured Comment:

Chat:

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

COMIC TEA PARTY START!

Good day everyone~! This week’s Comic Tea Party is now officially beginning~! Today we are discussing Raison d'Etre by Cloud Fourteen (Funari and Leigh)~! (http://raisondetrecomic.tumblr.com/) For those new or in need of a reminder, discussions about the comic are freeform, so please feel free to bring up whatever you wish. However, every 30 minutes I will be dropping in a discussion question to help those who would like a prompt. These questions are totally OPTIONAL to answer, and you can pay them no mind if you wish. If you miss out on any though, they’ll be pinned for the duration of the chat once they’re posted~! Remember, constructive criticism is allowed, but the primary focus here is to have fun and appreciate the amazing comics that the community makes~! All that being said, let’s get started and have a great discussion!

QUESTION 1. What is your favorite scene in the comic so far and why?

snuffysam

my favorite scene is the scene where inada gives yukina the journals, but only on a second reading. "hey tante, can you help me research-" "what's that? you wanted my sister's diary? you wanted my big sister's deepest, darkest secrets? you wanted to learn the most intimate details of your mothers' lives? that's what you wanted?"

Funari

Mueheheh~ Yeah, we love putting in stuff like that. Seemingly innocent comment at first, but during a reread? BONUS!

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

in the retrospect i can only suspect inada was saving them for blackmail O_O

Funari

Little siblings...they can be such brats ;P

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

lets see, lets see. i think my favorite scene is when yukina is in the shadow place because i really like the tension of shit hitting the fan, the visuals, and then the comedic end where yukina and rie just wind up in a pile.

Funari

Ah, yes. Chapter 5 was when Leigh started putting in her two cents more into the story. I don't recall who came up with the exact direction there BUT that was a good one. It kinda encompasses Raison's story style as a whole - can get serious but then it has its comedic moments just kinda "whoop!" right back

A roller coaster of emotions

snuffysam

i really like that comedic aspect too

like in the story being told about miko and sachiko rescuing nozomi

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

I'm pretty bad for being able to figure out relationships unless they're spelled out in black and white myself. Even the big reveal of "Kaa-san", I don't remember how long it took until I clued in to there being two mothers.

snuffysam

i think "oh, she's their daughter" was the first thing i thought of, but the way the characters' talked threw me off

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

LOL. i guess thats fair though. not sure how much anime you watch cause if you dont watch anime, yeah, kaa-san would probably just go right over.

Funari

Leigh: The "rescuing Nozomi" story was one of the first stories I was asked to help with back in Part 1. I've looked forward to that scene finally playing out, and was not disappointed!(edited)

snuffysam

i like how japanese mom is kaa-san and french mom is maman lol(edited)

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

My favourite scene was actually pretty early on. It was when Kregor was going after Sachiko saying something to the effect of "this should be easy" only to have Miko disarm his dagger and get into a whole fight.

Funari

Leigh: Made life a little easier as far as trying to write for these idiots ;p(edited)

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

In a sense it helped set up his other flailed attempts.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

another scene that i really liked was when yukina learned about the ascendent and decided that perhaps she should stop hiding and all that. i feel that was portrayed in a powerful direct effect of reading the journal.

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

(Yes, I meant flailed not failed.)

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

any scene with kregor is a classic because kregor is that right mix of overconfident and screw up

Funari

Poor Kregor~

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Rebel: I watch anime. I got the reference, I didn't put two and two together that Miko and Sachi were married.

Funari

Leigh: I'm working on a page with Kregor at this very moment. So he's not going anywhere soon!(edited)

snuffysam

it's the first thing we learn about them math!

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Snuffy: I did think that was clever about the two language mothers.

I have the mind of a goldfish!

Rebel: Yeah, that whole ascendent thing was good. I liked the side story of her with her mother too.

snuffysam

"eh, i just sort of forgot about this canon f/f ship" - math, 2018

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

We were in the future though!

Funari

A little something from Maman, and a little something from Kaa-san ;p

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

I'm used to seeing them younger and courting.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Hello!

snuffysam

hey sj!

Funari

Hello there :3

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

(I'll be a bit in-and-out with my 2 month old, btw.)

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

hey sj~!

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

I see you're one of the creative talents responsible for this comic, @Funari

Really nice efforts ya got here!

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

well the important part, math, is that you figured it out eventually and saw that those ship sails moved at full force.

Funari

Thank you :3 I created the universe and the basic plot and some of the cast. Leigh created the other half of the cast and has helped string the plot together a bit better since chapter 5 :3

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Ah okies!

Always appreciate a good team effort.

Also was not expecting that four year timeskip

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yeah i have to say the timeskip surprised me too. not that it was unwelcome, mind you, just something that made me go legasp

Funari

I don't think anyone was, according to folks over at the c14 server or anyone who's commented to us besides one friend lol

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

lol

Funari

Ever since Leigh started contributing more, it made twists even more likely. Sometimes she'll suggest an idea and smirk at me from across the room and...oh boy.. xD

snuffysam

yeah i was figuring part 2 would begin with the gang immediately going to rescue them but nope

it was a cool twist!

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

lol XD

AV-chan

Hi, just dropped by to join the Raison discussion party here Favorite scenes? I think it's mostly the ones with Miko and Sachiko especially when they were in their teens

Funari

Leigh: smirks

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Also just wanted to say this is a really good suit https://78.media.tumblr.com/ea04508234ff49e7d6b78458cef47714/tumblr_inline_nal653HGRk1r87x2y.png

Funari

Hey AV! :3

snuffysam

but yeah @AV-chan , i absolutely agree

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Hello AV!

snuffysam

seeing miko and sachiko interact as teens is just the best

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

welcome @AV-chan ~! thank you for coming!

AV-chan

Hiya everyone

snuffysam

they're so perfect together!

AV-chan

I know right, it's just so cute seeing them get together

Funari

Leigh: I do love a woman in uniform @Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

miko and sachiko have a really nice and fluffy relationship so seeing them together is a happy thing :3

Funari

Awwww

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Women in univerm are always so awesome

especially the battle-ready ones

Funari

Leigh: Heheh~ YES! Sword Wife!

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

A good sword wife

AV-chan

Totally

Funari

It personally makes me gush that you guys love the SachiMiko interactions x3

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Sweet to hear~

AV-chan

Maybe soon with Yucchan too but that's probably not gonna happen any time soon I think

Funari

Leigh: Smirks

snuffysam

i seem to recall on some page where yukina's mom (not sure which) called to her from off-screen, there was an author comment that went something like "i have no idea what her parents' designs will be lol"

that was a nice touch

Funari

laughs

AV-chan

I think it's mostly cause how I somehow witness the development and changes to your OCs Funari that makes me very interested in them as well

snuffysam

though to be fair, we hadn't seen what miko and sachiko looked like as adults yet, so that wasn't necessarily a lie

Funari

Leigh: I knew that Nari had been hanging with me for too long when that popped up!

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Oh yeah, then it was a hat hiding things. Was that an accident?

Like, saying that?

Funari

That's the point! @snuffysam xD

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

speaking of designs tho, i really do like the adult designs for them. especially how sachiko has this sort of grizzled look now cause of the eyepatch

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

https://78.media.tumblr.com/bc036315fd6b663afa1ffaffa11a5e89/tumblr_p9i9zvvI3w1tzfltho1_1280.png Wow, the future sure looks... different.

Funari

Don't quite get what you mean there @MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑 Just want to be sure I know what you're talking about before I answer

AV-chan

A traditional house in the future?

snuffysam

people have traditional houses today, don't they?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

QUESTION 2. Throughout the comic, we continually see the appearance of Kregor who is out to cause a lot of harm at the behest of his boss, Lady Elianne. What do you think is so special about Sachiko’s blood? Does it have something to do with Allie or is something else afoot? Why do you think Lady Elianne targets Sachiko specifically and not anyone else in her family? Do you think Lady Elianne will ultimately succeed, or will everyone be able to stop her? Who even is Lady Elianne? Outside of Sachiko, Kregor also hunts Yukina’s friend Rie at the behest of the Tanuki Brothers. Do you think the initial failure will deter Kregor from trying again? If Kregor doesn’t try again, do you believe the Tanuki Brothers will leave Rie alone? If Kregor does try again, will he succeed or will something else stop him?

Funari

Stuff has happened to both between their teenaged years and when they're moms. Meta-wise, we're also not fans of works where adult forms of characters almost look exactly the same as the young forms but with smaller eyes or the like

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Yes, we do

snuffysam

it's clear that there's something important about the nakamura bloodline

Funari

The idea behind the Miyamotos' house is that was to hammer down the idea that they were pretty traditional. At least since Nozomi got married.

(and there are still traditional homes in Japan today ;P )

AV-chan

Ooh that's true

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

aah, alright X3

snuffysam

plenty of houses that are around today were built centuries ago, and plenty of modern houses try to imitate houses from centuries ago

AV-chan

That part with Sachiko being hunted has always piqued my curiosity in a way, like what's gonna happen next

Funari

Oh and my reaction to Question 2? ohhhhh that's pretty much what Part 2 is all about! So I'll just keep myself "quiet"

snuffysam

well we know what did happen next

Funari

And Leigh is saying she's just gonna keep smirking, so not much input from her either lol

snuffysam

lost her depth perception, for one

gained a shadow friend

Funari

True, very true...for the depth perception bit

Shadow friend? Ohhhhhh that happened sooner in her life

AV-chan

An interesting twist there

snuffysam

i mean "next" being after the latest journal entry that yucchan read

i don't think we've seen allie in any journal entries so far?

Funari

Nope, not in journals, though there is a Special comic that shows a specific moment in Sachiko's life relating to that

https://imgur.com/a/Q4J7v

snuffysam

i bet everyone is super jealous of yucchan's three moms

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

"How do you even get three mommies?"

snuffysam

japanese mom, french mom, and shadow mom

Funari

Leigh: Hey, I'M jealous of her moms!

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

so in respects to the question, i recall elianne referring to the thing as a curse and how its killed her ancestors. but im starting to wonder if its not something on her mother's side but something on her father's side. because nobody on her mother's side seems at all bothered by any sort of curse and what not and it fits why kregor is targetting sachiko and not say her brother.

AV-chan

That's an interesting way to put it

I forgot if Sachiko's brother had a different dad

snuffysam

he did

Funari

He does!

Also BOOM! Good catch, @✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨ !

AV-chan

Ah that most likely it

Funari

Hayato was born through Rin's marriage with Japanese businessman Daichi Nakamura. Sachiko was....well, by all means, an illegitimate child from a guy in France that Rin knew

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Back, sorry @Funari ; I think what I was wondering was were Yukinas parents always decided from the start, and it was how they looked in the future that gave rise to the hat, or was the scene with her parents evolving as that scene began.

Funari

@MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑 Yukina was always intended to be Sachiko and Miko's kid. Her meta-conception was pretty much that basic idea

But, ahem, yeah. Something's going on with Sachiko's paternal blood that's related to Elianne. Some big stuff

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Oh yeah, Sachiko's dad is actually the head of some other huge NKP department or something... that's probably the reason the hit was put out on her?

Funari

The Rin (Favreau) side of things is mostly just "Oh, this family is one of the famous clans in the NKP!"

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i wonder if sachiko's dad knew about this so-called curse?

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Lady Elianne is Sachiko's step-mom.

Don't want her getting the inheritance.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

oh no the mom count increases to four now

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Mum's the word.

snuffysam

what's with men not telling their partners about their bloodline stuff lol

Funari

That was Leigh. This is what I put up with when she inks pages

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Hah! That's funny. Nice heart for penache.

AV-chan

Haha

Funari

Also, Math, you are NOT the only one who has mentioned a theory that Elianne is related to Sachiko like that

I can't say yes or no though

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

it seems plausible given elianne keeps saying the blood belongs to her. and thats usually something ppl say when theyre blood-related

and theyre evil that is

snuffysam

that's also the sort of thing you say if you're evil and want blood

like in general

AV-chan

Inb4 something like Elianne is the mother of Sachiko's dad

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Or they're vampires.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

or both

elianne is sachiko's vampire granny

AV-chan

Yeah

Funari

Leigh: Isn't that the usual plot twist nowadays?

AV-chan

It's still a good twist

Funari

Elianne is....SOMETHING!

Leigh: She's a real piece of work. A real PAIN IN THE PATELLA

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

I wonder

Doesn't anyone else in the roster have badass suits?

AV-chan

Wanna see Yukina in that suit soon

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Speaking of Kregor - does the guy have good lawyers, or what? He keeps getting banished to be tried for his crimes, and he keeps getting off... sometimes even portaling away before he can be banished. Who is paying his legal fees?(edited)

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

it is a nice suit

Funari

The most we got right now is this

AV-chan

Elianne maybe?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

elianne of course

assuming she doesnt just bust him out of jail by other means

Funari

It's Elianne :P

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

She's a rules lawyer too then.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

speaking of kregor though, i do wonder for real if rie is still in danger. cause didnt kregor already get paid?

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

"You didn't inflect properly, so my client goes free."

AV-chan

That long hair... Yukina grew her hair?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

its bad assassin form to take the money and not finish the job

Funari

Rie is out of danger

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

dat suit

I'll take it

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Rie's mom might still pay a ransom.

Funari

Elianne has been working on something that's far more significant than the Rie thing and when Kregor told her he missed and hit Sachiko and Miko instead with her spell, she was like "Oh. OH. NEVER MIND ABOUT THE TANUKIS."

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

"Ship... out of danger?" "You saved the ship." "The needs of the many..."

Funari

Kregor would do anything for Elianne by the way

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

He would do anything for love. But he won't do that.

AV-chan

That thing huh

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

That thing with the strawberries.

Funari

Also, Nozomi is on HIGH ALERT for Kregor to show up, so even if he tried to finish the deed, he's not gonna

Nozomi...is a tough little firecracker

With a crossbow

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Lol

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i feel like this is gonna put them on the tanuki's shit list though then? cause id be pretty mad if i paid an assassin and then they were like "sorry bro my lady says we got better shit to do peace out."

Funari

Leigh: Tanuki vs Elianne. Round 1 (ding)

snuffysam

no refunds!

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

FIGHT!

Funari

Leigh: No, for real, they're welcome to try it

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

true i dont imagine theyre actually a threat XD

but they could at least go around spreading ill founded gossip

the horror

QUESTION 3. Chapter 6 of the comic is a four year time skip after Lady Elianne inadvertently captures Sachiko and Koyomiko. What do you think Yukina has been doing for the four years? Has she been in France the whole time, or do you think she came back to Japan at some point? How do you think Yukina has been coping with her missing mothers, and what do you think she intends to do about it? In regards to other characters, how do you think they’re doing? Is Rie okay, or has something happened because of her grandmother’s heir? Do you think Rie’s mother is doing okay as captain, and what do you think the state of her marriage is? Are Sachiko and Koyomiko alive still, and if so, why haven’t they escaped? What, in general, do you think is going to happen now?

snuffysam

they'll hit lady elianne where it hurts - her wallet. leave a bad review, and nobody will hire her again.

Funari

As I read this question out to Leigh, she got this HUGE smile on her face

I think she likes this question :P

snuffysam

and yeah i think things aren't looking great for nozomi. a guy kidnapped her best friends in an attempted kidnapping of her daughter, all because her husband didn't tell her anything

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Probably stayed in France for two years then came back to Japan the final two

Just having a four year-long vacation

Funari

An interesting theory

Also @snuffysam - If that all happened to me, I'd be pretty angry and stressed out, that's for sure!

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

And that's why you need a vacation

to get all that stress off ya

and plot your comeback

Funari

Nozomi needs a vacation like no one's business

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Yes

Funari

Considering what we know of Nozomi's personality, and that the Captain in the NKP is the leader of the whole group...

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i think it largely depends on whats happening too. if its business as usual i think nozomi would be fine, but if crime shot up or something thatd be a diff story. albeit im sure stressed. especially if on the side shes been trying to inquire where sachiko and miko be at. and losing all the sleep. also wondering when rie's destiny will come knocking at the door

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Perhaps

Funari

We plan to do a special comic about Rie's grandmother finally showing up

Because Rie turned 18 within the 4 year timeskip

snuffysam

oh snap

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Oh snap!

Double Snap

snuffysam

hey total non-sequiter. how old was rin when she married mr. nakamura?

no wait i did the math on hayato's birth year totally wrong. ignore me.

Funari

Oh, okay xD

I was about to pull up my notes

But it's cool :P

snuffysam

np np

Funari

Oh by the way, I DID actually cover this question in a way. Theorize :P

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Oh my god

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

old enough to marry, but not old enough to recognize a potentially bad partner when she sees it

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

That looks really nice

And lol

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

ah sweet the cat thing whose name i forgot found a friend

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

I’d talk about what I would do if I found out that my partner was less then desirable but this isn’t life tea party so

snuffysam

he already had one though ):

Funari

Do not forget about Miko and Sachiko D: His first friends/family

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Oh...

snuffysam

yeah, exactly

Funari

And, as we can see in the drawing, yes, Nozomi is stressing hard during the past 4 years

snuffysam

he had a friend

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

well okay, cat thing found a new friend. to combat the lonliness but probably more likely to get in elianne's way.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

I wonder, what if the timeskip was only one year

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i really wanna know why elianne specifically referred to the cat as a renegade

Funari

Leigh: Well, he's done it once. What's not to say he'll do it again?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

the timeskip wasnt only one year tho?

Funari

Koneko the Renegade~

snuffysam

well, this may come as a shock - but i don't believe koneko was born on earth

Funari

Or, if you've read the most recent pages, Ozadarr :P

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

Koneko is the real hero of the story

snuffysam

and we don't know how old he is at that. it's possible he's been a thorn in elianne's side since before miko was born

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

that is the impression i got

that theres tons of past history here

and koneko is a sneaky sneak

Funari

Leigh: No one really knows how old Koneko is. Except us, of course

Funari

Koneko is very much a sneaky sneak!

And even besides the Elianne thing, consider that Koneko looked exactly the same between the 2000s-era journal flashbacks and Yucchan's present time...Red flags

snuffysam

plenty of cats look the same across, like, 30 years

not weird at all

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Mmmm

Very sneaky~

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

but speaking of not koneko, im gonna be optimistic and assume sachiko and miko are alive and just being held prisoner. since elianne cant do the evil without memories or something apparently. meanwhile koneko fled to mexico or canada. O_O cause thats where all the criminals in popculture flee.

Funari

Those memories....they're pretty important

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

4 years of prison.

Sounds like hell

snuffysam

i don't think koneko's running away so much as looking for help

and hey, at least they have each other?

Funari

4 years of prison while suffering from amnesia!

Just imagine looking to the side, and there's another beautiful woman and you have NO idea who they are, and they're giving you that same look

snuffysam

at least when they get out they'll know for sure that love at first sight is a real thing?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

elianne is at least being nice if she puts them in a cell or something together.

Funari

Leigh: I like that remark! @snuffysam

They're in exactly the same place you saw them in the Interlude

So...sort of a prison?

Not the bars and concrete kind, but they're trapped in that weird bubble in a strange dimension (though the beginning of ch 6 mentions what it is in slightly more detail as a passing comment...)

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

QUESTION 4. By Yukina’s time period, Sachiko and Koyomiko are pretty legendary. What do you think happened in the past that earned them such notoriety? Is it something to do with catching Kregor, Koyomiko’s Ascendant Rights work, or just everything put together? Speaking of the past, do you think Koyomiko repaired the relationship with her family at some point? We also see a brief flashback of how Sachiko lost her eye, so what do you think are the circumstances that brought that about? Aside from the past, do you think reading the journals about Sachiko and Koyomiko has helped Yukina in ways besides offering her a new perspective on them? Do you believe they will help Yukina find her raison?

snuffysam

"And for almost catching Kregor for good no less than sixty times, we give the medal of bravery to Sachiko and Koyomiko!"

Funari

The Kregor Katcher Award

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

(A half hour of crying baby later... )

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

poor baby :<

Funari

:<

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Regards the prior question, obviously the reason Sachiko and Miko haven't escaped yet is because they don't have their memories and don't know where to escape to. It's a fun Catch-22, because if they had their memories, they'd be put to death.

(Baby's had a bottle now. No, not the weird one, the other one. And not with the cold formula, the other stuff.)

Funari

Leigh: Right on the money

Leigh: There's a few more complexities involved, but that's the gist of it

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

That kinda seemed obvious to me.

(Am I making up for not realizing who the mothers were?)

Funari

Leigh: It wasn't supposed to be particularly hidden lol

Leigh: You're forgiven. For now

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

it was pretty obvious but ya never know when someone might have an interesting theory

like elianne gave them part time work and theyre like "sweet this pays way more than min wage"

Funari

Yeah, no that makes perfect sense. But, in this case, we weren't trying to hide anything extra there

We'll be adding more details in the next few updates actually

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Seconding Rebel

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Also regards the prior question, I feel like Yukina's been trying to train herself in France so as to (1) Not ask stupid questions like what's going on when in the middle of a tense situation, and (2) Learn from Cassandra about what to do to avoid flipping out after freezing at the end of said tense situation.

Funari

Thank you for remembering that Cassandra exists :3

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

LOVE the Cassandra angle. Gotta go to her for Ascendant issues.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i was wondering if we were gonna see cassandra again

Funari

VERY soon

snuffysam

i wonder if Yukina'll meet up with her grandfather?

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

I mean, she could be in Scotland, but she did speak French. shrugs

Funari

We're both very fond of Cassie

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Training during a break seems like a good idea. Especially for four years

Never skipping leg day either

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

As to the NEW question, perhaps they're legendary for their looooove. It was even pointed out how everyone in school knew back then.

Funari

Cassandra's well-traveled. She knows French, German, and a bit of Japanese thanks to having Miko as a very close friend

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

omg math. that would actually be hilarious if true. theyre legendary because no matter the trial their love was unconquered

Funari

WELL, in a personal sense, that may be true!

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Does Yuzu + Miko = Suzaku no Miko? (hashtag Fushigi Yugi...)

Funari

Leigh: Certainly, when everyone who was at their wedding remembers them for their bond!

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Rebel: True love did kind of conquor that darkness spell that hit Sachiko.

(I mean, it wasn't a kiss, but still... we can imagine that...)

Funari

heheh

Their love is pretty darn important!

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Actually, maybe Sachiko's already conquered her evil step-mom? Could be someone other than Elianne, maybe that was the big deal.

Losing the eye was probably a prophecy... darn those prophecies...

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Never underestimate it

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i am curious why sachiko didnt seem to block kregor in that flashback. like theres a point id think shed stop freezing up with fear, but maybe it was not at that time i guess

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Actually, kind of interesting that in 2031 they don't have a prosthetic for that. Unless Sachiko wears the eyepatch as a badge of honour.

Funari

It was an incident related to Elianne. No prophecies this time, just some crazy stuff.

Sachiko definitely has a problem with freezing up

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Rebel: Maybe Miko was behind her.

Funari

The wound isn't natural

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

hmm thats interesting it isnt natural

which makes me think man, that must of hurt even more

Funari

But yeah, deep down, Sachiko would prefer to solve things without violence. Miko's the more violent-prone one

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

As to Miko's family... I kinda doubt it? The way she referred to her mom and everything back then? The ascendancy stuff becoming mainstream might have helped, but I kinda doubt it.

Funari

Conferring with Leigh and

Eh, may as well just say it

No

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

The wound isn't natural... it's artificial. Sachiko's been a clone this whole time.

Gotcha. Probably why Miko wants to do things better with her family though.

Funari

Miko's mom's attitude never changed, so Miko never made up with her. Even Tomoko eventually moved away from her, though she still has a sort-of connection there. Sort of

Oh yeah. That's how she reacted to the abuse. It helped that she had folks like Sachiko and Rin around to show her what family can be like, and her dad WAS an okay man, but he was married to....that. She always wanted to be better than her mom

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Actually, if anyone's a clone, it's probably Kregor. Explains why he was vanquished 60 times.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

I man, how many people stride to be better than their parents? Just curious

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

haha i suspected. making up with ppl is difficult if it can be done at all in those cases.

you cant clone kregor

kregor is one of a kind

O_O

Funari

Leigh: personal experience

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Hmmm, if Miko had both Sachiko and a clone of Sachiko to spend time with at once...

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

math plz

theres already a threesome with allie in the mix

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Always room for one more.

One for the shadows, one for the daytime.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

A foursome?

Sign me up

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

anyway, idk if the journals helped yukina find a raison or purpose, but im sure her moms getting kidnapped certainly helped

Funari

(was trying to make this quick. It DOES seem like Kregor's got fans!)

snuffysam

"gee yukina, how come you get to have FOUR moms whenmmmmghg-" gets kidnapped by kitsune grandma

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Oooh, title drop. (Yeah, I was surprised that with all the French nods, Funari's not part French that I can tell...)

Funari

omg

Leigh: I think Rie would say that one mom is plenty, giving who HER mom is!

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Kregor's the villain you love to hate.

Funari

And in regards to @✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨ - we're definitely moving towards a moment of recknoning for Yucchan

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

So here's a question I wanted to ask before we run out of time -- have we seen Pan in the future?

Did I just miss it?

Funari

Not yet

She's in the little "How things have changed" drawing, and there are plans, but officially not yet

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Ooooh, hmmmm. As long as she didn't turn to the dark side.

Funari

No, we can confidently confirm that Pan is still on our side ;p

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Lol

What about the light side

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Mr & Mrs Daggers?

Funari

fjfjgjfj

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i have wondered where pan has been too. i think from the time skip im most interested in seeing what rie's dad is up too given for all i know nozomi kicked his butt out onto the street into the gutter(edited)

snuffysam

good

Funari

OOF

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Okay since we're running out of time here I just wanted to say good luck on the rest of the comic and hope it all goes well, there's some seriously good reads hidden in there.

Funari

Thanks much :3

Any other quick questions?

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Yeah, funny thing is, I can kind of see why he'd bow to the pressure of not telling his wife about Rie. The thing I don't get is him not telling about who he was before the marriage, that's the weird transgression to me.

Funari

Leigh and I have certainly had lots of fun tonight! Glad you all have enjoyed what we've done so far!

Leigh: Mmmhmm (too secretive for his own good)

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Does "Cat" have a human form too?

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

You're welcome!(edited)

Funari

TECHNICALLY yes

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Hashtag catgirls?

(Or catboys, whatever.)

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Funari

Catpeople

But yes, technically he does, but we won't see it any time soon. There are Reasons

raisons

Elianne's gonna do a huge exposition dump in the next few pages

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Cassandra's mother was secretly a catgirl.

Funari

She is...preparing for it

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Anyway, good job! It'll be interesting to see what happens as comic looks at other planes, as seems to be happening in the new pages.(edited)

(Or just people from other planes hiding out in ours.)

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

COMIC TEA PARTY END!

Unfortunately, the scheduled Comic Tea Party time is now up~! Thank you everyone so much for reading and joining this week’s chat~! We want to give a special thank you to Cloud Fourteen (Funari and Leigh), as well, for making Raison d'Etre and volunteering it for our reading queue. If you liked the comic, please be sure to support Cloud Fourteen (Funari and Leigh)’s efforts however you’re able to. All that being said, if you would like to continue discussing this week’s comic, we highly encourage you to do so~!

For next week, Comic Tea Party will focus on Pathways: Chronicles of Tuvana by Elaine Tipping. As always, please use the next several days to read as much of the comic as you would like. We hope to see you next Thursday on August 23rd from 5PM to 7PM PDT for the chat~! Until then, happy reading~! Comic: http://pathways.smackjeeves.com/

[chellyfishing]

ok i finished kona so as promised my lil* post on walking simulators i’ve played. (*it’s not lil.)

first things first: a lot of these give off a creepy vibe because it involves you investigating a deserted place piecing together What Happened. i don’t personally consider them scary, as such, but i guess some people might? with minimal spoilers, i can say that unless noted there are no jump scares or battles and you can’t get a game over at any point. none of these except flower and maybe gone home are exactly the cheeriest of games, they’re not total downers and you can take away a lot from each of them, but there’s almost always death involved. also these are all short games, many can easily be completed in a few hours, some you might want to spread out over a couple days.

i’m a little hesitant to put gone home on here bc i haven’t actually played it myself, but i did watch a full LP. i don’t think it’s a spoiler at this point to say that there was a bit of a bait-and-switch with advertising and it’s not a horror game. it is actually a very sweet, heartfelt coming-of-age story about a teenage girl who left behind notes for her visiting sister. while this might be a bit of a spoiler, i saw a review that called it “a lesbian scavenger hunt,” which i think is pm all anybody needs to know to decide to play it.

the vanishing of ethan carter is the first one i played and probably still my favorite. i played through it possibly half a dozen times that first week, and it’s not necessarily that sort of game. at the risk of overselling here, i can’t tell you how much this had an effect on me. you play a detective who’s come to a small seemingly deserted town at the behest of a young boy (ethan). what follows are a series of visions, stories, and light puzzle-solving to get to the bottom of what happened to ethan carter. as the story unfolds things get pretty disturbing and there is some blood (stain variety, not gushing). there’s nothing that would, i think, rate more than a PG-13 though. i could go in-depth but just play it okay.

dear esther is credited with being the first walking simulator. you can hear about its humble beginnings as a mod for some other game i forget by listening to the audio commentary, which you have to do for one of the trophies. dear esther is, the most out of these, not what it appears. it’s almost more of a poem than a story, and there is a lot left abstract and open-ended; death of the author is encouraged. it’s probably got the slowest start, but i like the peacefulness of it. it has a sequence that is the most beautiful and transformative thing which then leads up to the climax, and by then you are definitely in a different game than you started. no puzzle-solving, you don’t pick up or interact with any items, no keys or secret passages to suss out. you just walk and look and listen. definitely melancholy, but then, the whole thing is what you make of it. also apparently there are loads are little background details that can change randomly each time you play it, if you’re into that.

firewatch is another one that seems creepy, but (i’m sorry to spoil, i just want people to be okay when they play!!) i promise you, if you can handle some sadness and bittersweetness, you’ll be fine. this game is a little treasure. i saw someone complain about the graphics and i like??? couldn’t disagree more? i mean first of all what do you expect but second all it’s got more of a painted feel to it than a hundred laboriously-created computer models. there are some views and areas that are just beyond lovely. anyway you play as henry, who’s come to sit alone in a tower in the middle of the wilderness for summer 1989? to watch for fires. henry’s a bit snarky and sad and would probably be played by paul giamatti. the other man character is his boss, delilah. the rapport the two develop is probably the high point of the game tbh. their banter is topnotch. while firewatch seems a little overwhelming in scope but it’s actually not. there’s not much gained by extraneously exploring but you’re welcome to it if you want. it’s mostly just a lot of walking with very easily navigable roads and rappelling and such while around you all this weird shit starts happening. henry and delilah discuss what it all means and what to do about it. all questions are answered by the end, except for the ones any good story leaves open for you to decide.

beyond eyes... i don’t quite want to say that i wished i never paid for or touched this game, because my reasons for my violent rejection of it are very personal. so, here it is neutrally. it seems like a colorful, peaceful game about a blind girl, rae, looking for her lost cat, nani. the catch is that rae is blind, and so you have to sort of “fill out” the world by walking around (laboriously slowly, bring patience). it really is lovely, kind of painterly-feeling with so many vibrant colors, and i was very pleased with it for a long while. and again, i don’t want to spoil it, but the ending caught me so off-guard, threw me for such a loop, and triggered me so unexpectedly that i immediately turned it off and deleted it from my system. suffice it to say the tone is a bit different from the rest of the game. so, i won’t tell anyone not to check it out. it is pretty and simple and it seems like the kind of game people might want to support financially. just... not me. it made me disproportionately angry and upset and ruined my day. if someone has played or does end up doing so, my reaction might seem a little extreme, but it was one of those things that struck hard without any warning and it was just not what i needed at the time.

i tried to wait for what remains of edith finch to go on sale and i failed. while i’m not convinced it has $20 worth of content (it’s possibly even shorter than dear esther but i’d have to check), it’s also gorgeous, so i guess we all make sacrifices. anyway i’m still sort of processing my feelings for this game. most of it is completely genius. it’s about a girl, edith, who’s returning to her family home for the first time in years. she’s the last finch left alive; they have a habit of dying young, most not even making it to adulthood. you find out the story of each finch and each is interactive in a different way, one you’re different animals, another it’s in the format of a comic book, it’s all really neat how it’s done. anyway, obviously this game talks about death a lot but never shows it; in fact, some of the sequences are so abstract you have to interpret them yourselves to decide what even happened. my main continuing reservation is... i don’t know what it’s trying to say. i don’t know what it’s all supposed to mean. i mean maybe it’s some crap about the value of life no matter how short or idk, but for the most part at the end i was kinda like, “ok.” i keep thinking i must be missing something, but i’ve no idea what. it’s kind of just a collection of interesting stories whose only discernible thread is they all happened to the same unfortunate family for some reason. it’s the kind of “open to interpretation” that makes me feel like something is lacking.  anyway i still loved it and do recommend.

kona. oh kona. let me start off by saying you can die in this one. they’re not that ubiquitous but there are creatures that can and will kill you, and sometimes they might startle you as well, and of course there’s the cold, which can also kill you. i kept getting pissed off at that fucking inventory because it was JUST BARELY too small and you never knew when you were going to need something. now that i actually do know it’ll probably be waaay less infuriating. there’s also a final boss, but the “fight” is basically you going “jesus christ it’s a lion get in the car.” it’s very intense, but i wouldn’t really call it scary. you don’t even have to do anything offensive at all to win, just run like hell. a couple more words about the gameplay: i mentioned the better coat. you actually can find the components you need for that early on and possibly go straight and get it? like i’m not sure if the game lets you but if it does, it makes exploration SO much easier. you still have to be careful but like. type b careful rather than type a. anyway it’s pretty much a must. um, you probably want to take your car for the sake of convenience, and also you can get a snowmobile later! there are a number of little achievements to earn, some of which make this game a lot more involved than any other on this list. like, it’s a very big area with poor visibility and you’re looking for very very small things WITH A CHEAP-ASS SWEATER CARL. anyway, as for what it’s actually about: you’re a detective again, come to québec in 1970 to find some seriously fucked up shit. this game isn’t really horror, it’s mostly just what the hell is going on this is so fucking bizarre. there narrative has a lot of stuff about colonialism and racism and a lot of Cree culture and lore driving it. it was funded by kickstarter btw. so yeah, a little too game-y, most intense and involved of the bunch, unsettled even me at times, but not meant to invoke terror or keep you up at night, only make you think about the circumstances that created this event.

flower is your friend. i’ve only played a little bit of it but honestly that’s all you need. you can just go back and do that bit as many times as you want cause this is a game that’s all about being a petal on the wind. it’s cute, it’s playful, both the score and visuals are charming and lovely. this is the game you play after running for your life in kona. recommended to have in your library if for no other reason than to know it’s always there when you need something simple and beautiful and andy dwyer is unavailable.

[totaldramafan-lauri]

11, 19, 38, 67!

11. Have you ever made new friends from playing video games? 

Hmmm…..now that I think of it, I really haven’t. ^^; I have played with friends, of course (you should know =P), but in all cases I can think of, I met them beforehand, and not because of video games

19. Favorite handheld console? 

I still have my old original!DS I got back on the Christmas the year it was released. I can’t play it anymore because the charger’s broken, but I have a LOOOOOT of memories with it. Such a GREAT library of games, and also backwards compatible with the GBA (though looking back, the only thing I really used that for was Hamtaro Ham-Ham Heartbreak and for transferring old Pokemon from Ruby to Platinum). So many great games I’ve played on that old thing.

I love the 3DS, too, but there’ve only been three games on it that I’ve really put a LOT of hours into since I’ve got it (Mario Kart 7, Moon, and of course Smash)

38. A game you’re ashamed to admit that you like? 

*COUGH*SONIC2006*COUGH*

Though to be honest, “like” is a pretty strong word. More like “I have a nostalgic attachment to”. And even back then, I really only liked PARTS of it. Not the whole thing. Which is still a better opinion than most people, yeah, and I think it’s been a bit overhated….

For a better example of a game I still like to this day……Hmmmm…..I’ve enjoyed a couple of the Mario And Sonic At The Olympic Games games, and I guess the aforementioned Ham-Ham Heartbreak can qualify here too, for people who’ve never played it probably assume it’s terrible, though it’s FAR from a guilty pleasure for me

67. Do you have a happy gaming-related childhood memory you want to share? 

Well, there’s a LOT of them, and I’ve shared a few of them before. From what I remember, they’ve all been related to Kirby Air Ride or SA2B. So I’m gonna stray away from those this time

Hmmmmm….OH! One that I’ve never shared is my first encounter with Latios in Pokemon Ruby (first main series game BTW). In gen 3, roaming Legendaries - in this case, just Latios and Latias - were encountered PURELY through random chance the first time. There was no way to check their location until you’ve seen them once. On top of that, there was no cutscene that set them off - you simply watched TV after you beat the game and that was it, good luck. And the TV broadcast was so tiny that I completely forgot about it after a while, and on TOP of that, I was only 11 and hadn’t started using the internet excessively yet

(I still knew who Latios was because of the movie, though)

It’s one of those memories I remember down to the last detail. I was playing Ruby upstairs in my room, and I was wondering around that route to the west of Lilycove - the one with the fences, that I believe had a lot of rich Trainers on it? I don’t remember the route number, but it was that one. I was training up my Pokemon for the Battle Tower, I remember, and I was so used to seeing the same wild encounters over and over, when suddenly…..

“A wild LATIOS appeared!”

I. Flipping. SHRIEKED.

No joke, I actually shrieked. I’d never do that nowadays! I did NOT know that he was in the game, or what a “roaming Legendary” even WAS. To me, I just randomly encountered a boss battle out of flipping nowhere! My sister and I had pretty much agreed that Latios and Latias were anime-only (which….yeah)

My mom immediately said “LAURI, WHAT’S WRONG!?” and I answered something like “LATIOS IS IN MY GAME!!!!” “WHAT!?” “LATIOS IS IN MY GAME!!” And my sister asked me to come down and show her, and I showed off even though I hadn’t caught him yet XD

After he fled, we immediately went to the computer to look up what the crap happened, I learned about the Pokedex trick, and used that it track him down and catch him in my Master Ball

(And of course, he’s in Platinum now)

It’s not an amazing story, but……it’s something that can never happen again XD