#mystery magazine may 2023 | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

tamamatango · 1 day ago

Text

HAPPENING……MAYBE!! (Addressing the anime rumors + Keroro’s birthday plan revealed)

*holding my hand out toward you with sparkles framing me* Let’s take copium together!

Not the post I was planning to make next, but here’s a sudden update for a couple of reasons. Some very exciting rumors which you may very well have seen have been floating around for the last day or so, and while I was initially hype as fuck to corroborate it as fact, there’s a little asterisk to the whole thing that I wanna tack on before we shit our pants too much. In addition, the official accounts have revealed what they’re planning for Keroro’s birthday this year, and while it’s not that closely related, I might as well cover that too.

So, a summary of what alleged info just came out:

A typically reputable anime news/leak account, SugoiLITE, shared yesterday that the Keroro anime series is planned to be broadcasted in Spring 2025, and a new movie is planned for 2026. However, the only publicly verifiable info hinting toward this is a recently released interview in an anime magazine with animation director Fumitoshi Oizaki (from the original series, and was also credited on April’s PV), where he describes the series and movie projects but does not specify the series name. This info is per another credible reporter, blogger ryokutya.

Now, here is my translation of Oizaki’s quote as presented in the post: “Details haven’t been made public yet, but I’m working on a series to be broadcasted next spring. Concurrently, a movie scheduled to be released in 2026 has also started production.”

Sadly, the blog post does not specify which anime magazine this was in, so I don’t have the full context for the interview or the question asked. I checked a few table of contents from recently released anime magazines and didn’t see Oizaki’s name in any of them. My hunch is telling me that it’s Newtype, which doesn’t have a digital version, so there’s no feasible way for me to have it that quickly. So yeah, we’re kinda stuck with that quote floating in the void for now.

I can’t go too deep into it so you’ll have to trust me on this one, but I’ve got a little knowledge myself about roughly how and from where anime leaks usually get sourced. It is very possible SugoiLITE does indeed know this information in advance, but it’s also equally possible he only saw this same quote and extrapolated the most likely scenario from it. If it is the latter, I’d say he made a pretty safe bet anyway.

In the quote, what I chose to translate as “concurrently” can also mean “in parallel”, so the interpretation I’m getting is that the spring 2025 series and 2026 movie are connected and being developed in tandem. Ryokutya also guesses that the work in question is Keroro since it does have a project announced. I’ve speculated that the new series will air in either spring or summer next year for a while now (BNP has a mysterious gap in their schedule, with two series airing in January and the Gintama spinoff announced in late 2023 being pushed to October). A movie in 2026 also make a lot of sense, since it’s the 20th anniversary of the first movie. Oizaki does work on other franchises with recent relevancy, such as Kaleido Star which had its 20th anniversary in 2023, and some works in the Shigeru Mizuki-verse like Akuma-kun and last year’s Gegege no Kitaro prequel. But given the specific language in the quote and just Occam’s razoring it down to the fact that we know Keroro is getting things already, I think this double feature is pretty likely what’s going on. Maybe it’s the hopium talking, but it’s certainly not a reach (trust me I’ve made reaches before I was here for the nothingburger that was the anime’s 15th anniversary).

Okay, tl;dr: Given the one available source we have and the credibility of both reporters involved, I think there’s a pretty good chance the anime will really be next spring and there will be a movie in 2026 as people have been corroborating. But the probability that this is an educated guess and the probability that it’s confirmed are pretty much equal at the moment. So get excited! But not too excited. Just like a bit above average excited. You may draw the party popper pull string back about three quarters.

When I first started drafting this post, I was looking forward to saying that we’ll likely find out next month what the truth is, knowing that today the official accounts were going to reveal what this year’s Keroro birthday celebration is. But…they explicitly stated there will not be any new anime info at the event they have planned. Booooooo. Well, here’s what we are getting:

It’s actually not a physical event like they held last year. This time, they’re commemorating Keroro’s birthday with the first episode of a new live radio show called “Kero! to Radio”, featuring Keroro’s voice actress Kumiko Watanabe and Tamama’s voice actress Etsuko Kozakura. It will be broadcasted irregularly on the official Keroro YouTube channel, and next month’s premiere will be here. There will be various different segments of the show which feature messages and questions sent in by listeners. Submissions are sent in via the program’s Onsen page, which also has details about each segment. You do need an account to send messages, but I don’t think a Japanese address is required unless you want to enter the optional raffle. I’ll play around with it later and potentially do a separate post going more into the show’s structure if that’s something people are interested in (obviously you need to know Japanese to really get anything out of this, so I’d like to gauge if it’s worth it first).

While it’s disappointing that there seemingly won’t be any news about the new anime revealed on the legendary birthday, it’s pretty neat to have another VA radio show. It seems like this is sort of following in the footsteps of Keroro and Giroro’s Earth Invasion Radio from back when the original show was still airing, although Keroro Channel also had been doing its own livestreams featuring the BNP/Kadokawa staff running the channel giving updates about the series’s various collabs and stuff (the majority of these episodes were done before the new anime announcement). It’s unclear if this is going to replace those or not; this is quite different structurally. It would be really cool if they rotate the voice actors out each episode and change the segments up a little since the broadcasts are irregular anyway. I guess we’ll have to wait and see!

*Exhale* All right, that’s enough yapping for today. I know the wait for more concrete details on the anime has been excruciating, especially now that we have a very tantalizing possibility dangling right before our noses. But if spring really is the airdate, it can’t be too much longer now. We already waited over a decade—what’s a few more months, right? Heh heh... (I’m dying Squirtle.)

#keroro gunso #sgt frog #keroro #tamama #anikero reiwa #boy it’s been a while since I got to use that tag #hopefully the next time won’t be too far away :’)

43 notes · View notes

stardustto-dust · 2 years ago

Text

Why you should vote Abed Nadir in the 2023 autism swag summit

I've seen people do this for other polls and it is vital that Abed Nadir from the 2009-2015 NBC comedy Community wins this one.

Vote him round one here.

Does he fit the first part of the statement? Yes, Abed is canonically autistic.

When he realised autistic fans related to him, creator Dan Harmon did as much research as he possibly could into autism as to not let those fans down.

While doing said research, Harmon realised himself was likely on the spectrum. Meaning that Abed is a canon autistic character created by an autistic person. How often does that happen?

Due to the above facts, he is a very well researched and developed autistic character, with both traits more commonly shown in the media, such as blunted affect and difficulties reading faces and less commonly shown traits, such as hyperempathy and sensory issues.

From the time Abed first appeared on screen to the present day, there have been many blog posts, magazine articles and even scholarly articles written about how good rep he is. I have seen him on many a neurodiversity advocacy Instagram account. (If you want me to link some I will!)

OK, we have established the autism. What about the swag? Well, first of all, as Donald Glover summarised it "Abed fucks". There is a whole episode dedicated to his friends trying to get him a girlfriend and worrying about his self-esteem and in the end it turns out he gets plenty of girls and, as he says, he has "self-esteem falling out (his) butthole." He also gets guys hitting on him. And how can we mention Abed without his boyfriend soulmate best friend Troy. who canonically wants to have his "gentle and mysterious" "other half"'s children. In short, bisexual king.

Of course, swag is not limited to just sexual and romantic prowess, as the amount of aroace people I know with limitless swag testifies to. Swag can also be measured by commitment to the bit, for example. And, boy, is Abed known for his commitment to the bit.

Abed is Batman, Han Solo and Jesus. He is a mafia boss. He is a cartoon man discovering the meaning of Christmas. He is the narrator and the cameraman. Like, not metaphorically or in archetype. He realises a need for these characters in the story and becomes them.

[GIF- Abed as Batman, applying lip balm, possessing undeniable amounts of swag]

9. "How does he realise the need for the these things in the story?" you may ask. Well, his special interest is film and TV. He is a filmmaker. Thus, he frames his life in terms of genre, often seeming aware of the fact he is in a sitcom. However, this often changes, and, the show branches off into completely different genres, which Abed points out. These shifts in genre explore character dynamics and also are super awesome. Abed is so genre-aware, he changes the entire genre of the show. That is swag.

10. The Community fandom here on Tumblr.com, and throughout the web, is quite small. It will make us very happy. Plus, for the first time in 8 years, there likely will be new Abed content this year, due to the release of the movie. (Due to one of Abed's many catchphrases "Six seasons and a movie!")

11. Please please please please I love him so much and i am very cool you should listen to me please please please.

So yeah, that's it! If you have anything to add, please do!

Click below for some Abed gifs.

[GIF- "Evil Abed" (Abed with a goatee and sunglasses) walking through his college being evil. He hangs up someone's payphone call, pops a girls balloon with his cigarette and then dumps said cigarette into a woman's coffee]

[GIF- Two gifs. One is of Troy, topless, leaning out of an airvent. He looks down and says "I love you". Next is of Abed, looking up at him. He says "I know", before being grabbed by a zombie in a kilt]

[GIF- Abed, wearing sunglasses, saying "movie reference". Jeff is there too and also wearing sunglasses]

[GIF- Abed saying "Cool. Cool cool cool"]

Ok there are so many more GIFs I want to put but I kinda have work soon lol. You get the gist, he is amazing. Vote Abed!

#abed #abed nadir #autism swag #autism swag summit #community tv #community nbc #six seasons and a movie #autism #troy and abed #community #troy barnes #autismsummit2023

415 notes · View notes

theforbiddeneden · 5 months ago

Text

Metal Hammer Magazine December 2023 Enter The World Of Sleep Token - Revista Metal Hammer Dezembro 2023 Entre no mundo do Sleep Token

"We'll never see the band at this level again" Sleep Token fan Benji Purdy

A deep, distorted voice is coming through the PA of Los Angeles’ El Rey Theatre.

“Do you think they want you to cry?” it’s saying. “Do you think they like it?”

A second voice, lighter in tone but still distorted and oddly inhuman, replies.

“Not as such,” this one says.

“I think they just want to know that I am feeling something, feeling what they are feeling, perhaps.”

The audience in this ornate, 800-capacity venue stands silent, entranced by the voices. The band onstage are masked metal sensations Sleep Token, tonight playing their first headlining show in the City of Angels as part of their month-long North American Rituals tour.

The dialogue that is playing out around us is hugely significant to everyone in this sold-out crowd. It marks the first time crowned frontman Vessel – the lighter voice – has broken his silence in public. The deeper voice he’s communing with belongs to Sleep, the god-like entity at the heart of the band’s lore. As the conversation continues, you could hear a pin drop.

“Do you think that this amount of crying is healthy for you?” Sleep asks.

“I don’t know,” comes Vessel’s response. “But at least I feel something. If I don’t feel anything then why would I even do this?”

At this, the crowd lose their minds and a wave of mania ripples across the floor. That the voices are pre-recorded doesn’t matter. Nor does the fact that this isn’t, strictly, the first time it’s happened – Sleep Token have been doing throughout this tour. But modern metal’s most enigmatic band have done something they’ve never done before: they’ve cracked open the door and given us a tantalising glimpse into their inner world.

This show isn’t the biggest Sleep Token will play this year. In December, they will headline London’s Wembley Arena. But Los Angeles, together with New York, is one of the epicentres of the US music business, and the buzz that’s surrounding the anonymous band suggests that America is paying attention to them.

More than that, La La Land has always had a thing for cults, from the Manson Family to Scientology, as well as the countless smaller ‘spiritualist’ groups that operate in the city today. An anonymous, masked British band with their own mysterious, quasi-religious mythology? LA never stood a chance.

“There is a new atmosphere at these live shows, an electricity,” says Benji Purdy, an American fan who also acts as moderator on the band’s official Discord server. He first saw Sleep Token when they supported metalcore act Issues on a 2019 US tour. After witnessing their headlined show in Portland, Oregon a few days ago, he says they’re an entirely different beast this time around.

“We’ll never see this band at this level ever again,” says Benji. “They are catapulting themselves.”

2023 has been the year Sleep Token’s cult success went fully overground. On January 5, the band released Chokehold, the first single from then-upcoming third album Take Me Back To Eden. Twenty-four hours later, they chucked in another new song, The Summoning. By the time the track hit TikTok, videos of listeners reacting to the genre-defying sound were reaching users around the world, with some even hitting a million-plus views.

Their social media profile was helped by celebrity boosts from Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor, Architects singer Sam Carter and Lorna Shore’s Will Ramos. And in May, they announced that Wembley date. All 12,500 tickets sold out in just 10 minutes. Sleep Token had officially become a arena band.

Chris Lody, a Sleep Token fan based in Coventry, set up a subreddit for the band back in 2018 after discovering they won their nomination for Best New Band at the Metal Hammer Golden Gods. The same year, he saw their first headline performance at St Pancras Old Church in front of 150 people. He’s had a front row seat to their dizzying rise.

“To go from that to Wembley in December, it’s incredible,” says Chris. “Creating the subreddit was a bit opportunistic really. Nothing like it really existed and I wanted to see what other people were saying about the band.”

It took a while, but fans eventually began to head to Chris’s Reddit page to share their own interpretations of Sleep Token’s music, art and lore. After the release of Chokehold and The Summoning, the page exploded with new users.

“The volume of people posting day-to-day is massive now,” says Chris, adding that it has grown from around 6,000 users to 34,500 at the time of writing. “We’ve had to take on more moderators just to maintain a bit of order.”

Much as the fandom has expanded, so too have the opportunities afforded Sleep Token. This summer, they stepped up to festival headliner status in the UK, with appearances at Portsmouth’s Takedown in April and Manchester’s Radar in July. Radar organiser Joe James admits they lucked out with the timing of the band’s booking.

“We got them at that sweet spot that every promoter dreams of,” he tells Hammer. “We’re a festival that wants to book progressive, contemporary music. Sleep Token tick all those boxes: they’re doing something fresh and are at the top of their game at the moment.”

Headlining the first day of the festival gave the band a full “limitless” rehearsal time, which in turn resulted in a truly headline-worthy performance.

“It looked and sounded amazing,” Joe enthuses. “They are so massive now, but they don’t behave like they’re blowing up just yet. I truly think they’re the next Download headliners of the new breed.”

It’s 4pm in Los Angeles when Hammer arrives at the El Rey Theatre, and queues are already stretching around the block in both directions. Some fans have brought chairs and blankets to sit on, while others are propping themselves up against the walls of the venue, clinging to the scant shade to avoid the glare of the Californian sun.

Amy McLaurin and her friend Sarah Hibbert are standing at the venue barrier. They’re from Virginia, and arrived at the El Rey at 9am, despite having fast-track passes that guarantee them priority entry.

“I found them on TikTok,” she says of how she discovered Sleep Token, with a nervous smile that suggests she’s worried any gatekeepers will leap out and chase her away at any second.

The pair saw Sleep Token for the first time a couple of weeks earlier in Baltimore, but couldn’t risk booking flights to come more than 2,000 miles to repeat the experience. It’s doubly impressive because Baltimore was Amy’s first ever gig, full-stop.

“I’d never really found an artist I loved enough,” she says. “Right now they’re everything I want in music. I listened to rock before Sleep Token, but not much metal – I’ve actually discovered more metal through them. I also met Sarah at the Baltimore show and we both decided to fly here.”

“They make you think about things you otherwise wouldn’t want to talk or be open about,” adds Sarah. “These songs can mean something different to everyone, a universal pain we all feel but some might be less able to express that.”

Vessel famously doesn’t do interviews – the only one he has given was to Hammer in the band’s early days – but their fans have been more than happy to pick up the slack. Sleep Token’s official and unofficial social media channels are full of running narratives, memes and jokes.

It hasn’t all been deadly serious, either. In April, a fan-filmed clip of an audience member at a gig in Sydney letting loose a “sinister” fart during the quiet part of the song Atlantic went viral. Similarly, after the release of The Summoning, a section of their fanbase dubbed Sleep Token “metal’s sexiest band,” largely thanks to lyrics such as

"THEIR MUSIC TRANSCENDS THEIR PERSONALITIES" SLEEP TOKEN FAN CASSIE KNOX

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

“THERE ARE SECRETS LEFT TO BE UNCOVERED”

Daniel Owen is the man behind the artwork of Sleep Token’s first two albums, 2019’s Sundowning and 2021’s This Place Will Become Your Tomb.

WHEN DID YOU FIRST COME INTO CONTACT WITH SLEEP TOKEN?

“Around early 2018. I ended up becoming one of their lead visual creatives from [that year’s single] Jaws through to This Place Will Become Your Tomb, and some initial development on Take Me Back To Eden.”

HOW MUCH OF A BRIEF WERE YOU GIVEN IN EACH CASE?

“The briefs behind each project have varied greatly in scope, but usually only restricted to a few lines – in the case of Sundowning per song - or a paragraph to explore the central idea of This Place Will Become Your Tomb. Symbolism throughout history has always been a communication method that encapsulates a sense of power and reverence; my work for the project has always aimed to champion atmosphere while masking a considerable amount of intention below the surface. “One example would be the Sundowning sigils as a whole: being informed by the passing of time and mirroring the positions of a clock face, referencing the namesake of the album. Individually, each sigil was a cipher I'd developed that represented a hidden selection of elements relating to the singles that later served as artwork – eventually all would be removed from streaming services and become an intentionally forgotten to reflect one of the central themes of Sundowning and its primary cover. A beautiful part of working with a band is that there's an unparalleled level of bravery involved with taking the kinds of creative choices that many are too hesitant to pursue.”

SLEEP TOKEN PUT HIDDEN ‘CODES’ IN THEIR SONGS AND IMAGES. ARE THERE ANY SECRETS IN YOUR ARTWORK THAT FANS STILL HAVEN’T DISCOVERED?

“There’s certainly some things I’ve left seeded within my work that’s ready to be pulled from the future if I’m called upon. There are still some secrets left to be uncovered.”

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

‘Or are you really here to cut me off? Or maybe just to turn me on’ and ‘I would be lying if I told you that I didn’t think that I could be your man / Or maybe make a good girl bad,’ combined with a raunchy bass drop in the song’s second half. This sexiness is something the band have leaned into on this US tour. During The Offering, members have been seemingly kissing through the masks, reportedly prompting a suitably ecstatic reaction from the crowd each time.

There are other, more wholesome displays of fandom, from fluffy crochet plushies to homemade necklaces. A video of guitarist IV putting on a cowboy hat given to him by an audience member at a gig in Dallas has yielded close to two million views on TikTok. Back at the barrier at the El Rey stands Cassie Knox, who has come to LA from Houston, Texas. Cassie has now seen the band eight times, including at Radar in the UK.

“Sleep Token have a big thing about community,” she says matter-of-factly, when we ask whether it gets lonely following the band on tour. “I met two girls last night in San Diego, they’re here with me and we’re also going to Anaheim [the next gig on the tour].”

While every fan has a personal answer for what Sleep Token mean to them, Cassie’s response seems to be shared by many. “They taught me self-love,” she says, holding a sign stating as much.

In May, shortly before the release of Take Me Back To Eden, several select fans were invited to an exclusive listening session for the album in London. Chris Lloyd, who runs the Sleep Token subreddit, was one of them. He won’t divulge too many details of the event, but offers an anecdote that highlights the band’s dedication to keeping their enigma intact.

“We got there and there was just this stage with curtains,” he says. “They opened at the start of the album and we thought there was a Vessel mannequin just in a chair. It was really dark and there were loads of smoke, but it was really exciting. Then right at the very end of the session, the ‘mannequin’ stood up and it was actually Vessel – he’d just sat perfectly still the whole time! It was insane.”

The band show no sign of changing their minds when it comes to preserving their mystique. Hammer’s request for an interview with Vessel is, predictably, turned down. But this anonymity is something that their devotees embrace. The golden rule of Sleep Token fandom is to never, under any circumstances, divulge or speculate on the members’ real-life identities. Still, that hasn’t stopped some people trying.

“The mystery surrounding the band will always be a key element that draws people in,” says Discord mod Benji Purdy. “It’s a rabbit hole and people love diving into them. But I have found that since [2021 album] This Place Will Become Your Tomb, there has been a culture shift within the fanbase between those who want to respect the band’s wishes to stay anonymous, and those who have a general lack of respect and think the band don’t care.”

This ring of secrecy is intact today. Before the show, Hammer is sitting at a table in the taco restaurant adjacent to the El Rey. We can hear and see the security manager briefing in front of the venue.

“Tonight’s show is Sleep Token,” the security manager says, marching along his ranks like a general on the eve of battle. “Their whole deal is that they are anonymous. If anybody – anybody – tries to go where they shouldn’t, you MUST. STOP. THEM.”

In reality, transgression seems to be the furthest thing from anyone’s mind. The people queuing outside the El Rey are here to Worship, after all.

“Their music transcends their personalities as individuals,” Cassie Knox tells us. “Everybody has a part in this music, and from the messages that the band have put out, it seems like that’s exactly what he [Vessel] wanted.”

By the time the doors open, the excitement is palpable. Airport-style security gates mean everyone is thoroughly searched before entry and it seems half the audience has brought along trinkets, gifts and signs in their own expression of Worship. One fan has turned up with a bouquet of roses so big it is seen engulfed her head. They all make it through security without issue.

While some fans have been dressing up in full Vessel cosplay elsewhere on the tour, there’s no such regalia tonight, although many have covered their faces with painted Sleep Token sigils. Equally, it’s striking just how youthful the crowd is as a whole.

“It’s been like this the whole tour,” reveals Matt de Burgh Daly, guitarist/keyboardsist with support A.A. Williams, as he sits down next to Hammer to grab a bite pre-show. Williams and her band previously supported Sleep Token on their 2021 UK tour, and now they’re on these US dates, suggesting they’re within the headliners’ circle of trust.

“It’s funny actually,” Matt says between taco bites. “This is actually one of the smaller shows on the tour, I think. But we’re pretty nervous.”

Oh?

“Yeah, our drummer’s broken his arm – he’s having to play Def Leppard style!”

With its art deco exterior, crystal light fixtures, chandeliers and blood red decor, the El Rey Theatre feels more like it should be hosting a seance than a metal show. It’s not your typical dive venue. But where Sleep Token aren’t your typical metal band, sonically or visually.

From Hammer’s vantage point, a dark balcony overlooking the main floor, it looks like nearly everyone is adorned in some kind of Sleep Token memorabilia, be it t-shirts, hoodies, or even smaller items like necklaces or homemade earrings. A queue stretches from the merch stand to the barrier throughout the entirety of A.A. Williams’ set and right up until Sleep Token themselves appear.

Sure enough, the headliners’ arrival elicits a frenzy of activity. An extended shriek of pure ecstasy greets the band as they march onto the stage, and it’s not long before the audience is singing along ardently, tears literally streaming from some fans’ eyes.

Detractors may point to the prevalence of piano ballads in Sleep Token’s sound, but there’s no shortage of heft in tonight’s set. Chokehold is explosive, its pendulum riffs cutting through the air like a buzzsaw. Hypnosis has the booming, almost floating menace of a great Deftones track, fans waving their arms wildly throughout.

Even in terms of physical presence, there’s a marked difference from the band that toured in support of 2021’s This Place Will Become Your Tomb. Back then, Vessel seemed like a solid, rooted entity, his movements stiff and minimal, clinging to the mic-stand like he was tethered to it. This time out, he’s a ball of kinetic energy, bouncing, dancing and stalking his way backwards and forwards across the stage, even dropping to do push-ups during The Summoning. Bassist III and guitarist IV are similarly lively, headbanging furiously and commanding circle pits and walls of death with finger gestures and head nods.

The Take Me Back To Eden songs are especially visceral live. Vessel skitters across the stage during Vore like someone having an ancient entity, switching between howls and soulful melodies before intoning the song’s key lyric: ‘I want to give you all, but nobody else will ever go?’

For all the excitement, background chatter falls away completely when segments of conversation between Vessel and Sleep play out. The distorted voices discuss everything from the fandom to the role the masks play in their mythology.

“In order for all of this to work there has to be a certain boundary in place,” Vessel says, his unearthly, pre-recorded voice spilling from the speakers. “They need to be able to project themselves onto this, without anyone else’s identity getting in the way. In turn, I need to be able to show my true self to them in a way that does not compromise their ability to connect.”

There’s certainly no shortage of connection as fans roar along to the likes of The Summoning, The Love You Want and Alkaline, some moved to tears as the music takes on new dimensions, the closing rave-metal thrust of The Offering ending the night on an exultant and triumphant note, before Vessel clasps his hands in thanks as Whitney Houston’s I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me) plays incongruously over the PA.

So where next for Sleep Token? In a year where they have notched up a Top 10 album in the UK – Take Me Back To Eden peaked at No 3 – and sold out venues around the world, it’s hard to say exactly where the ceiling could be for them.

“I could easily see them playing arenas here in the States within two years,” Benji states. “The demand here is insane – as seen by the number of people who’ve lined up at every almost every show of this tour.”

For a British metal band to break into the US market is no mean feat, and the buzz and excitement Sleep Token are generating here is starting to catch up with the noise that surrounds them back home.

Equally, their pop sensibilities enable them to serve as a gateway, their success on TikTok showing they don’t just appeal within the metal sphere, but to wider audiences whom then tumble further down the metal rabbit-hole after discovering them.

Uniting newcomers and dyed-in-the-wool metalheads alike, Sleep Token are a new breed of band, transcending genre boundaries by simply refusing to stay in one, and backed up by a mystery and spectacle all their own. They are as at home supporting Slipknot and Architects as they are appearing at festivals like Reading and Leeds – testament to just how influential and breakout they’ve become.

Crazy as it may seem, 2024 will likely be an even bigger year for Sleep Token, and they’ve already booked some of the world’s most iconic venues in that period. With Wembley Arena and Alexandra Palace shows in the diary for next April, Sleep Token will be looking to cement their place at the top of the mountain. How long before the Worship of Sleep Token becomes a religion?

SLEEP TOKEN PLAY WEMBLEY ARENA ON DECEMBER 16. TAKE ME BACK TO EDEN IS OUT NOW VIA SPINEFARM

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

MASKS REVEAL THE ARTIST’S VISION

Mario Garvera and Beatrice Rebondi are MysteryStar, an art studio specialising in masks, costumes and accessories. They also created the Vessel mask

WHAT IS YOUR BACKGROUND IN MASK-MAKING?

“We’ve always been drawn to the dramatic and theatrical aspects of expression, along with our shared love of music. We have produced thousands of pieces together over the decades. We never make replicas of our masks; they are, and always will be, one-off characters, created especially and never to be repeated.”

HOW DID YOU BECOME INVOLVED WITH SLEEP TOKEN?

“In early 2019 they were looking for a workable mask, as they hadn’t found anything wearable that could work onstage yet. We provided [Vessel and Sleep Token’s management] with several sketches and worked out together how to keep Vessel’s character essence and vision, while creating something that could work on a human head and be practical onstage.”

WHAT WERE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES?

“It took several modifications, especially around the shape of the head. We had to accommodate certain parts of Vessel was adamant were integral parts of the full-face mask for the photoshoots and a mouth - less one for tge stage perfomances. These were the first two masks that we made for Vessel.”

WHY DO YOU THINK WE FIND MASKED BANDS SO FASCINATING?

“Masks have always been important to humans since perhaps the beginnings of civilisation. Ancient tribes created masks, for recounting their history and transmitting knowledge of their young; for healings and for warding off their enemies. In addition, it could be because masks are a created expression of the artist – the one - who created it, as well as the one who wears it – and as such reveal something of the artist’s mind and their vision.”

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

CR:

Transcription English Version from theforbiddeneden

#sleep token lore #sleeptoken #music #band #vessel #sleep token music #vessel sleep token #ii #sleep token vessel #pt-br #iii sleep token #sleep token iii #sleep token ii #iv sleep token #ivy #magazine #eng

29 notes · View notes

soisaidfine · 5 months ago

Text

mothercain: ouch 🫶 (Nearer, my God, to Thee)

'herein lies the glory of the mystery: Christ was the man of sorrows, and acquainted with griefs'

“Nearer, My God, to Thee”

aingelblood: fixed this blackout for mothercain

“Nearer, My God, to Thee” is a 19th-century Christian hymn by Sarah Flower Adams, which retells the story of Jacob’s dream.

youtube

Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee! E'en though it be a cross that raiseth me; Still all my song shall be nearer, my God, to Thee, Chorus: Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee! Though like the wanderer, the sun gone down, Darkness be over me, my rest a stone; Yet in my dreams I’d be nearer, my God, to Thee, Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee! There let the way appear steps unto heav'n; All that Thou sendest me in mercy giv'n; Angels to beckon me nearer, my God, to Thee, Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee! Then with my waking thoughts bright with Thy praise, Out of my stony griefs Bethel I’ll raise; So by my woes to be nearer, my God, to Thee, Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee! Or if on joyful wing, cleaving the sky, Sun, moon, and stars forgot, upwards I fly, Still all my song shall be, nearer, my God, to Thee, Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!

Ethel Cain Nearer, my God, to Thee

Ethel Cain - Jesus Christ, Lord and Savior Photo by Silken Weinberg - W Magazine

“but herein lies the glory of the mystery: Christ was the man of sorrows, and acquainted with griefs; his heart melted like that of a merely human creature, and he never manifested any sign of anger except against insensibility and obduracy of soul. Love one another, was his incessant exhortation. Father, he exclaimed, writhing under the torments inflicted by his executioners, forgive them; for they know not what they do. When on the point of quitting his beloved disciples, he was all at once dissolved in tears; he experienced all the terrors of death, all the anguish of the cross; the blood-sweat trickled down his divine cheeks; he complained that his Father had forsaken him. Father, said he, if it be possible, let this chalice pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt. Then it was that that expression, fraught with all the sublimity of grief, fell from his lips: —’My soul is sorrowful, even unto death.’”

François-René de Chateaubriand: The genius of Christianity

mothercain, June 21, 2023

“so much of the new testament only half-tugs at me because jesus is so stoic and near-passive about going to his death in sacrifice so it’s hard to feel bad as he comes off as almost two-dimensional about it, but the one verse that gets me is luke 22:42.

“father, if you are willing, let this cup pass from me. not of my own will, but of yours to be done.”

i think it humanizes him more than anything else. he’s begging his father to make the inevitable pain just a little more bearable. a child willingly going to his death for his father without question, but in a nearing hour asking “will it hurt?” it makes me sad every time i think about it.”

. . .

"When on the point of quitting his beloved disciples, Christ was all at once dissolved in tears"

20 notes · View notes

amelikos · 5 days ago

Text

Initial thoughts on the title for HZ074.

Link here. I need to write my thoughts as usual. No summary or staff list for the episode, those will probably be released in the Animage magazine at the end of this week.

Given that this is the title for the episode just after the Basagiri episode, that means Basagiri will join the group as planned and that HZ074 probably has the mysterious woman at the Crystal Pool.

So, the three Explorers are probably referring to Lucius, Gibeon and the mystery woman. Which means Gibeon taking on the Explorers name may be an homage to his friends (something I wrote about before, I think) and that he is keeping the name out of nostalgia/sentimality and to keep their name going on.. which is endearing (to me), and also cute..

Anyway, I hope that this is a proper flashback episode and that we'll get a lot of information. I also remember seeing merch for shiny Zygarde being released in December and while merch lines don't necessarily have something to do with the anime, shiny Zygarde feels too specific to me to be about anyone else other than Gibeon, so maybe we'll see Gibeon in action around the end of the year or early January.. Which reminds me that the last episode that aired in 2023 was HZ034 (which also had Gibeon, Amethio, etc).

Either way. Explorers lore coming soon. I will keep going on and on about Gibeon keeping the Explorers name in present day, because that feels like such a loving gesture. I can't wait to learn about his real motives (which I hope are nuanced and human, and not boring like certain antagonistic teams).

I will also keep going on about Lucius and Gibeon going through a divorce.. I don't think any pair of characters embody "divorced characters" as much as them tbh. Are they divorced if it doesn't involve a long custody battle lasting decades over a magical turtle—

I feel like Gibeon really loved Lucius, and Lucius broke his heart somehow and he is still chasing Lucius to this day. Love in the wider sense of the word. It really feels like Gibeon still wishes he were still traveling with his friends, especially Lucius.. He really feels focused on the past, too much, even. To the point he can't properly see his family in present day. I hope all parties involved get proper closure eventually.

Maybe my current thoughts about the past Explorers are off the mark, but I like the kind of thoughts and theories one can only have while a show is still airing.. it's part of the ongoing mystery and the process which makes us feel fully invested in the narrative instead of being passive watchers. I'm looking forward to this episode!

#hz074 #character notes #episode notes #hz titles and summaries

7 notes · View notes

lalunameli · 11 months ago

Text

Melly's MasterList of Translations:

And other miscellanea...

HIATUS June 1, 2024: Unfortunately my health has gotten worse in recent months, so I am forced to take a break from most of my online activities, and will stop any translations while I recuperate. I don't know if I will revisit anything in the future, but for now, the focus will be on my health and getting better.

Thanks for your understanding.

-Melly

Tiger & Bunny:

Mostly Yuri Petrov/Lunatic related

Season 1

Yuri Petrov/Lunatic Article from Hero Gossips

Excerpts from Hero TV Fan Volume 2

TN: May add more translations from this publication later

Hero TV Newspaper Extra Pg 18: Lunatic/Yuri Petrov

Cast Comments from Yusa Kōji from an unknown magazine about Tiger & Bunny: The Beginning

Late Night Tea With Yuri-Sensei: 5th Cup By: Ogawa Kuro

Late Night Tea With Yuri-Sensei: 4th Cup By: Ogawa Kuro

Yuri Petrov's Profile from The Rising - King of Works Super Fanbook

Lunatic - Heroes Column Card

Golden Ryan - Excerpts of Heroes Column Card and short lesson on Japanese polite speech forms

Yuri Petrov's Daily Schedule: The Rising - King of Works Super Fanbook

The Beginning Novelization: Yuri/Luna's post credit scene

Translation of Barnaby's Medical Assessment Performed by Dr. Chinatsu Matsui (From the November 2011 Issue of Animage)

Media

TaiBani Music, Audio Dramas and Events

Lunatic/Yuri-centric content from The Sound of Tiger & Bunny pamphlet.

Small blurb on Special CD #6: Yuri Petrov's Melancholic Daily Life

TN: Changed title to match the title used in the previously translated audio drama; however, 憂鬱 (yuuutsu) can also be translated as "depression", "gloomy", and "melancholy", so both titles work. "Yuri Petrov's Gloomy Daily Life" also sounds pretty good.

Translation of Yuri's Character Song: Thanatos no Koe wo Kike and small article about it

Excerpts from TB2 OST Liner Notes

AFFT Talkshow Event October 13, 2017 (Mainly Yuri information)

Information about TaiBani and New Otani Hotel Collab 2024

Explaination About Yuri and the Karuizawa Cabbage Seller Theory

Taibani Videogames

Translation of Yuri-centric info from this PASH article on Hero's Day for PSP

More Hero's Day Info on Yuri's Route

Hero's Day Screenshots and other info from Yuri's Route.

TN: May add translation of Yusa Kōji interview later

Translation of Yuri's (main) Route from Hero's Day for PSP

Part 1 and Part 2

Hero's Day: Yuri's April Fools Day Message and Small Interview with Yusa Kōji from B's Log

Misc Translations

Translation of blurb on Barnaby and Kotetsu's Eau de Toilette Fragrances

Masakazu Katsura's Tribute to Toriyama Akira-sensei and Masakazu Morita's words (Translation by: Todd Blankenship on Twitter/X)

Translation of Lunatic Sound Drops

Happy 13th Year Anniversary TaiBani

Season 2

Ueda Hiroshi's TaiBani2 Sequel Idea (Tweet)

S2 Cour1 Ep 8: 顔色悪い (Kao iro warui)

Translation of Yuri and Lunatic centric parts of this interview with Kase Atsuko in Newtype, February 2023

Translation of Yuri and Lunatic centric parts of this interview with Kase Atsuko in Animedia, February 2023

Translation of Excerpts from MASAKAZU KATSURA x TIGER & BUNNY 2 Design Works

Yuri Petrov and Lunatic blurbs from the Tiger & Bunny 2 Museum

Translation of Yuri-centric parts from the staff interview in TaiBani2 Exclusive Interviews Vol. 7

Commentary

The Murder Dungeon

Commentary on Lunatic's Hidden Room (aka the "Murder Dungeon™️") including official designs

Murder Dungeon Location Found? From The Beginning Novel Vol.2

Proto Cape Discovered in Murder Dungeon - S2 Episode 20

Commentary on Tartarus from S2 Watch Party Eps 20 and 24, as well as other inclusions of Greek Mythology

Yuri Petrov/Lunatic Guide (Jp, last updated Jan 2024)

Mystery Solved(?) How Yuri Stores His Hair in the Luna Mask

Pale Silly Man Leaves Phone Messages: The Rising Super Prelude

A Japanese Language Faux Pas

My YuriPe/TaiBani Merch:

Last items in storage shipped over

Partial Bday Haul

Found and Fixed Luna-Sensei's Missing Bowgun

Some Doujinshi Anthologies and Goodies

More TaiBani Goodies From My Friend

Another YuriPe Haul🥰

P3 Chara Fineboard and Lunatic TB Styling 2 Figure

Luna/Yuri Care Package From My Friend

Suruga-ya Haul and Others

Mercari Haul

Mercari Lot: Summer Resort Heroes and Other Acrylic Stands

TB1 Sakakibara Manga and Artbook and Lunatic Rascal Acrylic Mascots

Misc (TaiBani):

My YuriPe Tattoos: here and here

Drabble: Yuri on Cabbages

Privatter: The Cabbage Connection

Picrew Fun with YuriPe: Here, Here, and Here

Saint Seiya:

Deadend Game CV: Kawada Shinji (Thanatos' Character Song - Lost Canvas)

Tsunakan's Gag Comics (Scanlations done by House of Libra with their own translations) Here and Here

Saint Seiya Omega: Translation of Cancer Schiller's moves

Meiou Iden Dark Wing Chapter 33

28 notes · View notes

stereopticons · 11 months ago

Text

2023 writing round-up

Rules: Share what you wrote this year! It can be works you posted to Ao3, Wattpad, Tumblr, or anywhere else! You can share everything you wrote or just the ones you're most excited about.

Thanks for the tags, @hippolotamus @rmd-writes @kiwiana-writes. This has been a rough year but hey, we've almost made it through.

January

we were loud like love [david/patrick, E, 5k]

David wears a collar. Tenderness and filth ensues.

the world would make sense again (if i held your hand) [twylexis, T, 2.7k]

Twyla finally tries to get over her fear of flying to go visit Alexis. Alexis tries to make it easier for her.

if you'll be my star, i'll be your sky [david/patrick, T, 1.2k]

A small, late-night moment of domestic bliss in the kitchen of the cottage.

puzzling it out [david/patrick, E, 1.9k, part of the wordplay series]

A wrong answer on a crossword puzzle prompts an interesting discovery for Patrick.

February

with a hand on your side of the bed [david/patrick, T, 2.3k]

Five times David falls asleep without Patrick, and one time they wake up together.

March

paint me up (you're my favorite color) for @blackandwhiteandrose [david/patrick, E, 2.5k]

David wears nail polish. Patrick has a lot of feelings about it.

let my love fix you up for @rosedavid [david/patrick, T, 1.7k]

After Patrick is injured while hiking, David takes care of him.

April

your secret's safe with me for @scrarefest [stevie/ruth, M, 3.1k]

Stevie enlists David's help to plan a surprise party for Ruth. It goes about as well as one would expect.

let our shadows fall away like dust for @hippolotamus [david/patrick, E, 3.2k]

David has a bad day. Patrick makes it better the best way he knows how.

May

tangle and stretch [david/patrick, T, 3.3k]

Patrick sees David on a magazine as a child, and David weaves his way into Patrick's life without either of them realizing it.

June

in the long tresses of your hair (i am a babbling brook) [david/patrick, T, 1.3k]

An airplane meet-cute-ish in which Patrick finds himself obsessed with David's hair.

July

(B)13 Reasons Why [david/patrick, T, 3.1k]

collab with @blackandwhiteandrose. Patrick gives David a gift for their 13th wedding monthiversary.

i'll miss you from this place that i stand [david/patrick, T, 1.4k]

After the wedding, all the Roses leave Schitt's Creek within a few weeks of one another. David doesn't handle it very well.

catch my breath to breathe your name [david/patrick, E, 358]

Patrick and David have explored a lot of things together. At the heart of it all is love.

August

never knew a home until i found your hands [alex/henry, E, 1.1k]

Henry and Alex get a little handsy (and have some feelings) at the lakehouse.

touch me [david/patrick, T, 546]

An incomplete list of the ways David and Patrick touch each other during the wedding.

September

knock on wood [david/patrick, E, 3.4k, part of the every year we get a bit closer series]

Five wood-related fifth anniversary gifts that Patrick gives to David, and one (or two) that David gives to Patrick.

you can tell everybody (that this is your song) [david/patrick, T, 1k]

A story of falling in love and David and Patrick trying to find their way to each other told through a series of drabbles inspired by song lyrics.

crossed words and open hearts for @sc-passions-and-pastimes [david/patrick, E, 2.6k, part of the wordplay series]

Five times David needs help with a crossword puzzle and one time he doesn't.

parallax for @sc-passions-and-pastimes [david/patrick, T, 5k]

collab with @indestructibleheart.

Patrick doesn't have an eye for art; he doesn't pay much attention to painting or sculptures. But he likes photography. Well, he likes a photographer in particular, anyway. The mysterious artist known only as D.R. — a black-and-white film photographer from New York — may have disappeared from the world years ago... but Patrick still treasures the one print he'd purchased during a business trip in the city. After all, it may have given him the courage to break his own heart, move to a city he'd never heard of, and meet the love of his life. He hasn't thought about in years. That is, until he's picking up lunch at the café and something familiar catches his eye. The tone, the light — he'd know an original D.R. photo anywhere. "Oh, this?" Twyla grinned, pointing to the frame on the restaurant wall. "David gave me that."

October

everybody's waiting for the next surprise [david/patrick, T, 1.4k]

Stevie drags David to a haunted house on Halloween. They run into a kind stranger in a blue button down in the group ahead of them. You know how this story goes.

November

my misspent youth and my slow decline [david/patrick, T, 800]

Four characters reflect on something that haunts them through four double drabbles. Or, the author projects feelings onto an unprecedented four characters at once.

December

ribbons and bows [david/patrick, E, 1.7k, WIP]

Daily advent calendar drabbles for Schitt's Creek

my only wish is one more year (and then i want them all) [alex/henry, E, 1.7k, WIP]

Daily advent calendar drabbles for RWRB

And, god willing, two Frozen Over fics and one RWRB 5+1 before the end of the year.

I haven't been tracking who's done this, so apologies for tagging you if you already have! @apothecarose @chelle-68 @lizzie-bennetdarcy @lilythesilly @nontoxic-writes @blackandwhiteandrose and anyone else who wants to share!

#sorry for the long post #2023 writing round up #schitt's creek #rwrb

24 notes · View notes

acoupofowls · 1 year ago

Text

Other Worlds: An Anthology of Diverse Short Fiction

Short stories by writers from marginalised and/or underrepresented communities or backgrounds exploring the theme of "Other Worlds"

KICKSTARTER NOW LIVE and SUBMISSIONS OPEN!

Other Worlds is the second print anthology brought to you by A Coup of Owls Press - home of online quarterly anthologies from creators from marginalised and/or underrepresented communities or backgrounds.

As a follow-up to Other & Different, which explored what it is to be othered, Other Worlds will be an exploration of places, situations, communities, etc, that are other. These might be actual other worlds in a science or speculative fiction genre, or a community, or a situation in the historical or modern world that feels or is made to feel alien. Encompassing a variety of styles and genres, Other Worlds will feature stories focused on the theme of being part of those othered communities - however the writers wish to interpret that.

THE STORIES

We are thrilled to confirm that we have invited five fantastic authors to contribute to Other Worlds, and our submissions for the remaining stories are open from 1st October to 15th November 2023.

For more submissions guidelines and to submit, check out our submissions page.

Eve Morton: Strange people with strange purposes gather in Haven (Science Fiction).

Eve Morton is a poet, professor, and parent living in Waterloo, Ontario. She likes coffee, short stories, and horror movies--in that order. Weblinks: website

Previous publications include: A Coup of Owls, Other Stories Podcast and Third Flatiron Publishing

Victor Okechukwu: A post-civil war community feels cut off from the rest of Nigeria when a woman's only son enters a train to Jos but may not return (Modern Nigerian Lit).

Victor Okechukwu is a writer based in Lagos, Nigeria. His writing takes a deep setting in arresting issues of mental health that have been overlooked in his country. He's an Associate Prose Editor at Zerotic Press and is reading mass communication at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Weblinks: Twitter

Previous publications include: Gordon Square Review, Mycelia, Door-is-a-jar, and Rigorous Magazine

Von Reyes: Violence and intimacy become blurred and life might just be worth fighting for amongst a community of underground fighters (Speculative Fiction).

Von Reyes is an emergent fiction author, focused on uplifting the intersections of queer and trans masculinity and Asian diasporic identity. He focuses on genre fiction with themes of surrealism, queer sexuality, existentialism, and optimistic nihilism. He is passionate about creating a more socially conscious world where care for each other is at the core of all that we do. He hopes to tell stories that don't shy away from the horrors, but allows us to find the light within them. When he isn't writing, he can usually be found chasing the ocean and his next iced coffee. Weblinks: website

Previous publications include: The Good Men Project. Forthcoming in Chill Mag.

Zachary Rosenberg: A Jewish soldier and rancher must contend with mysterious monsters to build the home he longs for (Horror Western).

Zachary Rosenberg is a horror writer living in Florida. He crafts horrifying tales by night and by day he practices law, which is even more frightening. His debut novella Hungers as Old As This Land is out now from Brigids Gate Press and his second, The Long Shalom, is available from by Off Limits Press. Weblinks: Twitter

Previous publications include: Dark Matter Magazine, The Deadlands, and the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction.

Samir Sirk Morató: When an Appalachian community clashes with their neighbors—a grove of sentient, dying chestnut trees—tragedy strikes (Horror).

Samir Sirk Morató is a scientist, artist, and flesh heap. They are also a 2022 Brave New Weird shortlister and a F(r)iction Fall 2022 Flash Fiction finalist. Samir spends most of their time tending to their cacti and contemplating the nature of meat. Weblinks: Twitter, Instagram, and website

Previous publications include: Neon Hemlock, bodyfluids, Catapult, and Seize the Press.

COVER ART

We can't wait to share with you the amazing cover art currently being created by amazing artist @pangaeastarseed.

Pangaea is a life-long artist and resident of the DC suburbs. A freelance illustrator with 20+ years experience, Pan’s work focuses on figure work and visual narratives utilizing the exploration of queerness, food as a love-language, and colors influenced by their florid synaesthesia.

Pangaea’s previous work includes custom illustration commissions and tattoo designs for clients; Starseed, an original gay-porn-space-opera comic, The Alien Dick Coloring Book, sketchbook zines Cardassia Prime and Cardassia Kotok, and the Washington DC-variant poster design of The Lambda Literary Awards 2022.

Portfolio: https://www.pangaeaillustrations.com/

WHY KICKSTARTER?

We want to ensure that we produce the high quality product that we know we can! Whilst design, layout and formatting happens in-house, Kickstarter funds will help cover pay for our authors, cover artist and editor.

REWARDS

Add Ons!

We have a variety of extras available in the add-ons, from extra copies to special collected editions. Whilst we've tried to create reward tiers to suit everyone, the add-ons will better allow you to mix and match to your preference!

Our own @maxturnerwrites is once more offering some of his own work at discounted prices for supporters.

STRETCH GOALS!

£1000 : at £1000 we will add an Other Worlds bookmark for each physical backer

£1250 : at £1250 we will add an A5 print of cover art (without title) to each physical backer, and an e-copy of the same to each e-backer

£1500 : at £1500 we will add an Other Worlds tote bag for each physical backer

#kickstarter #call for submissions #open submission #short stories #speculative fiction #anthology #fantasy #folklore #horror #science fiction #writers of tumblr #writing

36 notes · View notes

beautifulbizarremagazine · 2 years ago

Photo

@tinaspratt’s ethereal painting ‘Maybe Tomorrow’ [Oil on linen panel, 18 x 24’’] for the upcoming Beautiful Bizarre Magazine exhibition 'Secret Longings' at @coreyhelfordgallery. About the painting: “Roses are most commonly associated with love and romance. Roses can also mean secrecy or confidentiality. The term “sub rosa”, meaning under the rose, comes from ancient times. Her face is half hidden and turned away, creating a feeling of secrecy and mystery. A pensive moment is captured, the roses entwined on the dress are decorative but also in full bloom, representing beauty and love. There is a feeling of the transient nature of time passing, a perfect moment captured before it may wilt, and I'm left wondering who she is and what or who she is thinking about?” Secret Longings | March 11-April 15, 2023 Opening reception: March 11. 7:00 – 11:00pm Corey Helford Gallery 571 S Anderson St #1, Los Angeles, CA 90033, United States To receive the Collectors Preview, please email Gallery Director Sherri J. Trahan at [email protected] #beautifulbizarre #tinaspratt #painting #art #rose #detail #oilpainting #creativity #artexhibition #artcollector #artwork #secretlongings #artinspiration #artist #figurativeart #newcontemporary #art #contemporaryart https://www.instagram.com/p/Cphr4xNPJPc/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#1 #beautifulbizarre #tinaspratt #painting #art #rose #detail #oilpainting #creativity #artexhibition #artcollector #artwork #secretlongings #artinspiration #artist #figurativeart #newcontemporary #contemporaryart

67 notes · View notes

firsttarotreader · 1 year ago

Note

Can you do a reading on how pedro coped with rejection from jobs in the earlier days?

Hello! I think I may have done something similar at some point, but I asked the cards anyway because I am not sure. 😄 The first pull was the 3 of Teacups reversed, 3 of Flowers reversed and The Mystery reversed. All 3 cards reversed!

3 of Teacups reversed means he was feeling a lot of negativity, with his creativity being stifled, having to conform to the group he was in. There was this “down” energy, that feeling of failure and loneliness. On the other hand, this card could also represent partying too hard, over-indulging, all in detriment of his own health. 3 of Flowers reversed represents an intense feeling of frustration and stagnation, like everything he had worked for and planned for had failed. Too many obstacles, a lack of progress and limitations, along with insecurity and lack of confidence. The Mystery (The High Priestess) reversed points to all of those rejections making him feel so lost and confused, like he couldn’t trust his intuition, like he was doing something wrong and didn’t really know what it was. He was questioning himself and his decisions so much, as if he thought he didn’t know what he should be doing to not get that much rejection.

The second pull shows a more brighter perspective. The cards were the 8 of Spears, Knight of Spears and King of Flowers. 8 of Spears is reminiscent from the first cards because it shows him feeling limited, restricted, like he was trapped and unable to move, with his hands tied up. Sometimes it could even be that the ties were actually preventing him from giving up and moving on, since things weren’t working out. But guess what, the Knight of Spears means he put the knife between his teeth (a saying we have in Brazil for being brave) and he went for it, he fiercely faced every obstacle with determination and willpower, making an effort to be as rational as he could and not letting his emotions take over and control him. In the end, he took over the lead of his own life and career, he became the King of Flowers, a passionate and creative King, full of fire energy, with a loud personality and a visionary nature. You know who this King reminded me of? Oberyn Martell and the way that role made his career start to take off after so many rejections and struggles, and it made him finally feel confident in his career.

So, at first he felt like shit, like he had no idea what he was doing wrong, he felt limited, but maybe unable to let go, and then he gathered all his strength and boldness to make things work, and they finally did.

Also wanted to point out this one will go to the #confirmed readings tag. 😎😎 From Esquire magazine, April 2023:

His getting his ass fucking kicked is what we can see in the 3 of Teacups reversed and 3 of Flowers reversed, the negativity, the feeling of failure and stagnation. When he says he really learned how to drink in some places he worked at, can be seen aswell in the 3 of Teacups reversed. He has also talked about partying hard in his struggle years in other situations too. The delusional self-determination that kept him going is the Knight of Spears.

The worries about things never happening to him and the questioning in the face of the near misses are present in the 3 first cards, including The Mystery reversed. The readjusting and appropriation of his own career and managing of expectations are not only in the Knight of Spears, but in the King of Flowers. The 8 of Spears is in the last sentence, the many good reasons to let the delusion go. He was entrapped by his own desire to succeed. He could not let it go, even if he felt like he was not moving forward.

#work #career #rejection #Readings #confirmed readings

8 notes · View notes

lokisasylum · 2 years ago

Text

Be mindful of changes during ‘FACE’ release...

I’ve been seeing a lot of people overly excited of the possibilities once we get the TRACK LIST tomorrow, but we also need to be conscious that EVERYTHING that was discussed during FESTA2022 was “subject to change”.

Which also begs the question or theory that FESTA2022 was pre-recorded:

#01. Notice how they weren’t reading comments, but instead were reading pre-established questions.

#02. RM mentioned that the order of Solo-ALBUM releases & debuts would be: Jhope►Himself►JK►Suga►Jimin.

Despite the fact that we knew since MAY that Jhope would be the first to drop his album & debut in Lollapalooza. On that same kmedia article it was announced that HYBE would debut JK for the US right after Jhope’s.

#03. There were vague mentions of “possible” collabs in each other’s albums. Starting with Jimin having shown his songs between Jhope, Suga and even Jin. But neither of the 3 actually heard the same songs. And it was SUGA who brought up the topic that “Jimin’s been working on this one song...” and then proceeds to “reveal” (but was NOT confirmed) that Jimin asked him if he wanted to be featured in said song (note that not even Jhope knew about this song since Jimin showed him a different one). So in the end and after much teasing Suga said he would work with him or any of them for free.

But what REALLY happened was:

[rest of 2022, July-onward]

A) Jhope debuted with JITB during July ► went to Lollapalooza.

B) JK did that collab with CP.

C) Tae did that one photoshoot with Vogue Korea & went to Paris Fashion Week for the Celine show along with L*sa & P*rk Bogum (but in the end it was Bogum who got the BA contract for Celine during November).

D) We started getting photos & info of Jimin working or having worked with multiple producers for his album and also hints of him doing photoshoots on his own.

E) The Busan Concert happened, one final concert as a group of 7.

F) Jin was debuted with “The Astronaut” ► sang with Coldplay in Argentina. (Despite the fact that Jin hadn’t been planning to debut yet until AFTER his MS, but the producers apparently pressured him to finish at-least ONE song before this happened).

G) JK performed in the WC with “Dreamers” (a song that was originally a group collab/project due to their contract with HYUNDAI, but JK was sent alone instead of the whole group and BTS is credited in the song along with his name).

H) The choir that was featured & sang in the background of “Friends/Chingu” drops a surprise announcement through twitter and Instagram congratulating Jimin who was allegedly dropping a Single AHEAD of his upcoming album. But not even 12hrs later both of these announcement mysteriously disappeared.

I) RM debuts with “INDIGO” (Note: before his official debut, a Kmedia article, the same one that announced Jhope & JK’s solo debuts, said that INDIGO would feature collaborations between RM x Pharrel, as well as RM x JK, but neither of these happened).

J) Jimin is rumored to feature in a collab with Big Bang member, Taeyang, for his album in Jan.

K) Jin leaves for MS.

(I’m gonna skip the end of year awards ‘cause we’re drawing a timeline of debuts to compare with FESTA. There was also a Weverse post or conv between Taehyung & an army where Tae expressed that he scrapped his entire album/mixtape and will start working from scratch again despite him having almost finished it and Suga even told him during FESTA “Don’t be afraid just drop it and see what happens”)

[Start of 2023-onwards]

A) The collab between Jimin x Taeyang is revealed to be true & drops mid-January.

B) W.Korea Magazine drops a session of photos with Jimin.

C) Later on Jimin is also revealed as DIOR’s Global Brand Ambassador & that his first mission as GBA was to do this photoshoot with W.Korea (which was done sometime during August or so, but his contract with Dior happened as soon as BTS made their hiatus official) ► attends Paris Fashion Week where he is officially introduced as the Face of Dior.

**Note: Jhope also attends PFW as a guest to multiple brand shows.

D) A week or so later Suga is also announced/revealed as Brand Ambassador to Valentino under a special campaign (his contract with the brand had also been signed since BTS’ hiatus announcement) ► Attends Paris Fashion Week.

E) Jimin comes live twice in a span of two weeks where he gives us little snippets of what he’s been doing and working on, becoming GBA for Dior, how his album is doing. During the second time he comes online he tells us that his album would probably drop sometime in February and to look forward to it.

F) Tae starrs in a reality tv show that was secretly filmed in Mexico last year while on a “vacation trip” with wooga squad.

G) Mid-February Suga is announced to be going on a solo tour starting April.

H) Jimin’s album gets moved to March 24th.

Where am I going with all this?

That no matter WHAT happens when the track list drops tomorrow lets not feel sad or disappointment if certain things DON’T happen.

If we get collabs great, if not then also great. Its not the end of the world.

After-all, we know that PDogg was involved in the production of Jimin’s album and it is PDogg himself who has been against certain collabs between members in the past.

So lets just focus on supporting JIMIN to the fullest during his first and much anticipated solo album. Know where to buy so that it counts for charts, stream on all platforms that you can.

ENJOY THE RIDE.

#bts #bts solo careers #jimin #jungkook #namjoon #jhope #v #jin #suga #indigo #jitb #vibe #PJM1 IS COMING #PJM #pjms #park jimin #FESTA2022 #jikook #yoonmin #jihope #jinmin #vmin #minimonie

22 notes · View notes

denimbex1986 · 11 months ago

Text

'Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies teases that the third and final 60th-anniversary special will feature "controversial events" that will change perspectives on the show's history and leave viewers talking. The three specials saw David Tennant return to lead the series as the mysterious Fourteenth incarnation of the Time Lord, reuniting with former companion Donna Noble (Catherine Tate). In "The Giggle," mankind is left in chaos and on the brink of collapse, as the powerful Toymaker (Neil Patrick Harris) arrives on Earth and challenges the Doctor to an all-new deadly game.

With "The Giggle" concluding Doctor Who's 60th anniversary with an eventful climax, Davies revealed to Doctor Who Magazine (via RadioTimes.com) that the episode may be controversial for audiences. The showrunner promised a full explanation of the episode's reveals during its BBC iPlayer commentary about its universe-altering twists that even left Tennant stunned, joking that he looked forward to seeing how viewers respond afterward. Check out Davies' full explanation below:

"There will be controversial events in ['The Giggle']. If you listen and watch the commentary on the iPlayer, I unroll a whole new Doctor Who mythology for you, based around the events taking place. And I’m explaining this to David Tennant and his mind is exploding. That commentary will have absolutely exclusive information that will rock the world. I hope you’ll all find it fascinating. It’s a whole new way of looking at the history of Doctor Who and I can’t wait to see the reaction."

"The Giggle" Will Set The Groundwork For The Next Era Of Doctor Who

"The Giggle" is set to be an incredibly pivotal Doctor Who episode since the special sees the return of the Toymaker for the first time since 1965 and brings the Fourteenth Doctor's journey to a close. Ahead of his first adventure in Doctor Who's 2023 seasonal special, "The Church on Ruby Road," Ncuti Gatwa is expected to make his full debut following Tennant's regeneration. However, many mysteries remain ahead of his entrance, as the currently released specials have once more drawn attention to the Fourteenth Doctor's familiar face but have not answered why that face came back.

It is already evident that Davies isn't unfazed by the potential backlash any controversial lore choices can bring. For instance, Davies stated he wouldn't retcon plotlines established by previous Doctor Who showrunner Chris Chibnall, including "The Timeless Child" retcon and the events of season 13's "Flux" storyline. Instead, he used them to explore the Doctor's unaddressed trauma in "Wild Blue Yonder." Furthermore, when discussing how he approached bringing Tennant back, Davies stated that he was unafraid of any potential backlash and wanted to push the show into uncharted territory that could help it grow and lead to scenarios that had never been depicted before.

So far, Doctor Who's 60th-anniversary has offered heartfelt reunions, adaptations of beloved tales, and unsettling scares at the edge of the universe, reminding audiences of why Doctor Who has been beloved for decades. Despite this, the 60th-anniversary celebrations also have the difficult task of establishing Davies' mandate for his new era, paving the way for Gatwa's upcoming adventures in season 14. As such, while "The Giggle" may cause a stir among audiences for better and worse, Davies' teases hint that the episode's twists could potentially set up threads that the Doctor Who universe will be exploring for years to come.'

#David Tennant #Catherine Tate #Russell T. Davies #The Giggle #Doctor Who #60th Anniversary #The Toymaker #Neil Patrick Harris #Wild Blue Yonder #Ncuti Gatwa #Donna Noble #Flux #The Timeless Child #Chris Chibnall #BBC iPlayer

5 notes · View notes

regarding-stories · 2 years ago

Text

The Ever-Changing Story (Part 2): SAO's changing characters - Asuna

In the preceding part I talked at length about how Sword Art Online (SAO) continuously overwrites itself with new stories overwriting details and plot points or facts of older stories. And that may seem rather nitpicking as most readers happily go along with the changes and mostly forget about the inconsistent parts of older stories.

But there's one part where this comes to a head, and I think it will more and more as the Sword Art Online Progressive (SAOP) series continues. To repeat, that is a series that tries to retell the story of the liberation from castle Aincrad floor by floor, starting with the first and ending with the 75th. (Or so was the author's original intention.) Now there are reasons why this may never work - unless the author choses to overwrite these reasons as well, of course. But that is not the main "problem" - rather it is the fact that the SAOP characters have taken on their own life and it will be hard to get this genie back in the bottle.

Oh, soooo many spoilers going forward!

Asuna's plot (kinda, sorta, 2023 edition)

Asuna's plot could be outlined as follows (considering and including all retcons, including SAOP, so far):

Asuna and Kirito team up on the first floor and become a party of two, a highly competent duo that helps beat floor bosses (SAOP 1-8)

As the "Elf War" questline ends, there's some sort of rift between them, 9th floor forward (unwritten and only alluded to)

Asuna decides to disband the party with Kirito on the 25th floor and joins the new guild "Knights of Blood" - this supposedly happens after having been with him in a party for four months (from the timeline given in the "Hopeful Chant" story, but events still unwritten)

We meet Asuna again while clearing on the 40th floor with her guild - she is heartbroken when seeing Kirito at his lowest and suppresses a wish to run after him ("Hopeful Chant" side story)

Asuna duels Kirito during the boss raid meeting for the 56th floor (from some Material Edition magazine story, not sure this is written as story but published as manga, still mentioned in the timeline of "Hopeful Chant", though. Contradicted at other times - SAO retcontinuity at its best!)

On the 59th floor Asuna takes a spontaneous nap next to Kirito as she finds him chilling by the wayside (SAO 1 and SAO 8)

Asuna encounters Kirito after his adventure with Lisbeth, and it is implied she's been going on dates with him, only he may not realize that it is actually dating (SAO 2, clearing is supposedly at 63rd floor)

During the clearing of the 74th floor, Asuna invites Kirito over to her apartment to cook for him. She also forms a party with him (SAO 1)

Kirito and Asuna (and Agil and Klein) defeat the 74th floor boss, and Asuna confesses her love for Kirito after he almost died (SAO 1)

Kirito stays the night over, and Asuna wants to take a break from her guild, Kirito gets dragged into guild business, has to duel Heathcliff, and ends up as a member of the Knights of Blood (SAO 1)

During a training/evaluation mission Kirito gets almost killed by an orange/red player. Asuna assumes it's all her fault and promises to leave Kirito alone, only for him to kiss her. These events lead to the marriage proposal and them leaving for the 22nd floor on honeymoon. (SAO 1)

Before conducting their actual marriage, Kirito and Asuna go on an adventure to find the missing cottage they wanted to buy. (SAO 22)

There is teenage romance and a mystery plot involving a ballista that they both get dragged into. ("Sugary Days" series of side stories)

Kirito and Asuna meet Yui and lose her again (SAO 2)

Asuna beats a big fish monster and they have to return to the frontline anyway, and they arrive in time to get enlisted in the very challenging 75th floor boss fight with (SAO 1)

Kirito unmasks Heathcliff, they duel. Asuna absorbs Heathcliff's killing blow, "dies." Kirito "dies," yet somehow beats Heathcliff. Game is beaten, player logout begins.

Asuna completely accepts love-death during the final moments of the game.

And that concludes the events of the actual Aincrad story arc involving Asuna directly. As you can see, most of it is a wild hodge-podge of various sources, and a lot of them, yes, most of them written after the first novel - which contained the ending.

A few contradictions

Even as late as "Hopeful Chant" the duel between Asuna and Kirito (5.) seems to be canon, even though it has been largely forgotten about in terms of the actual written stories. ("Hopeful Chant" was written for the "Ordinal Scale" movie which takes places after "Phantom Bullet" but before "Alicization".) And it is heavily contradicted by SAOP 5, where even the thought of dueling Kirito makes Asuna highly anxious. This will play a role going forward in this discussion when it comes to character continuity vs story continuity. (Asuna also mentions she "wouldn't last a minute" in a PvP duel with Kirito in SAO 2 - as if that had not already happened in her timeline.)

Practically everything Asuna says to Lisbeth (7.) about Kirito makes no sense after the events of SAOP - or "Hopeful Chant". According to Lisbeth, Asuna has changed in the last two to three months, alluding to the events of (6.) where Asuna took the nap next to Kirito on a sunny day. (Asuna would "later" - actually in SAO 1 - go on to declare this was basically when she fell in love with Kirito.) Yet it's clear that she has deep feelings for Kirito in "Hopeful Chant". But even without that, she describes Kirito as "strange" and basically mysterious. But while Kirito and Asuna supposedly have drifted apart at this point and she doesn't know about some important events that shaped him, he clearly is no mystery to her. Not after basically spending a full four months at his side, day after day.

This is a general "rule" of the SAO timeline by now. Once introduced in a story, characters stay around, even if many of the details surrounding their introduction gradually get worn away. Take Liz for example. The bookends of her story with Kirito are visits by Asuna. But as we saw and will see, the Asuna visiting her in the beginning of the story doesn't exist as such anymore (because her character arc got shifted) whereas the Asuna at the end of that story probably still does - though even she hardly matches up with the Asuna from SAOP. But Asuna and Liz stay around, even if the threads that bind them into the story loosen to the point of unraveling. Even if the things they said to each other no longer make sense.

I would like to say that the core of the characters remains the same, but this is only gradually true, and depends heavily on what you understand as the core of a character. Even defining traits erode over time, at least that is the case for SAOP. You could, however, also argue as the characters change they do for the better.

Asuna's original character arc

Asuna undergoes a few changes during the events of SAO 1 (in order of story chronology):

At first she's only focused on beating the game. She sleeps barely and badly.

After the key encounter her goal shifts towards getting close to Kirito. (She still cares about beating the game, but being with Kirito becomes higher priority.)

After almost losing him in the 74th floor boss battle, she wants to protect him. She applies for a leave to be only with him.

After the leave is denied, a traitor in the midst of her guild almost kills Kirito. Seeing herself as incapable of protecting him (though she saved him) and actually endangering him, she wants to leave, exposing for the first time a streak of valuing his life over her happiness.

Kirito and Asuna get together and go on a honeymoon. She is now torn by her two goals - her duty to beating the game, and her desire to be with Kirito and keep him safe. They both decide to be together for good they have to beat the game.

In the final confrontation with Heathcliff/Kayaba, Asuna sacrifices herself to protect Kirito, putting his life above her own.

Now, in true Kawahara fashion, we learn of (1.) only in hindsight, when Asuna tells us as audience and both Nishida and ultimately Kirito. (In the anime we get hints of how obsessed she is, though.)

These details together actually make the romance sufficiently convincing. The initial Asuna can't enjoy life, and being with Kirito adds that quality back to hers, opening her heart.

There are elements of beauty in this arc, actually. Asuna's goal to beat the game, her duty, never goes away. Originally only to return to "real life," but with no real knowing why she struggles so. She basically obeys a "should." She's not content or fulfilled, though.

That goal returns, but it shifts. She finds contentment in her love for Kirito, so beating the game combines with her love for him - she looks forward to be with him in "real life." It's the same goal, but now there is a strong underlying motivation. She found a why.

There's a deeper theme here underneath - before you can transcend the world, you need to first become of the world. Later on, at the end, she and Kirito become entwined as their bodies dissolve, a symbol of achieving unity and union.

This point is driven home in SAO 2 as well, when Liz remarks on how obsessed Asuna had been and how she now takes days off, does not only talk about quotas to fulfill or dungeons to beat. She turns from a one-issue person, from a one-track mind to a more healthy person. This is reinforcement of a central change of her character.

Asuna is then a character that seeks contentment, the things her heart wants (partnership, love, the feeling of safety, a home), and the things she needs to do. This is also evident in her business with the guild. There's actually no reason she couldn't have walked away except for her sense of duty and the social conventions, and also Heathcliff manipulates Kirito - a socially inexperienced person - to his own ends.

There are qualities that remain throughout the series - Asuna is hard-working, but after meeting Kirito she is no longer so driven, to the dismay of her mother especially. But in general she's most likely to obey the social forms, though it somewhat reflects in other female characters as well, and the expectations on girls in Japan (I assume). After all Rika/Liz also is introduced as a hard worker and girl with good grades (in SAO 2). Kirito's adoptive sister Suguha is an extremely determined Kendo champion. If we take Shino/Sinon into the account, almost all females that Kirito meets seem to have seriously focused lives. (Can't say about Keiko/Silica. The much later introduced Alice could be characterized to border on mono-mania, reinforcing the theme even more.)

The Progressive Asuna

To say that SAO Progressive speeds this dynamic up would be an understatement. Kirito meets Asuna on page 1. Her hard-working and duty traits are in full force - she basically is exhausting herself in the pursuit of a death wish, going into the dungeon for days at a time, fighting in a reckless and risky style. She displays the extreme competence we hear her described with throughout SAO and already is a skilled fencer. But she's basically resolved to die by going down fighting.

The reasoning behind this is that her life as she knew it has failed. She's been on a difficult track of tests, exams, passing muster - and she has always prevailed before. But after it had been drilled into her that this is what life is about, she suddenly finds herself locked into this game, unable to pursue those goals. All she can think of are the shame and ridicule this would bring. It's clear that a whole framework holding her life together is collapsing under strain.

But there are two sides to this. It's hinted at that going into SAO had a certain lure to her, and in a way it's serendipitous, getting her off the straight and narrow path and into the unknown. She just can't accept that fact yet. Asuna is about to get a new life, actually "get a life" altogether, by being trapped in a game of death.

We see much evidence that this Asuna is similar to the Asuna we find in SAO Vol. 1. The amount of sleep she gets is similar (3 hours at most), she's pained by insomnia and dreams only of the real world when she can find sleep. She shows the compulsive streak to beat the game. She can't even permit herself to enjoy anything, considering everything as fake and unreal - except sleep (ironically), figuring that sleep was something her brain actually engaged with the same as before.

But this is also a different Asuna, even if subtly so. The Asuna we meet in SAO Vol. 1 has a stylish apartment, has mastered the cooking skill, is popular and has friends (though we barely see evidence of that, the only person she ever interacts with besides Kirito is Liz - and that in Vol. 2). The main series Asuna enjoys food, is out in public, has some form of social network, she comes across as quick to judge at least once. She also comes across as strong-minded and maybe proud, it's hard to say. (We don't see enough of her before her arc transforms her.) If we trust the timeline (and we shouldn't) she duels him first over a point of contention, then tells him off for taking a nap. Talk about bristly!

The Progressive Asuna is an absolute loner, talks to nobody, eats because she has to, knows nobody, and is filled with self-loathing, shame, and embarrassment. That's the Asuna of Aria of a Starless Night, at least. When she lashes out at somebody it's because of the pain she feels inside. The main series Asuna seems to have her life together. The early Progressive Asuna is a shell going through the motions.

Now one could assume that another 60 or so floors could change one into the other. But there are differences that redefine the dynamic between her character arc and Kirito, and SAOP is basically a guarantee that her original main series character arc can't really happen. (You wouldn't know that from the anime as it skips - probably because it was unwritten as of then - Rondo for a Fragile Blade, the meatier 3rd story of SAOP Vol. 1.)

The Inciting Incident

What triggers Asuna's character is in both cases - technically, at least - having a nap. Or rather a full night's worth of sleep. Main series Asuna finds Kirito lounging around on a lazy, perfect summer day and spontaneously joins him and finds the bliss of eight hours of truly restful sleep. You could say this is the bliss of finding something touching your soul, something you've lacked, and from then on she follows her bliss, and through her original character arc.

Progressive Asuna slumps to the ground, exhausted, a fate she always accepted - something that would normally mean death. But Kirito - not revealing how (initially) - brings her to safety, all the way through the labyrinth. He basically lies to her (and probably herself) about his motivation, explaining it yet as another selfish act (to get her map data), something we will see a lot of also in The Isolator series. But the reality is that he goes to a lot of trouble and possibly danger to extract another player from a situation that could kill her. Even though that is a major event, it's not treated as such. It betrays Kirito's whole self-image as wrong, but that's another story.

Speaking of "not treating it as such." In SAOP Kawahara really starts to heavily hint at deeper emotions at work that the characters are barely aware of. When Asuna first meets Kirito's gaze for real, fireworks supposedly go off in the back of her brain. But we're not told more. There's no further explanation, but we can safely assume that this is the igniting spark that only will grow in terms of her fascination with him. It's artful, actually, as a lot through the series there are implications, things that don't get explained, that the characters in their inexperience cannot understand. We as the readers will see through the eyes of one character and get our own chance to interpret the actions and words of another character, but no direct insight into their feelings and thoughts. (The viewpoint switches between the two, especially initially, and always to emphasize these moments of seeing the other "from the outside." It's never an accident which character experiences a scene. We see the inside we're supposed to see and the outside we're supposed to see. And inevitably we'll see less of Asuna as else her dynamic that I'm getting into below would collapse.)

But back to topic.

Asuna on speed

This Asuna will go in lightning speed through her character arc, but in a different way. When originally she already had certain interest in cooking and expressing herself this way, even sensual enjoyment is now basically brought to her by Kirito. He now shares food with her, not the other way around. The Asuna we meet in the main series actually knew full well she could get Kirito's attention through food (leading to memes like this one). We don't know if she perfected the cooking skill just to accomplish this, but it's rather unlikely.

Kirito now becomes a sort of beta tester sensei to Asuna, and she quickly overcomes her reluctance to live in this world, we see evidence she sleeps much better (and that sleeping in Kirito's bed can help if insomnia recurs), enjoy food, gains friends (Argo, Kizmel, etc).

Even more. The main series Asuna had a stubborn compulsion to beat the game, but of a different kind. She's unfulfilled but capable, and convinced beating the game is the right thing to do. Aria of a Starless Night Asuna is essentially suicidal, convinced she cannot beat the game, and only seeks death in a way that doesn't dishonor her - she wants to die with the dignity that she didn't hide away and lose herself. The drives of these characters are different, their goals, too, but they are also similar. They look similar on the outside, but are different on the inside.

Part of the difference is used by Kawahara to give her another character arc, building the strength we later see her have. This comes with rather ridiculous self-deception as Asuna holds out on sending Kirito a friend request (which she clearly wants, and even experiences some suppressed jealousy about) until she's strong enough. But nobody claimed the human mind is easy territory. So Kirito and Asuna engage in a dance of self-deception, where he tries to suppress his feelings for her because he wants her brilliance to be set free and see her stand proud at the front of beating the game, pulling others into her wake. And Asuna wants to prove her worth to Kirito. And nobody asks themselves if that's what they really want, need, or need to do. Perfect drama and hijinks material!

Progressive Asuna needs Kirito even more as her catalyst, but once the process is in motion, boy is she on fire. Remember, this Asuna is 1.5 to 2 years younger. But her entanglements with Kirito quickly mount, even to a degree that the author himself comments about it in his afterword commentaries. By the end of SAOP Vol. 8 we are at the end of the 7th floor, but the Asuna we meet is already in the stage where protecting Kirito is placed above concern for herself. She asks to be turned into a vampire to be better able to be with him and by his side, protecting him.

She's basically shortly before the end of her character arc. There's no way to rejoin this Asuna with the Asuna from the main series and pretend that's going to work. She already does all the things she will do later - like finding pretenses to be close to him without ever admitting that this is based in romantic interest. All that is missing is one big "You almost died. What would I do without you?" moment. (Not to mention that other characters can clearly see the chemistry between the two and just chuckle at their claims to the contrary and self-deceptions.)

Off the rails

This is a rebooted character. She has one half of her arc preserved (coming to find fulfillment in love, coming into the world) but vastly yanked forward in time, experienced at a different time in her life, in a different place, lacking all that solid identity she built. Her duty motivation doesn't show, instead she wants to show herself as strong and worthy. But, what for? Does she secretly, without admitting it to herself, want to prove she's worthy to be by his side?

Now that's a classical Kawahara - see SAO Vol. 22. The love you seek was there all along. Complicated inner self-deceptions aside, all the actions these two undertake betray their love. Shenanigans occur, but this series shows currently no signs to go back on the rails of the original plot outline without some serious drama. Drama shocking and painful enough, it might kill the core dynamic of this enchanting, adorable series instead.

While Kawahara's characters pay lip service for getting there - see Kirito's constant claims that he will need to let her go to let her shine - it would prove heart-breaking, and quite likely character-breaking. Right now their arc together only accelerates in one direction, carrying the whole series with it, spreading light-hearted cheer. After all, this duo is together day and night. How many SAOP novels would one want to read that just portray them as growing apart? Of hurt and building distance?

Speaking also for myself, given the dynamics of the series and similar books, you could probably temporarily drive them apart, but only to pay the reader off with resolving that conflict sooner than later. At its heart SAO is a love story under outside adversity. And so far, SAOP is a love story as well, and at the very least it's the story of friendship and trust and taking risks for others. It doesn't work so well with driving the main pair apart.

If the pre-established, "canon" plot points get their way, then this line of books will hit an ice berg. Somewhere around floor 8 and 9. Kawahara set himself up for this. But will he do it?

But even if he does - what these characters can never do - not if SAOP is canon - is experience their firsts again. As Kawahara changes the past, it sends shockwaves to the future. We may never see the results of that unraveling, but by accepting SAOP events into canon, Kawahara will have to resolve this conflict eventually. Or fully commit to SAOP being its own dynamic, its own thing. So far he has not been shy to override existing canon for the better story, for the more satisfying characters. Will he do so again?

"Rondo for a Fragile Blade" Asuna

To drive the point home a bit more... I finished re-reading SAO Progressive Vol. 1 last night - which comprises the stories of Kirito meeting Asuna / beating the 1st floor boss (Aria of a Starless Night), an interlude expanding on Argo's character (The Reason for the Whiskers), and the story of beating the 2nd floor (Rondo for a Fragile Blade). This is, by the way, the only time SAOP manages more than one floor (boss) in one volume. I highly recommend it, I absolutely love this book.

When I said that SAOP goes "off the rails," this comes into full force in the 2nd floor story. After temporarily separating for a few days, Asuna finds a reason to team up with Kirito again. This mirrors the Asuna of the main series' chapters about the 74th floor, where Asuna invents reasons to team up with Kirito only, and basically gets her way by surprise. She holds the initiative here. When reading it, I never get the feeling that she considers this to be a temporary thing or something she does on a whim. It's more like the highly intelligent and socially capable Asuna brings her "A game" when interacting with Kirito, sees an opening, and pounces. It matches how her fencing is fast-paced and exploits the weaknesses of her opponent. She makes a clear move here.

Then Asuna initiates a gesture of intimacy, holding Kirito's finger "for luck" during the attempt to upgrade her beloved rapier. At the same time she goes to a sort of Tsundere archetype - when she notices (with "mind/face reading" as usual) that Kirito tries to interpret the gesture - she abrasively tells him off, contradicting her behavior in a way even obvious to our first person protagonist. This is a very typical Progressive Asuna behavior - initiating a meaningful behavior, like touch, while claiming it has no deeper meaning, but still initiating it all the same. The truth of her trust in Kirito as a person reveals itself when they walk away as he consoles her for the loss of her weapon - and she fully holds its hand, which she formerly herself defined as crossing a line. She crosses the line because her emotional need overrides her desire to conceal, maybe even to deceive herself about her actions. The Asuna we see here is ambiguous. Maybe she deceives herself about her feelings or maybe she puts on a show for Kirito, probably both, making her more complex and satisfying than a Tsundere archetype would typically be.

As a side note, I don't think the feelings Asuna (and actually also Kirito) experience are necessarily in the context of teenage romance, though they could also be and sometimes are. But how I experience the story it's a love that transcends friendship, a deep abiding love for the other that's loyal and derives comfort from the other's presence, a love between the souls. Maybe this love is in conflict with their personalities, their beliefs, their social cues, and maybe not. Whenever Kawahara writes from Kirito's standpoint, he artfully communicates ambiguous cues from Asuna. All the key romantic scenes happen from his vantage point so we don't know.

You might remember that even in the main series Kirito is described, also by himself, as "clueless" and "dense" when it comes to female attention. Hell, he's a boy lacking significant interaction with the other gender when we meet him. In the main series this culminates in Klein, Agil, Klein's guild, and Asuna standing there, grinning knowingly, when Kirito denies he's being seduced. Everybody sees what Kirito is the last to know - that Asuna's game is to envelope and embrace Kirito until he's hers, and that she already won that game. Everybody can see it but him and Asuna is being confirmed as the seducer we knew her to be all along.

This receives its first shout-out in this SAOP story - by Agil, as a sort of connector between the scenes, between the two series. He is present, he's seen both of them before, he has high opinions of them as people - he already is basically a friend. And he calls out the pair after the boss fight, to both their denials, in a scene that is entirely too funny and lovely for its own good.

So, we have Asuna "tricking" Kirito in teaming up with her, providing a reason to begin the partnership but then simply going on. We have Asuna initiating gestures of intimacy while denying that they mean anything. We have others calling out both on what's becoming pretty obvious - that they are meant for each other. But by far the strongest step forward in her character arc, almost skipping to the end in one go, happens during the boss fight.

Kirito and Asuna both get paralyzed as she dodges out of the way of an area attack, and lunges after her to give her an extra push, endangering himself against reason. They're both doomed. They are paralyzed, at the risk of being abandoned by a faltering raid group. Asuna is sprawled over Kirito as the effect makes their bodies drop, and when Asuna asked him why he's doing that, he can only say that he doesn't know.

All of a sudden, the scene transforms, hitting me with its tranquility:

"And for reasons that once again were a mystery to me, she smiled gently, closed her eyes, and set her hooded head against my shoulder."

This is a tremendously powerful moment. They're in the path of death, and Asuna goes into it with full acceptance. Not because she has a death wish, just accepting the inevitable, and apparently comforted by Kirito's presence. If she has to go that's how she wants to go. The closing of the eyes in the face of danger and death is deep acceptance, the head on his shoulder is both intimacy and a sign that she finds rest and peace in this place, with him, at his side, when she can allow it. It's probably one of the strongest moments in all of Kawahara's work. It mirrors the love-death scene at the end of SAO Vol. 1 when Kirito and Asuna dissolve together, as union, when again she doesn't fear death, but finds peace in dying with him.

In other words, we have skipped right to the end. For a moment, Asuna has gone through her whole relationship arc with Kirito, except he tried sacrifice himself for her. When it comes to souls, actions can speak louder than words.

Possessive Asuna

Not to ruin the moment, but there's one more thing to speak about in terms of this volume. Asuna displays a possessive and jealous quality throughout, shooting death stares at people when they suggest their relationship is anything less than it is or "threaten it." If somebody calls her out on it, she will deny it three times before the rooster crows. But she will not accept anybody lessening it.

Of course all we see are things from Kirito's point-of-view again, leaving us to interpret her cues, but also goading and deceiving us with his own views. Kirito is an unreliable observer. Don't trust him!

We basically know since The Reason for the Whiskers that Argo already enlisted in Kirito's harem of unrequited love. Again, this is communicated through subtle gestures, her hugging him from behind. And when it gets too intimate and borders on the risk of her making a move on him, he does one of his nervous turns to basically spoil the mood. But Argo calls him out on it, labeling him a "coward" under her breath. She knows exactly the power of the moment. We don't know if Argo has romantic experience at this point, but she seems to understand boys rather well, and Kirito bumbling his way out of a powerful moment is not lost on her.

Like every other girl in SAO in general, Argo has a coping strategy. Argo's is being a merciless tease. This fits her personality in general, she loves putting people on the spot, embarrassing them, but she always does in a good-natured way. She redefines her feelings into calling herself "Big Sister," a bit probably to save face, but also calling Kirito out on his immaturity. But it's a role that permits love and friendship.

It also initiates one of the several incidents where Asuna displays a sense of possession towards Kirito, fully in force in Chapter 9 of that story. Argo repeatedly teases Asuna out by teasing and confusing Kirito:

"Ohh? Why don't you tell Big Sister what you want?"

"Just remember this: Big Sister prioritized her feelings for Kii-boy over her rules of business."

Each of these statements are met with an icy reception by Asuna. This a sort of shadow duel between the two characters. Argo lets on at the beginning of the scene that she basically can tell that there is something between the two. (Cue inevitable denial.) She then consciously switches into teasing mode, probably to get a reaction. She loves playing with Kirito and his reactions, true. But this seems to be a mental duel between two girls to provoke a reaction - though not one cold intent, at least not as I see it.

Both girls are more aware of complex rules governing behavior in social dynamics (something which Asuna explicitly claims for herself in the story), and we get a hint here that Argo caught on to one dynamic in particular between our leading couple - I mean temporary partners. (Sorry, Asuna.) It is that whatever Asuna feels towards Kirito she cannot speak its name. If she spoke out in this moment, it would be terribly embarrassing for her. It would provoke her into a situation where feelings would have to be admitted, called by their name, and accept the consequence. This is what Asuna's denials are all about. She does not want to do this. So all she can do is glare. And Argo is teasing her - both for her own amusement, but likely also to draw Asuna out. As if to say "Okay, you can have him. But do so already."

Of course, from a series standpoint, Kawahara cannot do that. Not because of the main series. But because he clearly recognizes the value of this tension, this coming together and pulling apart, this betrayal of true feelings followed by obscuring ambiguity. Because the readers hungers for more. It beats all the drama in the game easily, being one of the true strong points of Progressive.

Asuna also bristles when Kirito calls himself a solo player. Like hell you are! Nobody is allowed to call these two a couple or even partners, but Asuna will take offense when you call them anything less and deny her. That's a rock and a hard place to be between. Poor Kirito, how can you do right? (And the answer is: You never do wrong by touching Asuna's heart. She's no ice queen by any definition, after all.)

From here on out it's all "downhill" for Asuna, she will reinforce several of these traits like on a slippery slope throughout the Progressive series. This is a dance, one of those were the dancers come apart and together. The series aims for powerful moments, but in doing so, these characters take on a life of their own for good, and their driving dynamic becomes the heartbeat of the series.

Looking forward

I was going to talk about the Asuna of "Hopeful Chant" next, but this is getting too long by far. So we'll probably see another installment focusing on Asuna soon. Especially as I read those books. (Damn, they're good.)

What I can say is that I feel that Asuna will need new character arcs moving forward. These could indeed arise from the drama, but we have to see if the end of the Elf War quest in future installments will deliver that. Right "now," at the end of SAO Progressive Vol. 8, we have seen almost all of Asuna's original character arc. It's implied we have seen everything of it except actually dying. By SAOP Vol. 8 she's willing to outright chose risk of death to protect him, she will not shirk back from risk when he does, and she doesn't mind dying if it is at his side. How much more powerful can her actions get?

I'd love to find out. Stoked!

#sword art online progressive #sword art online #sao #characters #retcon #asuna #asuna yuuki

15 notes · View notes