#non analysis post

[classpecting-the-hoyoverse]

I know we’re in a ratiorine mode rn but like

is galladay THE kissmissitude of Honkai Star Rail???

[eloise175]

I love these panels so much, I’m never getting over them not only because of how beautiful they are, but also due to their meaning and how it perfectly shows the characters' feelings.

It’s the part where Penelope tells Callisto she doesn’t love him and his face crumbles, he’s so taken aback by it but for all the wrong reasons, let me elaborate;

(contains some novel spoilers!!)

From the beginning, Callisto knew that Penelope’s confession about how she fell in love with him at first sight was bullshit.

He knows she lied to him on multiple occasions but doesn’t mind at all; it’s stated later on in his pov that despite all the rumors and her deception, Callisto too found it surprising how he didn't get angry.

They also had this conversation in the cave and many other occasions when he teased her about it and she kept on saying that she wasn’t in love with him anymore.

However each time Penelope claimed to not be in love with him, Callisto was either amused or grumbled about it playfully.

It’s the setting that changes things. Back then it was all teasing and her getting fed up with him and his successful attempts at eliciting some sort of reaction out of her.

As the story progresses, their interactions become more tense due to the friction and tension being products of their feelings for one another.

We can see the first signs of Callisto ‘wavering’ during his birthday banquet as Penelope is about to reject him.

He looked crestfallen when she brought up love because he still can’t make sense of it, convinced that his feelings of fondness can’t be related to love—or more like, he’s trying to convince himself it’s like that.

Knowing what is about to come, he shushed her, while admitting to the fact that he knew she was going to reject him, hence why he told her to give him an answer on her coming of age.

It’s all because Callisto hoped she would change her mind and her answer would be the one he hoped for, basically her accepting.

Then in the greenhouse things become more serious. The talk about Penelope’s condition had an impact on the build-up of it.

Penelope is completely serious and firm about her rejection, she is more apathetic due to the impending deadline of hard mode’s ending and things falling apart continuously.

She doesn’t have any control of the things happening around her and it makes her grow more and more anxious, to the point where it all becomes too much and it leads her to resign to her fate.

Callisto’s reaction to it is so strong not only because Penelope kept on pushing him towards another woman (which he doesn’t even know) when all he wanted was to be with her, but because she disregarded his feelings in the process as well.

Penelope goes on to say that she doesn’t love him, and that’s the real nail in the coffin, Callisto is actually in love with her but fails to realize it, but his subconscious seems to be aware of it given his reaction.

It’s a “…she doesn’t love me?” slap in the face realization.

I’m saying this because later in the novel, Callisto reveals that he hid his desire to be with Penelope behind the guise of an arranged marriage because he was afraid to admit being in love with her due to what happened to his parents. You could say he has always loved her from the moment they first met.

➺ chapter. 201 from the novel:

Anyhow, Penelope talks about her circumstances and past, saying how while wanting love she also needs and wants someone to take her out of the hell she’s in.

She tells Callisto he’s not that person and he’s absolutely devastated by that statement. He even gets described as dazed in the novel when this scene happens.

It’s a point of no return for Callisto because he still refuses to acknowledge his feelings as love for Penelope.

He can’t have her unless he admits to loving her, but he’s afraid to do so due to his past, he's convinced that if he confesses then she would end up like his mother.

Callisto needs a push, and that push is the fear of losing her forever which comes in the form of Penelope’s poisoning on her coming of age ceremony.

It all boils down to “don’t make any assumptions about my feelings” and “you don’t know what/how I feel” but we don’t get that since Callisto is suppressing it.

He’s angry and rightfully so and Penelope’s earlier apparent indifference doesn’t help either.

But yes, Penelope’s rejection hurt him so much because loves her.

Callisto is conflicted and in denial. It’s like he’s already having an inner battle about his feelings and then Penelope comes and deals the final blow, stomping all over his heart while pushing him away.

"I chose you, Penelope Eckhart. Not your household." and “Does my proposal mean so little to you?” are so telling because it’s clear that he’s been strongly impacted by all of this.

Callisto genuinely wants to be with Penelope and get her to the safety of the palace but went about it the wrong way.

They’re so miscommunication, it will be so long before they get to talk properly about their feeling and we get that love confession I’m not okay T_T

Thinking about all the things that will happen before that is making my head hurt, I’m going back to reading my comfort fanfics…see y’all tomorrow when the beginning of the end begins with more yearning and angst as Callisto will come back :,)

[autisticrosewilson]

Every time I see a story, be it canon or fanfic, where Jason is like "wow my morals are kind of fucked up I should never kill again" I have to put it down, close the tab, ect. Because HE WOULD NOT FUCKING DO THAT. We're talking about Bruce's number one fan turned antagonist.

Do you not think he's maybe already considered such a thing?

The thing about Jason is that he's as devoted to his views and sense of justice as Bruce is, maybe with a little more flexibility (i.e. he's willing to temporarily stop killing if it's necessary for his overall goals where Bruce wouldn't be able to kill even if it would benefit everyone in the long run) and any run or story where he completely disregards his own moral compass and personal experience to follow Bruce's rules is just a disservice to his character.

His whole thing is that Batman's methods are ineffective and his unwillingness to either do what needs to be done or let someone else do so is a clear sign that he's not the hero Gotham needs. Jason genuinely believes everything he says about the system, and Bruce's ineffectiveness.

His crime lord era wasn't just a silly little thing he did to fuck with Bruce with the final confrontation as the REAL point of Under the Red Hood, he became a crime lord because he believed it was the best way he could help. The point of Red Hood is protecting Gotham, fucking with Bruce was just a bonus. Like the confrontation wasn't even initially planned, Jason haphazardly threw that at the end of his to-do list after he realized he couldn't just blow up the Batmobile.

Stop reducing Jason's motivations to "get Bruce's attention/make Bruce kill".

[kingofthewilderwest]

My country music record collecting obsession contributing to Gravity Falls meta was not on my 2024 bingo card but here we go.

One of the earliest country musicians with some sway in the 1920s was Riley Puckett, though I highly, highly doubt that "Pluckin' Jim" Puckett references him.

They used an image of George Jones. Pretty dang famous and respected to this day. Nnnnot exactly some classic yodeler, but known for his Great Voice.

"Hillbilly" was the official name of the genre until the mid-1940s. Yodeling was big in the 1920s and 30s because everyone wanted to be Jimmie Rodgers, but it had a mainstay with the singing cowboy movies - the Gene Autries and Roy Rogerses. They stretched yodeling through the 40s, but by the 50s, yodeling wasn't Country Central. But rock-and-roll was breaking out of country at this time.

George got rolling in the mid-50s and broke out by the end of the decade, so we're not out of the ballpark for some of the joke references. And hey! I will take the George Jones Easter Egg!

George Jones's presence doesn't feel targeted - they tossed him on to make sure their "Cipher is Real" cover was distinct from The Real Deal. See, The Book of Bill is referencing a notorious album cover. Notorious. 75% of what you see is cut-and-paste from the real deal. I love the reference and it's inspired. But in "Cipher Is Real" being an imitation, it's almost a downgrade. "Haddock, what can be zanier than Bill the Over-Toasted Demon Nacho usurping a country album?" May I burn a fantastic new image in your mind.

Move over, "Cipher Is Real." Make way for "Satan Is Real."

This is not parodic. They did this cover. Please give it up for the (highly talented) Louvin Brothers with their 1959 album Satan Is Real.

Let me stress that this masterpiece is not edited. The brothers painted, crafted, and erected sixteen-foot-tall plywood!Satan themselves. Then they just. Set fire to kerosene-drenched tires in an old rock quarry behind their house and posed.

[windcarvedlyre]

I've been following @druidposting's DR2 playthrough on discord and we just had a really good discussion about DR's Closing Arguments. Specifically the way the murderer is depicted as grey and featureless, which until now I found a bit annoying.

In Danganronpa it's repeatedly the case that we don't have the full picture until the talking actually stops- which always goes beyond the end of the trial. We generally vote first and come to understand what the murderer's actual motive was, sometimes filling in important pieces of the timeline in the process, afterwards.

But none of that matters for the killing game because characters' emotions aren't directly relevant to who was the 'blackened'- the only thing that matters to Monokuma- so it comes out afterwards and does nothing to change their execution. It doesn't matter how sympathetic they are (basically everyone) or whether other people share responsibility for the situation (eg. Hanamura, Pekoyama, Momota) or whether they intended to murder at all (Nanami). They objectively pulled the trigger and nothing else matters. Nothing about them as a person matters.

The Closing Argument mechanic might illustrate that problem- literally. They're a dramatic, conclusive summary of the entire case... constructed before the vote even happens, before we know if we're actually right, and they're missing something really important:

The actual perpetrator.

We quite literally don't even begin to see the real person behind the crime, any real exploration of their mental state, anything besides the cold, hard facts of the murder that are necessary to convict them, until the comic finishes and the protagonist makes their final accusation- replacing the grey figure with their real appearance in a shot that's often intensely emotional.

And these comics lack crucial parts of the case's timeline and sometimes important parts of the very scenes they depict that we only find out about afterwards. And those are what we know; characters may die with some pieces of the truth and prevent us from ever learning them. These aren't objective depictions of the murder, they're the protagonist's subjective attempt to connect the facts they have. A join-the-dots portrait of someone with missing dots and no colour.

Even characters' expressions may not match how they truly feel, with the grey placeholder potentially looking way more confident and sinister than they were in reality. Pasting Falter's commentary here since they put it well.

For obvious reasons this could especially be a problem for characters that die before the trial- the ones we never get a post-vote testimony from. DR1 chapter 4 really highlighted that in the way Asahina's huge misinterpretation of Oogami's feelings took up a lot of the post-trial discussion, only for Monokuma to reveal Oogami's real suicide note and recontextualise everything.

It might really be a problem for how Komaeda's depicted in DR2 chapter 5. While he isn't greyed out, we get panel after panel where he's either level-headed or maniacally evil, and even the depictions of his self-torture and death don't humanise him:

But we know that his real feelings were more complicated than that. We have his actual corpse to compare the last page to.

He died afraid.

If we approach the comic as Hinata's mental image of him instead of reality, he died without anyone truly understanding him. He was alarming, very hard to relate to, actively fought against people doing so, ensured even the killer didn't watch him die, and the survivors couldn't begin to understand his motive until a chapter later. The Closing Argument reflects that.

Early in DR1 Togami calls out the rest of his class for judging others by their own standards. However, he, too, is doing this, maybe more so than many other characters; his inability to view other people through anything but the cold, brutal logic of the killing game bites him in the ass in chapter 4. In DR2 chapter 2 voting without a good understanding of Pekoyama's motive or Kuzuryuu's involvement nearly got everyone killed. Komaeda's a walking embodiment of the problems with flattening people into caricatures and not empathising with them, suffered from people doing that back to him, and his case- the Closing Argument for which turned everyone else into grey placeholders- was impossible to solve with objective facts. It was only survivable because the survivors cooperated and one person tried to analyse things the way he would.

The games have always been a critique of the justice system and Japanese society and push us to care about others as individuals, not reduce them to- and judge their right to exist by- something they've done or their net impact on society. There are always consequences when someone neglects to do that, and the above might be yet another way the games explore that theme.

[quijicroix]

Sorry not to be a camera nerd but in IWTV S2 ep2, 3 and 4 Louis in Paris having a Rolleiflex and a Leica specifically for Armand is so significant to me!!! Two cameras used at the same point in time but not by the same people.

First the Rolleiflex.

For the the Rolleiflex to work- you have to take a lil bow before your subject. This is because the viewing mirror is on top of the camera's body, so to see what the lens sees you have to incline. A lot a photographers said utilising this camera is also showing humility in front of the subject specially in street style photography (Robert Doisneau said that the Rolleiflex is like gathering images and the Leica like hunting for them, he also was convinced that the Rolleiflex was an "ethic of life and art" not betraying the subject you are trying to capture). You have to take your time and bow before them. (showing also the fact that louis struggles with not admiring humans )

Now the Leica

The Leica on the other hand put you on the same level as the model. The mirror is in a more traditional position at eye level. And is more favoured for fleeting subject, at least one street photographer as describe the Leica's style of photo as "hunting" for faces capturing the moment ( i think it's Janine Niépce or Henri Cartier-Bresson but don't quote me on this). It's really interesting that he photographs Armand with it , capture the fleeting aspect of his nature ,he is being hunted or they are hunting together ,and they are equals in Louis's eyes.

The style of photo he is taking in ep 4 is called "Humanist photography".

The mouvement in France was criticised for being a postcard image of paris, cliché, naïve and not political enough. And giving a romantic image of Paris after the tragédie of the WW2. It focuses mainly on people, often doing daily mondain activities, Humanist photography really liked cafés and bars. The paradox was despite the cliché exterior a lot of pictures were of working class people (we can see that in the pics he gives to Daniel in ep 2, louis has a very similar choice of subject mater and view of the world, taking portraits of his working class lovers and of Parisians in restaurants). The goal was to heal post war Paris and to show a new beginning. (echoing louis owns personal struggles of finding his new self and a new lover in paris, but also the rose tinted glasses he has on this time has a tourist)

Also in post war paris this is sososos significant in the history of photographie hahhahha my nerd heart is dying....

[royalarchivist]

[A sad violin song plays over an image of a sad hamster]

Pac: This doesn't have anything to do with me – I wear a blue sweatshirt, you're crazy, this mouse doesn't even have a sweatshirt, this hamster! [Reading chat] Am I a depressed hamster?

[ Transcript continued ↓ ]*

–

Pac: Actually– that's fine! I embrace that idea – of course I'm going to be depressed, are you crazy? [He hits his desk, then starts counting off people on his fingers] Fit is gone, Richarlyson is gone, Ramon is gone, Bagi and Empanada who were always there when we were there are also gone, I haven't seen them! It's just me and Tubbo, and sometimes Philza shows up.

Pac: I lost Chume Labs, I lost the Favela, I lost Murder Mystery, I lost Ilha Chume Labs, it's crazy! Look at how much I've lost, and I've gained nothing! Of course I'm going to be depressed, are you crazy?! How am I supposed to be happy?!

Pac: [Reading chat] "You have us Pac," that's true, thank you. No, that's true, sorry.

* NOTE: Please note that this is an incomplete transcript, as I was primarily relying on Aypierre's translation mod at the time and if I am not confident of the translation, I do not include it. As always, please feel free to add on translations or message me corrections.

[crows-king]

I've been thinking a bit about how Galinda and Fiyero work as foils(?), and the contrast between their goals, personality, and their relationship to social influence individually change how they navigate their specific social situations.

And why it puzzles me when people judgmentally compare them and what they'd do in "What-If" scenarios as a gotcha to make one seem better/worst. Because in my mind they are similar but not comparable, because they fundamentally have very different personal stakes.

Primarily because of the difference in how they act in an Active (Galinda) vs Passive (Fiyero) approach to social engineering. And also, because one of them in writing is more developed as an individual than the other.

I'LL MOSTLY BE TALKING ABOUT: WICKED MOVIE - PART 1

Galinda is inherently Active. She has wants and desires that she's driven to achieve, and so actively plays the part of the good socialite because it will help her become more popular and to eventually become "Galinda the GoodSorceress". "It's not about aptitude, it's about the way you're viewed", and so on. It’s the one thing she knows she’s good at.

Of course, she also likes the attention and validation, but her charms doesn't come as naturally as she wants others, and probably herself, to believe. (I love that quote Ariana said somewhere about how "Galinda sees herself as a graceful swan, when she's actually a very stiff, but still beautiful swan", or something of that sort). She's insecure that she’ll lose people's favour and thus her most important asset, so she continually appeals to them. It's an act that she simultaneously enjoys doing for the most part, but also traps her from ever being truly close to anybody for fear of being known and not meeting expectations and losing that adoration. Until Elphaba that is.

Because of her drive to fulfill her dreams and to keep her best asset, and personal desperate need for validation, she has a much more obvious internal conflicts when she has to choose between Elphaba/the moral good vs keeping with the good graces of authority and/or the public. She's more prone to being influenced by others, and many of her choices become a calculated risk. She’s often times selfish and chooses her own desires, but it’s what makes her such an interesting and very human character. The struggle she balances when she’s forced to choose for better or worse.

In contrast

Fiyero is Passive. Dancing Through Life is literally him telling others that being lazy and not thinking is the best way to cope and enjoy life by ignoring problems. He is discontent with his life, but doesn't really acknowledge it until Elphaba reads him. Much like Galinda he is also playing a part, but it's not as tightly controlled as Galinda because he doesn't have an end goal for it.

Of course, while he probably doesn't want to lose his princely privileges. His passive "brainless" approach doesn't really put him in risky situations that would put him in conflict leading to losing things he cares about, because he really doesn't have a lot to lose. (Which is a byproduct of the fact he is primarily written as a love interest side character without much of an arc or motives outside his love triangle relationship to Elphaba and Galinda).

What confounds me is when people compare them and judge what their choices would be in if they were placed in pivotal moments, because we never really see them in situations with similar stakes.

For example, the Lion Cub scene. Most people interpret this scene as an act of braverism and heroics by Fiyero. And in some part it is, he's spurred on to save the cub, and he and Elphaba do. But it's telling that he only does this after everyone is asleep and there are virtually no risks. Any present social or physical conflicts that could arise? POOF! Gone. The worst that could probably be done to them is being punished, or even kicked out, if they’re discovered afterwards. Which Fiyero is not new to and doesn't really care about, and while maybe uncertain for Elphaba, is also unlikely because she's Morrible's irreplaceable pupil.

Some people use this scene as evidence that under his facade, Fiyero is secretly valiant like Elphaba thinks so. But I think in actuality tells the opposite. It reveals that Fiyero does care about the Animals, yes. But, the fact he only acts when prompted and there are no longer any present risks initially makes him seem less brave than Elphaba, and even Galinda. Because it contrasts with the Ozdust dance scene between the girls. Where Galinda had to make an active choice to do the risky and brave thing as an apology for hurting Elphaba, and offer to truly connect with her in front of everyone with the possibility of social out casting. She has an obvious internal conflict and risk assessment where she ends up picking the moral good over her personal comfort and social appeal. I'm genuinely curious on what kind of choices Elphaba, Galinda, and Fiyero might have done in that situation if they weren't given the perfect out by the magic poppies.

Would Galinda have helped in with the lion cub if she were awake? Probably, but who knows? Because in the narrative, Galinda isn't really put in a situation where she could choose good without being watched or without someone breathing down her neck. The prospect of being punished and kicked out from Shiz would also be most plausible and ruinous for Galinda. Morrible would definitely use it as an excuse to kick her out, or at the very least punish her, if she could, and it could throw away her only chance of achieving her dream of becoming a sorceress. She would have probably joined them in the end, though. If only to make sure they were safe. Compared to Fiyero, she has more conflicts of interests because she has personal aspirations and influence based on her reputation, and thus have more fears and consequences to consider in losing it.

Would Fiyero have joined Elphaba on the broom? Maybe, mostly likely. Because narratively, he’s never given a reason why he shouldn’t. He doesn’t see his worth and his skills intrinsically tied to public influence and opinion. He doesn’t have any wants or wishes he would have to abandon. He’ll have to leave his friends and family, but it’s not shown how close they really are to him outside Feldspar, his Horse friend, and he’s probably joining them anyway. He’s definitely more equipped to survive on the run compared to Glinda. Unlike Glinda, who is proven right in the end to being most useful when she can wield her powerful social influence For Good, Fiyero would probably be most useful as a sidekick to Elphaba. He was always written to be Elphaba’s follower, it’s no surprise. It’s also easier to take risks when you don’t have much to lose. But I think most people would agree that would make a less interesting story.

[tigerbears]

THE PRONOUNS ESSAY IS FINALLY OUT!

(Are they non-binary? — Analyzing Undertale/Deltarune's trans representation.)

The quint essential video on Undertale and Deltarune's trans and non-binary representation. If any video is going to end nearly a decade of discourse/arguing over if these games have non-binary characters or not, it's probably this one!

(Oh what am I kidding people are still going to scream about the gender and pronouns discourse but one can hope!)

Every argument is tackled!

Someone on Reddit claiming that Legends of Localization supposedly confirms that the character's genders are up for interpretation? We analyses what the book actually says!

Someone says that they/them pronouns aren't exclusive to enbys? We'll take every other logical explanation for they/them pronouns (besides an enby gender idendity), and analyses almost every single they/them character in UT/DR, to see if their pronouns can be explained without a non-binary gender identity!! (Spoiler alert, most can't be explained without an enby gender!!!)

If someone tries to argue why Kris is non-binary, this video likely debunks their argument! It's probably one of, if not the most extensive video analyzing, and arguing for Undertale and Deltarune's Transgender/Non-Binary Representation!

This is a video I've spent many long and hard months making so I hope it makes a difference!

Below is a list of all of the sources, videos, and music used in the essay.

Sources:

First, while I don’t use any of their content in the pronouns essay, I have to thank trans-utdr on Tumblr for cataloging most of the instances when characters are they/themed. Their blog was a great help in the creation of this video essay. https ://www.tumblr.com/trans-utdr

Also forgot to mention this, but Catticus helped out with the creation of the subtitles, so giving them credit for that.

[00] 00:12 "UNDERTALE Release Trailer" — FwugRadiation:

https://youtu.be/1Hojv0m3TqA

[01] 01:49 Archive of Toby Fox's Twitter:

https://web.archive.org/web/20150102011636/https://twitter.com/FwugRadiation

[02] 02:18 "Undertale - Mad Mew Mew (Full Boss Fight) - SPOILERS for Switch version" — Todd Christiansen:

https://youtu.be/h__y5gyJZKw

[03] 02:56 “Kris and I - Queer Joy in the Undertale and Deltarune Fandom” — Shadow of Roserade:

https://youtu.be/ykIiHLVbk5E

[04] 03:20 Archived Outer Wilds Fig page: Localization

https://web.archive.org/web/20200417195939/https://www.fig.co/campaigns/outer-wilds/updates/831

[05] 04:45 "Bridget Trans Real" — Guilty Gear Official: (I don't think this is the real official one btw just a fan channel)

https://youtu.be/1mJZR9MpIL8

[06] 05:16 "In Stars and Time - OUT NOW on PC, Switch, PS4, and PS5!" — Armor Games Studios:

https://youtu.be/Glec7uzohbg

[07] 05:22 In Stars and Time Steam Page:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1677310/In_Stars_And_Time/

[08] 05:25 "Celeste Any% in 24:58.023" — secureaccount

https://youtu.be/jNE6lSSbYNM

[09] 05:28 "MaddyMakesGames Article 'Is Madeline Canonically Trans?'"

https://maddymakesgames.com/articles/is_maddy_trans/

[10] 05:32 (and 04:56 was when it was first used) "Guilty Gear -Strive- - Bridget Announcement Trailer | PS5 & PS4 Games" — PlayStation:

https://youtu.be/3GYL5FVpjG4

[11] 05:35 "Guilty Gear Strive Developer: Bridget Identifies as a Woman"

https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2022-09-14/guilty-gear-strive-developer-bridget-identifies-as-a-woman/.189673

[12] 05:35 "Guilty Gear -Strive- Developers: Bridget Was Always Meant to Be Transgender"

https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2022-10-31/guilty-gear-strive-developers-bridget-was-always-meant-to-be-transgender/.191273

[13] 07:34 Legends of Localization Book 3 Undertale — Clyde Mandelin

https://www.fangamer.com/products/legends-of-localization-undertale

[14] 09:21 "OneShot: World Machine Edition - Announcement Trailer - Nintendo Switch" — Nintendo of America:

https://youtu.be/8PaAA0GkSv4

[15] 09:30 "What is Niko's gender" An ask on Eliza's Tumblr:

https://elizavq.tumblr.com/post/113737817876/hello-i-really-like-this-game-but-one-question-I

[16] 09:33 "Is Niko a boy or a girl?" An ask on Nightmargin's Tumblr:

https://nightmargin.tumblr.com/post/140577597251/what-is-nikos-gender-if-they-have-one-i-heard

[17] 09:38 OneShot Fandom Wiki page for Niko:  

https://oneshot.fandom.com/wiki/Niko#Trivia

[18] 09:50 Singular they — Wikipedia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singular_they

[19] 10:47 (46) "Arthur. Season 9 Episode 2: Buster the Myth Maker" — Clip from Mr. Toydarian.

https://youtu.be/iHrZRJR4igQ

[20] 11:08 "UNDERTALE 6th Anniversary So We Play DELTARUNE Chapter 1 For Some Reason - LIVE!" — Fangamer: (01:26:04)

https://www.youtube.com/live/rksOYId-cNA?t=5164

[21] 11:15 "Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams" — Clip from No Roof Access.

https://youtu.be/0RFwyobtnKA

[22] 11:24 Retrospective on UNDERTALE’s Popularity. — Toby Fox

https://undertale.tumblr.com/post/150397346860/retrospective-on-undertales-popularity

[23] 11:27 "Undertale Dev: “Every Monster Should Feel Like an Individual”" — The Escapist

https://www.escapistmagazine.com/undertale-dev-every-monster-should-feel-like-an-individual/

[24] 11:30 "INTERVIEW: TOBY FOX OF UNDERTALE" — The Existential Gamer

https://web.archive.org/web/20151009110646/https://existentialgamer.com/interview-toby-fox-of-undertale

[25] 11:34 Archive of Toby Fox's Twitter:  

https://web.archive.org/web/20190104182550/https://Twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1081239086847967232

[26] 11:37 "What's NEXT For Theorist and GTLive... |  Goodbye Internet Meme Review 👏🖐" — GTLive (00:39:23)

https://youtu.be/ytiOWeRWTWc?t=2363

[27] 12:37 Undertale Goblin Finally Plays the Earthbound Halloween Hack: — Andrew Cunningham (03:48:53)

https://www.youtube.com/live/RkbhUqpAriw?t=13733

[28] 13:17 "Undertale, Deltarune, and Shattering The 4th Wall - Deep Dive & Analysis" — Pet Brick Productions (long video but the section used is early in the essay)

https://youtu.be/R_MPC6SF_-Q

[29] 13:43 Community post on the future of Underverse — Jael Peñaloza

https://www.youtube.com/post/UgkxA_OLCv2J__KjAS12U5y2uc13rRGW8_dZ

Update — Jael Peñaloza

https://youtu.be/OC9Ob7pHUlA

[30] 13:46 TC-96: — Endertale

https://xxtc-96xx.tumblr.com/post/152843470458/the-cover-page-to-endertale-da-da-daaaaaaaaa

[31] 13:43 "ONCE MORE, WITH FEELING! | Undertale LIVE - Part 1" — Mariplier (00:03:44)

https://www.youtube.com/live/9rvY7uvZhtw?t=224

[32] 13:48 "Game Theory: Who is W.D. Gaster? (Undertale)" — The Game Theorists

https://youtu.be/8wzxbR5vfjE

[33] 14:07 "OneShot Trailer" — KOMODO

https://youtu.be/ctYNBd6t4-g

[34] 14:21 “Watsonian versus Doylist” — TV Tropes:

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/WatsonianVersusDoylist

[35] 16:16 SPAMTON SWEEPSTAKES — Fangamer

https://deltarune.com/sweepstakes/

[36] 16:20 Twitter's Spamton Q&A — Fangamer

https://web.archive.org/web/20220919005433/https://twitter.com/Fangamer/status/1571363913543061505

[37] 17:23 Archive of Toby's old posts on starman.net:

https://web.archive.org/web/20151215011757/https://forum.starmen.net/forum/Community/PKHack/UnderBound/page/1#post1915463

[38] 18:04 Out of Context Toby Fox: Cursed bottomless Asriel retweet.

https://twitter.com/OutOfRadiation/status/1522037914565332992

[39] 18:15 "Non-binary characters in Undertale and Deltarune" — suzyundertale on Tumblr:

https://suzyundertale.tumblr.com/post/185072983702/non-binary-characters-in-undertale-and-deltarune

[40] 18:59 Undertale 5th anniversary alarm clock app —

https://undertale.com/alarmclock/flowey/

[41] 19:08 The 9th anniversary newsletter Chara 9 letter

https://toby.fangamer.com/interviews/letter/

[42] 19:14 "Soulless Genocide Ending (3 Geno Runs in a Row)" — Lucas

https://youtu.be/SUW7ZTr36QI

[43] 19:33 "English neutral pronouns" — nonbinary wiki

https://nonbinary.wiki/wiki/English_neutral_pronouns#It

[44] 20:06 "Responding to 1200 Comments on my Deltarune Video [Part 1]" — Andrew Cunningham (01:25:03)

https://www.youtube.com/live/vuP97sQGwy4?t=5103

[45] 20:25 "An Undertale Goblin's first Earthbound Playthrough [Part 5]" — Andrew Cunningham (02:59:26)

https://www.youtube.com/live/aE_ZS0HOUCE?t=10766

[46] 22:15 "Some comments on Deltarune’s official Japanese translation" — kazarinn on tumblr (Basically, these are some Japanese tweets translated into English.)

https://kazarinn.tumblr.com/post/179845924892/some-comments-on-deltarunes-official-japanese

[47] 24:22 "Star Trek: The Next Generation" S5: EP 17 —

Use a VPN to access it on Netflix if you're in a country where it's not on Netflix.

[48] 24:54 Catticus's neocities

https://catticus.neocities.org/

[49] 25:37 "Personal pronouns in Japanese." — Wa-pedia

https://www.wa-pedia.com/language/japanese_personal_pronouns.shtml

[50] 25:43 "自分 is a Japanese pronoun that means "self."" — tofugu

https://www.tofugu.com/japanese-grammar/jibun/

[51] 26:29 "Undertale - Nintendo Switch Release Trailer" — IGN:

https://youtu.be/SqjY_-beWi0

[52] 27:19 "Why Mad Mew Mew Matters | Undertale Character Analysis" — Dorked

https://youtu.be/Qld3inSZdjc

[53] 27:48 "Undertale Xbox One Dog Shrine Fuzz Dialogue" — Jacky720

https://youtu.be/0MhVfjqKbqw

[54] 31:39 Artwork of Felix (A Perseverance/Purple SOUL OC) by Venn November

https://vennnovember.tumblr.com/post/759592211087245312/my-perseverance-soul-interpretation-felix

[55] 31:39 Artwork of Clover from UTY's GameJolt Page. (Idk who made it)

https://gamejolt.com/games/UndertaleYellow/136925

[56] 33:37 "Deltarune Chapter 1 Demo Unused" Text — The Cutting Room Floor.

https://tcrf.net/Proto:Deltarune/Chapter_1_Demo_(2018)/Unused_Text#Glow_Tile_Puzzle_Hint

[57] Spamton Sweepstakes "the n3w3st g1rl g1rl" post from Noelle (the newest girl girl)

https://deltarune.com/the_n3w3st_g1rl_g1rl/

[58] 35:03 "UNDERTALE 6th Anniversary So We Play DELTARUNE Chapter 1 For Some Reason - LIVE!" — Fangamer (03:28:03)

https://www.youtube.com/live/rksOYId-cNA?t=12483

[59] 36:50 Azzypants artwork by sleepyfox on ACDS

https://discord.com/channels/919115374316908584/1105217442692735147/1202150731982049340

[60] 40:29 "UNDERTALE 6th Anniversary So We Play DELTARUNE Chapter 1 For Some Reason - LIVE!" — Fangamer (01:19:15)

https://www.youtube.com/live/rksOYId-cNA?t=4755

[61] 41:01 "The Japanese Version of Deltarune" — @guster-animations

https://guster-animations.tumblr.com/750855218738200576/the-japanese-version-of-deltarune

[62] 41:10 Rakugo NZ

https://rakugonz.com/2017/08/23/welcome/

https://rakugonz.com/2020/11/18/many-ways-to-say-i-in-japanese-explained/

[63] 41:22 "CHAPTER 2 CONCEPT ART!!!" — 9th-anniversary newsletter.

https://toby.fangamer.com/interviews/chapter2_concept/

[64] 41:34 "Artwork of Jevil from Temmie Chang" — Temmie's twitter.

https://web.archive.org/web/20181106165142/https://twitter.com/tuyoki/status/1059681874707144704

[65] 42:27 Valentine’s newsletter letters Archived by @obscuretobyfox

https://obscuretobyfox.tumblr.com/post/742265034465509376/tumblr-limits-30-images-to-a-post-so-these-three

[66] 42:34 "What are El Niño and La Niña?" — N.O.A.A

https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/ninonina.html

[67] 42:38 El Niño–Southern Oscillation — Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Ni%C3%B1o%E2%80%93Southern_Oscillation#Definition_and_terminology

[68] 42:42 "el & la" — spanishdict

https://www.spanishdict.com/translate/the?langFrom=en

[69] 42:52 "UT/DR Summer 2024 Newsletter" — fangamer

https://toby.fangamer.com/newsletters/summer24/

[70] 43:00 "QUESTS TO RELEASE CHAPTER 3&4!!" — fangamer

https://toby.fangamer.com/updates/quests/

[71] 44:19 Antlers — Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antler#Female_antlers_in_reindeer

[72] 44:24 “Role of gonadal hormones in the regulation of the seasonal antler cycle in female reindeer, Rangifer tarandus” In Reproduction

https://rep.bioscientifica.com/view/journals/rep/101/1/jrf_101_1_019.xml?rskey=2YvrOn&result=1

Where to find music used:

UNDERTALE Soundtrack:

https://tobyfox.bandcamp.com/album/undertale-soundtrack

OneShot Soundtrack:

https://nightmargin.bandcamp.com/album/oneshot-soundtrack

Omori OST:

https://omori.bandcamp.com/album/omori-ost

Unused Music from the 9th-Anniversary UT/DR Newsletter

https://toby.fangamer.com/interviews/chapter2_music/

Outer Wilds - Original Soundtrack:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1286760/Outer_Wilds__Original_Soundtrack/

Mother 3's Soundtrack:

You figure it out! You can't buy the game after all!

In Stars and Time (a soundtrack)

https://thumpypuppy.bandcamp.com/album/in-stars-and-time-a-soundtrack

Celeste Original Soundtrack

https://radicaldreamland.bandcamp.com/album/celeste-original-soundtrack

Chrono Trigger OST

Idk maybe spotify https://open.spotify.com/album/2kOD9QzcUkeT57RJkNvQpH

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Original Soundtrack

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1335140/Phoenix_Wright_Ace_Attorney_Original_Soundtrack/

Homestuck: Unreleased Tracks

https://youtu.be/sCFuOmInTxQ

Minecraft: Story Mode (Original Soundtrack)

https://antimo.bandcamp.com/album/minecraft-story-mode-original-soundtrack

Undertale: Your Best Companion Soundtrack

(Basically the tracks not in the UT soundtrack/more accurate to the in-game versions)

https://sanctferum.tumblr.com/post/139856660312/undertale-your-best-companion-soundtrack

Spamton Sweepstakes Music

Find Her

https://deltarune.com/dess/

Battle Vapor https://deltarune.com/shadowmen/

Star Trek: The Next Generation Soundtrack

Also "idk maybe spotify" https://open.spotify.com/track/5uVt4uR9bdqYnhcQ0IUhVc

Undertale (Switch)

Mad Mew Mew https://youtu.be/aeM0EVs1ON8 (Though I use the "Your Best Companion" version in the video)

Brandish SNES OST

Don't think it's been released officially so idk you figure it out.

Miscellaneous

Nightmare Knight https://fwugradiation.tumblr.com/post/94770096436/every-5000-years-the-terrible-nightmare-knight

Battle Vapor (extended) by Witherskull42: https://soundcloud.com/gaster-78444506/deltarune-battle-vapor-ogg

Music Used:

00:01 Undertale: Your Best Nightmare

00:12 Undertale: Snowdin Town

01:16 OneShot: Phosphor

01:56 Omori: Where we used to play 44

2:29 9th-Anniversary UTDR newsletter’s unused tracks: Spamton battle forgotten

2:40 Outer Wilds: Timber Hearth

4:11 Mother 3: Alec’s Log House

5:16 In Stars and Time: Title Theme

5:24 Celeste: Frist Steps

6:24 Chrono Trigger: Black Dream

7:22 Ace Attorney: Objection! 2001

8:41 HOMESTUCK: [S] Jane: Blast off.

8:46 Ace Attorney: Pursuit - Corner the Culprit

9:30 OneShot: On little Cat Feel

10:11 Ace Attorney: Pursuit - Corner the Culprit (Variation)

11:24 Minecraft: Story Mode: Ivor’s theme [101]

11:51 Deltarune: NOW’S YOUR CHANCE TO BE A

12:40 Oneshot: Geothermal

14:44 Deltarune: A Town Called Hometown

16:00 Deltarune: Hip Shop

16:58 Undertale: Another Medium

17:27 Undertale: Dog Song

17:40 Undertale Bonetrousle

18:14 Undertale: Snowey (well, used a version closer to the one used in ingame)

18:49 Undertale: Star (Unused)

19:38 Undertale: The Core (Geno version)

20:09 Mother 3: Sorrowful Tazmily

20:32 Spamton Sweepstakes (and maybe Deltarune in the future: Find Her.

21:20 Undertale: Waterfall

22:12 Deltarune: Vs. Susie

22:49 Deltarune: Chill Jailbreak Alarm to Study and Relax to

23:19 Undertale: Death By Glamor

24:22 Star Trek: The Next Generation: Main Theme.

24:46 Undertale: Metal Crusher

25:58 Undertale: The Core

26:29 Undertale Switch (From the "Your Best Companion" Collection): Mad Mew Mew

28:01 Undertale: Dummy!

29:57 Undertale: Hotel

31:19 Undertale: It’s Raining Somewhere Else

33:25 Deltarune: Quiet Autumn

23:02 Ace Attorney: Pursuit - Corner the Culprit (again)

35:38 Deltarune: Pandora Palace.

37:09 Deltarune: Another Him

38:00 Undertale Amalgam

39:35 9th Anniversary UTDR Newsletter: POWER OF NEO (Complete)

40:16 Deltarune: Lantern

40:50 Brandish SNES: Quiet Shop

41:17 Deltarune: Smart Race

41:55 Deltarune: The Chase

42:10 A Cucumber Quest fansong by Toby Fox: Nightmare Knight

42:15 Deltarune: The Door

42:23 Spamton Sweepstakes: Battle Vapor

42:25 Battle Vapor (extended) Witherskull42:

43:14 Deltarune: You Can Always Come Home

43:31 Deltarune: Girl Next Door

46:03 Undertale: Last Goodbye

[ghostlycleric]

I’ve been thinking about byler a lot recently, and I’m bored, so heres the main reasons why they’re my favorite ship (in no particular order). (Disclaimer: this is not an analysis, just pure opinion.)

1. Their Chemistry/Dynamic - I feel like I don’t really need to explain this much. In a very opinionated, not analytical stance, their overall vibe is just amazing. This is because of all the things I’ll list below, but when you’re not thinking analytically the chemistry is still obvious. This is what made me want to analyze their relationship in the first place.

2. The natural slowburn of it all - Love at first sight is one of my least favorite tropes of all time. I also don’t like slow burns when their entire thing is embodying the trope of a slow burn, if that makes any sense. To me, Byler is in that just right zone where they feel more natural than they do tropey. Their get together and everything in between will feel natural to me.

3. The cinematography - Byler scenes just LOOK AMAZING. The coloring and everything just always eats. They match! (And when they don’t its during fight scenes!) Their scenes look so comfortable, especially in season 2. I don’t know how to explain it.

4. Actually good arcs - They both have individual arcs. They don’t feel like one was made as a love interest and nothing more. Both are involved in the actual plot of the show, and their romantic plotline feels like its actually being used to get their arcs somewhere or to develop a theme. They feel like they’re worth my time.

5. They’re not THAT obvious - I love having subtext to analyze and things to speculate about. I like that it’s not totally a given that they’ll get together, and that their build up was gradual. I tend to lose interest once a relationship is established.

6. It’s a mutual and uplifting relationship - The way they have a CRAP TON of heart to hearts throughout the show where they’re supporting one another unconditionally??? Mike staying by Will’s side when he’s POSSESSED. Will helping Mike with his and El’s relationship even though he’s IN LOVE WITH HIM. The way their romantic relationship places a lot of value on their friendships (Will being mad at Mike for drifting from the party) and lives outside of one another. The way they’re not afraid to call eachother out or apologize. Their value of honesty and the breaking of it for the better of the other (Will’s monologue). The way Mike’s a better person when he’s with Will. Mike making Will feel like he’s better for being different. They’re exactly what eachother are looking for. Ugh I could go on forever.

There’s more to it, but I think this covers most of it. My brain may be rotting, but at least the ship is actually good.

[jin-zixun]

ok ok ok ok ok ok ok so... the whole thing where JGY has different smiles for different people... And one of them is just for lan xichen, and then he's got one for 'useful people'. And that sounds a whole hell of a lot like su she, su she is the most useful of people and he'd be happy enough with that. I mean, that's definitely the smile he gives him in their first on screen meeting in jinlintai so... makes sense right? I mean... JGY would want to encourage SMS to continue being useful, right?

So uh... How does JGY smile... What smiles does he give Su She... Literally any other time than that first meeting...? I mean lock in ur answers now I guess because I brought pics under the cut.

Oh. He doesn't. He doesn't smile. At Minshan.

Because smiles are performative and he doesn't need to perform? He doesn't need to worry? He doesn't need to wear a mask? Because this is an aspect of his life that has caused him pain at having to hide away and deceive and he can afford to drop with one person who won't in turn drop him? Because he... Doesn't really like Minshan? ...It's probably not that one.

IDK I just think it's neat! Crunchy little analysis tidbits in there. Because yeah it's kinda easy to assume one thing based on what's said, I mean who else does that refer to so well, but... Actual story here seems to be a lot more interesting.

(there are a couple where he's kind of smiling? Maybe? So I can include them here too! The first one is JGY hearing NHS passed out from shock and is telling SMS not to toss him around and stuff, which he follows with a smile to an unconscious NHS...

...The second is an expression JGY has on his face already before shifting his eyes to SMS, which like, instantly changes to one of concern once he takes in the sight of SMS's injuries...

...So. Thought I'd include them for posterity. But well...)

[classpecting-the-hoyoverse]

Me: I need to finish all my asks in my inbox once the semester ends. I’ll finally have enough time to finish all of them

Also me: heeheehoohoo ratiorine

[problematic-faves-appreciation]

TW: Rape, abuse mention

Yet another example of how "romanticization" arguments play a part in dark works aimed at adults facing censorship.

Here's a good question to keep in mind: Did that story truly "romanticize" a rape scene, or are its detractors just confusing depiction with "endorsement"?

And so what if a, say, dark romance book or dark shippy fic eroticizes/romanticizes the cruel MC's douchebag treatment of the other MC? People aren't endorsing real-life crimes by writing messed up fictional love stories, and simping for bad-boy romance heroes in the same exact way Tumblr users simp for big bads who've committed atrocities. Hi, Sexyman!Bill Cipher.

[dearweirdme]

At times there’s anons coming here shouting about Tae and Jk never going to each other when they need comfort. While I do understand why people would think that (it’s because people need clear examples where distress is being voiced out loud and comfort being given in form of words or hugs), I have always found that this is not true at all and I feel Tae and Jk comfort each other a whole lot.

We know that Tae helped Jk out of his shell, which basically means that he gave him a lot of comfort alongside words of assurance and probably setting an example. We ao very much see this continue all throughout the years. They both get nervous, Jk gets fidgety, and you’ll see them move to stand or walk beside each other so very very often.

I think one of Tae and Jk’s biggest strengths is that they know how to soothe and calm each other. I think they find comfort with each other by just standing next to each other, by gentle touches, by a soothing hand on a leg. The clearest example of comfort between them is that of Jk hugging Tae to him at Mama 2018. To me too this is an important moment, because I feel Jk went on autopilot and kinda broke out of what they normally do while being on camera. To me though there’s many other moments (some very small) that they comfort each other even though no distress is being voiced out loud or perhaps clearly visible.

They are taught to hide their nerves and their more negative emotions, so I think at times we only catch those when it’s meant to be caught (kept in on purpose) or when it slips through the cracks.

These are a couple of instances I feel this is the case. Not all are high angsty moments as far as we can tell, but I think it shows how they ground each other.

There are so many many many more instances that I could mention or show (and if you have a particularly pointed one please send it). It’s just kinda baffling to me that people don’t seem to recognize this in general.

[optiwashere]

How do you feel about Shadowheart's romance in game/ I've seen some complaints about it being shallow and vapid. I blame this on Act2, the lack of a romance scene

In general?

I think it's a solid exploration of what it's like to try and be with someone that is struggling with their sense of self, navigating an abusive relationship, and who has what might seem like oxymoronically intense and lax boundaries over personal details and feelings, etc. Is it like, The Perfect Story of All Time? No. That doesn't exist.

Also, it's a video game and Larian has limited budget/time. Shadowheart has a ton of content dedicated to herself as it is. Part of enjoying these stories is accepting the constraints.

However, I think Act 2 works spectacularly for her romance BECAUSE it lacks a dedicated romantic scene until the end of the Gauntlet/Nightsong sequence. A lack of it says way more than having it would.

She's a zealot on the brink of realizing a goal in Act 2. She won't realize it, and it's an unrealistic goal, but she doesn't know that.

She's being presented with the opportunity to finally be accepted by her abuser as Good and Right and maybe that she can be Special — while also trying to hide herself from the PC that does care about her, someone who actually respects her boundaries, because that's new and unique and strange and not what she's been taught she deserves as a Sharran. Loss and emptiness cannot abide a full heart.

If she adheres to the conformity of her religion, she'll be accepted by a goddess that won't get out of her head or her body. (Extratextual interpretation, but) If she allows herself to accept love from an external source, that means she's capable of being loved and that's very difficult to accept for someone who is programmed to be a certain type of way. Go look up actual cult deprogramming practices and try to trace the lines between that and what Shadowheart experiences. This is an exercise left to the reader.

My take is the people that find the romance "vapid" have never been in a relationship with someone who has a harrowingly troubled past. Not that I expect them to, or that that's an aspiration anyone should have. But they've never tried to love someone who is VERY hesitant to even call it a relationship in the first place for X, Y, or Z reason. A genuine real world example is trying to maintain relationships with folks that have borderline personality disorder.

It's literally the meme of "you accept my neurodivergence until it looks like something that isn't out of a John Green novel."

[applestorms]

the winners & losers of death note

after repeatedly trying and failing to write this death note essay i'm just gonna go for it:

the fundamental flaw of L, whether you see this as a flaw/discrepancy in his character or the writing surrounding him itself, is the fact that by the time of his death, he has no clear win state. let me explain... by first talking extensively about light aljdsflksd.

MAJOR spoiler warning after this point. 3-ish (very long) sections.

1. light's goals: kira & utopian ideals (ft. fem!light)

i discussed this a bit in my tags on this post talking about how light's core character traits would translate over to a female version of himself, but to elaborate/summarize my thoughts further: i believe that light's fundamental flaw/weakness comes down to his desire to be Seen, to be recognized & validated by the people around him. i often see/hear people describing light's ultimate flaw as "ego," and while that's definitely a part of it, i think this is perhaps a more nuanced/neutral way of understanding it.

as has been pointed out before, light's goal of becoming the "god of the new world," isn't really an idea he immediately comes up with but rather is more of a retroactive justification that he clings to for the rest of the series after the initial rush of guilt he feels for murdering two people without thinking. this is perhaps even more obvious in the manga, as while episode 1 of the anime ends with light's claim to godhood, in the manga it takes him a lot longer to build up to that conclusion and really develop the full extent of his hubris. (EDIT: he totally says this in ch1 of the manga too, i just forgot. the point about it being retroactive justification still stands, though.) even so, i think post-death note light takes to this justification so easily for a reason: again, his desire to be seen.

before the death note, light takes a very understandable if somewhat flawed/juvenile approach to this sating this desire, specifically in how he aims to excel in every single system he is presented with, whether that be academics, sports/physicality (not just tennis, but physical attractiveness/neatness/cleanliness), and social interactions. it's that last category that i think is the most notable here, as light wants to succeed socially on multiple levels: on a personal scale, he aims to be pleasing and charming and polite to everyone he speaks to, for the sake of manipulating them, sure, but also so that he can extend that victory past personal relationships and into something Greater, into the Image of Light Yagami as the studious, respectable son. it isn't just enough for him to do well, he needs the reputation to go along with it, and the recognition and respect that comes with it.

this is part of the reason why the lind l. tailor moment is such a beautiful part of the writing of death note, as it is a moment where L simultaneously fucks light over massively, pinpointing his location and sending a squad his way in an instant, but also a moment where L gives light exactly what he wants: recognition. L doesn't just establish himself as a rival to take seriously w/ this move, he also reveals kira's existence to the world, that the deaths are the actions of a single person consciously and carefully acting and not just some divine power. he see's light's humanity, the potential cracks in his ego and temper, the overwhelming humanity of his ideals, efficiently using such traits to get kira to reveal himself in the first place.

i tend to take a lot of light's explanations of his actions to ryuk with a grain of salt as i think he is a lot less skilled at planning than he lets on, with his real skill being his in-the-moment acting & reactions, but i'm inclined to believe him when he tells ryuk in ch1 that

as a justification for not writing more specific deaths and therefore hiding his existence for longer. keep in mind, kira is established on the internet long before L enters the picture & the lind l. tailor incident-- light is utilizing the death note to push himself into the spotlight of the entire globe, not just the limited social sphere he grew up with.

(sidenote1: i think you can also definitely read into this on a more internal level of why light would want to be recognized so badly in the first place, considering how busy soichiro yagami most likely is and what their relationship looks like throughout the series. i don't think there's any evidence that he's actively neglectful necessarily, if anything light is described as being pretty spoiled & soichiro cares about him when he's around, but it still feels notable to me how empty his life is pre-death note. you can just Feel the silence as he goes through the motions in the first episode, barely talking to anyone as he ghosts his way through life. he might be succeeding in everything system he approaches technically, but that sure as hell doesn't make him happy. whether or not the death note makes him happy is a whole nother question...)

ANYWAYS. this is all to say that light's ideals give him a pretty clear win state, both in terms of what he actually, physically wants in terms of world domination/godhood, but also emotionally when it comes to what truly satisfies him. on a meta level, kira gives light really good motivation-- for the sake of his ideals, for the sake of trying to create his vision of a utopian society, for the sake of being Seen, he needs to keep writing names and out-thinking anyone who tries to stop him. on an internal level, it just starts getting complicated when the one who Sees him best is the one who fully dedicated to stopping him.

speaking of which.

2. L's goals: no real win state?

the lind l. tailor moment is such a fantastic instance in the story because it really works both ways in setting up the rivalry/mutual satisfaction that L and light grant each other. i've already described what light gets out of it, and simultaneous terror and delight that he gets out of it, but this is mostly an L post so let's talk about his side of things.

to my understanding, if what light fundamentally wants is to be Seen, what L fundamentally wants is to Win. ok, yeah, the way he says it is that he "hates losing," but same difference.

the problem with this desire is that in order for L to win or lose, he needs circumstances under which those options are the two main choices in the first place-- he needs a game, someone to test himself against, a challenge(r). when lind l. tailor dies and L proves kira's meager human existence to the world he practically sounds like he's cumming his pants, so i think we can assume kira stands as a particularly alluring challenge for him.

this also explains why L gets so depressed and frustrated with light over the course of the yotsuba arc. not only is light somehow out-foxing him by creating a circumstance under which he can claim not to be kira and actually be correct insofar as his memories are concerned, light has also set the game so that he's stepped off the board entirely, trusting his planning and his own non-death note influenced psyche and denouncing his role as a player entirely. in a way you could read this as light utilizing the one strength he has over L to his advantage: not just his awareness of the supernatural, as people often say, but the fact that kira has goals outside of winning, which can't really be said for L (or at least not without some additional extrapolation/interpretations of his inner psyche).

this is why my main claim here is that L doesn't really have a clear win state. for kira, winning consists of a few clear, distinct things: a utopian world, free from crime, under the reign of kira, where light has the control & worship of a god. for L, winning is a lot less distinct: really just. not letting light do all that. as this other post points out, it really isn't that far off to assume that L's motivations might've shifted from his initial state goal of executing kira, particularly as he gets more attached to light on an individual level, even if it's more as a rival than a true friendship. L is a liar and a troll, yes, but he still has "flashes of sentiment," and it makes a lot of sense to me that so many people see L winning as him stealing light away for himself to be locked away for the rest of their lives.

(sidenote2: i believe it was one of the jdramas (?) that actually does portray L winning but specifically at the cost of his own life, which again fits considering everything i just went through. i don't think L is actively suicidal at the idea of no longer having kira as a rival (well. <3< rival, the children yearn for kismesissitude), but. well, see the final section of this essay where i talk more about boredom for more on that.)

ultimately, light and L kind of suffer for the same reason: living for the rivalry, but also because of that never being truly satisfied no matter which way they come out in the end. the tragic yaoi of it all. i guess one of the conclusions here is that you should read this fic time speaks by aSmallMoon333 for a fascinating evolution of the rivalry past the supposed ending point of canon. anywho.

3. L's death: a failure of writing, or character?

hot take (??? genuinely can't tell if this is hot anymore so ig mean this like, partially sarcastically) but L's death is kind of really fucking unsatisfying, especially if you're witnessing it for the first ever time. i remember distinctly reading the manga back in high school and being really caught off guard by it, despite already having been spoiled about it, and while i pinpointed the cause initially being the fact that light doesn't even bother to write down the damn name himself, i think there's a lot more to this than that.

i've been writing about this idea of L not having a clear win state primarily under the approach of character analysis, looking at L's motivations and emotional desires to see how they inform what him winning would look like, but you could very well read this as being a flaw in the writing surrounding him as well.

L's not really a moral character, primarily because that's one of the main ways he's a foil to light-- where light is painfully, excruciatingly human, naive in his ideals, dedicated to them at all costs, L is a lot more apathetic, perhaps not to the same degree as near sometimes comes across (though he has more to him too, even if the anime doesn't really give enough time for that), but still enough to be generally considered a pretty amoral character. L definitely comes across to me as the type of person that understands the world deeply on an intellectual level, but struggles to meaningfully emotionally connect with it. the way he interacts with people is the clearest example of this, again making him a foil to light in that he gives no shits about how people view him and prefers staying hidden as much as possible, creating detailed psychological profiles of the criminals he follows but still misreading details in-the-moment while speaking to people (the autism. the autism), but i think this could very well extend to how he views morals as well, deciding that kira is evil on a logical level because people dying=bad but not really emotionally connecting with that. like,

yeah yeah they're both JUSTICE!! or whatever, but is this really true? not to get into an in-depth discussion on the nature of ethics & morality in my tumblr essay (though i actually wouldn't mind doing that...), but as the series and especially the yotsuba arc goes on, it becomes more and more clear that L's lack of attachment to people extends to his lack of attachment to traditional ethics. time and time again, L does shady shit for the sake of finding kira, whether that be covering the yagami household in a truly absurd number of cameras, recruiting actual criminals to help with the investigation, or chaining some kid to him 24/7 for weeks on end. this is a large part of the reason behind why i question what winning would actually look like for L-- would he be willing to turn kira in, should he get sufficient evidence to put light through the actual justice system? even if he is willing to give that rivalry up, i have a hard time believing he wouldn't want to confirm the death by doing it himself or something. but if that's the case, then why bother waiting? clearly, he's pretty fucking sure that light is kira, and he basically does figure everything out by the end of the yotsuba arc. so, why? is he waiting to prove it to the task force? is he still waiting for light to incriminate himself? but that seems like an awfully stupid thing to still be waiting for. what does L actually want here?

^^^ this last entire paragraph was basically my motivation for writing this, btw. ultimately, i still don't know if i have a conclusion that i'm really satisfied with, here. perhaps it really is just that light isn't the one to pull the trigger in the end, the nerve of a move that bitchy that kinda instinctively icks me out. or maybe ohba just wrote it bad!! idk. final thoughts-wise.........

one satisfying thing: in a way, light wins because he wins over people (namely, the rest of the task force), which tracks. the only reason why he keeps winning post-L death is because of this win, actually, which keeps him going for years despite the fact that he's doing objectively a dogshit job as L, as near so sweetly points out.

one unsatisfying thing: you could read L as losing because ohba doesn't actually have all that extensive of a view of what a good view of justice would look like, particularly in opposition to kira's view. in a way, L kind of just ends up representing a return to the status quo, where the criminals that kira is so desperate to purge are simply dealt with in the usual way & their crimes are a fact of life. perhaps this is asking too much, the rivalry alone is fun enough to watch without having to get too in-depth asking question about ideal global justice systems and the nature of crime & criminals. i genuinely do think a part of my frustration here is just that light was too much of a bitch to kill his main rival by his own hand, despite holding himself to a more respectable Standard in desperate moments prior (e.g. not taking the eyes deal w/ naomi misora). but it's at least an adjacent question, and maybe establishing more clearly what L's true win would've looked like could have made light's eventual victory just a bit more satisfying, instead of feeling like it comes out of nowhere after his extensive planning miraculously works perfectly according to keikaku. it's almost the marvel problem as is... but i digress.

bonus: boredom

in my recent reread/rewatch of the series, i keep getting struck by how much i really like the beginning of death note, like the beginning beginning of the series and when each main character is initially introduced, especially light and ryuk.

i don't think it's too much of a stretch to equate "boredom" with "depression" in this context. long before L is introduced to the series ryuk is the one being presented as light's equal and opposite-- parallels from opposite worlds, mutually disgusted by their own kind and the miserable state the world around them has devolved to. for L this sentiment is a bit less overt, mostly because again, apathy, but the fact that he spends the majority of his time hyperfixated on the worst parts of humanity speaks of something. perhaps i'll have more feelings about this upon rereading the ending, as that's a bit (a lot) fuzzy in my mind, but it's one of the main points i emotionally resonated with the strongest, a point of connection i keep coming back to.

light really is just a kid, at the core of everything. a teenager that did everything he was supposed to and still couldn't make himself happy with it. that's the real tragedy of death note to me, that for all he did to create a better, more ideal world, he never felt all that happy with any of it. not that he would admit that. but what is light yagami's greatest skill if not his denial...