#not her official design I’m still toying around with her colors & outfit

[pastelliek]

Sketch when she sees her least favourite colour

[muthaz-rapapa]

Let’s talk TroPreCure! (^∀^ 🌺)

i’m so stupidly proud of this dumb pun “tropurikyua~”, hahahahaha

Last post of the year and wow is there are lot to be excited for!

I even had to make a list for the stuff I want to talk about and I’m sure I already forgot one or two things but we’ll get to them as we continue to float~ along the wave to February 28th, mmkay? :)

Now for what has peaked my interest so far. And yes, we have to talk about the following first:

1) HealPre the shortest Precure season??

Unless they plan for double features in February (which I doubt but you never know), HealPre is likely going to reach only 45 episodes long instead of the usual 48~50 before TroPre I’m using this shortening of the title for now so if there’s a better alternative, tell me and I’ll switch out begins its broadcast.

Understandable because the producers probably want to get back to their normal scheduling as soon as possible (toy sales, y’know) and I suspect pushing the start of the new season back by a month is the most they’re willing to compromise.

As for me, I’m quite happy about this since HealPre’s lost its hold on my attention a while ago so the sooner TroPre gets here, the better. Though the downside might be a scrambled climax and a rushed, underwhelming ending for HealPre (I dunno if it’s January’s titles that feel a bit messy or if the hiatus is still throwing me off) but whatever. We’ll refresh ourselves with the new blood Cures so it’s all good.

2) Tropical movie announced for Autumn 2021, no All Stars??

(source)

First saw this mentioned on Youtube somewhere but it’s all over the fandom forums by now. I mean, HealPre’s movie is set for March, the usual time slot for All Stars release. If Toei intended for there to be an All Stars in 2021, there’s no way they would announce the seasonal movie before it so speculations of them skipping it this year are probably true.

To squeeze it somewhere between March and October-ish would force them to readjust their budgets as well and I don’t think even Toei wants to go through that extra hassle after all the trouble the pandemic’s caused for everyone already. It’s just easier to resume All Stars in 2022.

That, and I think Laura being a major character in TroPre despite not having a Cure title (yet) would make for an awkward situation when the three latest teams gather so perhaps that’s also one of the reasons. But I’ll get back to Laura in a bit.

3) Cure Summer is a RAINBOW Cure

So god help me if I see anyone calling her a Pink Cure.

Yes, she’s the lead Cure for this season. NO, she is not a Pink Cure.

Look, even the official website has a rainbow overlay for her profile pic and text font while everyone else’s respective theme colors are a solid hue:

Therefore, RAINBOW.

In promotional material and merchandising, they’re probably going to advertise her primarily with pink bah and at worst, she might occasionally be labeled as a White Cure with multiple subcolors (her outfit is not pink-dominant) but definitely NOT. PINK.

...also, this goes without saying but f***yea, we finally got a lead Cure practically and unabashedly wearing the LGBTQ flag and you cannot tell me otherwise, Toei!

Own up to it! Declare Manatsu/Cure Summer as the Precure queer icon!

I’m not gonna stop yellin’ until you do! 😠

4) Laura = obvious midseason Cure is obvious

First of all, Laura is a babe. I already love her the best and she’s not even Precure yet. <3

Anyways, the set-up is pretty much in the description. Important main character who’s not a mascot, stated to have a self-confident personality and just speaks her mind (oooh, I like~ :D), magical/foreign being from another world looking for Precure to save her home, possesses her own special item(s), has aspirations to become the next Queen (so she’s a princess-candidate or something to that effect, I suppose).

We’ve seen various combinations of these traits in past midseason (and a few starter) Cures so nobody should be surprised when we all guessed that one of the Cures would be a real live mermaid.

The only question is why not just make Laura a Cure from the get-go if she’s introduced to us at the beginning (like Hime or Lala) and having a team of five with no unnecessary extra add-ons later on (like Smile).

Well, there’s a simple answer for that: formula.

Toei is afraid that if they don’t spit out some new animation sequence at the halfway and third quarter points of the show, the kids will lose interest and abandon the series altogether. Which means failed toy sales. Oh nooo... [/sarcasm]

...Yea. 

And this way they can also have Laura available in the Cure lineup for the next All Stars in 2022 instead of making her sit the fight out if we were going to have one in 2021. I’m convinced that’s gotta be one of the reasons. *shrug*

But ok, whatever. Her debut is gonna be later, that’s all. She’s a delayed Cure.  Midseason Cure, same difference.

Moving along to the more important stuff now like what’s her Cure name gonna be, y/y?

Well, knowing Toei, a translation of the term “mermaid” into another language is the most predictable route even though we already have a Cure Mermaid. Not like that ever stopped them from repeating words before (ex. Cure Happy vs Cure Felice). Though if they do go down that road, I hope they opt for the Spanish/Italian “sirena” and not the French “sirène” because the latter sounds too close to how Cure Selene is pronounced in Japanese. And, putting it nicely, we all know Japanese pronunciation of foreign words is as off kilter as can be.

Hell, even the the Portuguese “sereia” sounds aesthetic as hell so it’d be nice if they can just remember there are other languages that exist out there besides Japanese, English and French when making the final decision at the writing table! *stomps foot* >:/

Alternatively, “nereid” or “naiad” are good choices too but they remind me too much of Greek myths and Laura’s from the Grand Ocean which covers more than just a couple of seas (Greece is surrounded by three, btw) so...

I dunno. But whatever it’s gonna be, she’s definitely got a strong association with water and her powers will probably be based on that.

As for theme color, since there’s noticeably no blue or green Cure in the starter lineup, it’s likely she will take up that spot when she debuts around ep 20.

Pink is also open since Cure Summer, again, is technically not a Pink Cure and Laura’s hair and tail fin are hot and light pink respectively but looking at Laura’s design and concept, does anyone seriously believe that?

Her upper torso consists of aquamarine while the body of her tail is definitely some shade of cyan, implying they’re aiming for somewhere around the middle of green and blue on the lighter spectrum.

And yea, I’m aware that green and blue are considered exchangeable in some perspectives with how close some of their shades are to each other but officially, I think Laura’s gonna be grouped with the Green Cures.

Cuz of the hair. If Laura’s gonna keep it the same or a similar shade after transforming, that is. The Blues have always had cool-colored hair so putting Laura in with them might disrupt that harmony whereas if you put her with the few Greens there are (including Parfait), she’d fit right in.

I mean, we’ll see but that makes the most sense, doesn’t it?

On another note, I just want to say that I love how they added frills to her arms instead of letting her elbows go bare naked. It definitely makes her look more like a genuine mermaid than if she didn’t have them (remember, half fish doesn’t mean half the body :P).

5) Magical Items

Frankly, I’m tired of seeing the transformation device being a compact again even though one of the main motifs is make-up this season. But at least, as far as Precure compacts goes, the Tropical one is my favorite cuz of how cute and delightfully colorful its toy version looks! So I guess I’m okay with it.

The Heart Rouge Rod, though? ...I dunno. I think it would’ve been fine without that...straw (?) jutting out at the top. It looks weird, doesn’t it look weird? :S

As for the collectible clip-ons, I can live without those for the rest of my life. Yeesh.

Laura’s items, the Aqua Pot and the Ocean Prism Mirror.

Again with the portable, travel-size housing. *sigh* 😩

Alright, I can let this year slide cuz Laura (I’m so soft for her, omg) probably won’t be getting legs for 20 weeks so she’s got to move about on land somehow. But unless they’re really thinking about turning this idea of carrying your apartment around in your bag/pocket/purse into a reality (cuz that would be effin’ awesome), please be more creative with your toys.

On the other hand, I’m much more interested in the Ocean Prism Mirror but from what Kusyami (the Precure merchandise reviews I follow on Youtube) said in his latest vid, this is the ED dance item so don’t know if it’ll actually have an relevance to the story or not. But I did hear him mention it having something to do with the Queen as well and since Laura wishes to become Queen, maybe it’ll be important after all? Maybe it’s her transformation device?

That’d be super cool. Let’s continue the trend of the midseason Cure having a different transformation item than the starters. Honestly, we should alternate every other year or two but we’ve gone three seasons with all of them using the same henshin gimmicks up till HealPre and I just want a break from that.

6) Fin sleeves??

These look so impractical for combat so maybe it’s exclusive to group attacks.

And/or a sort of precursor to the super forms?

*GASP* Does that mean they all eventually turn into mermaids? 🤩

7) Yui finally became Precure!! 😭

lol, it’s all crack from this point on so don’t take it too seriously but man, after Yuni’s deceptive braids, I thought I wasn’t gonna see anything that reminded me of Yui for a while and lo behold, Sango.

kehehehehehe xD;

Though Yui might be closer to Minori in terms of personal interests (fairytales and storybooks).

8) Akira, the actual Onee-chan version

I didn’t think this when I first saw her but once I read “Onee-san” in her profile, there’s no saving you now. Sorry, Asuka. 😅

Also, damn, do her sandals make her feet look big! Compare them to the heels she wears as Flamingo. Are they even the same?! lololol

9) ...this sounds awfully familiar...

Translation:

Tokimeku Tokonatsu! [Exciting/Thrilling Everlasting Summer!] Cure Summer! Kirameku Hoseki! [Sparkling Jewel!] Cure Coral!  Hirameku Fuurutsu! [Flashing Fruit!] Cure Papaya!

Japanese reiteration:

Mallow/Mao: Pink no tokimeki! Lillie: Blue no kirameki! Lana/Suiren: Yellow no kagayaki!

….........

@Toei 

Care to explain yourselves, punks?! 

୧(ʘ ∀ ʘ ╬)

[moonlightreal]

Winx Club season 8/1

In which the Winx are back and younger than ever.

Welcome to season 8!  I love this show, I love everything about it... including the parts I don't like, because I can snark at them.  So warning: there will be some snark when I see something dumb.

About the new art style:

Why I don't like it:  The girls have gotten a little more samey-samey with the loss of their individually shaped features, and Tecna's eyes shifted from turquoise to blue.  I know that's a tiny thing, a slight eye color change but it's one more step towards them all looking the same.  It feels like by the time we get to season 20 they'll be six identical fairies!  Also the girls now look twelve.  There’s been no mention so far of them de-aging so it's just the art style change, but... ok most of y'all wouldn't care but I'm writing a fanfic that parallels the show and now I have to decide whether to de-age my characters or what!

Why I like it: They're sooooo cute! They look like Moondreamers or Lady Lovelylocks or some 80s dolls!  I love it!

I have a theory about why the style change.  This is only a guess since I don't know animation, but is it possible they're using a program with sort of mannequins, and they're now using the same bodies for both Regal Academy and Winx?  To save money maybe, since now the animators will only need to learn one style?  Is that even the way computer animation programs work? Animators, help me out here!

And yes, Musa and Flora are now basically Caucasian looking.  This is not cool.  I have acknowledged it and written to Rainbow about it but since there’s nothing else I can do I’m going to enjoy my show in spite of it.  That’s my response to the color change; your response is something you’ll have to decide for yourself.

1 Night of Shooting Stars

We open at Alfea where some minor fairies are watching shooting stars.  Familiar minor fairies!  It's not just the Winx who have a new look; the whole class has been ported over.  I'm really happy about this!  I was sure they'd just do a whole new background cast and we'd lose more continuity, but here are Evie and Lori, those two dark skinned and indigo haired girls, and other familiar faces.

The Winx are up on a sort of bridge over the courtyard-- Alfea has had slight upgrades for the new season and it looks great.  And so do the girls!  They're so detailed, the layered outfits and all their accessories are so fun.  Their necklaces sway when they move, even, props to the animators.

Bloom is delighted by the shooting stars but Musa’s not feellin’ it, she was hoping for musical inspiration but it isn’t coming.  Flora, Tec and Aisha join them and it turns out Musa wants to write the new song for the concert tomorrow!  Tecna conjures her “astroscope” so they can watch the stars, and starts to explain something but Aisha shuts her down. Kiko pops up on the other end of the astroscope and scares Musa when she looks through.  

Out comes Stella, for a selfie!

In the Italian, Stella says “Selfie time!” in English.  Heh.

But Musas’s glum face spoils the selfie.  Stella says there should be no problem since, “You have ME to inspire you!”

Kind of not a great intro for the girls, but now we leave them and cut to Twinkle being chased by star-eaters.  Which are cool, as villain minions go.  They look like dark purple puffs or blobs, I’m getting a very Original My Little Pony vibe from them.  A whole swarm of them are chasing tiny Twinkle through the rings surrounding planet Magix.  They merge into a giant blob that roars as Twinkle flees towards the planet below.

Musa’s spidey sense tingles!

The star-eaters display their power of splitting into tadpoles and joining together again.

The Winx are concerned: this star is coming down awfully close!  Twinkle zooms above their heads and crashes in the woods.

The girls arrive in the scene we saw in the trailer and are immediately charmed by the sleeping Twinkle. Stella identifies her as a Lumen, “a creature of pure light that lives inside stars.”  They take their find back to Alfea to take care of her.

But evil is watching them!  Or at least a turban-wearing lackey of evil with a bunch of star-eaters around him is.  Obscura says, “Oh no!  That Lumen managed to reach the Winx!” so he knows who the Winx are.

In the Winx common room Twinkle is still asleep and the girls and Faragonda admire her cuteness.  I think she’s got some kind of charm ability!    Stella gives us some more information, “She’s from Lumenia, the star that lights Solaria.”  and Faragonda says Lumens never leave their stars except for serious reasons.

The next morning—daylight shots of Alfea, great cg—Twinkle wakes up, gets scared of Kiko, there’s some chaos and room destruction, Twinkle flies around screaming until she bangs into Stella.  Stella introduces the Winx, “We’re fairies and this is our school.” and asks why Twinkle came.  But Twinkle can’t remember.

Tecna scans Twinkle and detects “a memory lapse.”  The Winx offer to help her remember but Aisha thinks scaring her is the way to go!  So they try to scare Twinkle, who just laughs.  Short slapstick scene.

Then Bloom gets a text: the boys are coming!  Their ship lands in the courtyard to a rockin’ beat.  The girls stand with little hearts around them, Stella twirling her hair.

The boys look so weird in this art style.  I will try and probably fail at not mentioning this every time they appear.

And oh heavens, Brandon still has a deep post-puberty voice in his 12-year-old body.  I think this may be the same voice actor from last season.  Voice weirdness aside, he brought Stella a big pile of presents.  These two are the best couple.

Helia is showing Flora a picture he did of “a rose from the planet Iris, but its beauty is nothing compared to yours.”  Wasn’t Iris where Diaspro’s from?  Flora blushes and it’s cute.

Sky and Bloom kind of twirl each other around and laugh, which is sweet.

Timmy and Tecna are already up in the dorm working on a Lumen amnesia curing device, which explodes. Twinkle bounces and chirps, “Again!  Again again!”  Ok she is a little bit adorable.

They get the memory viewer going and its screen shows Twinkle’s memories of being chased.  She freaks out and flies into the air glowing brightly.  Then the memory viewer overloads.

Cut to the courtyard, the girls ponder what they saw while Twinkle looks glum.  Kiko tries to cheer her up. Stella says that Lumens are peaceful creatures with no enemies, so the girls don’t know what was chasing her.  Poor Twinkle is very down, and Stella prescribes music to cheer her up.

Over at Red Fountain we’re in either the ship or a locker room.  The boys are tired out, they’ve been on a mission to the Omega dimension before the Winx called!  Points to the writers for remembering the names of places!  Also points for how the boys are powering-down their suits, it’s a neat little detail that they do this.

The boys talk about how they wish they could’ve helped the Lumen, then do some reminiscing!  They had a mission on the planet Hypsos where they beat a horde of space mutants and destroyed an opal dragon??  And apparently neither of these was as scary as the landing!  Timmy, who was the pilot, droops.  Then he blames Helia for not being able to read a star chart.  It looks like they’re about to fight when…

A Mysterious Figure arrives!  Wearing a kind of ship-captainish coat and purple neck scarf.  Codatorta said he could come back.  The boys are pleased, more pleased than most of the fandom is!

The mysterious figure is not Venomiya, so there should be no sabotage at the Winx Band concert we go to next.  More great cg Alfea.  Is there an official map anywhere, of what rooms are what?  There are some weird outbuildings and stuff. I’m not even sure if the bridge is new or if it’s just that the girls didn’t hang out there in previous seasons.  And did the wings attach differently before?  I can’t tell if the school has changed shape or not!  I think it has...

And there’s a blast from the past, it’s Knut the ogre, Alfea’s handyman!  He’s back after many seasons, helping set up the lights for the concert with Kiko’s help.

And here’s Grizelda, and the new art style has not been kind to her!  She looks younger and has a more WoW art style look, and I don’t like it!  And whaaaaaat happened to her voice?  She does the ‘I’m watching you’ thing at Knut.  she’s not very nice.  I mean, she’s not supposed to be nice, she’s supposed to be a scary lady so that’s good.

The concert is being held at the top of the steps in front of the main door to the school.  All the minor fairies hang out on the steps or in the courtyard to watch.  It is so nice to see the same minor fairies as before.  They’re super excited to see the Winx in their—freaking adorable—concert outfits.  The girls are all in brightly colored fake fur and music note themes, with streaks in their hair.  Bloom dedicates their first song to ‘Our new friend from far away.’  and Twinkle giggles with delight.

And then… concert transformation! The girls’ PURSES do magical girl henshin routines and transform, Bloom’s into a microphone, Stella and Flora get guitars, Musa has a keytar and Tec gets a three-piece piano while Aisha’s got drums. Ok, I love this.  I know, it’s gotta be a gimic to sell toys, but sparkly henshin instruments, it’s wonderful!

The song’s all right, it’s Winx pop just like every song in Winx and I don’t think the voice actresses are in any way professional singers, but it’s fun.  Miss F, Grizelda and Palladium are in the audience.  Twinkle loves the music. Knut seems to be trying to pick up on the minor fairies, but Grizelda shuts him down.

Then the concert is rudely interrupted by a portal opening and delivering a bunch of star-eaters!  Twinkle sees them and remembers what happened to her and flies for help!

Stella observes the sun-eaters don’t look too scary, but then they all pile together into one big one.  Oh no!  The minor fairies, unable to fight since the artists haven’t designed transformations for them, back away in fear.

Faragonda and the teachers—Wizgiz appears too—direct the minor fairies to take cover inside.  The Winx transform.  Butterflix time!

Twinkle is impressed.

The girls fight but the giant eater can portal in and out and break apart whenever it wants.  Only Stella’s sun power seems to have any effect!  Then they get an idea: Twinkle lit up with the memory viewer, maybe she can help here!  Stella gives her some power and little Twinkle is just so happy!  She lights up like a sun and the big eater breaks apart into little eaters that all look despondent and flee back through their portal.

Since Twinkle has remembered everything, now she can tell her story!  The girls and Grizelda for some reason meet with the headmistress in her office.

Twinkle is the messenger of Lumenia, on a mission from Queen Doranna(?) to the “most powerful fairies in the magic dimension.”  The stars are in danger!  The eaters are eating their light!  I do like that there’s a reason the Winx are going to be called to save the world again, that Doranna specifically requested them.  

Then there’s… Faragonda tells them this is a delicate mission and to be cautious.  Stella breaks in with, “caution is our middle name!  well, more of a nickname.” Heh.

Then Bloom has an anime moment, she goes to the window and puts her hand up to her reflection, with a serious expression.  Not the kind of moment we usually get in Winx, and I really like it.  “Tomorrow we leave for Lumenia, Queen Doranna can help us understand what’s going on.  This is a mission for the Winx!”

[dakt37]

The long, long character breakdown of my super self-indulgent Toy Story-style Star Wars AU, “Destiny Dollhouse.” (Some doodles are here) My apologies if the cut doesn’t work.

Other than perhaps a brief moment of Buzz-style confusion for Jyn (“Oh my god I died, the planet blew up, is this purgatory?!” “Oh Honey no that was just a movie and you’re just a doll.”), everyone is aware of their situation. And while dolls of the same character are usually similar in personality, they also each lean on different traits and end up distinctive. For the most part, they address each other with surname initials to avoid confusion.

The Leias:

Leia C (Ceremonial) - The most regal/calm/mature of the Leias, she tends to act as their de facto leader. She has somewhat limited articulation and moves like Toy Story’s Barbie. From the 1999 Portrait Series, Leia C spent something like 15 years in storage as a collector’s item. She’s glad to now be out of her box, but is still very cautious about keeping her hair and clothing neat.

Leia O (Original, or Organa I suppose) - AKA Buff Leia. From the 1996 Hasbro line, she is the oldest in the dollhouse. But in the “cool biker aunt” sort of way. She sometimes doffs her dress and just hangs out in the bodysuit she wears underneath. She’s strong and can be jovial, but also has zero time for anyone’s bullshit.

Leia H (Hoth) - Youngest of the Leias along with her identical twin Leia E. They’re sometimes referred to as “The Destiny Twins.” Leia H is a great mission leader, but also the most hot-tempered doll in the house. She enjoys swapping clothes and weapons with her roommates, but Do Not touch her hair.

Leia E (Endor) - The looser of the Destiny Twins. She had most of her original braids undone so that she could actually use her helmet, a move that scandalized many of the other dolls. Adventurous and personable, she often goes on recon missions with the 3D Fireteam and is one of the few to have become close friends with Rey J. For a while, Leia E was the only doll to wear colors other than white, black, brown, red, and gold. She’s always enthusiastic about meeting dolls with new colors, and (like her twin sister) loves swapping clothes. She also has a little Ewok friend, Wicket.

The Amidalas:

The Queen (Red Senate dress) - Democratically elected leader of the dollhouse, she lives on the top level with her second-in-command, Sabe B. Like Leia C, she was in storage for years and tends to be careful about her appearance. She’s not particularly active, due to limited articulation and many heavy clothes. She’s not lazy, it’s just a hassle you know?

Amidala (Red palace dress) - AKA Gay Padme, she’s entirely disinterested in any talk of Anakin Skywalker (“I’m from TPM anyway, he’s just a little kid??”) and is instead dating Sabe R.  Amidala is somewhat sassy compared to her sisters, and very experimental in her fashion. She tries to be mindful of her carefully styled curls, but is often too enthusiastic about trying on new outfits and then needs her girlfriend to fix them up after they get caught in velcro or squished under accessories.

Padme (Pilot outfit) - [I don’t actually own her yet, but she’s next on my “to buy” list.] The most impulsive of all the Amidalas, and the most smitten with Anakin. She often goes on missions with the Destiny Twins and the 3D Fireteam, but just as often needs to be rescued by them when she starts off on some investigation on her own and then gets into trouble.

Sabe B (Black dress) - Marketed as Amidala, but is actually Sabe playing decoy. She and Queen are close (though not as close as Amidala and Sabe R), and spend most of their time discussing the running of the dollhouse and managing each other’s physical upkeep. Sabe B is the most fastidious of all the dolls, and the most protective of everyone’s appearances (most especially of the feathers on her own headdress). She’s the house seamstress, though due to limited mobility she delegates the collecting of tools and supplies.

Sabe R (Red dress) - Also marketed as Amidala, but actually Sabe playing decoy. Sabe R is dating Amidala, is a bit of a gossip, and is by far the most experimental with her own hair. Where Sabe B is the expert on mending clothes, Sabe R is the expert on hair. For most of the dolls her work is limited to fixing squished updos and taming flyaways, but Sabine and Leia E let her brush and braid to her heart’s content.

The Reys:

Rey J (Jakku) - The most adventurous loose canon of all the dolls, she often wanders off on her own to scavenge for things around the apartment at large. She’s socially awkward and slow to trust, but very enthusiastic about showing off her treasure once she’s sure you won’t steal it. Her twin sister Rey R knows her the best, but she’s also managed to befriend Leia E and Ahsoka. Leia H has banned Rey J from official dollhouse missions because she never sticks to the plan. Rey J’s favorite thing in the whole apartment is the spider plant.

Rey R (Resistance) - Still a little rough around the edges socially, but more clued-in than her sister. Rey R tends to act as the “big sister” of the pair, despite them being twins. BB-8 (who hops rather than rolls) is most loyal to Rey R, acting more or less like her pet dog. Rey R and Ahsoka became fast friends (especially after Ahsoka managed to befriend Rey J), and do lightsaber training together.

Ahsoka - The most acrobatic of the dolls, despite not being able to raise her arms at the shoulder due to some bizarre design decision by FoD doll creators (seriously wtf??). Extremely chipper and gregarious, Ahsoka makes friends with everyone she meets, even if sometimes it takes prolonged and dogged determination. She hates being left out of things. She also considers herself a good luck charm, as she arrived on the day that the Star Wars Celebration 2019 hotel blocks opened and was standing watch over the computer when I managed to defy the odds and actually snag a room in the chaos of thousands of people all trying to get on the same website at the exact same moment o_e Oh also she has a pet lothcat for some reason.

Sabine - One of the newest arrivals. I don’t actually know super much about her canon personality yet beyond that she’s artistic and probably pretty badass. So the doll version loves to play with the chalkboard and whiteboards in the kitchen, and is the least intimidated of the cat that shares the apartment with them. She immediately develops a crush on Ahsoka.

Jyn - Another of the newest arrivals. Might have slight Buzz Lightyear Syndrome to start out with. She tends to be the straight man, comedicaly speaking. Tired, angsty, and somewhat insecure, she can be abrasive at first and butts heads with authority figures. She eventually becomes good buddies with Leia O, and likes to join Ahsoka and Rey R for sparring practice and Rey J for climbing excursions.

3D Fireteam - Four 3D-printed action figures of Padme, Sabe, and Eirtae from the battle of Naboo. Two are Padmes technically, but one is nearly twice the height of the other three figures. They behave rather like the green soldiers from Toy Story, complete with the feet-stuck-to-base waddle. I’m not sure what their exact chain of command is, but in general they take orders from Leia H. I’m also not sure how they refer to each other; maybe just by military ranks?

LEGO TFA Trio - Rey, Finn, and Poe. They’re dating. Goofy, fun-loving, and a bit mischievous. They love the winter holidays because they are technically keychains, and therefore get to be Xmas tree ornaments.

Obi-Wan Kenobi - A little crochet doll who can’t speak, as he has no mouth. Somehow he manages to be extremely sarcastic anyway.

[buildridernews]

[Review] Kamen Rider Build - Episodes 38-41

It's time for an actually timely review for once! I seem to be bucking the whole "I'm consistently halfway into the month when I decide to catch up on last month" trend.

Episode 38: "Mad World" (マッドな世界)

So we ended last month on two big cliffhangers. For starters, Evol now has what he has declared is his final form, which is kinda neat - typically you only see the "final form" term applied to the main Rider, and its origins are with the final boss of a video game, so here it's 100% on point. 

But we also discover that having Sento be possessed by Evolt resulted in his brain being kind of jumbled back together, meaning he remembers being Katsuragi Takumi. It seems like this would be an obvious thing to have come up at some point, in retrospect, but of all the times for it to happen...

As everyone makes a hasty retreat from an overpowered Evol, he decides to take a moment to do some kind of ssspace magic, turning some Fullbottles into these black and gold variants - thanks to magazine reveals, we know these are called Lost Fullbottles...

Anyway, Katsuragi proves to be an unsettling one for everybody to be around since he doesn't entirely trust Ryuga, he makes half-hearted apologies to Misora for using her, and he has a real emotional argument with Gentoku which I'm sure will be elaborated upon in the Rogue spinoff. This scene was interesting since they do some cool editing to alternate between showing Sento's actor and Katsuragi's actor in the same outfit.

When it comes to the whole presentation of Katsuragi being "brought back", there's ways this could go that could be a little bit... clunky, and I don't know if I can properly put into words why. I guess the best explanation I can think of is, it'd be real weird to me if this involved his face turning back to normal as well, because then you'd have to figure out a reason for why he'd want his face changed back that isn't insulting to Katsuragi (since the point of this subplot is to redeem him). Basically I'm glad we just got Sento's actor with a different personality.

So what the hell is Evolt doing right now? Well, to keep that actor involved, Evolt just decided to take on Soichi's appearance because I guess he can do what he wants. That's probably gonna be used to trick us at some point. He's decided that Namba has an ultimatum to answer to: Let him rule the world as a whole while Namba is just a prime minister of Japan, ooor he dies. At the same time, he gives Utsumi an offer to join him since he's a very useful scientist... which both seem like things that wouldn't meet in the middle, but just you wait.

Things get interesting as Utsumi tries begging for help from Gentoku, everyone else (minus a bitter Kazumi) is getting involved, and Katsuragi is staying in the lab working on the block item Sento pieced together before. When it comes time for Utsumi to approach Evolt in Pandora Tower about the ultimatum, Utsumi instead unleashes some Hard Guardians, the gear bros, and suddenly even the other Riders show up! I gotta imagine this was in reference to the talk he had with Gentoku since Kazumi is indeed nowhere to be found. I would have liked to see the moment where Katsuragi agreed to all this but it was interesting to see him try fighting. Especially since he specifically had trouble with a form SENTO invented. Cute.

Then something unexpected happens: Evol takes out the gear bros! They got powered up earlier in the episode with the implication they would die from any further nebula gas dosage, but I figured this was a seed planted for several episodes from now. Nope, one falls, the other switches into Hell Bro mode, then takes a hit from Evol to protect Great Cross-Z. He dies realizing that fighting for the sake of others actually feels pretty good, after seeing how Cross-Z seemed to be stronger for a previously unknown reason.

So, I feel like the gear bros are characters I can completely see others getting attached to, and I HAVE seen that, but they ultimately didn't do much aside from look cool. And if I'm being critical, I'd say they have 3 things that make for a weakly written character: If you make them too cool then they're flawless and boring, if you make them too stoic then there's not much room for personality, and if you focus too much on them being a duo then they have no idividuality - they're just the gear bros, which I've always called them since I can never remember their actual names. They had their moments, as few as they were, but I kinda leave these two deaths with a shrug and "Huh, didn't see that coming."

Then shortly thereafter, Evol kills Namba! And it's so beautiful becaue not only does Utsumi watch it unfold in terror on a tablet, where he can't do a thing besides watch from the camera Namba was recording from, but Evol also fakes him out with a laugh and a hug then turns him to fucking dust. It's so brutal, enough to make a man crack.

And I think he might've, considering Utsumi's memories of being a brainwashed Namba boy flash before him as he laughs maniacally and gladly joins Evol. With a duplicate Evol Driver, he uses a clever pair of Fullbottles to transform into Kamen Rider Mad Rogue, which we will see in more detail next episode! But it's a real cool suit. It's basically all of Night Rogue's suit with color changes, which makes for an interesting Rider suit. Plus, y'know, bringing us aaall the way back to when people found the BatEngine sound on the belt and wondered if Night Rogue would become a Rider.

Episode 39: “The Genius Can’t Be Stopped” (ジーニアスは止まらない)

And so, Mad Rogue takes on everyone with pretty great ease, which isn't surprising since he's a new Rider. Despite not wanting to take part, Grease shows up to help them escape, and once we're back at the cafe/lab we see that Katsuragi still isn't trusting of Ryuga. He's pretty much decided that Ryuga is part of Evolt, and even though Ryuga keeps telling him he's now fully human... he has these strange visions that appear to be from Evolt's memory of destroying Mars. Which is weird since one of them is from the perspective of someone seeing Evol. But maybe that's intentional.

Katsuragi has created what he believes is the ultimate bottle, combining the ingredients of all 60 Fullbottles to form the Genius Fullbottle. Misora isn't impressed, however, because Katsuragi lacks a certain heart that Sento had, which bothers him. He's left with even more to think about as a weakened Gentoku tries desperately to move so he can go fight and redeem himself for his sins.

Katsuragi goes out to fight Mad Rogue, but as he tries using the Genius Fullbottle, it won't activate - something is stopping him. As he takes a quick beating, Great Cross-Z jumps in, giving a wonderful speech about Sento was A DAMN HERO OF JUSTICE and making Katsuragi really come to terms with what Sento had that he doesn't. It's something that will use the Rider system for good, and put a stop to Evolt, so he has no choice. With Katsuragi literally standing face-to-face with Sento in his head, he puts his trust in this person to do what's right. Sento's back, baby.

With his new gadget, Sento transforms into Build's final form: Genius Form. A suit covered in 60 Fullbottles, which happen to be uniform enough to make one red side and one blue side. Super fun transformation.

So, Genius Form has grown on me, and it's certainly had time to. The form got leaked like 6 months ago, and... man, I dunno how that happened since we didn't get proper confirmation that it was legit until more toy catalog stuff came out. That was a leak that made me go "Oh I hope no one got FIRED for that".

Anyway, next episode.

Episode 40: “Ending Revolution” (終末のレボリューション)

Once Mad Rogue tries to fire away at Build, he finds that he's severely outmatched. Build is damn near bulletproof and can move at speeds he can't keep up with. Not only that, but we learn that Build's new bottle can actually get rid of the effects of the nebula gas, which I assume is what he does here to weaken Mad Rogue - otherwise I dunno why they showed it. He unleashes a finisher, then is rescued by Evol. But not before Evol randomly hits Kazumi just to take the Fullbottles his former comrades used to transform into Hard Smash.

So this is a thing we got mention of in episode summaries a while back. These episodes deal with "Lost Bottles", which is a term also brought up in the show by Evolt. I THINK what's going on here is some miscommunication between the show writers and toy developers, because the black and gold bottles are officially called Lost Fullbottles in promotional material for the summer movie and are being called Lost Bottles here. The reason why I think it's miscommunication is simple: Katsuragi referred to the Genius Fullbottle as the Genius Bottle. I'm decidedly going with what sounds like the proper designations.

Back at the cafe, everyone is still processing the fact that Sento is Sento again. He seems to remember all of Katsuragi's memories up until the Skywall incident, so there's that. Gentoku is going through some identity crisis of his own as he has decided to become a gag character - he's dressing informally for once and-- I kinda like him better this way. And I'm glad the sound mixing department knew that the scream from his transformation item was made for comedy.

After a whiplash change in tone, Sento is thinking about the Lost Fullbottles that Evol referenced, when suddenly the voice of Katsuragi pops up in his head with some answers - Katsuragi never made these bottles, but they were made by his father. Sento decides to go to Hokuto, and it just so happens Kazumi also wants to go there to sneak into Faust and retrieve his comrade's bottles. Ryuga, for once in his entire life, recognizes these are all stupidly risky ideas and just gives Kazumi his (apparently now repaired) Dragon Sclashjelly in case he needs it.

While at his mother's old house, Sento finds an odd photo in his father's belongings: A woman by the pier with a boat. I thought this woman was familiar, and it's because she's one of the victims from one of the first episodes who smuggled them to another location by boat! I remember how nice it was to see a victim used that way. However, Sento finds it odd that his father had a photo of this woman in his belongings since he SHOULD be dead, and a Guardian - which would not have been around at the time he was alive - is seen in the background.

Meanwhile, Kazumi does something stupid and sneaks into Faust in disguise, only to be caught and be given more nebula gas - enough that he might die if he loses a fight. He manages to escape, but is cornered by the Hokuto prime minister, who's become Evolt's latest experiment: A Lost Smash. This is a combination of a Hard Smash and some Clone Smash, and he considers it to be this monsters' final form - so it's cool we get that kind of lore for these monsters! She uses Kiba's old Fukurou Fullbottle to transform and beat the crap out of him, only for Build then Mad Rogue to enter the mix.

As Grease feels like he's on the ropes, he thinks about the idealistic speeches Build always gives and about how he's letting it get into his head - using the Dragon Sclashjelly in his own belt, he suddenly gains TWO Twin Breaker weapons, along with a significant power boost!

So, this is another talking point, because if there's anyone that fans wanna see with a new form, it's Grease. He is truly the Necrom of this show, except Necrom's eventual power-up was a whole new weapon, whereas Grease just gets two of the same weapon he had before. So that's a little disappointing. But hey, Necrom did get a new form in some post-finale material - here's hoping they keep the V-cinema thing going and you get a Grease movie!

So, Grease overpowers Mad Rogue, sending him running, and Build uses the power of his bottle to deliver a Rider Kick to our new Lost Smash to safely defeat her and undo the effects of the nebula gas. After she wakes up, it seems like she's come to her senses and the effects of the initial Skywall incident have worn off, so she's become a decent person again. Evolt shows up, however, to proclaim that he's going to use the Lost Fullbottles to create a new world!

And then we get a most unexpected twist if you didn't think too much about the previous photo of the boat woman. She talks with Ryuga and Sawa and she remarks that she did indeed know Katsuragi's father, because he was just there the other day... which means he is very much still alive.

Episode 41: “The Best Match Truth” (ベストマッチの真実)

Picking up where the show left off, Evol tries taking on Build in his new form, and Build manages to catch him before he can switch to his strongest form, which gives him an edge. He does some kind of change to Evolt's body genes, but we don't know why just yet - all we know is he's excited about it.

Hot off the heels of the realization that Papa Katsuragi is alive, the boat lady passes on a USB device to give to Sento, which contains several documents on his inventions, but for now we're getting details on the Lost Fullbottles. I did a post about it, so I'll just say the key parts here: Gathering 10 of the black Lost Fullbottles causes something that defies the laws physics, which certainly raises the stakes. Also later we learn about the origin of Best Matches which is beautiful and tragic, but I also talked about that in a post. Good stuff.

This episode also provides us with a proper recap of the show so far, with the meta commentary I love from the cold openings, and it kinda tosses out a fact I hadn't even caught onto: Every Smash has been a person connected to the group in some way, be it a loved one, a possible witness to an event, or even one of them, like Sawa. But that brings into question who the guy from episode 1 was.

We don't have to wonder for long, as Sawa manages to get enough info on him to know that he was connected to Katsuragi's dad. Sawa arranges a meeting between him and Sento, which he hopes will get him closer to his father.

Meanwhile, we've learned just what effect Build's new form had on Evolt, as he tells all to his masked ally in Faust's lab. It seems that up to this point, Evolt has just mimicked human emotions, but Build's attack has basically caused him to gain actual emotions. Now he's feeling high on life and it seems like he's just being quirky... but there's some implications to that.

Sento meets with the man, but he reveals that he was sent to attack Sento as another Lost Smash, proclaiming that he'll be killed if he doesn't follow orders. Build finishes him off safely, and he starts to learn the truth, until Evol shows up and kills him instantly, then explains that Build's attack gave him emotions. Then Evol attempts to turn Build into a Smash using a bottle he has, but Build's form neutralizes it, allowing him an upper hand. As he successfully starts overpowering our main villain, Evol's rage begins to build up, then he disappears.

That's when Build makes a sudden realization, which the show pretty quickly passes by despite how alarming it is: If Evol has emotions now, that means he can gain a higher Hazard Level and become stronger and stronger.

Finally, Evolt returns to Faust's lab with two more Lost Fullbottles taken from Build during their fight, which means he's up to 6 - only 4 left to go before something unfathomable happens. Then we end on the proper face reveal for Evolt's lab buddy: Katsuragi's father... who I will probably have to start calling by his first name eventually. BUT NOT TODAY.

So that was one hell of a month of episodes! And this latest one tells all, what with the Lost Fullbottles and the motifs of the Best Matches explained. It's actually kinda sad the show's almost over... only a couple more months now.

Next review, however, will be something different.

Yeah. See you Next Build.

[pizza-is-my-buziness]

In honor of Black Panther and how totally amazing it was, I thought I would do a little ficlet where our favorite agents hang out in Wakanda for a bit...plus there’s a bit of Skimmons too because duh! Minor, minor spoilers for the movie...unless you don’t want to know anything then spoilers I guess? Takes place post 5x10.

“So we’re on the top of like everyone’s most wanted list.” Daisy says this casually, like it’s the type of thing that you can just say to a group of people sitting in a single hotel room, eating pre-packed food stolen from a vending machine after you’ve just returned from the future and a space station.

All the heads turn in her direction and the silence is only broken when Jemma just sighs, shaking her head and taking another animal cracker out of the bag.

“I mean, it’s not exactly the first time,” Coulson says, trying to force a little bit of lightness to his tone. “We just need to find a place to lie low for a while.”

Daisy is slightly envious of the way Coulson makes such a thing sound so easy. “How are we going to lie low when every government organization in the country is looking for us?”

After everything with Talbot, all their secrets have pretty much been exposed. They can’t exactly find any more underground bases to hide in and Daisy is pretty sure all their second chances have officially run out.

There’s another round of silence and another sigh from Jemma. Daisy thinks that’s a pretty efficient way of stating things given the situation.

“I know someone,” May says finally and now all eyes are on her. “I’ll make a call.”

Coulson looks slightly curious, slightly jealous. “You have secret contacts?”

May smirks at him, somehow both mischievous and reassuring. “I’ve got to have a few secrets, don’t I?”

Watching them, Daisy feels a little bit like a kid watching her parents make eyes at each other in the kitchen. But, more than anything, she’s intrigued. “Who’s your contact?”

“Just let me make a call,” is all May has to say on the subject.

~ ~ ~ They’ve been in the motel -a cheap one, with ratty carpet and not enough beds or towels or people around to care- for two days when May finally says, “I’ve found us a place to lie low.”

Daisy perks up, barely lifting her head from where she has it pillowed against her crossed arms. She and Jemma have been watching day time television on mute for the past two hours, trying to figure out what drama the people on the talk shows are arguing about. It’s far less entertaining when you can’t hear anything, though that was Mack’s stipulation for allowing the trashy shows to grace the television. Jemma’s fingers have been toying absently with the ends of Daisy’s hair and she doesn’t want to move too much, lest Jemma realize what she’s been doing and stop.

“They’re sending a plane shortly,” May continues. “We need to be at the rendezvous point as soon as possible.”

“A plane?” Jemma says, her fingers stilling in Daisy’s hair. “Where, exactly, are we going?”

This time when May smiles, it’s more than a little mischievous. “You’ll see.”

~ ~ ~

The plane that arrives is nothing like Daisy has ever seen before. She wouldn’t even call it a plane, not if she was asked to describe it. It’s a jet that rivals the Zephyr in every way: shape, speed, stealth and comfort. As they step into the circular vehicle, Daisy’s eyes grow wide and she lets her jaw drop slightly as she takes in the glowing technology all around. She’s practically salivating at the idea of getting her hands on any of these instruments and taking them apart to see how they work.

“This is futuristic tech,” Daisy says, her voice awed, her hands itching.

Though, she has a feeling that the sharp woman standing up from the pilot’s seat would not be too forgiving if Daisy started trying to take her ship apart.

“In a way, yes,” the woman says and Daisy thinks she just might be the most beautifully striking woman she’s ever seen. Her clothes are a rich red, adorned with African designs, as is her scalp. Her gaze is steely, her body as slim and controlled as the weapons that Daisy had been training with prior to receiving her Inhuman abilities. “The ship is powered with vibranium.”

Coulson manages to look equally impressed and fearful. “Vibranium? I had no idea that such large quantities still existed.”

The woman only smiles. “You’ll soon be very surprised.”

“General,” May says as she steps toward the woman, “thank you for helping us out. If we had any other choice, I can assure you we wouldn’t be putting you or your country in danger but-”

The General only shakes her head, cutting May off. “Melinda, I am always happy to do a favor for a friend.” She clasps May’s forearm briefly, a smile on her face.

Daisy bumps her shoulder against Jemma’s. “How do you think they know each other?” She whispers, hoping no one else can hear her. “I am dying to hear that story.”

Jemma lifts an eyebrow. “Good luck getting either of them to talk.”

The General returns to her seat. “Make yourselves comfortable,” she says over her shoulder. “We’ll be in Wakanda shortly.”

“Wakanda?” Daisy repeats, mentally sifting through the information she knows about the place. Her current events are exactly up to date given all the running around and hiding and trying not to die and saving the world stuff, but she remembers hearing a bit about Wakanda on the news a few months ago with the attack on a UN building and the implementation of the Sokovia Accords. “This came from Wakanda?”

“You’ll soon be very surprised,” the General says once more.

And her words are not an understatement, though Daisy thinks there should be a word stronger than surprised because that’s what she needs to describe how she’s currently feeling. Wakanda is certainly nothing like the third world nation the news has always implied that it is. It’s rich and luscious, thriving and teeming with life. Everywhere Daisy looks, she just sees more advanced tech like the jet they’d just ridden in: more air crafts designed to mimic dragonflies and other animals, fast moving land vehicles, lights and buildings that glow and shimmer with a power that can hardly be called electricity. The people spare them barely a glance as they pass by and Daisy wishes that she could be equally as uninterested, but she can’t stop staring. The colorful fabrics and decorative face paints make her want to stare for hours, just so she can take in and appreciate every little detail. Children run and play, chasing each other and making growling sounds, seeming more interested in their game than the newcomers.

“This is marvelous,” Jemma says breathlessly, reaching up to brush her fingers gently across the broad leaves of a flowering plant. “Like paradise.”

General Okoye nods. “We like to think so.”

She leads them into a building and Daisy wonders if anyone is going to hold it against her if she just keeps staring at everything. The space is massive, the ceilings vaulted and large, the windows and doors open and inviting. The building is cool and dim, both a relief after the heat from the outside, but hardly unwelcoming. There are a few people here and there, attending to various duties, but overall things seem to be calm and quiet and Daisy feels like just being inside the palace is going to lull her to sleep.

“King T’Challa is attending to business elsewhere in the palace,” General Okoye says, “but I’m sure he’ll be able to welcome you soon. I can have someone show you to your rooms.”

She leaves without another word or explanation, moving on silent feet down a darkened corridor. May smiles a bit, watching her go. “She’s part of the Dora Milaje,” she says. “They rarely leave the king’s side. We definitely owe her big time for the rescue.”

“She’s a bodyguard,” Mack remarks. “I can’t imagine anyone would even want to try anything with her standing there.”

“They usually don’t,” May says.

“When my brother said we were going to begin helping refugees, I didn’t imagine he meant bringing them here.” They turn toward the sound, the voice belonging to a teenage girl in a flowing patterned outfit, a smirk on her face. “You certainly look like refugees, though.”

“Traveling through time and staying in a cheap motel for three days will definitely do that to you,” Coulson remarks.

The girl keeps smiling despite this strange statement. “I’m Shuri, Princess of Wakanda,” she says. “And you are agents of SHIELD.”

Honestly, it doesn’t surprise Daisy that she recognizes them, given their recent luck and track record. “Probably ‘former’ agents is more accurate,” she mutters.

Shuri’s eyes settle on her. “You’re the one that can make earthquakes, right?” Her eyes brighten. “I have some things down in my lab that I would love to show you.”

If Daisy isn’t mistaken, Jemma perks up slightly at the mention of the word ‘lab.’ It’s a welcome change over her quiet exhaustion over the past few days, even if it is just baby steps. Daisy has been desperate to get Jemma to herself for even thirty minutes, though that’s been relatively impossible given their circumstances recently. She knows things with Fitz are still strained, the friendship tenuous, and it seems unlikely that all the space exploration and Kree have done much to help that.

Before Shuri can drag her off toward the lab, another woman appears, shooing the princess away with the firm statement, “Your brother wants them to rest,” and seemingly unaffected by Shuri’s glare and eye-roll. Instead, the woman leads them to their rooms, a separate one for each of them, which honestly seems more than Daisy could have asked for.

The floor is cool beneath Daisy’s feet when she slips off her boots and it feels good to have her skin against a surface that doesn’t seem likely to give her a fungus of some kind. She runs her fingers against the smooth, glistening fabric of the dark comforter on the bed and the sight of the pillows, already fluffy and plump, nearly makes her cry. Though she can’t imagine laying down in a bed so comfortable and clean feeling as gross and grimy as she currently does.

Though, the sight of the bathroom honestly does make tears prick her eyes. There’s a massive claw foot tub, plush towels already stacked in a pyramid on the dark marble counter. There’s also a shower, rows of unlabeled jars and salves resting on the stone ledge. There’s a window that overlooks a staggering field dotted with trees and buildings and people, though Daisy is far enough up that she doubts anyone can see her like she can see them.

Daisy weighs her options for a moment before settling on the shower, promising to try out the tub before someone throws her out of Wakanda. The shower is heavenly, the water perfectly warm, and she feels clean, finally, for the first time in weeks. Her skin is raw and pink from all the scrubbing, but she smells pretty amazing, if she does say so herself. And the robe that she wraps herself in feels like a cloud.

When Daisy walks out of the bathroom, her first instinct is to raise her hand toward the person standing by the window in her room. But Daisy lowers it just as quickly. “Jemma,” she says, “are you okay?”

Jemma turns back to face her, startled by her sudden reappearance. “I promise I haven’t been here long,” she assures her. “I didn’t want to interrupt your shower and I was just-”

“Jemma, it’s fine,” Daisy assures her quickly. “You don’t have to…you know…act like we’re strangers or anything.”

Jemma smiles at her faintly, relief on her features. “I know, it’s strange, isn’t it?” She shakes her head. “I feel like a stranger to myself.”

Daisy nods. “Yeah, I know exactly what you mean.” Her brow furrows. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes,” Jemma says quickly, then adds, “Well, as okay as things can be, I guess. It’s just…strange being alone all of the sudden. After we’ve been sharing space for all this time.”

Daisy smiles slightly, biting the inside of her mouth to keep it from turning into a grin. “Aw, you miss me,” she teases. “I knew that cheap motel was good for something.”

Jemma rolls her eyes. “That motel wasn’t good for anything, I can assure you. Except maybe bedbugs.”

Daisy’s nose crinkles. “We definitely won’t be getting bedbugs from this place.”

Jemma turns back toward the window, letting her hands rest on the sill. There’s no glass, letting the warm breeze move freely through the room. “This is amazing, isn’t it?” She says. “It’s impossible to believe. It seems like a fairytale.”

“I’m willing to bet that bed is going to make me feel like a princess, at least,” Daisy says. “I mean, the shower is definitely princess-worthy.” She gives Jemma the once over. “I’m honestly impressed with your restraint right now.”

Jemma looks down at herself, taking in her wrinkled clothes, rumpled and grimy from interdimensional travel and the world’s cheapest motel. “I might be too tired to stand,” she admits.

“It’s worth it, trust me.” Daisy shoos her in the direction of the lavish bathroom.

Neither of them bother to question why Jemma can’t just use the perfectly good bathroom in her own perfectly good bedroom.

Daisy is testing out which of the pillows are the fluffiest when the door opens once more and Jemma emerges, hair dripping onto the plush shoulders of her bathrobe. She looks languid and serene, flushed and washed and new. Cleansed. “I never want to leave this place,” she says dreamily.

Daisy grins. “If we hide in one of these rooms they’ll probably never even realize we’re here at all.”

Jemma tilts her head toward the bed. “You look comfortable.”

Daisy sighs, snuggling deeper into the comforter and the mountain of pillows. “I’m probably going to sleep for the next seventy-five years honestly.”

She hesitates for a moment before adding, “If you want to stay in here…you can…I mean, you know, the rooms are so big and like you said we’ve kinda gotten used to staying together anyway and I mean why use two bedrooms when one will do and, you know, no pressure or anything but-”

“Okay,” Jemma says with a hint of a smile, stepping toward the bed. “I would be awfully lonely.”

Daisy grins, trying to ignore the relief she feels when Jemma climbs into the bed beside her. “Exactly. I mean I’m tempted to ask everyone else to come in too, just to really make it feel like home.”

Jemma rolls her eyes. “Well, I wouldn’t go that far.”

~ ~ ~

The next day -or days, honestly, Daisy isn’t entirely sure and seriously what is time anyway? Recent events have really proven that time is far from important- Shuri drags her toward the lab.

“I looked at those old gauntlets you brought with you,” Shuri says as she tugs Daisy down a swooping staircase that corkscrews through deep, glittering tunnels. Daisy is only half-listening, too busy staring at the world beyond the glass of the lab, at the very active mine with its vibranium. “No wonder you’ve been experiencing a severe physical toll from using your abilities.”

Daisy pulls her gaze away and back toward the Wakandan princess. “How do you know I’ve had problems with my powers?”

“You think I haven’t been doing my research?” Shuri grins. “You guys sleep too much, I had to do something to keep myself occupied. I’ve been watching old footage of Quake. Good name, by the way. But you can see it in the video footage, how you struggle after using your powers. Your tech is very outdated though, which is part of the problem.”

Judging by the lab and everything currently in progress, Daisy has a hard time believing that Shuri needed to look at amateur cell phone videos of Quake to keep herself occupied. “You designed all these things?”

Shuri waves her hand dismissively. “I’m in between projects right now,” she says, moving over toward a table. “Most of these things need an upgrade, but I’m working on it.”

Daisy touches a pair of gauntlets sitting on one of the smooth surfaces, the tops shaped like snarling panthers. “Okay I’m officially jealous,” she says. “I need to improve my style.”

“That’s what I’m here for,” Shuri assures her. “I’ve got a few new prototypes for you to try.”

If Shuri says anything more, Daisy honestly doesn’t take any of it in. If walking into the bathroom the day (days?) before had made her want to cry, this place makes her just want to lay down and never leave again. She’s desperate to sit down at one of the work stations and just peel back the layers of the many programs that Shuri has running. She wants to know what makes everything work, how these things are even possible at all. Her brain is humming with desperation and excitement and sheer curiosity. And she’s just as desperate to pick Shuri’s brain as well, to see what other marvels the girl has churning away in there.

“How?” Daisy is pretty sure that she intended to actually formulate a sentence but honestly that word pretty much encapsulates everything that really needs to be said anyway.

Shuri turns back toward her and grins, clearly enjoying her amazement. “Come, sit.” She pats the chair beside her. “You haven’t seen anything until you’ve seen the Sand Table.”

Daisy thinks that’s probably true, which is saying something considering how amazed she already is by what she’s seen.

The Sand Table, as promised, definitely blows her away. As do the new gauntlets that Shuri has put together for her, ones that fit like a glove and settle comfortable against her sore and constantly battered limbs.

“Your first gauntlets were a decent idea but were in definite need of some upgrading,” Shuri says, making a few adjustments to the gauntlets as they settle on Daisy’s arms. “These will help absorb the impact of your powers and distribute them more evenly throughout your body. They’ll also absorb and store the seismic waves, which will strengthen the magnitude of your quakes.”

Daisy grimaces, eyeing the devices uneasily. “I’m not sure I really need them to get any stronger…”

The sound of footsteps echoing from above distracts Shuri from her response and both she and Daisy look toward the spiraling staircase. Daisy is only slightly embarrassed by how her heart gives a little hop of excitement when she sees Jemma, who smiles at her in return. “I thought we might find you here.”

Fitz is trailing behind her, seeming equally as floored as Daisy had felt upon first stepping into the lab. Shuri gives him the once over, pursing her lips. She glances back toward Daisy. “More broken white boys?” She says under her breath, lifting an eyebrow to punctuate the question.

Daisy isn’t entirely sure how she’s supposed to respond to that statement but there’s something about it that definitely rings true. She can’t help but scoff, though she feels only slightly guilty about it.

But only slightly.

Shuri seems more than happy to show off her lab to all of them, tinkering with Daisy’s gauntlets and explaining her upgrades to Jemma and Fitz. “You had the right idea with the first ones,” Shuri tells Jemma. “But just because something works doesn’t mean it can’t work better. I tell my brother that all the time but does he listen to me? No.” She rolls her eyes.

“I can’t imagine anyone not listening to you,” Jemma remarks, shaking her head.

Shuri just laughs. “I like you,” she says. “Be sure you tell my brother that.”

~ ~ ~

Sunsets in Wakanda seem to be the most beautiful in the world. Daisy feels comfortable making that type of statement, seeing as she’s spent a lot of time in different places around the world. Mostly on SHIELD missions, of course, but still. Time to stop and enjoy a sunset or two.

But they’re nothing like the ones in Wakanda. The sun seems to stretch out across the entire world, bathing everything in rippling gold and molten orange, giving every human, plant and animal an ethereal shimmer.

Daisy doesn’t think she’ll ever get tired of them, despite the days they’ve already spent in Wakanda and the evenings that she’s spent exactly like this, sitting on the top of the palace, watching as night starts its steady decent across the country, Jemma sitting there beside her.

They’ve been sharing the bedroom since their arrival, despite repeated insistence from their hosts that they have plenty of room to spare. “Leave them alone, Brother,” Shuri had said in exasperation the night before at dinner, “if they want to be together, let them.”

The sentiment had rung particularly true with Daisy, settling in her stomach and refusing to leave her mind. If only it were really as simple as Shuri had made it seem, as if all she had to do was just admit her feelings to Jemma and everything else would just fall away.

Though, sitting here, watching the sunset, it feels like it really might be that easy, that anything could be possible.

“Jemma,” Daisy says, though she already knows before she even starts that she’ll chicken out before making any type of confession, “are you…okay? Really?”

Jemma looks at her, though she doesn’t seem surprised or confused by Daisy’s question. She just seems quietly resigned. “I will be,” she says with a nod. “I’m feeling pretty okay right now, honestly.”

Daisy smiles faintly. “I mean, it’s a great sunset.” It seems easier to say that than to hope that she might have anything to do with Jemma feeling temporarily content.

Though the soft way that Jemma smiles at her makes Daisy wonder.

“Yes,” Jemma says, reaching out and taking Daisy’s hand. “It is.”

They stay there until long after the sunset has set, until twilight has fallen and the stars have started appearing a thousand strong in the night sky, and Daisy can’t help but look down at Jemma’s hand still in hers and think that maybe Jemma knows exactly how she feels anyway.  

[four-pages-zine-blog]

Issue 1: Tass

How long have you had your store: I started officially selling clothes after I finished college in 2013 and moved back home to the suburban midwest, so I guess 5 years now! I was working at the local newspaper at the time but was looking for an extra way to kill time, not necessarily even to make money. I started with Poshmark and loved connecting with other people who liked similar clothes, which was actually kind of rare for where I lived. I loved being able to see people showcase their own style in the form of their own closets and let people “shop their closet”. I also became really interested in clothes trading, which I like doing with my irl friends, so the fact a lot of people were willing to trade items was also really cool to me and something I hadn’t seen before.

How would you describe your shop? I think the clothes I sell are kind of more one-off like something that would be worn as a funny statement piece - I love a bright color and bold pattern, power clashing, and anything rainbow, glittery or that can incorporate faux fur in a tasteful way. It’s pretty reflective of my midwestern lifestyle and probably the clothes I consistently have the most of are windbreakers and winter coats, the main way we can express ourselves here for half of the year or more… There are a few sticker art projects I have in my store that I started doing around 2012 out of boredom when I was still in school, the most prominent one probably being the 6 foot tall Britney Spears poster that’s completely covered in (vintage) Lisa Frank stickers but never intended to actually finish or take seriously. Over the years I used sticker collaging as a way to keep my mind off things and have it be a means to add color and vibrancy to otherwise more plain posters/art.

When I first opened my shop in 2013, I made a holographic wall out of posterboards to hang my clothes on and that was my first store display on Poshmark and Etsy and always tried to have unique ways to show my clothes ever since, and to change the look of my store at least once a year. I’ve wavered between thinking having consistent “branding” is best and thinking it’s best to change as my ideas change, and have ended up going with the latter at whatever expense that has had, resulting in my store bio now being “Hi I’m Crazy Branding” lmao. The last time I re-did my store I got a mannequin from the city off Craigslist that I painted hot pink and move around my yard or put against different backdrops/bright colored walls to model the clothes. At one point I put velcro on the back of all my stuffed animals plushies and trolls and stuck them to a white wall in my apartment I was living to use as the background. I used to love to bring around solo holographic poster boards to my friends’ houses before we went out so that we could all take pictures behind them as the backdrop, portable aesthetic is essential.

What era or year is your favorite in fashion? My favorite looks are early 90s minimalistic grunge but not too minimal - Black jeans, velvet dresses, and plain tees, all of that, but then on the flip side I love the super excessive part of those eras of fashion too, like rainbow everything and floating glitter inside plastic holographic accessories. My favorite outfit of all time is something my aunt gave me from her 80s closet, it’s a long elastic teal leopard mermaid-style skirt with a matching teal leopard flowy button down shirt, all cotton and polyester. I love outfits that are completely matching like that and have been seeing that lately in brands that I follow, so I hope that sticks.

What item of clothing in the world are you lusting after or saving up for?

One of those new robot dresses that react to your moods or whatever lmao but if I’m being more realistic there is a designer who I really love that I found on Instagram who knits beaded sweaters using like thousands of different colored beads and completely covers them. They’re works of art and I would love to have one some day and be able to support an artist too! I’m definitely always lusting after new pairs of plain black pleather platform (but not too high anymore) shoes. I love the brand Hot Lava and I guess if I'm saving up for one thing it would be their "Barbed" rainbow matching bralette/pants combo.

Favorite clothing brand/brands and why? Since I usually only buy thrift for myself these days, my favorite brands are probably just based on design only but I love Discount Universe and other sequins-covered clothes or otherwise outlandish/tacky patterns, especially if they’re owned/designed/produced by women - Wacky Wacko, I have the Tabloid Dress they made a few years ago and it’s one of my favorite of all time even though I never wear it I also LOVE everything from Big Bud Press and YardSale666 in general.

What music do you like, does it play a role in your personal style? The music I listen to most now is probably "experimental pop" and growing up I loved pop punk. Both of those have affected my style and stayed with me to this day, I still wear skinny jeans and slip on Van-style shoes most often no matter what else I’ve layered on top of it. I used to like to purposely wear edgy clothes and do my hair to provoke a reaction out of people when I was younger - my brother would pass down band shirts to me that said things like “What the F*** are you looking at?” (lol) and I would cut them off into a crop top and wear it with a super long high-waisted thrifted pink and purple plaid skirt. That was definitely my go-to outfit for like an entire summer straight. I’ve always liked clothes that makes a statement even if it’s in a literal way with words, clothes with a lot of text on them, and I really like the new wave of DIY embroidery, especially on thrifted or up cycled clothes. Band tee shirts were also just like a huge part of growing up for me, buying them at shows and collecting them and wearing them all the time. Also in my shop I have a guitar that I completely stickered/bejeweled which was one of my longest running projects that I really want to make more of. It was one of my brother's old acoustic guitars that he let me completely deck out and it perfectly combines the femme pop elements I love with an actual instrument. Music and fashion are so intertwined all the time I think, and clothes/accessories are something that always stuck out to me about singers and bands too! I love how fashion plays a role in music today too and can make or break an entire aesthetic or era.

Does living in your city/state inspire you? Where are you most creative? Yes lmao living in rural suburban Illinois actually inspires me a lot and I’m probably the most happily creative here. When I lived in the city, things were a lot more stressful so it made me work on a lot of projects to distract myself, but I eventually burned out from that pretty bad. I get inspired by midwestern people but mostly in a way that most people find cringey, I mocked it more when I was younger but now try to tastefully incorporate it into my looks. State Fair Chic is inspiring to me. My mom has a lot of handpainted and iron-on sweatshirts for different holidays that are staples of my closet. Living in the midwest and being bored definitely made me thrift more and imo makes the thrifting better, it made me always be working on craft projects, and always changing my hair and style.

What things do you love to create? I think my favorite things to create are entire rooms and looks, I like to make different aesthetics through combining colors, furniture and fabrics that all feel familiar even if it’s a little chaotic. My long term project with my bedroom was turning my walls of thrifted art (with 20-30 framed pictures) into matching colored frames that fit the whole look of the room, so I guess just really getting at the details of design. I think I’m pretty tacky so I like to stick to things that embody that and will always love stickering huge projects, painting everything plain into bright colors and incorporating anything I find thrifting or in the garbage into larger art aesthetics. My favorite thing to do is thrift and upcycle clothes, furniture, wall art, lamps, etc. anything that I see “potential” in lol.

Who are some of your favorite artists?: There are a ton of artists I follow that inspire me every day, definitely just “regular” people or like more lowkey artists. People who thrift or collect and refurbish toys are amazing to me and I love the doll community on IG. Witches or people I’ve met through astrology who are creating more spiritual art inspire me every day with their words and presentations. I also love comedians and movies, I love John Early and Kate Berlant and recently saw they collaborated with Peggy Noland and Seth Bogart of Wacky Wacko so that was iconic to me.

I collaborate a lot with my brother who has done a lot of graphic design stuff for me over the years. He makes resin toys of his own and designs t-shirts. He’s great at painting and drawing, two skills I never was good at that I really appreciate in him that he is always willing to lend a hand to me. He is two years older than me and went to school for advertising so exchanging ideas and doing projects with him is something I like to do too. He also has more of a background in music production so we recently started trying to make music together. We both love combining fashion and music!

What album do you recommend to pick up ASAP? Hayley Kiyoko - Expectations, hands down the vibe for summer

Follow Tass on Depop!

Depop.com/trashbitch 

[northpolenotes]

Great Gifts for 5 Year Old​ Girls��

Are you looking for a great birthday or holiday gift for little girls around the age of five years old? Do you have a niece or little girl turning 5 years old soon? Are you having trouble figuring out what to get for her?

Whether it’s for her birthday, special event, or holiday, there are certain gifts that are always a winner amongst this age group of girls.

My niece Layla LOVED all of these toys at 5 years old. Even now that she’s 9, she STILL plays with them. These aren’t toys that kids just simply grow out of because they allow for kids to use their imagination. That’s something we should never grow out of. Just ask all the YouTubers who play with them.

Here’s a list of Layla’s Favorite Toys!

Shopkins Cutie Cars

Have you heard of Shopkins? They’re miniature food and other inanimate objects with faces on them (depending on the “Season”). Shopkins comes out with new items and calls them seasons like shows. They also give them very cute names like Kooky Cookie, Lippy Lips, Strawberry Kiss, etc. Those are Layla’s favorites.

To expand on their brand, they came up with Cutie Cars. I gave these to Layla not only because she asked for them, but because it felt like a real gift. She asked for the figures, which was fine, but then what do you do with 30 miniature food items?

I felt like I was adding a creative element to her playtime with these Cutie Cars. They’re relatively inexpensive and they’re not cheaply made. It was a sound investment.

You get 3 cars per box, and they come in different themes. I bought her 3, Bumper Bakery, Candy Combo, and Pretty Performers. Here’s the list of choices:

Bumper Bakery

Breakfast Beeps Collection

Candy Combo

Fast and Fruity

Pretty Performers Collection

Dessert Drivers Collection

Freezy Rides

Speedy Style Collection

Check them out on Amazon:

Shopkins Cutie Cars

Num Noms

What is a Num Nom? Well, it’s two toys in one. They are little scented creatures that are filled with other creatures. Num Noms are in the surprise toy category which every kid is into nowadays.

Nums are the outer portion of the toy. They’re soft, squishy, and hollow. They’re nested on top of the Noms which are hard shells. They Noms are either mobile with tiny wheels on them or they’re filled with lip gloss.

Like Shopkins, Num Noms come out with different characters and are featured in Series. This set below is Season 4, featuring:

10 scented Nums (outer) in a variety of flavors, including one mystery Num

Two scented glitter lip gloss Noms

Reuseable lunchbox package as a storage case

Num Noms are also great for imaginary play and are often depicted on YouTube as mischevious characters. I’m not really sure why, maybe it’s because of how they look, but it’s how Layla always played with them, often with her Shopkins.

Check them out on Amazon:

Num Noms

Hatchimals

What is a Hatchimal? A Hatchimal is a robotic pet that hatches from an egg.

When you first buy the toy it’ll be encased in its hard egg shell. DO NOT put it in the microwave or try to drill it open. It will break and then you’ll be out $$.

There are directions inside on how to care of the Hatchimal to get to break through its shell to come out and play. You must care for it by rubbing, holding, and cradling it to get it to crack.

I bought this gift when my nieces and nephews were still living in Maryland and I was in New York. So although I got to see the unveiling of the gift, I didn’t get to see how long it took for them to get the egg open. However, it did come out. According to the company it takes approximately 20 minutes for the egg to hatch on its own.

What’s so cool about this toy is that it has stages of life. The toy doesn’t grow, but it’s abilities develop. Each Hatchimal will eventually learn how to walk, talk, and play games like peek a boo. There are five stages: egg, hatching, baby, toddler, and kid.

They come with everything you need: 2 AA batteries, an official Hatchibirth certificate, 4 accessories, an instruction booklet & cheat sheet.

Check it out on Amazon:

Hatchimals

Baby Alive

Baby Alive is a great gift for a five-year-old because she’s not just a regular doll. She’s a doll that little girls can feed and change because she asks for it!!

Little girls can practice their nurturing skills with this doll. They can make her food in the Baby Alive blender, feed her, give her a bottle, and change her diapers because she actually pees and poops.

I opted for Baby Alive Spoonfuls because the other one uses playdoh as her food. There were customer complaints about that food getting stuck in the doll and never coming out. I didn’t want to deal with that and my sister hates Playdoh so I went with this one instead.

The food is powder and is mixed with water which seems to go down pretty easily and doesn’t get stuck in the doll.

The diapers can be used a few times, but eventually they need to be thrown away. Layla got some hand me down diapers when her brothers outgrew the ones that they were in. That worked out well for her.

Note that this doll DOES NOT talk.

Check it out on Amazon:

Baby Alive 

LOL Surprise Dolls

LOL Surprise Dolls are very popular with little girls. The LOL isn’t laughing out loud like in text. It stands for little outrageous littles. However, you might laugh once you find out the secret to each doll.

They love the anticipation of finding out what’s inside the spherical egg. The packaging of the LOL Dolls prevents anyone from seeing the actual doll. Hence the name Surprise Doll.

Each doll is encased in a plastic ball and then sealed with plastic wrapping. You’ve gotta do a little work to open them and that builds on the surprise.

Once open and revealed, you’ll find 7 surprises!

secret message sticker

collectible stickers

water bottle

shoes

outfit

fashion accessory

L.O.L. Surprise! glam glitter doll

So what does this LOL Surprise Doll do? Well, that’s another surprise. You have to put her in water to find out. After she’s been dunked in the water you’ll discover if she cries, spits, tinkles, or color changes!

It’s a fun toy since there are so many surprises that go along with this gift. The only negative is you’re not sure (when you buy more than one) if you’ll be getting duplicates of the same. On a positive note, Layla just treats the duplicates as twin sisters.

Each ball that the doll is designed for more play. It becomes a little carrying case, doll display, or hang out and bathtub.

I’m not sure how many Layla has collected by now, but she LOVES every one of them.

Check it out on Amazon:

LOL Surprise Dolls

Littlest Pet Shop

Layla was turned on to Littlest Pep Shop toys (LPS) by her cousin Lola. Both are obsessed with animals and so it’s no surprise that they like playing with the toy versions.

They both love that you can pop their heads off and put them on different bodies. Think the puppy head should now be on the duck’s body? No problem!

This LPS toy is an Amazon exclusive with 15 pets inside!!

armadillo

4 dogs

duck

fawn

guinea pig

turtle

hippo

meercat

fox

bear

mouse

cat

What’s also special about this LPS set is that it comes with a special cat, named Ziza Glitterton. She’s a scannable pet so girls can also play within the LPS Your World app. She can play games and level up with this virtual pet to unlock new rooms and accessories in the app. It’s a cool addition to the regular LPS dolls.  

Check it out on Amazon:

Littlest Pet Shop

Of course there are also FREE gifts that can go along with these toys.

Try writing her a letter. It’s a gift that they can hold on to forever. Loving words are never outgrown!

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Need Help Getting Started? Enter your email address below and get 3 Letter To Your Niece or Nephew Templates

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Email Address *

(function($) {window.fnames = new Array(); window.ftypes = new Array();fnames[0]='EMAIL';ftypes[0]='email';fnames[1]='FNAME';ftypes[1]='text';fnames[2]='LNAME';ftypes[2]='text';fnames[3]='ADDRESS';ftypes[3]='address';fnames[4]='PHONE';ftypes[4]='phone';}(jQuery));var $mcj = jQuery.noConflict(true);

Does your niece love to color? Layla always asks me to draw her different things so that she can color them in! She loved my animals so much that I decided to create an entire book for my readers. Enter your email address for a FREE hand-drawn, coloring ebook – A-Z Animals!

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Get Your Free A-Z Animal Coloring Book!

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Email Address *

First Name

(function($) {window.fnames = new Array(); window.ftypes = new Array();fnames[0]='EMAIL';ftypes[0]='email';fnames[1]='FNAME';ftypes[1]='text';fnames[3]='ADDRESS';ftypes[3]='address';fnames[4]='PHONE';ftypes[4]='phone';}(jQuery));var $mcj = jQuery.noConflict(true);

I hope that you’ve found the perfect gift for your 5-year-old girl in your life. Layla loves each and every one of these toys and continues to get great use of out them. I often peek in on her to find that she combines these toys so that they all play together. Her imagination never ceases to amaze me.

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