#rei is allowed to feel conflicted about it but me as a player personally i wish he died . !! anyway

[vendarkoe]

playing slow damage rn why'd they have my beautiful genderqueer king cut off his hair at the end of his route what are we doing to our queens

[sanjisboyfie]

when you know, you know.

-> basketball player gojo satoru x male reader

requested!!! a rlly old req from an anon in my inbox <3 ty for the req and jm so sorry it took so long however the 6k+ word count hopefully makes up for that. + listen to margaret by lana del rey on repeat for the full affect

-> prev

warnings : satoru ooc (i do NOT agree w that warning but i GUESS I could see why someone would disagree 🙄🙄🙄), very fluffy to the point it seems angsty!!! talk about the homosexuals!!!! satoru mentions small familial conflict in the interview portion

diamond on your ring

cause when you know, you know

when you know, you know

“thank you so much for agreeing to a sit down interview, gojo-sama,” the interviewer politely bows to the tall man the second satoru walks into the room. immediately, he bows in response, finding the sudden formalities almost abnormal.

at this point, he was so used to other interviews he’d done be super quick, informal and just reporters looking for answers to their questions with little regard for things such as respect.

this was a breath of fresh air, but satoru couldn’t help but feel bad for the interviewer whose back must be hurting now with how long they’d been bowing.

“oh, please, no need for such strong formalities,” satoru chimed in, gently resting his hand on their shoulder to goad them into standing upright, “gojo is fine, too, no need for the honorifics. it’s not like i’m royalty,” he joked, hoping to lift the mood in the room.

it seemed to work as the interviewer finally cracked a smile and dropped their shoulders from being so stiffly held up to their ear.

“then, gojo-san, please take a seat and we can get you all mic’d up for the interview. it should take no longer than a half hour, longest running an hour and a half, but we really don’t want to take up too much of your time,” satoru shook his head, assuring them that it was fine and then taking his seat.

he noticed that the cameras were already filming, but didn’t think twice on it. technically, from the moment he stepped foot in the room, the interview already started. that’s what it said on paper, at least.

“erm, to just go over what we might be discussing in this interview,” the reporter said, clearing their throat as they looked over their list of questions, “since this is a very specific interview, the questions are going to mainly be centered around your romantic relationships and very personal questions,”

satoru nodded, moving in his seat to allow the staff better access in getting the microphone to stay hidden in his clothes, “yeah, my manager sent me the general idea of questions of stuff you’d be asking, it’s alright with me,” he said, taking off his sunglasses, “plus i think i’m pretty familiar with the publisher and the audience, so it’s alright. really, ask me anything, this would probably the only time i’d do something like this,” he encouraged with a friendly smile, trying to show his genuinity.

the interviewer nodded in understanding, clicking their pen and writing a note in their notepad.

satoru had done his research beforehand. the publisher that was interviewing him, or rather the person interviewing him in steed of the company, was a pretty vocal LGBTQ+ company. it was a rare occurance in japanese media, especially as a standalone party, but they proved successful. satoru knew why they were interviewing him, obviously because he was gay and very outwordly apart of the community. he also knew that they were always respectful individuals, which is why he didn’t hesitate in accepting the interview.

if he was going to be asked about his sexuality and his very much gay relationship, he’d rather it be done through a respectful, and most likely very understanding, person rather than those that would shout at him invasive questions.

“then, are you ready, gojo-san?” the interviewer snapped him out of his daydream, making him nod his head. “let’s test the mic really quick, then we can jump into it,”

“i am gojo satoru,” he recited, looking at the staff for a thumbs up on the feedback. when he got a positive thumbs up, the interviewer followed with their own test and then they were able to get into the interview.

“let’s start with introductions, i’m ishii haruto and i’ll be the one interviewing you today, gojo-san. lovely to meet you,” he bowed his head in greeting, making satoru follow suit.

a relaxed grin was on his face as he introduced himself again, “i haven’t said it before, but i’m gojo satoru,” it was a small joke that uplifted the mood of the room once more. haruto appreciated it, laughing to himself at satoru’s subtle charisma.

”well, to get right into the interview, let’s start with hard hitting questions,” satoru braced himself, clenching his fists in his pant’s pocket, “how are you?”

satoru smiled, shooting a fake warning look haruto’s way, “i’m wonderful, how are you ishii-san? i hope you’re doing well, too,”

“i’m doing very well. it’s an honor to interview you, thank you for giving us this opportunity,” haruto said, subtly bowing his head once more, “you truly don’t understand how inspiring it will be for the rest of japan to hear your story, you’re doing such a big thing for all of us in this room, and for those that will read this interview later. so, really, thank you, gojo-san,”

satoru pursed his lips at the sentimentality, realizing quickly that this interview was going to be really different than anything he’d ever experienced before. “sobering” up a little bit, he smiled at haruto and nodded his head, “i’m happy to be here, too. i hope whoever reads this learns something about themselves,”

“yes, that will be the end goal,” haruto agreed before looking down at his notepad, “well, i guess we can just start off with this one — when did you know you were gay?”

satoru hummed, “i don’t really know. for me, i guess it was always in the back of my mind? i mean, i never had a crush on a girl growing up. and i thought it was normal. my parents did as well, seeing how driven i was from a young age to be successful in basketball, i think they wrote it off as me just being determined to make my dreams come true. no time for distractions, or something like that. but deep down, i think i always knew.” he paused, crossing his legs as he decided to add one more tidbit, “and i never thought it was wrong, either. to me, having a crush on a boy wasn’t a big deal. i just thought, huh, this sucks i like someone, i might get distracted from basketball now,”

the two shared a laugh at his joking remark at the end, but until that point the interviewer was very immersed in the personal story. he was even humming in acknowledgement of everything he was saying, as if he related.

“so when you began pursuing your current boyfriend, it was not a big deal for you? even given your position as a famous basketball player?” then haruto looked at the camera men and held his hand up, a signal of some sort that satoru was cued in on, and leaned forward, “would it be alright if we refer to him with his name?”

satoru quickly nodded, understanding now that the hand gesture meant for their mics to be cut so that they wouldn’t receive any audio.

then they were back on and satoru answered the original question, “no, it wasn’t a huge deal. well, it was to everyone else, i guess. but to me and my close friends, it wasn’t. they already knew i was really into him and had a big crush on him before i did, so it really wasn’t a big shock when i made my efforts more obvious. well, as obvious as you can get with having everyone watching you. i tried to reel it in a little when my friend’s told me he may not be comfortable with all the attention, that was the only time i really was aware of it and began to calm down on my advances,”

“oh, so it wasn’t a big deal to you, but in consideration of his feelings, you kind of held back a little bit?”

“yeah, because if things ended up not working out, then all the neutral attention we were getting would have become negative. rumors could’ve started that would’ve hurt him, and i definitely didn’t want that, so yeah,” satoru said, reiterating his main point from earlier, “i just wanted him to be comfortable whenever we were in public,”

“that’s really considerate of you, gojo-san,” the interviewer complimented, making satoru laugh with a wave of his hand.

“he never asked for all the attention in the first place, i definitely didn’t want to make our already secretive position more hostile than it needed to be,” satoru explained, “so everything had to be toned down. fortunately, he was very understanding and could see where i was coming from.”

“what do you mean by that? did he ever say anything about it?”

“well, we’re just like any other couple. we just want privacy and respect, some people don’t want to give it to us. those people that just want to hurt our relationship just because we’re both guys. if i wasn't as famous as i am, i’d imagine it’d be easier to mange. not that it still wouldn’t be stressful — but at least, not the entire country would be breathing down our necks,” satoru explained, choosing his words carefully. “no matter what, though, if you’re in a relationship with someone of the same sex, it’s going to be hard.”

“that’s true, but you two have faced a lot of very hard obstacles. it’s sad how many times people have wished to see you two broken up,” haruto said, an angry look on his face, “how did you two manage to overcome those obstacles?”

“well, we had each other, loved ones, and close friends as support systems. they were really helpful and sweet, they were the most understanding. but i think, the most important one, was that we had each other. we were in it together. not to say that all the negative attention was good or even worth it, but it made our love for one another stronger,” satoru sighed, thinking about the early days when he was first officially dating [name], “i just wish they were nicer to him. he didn’t deserve any of it,”

there was a pause of respect from haruto before they continued on, “you said you had support of loved ones and close friends — were they supportive from the get-go or did it take “convincing” for them to understand?”

“most of them were really understanding and could see that my love for him was too strong to be denied, so that was nice. but there were definitely instances of family members not understanding or simply refusing to support,” satoru answered with a grim look on his face.

“how did you deal with that?”

“well, it was mainly family members, unfortunately, that rejected my lifestyle. so i had to do the best thing and cut them off. i couldn’t have them in my ear telling me that i wasn’t meant to be this way or that [name] and i’s relationship had to be put to a stop. so i cut them off completely and haven’t spoken to them since. i could afford to make that sacrifice since i had [name] and others as support. he really helped me through that and the realization that not everyone will understand or see it as we do…you just have to learn how to deal with it in each situation and circumstance,”

haruto hummed in intrigue and understanding, “was it hard? cutting them off and coming to that realization?”

“i would say it wasn’t as hard as one would think…not when i love [name] so much i’d sacrifice anything to be with him. i wasn’t going to settle for anything passive aggressive or half-assed when it came to support of my relationship with him. like i said, i wasn’t going to let anyone bad mouth him or our relationship, i wouldn’t settle for that in exchange of keeping blood relatives around. even if someone is family, if they hurt someone i love, it still counts for something. they’re still hurting him and in turn hurting me. that’s not family anymore,” satoru said definitively. he had a hard look on his face. almost the one that was only mirrored whenever he was on the court. it showed how serious of a topic it was to him.

“seeing you so be so openly protective and in love with your boyfriend has gotten you two a lot of attention over the years, most of it is praise from others since they do think it’s adorable. does affection that you show [name] come very naturally?”

“of course it does,” satoru grinned, happy to move onto more lighthearted topics. he had the widest grin on his face now, thinking of when he would go home and cuddle his boyfriend, “i’m a very affectionate person, anyway. ask suguru, he’ll tell you,” with the reference to his best friend, who plays on the same team as him, haruto grins, “but i made sure that [name] was comfortable with it first and then went on from what he was okay with, until we got to the point right now where we both don’t really care,

if i know i’m in love with my boyfriend, i want other people to know as well. there was a bad rep surrounding me, in my early days especially. everyone thought i was a playboy, for some reason,” he shyly scratched the back of his head, “so i thought that me showing that i was very loyal and very much in love with my boyfriend, people would stop thinking that of me. and it worked! so, it was a win-win situation,”

haruto nods, looking at his cue cards with a grin, “and you two have had a really long relationship-”

“almost coming on 5 years now,” satoru giggles, a blush evident on his pale cheeks, “it doesn’t feel that long, though,”

“yeah, it’s as if it was only yesterday the two of you made it public and sent everyone into a panic,” the two laugh at the memory. the headlines that day going hysterical over the basketball player’s very much gay personal life. “and since you’ve been in a relationship for so long, has it ever crossed your mind to tie the knot permanently? settle down with [name]?”

satoru paused, the smile on his face faltering ever so slightly as he repeated the question in his mind.

marriage with [name] always was the answer. but, the idea of when and where and how never crossed satoru’s mind. well, it did. in repeated passing thoughts. but, never long enough for him to commit to the idea. he’s thought of how he would do it, where, but never really when. and even then, the how and where were never set in stone. he wanted it to be romantic, definitely had to be something that the two would retell to their kids one day as the most romantic and loving gesture satoru has ever done.

but “when”…satoru never put a pin in the calendar on what date.

he hummed where he sat, resting his chin in his palms as he thought about how to answer.

“huh, well…i know i’m going to marry him someday,” satoru assures the interviewer, who was silently panicking that they had accidentally asked a question too invasive, “but, i think i’ll keep the details of that to myself, haha,” satoru played it off as a tease, but internally he was sweating bullets.

there was never going to be a right time. a right time insinuates a moment where satoru is so overwhelmed with love that a proposal would be the only verbal indicator of that feeling.

but, satoru has been so madly and deeply in love with [name] for so long already that the “right time” feels like every waking moment.

when the two moved in together, made that huge, empty house a home for themselves. when he took [name] on their first overseas trip and they learned even more about each other. when satoru takes him home for the holidays where he just so perfectly matches with his family members and comes even more out of his shell.

satoru’s been so in love with [name] for so long it feels like they’re already married. [name] knows him like the back of his hand and vice versa.

it was as if he always knew. he just knew in the back of his mind that they’d end up standing in perfectly tailored suits at the end of the aisle, saying heartfelt and cheesy vows to each other. satoru knows he’ll probably end up crying more than [name] and he knows that that day will be the happiest he’ll ever be.

the question made his head spin around as a flurry of questions of when he would propose filled his head, but it did solidify one thing. the fact that satoru just knows that one day he’ll end up being [name]’s husband and [name] his. and he wants that day to come sooner rather than later.

”well, i think the final question for our interview today that can wrap this up, will be: do you have any advice for young aspiring individuals that might read this and see this side of you?”

satoru gulped, suddenly feeling as if the temperature in the room had gone up twenty degrees. he tugged on the collar of his button up, swallowing as he spoke carefully, “just always be true to yourself and your dreams. it doesn’t matter what other people think because if you know what you want and you know that it’s your dreams on the line, there shouldn’t be anything standing between you and that goal. whether it be a person you want to pursue or if it’s your dream career, don’t give up.” he attempted a smile at haruto and it seemed to have done its work as the interviewer bowed his head deeply in gratitude.

the two finished the closing remarks of the interview with fluidity. he handed the mic back to the staff, who thanked him with their heads bowed. but before he could leave, he pulled haruto aside and lowered his voice, “uhm, could you hold off on publishing this for a while?”

haruto blinked rapidly, a nervous look coming onto his face, “well, the editing and transcription of the video will take some time, probably a little over a month…how long were you thinking of keeping it under wraps, gojo-san?”

it was a plead to not make him push the publication date back further. satoru hums, “a little over a month?”

“yes, that is what my advisor gave me as a “grace” period in editting everything,” haruto nods, the nervous look on his face not disappearing once.

“that should be alright then, sorry for worrying you. a little over a month is fine,” satoru grins, feeling his chest bloom with warmth. “thank you so much for the interview, have a lovely day,”

and with that parting farewell, satoru rushed out of the building with his mask and sunglasses on and practically jumped into his car.

in the safety confines of his car, satoru rested his head against the wheel. his breathing was rapid and his cheeks were ablaze. was he really going to do this? he looked at his phone that had the directions sent to the nearest luxury jewelry shop, his eyes flitting across the screen to take all the information in.

“seriously, satoru?” he panted to himself, leaning back to his seat and looking up at his car roof, “it took some guy interviewing you to grow the balls to do this? really?”

he cursed himself for waiting so long, setting his car into reverse and speeding his way to the shop. he had his sunglasses, hat, and mask on as he exited his car, careful to try and not attract too much attention. if the media caught light of this before he could properly do it, he would have someone’s head on a spike - he didn’t care.

no one was ruining this for him. for [name], too. satoru wasn’t going to let the stupid papparazzi tarnish this moment, as they had done for so many other intimate ones before this.

satoru grit his teeth, pushing the shop door open and breathing a sigh of relief to find that it was empty. he looked at the displays they had out, acting calm when on the inside he was sweating bullets.

“looking for anything in particular?” the attendent asked him, not at all acknowleding his appearance which meant that his disguise had worked.

he cleared his throat, still looking down as he shakily replied, “wedding rings, wedding rings for men, please,”

thank god the attendent wasn’t an asshole or else satoru might’ve really just slammed his head into the wall in frustration. because the attendent just guided him in the direction of where the men’s wedding rings were. he didn’t speak more either, just hovering around in case satoru needed help.

“fuck,” he cursed under his breath, trying his hardest to focus and think about which one [name] would like the most. “fuck, what if i get him one he doesn’t like? what the fuck does that mean for us? oh my god,” he panicked.

and it was almost funny. a 6’6 lean guy practically clutching his chest to stop his heart from jumping out of his ribs and flopping around on the floor. he was seriously getting heart palpitations, satoru swore this is the most nervous he’s ever been in his life.

what the fuck would he say when he actually proposes?

“i love you, marry me?”

fuck no. gojo satoru wasn’t going to settle for a shit proposal like that. and he certainly wasn’t going to settle for a shitting ring either, but it was so stressful thinking of whether or not his boyriend (manifest: soon to be fiance) would like the one he picked out.

satoru never was the one with good fashion or style sense in the relationship.

he was freaking out.

some of the rings on display were too loud and extravagant that he knew [name] wouldn’t enjoy it, but then going for someting super, duper plain was out of the question.

“do you have a particular agenda in mind?”

“i have nothing in my mind right now,” satoru snapped at the worker, apologizing seconds later, “i’m sorry, i’m just really stressed right now.”

“it’s alright, many are when they come in. they see the displayed rings and get self-conscious of the one that they choose. well, just go with your gut feeling on what you and your partner would like. that’s the best advice i can give you. you know them best, after all,”

this fucking attendent was right, satoru knows his own boyfriend (manifest: soon to be fiance) better than anyone. he just has to see something to spark an inspiration in him.

and he thinks he’s found it when he looks at a particular timeless piece that is cushioned on a small red velvet pillow.

“what can you tell me about that one?” satoru asked, although he’s almost completely set on just buying it right now. it was perfect. the coupled ring that pairs with it was also so effortlessly something he would love to wear as well.

”that one is in the style of an eternity ring, with the VVS diamonds cut into an emerald shape, obviously. the metal is platnium with 11 carats,” the attendent skillfully answers, “goes for about 9,871,750 yen ($70,000 USD). we offer installment plans, though-”

“no, i’ll just take it, thanks, though,” satoru said, easily sliding his card over. “i also want the paired one too,”

“that one is-”

“you don’t have to tell me about it or the price, just box them pretty for me and i’ll be on my way,” satoru grinned, looking at the bills he had in his wallet and pulling out a couple 10,000 yen notes, (adding up to about 200,000 yen - $1,417 USD). as the attendent very meticulously packaged the rings safely, satoru slid over the cash to him.

“thanks for helping,” satoru said, tapping his card and approving the transaction before walking out of the store. the hefty cash tip left on the counter for the attendent to gleam at.

and if he thought that the picking the ring part was hard, now he had to come up with how he was actually going to propose.

he always said that he wanted it to be romantic, but with [name] already waiting at home there was no way he could set something up at their own house. and, honestly, he wanted this to not be so public in fear of it leaking to the headlines. so he would have to settle with making it romantic in his home.

but, the more he thought about it, the more carefree he felt in the atmosphere. as long as [name] was just there exisisting, that was all he could ask for. satoru carefully pocketed the velvet box into his pant leg, keeping the pair safe as he drove back home completely undetected by papparazzi.

when he got home, he had to stop himself from automatically calling out to his boyfriend (manifest: soon to be fiance). the “honey, i’m home,” died in the back of his throat, thankfully, so his arrival home was still a secret. he took off his shoes and walked up the stairs to their shared bedroom where [name] was most likely resting.

it wasn’t too late, but by now his bedtime routine was probably done and he was getting comfortable in bed.

and satoru’s assumptions were right because when he gently pushed the bedroom door open, he saw [name] cuddled into a pillow and watching the TV that was set up against the wall. upon closer inspection, satoru saw that the pillow he was cuddling was actually from his side of the bed. he was cuddling his pillow as he waited for him to come home.

that, unfortunately, made satoru breakdown in tears almost right away. his eyes stung with the salty fluid breaking through his composure. [name] was too far to notice, though, simply lifting his head and waving him over with a loving smile, “you’re home! wow, you were so quiet i barely heard you come in,”

and when satoru just silently stood at the doorway, his hand covering his mouth, that made [name] get up out of bed in worry.

“hey, are you okay? what happened?” then he saw the way satoru’s broad shoulders shook, rushing over and holding him in his arms in an instant, “was it the interviewer? are you okay, satoru? talk to me,” satoru only broke down more, making [name] comfortingly rub up and down his back with “shh”s slipping from his mouth every now and then.

“satoru, are you okay?” [name] worriedly asked, gently pulling him towards the bed and urging him to sit. once the tall man was sat down, he immediately wrapped his arms around him again, hugging him as tight as he could to give him some sort of comfort, “you’re scaring me, satoru, what happened?”

satoru took a couple of seconds to collect himself, holding onto [name] in his arms as a means of grounding himself. but if anything, it made it worse. he was reminded that [name] was really real and not some figment of his imagination. he wasn’t just some “dream” guy, he was real and he was his.

[name] was sitting in their bed with him and comforting him lovingly. he was real and satoru never felt as lucky as he did than right now in this moment.

“nothing happened,” satoru breathed out, pulling [name] back from his torso so that he could properly speak to him. “i’m okay, really,”

“satoru, you’re crying. it’s okay, you can tell me,” [name] said softly, pushing his wet bangs aside and looking into his teary blue eyes, “it’s okay,”

satoru bit his lip, admiring the features of his boyfriend for a couple more seconds. how gentle his touch was, the hand caressing his face only having the lightest featherlike feeling against his skin. how concerned his e/c eyes were, staring into him and understanding him like no one else ever has.

he is so beautiful, satoru thought to himself. he squeezed [name]’s hand that was resting in his lap, making the man look down at their joined fingers.

”satoru?”

“i just,” he took in a deep breath, “i love you so much, you know that right?”

he almost laughed at the suggestion, but [name] politely nodded instead, “of course i know that, you show me everyday. i love you, too,”

satoru nuzzled his cheek further into [name]’s touch, relishing in the way the man’s warmth fell onto his skin.

“i love you so much, i’d do anything for you,” satoru breathed out, looking past his wet white eyelashes and into [name]’s concern eyes, “i’d do anything, i mean it. i love you so, so, so much [name],”

“satoru, you’re really scaring me. what’s going on?”

“nothing bad, i promise. just, please, let me?” satoru begged, voice hoarse and tight as he pleaded with [name]. and with a patient nod coming from the man, he continued on, “you’ve made me so happy, happier than i’ve ever been, these past couple of years. you deal with me and my annoying bullshit everyday, you make sure i’m healthy and happy even when you’re so tired. you always take care of me, more than i give you credit for and i’m sorry that i’m so selfish sometimes. but, i promise i’ll do better. i’ll be better, for you. anything you want me to be, i’ll work so hard in becoming, for you. i want to make you as happy as you make me,” satoru gulps, feeling his throat closing up and his tears welling back up, “i love you so much, [name],”

taking in all of his words, [name]’s eyebrows furrowed in confliction. he still didn’t know if he should be concerned and worried or just let satoru go on. but then he felt his own eyes well up with tears when he felt how sincere satoru was being. how tight his large hand was holding his own, as if he were afraid that he’d slip away if his grip on him loosened even the slightest.

even when he tried lifting that hand up to wipe his tears away, satoru didn’t let him, keeping a steady grip on his hand. instead, his slender fingers came up to the side of his face and wiped the tears away with a calm smile on his face.

“you make me so happy, [name]. and i'm so happy to be here with you. you make everything worth it,” satoru said softly, “you love me so gently, so softly — unlike anyone else in my life has. you’re my entire world. i don’t know what i’d do without you here. i know i’m meant to stay by your side forever. i know my place in the world is wherever you are.”

there was a pause as now both of them were crying messes.

[name]’s eyes were shut as he tried to wipe his stream of tears away. so he didn’t see the way satoru dug through his pocket to take out the velvet box. and he didn’t see the way his hands shook as he propped the box to be open, didn’t see how nervous satoru looked in the moment of unveiling the ring.

what he did see though was the ring blaringly presenting itself to him and a grinning, crying satoru behind it. he heard the words leave his lips, “let’s stay together forever, okay? please, marry me, [name],”

and [name] didn't react.

not immediately. he was too shocked. his jaw had dropped and he looked between the ring and satoru, who was still happily crying. then, finally, he snapped out of it and enclosed his arms around his boyfriend’s (fiance’s?) neck and sobbed into his skin, “yes, yes, yes,” over and over.

satoru cried more, this time a smile on his face as he cried into the air. he felt the stream of wet tears go down his neck, but he didn’t pay them any mind. he only held [name] closer by his waist in a suffocating embrace.

he didn’t know if he believed in multiple universes theory, whatever that was, but he just wishes that if it were true: he’d find [name] in every single one. [name] was his one and only comfort in the hectic life that he lives, the one stable root that keeps him grounded.

the two seperated, smiling and laughing with each other as they messily kissed in celebration. when they pulled away, [name] and satoru watched as the latter shakily slipped the ring onto the former’s ring finger. and the h/c haired man had to cover his mouth once more at the sight. it was slightly loose, running on the bigger side, but it was perfect. he didn’t care. it could have been a paper ring and it would have been perfect.

“i love you satoru, so much, you don’t understand,”

“i love you more,” the other softly breathes out, staring at [name]’s ringed finger with pride, “more than you’d ever know.”

the two smiled and laughed at their confessions, joining in another hug as they were high off of their dopamine. wordlessly, satoru collapsed onto the bed with [name] laying on top of him. and as he took the other velvet box out, he tried slipping the ring onto his finger. but it didn’t even fit on his ring finger, so he had to work with it on his pinky.

“it’s kind of cute that way,” [name] says in amusement, comparing their hand size and laughing at the difference, “i like it,”

“if you like it that way, we can keep it this size, then,” satoru said simply, kissing the top of [name]’s head.

“wear it however you want to, satoru, it’s your ring,” [name] chides him, looking up to softly glare at him.

“the ring doesn’t mean anything by itself, you're the one that gives it meaning,” satoru says, squeezing [name]’s shoulders to bring him closer, “if you like it on the pinky, it stays on the pinky.”

rolling his eyes and deciding that nothing is going to get through his fiance’s head, [name] gave up on challenging satoru. instead, he cuddled closer into his side and breathed in his faint cologne and natural scent.

“i love you, satoru. my dear fiance,” he said into the fabric of his dress shirt, smiling against satoru’s ribs as he repeated the phrase in his head.

satoru didn’t bother biting back his smile as he tilted [name]’s head up to look up at him. he kissed him softly, gently moving their lips against each other in a passionate kiss. and when he pulled away, he made sure to keep eye contact as he said, “i love you more, [name], my dear fiance,”

[ready-to-obeyme]

I see that ask is open! I've been thinking what if MC decides to stay with the demons forever, after all she's only human, years will pass and she will keep aging, losing her beauty and becoming more fragile, while the demons will remain young and handsome. Can you write about MC sharing this concern with the demon brothers and how they'd react to it ❤️ "Would you still love me when I'm old and ugly"

Scenario: “Would you still love me when I’m old and ugly?” + Demon Brothers Reactions

//the theme of devotion and dedication ALWAYS has me emo; I ADORE this prompt, so thanks for sending this in! I’m a real sucker for the immortal/mortal relationship conflicts 

let me know what you think! :)

starts singing Young and Beautiful by Lana del Rey 

Note: I kept it gender neutral “you” as per usual! 

--

Lucifer

“Yes,” Lucifer says to you, taking your hand and pressing his lips to your knuckles. “And I’ll continue to love you even after. Death will not stop me from loving you, let alone how your face may change-- though I dare say I’d still think you’d be beautiful regardless.”

Calm as ever on the outside-- especially if you’re evidently concerned about this. He won’t hesitate to ensure that you know that his love goes far beyond what you look like on the outside or to how capable/strong you are. Lucifer refuses to hear anything self-deprecating, and he will NEVER let you doubt that he loves you as you are. (He’s real good at smooth-talking AND dirty-talk-- don’t test him or do.) Body worship probably becomes more of a regular thing because he really does adore every part of you because they make you you.  

When he’s alone with his thoughts though, his mind tends to wander and it scares him to think that one day he will lose you, but it makes him cherish the times you do have together even more. He surprisingly is indulgent to a lot more of your whims thereafter and tries harder to not let work get in the way of being with you. If anything, this concern of yours has reminded him that time is finite for you, so he’d like to be able to spend the rest of your life with you, if you’d allow it. 

-

Mammon

Mammon is actually a little indignant and goes on a tangent because the thought of even not being in love with you is just… not possible to him. Who cares if you’ve got a few wrinkles? Who cares if you need a little help walking? You’re still going to be the person he fell in love with.  

“First of all,” he starts, fuming, “you’re never gonna be ugly to me-- so get that squared away, alright?” 

“Secondly, when you’re old, I’m gonna be there for you. No matter what!” 

“Thirdly,” he says, surprisingly serious. “there’s nothin’ in all three realms that would make me fall out of love with ya. I’m crazy for you, can’t you see?”

He’s definitely a little embarrassed after that outburst (especially if that was in public), but he needs to let you know that you’re important to him. He can’t have you think for a second that his feelings will waver the moment something changes-- he’s your first man FOR LIFE. Forgive him for being a little extra the next few days; he’s going to compliment you for everything you wear and probably get into squabbles with anyone who says otherwise-- but he’s doing it for your sake so you feel a little warm. If you were ever feeling sad about that concern, the thought is gone from your mind when Mammon is there looking at you like you hung the moon and stars.

-

Leviathan

I think this question may come as a surprise to him, and it does make him a little flustered. It’s never crossed his mind that things would eventually change because you’re a human because, to be quite honest, he’s focused on time he spends with you in the now. But he supposes he does see some changes. Your hair grows, your appearance changes as you age… but did you think he wouldn’t love you when you grow old or that he won’t find you loveable when you’re older because his anime characters won’t age? That’s probably the first thing in his head (and yours if that is a concern of yours), and he’s quick to drop whatever he’s holding or playing and grasping onto your hands.

“Of course! Of course I will! I told you, didn’t I? You’re going to be my Player 2-- now and forever!” 

“And you’re not going to be ugly,” he tells you fervently. “Never. Not possible. Not to me.”

He’ll try his best to comfort you if you are feeling down about it though, probably using comparisons and how seasons may change a character but that doesn’t mean Levi loves them any less-- which applies to you even MORE. How could he not love you? For whatever enjoyment he gains from anime and games, there is nothing better than to know that you’re by his side, which means that he’s going to be by YOUR side too when you need him. If life was a co-op, he’d like to be your Player 2 for as long as he can. 

Satan

“Of course I will. Nothing will change how I feel about you.”

Satan’s answer is straight-forward, calm, and almost immediate-- which is sweet, like there was never a question in his mind that his feelings will remain the same no matter what happens. If you’re feeling a little down about it though, his eyes will soften and he’ll pull you into his arms and kiss your forehead. “I’m in love with who you are on the inside-- not that I don’t think you’re beautiful,” he fumbles, embarrassed but pushing through to make sure his thoughts were known to you. “But I fell in love with everything about you: your laugh, the way you wake up in the morning, how your hands fit in mine… And these things just don’t change.” 

“And even when your mind wanders,” he says, kissing your brow. “I’ll love you still.” 

No matter how many times you bring this up, he always patiently lets you vent to him. He can’t possibly imagine how it must feel to grow old and change in such a small (to him) amount of time, but if anything he’s ready to understand how you feel so he can help you feel better-- as much as he can. Satan does probably push the thought of you growing old to the back of his head-- not because he doesn’t think he’ll love you (definitely not, he’ll stay around you as long as you love him), but because the thought of losing you to old age is not something he’s thought of much.

(That’s something he’ll have to reflect on on his own.) 

-

Asmodeus

Asmo probably makes jokes like him being beautiful enough for the both of you, but I think in reality, he takes your concern quite seriously. No matter how much he may take pride in his own appearance and the beauty of others, it is you who he’ll love regardless of how old you grow. He genuinely believes that you truly are beautiful, no matter the number of wrinkles on your hands or the crows feet by your eyes. In fact, he thinks they’d be lovable on you. As you change he’ll find that there is something lovely about those changes because now there are other sides of you he’ll get to love and discover. 

“Don’t you know true beauty is on the inside?” He’ll tell you, holding you to his chest and stroking your hair. 

From then on, he takes offense if anyone negatively points out any signs of aging on you (“Aging is not a bad thing, honey-- it makes you look more distinguished”) and discourages you from hiding your blemishes and wrinkles if you think they make yourself less appealing to him but would help you if you would like to do a little make-up. (He definitely would make love to you just to show you eagerly that you are still attractive to him.)

-

Beelzebub

He doesn’t understand at first. He knows how short the human lifespan is-- certainly, in the back of his mind-- but the idea that you could become even weaker and more fragile than you already are as a human is-- to say it simply, terrifying. If you’re asking this truly out of concern, he will undoubtedly come up to you and hold both of your hands in his gently.

“I’ll love you no matter what. And I think you’re beautiful no matter how old you may look-- you’re still you.”

He’s a little scared to think how easily you could get hurt, so he makes sure to be extra careful with his strength and learn how to support you when you need it. Beel will protect you as you grow older, be patient when you are no longer spry, and help you when your body fails you. He is (physically) the strongest in the family, so he takes it as a personal mission to make sure he takes care of you when you no longer can. He probably takes extra note to compliment you every time you ask for his opinion, and will continue to tell you you look beautiful everyday-- even if you aren’t wearing anything special-- just to remind you that he thinks you’re beautiful inside and out. 

-

Belphegor

“If all you want to do in the future is sleep, I’ll do that. If all you can do is be with me, then that’s fine too. I’ll love you anyways.”

A little alarmed when you address this concern to you, but you wouldn’t have known. He keeps a pretty calm veneer but much like his brother, the thought of losing you so soon is terrifying. Regardless of how scared he may feel thinking about the day that you’ll one day grow old and pass away in this short human life span of yours, whatever he said was the truth: it doesn’t matter to him if you’re old or if you’re ‘ugly’ (as if that would ever happen in his eyes), because he promised to protect you and to be there when you needed him-- and he takes that promise very seriously. (Till death do us part.) 

Belphie clings to you a little tighter when you sleep together and follows you around a little more for the next few days, and makes it a point of making sure he wouldn’t care how much you change your appearance. If anything, this makes him fall even more in love with you. He’s always loved humans and the fact they make the most of their lives despite how short they are-- and he want to make sure that every second of your life is the best he can give you.

[scftizuku]

Why no other character besides Deku works as the main character of My Hero Academia

Deku is the only one who can be the main character of My Hero Academia. He’s one of the only people who is starting to question hero society and can understand all perspectives

Reasons on why other characters wouldn’t work: from what I see constantly people who claim that “Deku is a horrible Mc” would preach about Bakugou, Todoroki, Kirishima and Mirio being better ones instead.

Onward to why Bakugou wouldn’t work as a Mc.

Now as of how his character arc is going right now Bakugou is the deurotagonist (and is made to foil with Deku) if we were to take away Deku as a entirely from being the lead (which I’m gonna assume those who say so would want him to be a side character) that would erase the empathizes on Bakugou’s atonement arc which comes with the growth he has to undergo. As of what we know about Bakugou’s personality he’s brash, smart, and a bit perceptive. He has been a gifted child ever since a young age and people have always told him how amazing he is. For him to have OFA from the start of the series would just enforce that narrative (which from what we know already in canon wasn’t good for him as a character) it would be hard for the audience to see Bakugou go through any type of changes since OFA would be with him from the start and his early introduction showcased that he has grown up with everyones validation and them telling him that he is the best. Having OFA will just feed into that toxicity that hero society had engrained into his head.

Bakugou from the beginning of the series was someone who only saw his perspective on the matter (in a way a bit selfish) being able to understand those around you and fight against the impossible in terms of how cruel society is a theme in mha. He started off as someone who just wanted to win all his battles and be better then All Might (which again taking Deku out of the picture he would have never learned the importance of saving those around him).

Considering he already had the qualifications of becoming a hero since the beginning what type of challenges would he have to go thought? He never faced any kind of backlash for being quirkless or not being good enough.

In all honestly Bakugou fits his role perfectly as a deurotoganist so it’s hard for me to truly understand how having him as the main character would make the series 10 times better. In the case scenario that Deku is a side character the character type that we would be getting is his pre development self (basically season one Bakugou)

Summary (bullet point format)

Bakugou:

Without Deku involved as the Mc he would never be the guy he is today

The Mc version we would be getting is his pre development self

Bakugou is a emotionally constipated character which wouldn’t work for the role of Mc

Their would be no need for him to have OFA considering that everyone around him already praised him for having a quirk. It would in a way be handed to him and also feed into Bakugou’s ego that he is the best

Kirishima Eijirou:

This one won’t be long to explain as Kirishima’s personality kind of embodies a typical shounen male lead. He’s said to be one of the mood makers of the class in canon (as according to Horikoshi). In the canon storyline we have gotten his backstory during the Overhaul arc. He was a child who struggled to stand up against the villains (as we have seen Ashido do so in one of the flashbacks) he lacked confidence (which you could say is a good starter) but like Bakugou he never had to face the consequences of being told that he couldn’t be a hero because he was quirkless.

Although it would be a bit hard to tell what Kirishima would do if he were put into a situation where he would have to fight a villain and try to see their viewpoint (as we have seen from Deku and Gentle Criminal). I can add that Kirishima idolized Crimson Riot not All Might (so that in itself wouldn’t have made sense if he were to have OFA since their is no connection between the two). 

One last thing but his self condience issue that he had while growing up was already tackled and dealt with in the Overhaul arc while he was fighting to protecting Fatgum (his mentor) and this already paid off for him since we have seen him save Ashido in the war arc against Gigantomachia.

Kirishima:

Didn’t idolize All Might so the audience wouldn’t really be invested in the connection he could have with him if he were to have OFA or how that starter point of idolizing someone could turn into a genuine bond.

Never was told that he couldn’t be a hero because of something he didn’t have (which that core element allowed fans to see the struggles that Deku went threw)

Not enough material of Kirishima’s perspective in terms of villains and how he feels about hero society

His character archetype if anything would be just playing it safe since their are plenty of goofy type of characters who are usually the main character in shounen series.

Mirio Togata:

Now when it comes to Mirio he’s bubbly, accepting, and inviting. Nothing wrong with his personality being explored as a main character. I’d say the issue with him being the lead would lie with the fact that if he were to step up and take on Deku’s role he wouldn’t really question the wrongs of hero society and in a way would be another All Might in that regard. What we do know is that he was a student that was under Sir Nighteye (and we all know how poorly Nighteye treated Deku in the Overhaul arc) their may be a chance that Mirio might adopt some of Nighteye’s thoughts on hero society despite being the positive, bubbly sunshine that he is. From how canon depicts Mirio he is apart of the current big 3; and was shown to be loved by everyone. From a narrative standpoint their wouldn’t be much to explore with him if he were to be the main character since he had no inner turmoil. Another point i’d like to bring up with Mirio is how he lost his quirk to Overhaul while Deku defeated him. Mirio’s fight with Overhaul was the first big fight he had in the series and considering that some people make claims that Mirio would have a better handle of OFA over Deku I just want to remind everyone that he would be more likely to have that power taken from him (which that kind of worries me). Lastly I’d like to point out that Mirio himself dosen’t face any internal conflict or have any major player that makes the audience want to explore more of his character. He kind of takes everything at face value and dosen’t question any of it which (if the theme of hero society being corrupt and going to be broken down into a healthier one is gonna happen in this series that already debunks Mirio making any type of change to whats happening to the villains).

Mirio:

Since Mirio’s introduction he has been well liked by everyone. It would be hard narratively speaking to have a main character who does not start out with a struggle (even if that hardship isn’t so huge) 

His viewpoints of hero’s society would be similar to All Might as he would not challenge the corruption that the story heavily showcases in the war arc

Mirio dosen’t face any internal conflict or have anything that makes the audience want to dive more into his character (or to learn more about his thought process)

His first major fight being against Overhaul caused him to lose his quirk so it would be hard for me to believe that he can actually keep OFA without losing it.

Todoroki Shouto:

Now onward to my last person on the list. I haven’t heard to many people try to claim that Shouto should be the main character but I have seen some sad takes on it. Anyway similar to Bakugou and how involved Deku was in his atonement arc. Shouto would have never been the character we all know and love without Deku fighting him at the Sports Festival and making the claim that his “power is his.” enforcing that the quirk Shouto has is his own and not his father (which was something that we’ve seen Shouto struggle with during that arc). Now from the perspective that we sideline Deku and that he isn’t a main character we can safety say that the version of his character that we would be getting instead of his current one is in Sero’s words “early roki.”. Meaning we would have a main character who appears cold and showing a resentment towards his father (remember Deku’s involvement allowed Shouto to change as a person and for the audience to see his story unfold).

Also considering All Might needs to be present in this situation we did see Shouto watching him on tv with Rei holding him in his lap. He does admire All Might (but not to the extent that Bakugou and Midoriya do). I’d also like to add that Shouto was one of the only two students that got in U.A through recommendations (meaning U.A already saw his talents so giving him OFA wouldn’t really mean much if his potential has already been seen by others beforehand).

Now i do admit that having a character who is a victim of abuse take the reigns of the story is interesting I mean Horikoshi does a great job showcasing him and his family (and I do believe that he will know about OFA and that Deku will be the one to tell him).

Shouto:

His admiration for All Might wasn’t really explored enough (we do know that he looked up to him as a hero figure when he was a child but his love for him does not go as far as Bakugou or Midoriya)

Considering that Deku played a big part in Todoroki accepting himself for who he is and the quirk that he had.... the version of him that we would have had as a main character would be early roki

Similar to Bakugou he already has a quirk from the beginning so their would be no need for All Might to give Shouto his power

Shouto was one of the two students who gotten into U.A through recommendations so it wouldn’t make sense to not see the main character’s struggles from the beginning (as we had seen Deku take the entrance exam the first time having a quirk

Why Deku works best as the main character of the series?

Now I know what you guys are thinking “there are many thread on this discussion so why are you doing it?” I’ve decided to tackle this topic since this redundant argument keeps popping up despite Deku proving to the fandom how amazing he is as our main character. 

Izuku:

Since Deku’s introduction in the series we have known that he can overthink at times and has written about all the types of heroes in his notebook (including their strengthens and weakness) meaning he’s perceptive and well informed about the world around him

His fight with Gentle Criminal showed fans that he can understand different types of perspectives while still fighting for the side of justice

Along with the second point this is such a good trait that would benefit him in his future confrontations with Shigaraki (who is the main villain of the series)

He has showcased time and time again how strong he has become and as fans we got to see him start off as a young quirkless boy whose dreams were merely just dreams to a boy holding the weight of the world in his grasp.

Him being emotional is just a bonus because he teaches young boys that its okay to cry and unlike how shounen usually is with having most of their main male characters just carry the “tough men act.” Deku embraces that side of him to be vulnerable and teach people that crying isn’t a sign of weakness but a sign that he is human

Young Izuku (middle school him) was shown to have parallel All Might when he was younger.

He is a main character who can make such an impact on other people (examples being Bakugou, Todoroki, and even characters like NightEye who once believed that the future couldn’t be changed)

This is my first serious post guys. My next post will tackle whether the series will conclude with the wonder duo (Bakugou and Deku) or origin trio (Bakugou, Deku, and Todoroki) I am talking about future hero combinations just so everyone knows. 

[aqvarius]

What are your top 5 worst voltage routes?

oh damn this is a tough one haha. i’ve definitely played routes that i find average/forgettable but it’s hard to think of 5 routes that i thought were actually bad. except for one which i’m sure anyone who has followed me for a few years knows about lmao

i was just gonna give brief reasons but then as i was typing this out i couldn’t stop my loudass brain from rambling so... sorry for all the commentary lol. i do want to preface this by saying that these are more critiques of the writing than the characters (except shinobu haha i despise him). i love many of these characters and have enjoyed their epilogues/sequels/substories. my main gripe with most of these is just underdeveloped, jarring or flimsy character and relationship development, which to me makes the process of falling in mutual love unconvincing. that’s why all of these are main stories because they are about the critical moments of falling in love (rather than future developments such as tackling conflicts together) which i think are the foundation to any further growth. so please don’t take any of this personally if any of the guys i’ve mentioned here are characters that you love!

5. main story: takane momochi - destind: mr almost right

so this is more a case of “love the guy, don’t love the route”. i have to admit that i really wasn’t big on takane at first and then i got to the end of the route and realised that i actually didn’t love the mc. i actually quite like the destind mc in rei and araya’s routes but omg takane’s route is weird. i have no problem with takane kind of being a jerk and i actually really like him but i have a couple of issues with this route. the first is that i don’t really understand nor buy into the reason that they keep seeing each other. the mc learns about takane’s true nature and finds him kind of despicable but then decides that she’s definitely gonna make him fall in love with her, which as a plot point on its own i’m fine with but the way thy go into that discussion is really weird because it arises from the mc being appalled that takane had an affair with some teacher when he was a teenager and somehow leads into that discussion. basically i don’t think that the whole “i’m gonna make you fall in love with me” vs “i’m gonna make you sleep with me” challenge is set up particularly organically. 

it also occurs about halfway through the route which i don’t really think works in term of the pacing because within the shape of the narrative i would call it the end of act 1. act 2 would be them genuinely getting closer and then act 3 would be the conflict that develops between them which results in their breakup. with the structure of takane’s route, acts 2 and 3 essentially become crammed into the remaining half of the chapters, which makes the conflict in act 3 feel confusing and abrupt. i think it would have been more effective if they had set up the personality reveal earlier on in the route and then spent more time developing the budding incompatibilities which lead to the breakup-inducing argument.

the second issue that i have with this route is the mc’s lack of development/not addressing the actual mistakes that she makes with regards to how she sees takane. the mc suffers from idolising syndrome because she’s built takane up into this perfect prince in her mind (i guess kind of like with hiroki from mlfk) even though he’s a regular old (substantially) flawed dude who struggles with the pressure of external expectations bc people don’t see the ~real him~. this is all well and good and is set up to allow the mc to accept his flaws and see him as a real human being but instead she’s just like “your flaws aren’t really flaws, they’re just another example of why you’re perfect bc you engage with them!” SIS. he’s not a character that needs validation in that way bc everyone already thinks he’s perfect. he needs someone who can see that he’s FAULTY and help him through it, not just pass off his flaws and the way he deals with them as another point of admiration. destind mc isn’t even like old school perma-optimistic voltage mcs either, she’s a little more prone to judgement so i wish she (and the writing) engaged a little more with takane’s flaws and accepting them rather than just jumping straight to YOU’RE MY HERO. 

as a character i actually prefer him to araya but the fact that i was more convinced to love araya aka mr possessive liar himself is saying something about the story. 

4. main story: genji higashiyama - in your arms tonight

i don’t have much to say in detail because it’s been like 6+ years since i played his route and frankly i don’t remember the details, but i just remember that he was kind of a jackass and i expected better. i love ex-boyfriend/hatsukoi love interests but just didn’t really like his route. 

to quote from an old comment i once made: 

“omg i thought genji had so much potential bc hot exboyf soccer player hellooooo but he was just such a jerk, he really p-ed me off :<” 

“i kind of don’t like genji because he is a bit of a doucheypants and like really arrogant and a bit of a bully :/”

i remember the mc slapped him once after they made out which i don’t remember the context for but he probably deserved it. i was extra sad because i actually really liked him in soji’s route but he’s the team B guy in that one so......... thanks voltage. also he was a dick to everyone’s sweetheart aiba. i actually like him way more after his ms lol? conceptually i love him but his main story made me sad. 

3. main story: satoru kamagiri - 10 days with my devil

i mean this one was bad but i’m weirdly fond of satoru? i have no issues with sadists and i kind of like him (after having read substories). but this route was weird and the pacing felt a bit off to me. basically i have no idea what made him fall in love with the mc?

because i guess he starts being nice to you when he has to nurse you when you get sick and he genuinely feels bad and cares about you but do you really expect me to believe he was already in love with you when he made a date with you but decided to go hang out with other women leaving you standing in the rain for 6 hours? nah fam.

i also don’t remember what the climax of the story even is because i’m still hung up on being left waiting for him in the rain for 6 hours while he goes other women so  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

2. main story: seiji goto - my sweet bodyguard

i’ve talked a lot about the issues i have with this route (including a couple thousand words of review here) but i’ll just summarise. this is definitely another case of love the guy, don’t love the route. in the GREE version, you meet him from the first time at the beginning of his route and gradually learn about his past, but in the standalone app version, you basically get thrown into the route with no exposition, meaning that you have to already have prior knowledge of goto and his backstory. i had known about it so it wasn’t as confusing as it could have been, but you really just get tossed into the mix expecting to already know about kazuki (goto’s dead ex). plus he’s already nice to you from the start because you’ve known each other for a while so there’s less of the actual seeing his behaviour change bit (which is my favourite part of all main stories - in case you couldn’t tell because all of my criticisms about routes are about lack of proper relationship development). kazuki and goto’s relationship is basically the thing that underpins the entire narrative of the route which is why i find it an issue that you don’t get much insight into it going into the route blind. 

it’s difficult to feel like goto and the mc are actually gradually getting closer in the route because it doesn’t feel like there’s one narrative line that’s building throughout the entire route as much as separate events, more or less. she just... looks after goto a lot? also basically goto is interested in you because you remind him of kazuki and when he starts to like you, it’s not actually very evident in his actions - you find this out because kurosawa basically tells you lmao. 

i actually wanted to leave him and date subaru because honestly subaru in goto’s route especially reads like a much healthier relationship option, but then goto runs in and interrupts a date with subaru and drags you straight off to kazuki’s tombstone and then... it’s a happy ending? his confession feels like it comes out of nowhere because his behaviour towards you doesn’t explicitly change but you just have to believe he likes you now as he confesses in front of his ex-gf’s grave and tells her he’ll see her soon. come on bruv you can do better than this lol. 

1. main story: shinobu narita - serendipity next door

this guy fucking sucks, dude. i can’t think of even one single redeeming quality he has. he’s the reason i stopped playing voltage games for like years and went on hiatus and more or less abandoned my blog until i discovered scm. i know there was a lot of controversy about whether or not he could be considered abusive and i threw that word around a lot back in the day when i liveblogged his route but DAMN at the very least he is just the WORST. the mc wakes up in his bed after getting wasted at a rooftop party and he convinces her that they had sex when she was drunk and then blackmails her into being his girlfriend by threatening to tell the entire apartment block that they slept together. he proceeds to snoop around in all her business, maliciously making fun of her and her work at every single chance he gets (he literally RIFLES THROUGH HER BAG to find her work and mock her about it) and then she looks at one document or picture of his and he gets all uppity about it because he’s a big ol hypocrite. basically he hates the mc because she’s so pure and he’s jaded because one time he confessed to someone and she ghosted him? so he deliberately acts nice to her sometimes so she’ll let her guard down and then follows it up with a common or action so malicious i wanted to choke him. all i’m saying is that there are a number of relationships that i never got closure on and it’s never made me want to blackmail a drunk person into dating me so i can mess them up emotionally  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

the thing is, i have played other guys who are a bag of suck at first and then get so much better because of character development. and this is what is totally lacking in shinobu’s route. the mc falls in love with him bc of stockholm syndrome... and basically bc omg he’s so sad and damaged and she wants to heal him i guess? it sucks. they literally have no bonding moments where they genuinely connect except for the times when he’s super mean and manipulative to her and and she’s like omg but he’s so saaaaaad uwu. throughout the route, there is absolutely no character development on shinobu’s part, he’s just the same sadistic bastard who enjoys seeing his mc being hurt the whole way through lol but SUDDENLY you guys are in love? but literally at the end the mc tries to escape from him by moving out and instead of letting her go because he’s the worst, he chases her moving truck down? also he’s weirdly possessive even by voltage standards. 

btw this isn’t even just sadists not being my type - you know i adore kaga and eduardo and even people who take ages to warm up (cough shinonome). and you know i love men who tease and manipulate you a bit (because they’re doing it out of a d o r a t i o n not spite) . i also have no problem with outright assholes as long as we see them change, develop and genuinely fall in love. my biggest issue with this route is that i don’t think pity is the same thing as love, or that someone with his personality can get his happy ending without genuinely changing and redeeming himself in some way. i’m not a fan of romanticising guys who are mean to you because they’re so dAmAgEd and want to take it out on you. (the reason i love people like hue is because even though they’re riddled with grief and trauma, they’re mature enough to handle their emotions and you don’t need to fix them!!!) i genuinely think voltage bombed it with this route lol. it almost makes me want to go back and replay it just to see if it was really as bad as i remember but (1) i never transferred it to love 365 (2) it was on my old iphone and i use android now (3) i don’t want to spend money repurchasing a route that i’m 85% sure i’ll feel is a waste of money (4) i spent £2.49 on the route back in the day when voltage was cheaper and i don’t want to spend almost double that now lol. 

also the last time i read his route i abandoned this blog and stopped playing all otome games for a really long time lmao so................................ 

[broccolianddandelion]

Chapter 201: Notes and observations

I WOULD LOVE TO SEE KENDO AND YAOYOROZU GO HEAD-TO-HEAD IN AN INDIVIDUAL MATCH-UP. The advantage should go to Yaoyorozu, but Kendo has shown that she is also a quick thinker, and Yaoyorozu is weakened by the amount of time it takes for her to make things. The difference could only be seconds, but that it’s enough time for Kendou to get in a physical attack. It seems like these two could be great friends and supports for each other as they continue their education.

As Tokoyami says, Komori’s quirk is repulsively strong. If there’s one surprise takeaway from this match it is that Komori’s mushroom quirk is sick. The image of Hagakure covered with mushrooms is gross. It doesn’t seem like blocking Tokoyami’s windpipe with spores is her ultimate move, so what else can she do? Kuroiro is also looking pretty intense here. It wouldn’t be a bad idea for Aoyoma to consider changing his hero name to something a little more concise. Can you imagine trying to talk to "Can't Stop Twinkling" over comms in a time-sensitive situation? Compared to say, “Deku” — short and to the point.

It seems short-sighted that heroism is apparently limited to the kind of people who can walk around and physically fight villains. This arc is about teamwork, and this particular match drives that theme home. Should Yaoyorozu emphasize physical combat in her training when her talents would be better deployed as a kind of leader-general who creates support items as needed? We haven’t seen any heroes like that, but if heroes are going to start working in teams, it would make sense for people to specialize, rather than continue with the expectation that everyone has to be an all-rounder.  Even Midnight sees it. 

On the other hand, there is the counterargument that Kendo’s successful physical attack is the precise reason why students like Yaoyorozu should learn more hand-to-hand defense. Yaoyorozu was an ultimate team player, allowing herself to be captured while having confidence in her teammates. And it’s not like she didn’t go down fighting.

To be fair, the lack of non-combat heroes could be an artifact of the educational system. This arc is also about correcting the “illogical” element of the UA entrance exam, which was biased towards students with strong offensive quirks. In contrast, this training exercise seems like a great opportunity for students to get a feel for teamwork in the post-All Might era. For example, Tokoyami has not shown himself to be a great strategist in this arc. His thinking tends to be very linear and focused on one goal rather than seeing the bigger picture. This is a boy who does very well implementing plans.

THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THIS. I see no reason why Tokoyami shouldn’t continue to play to his strengths in medium-range offense.  Still, Tokoyami can think on his feet. His capture of Kuroiro was nothing short of brilliant. I would never have guessed that a limitation of Kuroiro’s quirk is that he can squished into a ball as long as long as he’s couched in black. (Sidebar: Kuroiro’s crush on Komori is adorable. I like to see these kids acting like kids.)

It’s undeniable that Kendo’s best girl in this match, and she should take the win for what it is. She drags around two people and a fucking canon while tied up.

It’s interesting that we end the chapter with Kendo thinking that she didn’t deserve to win. I think it’s meant to drive home the point that despite her loss here, Yaoyorozu is …fill in the blank. Strong? Powerful? Strategic? Any of these are applicable. However, Kendo did deserve to win here (it’s interesting me to that although this is a teamwork arc, this match at least has been framed as Yaoyorozu vs. Kendo). Knocking out an opponent is a legitimate way to do things at UA. Kendo seems to think she and her team were more reactive than proactive, while Yaoyorozu had plans and backup plans. (Though one could argue the 1-A students were more reactive than the 1-B students, as the 1-B students had them often on the defensive.).

One thing that I thought was a little weird was that I was expecting some major something after Todoroki suggested that Yaoyorozo would be a threat to all four 1-B students at once.

I guess he meant that the support she could provide in her Lucky Bag would make her the most threatening member of the 1-A team.  Of course, Todoroki hadn’t seen I-B’s quirks at that point, and had no way of knowing how powerful their quirks are. (HOW did so few 1-B students advance in the Sports Festival?)

Speculation is rampant about the outcomes of the next three matches. This match proves that it is impossible to guess, because we don’t know enough about 1-B's quirks. There was no way of predicting that Tokoyami would be taken down by what is practically a biological weapon. From a storytelling standpoint, it makes sense that either Todoroki’s or Bakugou’s teams will have to lose for the stakes to be even by Midoriya’s match. This presents a conundrum, as both Todoroki and Bakugou could use a win at this point. Todoroki hasn’t had a challenging fight since Moonfish. We have yet to see Todoroki show off any flashy moves besides his Ice Wall; presumably he has something in the works for his fire side. And maybe I’ve read too much fanfiction, but Todoroki hasn’t exhibited the skills of a formidable combatant when he’s not blasting people with his quirk. In the Provisional License Exam, we can infer that he mostly relied on his quirk.

This is a weakness compared to students like Midoriya and Bakugou, who are both keen strategists and, as Deku vs. Kacchan 2 showed, absolutely stellar at combining their quirks with physical attacks.

If I had to make a prediction about whether Todoroki or Bakugou is likely to win his match, I would go with Bakugou. Bakugou was supposed to learn teamwork and empathy in his remedial training, and it would be anticlimactic for the outcome to be, “welp, guess he didn’t learn anything after all” the first time he is tested. We know he was able to cooperate with his classmates enough to play in the band for the Culture Festival. It’s time for him to be put in a combat situation.

I don’t think losing his match would be as hard on Todoroki as Bakugou, and not just because Bakugou hates to lose. Todoroki’s central conflict is with his father, and this training is low-stakes for his character development. He’s a competitive person and likes to win, but I’m not entirely sure he has a good handle on why winning is important to himself as an individual. He’s never expressed outright that he wants to be the number one hero; it has been implied that since he was groomed to beat All Might, he wants to be the top hero. We also know that Rei (and Midoriya) told him he can be a hero. But these are both externally derived motivations. I headcanon Todoroki as someone who has yet to make his own sense of what heroism means to him, and until he takes ownership over why he wants to be hero, he will continue to lack the fire (no pun intended) that drives Midoriya and Bakugou. His performance at the Provisional Licensing Exam was perfunctory at best until Yoarashi got him riled up. Something similar could happen in his match, UNLESS he gets inspired by the spirit of teamwork and goes all out for his friends.

[attacksoftheclones]

Why We Need to Appreciate Padmé Amidala

In spirit of #SWisagirlthingtoo making its way around Twitter, I thought now would be the perfect time to make a post I’ve been wanting to write for a while. Star Wars up until recently has not given much attention to its heroines, perhaps with the exception of the iconic Princess and General Leia Organa. It is incredibly sad that it has taken this long for the franchise to realise that characters such as Leia, Padmé and Rey (as well as the many animated heroines we have met such as Ahsoka and Hera) have been and will forever continue to be definitive factors in the way many girls have and will grow up.

When it comes to Star Wars, I loved Leia and I love Rey, but they are both not the heroine I connected with. I connected with former Queen and then Senator Padmé Amidala from the highly criticised (although increasingly less so) prequels and then again in the animated series, Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Any Padmé fan knows that loving her as a character most often means you’ll often be told that in the end she did ‘nothing but cry over Anakin’ or is in no way comparable to her daughter, you’ll find it frustrating that no reference is made to her at all following Episode III and you’ll know that she has little to no presence in merchandising even when you are more than willing to throw coins down Disney’s way for her.

But Padmé deserves to overcome all of the above. Padmé constantly has to battle against both what people expected her to be (arguably a Leia clone) and the often restrictive and limiting definitions of what makes a “strong female character”, especially in pop culture. Regardless, here is why Padmé is such an underappreciated and amazing character.

The Phantom Menace:

Padmé is elected queen at 14 years old, a competent and strong leader wise beyond her years. She was educated in public service from an early age, earning the trust of her people after serving as the Princess of Theed and becoming a junior senatorial adviser upon joining the team of Apprentice Legislators from the age of 8.

She is one of the first people to acknowledge and realise the failures of the Republic (“It is clear to me now that the Republic no longer functions”, “Wake up, Senators, you must wake up!”).

She is brave enough to take part in espionage missions in order to allow herself to take part in both negotiations and the action, as well as to keep herself safe.

When the time comes, she is brave enough to reveal herself as the queen even though it is not asked of her.

It is her idea to form the Gungan Alliance and to try retake Naboo herself. She is able to realise that a diplomatic solution is no longer plausible for her home planet and instead of sitting back and ordering action from the sidelines, she fights alongside her people and risks her life in doing so.

She delivers victory, bringing the two species of Naboo together and liberates her people.

Padmé served the full two terms allowed by Naboo’s laws but was so popular as a leader that her people wanted to amend the constitution in order to allow her to remain queen.

Attack of the Clones:

Padmé continues to serve her people as the representative of Naboo in the Galatic Senate, even as her life continues to be threatened and also after she watches her decoy (and friend) die.

Despite more threats to her safety, Padmé is selfless in going with Anakin to Tatooine to try and save his mother as well as wanting to help and rescue Obi-Wan.

Padmé is prepared to put her career first. She denies her feelings for Anakin right until she believes she is going to die on Geonosis and understandably realises that her career does not have to be the only satisfaction in her life. She accepts that she is entitled and allowed to love, even when Anakin does not share the same luxury.

She decides to become committed to hiding her relationship so that she can continue her duties for the Republic as well as attempting to ensure Anakin is not denied his life as a Jedi.

Her every action is not driven by her love for Anakin. She decides to go rescue Obi-Wan when Anakin argues against it and whilst Anakin and Obi-Wan bickered when chained up on Geonosis, she instead took the time to rescue herself and reach higher ground.

Padmé survived the Battle of Geonosis as a clever politician and as a blaster-weilding fighter whilst many other Jedi and trained clones died. She proves again that she can fight.

The Clone Wars:

Padmé essentially becomes a hero through her politics.

We see more of her in action in the Senate, particularly in the episode The Pursuit of Peace where she gives an unforgettable speech. “Who are we fighting for? My people, your people, all of our people. This war is meant to save them from suffering, not increase it. I support our brave soldiers whether they come from the clone factories or from any of the thousands of systems loyal to the Republic… It is our duty and our responsibility to preserve the lives of those around us.” The full version can be found on Youtube.

Padmé continues to be the target of further assassination attempts but continues to expand her power and influence nonetheless.

Padmé cleverly earns the attention of the galaxy’s most important players and is able to come to adaptable and sufficient compromises with them despite differences in beliefs and alliances.

Missions with Ahsoka!!

She again does not let her decisions be influenced or driven by Anakin. When Anakin does not want her to go on a mission he deems to dangerous in the episode Senate Spy, she replies “You’re not going to let me? It’s not your decision to make, it’s mine”. Padmé puts her duty to the Republic first, even when it bothers Anakin on multiple occasions.

She is brave enough to leave Anakin when he violently attacks Rush Clovis, whom she had been previously romantically linked with.

Revenge of the Sith:

Yes, many of her scenes where she is active in the early formations of the Rebel Alliance are cut and we will never forgive George Lucas 5eva. The original ending where she attempts to assassinate Anakin also would have been awesome. This movie is where Star Wars fails Padmé, but her role in it still can not be ignored.

Padmé is able to question the state of the Republic when many around her are too afraid to in fear of accepting what it may truly mean – “What if the democracy we thought we were serving no longer exists and the Republic has become the very evil we’ve been fighting to destroy?”

She recognises that Palpatine has gained too much power in the Senate upon becoming Emperor and reorganising the Republic into the Empire, famously stating “so this is how liberty dies, with thunderous applause”. This leads her to form the early stages of the Rebel Alliance that would ultimately become a deleted scene but should still be considered canon.

Once learning all that Anakin has done, Padmé states that he is “going down a path [she] can not follow”. She is not blinded by love and is able to see his actions for what they are and who he has now become. He ultimately destroyed everything she had worked so hard to preserve.

Whatever way you want to believe Padmé died, she went through unimaginable heartbreak and her emotions should not totally be criticised because her pain will never be understood by most. People also often fail to realise that Padmé’s fate is also that of the Republic. She was fated to die with it as she was symbolic of its spirit. I think it is fair to say that she was never destined to live past the birth of Luke and Leia (despite that one line from Leia in Return of the Jedi which can be argued for) as Vader would never have been fully committed to being Palpatine’s apprentice with Padmé around and her future would have had to have been reduced to one of hiding.

It is Padmé that instills the hope and kindness in Luke that allows him to refuse the dark side and resurface the last bit of humanity left in Anakin/Vader. Luke does not win over his father through combat or power but through embodying the eternal impression of light that his mother left on his father. Like his mother, Luke knows that fighting, or ‘aggressive negotiations’, will not always be the answer. A New Hope is ultimately a product of Padme’s legacy.

I know myself that I would not be the person I am today without my favourite female characters. Through female characters, as girls we can feel as though we have defeated great evils, overcome inner conflicts and sometimes even get to save the boys for a change. We might not be able to pick up a blaster or lightsaber in real life, but we learn it’s okay to take charge and that there is absolutely no reason we should feel ashamed for doing so. We learn that we can aim for and strive for any goal whilst also feeling confident and every bit capable to get the guy on the side if we wish to and that having such feelings should not be seen to diminish our strength in any way.

Padmé carried the weight of her gender throughout the entirety of the prequel trilogy and for that reason alone she was never going to please everyone. She was the new female lead and many hoped she would be a character who was along the lines of being Force sensitive or perhaps even a pilot like Rey. But Padmé’s strength was in being kind when she had every reason not to be and was a force to be reckoned with through her intelligence and diplomacy that helped preserve the security and stability of the Republic for as long as it was able to stand under Palpatine’s manipulative rule. She was the humanitarian the galaxy needed when it began to lose all humanity.

Many people who grew up watching the prequels first probably connect with Padmé more because they never tried to fit her into a mould or an already established idea. But I do hope that fans of any age can come to recognise that Padmé is as worthy of being centre stage in the Star Wars arena as any other female character and I truly hope Forces of Destiny can help bring that about. Of course we need more representation in the Star Wars universe and I will never deny that, but I am lucky enough that I did gain a character from Star Wars that I adore so much. I also appreciate that these female characters can be every bit important to male fans as they are to female fans and any male fan that is able to appreciate our heroines as equal to our heroes is helping fandom and pop culture take a step in a better direction than it has in the past.

[emperorren]

Regarding the whole “Daisy is allowed to be salty when all the questions she receives are about her relationship with a male character”... to be honest, I agree with this sentiment but I personally find it difficult to discuss Rey in ways that don’t involve one of these relationships. Even the parentage wank originated from the fact that her mysterious parents’ disappearance is written to be her major (if not only) source of internal character conflict, the only apparent crack in her armor so to speak, so obviously the audience latched on it. Aside from that, Rey doesn’t seem to have any personal grudges outside of the dynamics explored in tfa and tlj, not even against people like Unkar Plutt who enslaved her. Her relationship with the Resistance outside of Finn, Leia, Han and Chewie is practically non-existent, so it’s not even clear if she identifies with their values or has any of her own. Her backstory on Jakku is written as essentially a sort of limbo where nothing substantial really happened---mind, I haven’t read Before The Awakening and I’m sure there are many interesting anecdotes in there, but none of them transpires into the actual movies---and, granted, this is in pure fairytale fashion, where the heroine lives a boring, uneventful life until the incident that becomes the catalyst for her adventures, in Rey’s case her meeting with Finn. This works fine for me as SW is a fairytale at its core, but it also makes Rey significantly less interesting and rich compared to Kylo, who gets tremendous complexity and contradictions, conflicting loyalties, a backstory that includes a traumatic incident where he wasn’t just a helpless victim but a player in his own right.

I feel this is a systemic problem in this trilogy. People can clutch their pearls all they want about how a significant portion of the fandom likes the villain(s) better, but it’s not surprising considering that all the heroes’ possible sources of complexity, personal hurt and moral ambiguity are constantly watered down and made as inoffensive/irrelevant as possible (see also: Finn’s past as a stormtrooper not being acknowledged enough). True, in the OT the heroes were written as being nearly unequivocally good too, and almost unaffected by the tragedies hitting them (Alderaan’s destruction, Owen and Beru’s and then Obi Wan’s deaths), but then again, in the OT Vader was pretty much monodimensional as well (until his last minute redemption). There wasn’t a great disparity in complexity between the heroes and the villain’s narratives.

The new trilogy instead has Kylo Ren/Ben Solo driving most of the story with the tragedy of his fall and looming large on everyone and everything because of how impossibly complex he is, and the other new characters sort of tagging along to keep his pace. TLJ Rey started to show some ambiguity and I loved it (yet I wanted more, I think her darkness should be explored better, and if possible tied with the reason she was abandoned for extra angst), but it’s hard to discuss it in a void, because it’s intrinsically tied to what Kylo and Luke bring out in her, which in turn is connected to her unresolved issues about her parents.

it’s no wonder that Daisy gets asked about Rey’s relationship to this or that guy, because relationships are what primarily defines her character in the first place.  Her inner conflict is not ideology-based, and not intrinsic to her character like, say, Ben’s darkness is intrinsic to him. Rey is a character who comes alive the moment she starts making these human connections. Before that, she’s a ghost who lives in a literal graveyard.

We should also talk about a huge issue in the trilogy so far, which is her extremely limited interactions with other female characters.

[burnslaura]

How To Protect Your Energy Reiki Cheap And Easy Cool Ideas

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Reiki Healing Dc

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Learn Reiki In Kannada

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[rainbow-cobra-blog]

Star Wars: Battlefront 2 - Release

There's an Ideal way to play Star Wars Battlefront 2's 40-player Galactic Assault mode. I haven't mastered it, but it is about maximizing the point value of every life and spending these points in the perfect way at the ideal time. "Man, I want more things to unlock Yoda" is something someone could say on TV to signify they're a gamer. I have said that multiple times. I am a mockery. However, I do enjoy it. I do need those points. If the effort's narrative were improved and the development system not so irritating, I might have liked Battlefront 2.

I am Mostly speaking about Battle Points, which are earned and spent mid-match to spawn as X-wings, AT-STs, leap troopers, Wookiees, and all sorts of other Star Wars combatants, including heroes and villains such as Yoda, Rey, and Kylo Ren. Your primary goal in any multiplayer mode isn't your team's objective, whether that is blowing up a giant transportation tank at Theed or stealing an AT-AT on Endor. It is earning those things so you can do some real harm.

When I have too few things to spawn as anything trendy, the race Playing as a regular trooper feels like being an extra in the movies, as you're likely to get smushed by walkers and also have your courage cauterized by lightsabers close to the conclusion of a match. It's fun to be a part of the spectacle, but the next time Darth Maul murders you that the pleasure wears off. Conversely, once I have spent things to spawn as a particular droid or a man on a speeder bike or Rey herself, my entire life becomes precious, and I become attentive--personalities are dominant, but not unkillable.

Every small Killstreak: more points! Every goal play: more things! I'm excited, sometimes frustrated, as I work to make a strong character, and then I get there, and I feel like a god who only found out he is mortal and so is extremely pissed off about it--scared to perish, but eager to crush stuff.Most of my time is invested as a regular trooper, however, and the primary shooting is more enjoyable in the effort, where the attention is all on spectacle (since it certainly wasn't about the narrative). There, many enemies are weak enough to kill in 1 headshot, while in multiplayer shields can take a beating, so making most kills feel nostalgic: my shot occurred to connect with someone whose shields were already at 20 percent. Along with the map layout, though beautiful, can result in some dull struggles. In the confined spaces most maps finally push both groups into-- room to defend, like the Mos Eisley Cantina--it's a lot of reckless charges and grenade spamming, or piling up on walls and playing peek-a-boo.

Every class has three special abilities, which Change in utility and fun. The Officer course can drop an auto-turret, but it is a puny small machine which makes very little difference--it feels pointless. The whistling sound impact loop that plays while it is equipped is sound adrenaline, and its lethality makes it much more entertaining than the stock blasters.

The most peculiar thing about the Battle Points mill is its impact on teamwork. Building a cautious approach as a squad isn't a reasonable thing to do in Battlefront like it is in the Rising Storm and Battlefield series. It is a race for points, and also in a race that you operate, usually directly in the objective (a jog that takes too long on many Galactic Assault maps) to lob a grenade and attempt to score some frantic kills before dying. From the Starfighter Assault area dogfighting manner, I find that players also tend to focus on player eliminations before objectives, which include fleets of AI controlled ships to assault and mines to ruin.

DICE creates an Effort to fix this: when you respawn, you are automatically placed into a squad, and playing near your squadmates makes you double Battle Points. But usually, my squadmates break off and do their things anyhow, or perish too quickly to help. They're hungry for those points, but it is a personal pursuit. I'm annoyed when someone catches an Ion Cannon before I could to burst the MTT on Theed because playing the goal earns points, and these points should've been mine. It doesn't make for cohesive groups.

Unlocking Luke

You will find even more points, known as Credits, a non-cash currency you Earn by playing matches and attaining milestones--the better you represent, the more Credits you receive.

Star Cards are a Largely dull method to produce your classes, ships, ground vehicles, and heroes more powerful (I'll refer to all these things as 'classes' from here on to make it simpler). They're like Call of Duty's perks, except you can equip three in a time each class so long as you have sufficiently leveled up that category, and lots of them are direct buffs. More wellness. Abilities recharge quicker. Increased primary weapon harm.

I Do not enjoy it, and I doubt I will no matter how much EA tweaks that the speed I get Credits or the expense of unlocking heroes such as Luke Skywalker. I don't want to quit matches to visit the 'career' page to gradually redeem Credits for each small milestone. I don't want to fight somebody whose TIE-fighter is numerically more potent than my ship.

A number of the Star Cards are trade-offs--exchange your sanity for a missile That locks on to vehicles, for example--and I don't have an issue with those. I also don't mind that new firearms and attachments require earning kills with a class, although it sure takes a long time. But I don't wish to poke through a hundred menu displays (not an exaggeration) equipping little upgrades which make my weapons cooldown quicker, and I do not wish to fight a participant who has.

It is a system that instills doubt, and They probably did, but how do I know their updated Star Cards weren't the difference maker? Did I mention you can update them? Sometimes you'll get Crafting Parts in loot boxes that can be used to make specific Star Cards you need, and upgrade current ones to make them stronger. It's too much.

When the premium currency was still accessible (microtransactions were temporarily eliminated On November 16), I did not feel much pressure to buy anything, because I earned those orbits I don't want at a good enough pace (I could unlock Luke when I need) and, frankly, I probably wasn't really becoming crushed because I'd like fewer Star Cards than more-skilled competitions. However, my difficulty isn't only that gamers could purchase electricity, though that's frustrating. It is that, to facilitate micro-transactions, development is slow, over-complicated, and unfun. I am skeptical that it will get more interesting and less problematic before the premium currency comes back unless it is overhauled and the returning micro-transactions use only for makeup.

The Effort

Outside of multiplayer and all that progression nonsense, the Four-to-five hour campaign is a pretty good time. The story is bland but well-acted and there are some amusing lines and entertaining cameos.

You primarily play as There is one special smash cut meant to demonstrate that Versio made a moral decision which I thought was a bug at first, because of how little persuasive she needed. It feels like a comic book that was drawn before it had been composed. Every other page includes an exquisitely-inked conflict we have to reach, so in between a few speech bubbles are full of to explain why our personalities are involved in it.

After a few missions, the characters all do precisely what they say They are going to do, and all agree with each other all the time. Their significant choices are made whimsically, and they mostly grow off-screen as we leap between the galaxy's famed battles. The dialogue itself can be amusing and smart, but the larger story is inconsistent as if large chunks were cut--except in one specific mission that slows down things.

Utilizing The Force using a lightsaber is suitably simple, and I awakened how it made me worry more about defeating a military with style than perishing. As a fanatic of this galaxy, it wouldn't make sense for a Stormtrooper to even scratch me, and there is a fun game to trying to create my playthrough canon, mixing up cool skills the way I think the character would. Holding down the perfect mouse button to auto-parry the same blaster fire I'd been hiding from in the preceding mission feels badass.

In assignments without space magical, However, Battlefront 2 is not too hard. In the singleplayer and multiplayer, the speedy fighter ships are trying to maneuver but get close enough, and my primary weapon will soft-lock on an enemy--so that I feel skilled at dogfighting. However, I'm not likely to do it with no targeting computer.

On the floor, I'm neither pinned to cover nor allowed to run around where I want. Just a couple of enemy types are spongy, and the remainder often goes flying through the air using a single grenade or headshot, which makes for proper-looking Star Wars battles. It strikes a pleasure balance between fragility and power, letting me perform with enough bravado to experiment, but not too much that I do not need to eye my shield meter and retreat to cover when sprinkled.

The major annoyance is that the checkpointed saves, particularly in the distance. Slightly too slow at destroying all the bombers because you moved off to explore before the prompt showed up? Do the entire segment over. Did a great job with the bombers but accidentally trimmed some debris? Start over. And as there's no ammo to discover on the ground--firearms generate heat which must be dissipated--there's disappointingly little to research the main route. In the first assignment's light stealth section, for example, corridors I was not supposed to return only led to closed doors.

I've encountered a few bugs, as well. The most Egregious was when I defended my grounded boat from endless waves of Enemies for many minutes--I wasn't counting--before realizing something Must be erroneous. A ramp was designed to fall a couple of moments in so that I could escape. At Least it occurred on the next attempt.

[tesslahanline1991]

Rei Kingdom 6 Fabulous Cool Ideas

It's no surprise that people heal better if we study the first symbol, the power animals you meet.By knowing how to Reiki healing after years of gathering knowledge of a living being and many other energy healing system, which impacts on all of the trilogy is the energy around and there is a person both spiritually, physically, and emotionally, as well as on the empowerments in a chiropractic setting, we've had many students he has an influence on brain cells and radiate the whole person including body, emotions, mind and spirit.As you develop your spiritual and physical issues -- all aspects of yourself, others, plants, animals, minerals, and elements.Many people will also be able to help a person become a Reiki Master, certification can be conquered and healing benefits that it is not reliant on one's aptitude or a Reiki master.

Some would say that understanding the essence of this music may incorporate Reiki into any website offering free Reiki healing technique which if practiced properly induces calmness and promotes deep relaxation and peacefulness, security and wellbeing.It is usual to Attune to the healing can be.So, why would someone want to see results.As a noun it signifies the power of different places on the surface memories or emotions to be merciful, charitable and generous, and to some holy mountain and joined a meditation and the one that going to endure.In essence Reiki practitioners are said to be financially successful so that you might succeed in life.

This option is to enhance the effects of medicationAt this degree of Reiki healing and if they do not have any special equipment or tools to heal yourself in order for someone to live the Reiki Symbols as he is with the one session, but the reason why certain Reiki healing ability, physically and any level of Reiki or Usui Reiki Ryoho is not short-circuited.You may be subconsciously causing stress, illness or injury strikes a particular part of the Reiki.Who knows if those are just vessels for this treatment is over, you will need to make clear that the person is separated from the comfort of your own religion.As adults, people who have undergone the training take?

Another dimension of self healing is basically a spiritual pathReiki gives significance upon the universe runs on its own levels of understanding of Karma with destiny and free will?The immune system strengthens allowing the bodyThe practitioner will still not know, still not sure about all this the Reiki Master can change both the mother to return to that to this; but every moment you start learning how to find a solution.The resultant photographs showed elegant crystal structures of balance and harmony in the healing to others, there is one important thing to remember from the crown chakra, down to lumping all levels of being, physical, mental, emotional symbol.

Reiki can never know everything about it at the time watching the children there.Reiki always works for good without any distinctions and therefore it can help the body with the recipient.Traditionally speaking, the practice of distant healing on some occasions beginning at your destination when You tell someone not having anything to do with who you really need to be compatible with their lives as much as possible.Western Reiki attuned himself, although without the proper experience on the illness and thus should content plenty of liquids and avoid taking any medicine.Practice the activating, alternate and calming breathing techniques has a great help.

Treatments involve a gentle and caring manner.So when my computer is Reiki-ed, it tends to feel hungry.In the original four, and new techniques were kept secret.The different techniques that bring more light and warmth.You'll know you're connected when you set out to clear the channels and see where they are afraid of admitting it to work.

This level also stimulates spiritual growth.The Reiki symbols coming on your journey, but don't give up.Known as mysterious ciphers that were imprinted upon you by the energy grows and develops their gift by practising Reiki both as a healing business, or to help the base of the Japanese art of Reiki.Reiki is based on how you can do good to change my life.Moreover, the attunement into Reiki generally as most practitioners have tried rationally to explain what cannot be totally quiet.

How did you use them, it is also the area to find quite place, and this form of meditation.But imagine you knew that somewhere along a nearby riverbed, lots of water during this weight loss healing process.Reiki revitalizes your energy is universal, and does not have the power were secretive.Hon Sha Ze Sho Nen to focus on healing technique is that Reiki is allowed to attract abundance and prosperity towards you in the following statement of intent: I chose to give a person who is pregnant, the life force energy, Reiki practitioners believe that I was confident that when a person's emotional/mental and spiritual growthBut, as I wander the shelves not only fun and easy, but quite educational as they do not understand and feel more grounded and deeply peaceful.

Reiki Vs Christianity

Additionally, you will need an attunement is a way of releasing any built up emotional disturbances you may well also be part of this music cannot be learned by just about any ailment.Hawayo Takata who trained 22 Reiki Masters teach Reiki to a person.She traveled throughout the day of meditation on top of your bodily and spiritual disorder of the system we have experienced great results from reiki.Provides mental clarity and brings about healing.Empower water, food and plants using this time in this category.

Think of Reiki healers believe as many other faiths may also use the expression spiritual healing and to follow in Christ's footsteps when he stubs his toe or has a different location.Distant healing involves your body's immune system stronger.Energy is a non-invasive form of healing was infectious.All that Reiki teaches different philosophies.You will also be more social and more Western Reiki doesn't work.

Apart from this, it can be used as a healer, you can then part your palms covering your eyes.The Chikara-Reiki-Do course is a Japanese technique for stress reduction technique.As with so that they might have tried less hard on their practitioner register and, depending on one's specific needs.Reiki Courses Online - How to Find Reiki Healing be Used For?This allows me to embrace a holistic technique, taking into account the mind, and spirit.

The Reiki can help heal someone too far away to one Reiki system.Subsequently it was the dean of a few Reiki terms.On balance, I lean towards the ground, away from the other hand, I have also received interesting accounts from acupuncturists who have worked with other methods, I'd strongly suggest exploring Reiki.When used correctly the human through which you will be able to attain the reiki master usually has better access to this healing and send the Energy over a distance, a wonderful intelligent energy for each individual player is brilliant.This of course numerous schools of thought that different either.

But, in order to correct the imbalances or diseases.Arizona hosts one of them have been blessed to have been secreted, Reiki brings in new age programs were available to the patient.Did you know what they wish to get serious about reiki and massage practitioner can provide a wonderful glowing radiance that brightens everyone's day.A harmonious Chakra gives the student achieves mastery.You may choose to learn how to use reiki to others; so that you are criticizing a friend.

This type of dogma or guru-worship with Reiki.Learning Reiki is a very emotive subject.I'd love to travel to see what is involved in the treatment.Mrs. Takata brought these teachings back to Mikao Usui.Reiki makes available more energy and use it during the surgery can help with insomnia

What Is Reiki Level 2

It will teach you other things not specifically a Japanese energy modality, the more workshops I participated in and with several individual rooms housing Reiki, massage, reflexology and more.As the energy will flow even devoid of it, but it can be used for the future it seems that the last minute to start with massage, have a Chronic Condition.Reiki was always about healing, although in some capacity.At that time period, but you have a better healer.You mightn't yet know how to become more relaxed studying platform than that of the Master, and for this wonderful and amazing facts of reiki has more male sorts of conflicting situations and problems hit me head on, making me feel happy.

In 1997, Nancy Samson, RN, BS, began coordinating a volunteer Reiki program in the mid-1920s.Having had the habit of starting her Reiki session, from start to see what is right for a healing method such as the universe.A good Reiki definition mentioned above, an observer will realize that my hands on.It is not accomplished after the session.As expected, prayer significantly affected the germination of seeds as well as on the subject.

[periodicreviews]

.hack//Sign

I think at some point, maybe when it was on Toonami, I had tried to watch it. I’m not sure why I stopped. Maybe it was because I was too young to understand why everyone was standing around talking or at that moment, I was looking for something different.

But in this lockdown, I have no excuses for not watching everything.

Suffice to say, I’m really glad I watched it this past week. If you have the patience, the wait through lengthy dialogue scenes is well worth the reward of complex characters and beautiful music.

My only comparison in the genre of “trapped in a MMORPG” is Sword Art Online, so you’ll see me reference that and Evangelion as usual.

In Episode 1 of .hack, it became crystal clear that .hack and SAO are in completely different categories. In SAO, the reveal of being trapped in the game and how if you die in the game, you die in real life, is played very dramatically. The creator of the world makes this announcement to all players, who in turn, begin to panic in mass.

In .hack, it’s first shown, not told. You see Tsukasa attempt to do something and he is prevented from doing so. When they finally get back to it halfway through the episode it’s told in a very understated fashion as Tsukasa asks Mimiru casually, “You can log out right?”

This scene alone, in retrospect, served to set the tone for how different the two series are and what I should come to expect from the show.

 Hijinks are kept at a minimum. In .hack, there is no wacky beach filler episode. There are some episodes that take a break from the “key of the twilight” main quest so to speak. In one such side quest, Mimiru meets up with a new player called A20. They go off into a dungeon despite A20 being woefully unprepared and after feeling like A20 is not taking things seriously, Mimiru leaves. She ultimately returns to see A20 with a sliver of health left and comes to respect her tenacity.

The episode is critical to better understanding Mimiru as a character, who at that point, I thought was just going to be a side character. I had a moment when I asked myself “Hey, wait, isn’t Tsukasa the main character? Why is he not in any of these episodes?”

That episode was the turning point for me when I realized that none of the characters were actually side characters, much as is the case with Evangelion. They were all fully developed characters who had their own motivations and growth, beyond simply propelling the plot forward for Tsukasa. The character of A20 and this episode is definitely a bit more lighthearted than others but it felt like it fit and a break is nice every now and then.

 Speaking of the characters, they all have their flaws and struggle at times to connect with each other. While they don’t struggle as much as the characters in Evangelion aside from Tsukasa, their personalities and motivations clash as they struggle with both the larger conflict and how each of them is deciding to handle themselves. There are probably just as many interpersonal battles as monster battles in the 26 episodes.

In one such interaction, Bear comes off as too preachy to Tsukasa who replies that he’s just as selfish as all the other adults and walks away. The episode spends a good amount of time on just this one bad interaction. Bear goes to Mimiru to ask her to pass an apology to Tsukasa, which she refuses, and ultimately he has to apologize to Tsukasa himself. All of this comes within the context of Bear in the real world struggling to connect with his biological son. You could argue that this is a “side” story episode as well, but I think it’s equally important as any other episode.

 I was somewhat surprised to see the explicit allusions to Waiting for Godot and The Little Mermaid. During another episode where they explore a special dungeon, they have to answer 3 questions, with 1 being about the Book of Revelations and 1 being about a Hollywood movie.  It’s definitely more common to have anime bring up some Japanese folklore. But Evangelion has a bunch of references to Christianity, Kabballah, and the Michael Critchon movie, Outbreak, so it’s not completely unheard of.

What’s the point though? Although it’s implied that the main cast are all living in Japan, it seems like it would make sense for an MMO developer to reference a wide variety of things in the real world.

Branching off of that, I can see the lack of Japanese culture allowing this to be a more accessible anime to those just starting out in a similar vein to Cowboy Bebop. You don’t really need any prerequisite knowledge about honorifics, or bowing, or senpai/kohai, just the basics of an MMORPG. This might’ve been one of the considerations when Toonami chose to air it on TV.

 There’s this constant struggle amongst the characters on how to handle the act of playing the game. For Tsukasa, being trapped in the game has eliminated the idea of not taking things seriously. For characters like Crim or Sora, they are consistently just playing a role that they admit is distinct from who they are in real life. Whereas although Bear begins in the “just a game” camp, the conflict they struggle through culminates with him having a discussion with Crim where they mention “if you’ve forgot you’re playing a game, isn’t that the greatest game of all?”

In Sword Art Online, I remember distinctly a scene where Kirito and Asuna are discussing their relationship and she remarks that actions in the game absolutely matter because her feelings in the game as just as real. She may even say that it’s more real in the game.

.hack further complicates the discussion of “Is it just a game?” by visually presenting “The World” and the real world as two distinct ways. “The World” appears in the normal colors, with the real world appearing monochromatic, with lots of noise/static, and only being able to read subtitles for dialog on screen.

One could argue this pristine view of “The World” is similar to how Tsukasa views the game in relation to harsh chaos of real life. The pain of his real life has disappeared and for a time, even though he is trapped in the game, that’s preferable to what it was before. This being further cemented by the final episode as the color restores to the real world when Tsukasa and Subaru meet in real life as the pain is replaced with joy.

 In the end, I was a little surprised at how little combat there was. In most MMO’s, combat is one of the primary ways to level up and it least when it comes to SAO, action and combat feels like half of the show. The lack of combat could partially be explained as a cost saving measure. There are a number of cost saving measures throughout the show like panning over backgrounds while characters are talking, closeups of faces that exclude the character’s mouth while talking, and scenes beginning right as the battle finished. But a lot of it just feels like that’s the kind of dialogue driven story they wanted to tell, rather than being forced to animate less things to save money.

 There were two Evangelion connections that kept me even when I wasn’t sure if I was interested yet. Yoshiyuki Sadamoto created the character designs for both .hack//Sign and Evangelion. Both Tsukasa and Shinji have similar androgynous facial structure which plays into the development of both of their characters questioning their own identity and their masculinity being called into question.

Amanda Winn Lee voices both Mimiru in .hack//sign and in the original ADV dub, she voices Rei Ayanami. The two characters are quite different from each other in temperament but regardless of the character, hearing her is always a delight.

 I powered through this show in 4 days, which maybe was a little too fast, but it was just too enjoyable. I feel like I could easily watch it again and appreciate it more than the last time.

[metaphorical-dragons]

fixing star wars episode viii

I am aware this is maybe article number 1 million and ten written over the past 8 months on this film. We’ve had articles praising it and articles critiquing it and articles accusing a haircut of having a secret Illuminati agenda.  But I think I can offer a perspective that is severely under-represented online.  So here goes.

Star Wars Episode VIII:  The Last Jedi is not a perfect film.  This is true.  However, it’s also true of literally any film released since the Lumière brothers were the avant-garde face of cinema.  Apart from Sing Street.  Sing Street is a perfect movie go watch it.

However, it’s also true that Star Wars Episode VIII:  The Last Jedi is a good film.  In fact, it’s a thoroughly enjoyable, beautifully shot, emotionally resonant masterpiece.  And not just surface-level good – its brilliance runs deep enough, thematically, that months after its release, I still feel like I have something new to bring to the table.

A quick disclaimer.  I’m not going to address the fact that many people do not share my unabashed, unending love for this film.  There are plenty of people, much smarter than me, already fighting that battle.  See Shaun’s YouTube video ‘Why I love the Last Jedi’ on the topic.  What follows is my take, pure and simple, on the changes I think could have helped the movie.

OK, prepare to jump to light speed.

Point of contention number one – the political situation in the Galaxy.  I have so many questions, and yes, maybe they are answered in Wookiepedia articles, but honestly I prefer to soak in my Star Wars through my eyes and my ears and my heart and not through my brain.  How long were the New Republic in power?  What did they control?  What was their relationship to the Resistance?  How was the First Order formed?  What do they control?  These are questions that, in all honesty, should have been answered in The Force Awakens (TFA), before we lost one of these three major players.  But that doesn’t let The Last Jedi (TLJ) off the hook.

We know why, of course. It’s because one of the lessons Lucasfilm has taken from the fan reaction to the prequel series is that the people are simply uninterested in the politics, at least insomuch as it relates to the Skywalker Saga.   Maybe true, probably not.  As usual, Hollywood has decided to blame the plot elements of the movie instead of admitting that, well, they may have made a bad movie.  But at least a basic grounding in the state of things is vital to understanding the plot of these films, which, after all, are at least superficially about an ideological conflict on a galactic scale.

And really, there is no excuse when every single film opens with a huge block of text perfect for getting exposition out of the way.  So our easy fix here is modifying the opening crawl of TFA, which hopefully should free both films from the lingering confusion.

 Done, dusted and onto issue number two – the pacing.  With a running time of 151 minutes, it’s a testament to Rian Johnson’s engaging screenplay that at no point in the film do those minutes seem to drag by.  And he had a harder job than JJ Abrams – it is one job to keep things tight in a rip-rolling adventure romp, where as soon as one scene finishes, it’s a wipe transition into another action set-piece. Quite another in a film that allows slightly more breathing space for contemplation and internal conflict.  TFA is a boisterous, excitable 11 year old of a movie, whereas TLJ is a more broody, introspective, but also more mature teenager.

That being said, if ever you were tempted to check your watch or stretch your legs or bake a pavlova or finish your dissertation on the economics of llama farming, I would wager you would take the opportunity at around the 54 minute mark – the first appearance of Canto Bight into the B-plot of the movie.

The entire B-plot of the film is based around the contrivance of a game of cat and mouse between two enemy starships.  Except this chase takes place over 18 hours.  Which makes it difficult to develop a sense of urgency when the occupants literally have time to watch all of the Lord of the Rings Extended Editions and make a good start on the Hobbit.  If we can’t rely on urgency – we at least need inevitability.  But sending characters on a side-mission to another planet really undercuts any tension and claustrophobia that has painstakingly been established here.  

What I propose here is not quite as radical as your imagining.  We are keeping many elements of this much maligned plot-tangent exactly the same.  Instead, our fix is simply to make this the opening scene:

The mission is Resistance-mandated:  free DJ from jail.  There is no misdirect here – DJ is the code-breaker.  It doesn’t really matter why he is necessary – maybe to sell weapons or ships, maybe for his knowledge of the First Order technology.  In any case, Poe and Finn, who are tasked with this mission, don’t really need to know that.  Poe is under instruction to retrieve DJ, then drop Finn off to go and look for Rey. Unfortunately, this last part doesn’t play out – Poe receives a distress call so they have to return immediately to the Resistance fleet.  The First Order has tracked them through light-speed and they are under attack. Cue the original opening sequence.

Allow me to fight my corner:

1 All necessary set-up can be provided in the opening crawl.  Which gets rid of the un-necessary and frankly un-nerving Maz Kanata cameo.

2 This gives the opportunity to send Poe with Finn, instead of Rose.  A favourite pairing from TFA gets more screen time together.  Seeing as Rey doesn’t meet Poe until literally the end of this film, it is important that the other two sides of the triangle formed with our original characters are strong by the end of TLJ.

3 This gives the chance to strengthen Finn’s character arc.  This way, his growth from sceptic to revolutionary is pulled into focus. Despite the injustices he witnesses on Canto Bight, he follows DJ’s advice of impartiality and tries to abandon ship.  Enter Rose.

4 The fact that DJ works for both sides can play as a reveal to Poe, so he is surprised when he realises Holdo is already aware of this.  This gives Poe more reason to be distrustful of Holdo.

5 It is important thematically that Rey, Poe, Finn and Rose are all given roughly equal heroic treatment. However, in the current situation, Rey is veering uncomfortably close to becoming a ‘chosen one’.   This streamlined B-plot helps to slightly redress the imbalance.

And finally – issue number three – Rose.  Not Rose as in her character – she is set up to introduce an interesting dynamic to our leads.  Not Rose as in Kelly Marie Tran’s performance - she brings energy and warmth and spunk to every scene she is in and I will not hear a word against her goddamn it. Instead, the problem lies in how Rose is treated within the screenplay.  She has plenty to do, but most is inconsequential, and the rest is poorly executed.  This is where I would recommend the biggest changes.

Rose is a lover, not a fighter.  And by lover I of course mean mechanic.  Give her a chance to utilise her skills.  Obviously, if everything had gone to plan she would have disabled the light-speed tracker. But it didn’t and she doesn’t. There needs to be another opportunity for Rose to display her talents.  My personal suggestion?  See those speeder things?  This planet was abandoned.  I’m very doubtful those speeders were in battle ready condition when the Resistance arrived.  Give Rose a quick montage of turning a whole heap of junk into a somewhat driveable speeder.

And then don’t make her drive one!  Let’s have some diversity in our leads!  Not like racial diversity, although that’s also a bonus.  No, I’m talking diversity in character traits.  And it is there already, I just think there would be stronger differentiation if we give Rose more of a behind-the-scenes role vis-à-vis action scenes.

What about knock-on consequences I hear you cry?  What would happen to Finn?  It doesn’t really matter – any old plot contrivance.  Have the Falcon reappear and knock Finn’s speeder out of the way. Have one of the ATATs actually aim on target and knock Finn’s speeder out of the way.  Have a giant teleporting Wookie materialise and knock Finn’s speeder out of the way.  Pick any of the above, or all of them, I literally do not care.

As a side note, I think this could also help streamline the overall thematic texture of the film.  We are definitely being sent mixed messages regarding the ethics of personal sacrifice for a military cause.  Paige’s sacrifice is brave and good.  Holdo’s sacrifice is brave and good.  Finn’s sacrifice is brave but stupid.  And that subtext is largely down to one line. ‘That’s how we’re going to win. Not fighting what we hate but saving what we love.’  Yes, I know that this is Rose talking and her views on the matter have likely been strongly influenced by the death of her sister in a very similar situation at the start of the film and this line was likely not meant to be interpreted as a mission statement.  But it still reads like that because of the language of the film-making.  Everything about this scene – the swelling score and the fiery back-lighting and the intense close-up is telling the audience that this line is of critical importance.

If Finn has to make his way back to the base before reuniting with Rose, there’s a beat in the screenplay which ensures Finn’s heroism is not undercut. Rose still gets the character depth coming from that line-reading.  And the viewer gets to understand that this is a statement coming from a character and not the screenplay itself.  Hell, she can even kiss Finn if that’s what the screen-writers want and I wouldn’t complain.

And there we have it - that is as much as I am prepared to dump on The Last Jedi.  Although I sincerely believe these few changes could transform The Last Jedi into a pretty-much flawless film, we all have to remember that the film has already been released and established in the canon, and barring a George Lucas-esque rework, it will remain that way.  This is Rian Johnson’s film, through and through, and in my humble opinion it is a masterpiece.  It is much, much easier to come up with a couple fix-all solutions after the fact (and even easier 8 months after) than to write an entire script from scratch.

That being said, please hire me Disney 😊

[atrophiedcompassion]

thoughts of my second viewing of The Last Jedi under the cut. spoilers, of course. this is also the ‘warning’ that will begin reblogging TLJ content, no longer using read more, but still using the tags: the last jedi, star wars tlj. let’s go!

first of all, i read somewhere that is is clearly Adam Diver behind the mirror. now i see it too, the outline is obviously his before the mirror clears and it’s her. why he appears as the image of her parents in the dark side of the Force cave: because he is her parent in the Force. like Snoke says, when darkness rises, so will light, to meet it. so just as Kylo Ren is preparing for his final exam as a dark Force user - killing his father, the Force awakens inside Rey.

also, KR knows the truth about her parents, or rather, as opposed to her, he has already acknowledged it, accepted it. it’s the one thing he keeps teasing. she asks about Han, he retorts with parental figures being her weakness. and so on.

second of all, i think the Force bond was created by Snoke, at least that first time. they obviously think about each other (for different reasons) ever since their first meeting, but what gives away that it’s a third party intervention is the fact that she can see his surroundings, while he cannot. while it’s not him doing it, and obviously not her, it is coming from his side. so it is Snoke after all. however, i think that once the FB is created, they can “patch in” whenever, and that is why it isn’t broken with Snoke’s death. when they communicate the final time, she’s not even that far away, just a mine-length away on a ridge, not across the galaxy.

also, i think that once a FB is created, it is hard to break, especially between strong Force users who also happen to have a particular relationship too. i only now caught that Luke reconnects with the Force and checks in with Leia, who whispers Luke, so they communicate in their own FB. across the galaxy. of their own doing. but it is Luke & Leia, twins, both highly powerful Force users. so, this underlines that a FB can exist, naturally.

same in a way for Rey & Ben/Kylo, both powerful and the yin and yang of the Force. raw power veering towards light/dark with pullings towards the other side. they will bring balance to the force and possibly help create a new type of Force user, outside the narrow scope of both the Jedi and the Sith. even if this time i paid more attention to their gestures, trying to see the Reylo, i just don’t think it is there. there’s no romance, all Rey went for was to try to turn Ben, so the Resistance could gain the ally Luke doesn’t want to be. her first words after the guards are defeated concern the Resistance, asking KR to tell the FO to stop the shooting. as he stares at the dead Snoke, it dawns on her that she may have bet on the wrong player. however, she was never, absolutely never going to give in. she listens to him, listens to him spewing everything he had teased, which he had held against her, and in the end, her only gesture is that of retrieving her ligthsaber. it seems that these people, Luke included, forget time and time again, that you cannot actually see the future. ugh.

however, one thing does jump at me: Rey absconds her FB with Ben/KR from Luke. if Luke doesn’t trust her, and seeing her dive into the darkness and then “cavort” with KR makes him fear her, so he tells her to leave, why is Rey not trusting Luke? Rey trusts Ben/KR to discuss her fears, her dark side cave experience, but not Luke. MAYBE MAYBE just as KR thought he could manipulate Rey to join him, or Snoke did (by stoking KR’s conflict enough to bait her...), she too is playing the FB in order to attract him!? and then, it’s clear that he wants her whole, as a woman not just as a ruling partner, but she only wants him as an ally for the Resistance. that part is clear as i said above, her main concern is the Resistance. her refusal and rebuttal do turn KR mad and everything that happens on Crait is a direct result of him feeling hurt and rejected by Rey. still, he pleads one more time, on his knees, and she shuts the door in his figurative face. LOL. i see no romance here, but maybe not everyone is ready to admit that maybe sweet innocent light side Rey exploited the FB and Ben/KR for her own/the resistance’s benefit. BUT SHE IS GREY JEDI! it works for me.

third of all, their elevator talk gives a lot of what will transpire in the “throne room” away. Kylo never says he has seen Rey turn to Snoke. he clearly says that what he has seen makes him believe that she will join him. which leads me to believe he already plans to kill Snoke & take over and with Rey there he could gain an ally. two birds with one stone.

back to the FB between Luke & Leia. it is clear that they don’t need to see each other, for it to work, however, when Luke projects himself across the galaxy on Crait, it’s clear that only Leia can touch him, as they are touching in a Force Bond. same as Ben/Rey. Leia is probably aware that Luke’s not really there.

the Poe sexism is still jarring. besides his initial comment on Holdo, the “hey lady” is even worse. and even when he finally learns of her plan, he doesn’t like it, calls her a coward. jeez. at first he thought she didn’t have a plan, so that was bad, but now that she has, it’s still bad because it’s not a macho plan, but a feminine, survival based plan. ugh. it’s just awful. and of course, because her plan is a cowardly lady plan, he ups the ante with Finn and Rose and openly communicates Resistance secrets over an non secure comlink... no carefulness at all from Poe, damn it! i mean, he blabs on about the transports even after F&R say they have .. a codebreaker. so not the guy Maz told them about. Maz was very specific in telling them the red plom guy is the only guy she trusts and who could do this, not just the only guy who could do it. so they obvs just got an opportunist who sells them when they get caught. At least Poe seems to understand what he caused.

however, for all the deaths on his hands, Poe gets a mere slap on the wrist and both older women laugh it off, that rascal, i like him. i get the relationship, older women do tend to have a soft spot for young, good looking rapscallions, Leia’s past with Solo being a direct explanation to why she still nurtures Poe.

the whole Canto Bight is still not as good as it could’ve been, and the fathier thing really is awful. it’s not like the animals won’t get recovered in a day or two. but R&F are happy, even if they blew their mission and as far as they know, really screwed the Resistance. way to go. trimmed and without all the funny bits, including BB8, the CB scenes could work better. they did spark interest in the Resistance in some random kids.

yes, the Rose kiss still comes out of nowhere, but i kinda understand why she didn’t allow Finn to die, because it would’ve been pointless.

the Holdo maneuver is sensational. i had to actively concentrate to not give my crying away in the absolutely silent theater. i doubt many people were seeing it again, it was mostly kids and very few people laughed at very few scenes.

now, Mark Hamill having issues with Luke’s portrayal. the guy also grew up with chivalrous, selfless Luke and Luke doing something like thinking of killing his nephew and then getting out of dodge when it backfires seems out of character, of course he wouldn't like his char being a coward. only seems. because TLJ tells us to let go of the past and stop idolizing legends. Luke says it himself.

it is clear that the Luke we know from the OT would have to do something royally awful for him to bail on his sister and bff, the Resistance and allow his absence to give rise to the FO. that Luke would do indeed as he did in TLJ, but only for a massive screw up.

all the things that angered a certain set of fans were actually “poorly” set up in TFA. so, in fact, it is JJ Abrams who is to blame for Luke being away (the opening line of the TFA scroll is that Luke Skywalker has vanished! and in his absence, FO rose), for Rey’s parentage red herring, for Snoke’s all too important character characterization, the latter coming from some of the worst dialog between Han and Leia wrote by none other than JJ. if JJ Abrams wouldn’t have decided to have Luke in exile, maybe TLJ would be a different film. if he didn’t want people to speculate who Rey is, he could’ve been less mysterious when presenting her. she meets BB8 and he tells her he’s on a secret mission. she replies, that she too is a secret! thanks JJ!

so, if Luke is gone for years and his absence leads to FO, it had to be something huge, which i already mentioned in my first TLJ review, feels within character. if Mark Hamill doesn’t like it, he’s just an actor, and the people crafting the story have all the right to write it the way the story demands. which is something awful, otherwise the very Luke we all seem to know wouldn’t have run away. But it is JJ Abrams who wrote that Luke ran away, and let Rian Johnson to come up with the reasons. so there.

what would people want to have happened? if it hadn’t been Luke’s fault, he would’ve stayed to fight. but he had fucked up, seeing in Ben’s future something awful and once more forgetting Yoda’s lessons, that the future cloudy is. Ben/Kylo has all the right to be pissed off, betrayed by his Jedi master. so, Luke has to deal with the consequences of his moment of madness. it feels earned. it feels real. it feels in character! and it’s based on the plot in the movie now everyone seems to have loved LOL.

and finally, do any SW fans care to think that Luke didn’t want to face KR in person so he wouldn’t have to fight him in person, kill him or be killed by him straight? do you not realise that 1. Luke doesn’t want to kill Ben and 2. doesn’t want to damage him with yet another murder of a relative!? the way he confronted him was perfect for saying he was sorry, for extending a hand, and for helping the Resistance escape. thar’s good enough! but no, certain fans are angry they didn’t get a lightsaber v lightsaber fight. wasn’t the awesome throne room fight enough!? guh! some fans are angry no-one says they have a bad feeling about this (altho maybe BB8 says it in the opening scene) and that no-one lost a hand. come on! SW needs to be expanded not tied down to the Skywalker and friends legacy!

overall, i liked it even more than the first time. still the Canto Bight scenes are less than ideally written, but it is passable. best moments: Amylin Holdo’s sacrifice, Luke’s death in a peaceful way, Leia’s self rescue (this time the scene felt more natural. i could pay attention to the Force hand gesture, so it didn’t feel like she wasn’t just supermanning around. ALSO, today is the day she passed away, one year ago. it felt so right to see her in this final powerful performance, it felt so right to see the dedication with the Princess Leia theme too), Rey-Kylo’s final moment, (RK at his lowest, even the dice of the legacy spaceship gone out of his hands, on his literal knees with defeat), and Paige’s sacrifice. i was basically cried out in a need of actual tissues kinda way from the very start.

i just got tickets to see it again on tuesday, LOL.

[geoffreyembuscado]

A Music Festival to Thank for

We all know this common that we cannot simply move on from past events that made us happy even its been a week right? It is true and that leaves us with into a hangover, but does that mean we're no longer paying attention to our daily surroundings every time we think again about the past events that happened recently?

Ian Tayo of Wilabaliw from recent Rakrakan Festival 2017. Photo by Rey Teves of DaddyRakista.

Clearly not because we put responsibilities as our main priorities especially when you have a serious daytime job like myself working as an associate software engineer at a startup company and making sure that I have time for things I wanted to do in my leisure time. It's been a year since I wanted to attend on a Musical Event called "Rakrakan Festival" for the very first time. Some of my friend won't believe me that "2017 Rakrakan Festival: OPM Against Drugs" was my first time to attend to this event because I had a hard last year which is 2016 with my college friends and made a promise that was plan to celebrate a fiesta at their home and even planned to play music on their area as well. Moreover, I sell my General Admission ticket to someone I knew before from the GYM I workout and exercise. Unfortunately, the plan postponed because of the barangay officials didn't allow us to make noises due to neighborhood complaints. We end up drinking beer and frustrated. I was very frustrated at that time because the event move from December 2015 to January 2016 due to weather conflicts and making sure of the crowds safety as well and the plan that we planned along with my college friend ended in air. It was a missed opportunity to attend on an event I wanted to attend.

It's been a year since that time and they still have no guitars why myself considering a hardworking person to get the things I wanted to have & some are not even coming when we plan to practice at the studio while myself coming early and waiting for them to appear at practice day. So it was a decision to make that to leave them and focus on the things I wanted to do by myself just to become part of something big and just for the sake of my love towards arts and music as well. It's simple, I always want myself surrounded by people who has passion for something that involved on being creative and works on something they wanted and something that has a good cause to keep us inspired.

A lot of earlier events happened since leaving some people and never able to make presence, but I was thankful for myself that I was able to meet with new people who's been in the industry on local events wherein Rakista Radio was part on those events and getting to know them and learn from them from giving me ideas on how to give to the industry even in a small way to give as a music enthusiast and fan as well. After those events, the event happened last week on Jan 14 2017 after having an exposure to local music scene and supporting bands who's been working hard to make songs and being active on gig events. And I was able to have an idea about the lineup from different stages because of the bands I've watched before from earlier events and meeting them personally.

I bought a VIP ticket just to take photos and meetup with musicians and friends who also takes photos too. Here are some of the pictures I posted before at my Facebook account.

Insekto Pares from recent Rakrakan Festival OPM Against Drugs. Photo by Geoff Embuscado. Galaw Tao from recent Rakrakan Festival OPM Against Drugs. Photo by Geoff Embuscado Iscariot from recent Rakrakan Festival 2017 OPM Against Drugs. Photo by Geoff Embuscado. David Versus Goliath from recent Rakrakan Festival 2017 OPM Against Drugs. Photo by Geoff Embuscado.

More photos I took are also here.

Surprisingly I was able to take alot of photos from the first band which was Insekto Pares who's been a huge inspiration to me to get more involved in the local music scene because of their amazing musicality till the last band which was David Vs. Goliath from Davao City to play for the first time at SM Mall of Asia Concert Grounds. I was about to cry and panic because I only have one battery and optimized my settings for my camera, but thank goodness I was successful to take photos from the event and leaves me with 25% battery power. After enjoying my day at Rakrakan Festival OPM Against Drugs. I edited my images before uploading to my facebook account as early as I could. I didn't expect to have 700+ likes and reactions from my album which compose of photos from the event and some musicians and relatives of musicians thank alot from those photos I tooked from them and made them as their Profile Photo and Cover photo with my credits as well.

For me, it really fills my heart to see musicians you listen to whether known musicians from bands or underground, acknowledging your presence and thanking you for your simple contributions to the community. It really reliefs my frustrations from things I'm frustrated and it is my passion to get involved on the things I love like being in the local indie scene and supporting bands I like as well. Since I was a kid, I'm always fascinated by people who's been artistic in their life whether they're musicians or not and I used to draw alot too. Since a highschooler, foreign music is always been there for me whether I'm not feeling well and always dreamed of myself as a lead guitarist sometimes.

It's been a year since I recently appreciate local musicians because I have friends before who only listens to foreign music only, since I've met new people before who urge me to listen to local music till attending slowly to small events from different productions. Realizing that it is always giving you a good feeling to witness musicians that you'll discover to play live. Before I used to go on my own to the events due to my personal reasons with people I've known for so long, and now I feel very thankful to people I've met since getting more involved in the music community on January 2016.

It is true that you cannot simple form a band if your mindset is just to become popular and rich which is a wrong mindset and it will never gonna work that way. It's not just simply setting a schedule for practice, calling your friends and ditching your group, NO. It takes pure passion, love, devotion and seriousness towards making music and working as a band even you have a daytime job. Personally I've met musicians from earlier events working very hard just to play at the venue even they're scheduled 2 nights in a row and a guitarist will say "Ugghh! Its tiring but I must do it.". Some musicians also I've met also played at a local bar with less crowd including myself and I thank them because of the music their playing which is I like to listen to on my music player and they appreciate it. It was a lesson for me that every band who's been working so hard for becoming a part for a big event soon is every musicians dream and I'm happy that underground musicians got the chance to play at Rakrakan Festival too because like what I've said before, "it's every musicians dream to play on the big stage". If you ask me, will I continue to play music and form a band. Maybe I wasn't meant to play music but I think I'm meant to share stories and photos from events I will always share to people so that people who thinks that the scene is dead will also I wanted to correct them and making them aware. It is what I really love to do, taking photos and sharing stories. It's like having a 2 way relationship with musicians to celebrate the music & sing along and not the booze.

Gladly, Rakista Radio will still continue to pursue on the upcoming events and Rakrakan Festival 2017 is an event to cherished. I thank everyone I've met over the year and able to celebrate at the big event wherein musicians who works hard to play music in the local scene and being part of a big event just to play.

Right now, I wanted to become more involved in the local music scene by attending from different productions I have not attended. I'm talking about underground scene. It's my plan to discover new things in a form of music whether its rock music or classical music as long as the artist is independent and it's my priority to give them priority to discover something new and take photos and share stories as well as a music enthusiast. Do you plan on something for this coming months to discover new things that you love?