#role play convention

[skeine]

the implications of the exaltants disappearing are driving me insane. he's ready to release predathos, has been for days now, but he's been using them, not her. the one he knows has the best chance to pull this all off has been sitting on the sidelines for days

did she know this was what he was doing with the ones she brought him? did she watch the first led in brave and resolute, waiting for their apotheosis, ready to save the world with their conviction and strength of will alone? did she watch them flayed by the razor edges of its alien mind, pulverized by its abyssal weight, annihilated by a driving force of will too great for their mortal flesh to contain? did the horror set in then, or was it when she saw their twisted, mutated corpse casually tossed aside to lead in the next? and the next. and the next.

or did she not know why her charges were disappearing. did she let herself be soothed by comforting lies from the man she trusted with her life. did she bury the unease and doubt taking root in the back of her mind, sure she had his excesses under control. when did she find out that dozens of the wards she protected so fiercely died agonizing deaths in an attempt to divine the secrets of channelling an eldritch god? was it why she reached out to her daughter or did she only learn it after she betrayed him, was dragged into the ritual chamber and finally saw in it the ruins of her children, her hopes and her faith in the man who was going to consume her like he did everything else in her life

[judgeitbyitscover]

Bimbos of the Death Sun by Sharyn McCrumb

Cover art by Jeff Easley

Windwalker / TSR, February 1987

Even before the unscheduled murder of the world's most detestable cult author, Rubicon was destined to go down in fen history as the most outrageous fantasy convention ever. The great chronicler of the fantasy adventures of the noble Viking warrior, Tratyn Runewind, was suddenly no more. Appin dungannon was dead - a bullet through his hear and a spilled bottle of scotch at his side. Who hated him enough to kill him? The answer: Practically everyone.

James Owens Mega, creator of that deathless tome, Bimbos of the Death Sun, dons the roll of Dungeon Master, and solves this uproarious whodunit in the ultimate role-playing game climax.

[ultrainfinitepit]

Probably not the smartest move right before Angeltober, but I got Baldur's Gate 3. It's very fun so far!

Here is my Tav, she is a drow cleric named Charity. She was found and adopted by a cleric of Kelemvor and raised in a convent. Charity never knew her biological parents. Her name comes from being called that cleric's "charity case" and then the name Charity stuck.

[clairedaring]

always wishing for the downfall of branded pairings in thai bls because as much as i adore seeing the same actors reuniting in a series, i want them to see different chemistry combinations or actors to reunite once every 2-3 years not like every single year ಥ_ಥ sighs this is why i always end up with personal favorite ql actors who aren't in any branded pairings (disclaimer: nothing against actors who are though) ╮（╯＿╰）╭

that being said can my gdh besties nonkul/jaylerr get a gdh film together, it's literally been SEVEN years since project s: shoot! i love you o(TヘTo).

[edith-is-a-cat]

HEH

[theblob1958]

I’m sure you’ve said them but your thoughts on exactly why Grace thought she loved Nick enough to marry him and then only liked her marriage when she could live at home with Frankie and only have to see him periodically? #enabling

The thing you all have to understand is that canonically, the main reason Grace married Nick is because she was fighting with Frankie. A huge fight that led her to think she didn't need Frankie in her life anymore, that Grace may have needed her after the Gay-Divorce event but now that they're both past that, it's time to move on. And Nick saw how sad and angry Grace was after this fight and wanted to cheer her up (his heart was in the right place), so they went and got married, a marriage Grace immediately starts to regret, realizing that she wants Frankie to always have a place in her life, and that place is right at Grace's side. That they make each other the best versions of who they are ("The real me, the me when I'm with you").

Now, this is all canon events, stuff that happens right there on your screen, no extrapolation required. Grace needed someone to fill the Frankie sized hole she thought she was going to have in her life, so she chooses Nick and a husband and knew it was wrong before even 24 hours pass. Because, well, her first person will always be Frankie. And when she tries to put Nick first, it never feels good and never works out and turns her into someone she doesn't want to be. But she tries making marriage work, tries to be a wife again, but then she gets the perfect out. A win-win situation, where she can have her cake and eat it too. She gets to move back in with Frankie, spend 23 hours of the day with her and the other hour she can spend with Nick. It's just what she always wanted; her hour with Nick doesn't interrupt her time with Frankie. It's once again GraceandFrankie, with Nick all the way out of the picture except for regulated, hour long visits deprived of true emotional and physical connection.

This set up is perfect because Grace doesn't have to confront what's staring her in the face just yet, can still hold onto the rules of life she's trying to live by. Where women like her should have a husband, or a boyfriend, or at least a man in their lives. That doesn't work for Grace, though, doesn't give her what she needs, forces her to contort and transform herself in Wife or Girlfriend when all she wants to be is Grace, and maybe GraceandFrankie.

Soon, she'll have to face the music and admit she doesn't want men in her life anymore, that she just wants Frankie. To live with, and spend time with, and love, and be loved back. With Nick in prison, she can still have plausible deniability, still get to live by The Rules, still be in denial about what she wants ("And I like that. Sometimes too much").

It's safe and easy and (now this is where my own interpretations come into play) allows Grace to sit comfortably in her repression. She isn't a lesbian because of course she's not, not when she loves her distant, unavailable husband in prison, all while getting to live with her girl best friend, and work with her, and have the deepest and most meaningful emotional connection with her.

She gets to have Frankie, and she gets to have Nick, and everyone is happy (maybe not Nick but that doesn't matter to Grace). It works perfectly, until Nick comes to live with them and Grace realizes there's no room for Nick in her life anymore, all the roles filled by Frankie. Then Grace's arc culminates into her accepting the only thing that matters is her and Frankie and their relationship that transcends all boundaries of friendship and love and family. That it's her and Frankie until the end, no 3rd party needed. And that's what this show has always been working towards.

Or, short answer: Grace Hanson is a lesbian.

[abrthephantomq]

Encoder Zim - pt 2? pt 2

Please, my fellow humans, take a seat for a moment and study the image displayed on the screen. Does this look like someone who could take out one of the planet’s greatest leaders? 

[An image of Dib, approximately 34 years of age. He’s stick thin and tall. Lanky is a good word for him – like his limbs were just slightly too long for the rest of his body. There’s an eyepatch covering his left eye – well, it’s more like there’s large, twisted scar that makes up the left side of Dib’s face and a dainty little patch of black resting on top of it, where his left eye should be. 

He’s wearing what you’d expect a Dib to wear; black trench coat, black boots, blah blah blah. It’s Dib. An filthy human worm from a filthy planet of filth.]

“....no?” 

WRONG. 

[The image on screen changes to one of Dib, sans trench coat, but otherwise looking as gangly and awkward as always. This picture appears to be older, as it’s a bit frayed and Dib’s hair isn’t anywhere near as long as it is in the first picture. That stupid scythe-lock of hair sticks out on top – and Dib’s face, while still scarred, looks freshly healed.

Also in this shot, Dib is actually doing something kinda cool like fighting a weird Earthen monster. Something huge and hairy and definitely not normal. You’ve seen many different gross and disgusting species of animal in your day, but even this creature gives you the creeps.]

This is the same dreaded heh-yuman who wiped out Jif Bozos, the richest man on the planet. He may look stupid, but he is remarkably capable, despite his stupid appearance. 

[More images of Dib, from various angles – from various locations. It’s clear that the Dib has been traveling. They’re clicked through quickly, though there are…. quite a lot of them. Probably more than is necessary. It takes a beat too long to click through them all.]

(Note to self: tell GIR not to put so many pictures of the Dib in the slide deck, next time.)

He is a member of the organization known as the Swollen Eyeballs. Apparently, their goal is to keep the planet safe from ineffectual and terrible leaders. And by “ineffectual and terrible” they mean leaders who care about the econ-o-me and who want to keep it growing and growing and growing. 

(You pause, turn on your heel, and allow a flash of teeth.) They want to get rid of you. 

(The crowd, as you’ve predicted, gasps and boos, and you have to fight back a smile. The fact that the humans have such a soft word for such a threatening display, and that you’ve deemed it acceptable to use in your thoughts, barely pings something deep within you. Years ago, it would have.

Probably.)

Now now – I know, I know. You love your money. Of course you love your money! Money is great and it must be protected at all costs.

[An image of yourself, standing tall and powerful, laughing maniacally over a pile of green bills. A Dib-worm lays dead at your feet, limbs tangled together like puppet with its strings cut. It’s clear that the Dib is dead, because there is a puddle of human life force spreading around him and he has x’s for eyes – oh, and his tongue is sticking out of his mouth. Like a fool.] 

Behold! You can hire me, ZIM, to take out this – thorn in your collective side. I have information about this man that no one else does – connections across this pathetic – this perfect planet that only I can utilize. 

And thus concludes my presentation on the greatest threat to the world econ-o-me. Thank you.

(You step down from your platform. The humans mumble among themselves, whispering behind their hands as you walk away. 

You know one of them will be contacting you, soon.)

[todayisafridaynight]

Right??? Thanks so much! I actually first fell in love with Jo's character when RGGJo's voice lines came out haha, so it's super fun to be able to share them.

But I can think of a couple of reasons for the wild personality gap, and for me it starts at their respective roles. Obviously main antagonist and major supporting character are going to draw different levels of attention to themselves, but I think it's chiefly that RGGJo is not just Jo, but he's both Jo and Masato as one character.

RGGJo is much, much closer in age to Ichi, and though they're not "twins" like Ichi and Masato are (RGGJo is a little more than 2 years older), it's thematically there I think. The whole "twin dragonfish," dark and light, two sides of the same coin kind of thing.

And just as Ichi was initially conceptualized as a sort of "greatest hits compilation" of the previous protagonists' most compelling traits, I think there's a strong case for RGGJo being the same for the previous antagonists--specifically Nishiki, Ryuji, and Mine, who are pretty clearly Yokoyama's favorites anyway lol.

I have a feeling casting has something to do with it as well. RGGJo's actor, Hiroki Takahashi, is actually the exact same age as he is, and he's voiced his fair share of fun, flamboyant villains. If I wanted to speculate, he's also voiced his fair share of BL, so that may be why RGGJo's voice lines have a Certain Slant to them; directing his delivery to capitalize on his established appeal (although he has quite a range) makes sense.

Tsutsumi is also only a few years off from Y7Jo, and he was cast for having the dignity and screen presence to "make every word feel like it might have a deeper meaning." Yokoyama (and Takeuchi) wrote the games, he and Nagoshi handled the casting, and Yokoyama generally handles the voice direction for the main story, so a lot of it's specific to his vision.

Within that context I think it's relevant that he wrote Y7Jo while picturing Tsutsumi specifically. RGGJo was more malleable and less "consequential" in terms of the franchise, so, y'know, why not have a little fun with it? I think that's reflected in their designs as well. RGGJo's is larger-than-life while Y7Jo's is relatively subdued.

Overall, I get the sense RGGJo's role is more akin to "son" and "brother," (aniki, if you will), like Masato, whereas Y7Jo's role is more akin to "co-parent" and "father" and I guess "Evil Stepdad" in a Cinderella kind of way. It's not exact across the board, it's not literal across the board, but it's the archetype, right? And I think that does, exactly like you said, have far-reaching consequences for their backgrounds and who they've become as a result.

BTW, you actually are up to speed on Ichi's story, because uh… that's where it stops lol. It was discontinued at roughly the equivalent of the start of Chapter 12 in 7; the rest of the story was written, but not published. It Kills Me.

But I think, despite any concrete backstory, the implication for RGGJo is that (if I assume he joined earlier than Ichi, which would make sense given he's captain), he was at most 18 or 19 when he joined, and he's exactly the same kind of Arakawa fanboy Ichi is. The 15th anniversary book goes on to say he "was purely in love with [Arakawa]'s greatness" and so cannot tolerate the idea of allowing him to live and die in obscurity at the bottom rungs, of Arakawa being in a position not equivalent to his "greatness" in his eyes.

But Ichi thinks that's regardless of what Arakawa himself may want, since RGGJo is apparently not going to stop until he makes him chairman, which the Arakawa Ichi knows wouldn't really care about. I think there's an interesting mix of selflessness and selfishness in his desires that reminds me of Mine.

And that's explicitly as opposed to Y7Jo, whose loyalty remains the same, but whose feelings and motivations are complicated by the existence of Masato; the usage of "purely" before is notable here, as another suitable translation would be "uncomplicatedly," which to me would suggest that degree of admiration is a component of his loyalty in 7 as well.

So I think you're absolutely right the circumstances with Masato are a major aspect of what's going on with Y7Jo. It's inextricable because he's got this immense gratitude towards Arakawa for raising his son and also a need, a primary driving force, to be a part of his son's life at (almost) all costs. The natural result of that is going to be reluctance to do anything that tips the balance.

I think that's one of the things that make him so compelling, he's forced to make a lot of tough, meaningful decisions and there's often (but not always) no right answer. And that's really clear to see with Aoki, as you say.

(Kind of a side note, but somewhat contrary to the above, Masato may actually have existed in RGGO's timeline. There was a comment from Yokoyama or Takeuchi suggesting he's not in RGGO not because he simply "doesn't exist, but specifically because Arakawa may not have opened the right locker or may not have made it to the lockers in time. I guess the other implication would be that Masato would've been Arakawa's biological son in RGGO instead, since RGGJo would've been too young and there was no need for a switcheroo? It was just an off-hand comment, but it's interesting to think about.)

Also, loved your tags haha. It's SO funny you start off like you're going to say something crazy and then it turns out to actually be something I wanted to write about in the previous ask, but that I cut out because I couldn't make it flow. I guess it might just be the case that I'm crazy on the same wavelength?

But yes! I think a lot of the time, impressions of that aspect Jo's backstory sort of begin and end at Evil Stepdad Perpetuates Cycle Of Abuse, perhaps understandably, but there's genuinely so much that's established in both his and Arakawa's backstories that have clearly stayed with them that I'm positive your take on it is at the very least least true to the character, whether or not it's intentional.

Because like, Arakawa and Jo both came from abusive households. And they're both affected by Aoki's "parental abuse" (although Aoki doesn't know it himself, I guess he doesn't need to). But the way Arakawa has always dealt with abuse is defiance; I think the implication of one of the first scenes is that that's how he got his scar. Jo, on the other hand, has always dealt with abuse with avoidance. Running away. Brushing it under the rug, like he says he and Ikumi had done all their lives; I think that statement's fairly clearly linked to abuse and neglect.

And I think that shows both in Arakawa and Jo's respective responses to traditional authority figures and in how they choose to handle things with Aoki. Arakawa defies Aoki's plans in his own way at every turn, and he ends up getting killed for it. Jo, on the other hand, ignores it until there's nothing left to do but sever himself completely, in the same way there was nothing left to do back then but run. IT'S SO. Ugh.

Each Jo's respective role in the overall plot of their stories definitely plays a part in why they turn out different from each other the way they do; it's interesting to see how RGG decided to handle Jo's character to sort of 'adjust him' to fit better as more of a background figure than The Big Bad, and to especially see how his relationships end up is spectacular. Choosing to divide that devotion between his son and his boss in Y7 is something I'm just positively obsessed with: it's clear he joined the yakuza predominantly for Masato's sake, but the concept of Jo gradually coming to genuinely respect Arakawa as an individual opposed to someone that he just happens to have to follow after because his son's involved heightens him as a character for me (I might have to write a side piece on the psyche of Jo- there's just a bunch of aspects to him that I want to explore better and really intrigue me, but I refuse to try and squeeze any of that into this long-as-is answer lmao).

I definitely recognize Ryuji and Mine the easiest in RGGJo (Mine's influence still persists a bit in Y7 to me, if not solely for his devotion and his own version of The Knife Scene existing as The Eye Scene; though Jo's anger wasn't purely due to Arakawa's death in that scene like Mine's was due to Daigo's 'death', it was clear Arakawa's passing was a sore subject). Jo's dedication to Arakawa in RGGO really is totally reminiscent of Mine's devotion to Daigo: both willing to take drastic measures to secure the ones they idolize the spot they feel they deserve and to exterminate any opposition to that dream (if I'm remembering Mine's RGGO story right wherein he partakes in the Okinawa deal as a HUGE ploy just to secure Daigo remains chairman should he wake up, but I don't have to clarify how that didn't go as planned).

As for Nishiki, it's clear Jo borrows his 'position' in the story, just as Ichi obviously takes Kiryu's. To yoink a phrasing from another ask I got, they're 'dark parallels': though they both clearly want the best for Arakawa, they're going about it in different ways (in that sense, Y7Arakawa's line about him seeing the Arakawa Family as his 'sons' makes this situation a little funny: just two kids fighting each other for what's best for their dad lmao). It's a shame the story didn't go on any more after the Millenium fight, but I'm a little happy knowing in that I'm not missing anything (what I will scratch my head over is what RGGOMasato would've been like. I guess it's not exactly certain whether or not he survived The Locker Incident or he was just so considerably normal he wasn't worth bringing up, but regardless I'll have a ponder about it..). It'd be rad if RGG ever decided to release at least the drafts of the rest of the story one day, but I won't hold my breath.

I've peaked over at Takahashi's past roles (I didn't realize he's voiced so many characters I know omg), and I think that's a fair conclusion to come to: he repertoire combines characters with sort of 'harsh' tones to their voices/dialogue, but as you said he does benefit from having voiced some 'lighter' characters! As for Tsutsumi, I think I've made it a little clear on my blog that I've taken time to look at his past projects, and though I haven't seen all of his roles, Jo's an interesting inclusion to his list (but by no means an inappropriate fit. If I were to compare him to one of Tsutsumi's past roles, Nobunaga Oda from Honnouji Hotel is similar in being an intimidating man with a violent reputation but still having a 'soft'/deeper side). It gets more fun when I think of it: Tsutsumi, from what I can gather, is a tad renowned for playing loving fathers (whether they're perfect fathers depends on the character, but they all absolutely adore their kid/family- this might be the only time I've seen him play a father and he isn't doting on his kid, lmao). Yokoyama and Nagoshi are definitely masters at deciding who should play who and how to utilize their talents efficiently, and having prior knowledge to Tsutsumi's roles, I feel as though audience members would have been able to get a hint at Jo's whole character early on (just as RGG had capitalized on Takahashi's reputation) which I personally find to be a fun tidbit, if not just grateful that they chose such an excellent actor to play such an intricate character. Ergo, his ability to give 'deep' performances and have that sort of presence and give his character that type of atmosphere definitely helps enhance the human aspect of Jo's character.

It's a great blend into Jo's otherwise cold demeanor, and going off the idea that RGGJo was a combination of Masato and Jo, the decision to have Jo be a committed father to Masato (as much as he's allowed to be, anyhow) while Masato became the power-hungry villain (even if RGGJo's motivations were ironically centered around Arakawa succeeding moreover himself), it's somewhat of a roundabout way to have them still be connected: though they're not the same character anymore, there's that bond that keeps them stitched together that I find neat.

AND THANK YOU ABOUT MY TAGS I can't sugarcoat it, I'm not a very confident person, so I'm glad you've gleamed there's some validity to what I'm saying. And I'm glad you've expanded on not just Jo, but Arakawa's upbringing as well: though they both come from abusive homes, they do handle it differently, and I feel so blind for not even having wholly noticed it in how they react to Aoki- it's so brilliant I almost want to scream. It's a tragic irony that despite Jo resolving to not 'half-ass' things anymore and to face things head-on, to 'take responsibility', he incidentally falls back into trying to avoid the problem for as long as he can. It's poetic really, and I'm positively going to go insane over the fact.

[thegreatshono]

HeroesCon Sketch: Elf Assassin

Thank you to everyone who visited me at HeroesCon! Extra big thank you to everyone who supported my art and comics! Let's share even more commission art: Today's commission is a Dungeons and Dragons player character. A very cool looking elf assassin.

My regular commissions are currently full, however my sketch cover commissions are still open! Message me if you're interested.

It's crazy out there. If you want to support my work, but can't afford a commission, here are some other ways:

Patreon • Kofi • Digital Comics • Store Envy • Twitch

Thank you for your support!

[autistic-shaiapouf]

Pouf is funny bc people complain about him being weak and not fighting and then forget that he's responsible for the deaths of over 46000 people

[5nake-eater]

If Appropriate did not campaign as hard as they did I do believe that Rachel McAdams would have won Best Actress

[martianmuckraker]

Under a Hostile Sun PreGens Available!

Howdy folks! Five example characters for Under a Hostile Sun have been uploaded to itch.io. So you can blast to the stars with no player preparation! Each Pre-Gen has all necessary stats, keywords and archetype abilities you need to play! Furthermore the character sheet notes the page in the rulebook where you can read more about your Archetype Here is a sample of some of the Pre-Gens that will…

[aslanzounder]

I think I could have easily included Utena and Madoka here, had I done this a few months later

I have to speak my truth.

[otakunoculture]

Emerald City Comic Con 2024. It's Great To Be Back!

There's lots to do at this year's Emerald City Comic Con. Despite some repeat guests and lack of industry exhibitors, it was still a great time! #ECCC #fandom #pacificnorthwest #convention report at:

Emerald City Comic Con certainly exploded in size since 2019. Instead of occupying one building and a quarter during the time I last attended, it’s a full building and a half! I’ve heard stories about last year’s and am glad I didn’t go. Folks had problems navigating around and getting used to the new space. And although the pandemic caused this event to lose momentum back in 2020, it continued…

[maegaasperion]

Festival Day