#still a big fan of orphan's reveal

[ozzgin]

wtf HOW WAS ROMULUS OZZIE Hello??????? I CANT WAIT TO WATCH ITRTR i miss david 8 tho 😓😓 “you finger and i blow” ok gorgeous whatever you say

Ok ok, I let it sit overnight so I could formulate a less feral opinion. I'll do my best to be objective, though you should keep in mind that I'm very biased when it comes to the Alien franchise.

Alien: Romulus First Impressions

Plot. The movie takes place between Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986). If you've seen the old Alien movies, you will notice it follows the same formula: somewhat slow beginning, a grand reveal, a lot of high-stake escape attempts, shady android behavior, and the classic, speedy succession of plot twists where you think you're safe, only to be surprised the very next moment.

While this movie is meant to behave more like the pre-2000 releases, it does bring some novel elements, which, in my opinion, helped build its own authenticity. Additionally - and without spoiling you - it will involve its own Xenomorph variation. Fantastic idea, and I cannot believe it hasn't been done earlier.

The cast is a group of orphaned youngsters who want to escape their space mining colony. You're introduced to a dystopian, grimy world of overworked humans who've never seen the light of the sun. The main character, Rain, is accompanied by her "brother", Andy, an android programmed to take care of her after the death of her parents. Here's another aspect I enjoyed: an anxious, imperfect android who seems to display an emotional bond with his human.

Rain's friends discover a shipwreck which may contain enough sleeping pods to take them away from these unbearable conditions. Their plan is to sneak in, take the pods, and speed away to a more humane station while in cryosleep. The twist? It's not just any regular ship. They have stepped into the Romulus and Remus research station, operated by Weyland-Yutani, and haunted by yet another failed attempt to contain the Xenomorph horrors.

Characters. Let me tell you, this was a breath of fresh air. Prometheus and Covenant have left me rather skeptical when it comes to a competent cast, yet from the ashes of pathetic military personnel rose a bunch of kids who are built for survival. Rain reminded me so much of Ripley - extremely intelligent, efficient, and strong. Her friends are equally brave in the face of disaster. This was a 10/10 cast, and I'm so glad they finally found the balance between being terrified and still navigating the situation without catastrophic mistakes.

Visuals. The imagery was an absolute treat. They seamlessly combined modern special effects with throwback, retro detailing. The futuristic equipment and locations reminded me a lot of Alien: Isolation. Upon further research, it seems that the director was indeed inspired by the game! It made everything so nostalgic and immersive. The Xenomorph design was flawless as usual, involving a lot of body horror.

Audio. I am desperately waiting for the album to be released on Spotify, because the soundtracks were amazing. The music was composed by Benjamin Wallfisch, who seems to have rather big movie titles under his belt, such as It, and It: Chapter Two. Safe to say this man knows how to instil terror in you. They made sure to incorporate some of the classic pieces, then expanded on that. The alert beats reminded me of Covenant, while other tracks provided their own take on the story. The intro of the movie is aided by dissonant chanting in the background, hinting at the ancient, religious imagery used for the Xenomorphs.

Conclusion. Overall, I'd say this is a must-watch for any Alien fan. It is a tribute to the classic movies, but it still offers a brand-new take to the Alien Universe. The movie had some moments of complete silence - staying true to the "In space, no one can hear you scream" quote - and everyone in the cinema held their breaths. It will keep you on your toes.

[fullmetal-scar-simping]

Handing out a pamphlet to any mangahood fans giving the 2003 anime a shot:

Ed and Al (and Hohenheim) are not Xerxian. In fact there is no Xerxes. Don't interpret these characters through that lens. Similarly, Xing has no relevance here (it's a single line in a discussion of Amestrian geopolitics, and that's it)

Ed does not metaphysically supply Al's body with energy and nutrients. That's not how the Gate works here

Alchemy itself is handled differently from the manga and Brotherhood

This version of the story will not coddle or spoonfeed you. You will have to deal with complex themes and upsetting scenes, and you will have to pay attention to what's going on in order to understand and interpret the story and characters

In fact, if you're so inclined, repeat watches will absolutely reveal new layers to the pathos, mysteries, and themes presented, and answer questions you will still have after your first watch

I am begging you not to take everything at face value. The characters are not treated as infallible encyclopedias nor are they dispensers of morality lessons. They are treated like people. In that they are flawed, they are not omniscient therefore they do not have Complete Objective Knowledge over their own lives and the world, and the world/other characters will contradict and challenge them regularly

To put a finer point on the above: Don't take Ed and Al's perspectives as gospel. They are not the arbiters of righteousness who shine the light of Goodness and Reason onto the rest of the cast, they are orphaned teens scraping by in world that, by its nature, looms larger than themselves

Romance is not a big element here. You will not be eating well from the Edwin and Royai troughs this go-around

In mangahood Scar was right in killing state alchemists, but prepare yourself for: Scar was right in killing state alchemists, AND he never relents in being anti-military, AND he escalates that fight to magnificent proportions. Your fears about the "scary racialized radical who doesn't reform to your side nor assuages your guilt for the gains of imperialism you enjoy" are made real in 03

No doubt you've already heard that homunculi work differently in the 2003 anime. But to emphasize one of those major differences: the homunculi are not split aspects of one guy. They are all separate, unrelated, individuals

The characters shared between mangahood and the 2003 anime are, ultimately, not the same characters. Character design and some basal core traits link them to the manga, but their backstories, choices, character growth, and even their perspectives end up completely different from the source material

[nyankochan]

Question about Fairy Tail

You know what’s one thing that’s never been clear to me? 🤔And I’ve been a die hard fan of Fairy Tail since I was a kid and read the entire main series + watched it. But just exactly how old are Natsu and Gajeel?

In the Manga, they’re the only two dragon slayers whose age is listed as unknown. And we know from the Battle of Fairy Tail Arc the two of them are at least 80+ because they were trapped in the guild with Makarov. From chapter 108 and 111.

We also eventually learn from Zeref during the Alvarez Arc that all the dragon slayers were sent 400 years into the future to defeat Acnologia. They arrived in the year X777 when Lucy’s mother opened the eclipse gate from the future, so that was the year they all believed their dragons disappeared. From chapter 465 of the manga.

But if that’s the case, then why in the manga is Wendy’s age listed at 12 and Sting and Rogue are listed as 19?

We also know that the three of them were the same age, but because of the 7 year gap on Tenrou Island, Wendy didn’t age. Gajeel and Natsu were like the two older brothers (how much older?) that the younger ones all looked up to. But still, it adds up with Sting and Rogue being 19. From chapter 510:

We know Natsu is definitely at least over the age of 400 due to Zeref’s age and the timeline of his backstory with the dragon’s attacking their village. But was Natsu’s age at one point stalled due to being revived? Or does he even age at all? And what about Gajeel? I haven’t caught up to 100 year quest, so I’m not sure if things are revealed later on in the series about his past before meeting Metallicana.

But then again, if all the Dragon Slayers are also from the past, then why do Sting, Rogue, & Wendy have canonical ages?

I also wonder about their pasts too before meeting their dragons. These poor children were all a bunch of orphans who grew up with their dragon parents. They actually all knew each other and grew up together but basically lost any memories of them being practically family. 🙁

Their ages have always just been a big mystery to me. My best guess is perhaps prior to Tenrou Island, Gajeel and Natsu were around 18-19 (physically) like most of the other children from Fairy Tail. Lucy, Levy and Lisanna are 17. Gray, Cana and Elfman are 18. Erza and Mirajane are 19. Laxus was a little older than everyone at 23.

If they weren’t trapped on Tenrou, then Gajeel and Natsu would maybe be around 25-26. Then Sting, Rogue, and Wendy would be 19. I guess this kinda makes sense. It’s a cute little age gap between people who were supposed to be like siblings.

So how old were they all when their dragon’s first “disappear” in X777?

If we take the guestimated year Lucy joined Fairy Tail, which is X784, that’s 7 years after the dragons “disappeared”. If at that time, Wendy, Rogue and Sting are all 12 years old, that means they were only 5 years old when their parents disappeared!?

By this guess, Natsu and Gajeel were then around 11-12 years old when their dragons disappeared, making them 6-7 years older than Wendy, Sting and Rogue. Again! This is just my guess! None of this has been actually confirmed.

Either this is a plot hole or I’m just stupid and missed something along the way. Again, I’m not caught up to 100 year quest, so maybe this gets explained later. But I think and wonder about it a lot.

[sorrinslays]

Belobog Roleswap AU

So this is a small thingamaching I've been thinking about sometimes. Truthfully, I just saw some versions of the same concept and while they were certainly interesting, they weren't really my style. So, I decided to try and make my own version.

To start off, I wanna say that I gave myself a few 'rules' to keep it consistent and whatnot. Specifically, I want it to be a true roleswap, so that means no true personality changes, at least not when it's unnecessary. The roleswap should make sense, like it should be able to happen realistically. Nobody expect the people of Belobog are roleswaped.

So I'll start by who we meet first and work my way down until we get all the characters.

We meet Gepard first. He is a petty thief/vigilante that fights fragmentum in his free time, mostly because nobody is willing to offer him a job. At some point, his parents were arrested for really huge crimes (up to interpretation). Due both Gepard and Serval being over the age of eighteen, they are in legal care of Lynx.

They have trouble finding a job due to their reputation and moved to the Underworld because the rent is cheaper. Soon they are forced to steal to get by. When the Underworld was sealed off, Gepard was in the Overworld, pickpocketing, separating him from his sisters. So, for ten years, he was forced to do petty crime to survive, abandoning his "dream" of becoming a Silvermane Guard.

All that changes when the Astral Express comes to Jarillo VI. After the Supreme Guardian "becomes suspicious" of the trailblazers, Sampo comes to Gepard, offering to show him one of the secret pathways to the Underworld. In exchange Gepard has to be the guide for the Express. (Sampard/Gepo fans rejoice, a canon interaction!)

Of course Gepard accepts. So when Seele is chasing after the trailblazers, Sampo sends a few smoke bombs and, with Gepard's help, gets them to the Underworld, reuniting the Landau siblings.

Next, we see Sampo and Luka. Sampo is the Captain of the Silvermane Guards. He's still a Masked Fool but after coming to Jarilo VI and seeing that the role of the Captain is basically empty (the old one is on his last breath) he decides to take up the role.

The first impression we have of him is that he is one lazy Captain. Always slacking off and "going with the flow". He doesn't do his paperwork or listen to anyone all that much. He kinda does his own thing and bothers everyone.

He's still the only one who can travel between the Overworld and the Underworld freely, but he does so in secret, behind the Supreme Guardian's back. He is still helping the leader of Wildfire and he's still the one to plan everything behind the scenes.

We learn that he's the one who got us to the Underworld through Gepard when Seele almost kills him.

When we get back to the Overworld, he greets us and we have to hold Seele from trying to murder him. He doesn't outright reveal anything but he does tell us that more soldiers have been dying under Natasha's rule because of her orders and he's been trying everything to find a way to prevent more soldiers from losing their lives.

He helps us sneak past the Guards, lying smoothly when something happens. Soon, they reach Natasha for the Boss Fight.

Luka is the Intelligence Officer. He used to be in the frontlines but he lost his arm in a very big fight and was "demoted" to a desk job. He hates it and oftentimes does Sampo's neglected paperwork so that the Captain owes him and takes Luka to the frontlines with him as "payback", which is why we see him when we first arrive.

When the crew is back from their adventure in the Underworld and he sees Sampo helping them, he questions the Captain. Soon enough, he joins the crew in fighting the fragmentum.

Followed by those three, we meet Natasha. As an orphan, she was picked to be the Supreme Guardian instead of Cocolia, so she never got the chance to live the life she could've actually enjoyed. When we meet her, she has a faint smile on her face, her voice are gentle and her words kind. Yet, something is eerily off about her, it's just very hard to put a finger on it.

Unlike the lies the Stellaron fed Cocolia of the world dying and everyone getting to live somewhere else, in "the new world", they tell Natasha that by killing everyone, they are gonna resurrect everyone and change their biology to be able to withstand the Eternal Freeze. The cold never bothering them ever again. They say that the moment all of Belobog dies, the life of the fragmentum would be transferred to the people, so they will never again be in danger of either the monsters or the cold.

Her story ends just like Cocolia's in the original timeline, losing her life to the Stellaron and the Astral Express.

Next in line, we have Seele. We meet her during the same scene as Natasha. She doesn't really question Natasha, at least not as much as OG Bronya. Not because she's stupid, no, but because she trusts Natasha whole-heartly. She just follows orders. It doesn't help that Natasha is hiding all the orders that are made specifically to kill as many soldiers as possible.

So, later on, when she finds out that Sampo, a somewhat of a father figure to her, went against Natasha and even kidnapped Seele herself with some "criminals"? She almost mauls Gepard, the "messenger", on the spot.

Of course, she gets her reality check when she sees how bad the situation in the Underworld really is. She sees Gepard in tears after finally reuniting with his sisters after 10 years, she sees kids who never ever went to school, she sees the lack of medical supplies, she sees how dirty everything is and she sees how the fragmentum has been affecting them too.

Just like canon, her romance with Bronya still happens and soon they are back in the Overworld. After a brief conversation with Sampo, she heads off to confront Natasha, and the rest follows canon.

Following Seele, we meet Oleg. He works at the Neverwinter workshop, the adoptive father of Luka. He used to be a Captain but after openly questioning Natasha's rule, he loses his job, leaving him to tinker at the workshop.

He's somewhat aware of what Sampo is doing, which is why he humours him and follows his orders of assisting the Astral Express. He isn't present during the Boss Fight, keeping the fragmentum at bay with Luka's help, he's devastated to learn about Natasha's death though.

Up next, we have Cocolia. She's a very smiley and kind doctor that greets us when we wake up from Sampo's smoke bombs. She is, gasp, in a happy relationship with Serval.

Competent is her middle name, and she mostly follows canon. Instead of Natasha, that doctor couple adopted Cocolia, which is why she becomes the Underworld's main doctor.

Not much to say about her, so let's move on to Bronya. She stops a fight from escalating when Seele causes a scene. While she still is very kindhearted, the Underworld has roughened her edges a bit.

We get bonding scenes between her and Seele and everything pretty much follows canon expect dialogue changes. I don't have much to say about her to be honest.

Pela! She works in the fight club, not because she wants to, but because she fell into debt due to trying to get her hands on the Tales of the Winterlands. Not much about her, sadly, Hoyo wasn't too keen on given her and Luka much screen time, I fear.

She helps us deal with the mine situation that happened in canon.

Now, we get to see Serval. She has an emotional reunion with Gepard and we learn that she is a member of Wildfire. Unfortunately aside from that nothing changes canon (blame the lack of Oleg in the story not me).

Now, we meet Lynx, who has befriended Svarog, the robot acting as her father figure. While Serval isn't a fan of Svarog, she doesn't discourage her little sister from befriending him.

Since day one, she is trying to get Svarog to agree to let people pass through the Furnace Core, she yearns for the outside and tries to find and all possible ways to change Svarog's calculations.

Of course it doesn't work until we, the variable, come to the Underworld.

Lastly, we meet Hook and Clara. Both are orphans adopted by Fersman, whose a Lieutenant under Sampo's command, send by the Captain. "The Moles", we learn, is a specific group of kids that wish to join the Silvermane Guards and, Sampo, to not break their hearts, made them honorary members.

Basically, he tells them sometimes to look out for any suspicious people, maybe follow one (if the job is not at all threatening), or the super duper important mission of getting lunch for him and the other soldiers. In this instance, he used them to lead the gang to Oleg and then to Sampo himself.

And that's it! Let me know your thoughts! If you have any questions about the AU, want a more in-depth explanation or wish to see scenes written about some of the things that happened feel free to ask!

[meanbossart]

Hi, just a warning for the following unhinged question. (I'm getting baby rabies.) I love seeing Dadstarion and Famstarionnstuff all over tumblr- AND of course that lil thing you drew with Drow and Astarion and fucking little Bhaalings into his belly sparked the question-

DOES DROW WANT KIDS SOMEDAY? UNCONSCIOUSLY? SUBCONSCIOUSLY? Like with the whole Sarevok, epilogue reveal, is it spoilers to ask how your Drow would deal with the new sudden urge to procreate? (Sorry if this is actually a spoiler for ANE future chapters) BUT If so, how does it manifest? Does he start nesting? Hoarding even more shiny crap and dirty rags than usual? Does he start adopting every mangy orphaned cub they come across? Does his dirty talk in bed just get progressively more and more disturbing and natally oriented that even he starts thinking "wtf" post encounter? Does he ever think about putting a round bundle under his shirt and pretending it's his and Astarions dhamphir love-child?

Also IF yes to any of the above, What would Astarion's reaction be?

TYVM

Unhinged fan of yours

First of all I love unhinged questions. Those are my favorite questions. This is an unhinged couple and It's what they deserve, so thank you for this LOL

This topic, at least in this context, never comes up in ANE so I think i can answer it without anything being considered a spoiler.

"Currently" I definitely don't think either of them consider the idea of children in the slightest, while both probably get on with kids relatively well, in their own weird ways (kids love weird people) they're strongly in the "don't want kids and never will" frame of mind despite any joking and uh thematic dirty talking.

THAT BEING SAID, they are both bound to exist for a long time. Depending on how things turn out for him, Astarion's lifespan is either a good 700 years or a big Ol Forever. Drows also live for up to seven centuries and I don't even know whether or not DU Drow's particular kind of Bhaalspawn-ness doesn't affect that, as you could argue he's some type of demigod. The idea that they may change their mind at some point is not out of the question.

In regards to DU drow getting a baby fever in the future, I do think it will be something they have to deal with. Obviously, him and Astarion can't procreate as they are, and even if magical options exist DU drow is still aware that it would be a bad idea to follow through with it. I have honestly no clue how a desire like that would externalize, but - and I hate to be a downer but I assume you want my sincere answer here - based on Sarevok's letter I don't actually think it would be as fun as the bedroom talk or the cracks he makes - it sounds like it would be a spiraling depression and state of unfulfillment that they would simply have to learn to cope with if he is to remain childless, peppered with a profound yearning for a More he can't quite pin down. Luckily I think Astarion's character has demonstrated time and time again that he has the ability to be extremely sensible towards that type of thing, and he would be pretty much the ideal partner in those circumstances (especially if we're talking an older, more mature Astarion). An adoptive child could sate that, or it could not, I have no idea, but I don't think he would ever just say "yeah fuck it lets have/get a kid" in response to it.

Either way, as I mentioned above I believe it's not out of the question (if not inevitable?) that they could come to become someone's guardians someday regardless, especially if they ever become more firmly settled in life and the people they are. I doubt it's something they will ever actively seek out (I don't really see them ever completely retiring from a dangerous lifestyle of their own will) but maybe they stumble upon an orphan or, more likely, kill some kid's actual parents and out of guilt keep it for long enough to develop a bond. Lets say this happens out on the road - maybe they want to at least drop it off at a city somewhere where the thing would have a better chance, but ultimately decide against it for whatever reason... Yeah I could see something like that happening lol It's a cute thought, and funny enough I don't think they would make the Worst parents, assuming their character developments continues in a generally positive direction.

[redgoldsparks]

March Reading and Reviews by Maia Kobabe

I post my reviews throughout the month on Storygraph and Goodreads, and do roundups here and on patreon. Reviews below the cut.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 4 by Ryoko Kui

I'm reading these books so fast I can barely remember which parts of the plot happened in which volume but know that I am still having a great time!

Delicious in Dungeon vol 5 by Ryoko Kui

Oh, this story has taken a darker turn, and also just introduced a whole bunch more characters. Will I be able to keep track of them all? I hope so!

Dragon Keeper by Robin Hobb, read by Anne Flosnik 

Unfortunately, this is definitely the weakest Robin Hobb book I've read so far. I was expecting to like it less than the glorious, 5-star previous trilogy, but I actually think I'm going to skip the rest of the Rain Wild Chronicles and read summaries online to get to the next Fitz books. This book follows five main POV characters. This works fairly well for the first half, when the characters are all in different physical locations. However once all of the characters meet up, we start getting the same scene from multiple different POVs, which feels extremely repetitive. Also, almost EVERY SCENE includes a flashback, often a lengthy flashback, sometimes to something that happened only the previous day and could have been told as present-moment action. This writing choice baffled me. It's something I can't remember struggling with in any of Hobb's previous books, but by the end it was driving me up a wall. The book also moved very slowly; the stakes feel lower, and the character far less emotionally true than in the two Fitz trilogies. Disappointing, but I will keep moving forward towards the next part of the series I want to read.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 6 by Ryoko Kui

Damn, a lot of characters get murdered in this volume! Good thing almost everyone who dies in the dungeon can be revived. Also, very excited to finally meet the cat ninja I've been seeing fan art of since before I even started the series :3

Delicious in Dungeon vol 7 by Ryoko Kui

I am still completely caught up in this series. I love the glimpse of Senshi's past revealed in this volume, and the lore of the dungeon that is still being revealed. There was a line in here about how the dungeon leaves you alone if you don't ask much of it, but that if you have strong desires it throws even more obstacles into your way. Our heroes have such big goals right now, but they're marching ahead regardless!

School Trip by Jerry Craft 

A satisfying new installment in the New Kid series from funny, talented, charming Jerry Craft! I appreciated how this volume started to complicate some of the students who had been left a bit one-dimensional in previous books. Several people stood up to and called out a bully; new friendships were built; and Jordan Banks left Paris even more inspired than ever to follow his dreams of becoming an artist. This series has a lot of jokes, but also a lot of heart!

A Frog in Fall (and Later On) by Linnea Sterte 

Minor frog is less than a year old, and is dismayed when winter begins to steal all of the light and warmth from his world. Instead of bunking down safely with his mentor to wait for spring, he sets out on a journey with two vagabond toads passing by on a quest to make it all the way to the tropics. They tramp through the Japanese countryside, encountering tree spirits, new friends, dangers, and views the likes of which minor frog had never even imagined. This is a gorgeous book; every page worth pouring over, an economy of line and detail building a beautiful and mysterious world of talking animals and miniature packaged foods. Made me want to draw.

Dark Rise by CS Pacat read by Christian Coulson 

In 1820s London, orphaned Will tries to earn enough as a dockworker to survive- and evade the killers pursuing him. Violet dresses in her half-brother's clothes and sneaks onto a ship in the Thames to watch a man be branded with his master's mark. Katherine excitedly anticipates her engagement to one of London's richest and most mysterious lords; his gallantry nearly makes up for the fact that he's twice her age. And in the bowels of one of that lord's ships, James tortures a man for information. All of these characters are 16 or 17 years old, but all of them are tangled in an ancient conflict between the Light and the Dark which stretches back into an age of magic before history. This is CS Pacat's YA fantasy debut, and it contains a lot of tropes very familiar to both YA and high fantasy- there are shades of both Tolkien and Rowling in this. Its fast-paced and action-packed, but especially in the first third of the story, the characters all felt fairly thin. None of them have quirks, hobbies, career hopes, relationships outside of immediate family, school, or work; or much more than a brief sketch of past. It took until the mid-way point for what I consider Pacat's major strengths as a writer to emerge: intense, homoerotic interpersonal sparring between characters operating under major power imbalances. Every scene in which the seductive, manipulative, powerful evil gay faced off against the good boy chosen one crackled with energy. Unfortunately, there were only four of these scenes in the whole book. It ends on a cliff-hanger, because of course it does, with a tempting set up for book two; but that doesn't entirely excuse the fact that the first 50% felt like set up. I will definitely keep reading, but long-time Pacat fans should take note that this is toned down version of what I expected based on Captive Prince.

Feeding Ghosts by Tessa Hulls (re-read before event)

What an accomplishment! I savored every page of Feeding Ghosts, absolutely floored by the labor and courage that went into the writing of this book. The inking is gorgeous, the history is clear, digestible, and devastating. This book threads the line between honesty and compassion in a way that I appreciate so much in any memoir, but especially one dealing with family. Hulls lays out the story of three generations of women starting with her grandmother, Sun Yi, a Shanghai journalist who faced intense persecution during the rise of Communism in China, who penned a popular and scandalous memoir and then suffered a mental breakdown. This left her only daughter, Rose, a student at an elite boarding school with no parental figures and no other family to lean on. Eventually Rose earned a scholarship to an American university and in the end moved her mother into her California home. Sun Yi haunted that home during the author's own childhood. The unexamined trauma and codependency of Sun Yi and Rose drove the author to the extreme edges of the Earth, seeking freedom from their ghosts. But in the end, she stopped running from her family history and turned, instead, to face it. Shelve this book with Maus, Fun Home, Persepolis and The Best We Could Do. Re-read it for a second time and got even more out of it on a second pass.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 8 by Ryoko Kui

Laios and company realize that their encounter with changling mushroom rings had more consequences than they'd realized- its the body swap episode! This visual humor is contrasted against increasing dangers from both above and below, as nastier monsters and political machinations begin to close in on our heroic adventuring party. I'm now over halfway through this series and almost feel like I should start reading it more slowly to savor it, but I'll probably just keep devouring it instead.

Lunar New Year Love Story by Gene Luen Yang and Leuyen Pham

High school senior Val grew up knowing her family was unlucky in love; for generations, relationships in her family have ended in heartbreak. Her childhood love of Valentines Day ends with a shocking family revelation and what feels like the beginning of a curse. Then her Vietnamese grandmother sweeps her off to a Lunar New Year celebration in downtown Oakland and a pair of cute lion dancer boys catch her eye. Could one of them break the spell on her heart? This story offers a classic and satisfying rom-com, with Val torn between an outgoing, rich, but flaky boy and a broody, shy, loyal one. The story takes several kdrama style twists and includes ghosts, saints, red envelopes, confessions, fights, reunions, tears, and kisses. For a comic, its wordy; the pages are dense with small panels and thick with dialogue, but also illustrated with such warm, humor, and realism. I really liked that the story included as much of Val's relationship with her family and best friend as romance. And the lion dancing scenes practically leap off the page with color and energy!

Witch Hat Atelier vol 10 by Kamome Shirahama

This series remains as visually stunning as ever but I'm struggling with how every single book expands the cast. There are so many characters now that I don't care about that much, and have trouble remembering from volume to volume. I wish the story line would stick more closely to Coco, her classmates, and their main mentors!

Delicious in Dungeon vol 9 by Ryoko Kui

Oh the stories are all converging! The savior at the bottom of the dungeon is probably a demon! Ituzumi saves the day! I am still having a great time reading this series.

A Dowry of Blood by ST Gibson read by Abby Craden 

A short, very queer, very poly retelling of Dracula focusing on his coven of enthralled lovers. I liked the way the book breezed through history, as the dysfunctional little family moved from one major European city to the next, with snatched moments of glittering joy interwoven with violence and plague. The story is fairly simple, and has a happier ending than I expected, or honestly think the characters deserved.

City of Dragons by Robin Hobb

I DNFed the previous book in this series and just read a summary online before skipping ahead to this one. I think that was a very good choice for me. This third one was more engaging and a bit more action packed, with some cool discoveries about the city of Kelsingra and the nature of Elderlings. But the Rain Wild Chronicles as a whole do not stand up to the quality of the Farseer books. There are so many POV characters that a few of them get only two or three scenes in this whole book. I don't feel that I deeply know any of these characters; while at the same time watching Hobb pair them off at an extraordinary rate- in the last book five sets of characters got together and in this book an additional two couples are developing feelings for each other. Between this and a kidnapping, a birth, a murder, and a lot of blackmail, this series feels like a soap opera.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 10 by Ryoko Kui

Almost two TPKs in this volume, yikes!

Delicious in Dungeon vol 11 by Ryoko Kui

You know shit's getting serious when the character who has been the series main villain up until now is partially devoured by a different, worse villain. Exciting changes coming to this dungeon under it's new lord and master!

Squad by Maggie Tokuda-Hall and Lisa Sterle

When Becca gets invited to sit with the popular girl clique at her new high school, she's thrilled. But the friendship turns bloody and complicated when she learns that her new friends are actually werewolves who need to kill and feed on a human once a month. If she joins them, Becca will gain superhuman strength and a pack; she'll never have to fear a male predator again, because she will be a predator herself. I loved the queer rep and the twist on werewolf lore; I wish it had been a little longer and more developed. Give me multi-page transformations sequences!

Delicious in Dungeon vol 12 by Ryoko Kui

I love seeing all these plot lines come together! Building towards a wild climax.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 13 by Ryoko Kui

I went out and *bought* vol 13 of this series because my library didn't have it yet, that's how hooked I am. And now I have to wait until JULY for the final volume! (But also, thank goodness I didn't get into this series any sooner or I'd have a much longer wait).

[otomegamesandme]

Em's Personal Favorite Shoujo and Josei manga!

Since one (1) person mentioned they would like a recommendation list of shoujo and josei mangas, I decided to throw one together of my personal favorites! Some of these are well known, some aren't. I also kept it short, so it's more a sample of my tastes. Future lists will probably revolve around themes/genres, but for now here's this!

My Lovesick Life as a 90s Otaku

Demo: Josei

Genre: Romance, Slice-of-Life, Historical

This is a short four volume series about a middle aged mother who reflects back on her teen years and being a big otaku in the 90s. I honestly loved this? There were so many cameos of classic series, and I enjoyed the characters and themes in this a lot. It did make me cringe, just because it reminded me how me and my friends used to be as teens in all the good and bad ways. That relatability is also the reason I was a big fan. It does wrap up pretty quickly at the end, but for a short series, it's one of the josei series I've read that left an impression on me!

Magic Knight Rayearth

Demo: Shoujo

Genre: Fantasy, Isekai

It feels like a crime to not mention Clamp when talking about any of my favorite manga (Tsubasa Chronicles is my favorite Shonen and Chobits is my favorite Seinen, so they're really just winning). Choosing between this and RG Veda was difficult, but this is such a classic. I loved the characters, the world, and how the story reveals itself to be a gut punch at the end. If you still haven't read it, here's yet another rec post telling you to check it out.

Children of the Whales

Demo: Shoujo

Genre: Science Fantasy, Tragedy

This follows a group of people on a floating island, the Mud Whale, which is trapped in a sea of sand. One day, when they send people out to search one of the sunken islands in the sand for resources, they find another human, and through meeting her, learn the truth about their home.

The story telling in this is gorgeous. The mangaka said she was inspired by a lost journal she found, and you really get that feeling while reading it. This is also a series to read if you just feel like being Really Sad. It's one of my all time favorite series, but I did have to read it with breaks between volumes (for reference, I normally binge like five volumes a day when I'm really into a series). There's a rich world and history in this, and each detail feels so carefully considered and thought out. This is one of the series I wished more people talked about.

Dokuhime

Demo: Josei

Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Tragedy

A group of orphan girls are raised to be living weapons by consuming poison. They're then sent out to enemy countries to seduce and kill the men in charge, as their bodies are all poisonous.

This doesn't have any official English translations and I came across it randomly one day and just fell in love. It's an older series, and there's plenty of triggering content here (violence and SA being major). But I loved this world and characters so much? My summary does not do it justice, but the dynamics with the main character and the three princes in the country she's infiltrating is so interesting. It also reads very much like a dark fairy tale, especially with how it's structured and the way it goes through each scene and chapter. I know this is likely too old and unknown to ever get picked up officially, but maybe if I get more people to read it, we can all bother seven seas via their licensing survey or something-

A Condition Called Love

Demo: Shoujo

Genre: Romance, Slice-of-Life

I don't think this needs a summary since it's a recent popular one lol, but I love messy characters who face consequences for their messy actions and are forced to grow as people!! I love when bad habits in a relationship get challenged, and it doesn't automatically lead to breaking up but trying to fix things. Hotaru and Hananoi just have my favorite relationship in any modern shoujo series I've read, and while the series isn't over yet, I can imagine them remaining a favorite for a long time.

Chihayafuru

Demo: Josei

Genre: Sports, Slice-of-Life (and romance in the background)

If you know about Chihayafuru, it's that everyone who talks about it is Not Normal about it lol I have never encountered a series with such a large cast where each one is given such weight and brevity as this series. I know it's about such a niche Japanese sport, but listen, the growth and story arch of these three main characters, and how they're affected by the people they meet and how they affect others and grow is just...so good. You want God Tier character work, this is the series you read.

Prince Freya

Demo: Shoujo

Genre: Fantasy, Adventure (and romance if you squint)

I love brutal shoujo. The first chapter of this was not what I was expecting, and it's probably because I went in blind. Anyway, this follows the story of Freya who lives in a kingdom trying not to get conquered by an Empire taking over the continent. The only person keeping the kingdom standing was the Prince, who was poisoned and killed. Since Freya looks almost exactly like him, she's forced to pretend to be the Prince of this country in hopes the kingdom won't fall to the empire.

Freya's character growth in this is a lot of fun to witness play out. I also really have been enjoying seeing the way the world keeps expanding and growing with each volume. I will say, the first few volumes have pacing issues, but by volume 3/4 it was all smooth sailing. I also really enjoy how unflinching it can be, and it doesn't shy away from death or violence when needed, but it also doesn't overdue it either. It's just a solid shoujo fantasy series, and the only bad part about it is waiting for the next volume to drop (Viz it's been 6 months, please-).

[aita-blorbos]

AITA for deciding to live with an old woman and her gaggle of adoptive daughters?

I (12 F) have been practically raising my brother, who we'll call N (10 M) for as long as either of us can remember. We're orphans, and had been living at a boarding school for about two years when our headmaster was revealed to be a human trafficker, who was planning to sell us to a domestic terrorist group as canon fodder. Luckily, however, a group of girls who looked about my age were able to fend him off, along with the help of a roughly 14 year old boy, who we'll call P, and his three friends. However, in the process, one of them fell off a nearby cliff, and is presumed dead.

Now, here's where it gets hairy. The girls invited us to stay with them for about an hour or so, and in that time, their mother, who we'll call A, approached me and asked if I wanted to join them. The only catch is that she only adopts girls, never boys, meaning my brother can't join me. On top of that, she has very strict rules when it comes to male contact with her daughters, and they're big fans of travel anyhow, so this means I may never see him again if I take her up on the offer.

Now... I love my brother, but he's a handful. I'm barely able to take care of myself, and having to look after him has been unbelievably draining. I'll admit, even though I know it's not his fault, I'm starting to resent him for how much he needs me. How much he's always needed me. This sort of arrangement, where I only have to look out for myself because A's basically got it all covered, and I have the freedom to do basically whatever I want so long as I don't talk to boys, seems perfect for me. And I don't know if I'll ever get another opportunity like this. So I signed up, took the pledge, and swore I'd never look back.

Here's the thing though, I keep looking back.

I know he'll miss me, how could he not? But P seems to really care about him, and he specifically told me he'd look after N if anything happened to me.

Still, part of me feels like I've abandoned him.

Luckily, I'm going on a road trip with a few of my sisters, along with P (who came uninvited), so hopefully this'll clear my head. Will update after the trip is over with.

[kerubimcrepin]

Live-read: Dofus Heroes - Kerubim Tome 1 (part 1)

You can find this comic's physical version on Ankama's site, webtoon version on Allskreen, and Free Scans on various file-hosting websites that shall not be named.

Quick disclaimer: While I will be including french screenshots here, because it is a language that uses the latin alphabet, and everyone has that on their keyboards, all ready to type up in DeepL and Google translators — what I will actually be reading is a new fan translation in my native language, which does not use latin alphabet.

Time to quickly switch between two tabs because nobody has translated this comic into English. Yaay...

This comic has, as my fellow crepinjurgenology studies colleague @dullard put it, "thin god Ecaflip jumpscare"

Ecaflip looks a lot like Ush here, and I think it's way too malevolent. Part of the fun of him to me, is that he is an Evil Fucking Cat that looks like a cute cat. It makes his despicable actions more funny & interesting.

...Anyway, this comic came out during the run of the show, in 2013, and its sheer existence, — including its negative portrayal of ecaflip, its inclusion of blood and Kerubim's 20 mental illnesses, — is a direct confirmation of the show being an unreliable narrator story. (Though, we've been knew.)

This comic's most important function for this blog is that it will provide us with a well-needed glimpse at what Kerubim's adventures are like when he isn't retelling them to a 7-year-old child whose respect and approval he desperately craves.

The second Kerubim is fatally wounded, he gives up. Yet, Ecaflip saves him, without using one of his nine lives, just as he did in the Wheel of Destiny article.

I suppose it's one of his trump cards, isn't it?

But I am more interested in how at peace Kerubim is with death... It does make sense for Kerubim to hide some rather morbid feelings about his life behind his cheery facade, doesn't it?

It must be tiring. Losing your family, being a god's plaything, losing your brother, feeling like you have to constantly play the role of the cool womanizing warrior, and never unpacking your emotions about any of it. Death would feel like a relief from such weight.

Which makes Ecaflip's grip on his life feel more malicious.

I know, chances are, this comic, as well as most of the show, were made well before Kerubim's demigod status was thought of as a plot-point.

But even in terms of him being a demigod... I think that death would seem relaxing, despite its temporary nature, wouldn't it?

One of the main things of this whole comic is that Kerubim gets amnesia.

Harry Du Bois-ass character. Not only is he mentally ill, divorced, and has 20 layers of sad backstory, but also he got amnesia. God bless.

Yeah, this comic is more realistic and gritty than the show, but the cartoon shenanigans are still real. Thank god.

There's a reason why I think that a big part of Kerubim's character is his experiences with loneliness and isolation, and the way it makes him crave being loved and cared for, as well as how it makes him act out to get attention and popularity.

It's telling that while completely amnesiac, he identifies immediately with a small kitten, whom he immediately assumes is a "he" and "an orphan", and wants to take care of it.

It may seem like an innocuous moment at first, but "he is all alone" will become a reoccurring motif for Kerubim's mental state and subconscious in this comic, and it is the comic where we get the Orphan Kerubim reveal.

I already discussed the fact that I think Kerubim kept and adopted Joris due to Atcham-related guilt earlier on the blog, but I will take this moment to voice 2 other reasons:

Kerubim identifies with orphans and children easily. He would never leave Joris alone after looking at him and thinking "You're all alone. Like I was."

The idea of having a child would be very pleasant to someone as lonely as him. He struggles a lot with wanting to act in a way that will make people like him, and children are, by nature, inclined to like their parents even if they're complete losers.

Btw, if you follow my main, @joris-jurgen , you probably know that I headcanon Kerubim as having comorbid HPD and BPD. Because it fits. And because personality disorders are usually the result of insane levels of childhood trauma. And... my experience running this blog has so far not swayed me from this opinion in any way. This little paragraph was your Armchair Fictional Psychology Corner. This man can fit a lot of sadness and wanting to be loved in him.

Ecaflips confirmed to, just like real cats, have very good night vision.

...Aaand now I'm thinking about cute scenarios of Kerubim, Atcham, and Joris travelling at night, or navigating their home in the darkness.

(Because Joris doesn't have human eyes, as we've seen from the movie. And considering the way Grougaloragran's eyes reflect light in the Oropo ova, chances are, dragon eyes glow in the dark, the same way cats do. Which brings me to the point that, Joris's dragon-ish eyes would probably glow in the dark. Like a cat. Yeah, I am very sane, and should not be sedated in any way, readers.)

Crocosec has always wanted to have a butcher's shop and feed people with delicious food...

Ah, I don't know why, but my silly little detail-noticing from the first eps, where I pointed out that he has a meat shop, paying off? It makes me feel fuzzy. It's nice to know that the person who wrote this comic cared enough, and that it's something that was put in here with intent.

Anyway, I am about to be very normal about the next few pages.

*jumpscaring you by including a screenshot from the high-quality scanlation I am reading. Because this moment would be too blurry if I didn't.

He isn't even playing with any other kids... This is going to kill me, and not in a fun way.

The translation I am reading interprets the last line as "I would return to..." but it seems a bit wrong to me, especially considering my own research on language sentence-comparing sites.

What Kerubim pretty much says here, is that, he'd like to become a huppermage, and use magic to bring back his parents, sisters, and brothers.

While one could interpret that as Kerubim being lonely while being raised in an orphanage all his life without a family, I have a couple of counterpoints:

He calls the kitten "orphaned" specifically, which implies that there were parents, and that they aren't there anymore.

If it were just a family he wanted, he wouldn't be as specific as to say "sisters and brothers," besides just "parents," which leads me to assume that Kerubim means specific people he used to know (before they died).

3. Atcham is a Crepin too, as was revealed in the Dofus Movie. Logically speaking, if they were both given to the temple after being born, (and as we know, Atcham was at the temple, because Bashi knew him, according to Wheel of Destiny #8) they probably wouldn't have surnames, especially the same one.

4. Kerubim's unfunny joke about being the last in his family.

5. Wakfu: One More Gate's shopkeep being an ancestor of the Crepin family implies that Crepins are a real family that existed, and that, perhaps, Kerubim's affinity for selling stuff has to do with his early upbringing, before he was orphaned.

6. In the Dofus manga, Atcham says that a sword he owned, which was stolen from him, has been "passed in his family for generations", which yet again, points to them having a family to begin with.

All of this to say... What I think happened was far more devastating.

He had sisters and brothers, and two parents — it doesn't matter if the Crepin family was an adoptive one, or if it was made up of their biological mother, her husband, and half-siblings. Because they're all dead, and that's just... horrible.

A whole family, at the very least 6 people (if we assume that by "sisters and brothers", he means just two sisters and two brothers), wiped out.

...Oh, and one last thing.

7. I think that, as an adult, Kerubim did put some research into dark magic, with a hope of bringing his family back.

Just as he said he would.

....Though, as always, that might just be me reading too much into things. ╮(￣ ▽ ￣)╭

These aren't the tears of an orphan who wishes he had a family. These are tears of grief of a child who used to have one.

And Ecaflip, his biological father and God, is taunting him about it.

...I would speak on my deeplore conspiracy theory that perhaps Ecaflip himself is to blame for whatever happened to Kerubim and Atcham's family, — to get Kerubim, or both of them, isolated, and under his thumb, — but perhaps it's just me being actually clinically insane.

[marypsue]

Blood will out for WIP game?

[from this meme]

Thank you for asking about this one, because it's one I haven't really talked about on here and I'm very glad to have the excuse!

I wrote Lost in the Shadow of the Vampire, which is one of the most self-indulgent things I've ever posted: a piece of semi-meta semi-fan-fiction, where a (fictional) actress working on a (fictional) reboot-slash-sequel to 1987 cult classic The Lost Boys starts to suspect that one of her costars is actually becoming a vampire like the ones in the movie. It was a complete blast to write, and I had so much fun figuring out what the fictional reboot-slash-sequel would be about that I decided that I'd just go ahead and write it.

Since the premise is that this is a movie, a 2015-ish all-female reboot slash sequel ignoring all the other sequels, I tried to come up with a plot hook that would let me introduce new leads and change the time period, while honouring the vibe (without just ripping off the plot of the original) and calling back to the original, but also respecting which actors from the original would actually be likely to come back (and which actors from the original are still, uh. Alive). Also, I wanted a girl gang of vampires who have unfuckwithable style and vibes.

So. The premise of Blood Will Out is that, shortly after she turns eighteen, Kate Fischer, the biological daughter of Star and Michael Emerson, starts turning into a vampire. Since she was adopted as a baby and has had no contact with her bio family until very recently, she has absolutely no idea what's going on - but her sister Jamie does. And, because of what Jamie had thought was a very convincing blog-form webnovel and interactive ARG but is now looking like it's actually just the blog of an actual real-life vampire hunter, they have a line of communication to one Edgar Frog.

Unfortunately, this ends up raising more questions than answers. Was there something sinister behind the string of tragedies that struck Kate's birth family and left her orphaned? Was her becoming a half-vampire really biological destiny, or does someone have plans for her? And, once she finds herself drawn into the orbit of a trio of captivating vampires who're more than willing to accept her as one of their own, does she even want to go back to human? Will Jamie get her sister back, or lose her forever?

Does the world need another female-OC-centric TLB fic? Who knows? Who cares? I haven't written one yet, and I'm having fun. (Also, I have a big reveal in mind for the third act that I haven't seen anyone do before, and is positively evil. I'm excited about it.)

I've posted one small sample here, but here, have another:

“Where the hell were you.”

Kate closes her eyes for a second. Like she’s tired. Jamie knows better than to buy that. It’s past midnight. This is prime Kate active hours.

“I’m serious, Kate. I woke up – alone, in a strange city, in California, by the way – and you were just gone. No note, no text, your phone here on the desk -”

Kate sounds defensive, not meeting Jamie’s eyes. Good. She should feel guilty. “Don’t shit yourself. You fell asleep. I was bored. I took a little walk.”

“A little walk down to the Boardwalk, Kate?”

And now Kate doesn’t look like she feels guilty at all. Just kind of flatly angry. Jamie absolutely doesn’t feel a little silver wiggle of apprehension about that. “So what if it was?”

Jamie can’t find words. So instead, she settles for letting her face and her upturned hands do the asking for her. “So what if – Kate. Kate. We agreed. Neither of us goes down there alone. Do I need to remind you that you had to lock yourself in your room for nine solid hours because you accidentally saw a nosebleed? Do you know how many people -”

“Nobody died and I didn’t eat anybody,” Kate snaps, yanking out the chair by the little desk and dropping into it with her front pressed against its back and her legs splayed out to either side. She presses her chin into her hands on the top of the chair back, so the next words come out as a muffled grumble. “Not like you could’ve stopped me if you had been there, anyway.”

The silence that descends around and between them is abrupt and icy.

Kate shifts uncomfortably in the chair, looking everywhere but at Jamie. Like she knows she’s crossed a line. But she doesn’t seem any too ready to apologise for it. “I know you don’t like thinking about it, Jay. But it’s true. If I did go off the deep end -”

Jamie only realises she’s been frozen perfectly still in place when she tries to unclaw her hand from around the TV remote. “I wouldn’t let you. I won’t let you.”

“Jamie…” Kate’s eyes shutter, for a moment, before she finally looks Jamie in the eye again. “You could get hurt. I. Might hurt you.”

Jamie meets her gaze with one of her own, steady and, she hopes, fearless. “You won’t.”

Kate breaks first. She shuts her eyes, rolls her head back on her shoulders, and grips the chair back, leaning back as far as her arms’ reach will let her. “Ugh. Do you think Mom’s found our note yet?”

In answer, Jamie holds up her phone. Kate flops her head forward again so she can look under her mess of dark curls and see the notifications that fill up the screen. Can see that Jamie’s had fifty-eight missed calls and a hundred and two unread texts.

“I think she’s found it,” Jamie cracks.

Kate groans, long and deep and heartfelt, and lets her head flop backwards again.

She starts getting out her laptop as Jamie’s crawling back into bed. Jamie watches her face, the hard set of her stare, as she sets it up on the desk and boots it up. Now that Kate’s back, the wild anger – and the fear that had driven it – are starting to settle again. But there’s a slow, deep, sucking dread starting to take their place. The matter-of-fact coldness, the who-cares attitude earlier – that’s not Kate. At least, not the Kate Jamie knows. And the longer this goes on, the more often this new, cold version of Kate seems to slip to the surface.

But. Even this new, cold version of Kate still doesn’t want Jamie to get hurt.

That has to count for something.

“Kate?” Jamie says, pulling the covers up around her head so she’s looking at her sister through a tunnel of duvet.

Kate makes a wordless noise of acknowledgment without looking up from the laptop screen.

“You’re going to go back to the Boardwalk without me, aren’t you.”

That actually does get Kate to turn around. To look Jamie in the eye. “Jamie -”

Jamie doesn’t give her a chance to speak. She doesn’t really want to hear her sister talk about losing control again. But more than that, she just doesn’t want to have to hear Kate lie to her. She doesn’t want to know if Kate could do it with her eyes steady on Jamie’s and not a hint of guilt in her face or her voice. “Not tonight, okay? Just…don’t go back there again tonight.”

Kate rolls her bottom lip between her teeth, something in her stare softening.

“Not tonight,” she agrees. “Everything’s shut down by now, anyway. Now come on, Jay. It’s almost one AM. You’ve gotta be up early tomorrow if we’re gonna have any time before dawn makes me useless.”

“Your messed-up sleep schedule’s rubbing off on me,” Jamie grumbles good-naturedly, as she lets her head sink back into the pillow and her eyes drift shut. The bed’s never felt so warm, so soft. Despite her nap earlier, she really is tired.

“Oh shit, I hope not,” Kate says, sounding worried. And then, warmly, “G’night, Jamie. Get some sleep.”

Jamie drifts off to the sound of her sister’s fingers tick-tick-ticking over the laptop’s keys.

[peachpety]

A2 and D7 for the fanfic reader ask 💕

hi sweetness! thank you for the ask!

A2. How did you find your first fic?

so HP isn't my OG fandom. i started in Voltron, and i came to my first fic from Klance art posted (sadly) on Pinterest for a fic called Call Me, Beep Me (orphaned account). if y'all know anything about VLD, this fic is THE fic. it has its own entry on fanlore and lots of author/fan drama that led to the author orphaning the fic in 2017, because, well...fandom amiright?

2017 is also the year I dove into Drarry, lured from, again, brilliant art on tumblr (mainly from @faevorite-main-blog and this piece in particular...GAH), which then naturally led me to HP fanfiction. My first Drarry fic that i still adore and hold near and dear in my heart is dirtynumbangelboy, by @magpiefngrl.

D7. Why did you leave your most recent comment? Will you share it with us?

so i'm trying to catch up on 2023 LCDrarry...a lovely fest (in which i also participated) that just wrapped and revealed! This morning i finished a softly bittersweet fic by @chamomileteafuel

The Dying of the Light [M, 20k]

based on the show, Dead Like Me. it's light angst with a happy ending - the only kind i can enjoy these days; i'm a peach that bruises easily. this fic has grim reapers, and heartstring-tugging moments, both happy and sad. it's got a brilliant ensemble cast - so creative and unique - which i absolutely love to read in fics. it's got a perfect balance of lightheartedness to counter the sadness. and i cried...not an ugly cry, this isn't that kind of fic, but that kind of throat burning well of emotion that leaked out of my eyes. so yeah, i was moved, and so...i typed the author a comment.

yeah ok *wipes tears* this was softly gorgeous and bittersweet…really nicely done and a gentle reminder that the little things, little nudges of memories are small crossovers from loved ones passed. i truly believe that and you’ve captured it so beautifully. love love the owl thread and how you incorporated scorp. infinite kudos. big love. every follicle. xo

thanks again for the ask! xoxo peach 🍑

[grigori77]

Movies of 2023 - My Summer Rundown (Part 1)

The Runners-Up:

20.  TRANSFORMERS: RISE OF THE BEASTS – it’s telling that we didn’t get a truly GREAT live action Transformers movie until Michael Bay stepped back into a mere producer capacity and we got 2018’s brilliant soft-reboot Bumblebee.  This new film feels like something of a step back to Bay’s more OTT chaos, but they’ve still learned the lessons from that ridiculous excess to bring us a direct sequel to that ingenious restart, Creed II director Steven Caple Jr. going bigger this time but still reining in the excess with impressive focus for an explosively exciting and still endearingly heartfelt action adventure.  The end results are still clunky but a good deal better than Bay’s misfires, and entertaining, affecting and genuinely thrilling if you just let yourself go with it …

19.  TO CATCH A KILLER – honestly, I could hardly call Argentine filmmaker Damian Szifron’s taut suspense thriller an international big break considering it only received a limited theatrical release before becoming a relative promo-free sleeper on streaming, but this is one of those underdog movies that really deserves a lot more attention than it received.  Divergent’s Shailene Woodley is electrifying as Eleanor, a troubled Baltimore PD officer who, after a nightmarish sniper attack and bombing, becomes an unofficial investigator under the guidance of FBI manhunter Lammark (an ON-FIRE Ben Mendelsohn) as he races to track down a brutal domestic terrorist before they commit another atrocity.

18.  HEART OF STONE – Gal Gadot stretches her action heroine muscles outside of playing Wonder Woman as superspy Rachel Stone/Nine of Hearts, a top agent in a mysterious covert intelligent agency known as the Charter, who must go it alone when a former partner makes a play for the quantum computing AI that helps them fight international threats.  Director Tom Parker (The Aeronauts, Wild Rose, Peaky Blinders) reveals previously largely untapped action talent as he turns The Old Guard comics-writer’s blistering screenplay into an exciting, fast-paced action thriller that’s sure to impress fans of Netflix’ previous dabbles in the genre.

17.  ORGAN TRAIL – another indie underdog that snuck in VERY MUCH under the radar, this supremely twisted psychological horror western from Drop Dead Gorgeous director Michael Patrick Jann and newcomer screenwriter Meg Turner deserves A WHOLE LOT of attention.  Zoe De Grand Maison (Orphan Black, Riverdale) lights up the screen as Abigail Archer, a young girl in snow-bound 1870s Montana who’s forced to grow up REAL FAST when her family is murdered by a band of marauding outlaws who make a brutal living attacking travelling groups of would-be settlers for their money and supplies.

16.  INDIANA JONES & THE DIAL OF DESTINY – 2008’s Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was such a disappointment compared to the giddy heights of Steven Spielberg’s original stone-cold CLASSIC action adventure trilogy that I went into this film with very low expectations, so I was VERY PLEASANTLY SURPRISED to see that this is actually a whole lot of fun and a GLORIOUS return to form for Harrison Ford’s now VERY OLD Nazi-fighting treasure hunter and professor of archaeology.  With Spielberg and George Lucas largely stepping back into producing duties here, Logan writer-director James Mangold has taken up the reins instead, delivering an engagingly nostalgic thrill-ride which beautifully redeems Indiana Jones for a new generation while also giving the character a suitably grand send-off …

15.  THE PRINCE – while not technically a feature film, I was SO thoroughly impressed by this filmed performance of the revolutionary Shakespearean deconstruction play by actress, playwright and influential YouTuber Abigail Thorn that I couldn’t resist giving it a nod here.  Thorn shines bright as a distinctly unconventional take on Harry “Hotspur” Pierce in Henry IV, an anthropomorphised play character who becomes ensnared in a radical shake-up of their life-story when a pair of humans from THE REAL WORLD become trapped in the play itself and wind up entirely sabotaging the narrative.  It’s a fascinating experience, a revolutionary game-changer of a show which takes Shakespeare and turns his works ENTIRELY on their head while addressing important themes of genre identity, sexuality and intolerance, and this is glaring proof that this is a production which deserves to be seen whether it’s in this Nebula video presentation or performed live on stage.

14.  BARBIE – Oppenheimer’s bizarre unexpected twin when it came to be released in cinemas is, in many ways, just as important a film, but for very different reasons.  After languishing in Development Hell since 2009, writer-director Greta Gerwig finally realised this genuinely BIZARRE screwball comedy sort-of biopic of the iconic fashion doll range from Mattel, unleashing the character upon the world IN THE LIVING FLESH in the simply PERFECT (from a casting point of view) form of Margot Robbie.  She’s simply AMAZING here as “Stereotypical Barbie”, who finds herself going through an existential crisis after some girl starts “playing with her wrong” in the real world, but the film is frequently stolen right out from under her by Ryan Gosling as her so-called boyfriend Ken, who went ALL OUT to bring the most fundamentally useless boy-toy in history to life …

13.  MEG 2: THE TRENCH – supremely creepy indie cinema director Ben Wheatley may seem like a distinctly ODD choice to helm a follow-up to 2018’s most delightfully off-the-wall runaway action horror smash hit, but he actually proves to be a perfect hit because he clearly GETS the inherent silliness of this franchise.  Cinema’s all-time greatest living “special effect”, Jason Statham, returns as deep sea rescue diver and professional giant shark-puncher Jonas Taylor, once again wrapped up in a whole heap of trouble when not one but this time THREE massive prehistoric megaladons escape the abyssal Trench and start munching on South Pacific tourists, but this time matters are further complicated when he also has to deal with a conglomerate of dastardly strip-miners looking to exploit the Trench’s rare earth metal resources for their own ends …

12.  THE ANGRY BLACK GIRL & HER MONSTER – debuting writer-director Bomani J. Story brings Frankenstein to the inner-city projects as haunted teenage genius Vicaria (the new TV series of The Equalizer’s Laya DeLeon Hayes) reanimates her gangbanger big brother Chris (Kill a Prophet and Warrior Soul’s Edem Atsu-Swanzy) after he’s gunned down in a turf war.  The results are a dark and disturbing slowburn psychological body horror that deals head-on with socially resonant issues of drugs, urban poverty and gang culture while also delivering a unique and challenging new twist on one of the most classic stories in the history of science-fiction and horror …

11.  TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: MUTANT MAYHEM – another animated feature that’s following the inventive new lead of the Spider-Verse movies, this latest big screen incarnation for Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird’s zeitgeisty comics creations is a genuine riot which takes the original core concept and runs it through a delightfully skewed comedic blender to form a compelling new narrative basis for what’s sure to be a fantastic new film series.  Comedy screenwriting/producing masters Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg team up with up-and-coming young writer-director Jeff Rowe (The Mitchells Vs. the Machines) to bring the youthful mutant quartet to vivid life with plenty of visual flair, anarchic chaotic humour and a whole lot of heart, and I for one can’t wait for more.

[obsidianwolfxredux]

Watched Batman caped Crusader

Okay under a cut to avoid spoilers

Now let's see okay when this series is good it's really really good. That said there are some fumbling parts.

Let's start with how this honestly reminds me more of early post crisis Jim Starlin Batman than a lot of modern portrayals. Stuff like Batman not killing but being willing to jump out of the way while two goons gun each other down and I'm fine with that but it is a slight tonal shift from some of Timm's other Batman work.

I like this take on Barbara Gordan and while I hope Timm won't go there again this is a Barbara I wouldn't be completely opposed to having a romance with Bruce because she's far more equal feeling than BTAS Barbara ever got to be before Batman Beyond.

Catwoman is a lot weaker this time around though. She's not bad for a one shot character but if they were going the playful way they played it I'd have rather she be just a recurring bit scattered over other short scenes in multiple episodes instead of introducing her and dropping her in one of such a limited number of episodes.

I also enjoyed the blending of some old classic takes on some villains along with the blending with more modern ones like how they handled Clayface.

Now onto the more reimagined characters I feel the new Harley Quin really works for this series as a departure from some of the more recent modern takes on her. Her earlier appearance seeing through a lot of Bruce's bull shit set up the reveal of this dark take on her Psychiatric practice much better than letting him completely fool her while also not making her too smart and her friendship with Barbara and crush on Renee helped to show hints of modern more redeemable Harley without downplaying that she's dangerous.

The same is true for Alfred as strained as his relationship with Bruce is there's something incredibly tragic in the hints that he desperately wants to fix things so Bruce can be normal and healthy and that he just can't that he knows he missed his chance when Bruce was a kid. His lien about always thinking Therapy might help was just so tinged with regret. . Plus the tantalizing hint at something he desperately doesn't want Batman to know. It's a good hook going forward and seeing things change from Pennyworth to Alfred is an interesting arc to follow on Bruce's side.

I'm not as big a fan of this Two Face since I found Harvey a bit too crooked already to really see it as a good man pushed to the breaking point and as a result Alfred's speech contrasing him with Bruce felt really forced. The fact he died also bugs me as it robs us of Two Face going forward and while I'm fine with villains getting killed to serve the story it just felt a bit incomplete

But the big one is I find myself so torn on is the Penquin. The Penquin as presented is a phenomenol Mob boss character who actually gets to get one over on Batman with the umbrella trick and the cold way she dealt with her sons was chilling.

I just don't feel Penquin from her. Other than the Iceberg lounge, outfit and Umbrella. She screams more showgirl gone bad mob boss than a female version of the classic Penquin and I'm a little disappointed she still has such a classically feminine hour glass figure with a pointed nose instead of a woman with a body that could realistically be nicknamed the Penquin.

Another part I really wasn't feeling was the Cameo by the Robin themed Orphans. It was already pushing it when Dickie and Jase appeared at the start but then we had Stephanie Brown and Carie and it just got too blatant as an in joke which will make it really awkward if this series ever does Robin and has to either dove tail back to these orphans or ignore their existence.

One last thing that last scene was not surprising in the least. I think everyone called it that no Batman series can leave him out of it for long. I will say the voice was an interesting choice and I actually kind of like it.

[phantom-le6]

Film Review - Batman: Gotham By Gaslight

To continue with our current run of film reviews, we now take a trip back in time to the Victorian era with a look at an animated adaptation of DC Comics’ first Elseworlds title.  This is my look into Batman: Gotham by Gaslight…

Plot (as adapted from Wikipedia):

In Victorian-era Gotham City, Batman saves a wealthy couple from being robbed by three orphans (Dickie, Jason and Timmy) and defeats their abusive handler, Big Bill Dust. At the same time, Ivy, an orphan turned exotic dancer and prostitute, becomes the newest victim of the serial killer called Jack the Ripper, who preys on Gotham's poor and destitute women. Citizens of Gotham believe the Batman and Jack to be the same man. Stage actress Selina Kyle berates Gotham Police Commissioner James Gordon and Chief of Police Harvey "Bulldog" Bullock for their failure to stop the Ripper murders.

At the Monarch Theatre with his friend Harvey Dent, Bruce meets Selina and the two bond at the exclusive Dionysus Club. Bruce realizes that not only were the two of them taken in by Sister Leslie, but that some of the murdered girls were orphans formerly under Leslie's care. Bruce realizes that the Ripper will target Leslie and rushes to save her, but is too late. At the crime scene, Bruce finds a bloody Dionysus Club pin, meaning the Ripper has to be one of Gotham's wealthy. At Sister Leslie's funeral, Bruce is met by Hugo Strange, claiming he knows the killer and wants to meet with Batman. Bruce also is met by Marlene, a drunken old woman who claims she saw him sneaking around when Sister Leslie was killed.

At Arkham Asylum, the Ripper attacks Strange and throws him to his own patients, who tear him apart. While in pursuit of the Ripper, Batman is himself chased by police, only to be saved by Selina. After seeing Batman is Bruce, she takes him to her home, where they spend the night.

After the death of Marlene is discovered, Bruce is arrested, and Dent, jealous of Selina's affection, prosecutes him as the Ripper. Sentenced to Blackgate Penitentiary following the trial, Bruce is met by Selina, who urges him to reveal he is Batman to clear his name and help save the girls from Jack. When he refuses, she decides to tell Gordon herself. Bribing a guard to deliver a coded message to his manor, Bruce escapes after staging a prison fight.

Selina meets with Gordon at the Gotham City World's Fair and learns to her horror that he is the Ripper. While seeking Selina at Gordon's home, Batman learns this as well. Gordon injects Selina with a sleeping aid, but she manages to use her blood and the Fair's searchlight to give Batman a signal. Batman arrives and fights Gordon into a Ferris wheel where Gordon, driven mentally insane by his time in the Civil War, reveals his "holy work" is to rid Gotham from what he sees as human filth. The Ferris wheel lights on fire in the struggle and begins to collapse: Batman defeats Gordon, and Gordon walks into the flames to escape justice. Batman and Selina are saved by Alfred and the orphans, who are now Bruce Wayne's wards.

Review:

Having seen a few Elseworld-based or Elseworld-like films in the DC and Warner Brothers home-release run, I was quite intrigued to get into a film based on the graphic novel that started the imprint.  The basic premise is certainly sound; take the flagship detective hero of DC’s wide pantheon of characters and pit him against the most notorious and elusive serial killer of the Victorian era.  It makes for an interesting murder mystery, and it’s more interesting still to see how the wide range of Batman characters are worked in around the Dark Knight.  We have the first three Robins, Catwoman, Two-Face, Poison Ivy, Hugo Strange, Commissioner Gordon, Harvey Bullock, Leslie Thompkins and Solomon Grundy all worked in around Batman, Alfred and “Jack.”

Of course, fan service and a sound basic premise only go so far; there also need to be other elements in play.  The film is well-animated and presents us with a visual “feel” of being in a Victorian-era city, while aspects of the dialogue also add to the period feel.  The same is true of some of the accents used; a number of characters speak as if they’ve emigrated to Gotham City recently rather than being natural-born Americans, which plays to the US still encouraging people to become Americans via immigration at that time.  Of course, as we might expect, there are a few anachronisms to contend with, including a musical number by Selina Kyle and Batman’s steam-powered motorcycle, but this is almost expected for a character like Batman.

The film is also well-acted; Bruce Greenwood, who voiced Batman in the animated films Batman: Under The Red Hood, returns to voice the character for this film, while Jennifer Carpenter of Dexter fame, and who has recently voiced Sonya Blade in the Mortal Kombat Legends film series, provides the voice of Selina Kyle.  Other notable names include Anthony Head of Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame as the voice Alfred, and voice-acting luminaries such as John DiMaggio, Tara Strong and Kari Wuhrer.  On the whole, it’s a well-done piece of animated film making that seems to deliver on all fronts.  In theory, nothing wrong at all.

However, the one thing I find not quite right in this film, having also reviewed a plot summary of the source material, is that in both iterations, the Ripper killer is identified and caught.  In real life, this never happened with the Ripper killings, and of course the film transplants the Ripper to Gotham and ties him into Batman and Bruce Wayne.  Personally, I’d have been a bit more intrigued at seeing Batman come to London and deal with the Ripper on his home turf, and perhaps not deduce or not reveal the Ripper’s true identity.  This would have been closer to the real-world history informing the story, and would have been a refreshing change from the America-centric mindset often dictating the superhero story-telling industry.

This quibble aside, the film is still one of DC’s better efforts to date, and I would give it 9 out of 10.

[briamichellewrites]

26

William was never conventional. He preferred to do things because he wanted to do them, regardless of what everyone else was doing. Whether they agreed with him or not didn’t matter. That could be film choices or even his fashion sense. He even wore a skirt to one of his film premieres. There were pictures online to prove it. Still, everyone was surprised when he came out as a bisexual man who was dating another man in a magazine interview. He always knew he was attracted to men.

It just wasn’t ever a big deal to him. The reason why he was coming out was for his children and his four-year-old granddaughter. He recently got into contact with his daughter from a previous relationship. She made him a grandfather. They were making up for lost time by hanging out together. For privacy, he was not going to reveal who his boyfriend was or the name of his daughter.

People congratulated him online for coming out. Jennifer reached out to him and asked how he was doing. He was the happiest he had been in a long time! Good for him! She asked him about his daughter. How old was she? She was eighteen years old and the product of a short-term relationship.

“Is she the baby that was orphaned?”

“Yeah. I lost contact with her after she went into foster care. I found her because I went to see my boyfriend. She works for him. He introduced us. I just knew from looking at her that she was my daughter. She is just an amazing mom. You would love her.”

What were their names? His daughter was Bria and his granddaughter was Stephanie, but she went by Stevie. Did they call him Brad? He laughed. No, he was William or BP. Stevie called him Papa. She laughed because that was so cute! Even though they divorced eighteen years ago, they continued to support each other. Jennifer had remarried in 2015 but divorced in 2018, three years later. Since then, she had been single.

She was genuinely happy to hear he was with someone. His boyfriend was a rapper, singer, songwriter, and producer. He co-owned a record label and was working with different artists as a featured artist, main artist, or producer. How old was he? He was forty-six, fourteen years younger. The reason why he decided to date him was because he had a stable career and wasn’t going to use him.

Was Mike going to come out? He was thinking about if he should do it or not. If he did, it would be for his fans. He was protective of his personal life because he preferred to keep it separate from his career. William told him not to do it unless he wanted to. His sexuality wasn’t anyone’s business. He knew that. They also talked about what being in a relationship with him meant. It meant having the paparazzi and tabloids talking about them. It also meant having little to no privacy.

That’s what came with being Brad Pitt. Mike was in a place in his career where coming out wouldn’t jeopardize anything. The thing he was hesitant about was people making a big deal out of it. He was comfortable with who he was. It took him a while for him to get there. After talking to his little brother, Jay, he decided to do it. Just for the fans to show them they weren’t alone.

He made a video where he explained that he was coming out as bisexual and how he struggled with depression. His depression led him to develop a drinking problem that almost became an addiction. He was in a great place with friends and family who supported him. It was because of them, he was comfortable with who he was. He asked his fans to share their coming out stories if they felt comfortable. Before ending the video, he thanked them for the support they showed the band for over twenty years.

His video received comments of support from his friends, family members, and fans. Some shared their stories about how they discovered their sexuality and how they came out. He read through them and he felt like they knew what he went through. There was nothing wrong with being gay or bisexual. He and the band were advocates for the LGBT community.

They told kids they loved them. He thought about how proud Chester would be of him. Congratulations, dude! He would want to make sure William treated him right. Whenever he thought about him, it made him miss him. He thought about him hanging out at the house with them. William would get a kick out of his high energy! He would be bouncing around, making them laugh. Before long, they would be best friends. He was just that kind of guy.

As expected, the media put two and two together and figured out that he was dating Brad Pitt. He wasn’t going to comment on it because it wasn’t anyone’s business. They were private people and he wouldn’t verify anything unless he had his permission.

Congratulations! You have officially become more famous than Kim Kardashian! Love you. – Phoenix

Phoenix happened to stumble across the Trending Topics feature on Twitter when he noticed that Mike and Brad were number one while Kim was way down at the bottom. He thought it was hilarious and took a screenshot, thinking Mike would appreciate it. A few minutes later, he replied with laughing emojis. That’s awesome! He laughed before showing Linsey. Oh my god.

After getting ready for bed, he and William lay in bed together. They hadn’t been together for that long but they were falling in love. William felt like he found someone who made him feel safe. They would have arguments but he wouldn’t hit him or hurt himself. He also wouldn’t threaten to take his children away. Mike was everything he had been looking for. They made a family together with Bria and Stevie. He wanted to make things official because he didn’t want to risk losing him.

Mike felt the same. He loved him and he didn’t want to look for another guy because he was right in front of him. Finally, he was genuinely happy. He had the family he always wanted. The life he always wanted. He mentioned looking into step-parent adoption for Bria. He thought that was a great idea. She would love that! They could talk to her about it tomorrow.

“I have one question I want to ask. Will you officially be my boyfriend”, William asked him.

“I would love that!”

They kissed and said I love you. The next morning, Stevie was up and in one of her princess dresses. Bria was behind her. She explained that she insisted on wearing it. They laughed. It was Sunday, so she could wear whatever she wanted. Did they have breakfast yet? Yeah, they just ate. They invited them to join them while they ate because they had a question for her.

Down in the kitchen, the guys got their breakfast started before Mike asked her what he and William discussed the night before. He was wondering if he could adopt her. Was he serious? Yes, he was. He was going to look into step-parent adoption. She immediately said yes and thanked him happily! You’re welcome. It meant he would be her father and a grandfather to Stevie. She threw her hands up in the air. Yay, Mommy! They laughed.

@zoeykaytesmom @feelingsofaithless @alina-dixon @fiickle-nia @boricuacherry-blog

[hidingoutbackstage]

Okay aside from my hatred for how it treated Eveline, the DLC also just, wasn't great? And didn't matter? Spoilers below the cut

Okay so getting big thing out of the way: The DLC takes place before the 8 epilogue of Rose at Ethan's grave. Meaning that everything we see doesn’t matter. Rose was never going to lose her powers, she was always going to escape the mold mind palace (btw I’m gonna call it “mold mind palace” this whole time) and it just felt cheap to have the ENTIRE epilogue shown at the end. Like just show her on the bus, we know this scene. I kept waiting throughout the scene to see if they would show us anything new or different, but they didn't. That ending was pointless.

K was also such a nothing character. I speculated that it could be John, since the two characters' faces are similar, but it wasn't. Rose calls him K. John's HWS name is Lobo. If it were Dion she was meeting, that nickname might make sense (K9. There's actually a file in 8 that refers to Canine with that shortened nickname so it would've been possible) but Dion obviously doesn't look like this guy. Not to mention the reveal that he was never there doesn't do anything for us. We knew nothing about this guy, had no attachment to him, so Miranda tricking Rose the entire time means nothing to us. If it had been an actual former HWS member, or, hell, CHRIS then we might have felt something.

Also just the insinuations that 1) Chris is STILL leading HWS 16 years later 2) they're inviting more people to be part of HWS 3) HWS hasn't been shut down yet despite them having been a rogue team when we saw them operating in 8 and they went straight to BSAA HQ, meaning they probably would've received some consequences for going rogue and 4) they've asked Rose, a 16-year-old, to join their team, are all absurd

The DLC is also just really lazy. They recycle ideas, like Miranda using illusions to trick someone into seeing a person that wasn't even there, they recycle models, like seriously Evie looks exactly how she did in RE7, and her model there wasn't great and was still super clunky here and she wasn't proportioned like a child, and they reuse her tantrum animations from 7, they recycle locations just making things more messy or adding the new bloody mold goop to indicate this is the mind palace and not irl. They're lazy with Miranda's motivation too, like there's no reason for her to need Rose as a vessel for Eva anymore. If Eva's consciousness was truly in the mold like Miranda believed, then great! You're in the mold now, Miranda! Go find her! Why are you wasting time with Rose?

The "Michael" mystery was stupid. There was no real reason for him to not reveal himself to Rose right away. It wouldn't "complicate" anything, in fact she'd be more likely to trust you. He kept telling her to turn back, meaning if she had listened, they never would have gotten to speak, which is kind of what Ethan wanted. He wanted her out of the mind palace, safe, even if it meant he never saw her again. She probably could've taken solace in speaking to her dad, even if it wasn't face to face. Also the wording of "Not an enemy" was sooo dumb. Say you're a friend! Say you're family! "Not an enemy" makes her even less likely to trust you, because you aren't being anything reassuring to her right now

The game also tries way too hard to tug on the heart strings, and it doesn't work. I'm gonna bring up Evie here a bit although I'll do my best not to. I do not feel bad for Rose. As a long time fan and player of most games in this series, I can name more characters who have been through worse shit than Rose has than I can count on my fingers. Actually I will, this is my post, fuck it, feel free to skip the list

Sherry was orphaned at 12 and was infected with a virus that nearly killed her, then was held captive in a strange man's house for eleven years, that's 5 years of her adult life still in captivity, before gaining a false semblance of freedom by being forced to become an agent, on one of her missions was kidnapped and tortured for 6 months, and oh yeah her body stopped aging at 20

Manuela was infected with a disease that should have killed her, lost her mother at 5 years old, nearly died several times during DC, became an orphan at 16, and was locked up after being rescued because she still had powers and was still infected. Despite controlling her powers, she was not given any freedom, because the government was cautious (KEEP THIS IN MIND FOR LATER)

Claire, Chris, and Leon are all orphans, Leon definitely when he was a child, Chris and Claire it's up to speculation. The three of them went through the horrors of the early games as young adults, Claire only being 19.

Jill was kidnapped, brainwashed, and forced to become a murderous slave for a genocidal maniac who she sacrificed her life to try to kill

Ashley was kidnapped multiple times, infected, and had her body taken control of by another person against her will

Natalia was an orphan (WHO WATCHED HER PARENTS DIE BTW) who was isolated from her peers, kidnapped, tormented for months by Alex, experienced hallucinations, had an adult woman try to take control of her body, and despite having seemed safe, apparently is still suffering ptsd or worse from what Alex did to her. She was adopted by a normal family and treated like a normal child, but she was still safely monitored and there's no indication she had a normal social life (KEEP THIS IN MIND FOR LATER)

Lisa Trevor was kidnapped at age 14, became an orphan when her parents were killed and she was infected with a virus, and went mad as she was continually tortured and experimented on until her death at 35 years old

Alexia and Alfred Ashford were given a life of comfort, but were still an experimental vanity project that their father enacted because he was in love with one of his ancestors, which they learned of at only 12 years old. Alexia willingly infected herself at age 12, Alfred was forced large political power at that age, and went insane without his sister there to support him, and when Alexia woke up from cryo sleep, the first thing she saw was her brother's dead body

Eveline was created to be a bioweapon. She was never given a choice as to if she had these powers. She was younger than her ten-year-old physical appearance, because she was aged up artificially, she was tortured, abused, forced to kill people with powers she couldn't control, and denied any source of comfort despite having the wants and needs of a child, and she was murdered by a man who called her a little bitch as she cried and lamented why the world seemed to hate her.

Now. What struggles does Rose have? Why, her dad is dead and kids at school call her a freak, of course! Now Isn't that sad? Don't you feel terrible for her and can't wait for her to pick off Eveline, who was taunting her, like a bitter child would?

Also yes you read that right, kids at school. Rosemary Winters, who shows physical proof in public that she is an actively infected person who cannot control her abilities, is allowed to attend public school and receive childish bullying. Un-fucking-realistic. Such bullshit.

Like I said, they lay on the pathos thick. There is an entire section, with no real gameplay, as you walk around the house from the beginning of 8 as you get to hear Ethan's voice and Rose's commentary on things her dad said because wahhh isn't it sad that Ethan died? They tell you how Rose feels through dialogue instead of allowing the character to feel for the obviously forced pathos. The letter was also written way too on the nose to try and tug at some heart strings. The ending where Rose talks to Ethan (while still HILARIOUSLY obstructing his face) goes on for too long and not a single line isn't something sad/sweet/sappy to try and get in the audience's feelings. (Also Rose bringing a physical object of Ethan's ring out of a MOLD MIND PALACE makes no sense but w/e)

Okay but is the gameplay at least good? Nah not that either. You get two weapons, a handgun and a shotgun, the occasional pipe bomb, and Rose's freezing powers. Now I know that this is a DLC and of course there doesn't have to be a lot of content, but this was pathetic. There are only two real puzzles either. The playthrough I watched was 3 hours long. The only part I thought was really scary was running from the Mia mannequins, but gameplay-wise they're like super easy to defeat.

The story jumps forward 16 years for no real reason. We don't get any insight into this new world Rose is living in, 16 years from the current furthest point in the timeline, we meet no new characters except for K who we can't really assume told us anything real since he was an illusion. This story was unnecessary, a mess, none of the gameplay was spectacular, and it went out of its way to torture and villainize a character who had already suffered in life, not even giving her peace in death. Really shitty DLC, really bad time.