#the crown's fate review

[la-libreria-chula]

Has anyone read these?!!?

I literally finished all three in a week! While I was a little disappointed in the novellas (The Sword and the Scepter) because I was hoping to see more of Rooke's time in the Northern Lands, still glad to have read them.

But The Crown of Oaths and Curses?? I loved it! At first, I thought it was going to be straight up romantasy (because of those two novellas and the whole fated mates thing) but now it's just a fantasy to me with the aspect of romance not being the central thing (or least I hope so). I can't wait for the second book. I know there has been something going on where it's been delayed, but I'm waiting for the paperback version anyway.

[katsu2ji]

ignorance is bliss — k. tsukishima

a/n: he's so silly i wanna take a 0.5 of him

you never thought in a million years that you'd have a picture on your phone of your boyfriend—your sweet but sour, sometimes asshole-ish (lovingly) boyfriend—cuddled up with your stuffed animal, but here we are.

tsukishima had come over late to study and, naturally, that meant he was spending the night. you could tell from the moment he called you saying that he was on his way that he was exhausted, but you knew he'd never tell you that. even when his yawns broke the comfortable silence of pens scratching and fingers typing along a laptop keyboard, he still didn't give in. it took you looking at the clock reading 1:47AM and reminding him that you guys had all weekend to study together before he finally accepted his fate, changing his clothes and settling onto your bed as you went in the bathroom to get unready.

"oh, and tomorrow we need to review chapter 36 and 37, since we didn't get to them tonight. you have your test on wednesday, right?"

no answer. you turn off the water faucet, wiping your hands on the towel as you listened for him. now that you've thought about it, you hadn't heard more than a quiet "mhm..." from him since you first started talking.

you turned off the light, adjusting your sleep shirt as you stepped out of the bathroom and into your bedroom. quietly, you walked over to where he lay on the bed, finding him still.

"kei?" you tested. no answer again—he was out. you smiled as you heard soft snores coming from him; that smile became even bigger as you watch him stir in his sleep, wrapping his arms around the dinosaur jellycat he'd gotten you for your birthday and pulling it close to him.

trying to make as little noise as possible, you turn and grab your phone off the nightstand; this moment needed photo evidence, otherwise you knew your boyfriend would deny it ever happened. what you didn't realize, however, was that your flash was on, meaning that the moment you snapped that 0.5 in the blonde's face, he jumped, his whole body waking up and moving away from the stuffed animal he was so adorably holding moments ago.

you couldn't help but laugh, a hand going over you mouth as you watched him slowly sit up and look at you with a both sleepy and slightly surprised expression. you felt bad for waking him up so suddenly, but that was quickly suppressed by the humor you found in his reaction.

"what the hell were you doing? what's so funny?" he was used to your antics, but it didn't stop him from questioning you.

you looked down at your phone and smiled. you'd gotten the perfect picture, even if you had woken him up for it. you decided you wouldn't say anything to him about it for tonight, keeping this to yourself. you turned your phone off, setting it back down on the nightstand before moving to get into bed.

"no, no, it's nothing. i'm sorry i woke you up, though. if it helps any, you looked adorable." you laughed out, kissing his cheek as you settled next to him.

aside from his face slightly reddening, kei didn't say anything, just shuffled over to make room. he knew you were lying, his eyes narrowing in the dark, but he was too tired to give a damn about what you were lying about. watching you for a moment, he sighed, taking off his glasses and rubbing his eyes as he muttered something along the lines of "blinding me with your freakin' flash." he reached across you a bit and set them on the nightstand.

he then moved to lay down in the bed, pulling you down with him as he settled back to sleep. he laid on his back, an arm around you as you laid at his side.

"it doesn't, but thanks. now sleep."

his eyes were already closing, a yawn finishing his sentence. he muttered a good night to you, kissing the crown of your head before letting out a sigh, grateful to finally be resting—for real this time.

you knew that in the morning, he'd probably have more questions about what was really happening, but for right now you let him drift off. you soon followed after, the only sounds in the room being the steady breathing between the two of you.

as soon as you could, that picture was gonna be your phone's home screen. but for now, ignorance was bliss.

katsu2ji © 2024. please don't copy, modify, or do anything of the sort with my work! i work very hard and you simply do not have my permission.

[wakingupnexttoyou]

I managed to finish the rest of this entire series without posting about it because I've been slacking lol

It was so so so good.

4.5 ⭐ overall.

I would 100% reread this series.

The characters were amazing and the feelings they made me feel were too real. I felt so bad for these three girls.

I feel the ending was super abrupt though and wish there was more.

I also finished the two kovellas that went with this series. They were good as well. But again ended abruptly lol

I did not expect to like this one so much but it sucked me right in!!!

4.5 ⭐

I loved this book. I love an underdog story. And with two out of the three sisters labelled weak or giftless you can guess which one is my least favourite. Katherine is my favourite hands down. Her story broke my heart. Arsinoe is a close second but at least she had friends! Mirabella was okay I guess lol although I'm not a huge fan. I feel that she is fairly misunderstood but I still have a hard time liking her as much as I like her sisters.

My eye are on Katherine and Peityr first and foremost. I can't wait to see what happens there. But the ending with Arsinoe 🤯 I did not see that one coming at all!!!!

[kiryoutann]

Before reading, please check series masterlist to read the warning(s), disclaimer, and to make sure you’re on the right chapter. Minors do NOT interact.

If you enjoy what I do, please consider donating to my Ko-fi :) Likes, reblogs, and comments are greatly appreciated!

Everyone has their favorite cousin; for you, it's Sabrina.

A year younger than you, she shines brighter than any star. Whenever Aunt came to visit, the two of you would escape to worlds of your own creation.

In the comfort of your childhood backyard, two pink napkins were laid out, creating the perfect setting for a whimsical tea party. Cookies and toy cups waited on the makeshift tables. She would always wear her little crown that she never forgot to bring, and you would eagerly gather your beloved stuffed animals to join the celebration as additional guests.

Born to a single teenage mother—who, in Mother's eyes, was the height of irresponsibility, “unfit” for motherhood—Sabrina was forever shrouded in your mother's harsh judgment that "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree." That she would follow in her mother's footsteps, and it wouldn't be so surprising.

But Sabrina was far from the “troubled child,” grew into a girl warmer than the summer sun, kinder than the gentle grace of spring.

Sabrina was your favorite cousin, the one you wished could maintain the kind of closeness you shared during your youth. However, just as everything good in your life, fate always had a way of destroying it.

When Sabrina’s mother married a kind, steady man after years, it was as if a switch flipped inside Mother. Gone was any goodness she had shown to her sister and Sabrina. Any invitation from Sabrina’s mom was met with excuses—"we were too busy,” “it wasn’t a good time.” Lies, more lies. The real reason was far more simple: it was the bitter, green-eyed jealousy.

Mother always did crave pity and attention from others. But the pity she received from family after Father left wasn’t the kind she wanted.

It symbolizes her failure—now, a single mother struggling when her sister thrived with her loving husband and another baby on the way. And when Sabrina’s stepfather agreed to pay for Sabrina to start taking ballet classes like you, Mother took it as competition.

She had made ballet your personal hell.

While Mother brags about your ballet success, flaunting ribbons and reviews, her pride has a price behind closed doors. Nothing is enough to satisfy her, and the standards she holds for you reach for the impossible. Every competition is followed by a barrage of criticism—you could have placed higher, pointed your toes more.

Third place? "You’re wasting my money, girl." Second place earns you a dismissive "Second only means you’re second best." Even first place yields her saying, "Don’t get a big head over a stupid ribbon. It doesn't mean you're the best; it just means everyone else was worse."

Just as everything is good in your life, fate always has a way of destroying it.

(Or is it your mother?)

The old, naïve part of your mind argues that she's doing this for your own good. After all, diamonds aren’t made without pressure—a familiar refrain she repeats every time you beg her to stop, every time you sob so intensely that you struggle to breathe, feeling like a sacrificial lamb. And every time, she just watches in detached observation, with the slight upturn of her lips like a scientist admiring the results of her own making. Like a woodcarver appreciating the strokes of her knife.

Like a mother to her daughter.

(Because she's my mother, she should want the best for me, right?)

And that old, naïve part of your brain is still alive, apparently, even after you’ve left home and settled miles away. She's your mother; she must have your best interests at heart, even though the harshest words often come from her mouth.

She only has your future in mind, even if sometimes you wonder if she loves you at all.

The subtle thump of the car against the window jolted you out of your memories, and you opened your heavy eyelids, groggily regaining your bearings. You wiped your dry lips, relieved no drool dripping your chin in your nap. Looking out the window, you could see the trees whizzing by. Beside you, Simon's eyes fixed intently on the empty, straight road ahead.

At first, you had firmly convinced yourself that you wouldn't attend Sabrina's wedding, giving Simon excuses of work obligations and other lies to justify your absence. Then, Henri happens: he decreed the entire week mandatory rest for all dancers—prompted by the high stress level, but it's likely a more... specific case of frustration that pushed him over the edge: a certain ballerina who still danced her Black Swan coda like a flailing, drunken mess.

Finding yourself with an open schedule due to the unexpected break, emptiness now filled your time, leaving ample room for unwanted negative feelings—specifically, guilt. You end up reconsidering everything, even taking a Barbie out of your worn cardboard box from the closet. The doll bore the results of your and Sabrina's "artistic" minds, its hair chopped off and skin adorned with Sharpie tattoos. He responds to the doll's rough state with a sarcastic compliment.

That’s how you ended up on a short road trip with Simon. The man’s long leg stepped on the accelerator as the car continued to speed through the English countryside. Glancing up, the tiny skeleton charm swung gently where it hung, its hollow sockets seeming to stare back at you.

“Are we almost there?” you asked Simon.

At your question, he turns to you, eyes lingering for a moment before redirecting his focus on the road. “Reckon another five minutes, and we’ll be pulling up.” 

You look out the window. More trees; the dense forest seems to go on forever. Finally, a break appears, and up ahead looms the sturdy building you assume is the venue listed on the wedding invitation.

It was a manor, with solid brown brick walls and a three-story structure topped by a roof spanning each wing. Double-paneled doors were flanked by columns and arched windows. All around, emerald grass was cut to perfection, not a single blade out of place. In the center stood a two-tiered fountain, adorned with carvings of little angels spouting water into a circular pool. It was a heartwarming, romantic storybook vision.

Tearing your eyes from the scene, you glance over at Simon in amazement. “You certainly seem to know your way without GPS.” You comment.

He gave a noncommittal grunt, one-handedly turning the steering wheel as he maneuvered the car into an open spot behind a row of others. “Got a good sense o' direction, is all.”

As the rumble of the engine fell silent, you unbuckled your seatbelt but lingered in your seat, not quite ready to exit the safety of the vehicle. Through the window, you searched for distractions to ignore the uneasy flips in your stomach.

Simon reached out to reach the dashboard; you moved back slightly to give him more room. He grabbed for his plain black surgical mask, but your curious gaze landed on something else. A pair of black gloves—each finger had a contrasting white skeleton bone. You leaned in without thinking, drawing them out to inspect closely.

“I see you have a thing for skeleton.”

Simon glanced sideways at you as he hooked his mask over his ears. “Keep things interestin’,” he said lightly, voice muffled by the material. He pressed the wire along the bridge to mold it to the shape of his nose.

Pulling his keys from the ignition switch, he pocketed them with a jingle. Simon pushed open the door and stepped out in one smooth movement. He rounded the front of the car, walking to reach for your door. Pulling the handle to assist your exit, you took a deep breath before accepting his offer and slipping out of the vehicle.

A loud gasp pierced the air, followed by rapid footsteps rushing towards you. You turned your head from the sound of your name being called, finding a familiar face staring back at you. Sabrina. Now, a grown woman, changed from the girl you once knew. She stretched out her arms as she pulled you into a tight hug, blonde curls bouncing with her joyful smile.

“You came!” She cried happily, pulling back to look at you. “I’m so glad you made it!”

You returned her smile, your nerves melting away from her presence alone—the magic Sabrina had on everyone. “I wouldn’t miss your big day,” you told her.

She swept her eyes over you from head to toe appraisingly. “And look at you! So beautiful!” she said, and you were sure it was just the dress you had bought two days ago doing its job.

Sabrina shifted her gaze, and you remembered the companion standing patiently beside you. Her eyes swept over him assessingly, mixed with curiosity and wariness. Same old Sabrina. She glances at you briefly, and you know an introduction is in order.

Drawing a breath, you begin, “Sabrina, this is Simon. He, uh…” Your voice faltered, unsure of what label to use to describe him.

Simon reached out with nonchalant confidence to Sabrina. “Pleasure.”

With a hint of skepticism, Sabrina's lips tested the unfamiliar name, "Simon." Her face contorted as if it tasted bitter. She narrowed her eyes as she noted, “Funny, she has never mentioned you before.”

Your heart skipped a beat, and a chill ran down your spine as you replied, “There just… hasn’t been a good time to bring it up.”

You hoped that your explanation would be enough to divert the attention away from Simon, but it seemed futile. Sabrina was infamous for her stubbornness and overly protective nature, especially when it came to those she cared about. Like a tigress, she fixated a calculating gaze on him, as if preparing to pummel him on the spot if he gave her the slightest reason.

“Right,” she mumbled.

Sabrina made a show of dropping the conversation but felt compelled to ask one more question. “Any particular reason for the mask?” Her tone was sharper now, as if daring Simon to answer her.

Hastily, you jumped in. “He’s just feeling under the weather, doesn’t want to spread his cold.” It was a stupid lie, and you knew it, but Sabrina tilted her head in faux consideration.

“How thoughtful.” She commented, suspicion lingering at the edges. Hardening her eyes once more, she gave Simon a subtle threat. “You better take good care of this one.”

“Always.” Simon replied, calm and sure.

Satisfied, Sabrina’s expression switched like flickering sunlight. Clapping her hands in excitement, she announced, “Alright, time to meet Andrew and the others! And I’ll show you to your room!”

With that, she spun on her heels and marched toward the door, her long skirt swirling. Simon and you followed after her at a more sedate pace. Your heart rate slowed in relief that the confrontation was over.

Glancing at Simon, you grimaced, muttering a hushed “Sorry about her.”

Simon says nothing, depriving you of the answer, and you thought this was his way of punishing you for the excessive protectiveness of your cousin. He had driven a considerable distance to accompany you to a wedding of someone he didn’t even know, only to be met with suspicion and unwarranted scrutiny by Sabrina, then tasked with the responsibility of "taking care" of you, despite not even being your boyfriend.

However, in stark contrast to your feelings, Simon seemed to brush off the situation with nonchalance. The slight lift of his black mask and the crinkles at the corners of his eyes clearly indicated a smile hidden beneath it. There was no offense taken.

As you emerged outside the back of the manor, bright sunlight made you blink to adjust. When your blurry eyes cleared, a beautiful scene was laid out before you.

In the wide green field stood a picturesque wedding arch, still bare of the decorations that would soon adorn it. Nearby, tables draped in crisp white linens were set where groups mingled, laughing. Some were busy gossiping and enjoying the buffet; some were occupied in a croquet match.

Sabrina chuckled beside you. “They’re trying to recreate a Bridgerton scene but clearly failing miserably.” At her comment, you smiled too, admiring the carefree warmth pervading the atmosphere.

Gesturing wide, Sabrina said, “Help yourself to the buffet over there, and tea or coffee if you’d like. Oh, and this is Andrew, my fiancé!”

A tall, handsome man approached and pressed a kiss to Sabrina’s cheek. She bloomed with a rosy blush as she beamed up at him. “Babe, this is (Y/N) – you know, the cousin I’ve always told you about, my sister from another mother!” She gushed.

Her sweet description of you stirred a smile in your heart. You turned to Andrew, accepting his handshake. “It's wonderful to meet you. Sabrina talks about you all the time,” he says.

“And this is Simon. He came with (Y/N).”

Andrew reached out to offer a new handshake with Simon. “We're glad to have you both. Please, make yourselves at home.”

Giving a nod, Simon took his hand. “Appreciate the welcome, mate.” He replied.

“Oh my God!”

A high-pitched, sharp voice pierces the air, shattering the calm. Your head pivots, and you see your aunt making her way towards you, her arms stretched out in a gesture much like how Sabrina had welcomed you earlier. The embrace she gives you is as warm and smothering as you remember. Drawing back, she sweeps her teary eyes over you. “Look at you! You’ve grown into such a beauty!”

"Definitely," Sabrina chimes in, seconding her mother.

“It’s lovely to see you too, Auntie Joyce.” You replied, smiling at her.

Joyce pinched your cheek lightly before directing her attention past you, eyes widening in surprise. “And who is this?” she asked, gaze landing on Simon with curiosity. Before you could introduce him, she gasped even louder and glared at you as if she had just realized something big. “Why, he must be your boyfriend!”

Your heart leapt at your aunt's bold insinuation. Joyce didn't bother waiting for your confirmation before enveloping Simon in a tight hug. His shoulders tensed, and he looked confused—his hands hovering awkwardly, unsure of how to reciprocate.

Luckily, the ordeal wasn't prolonged, and your aunt finally retreated, not forgetting, of course, to give his bicep an extra appreciative squeeze. 

“Oh,” she chuckled, “you're quite the fit one, aren't you?”

“Mom, please!” Sabrina groaned, shaking her head at her mother’s antics.

Joyce dismissed her daughter's protests with a playful wave of her hand, saying, "Oh, come now, relax! It's a wedding, not a funeral." She positioned herself between you and Simon, slipping her arms through each of yours to guide you both forward.

“Just look at this place,” Joyce continued, her voice filled with admiration. “Isn’t it stunning? Sabrina had such brilliant ideas, she has a real eye for these things. Just wanted everything perfect for her and Andrew, they deserve the best.”

The older woman stopped in her tracks. She turned to the two of you, looking at you both in turn, hazel eyes filled with sincerity. Grasping each of your hands in hers, she hosted a warm, meaningful smile on her face.

“Mark my words, it’ll be your turn before you know it.”

The well-intentioned tone in your aunt's words was apparent. Auntie Joyce had always been sentimental, wearing her heart on her sleeve and never hesitating to express her thoughts. Yet you couldn't help but think that now, her words seemed misplaced—directed at the wrong people. After all, you and Simon weren't even dating, but rather just two people seeking each other's benefits and comfort. The concept of love seemed incredibly distant, and her trying to cling it to you felt like staining purity with sin.

Instead of imagining your own wedding, you feel panic building in your fingertips. You can hear your heartbeat—the ringing in your ears.

What does Simon think of the implications? He’s only here to accompany you, to make the anxiety easier to handle. But now, it’s as if you’ve brought him here for another purpose—a scheming opportunist trying to trap him with suggestions of commitment he’s never agreed to.

Before your thoughts could spiral further, a voice cuts through the chatter—an awfully familiar one, sending your body into instant shock.

“Joyce, where did you run off to?” It called out, tone softer, but your brain is only capable of recalling the rougher version of it.

Joyce waved at the newcomer, ushering her over. “Your daughter’s here with her boyfriend! Can you believe it? Why didn’t you say?”

Boyfriend. She had said it.

In that moment, horror washed over you. Your pulse quickened, racing like a frightened animal. Palms grew slick with perspiration. The world seems tilting off its axis. Something very sour stirred in your stomach, almost triggering you to retch onto the lush, green grass.

Then came the chuckle, low and mocking—and you're already aware of the person who now stands before you.

Slowly, you lift your gaze to meet the eyes so reminiscent of your own, settled in a face that still bears resemblance to the features you’ve inherited from her. She looks the same as the last time you saw her in San Francisco, except for the absence of anger, now replaced by a smile that graces her red lipsticked lips. It's a familiar expression, the exact one she uses whenever she detects hints of your defiance.

(The ghost haunting my dreams, the monster under the bed.)

The woman who had drilled into you time and again: A man’s heart is truly a wretched, wretched thing! Her vengeance against Dad had warped her into keeping the wound wet and bleeding so that it would not have time to heal, so neither of you forgot.

And here you are, betraying everything she had taught you by daring to bring a man into her world. Something crawled up your throat—heavier this time. This wasn’t panic; this was guilt.

When she saw it written on your face—the shame of your transgression—her eyes gleamed with cruel triumph at catching you out.

Auntie Joyce’s question was almost forgotten, but she never forgot. You watched her lips part, and her gaze changed to the one she always wore when she was watching your every move. Ever the watchful one.

“There just hasn’t been an opportunity yet.” She replied smoothly.

In that moment, with her lie not much different from yours for Sabrina, you realized something – that for all the distance between you, mother and daughter were never truly separate. Her poison still coursed through your veins, flowing in every pump of your blood. Every one of your thoughts and actions was controlled by her, whether she was in front of you or not.

Just as everything is good in your life, fate always has a way of destroying it. No, you disagreed.

It was my mother.

@strawberrygato @aprosiacperson @chipsbuttercream @arrozyfrijoles23

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[marianadecarlos]

The Birth of Charles II of Spain

Supposed portrait of Charles II as a newborn. Stirling Maxwell Collection (Pollock House, Glasgow), attributed to Martínez del Mazo.

Carlos José, Charles II of Spain, was born on Sunday, November 6, 1661. The news spread quickly throughout the Royal Palace in Madrid, releasing enormous tension barely contained until then. Joy filled all the rooms, as Queen Mariana's pregnancy had come to a happy conclusion. Given the challenges of the previous days and months, this was a significant relief. Just five days earlier, on November 1, 1661, the Feast of All Saints, the crown prince of the monarchy, the beloved and cherished Philip Próspero, had tragically died. His death was a profound loss for Philip IV and his wife, who was in an advanced stage of pregnancy at the time. With the passing of the young prince, the Catholic Monarchy once again faced a lack of direct male heirs, instilling a sense of pessimism and fatalism throughout the Palace and across the cities and kingdoms of the realm. The death of Don Felipe Próspero, who was only four years old, struck the heart of the aged King like a dagger, leading him to believe, with certainty, that God had abandoned him.

Queen Mariana was deeply distressed. She understood her royal husband's feelings well. From her earliest childhood, she had been educated about the reasons for the state and was aware of what dynastic inheritance meant, so she empathized with her husband's dual pain—both providential and political. Additionally, as a mother who had already lost several children, she felt overwhelmed by the painful fate that the Almighty had in store for her, a fate that undoubtedly shaped her harsh and rigid character. The death of Philip Prospero, who was taken from life too soon, was just the latest tragedy in a long series of losses. Indeed, Mariana had endured a profoundly tragic maternal experience.

For all the above reasons, in the days following the death of Philip Prospero, the Queen's pregnancy, which was nearing its end, became a matter of first importance. The future of the Monarchy depended on this event. On Sunday, November 6, everything seemed to be ready. The doctors and physicians were on alert; the Queen's confessor was near her, and the Chief Steward of her Household was carefully reviewing the arrangement of the items in the birth chamber. To guarantee the success of the event, all the holy relics that were in the Palace and others brought from El Escorial and other places had been arranged in order.

There was the staff of Saint Dominic of Silos that the Order of Saint Dominic had brought, the ribbon of Saint John Ortega, from the Order of the Hieronymites; the incorrupt bodies of Saint Isidore and Saint Diego de Alcalá; the image of the Virgin of Solitude and the one so venerated by the royal family, Our Lady of Atocha. It is difficult to find a space so holy and sacred. Everything, then, was ready, the things of the earth arranged in order to implore God's pleasure.

At noon, after a frugal lunch, Philip IV retired to his chambers. At the same time, the Queen felt discomfort and went to her room. The midwife, Doña Inés de Ayala, and the chief physician of the Royal Chamber, Don Andrés Ordóñez, both witnesses of the birth of Doña Mariana in Vienna in 1634, were now assisting her in her sixth birth, the most anticipated of all. Mariana of Austria was then 27 years old. The chronicles say that there was no setback. It was one o'clock in the afternoon on that Sunday, the day of San Leonardo, when, according to the Gazette, “ 

a very handsome prince with large features, a large head, black hair, and somewhat swollen flesh saw the light of this world .” It was, of course, a very favorable comment, but soon rumors to the contrary spread through the gossip columns of the Villa and Court. That birth was received with joy. At three in the afternoon, when the news had already spread to all corners of the Monarchy and Europe, a sober and elegantly dressed Philip IV in black velvet, left his chamber and, “ 

accompanied by the Nuncio, the Grand Masters and the Ambassadors ”, headed towards the Palace Chapel in full courtly etiquette. There, the royal procession, presided over by the monarch, sang a solemn Te Deum, thus beginning the festivities that, in honor of the future Charles II, occupied the entire month of November 1661.

[arataka-reigen]

Winter Anime Review by Yours Truly 🍄🌻

This season I said I would not watch anything besides dunmeshi. As we can all see... that was a fucking lie.

In total I've started 10 anime (can everyone praise me and be proud of me for being a bit more tame than I was in the fall season? At least it wasn't 20 anime this time).

My reviews are something I make just for fun, and they 100% reflect my own personal tastes. I might give a highscore to shows other people would call absolute trash, and that's okay! To each their own~~ That being said, I do try to make it very informative to aid you in choosing what you might want to check out by adding a summary and a few content warnings along with the actual review.

A little preview: this season has some great romance anime with couples that actually do make progress in their relationship, which is kind of rare for anime couples, always on their "will they wont they" thing, so if anything, i would recommend picking up one of the romances this time around. (And dunmeshi. Watch dunmeshi.)

***This review will include exclusively animes that debuted this winter, so no 2nd seasons or continuing shows from the fall season.

So, without further ado, let's get into it under the read more.

Dungeon Meshi

Summary: Seinen, Fantasy, Gourmet, Comedy

A party of adventurers gets stuck fighting a Dragon even though they are starving and in no shape to survive. In a last ditch effort to make it out alive, mage Falin sacrifices herself to save her brother Laios and their party. She sends them back to the surface but gets eaten by the Dragon. Now Laios and co are in a race against time to save Falin before she gets digested. The problem? They don't have any money for food. The solution? DUNGEON MESHI!!! AH, DUNGEON MESHI!! DUNGEON FOOD!! JUST EAT THE GODDAMN MONSTERS 😋

Rating: 10/10

Review: if you've been following me for 2 seconds or less you already know dunmeshi is one of my all time favorite mangas. And the anime absolutely delivers. The animation is great, the voice acting is great both subbed or dubbed (the english dub AND the portuguese dub are worth it). The comedic bits hit so hard, and we're just at the start but you can already see bits and pieces of a larger and more dramatic story unfolding.

World building is insane. Character design is insane (everyone say thank you Ryoko Kui our goddess).

Not only is the story incredibly well written with no plot holes, the characters are also well fleshed out and three dimensional.

I could sing praises for it for hours, but then it would leave no space for the other shows on this list so I'll stop now.

But if you only have time to watch one anime this season, this one is it.

Content Warning: blood, death, necromancy crimes 🧟‍♀️

7th Timeloop: the Villainess Enjoys a Carefree Life Married to Her Worst Enemy

Summary: Reincarnation, Fantasy, Romance

Rishe is not new to the reincarnation business. This is her 7th time around. After being accused of crimes she didn't commit and having her engagement to the crown prince broken off in her 1st life she went on to discover that life is full of possibilities and adventures. But, after 5 years, she died. Only to find herself back at the moment the crown prince broke off their engagement. With each life she explores new countries and new possibilities, but in every life, after 5 years, she is caught up in the war waged by emperor Arnold Hein, and is killed. In her 6th life she dies directly by Arnold's blade and in a turn of fate she runs into him in her 7th life, catching his attention, and maybe his heart? Can she prevent her death this time around and finally live a peaceful life?

Rating: 10/10

Review: ah, we all knew the otome reincarnation was coming. This shit is my life source. That being said, even if it wasn't, I would still probably really love 7th Time Loop. It's just that good.

Rishe is a great main character, in all her past lives she was on The Grind. From being a merchant, to a doctor, to a maid, to a royal guard. And now she tells herself she just wants to chill, but this girl simply cannot chill. She is playing mind games with Arnold, trying to figure out what he is planning and how to stop the war from breaking out.

Meanwhile, Arnold is head over heels in love and probably so so full of trauma we still don't know yet. We must protect this dude. I'm very excited to find out more and more about him and what exactly led him to start a war against the world.

The animation is gorgeous, I love the way the eyes are drawn like constellations.

The romance is great and developing at a very nice pace, Arnold is very respectful of Rishe's boundaries for their marriage and overall just a really great guy.

CW: blood, death, kidnapping.

Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?!

Summary: Boys Love, Adult Cast, Workplace, Supernatural, Comedy

Office worker Kiyoshi Adachi has gone 30 years of life without ever having his cherry popped. Due to this profound accomplishment, he gains the ability to read minds through physical contact. However, this new skill has only made his life harder and he now hates crowded spaces.

On the way to work, Adachi runs into his colleague Kurosawa, curious about what an outgoing guy like him thinks about, Adachi touches him and finds out that Kurosawa has a crush on someone from their office, looking further he realizes Kurosawa is actually crushing on him.

Rating: 10/10

Review: first of all, if you say "romance + adult cast" you already have my full attention. Add mind reading to the mix to make sure that the main character doesn't have miscommunication problems and i'm at the fucking table eating it up.

This show is incredibly funny, Kurosawa's thoughts about Adachi are always so sweet and/or horny and obsessed, but he is still just a super great guy with great morals and he would never do anything Adachi doesn't want (much to Adachi's surprise because he thought the dude was going to jump him anytime with how badly in love his thoughts are).

Adachi is straight until proven otherwise, and Kurosawa proves otherwise really fast. The pace of their romance is really great, we dont get ten thousand episodes of "will they wont they" and I really appreciate that.

CW: none that i can think of atm. Let me know if you have anything i could add here.

Villainess Level 99: I May Be the Hidden Boss but I'm Not the Demon Lord

Summary: Otome Isekai, Fantasy, School

Yumiella Dolkness is a girl with dark hair and dark magic (characteristics associated with the Demon Lord) and for that she is feared.

When Yumiella was 5 years old she regained memories of her past life in modern Japan, and the game she used to play: Light Magic and the Hero. In it, Yumiella was the secret boss you had to defeat after the Demon Lord. Determined to avoid this fate she applies gamer logic to her life and begins adventuring in dungeons to max her power levels.

Now, 15 year old Yumiella is going to school, where she will meet the true hero of the game. She wants to avoid calling attention and just go through her school years without trouble. But when their power levels are measured in the first day of school, she is measured as a level 99 dark magic user and now even the king and queen have their eyes on her.

Rating: 10/10

Review: you gotta trust me on this one and get through the first ten minutes, I promise it gets so much better after Yumiella is really introduced. They just had to spend a few minutes doing a gag introduction, where you follow the game's hero before you find our beloved villainess. And it was very cool how the opening resemble a dating sim game opening.

Yumiella is great, one of my favorite female leads this season, and that is including frieren and maomao from the fall season animes that are still airing. She is not very aware of all the social cues and has trouble communicating and making friends, but we get to see her inner thoughts and they're always hilarious.

My favorite gag is that dark magic can be used for healing, but the healing process looks fucking grotesque so people would rather not be healed by Yumiella. For some reason that always gets me.

I really fucking hate the 4 hero characters, they're super annoying, but in a "i love to hate them" way, and I love seeing yumiella wipe the floor with their asses without even trying because she is just that overpowered. Most of the anime is just her trying to use just a tiny bit of her power because if she uses her full power people would just straight up die with a simple punch.

CW: blood

Yubisaki to Renren

Summary: ✨️Shoujo✨️, Adult Cast, Romance

(Summary stolen from myanimelist, sorry) Yuki Itose is a hearing-impaired university student whose world has been shrouded with silence since birth. She has lived in the same place her whole life, and rarely interacts with others save for her best friend, Rin Fujishiro. During her commute one day, she meets the silver-haired and multilingual Itsuomi Nagi, a mutual friend of Rin. Unlike most, Itsuomi is unwavering when he learns of Yuki's impairment; this, along with his experiences abroad, fascinates and touches her. After they part, her fondness of him starts to grow. A new world begins to open for both Yuki and Itsuomi as they learn about each other's different lives.

Rating: 10/10

Review: and here we have The Shoujo Of The Season. And it occupies that spot marvelously.

Yuki and Itsuomi are another one of the incredible couples of the winter season. Relationship developing at a very nice pace that isn't too fast and not too slow (like shoujo can be sometimes). Yuki is very inspired by Itsuomi, she wants to see the world and experience new things now that she got a glimpse into his life and realized how big the world is.

I specially love how cool, calm and collected Itsuomi always acts, but how his cousin, Kyouya, lets us know that Itsuomi is really interested in Yuki and just shows it in different ways, like the way his voice gets very affectionate towards her.

The animation!!!!! Wow!!!! So soft!!! So warm!!!! I love it!!!! I'm sure you'll love it too!!!

Sound design is also very good, it's specially interesting during scenes where we cant hear anything because we are on Yuki's point of view. I wish it happened even more often.

I've seen people compare this show with Koe no Katachi but they're very different shows, specially since we get to see most of this one through Yuki's point of view, while Koe no Katachi was not from the POV of the hearing-impaired character and dealt a lot more with issues like bullying and suicide. Yubisaki to Renren is a lot more light-hearted, soft, sweet and overall just a feel good anime.

I am always going to recommend shoujo. Specially when they're as good as this one is. So definitely check this one out.

CW: none that I can think of. Let me know if there is anything I should put here.

The Foolish Angel Dances with the Devil

Summary: Seinen, Romance, Comedy, Supernatural

The angels and the devils are waging a war. Things are not looking so good on the devils' side, so they send Akutsu Masatora on a journey to the human world, to find someone that can aid the demons on their fight.

Akutsu is assigned a seat next to Lily Amane, the cutest girl in class. But when he tries to recruit her to the devil's side he realizes she is not a normal human. Now he must deal with the fact that he is tied to his mortal enemy, an angel, and with the fact that he might be falling in love.

Rating: 10/10

Review: More like,, the foolish devil gets played by the angel.

Akutsu and Lily get into stupid mind games trying to make the other fall in love, all while realizing that "hey, angels/devils arent so bad after all" as they spend more and more time together.

It reminds me just a bit of Kaguya-sama how the main couple wants the other to cave first.

This show is simply hilarious, I was laughing out loud at so many stupid scenes. Some gags do get old a bit fast, but overall it's still going strong and makes up for where it falls short with how badly in love these two already are just a few episodes in.

I'm not sure we'll get a proper confession this season, but it doesnt look like these two will be stuck forever in the "will they wont they" stage like the couple from kaguya-sama.

CW: there is a scene by the end of episode one that is completely played as a joke that has one of the lead characters putting a collar on the other lead and the imagery was a bit disturbing, definitely leaning on non con bdsm themes, it isnt terrible, just felt a bit distasteful to me, but nothing big, i dont think it should deter you from watching this, but watch out for that.

Solo Leveling

Summary: Action, Fantasy

(Synopsis stolen from myanimelist again) Ten years ago, "the Gate" appeared and connected the real world with the realm of magic and monsters. To combat these vile beasts, ordinary people received superhuman powers and became known as "Hunters." Twenty-year-old Sung Jin-Woo is one such Hunter, but he is known as the "World's Weakest," owing to his pathetic power compared to even a measly E-Rank. Still, he hunts monsters tirelessly in low-rank Gates to pay for his mother's medical bills.

However, this miserable lifestyle changes when Jin-Woo—believing himself to be the only one left to die in a mission gone terribly wrong—awakens in a hospital three days later to find a mysterious screen floating in front of him. This "Quest Log" demands that Jin-Woo completes an unrealistic and intense training program, or face an appropriate penalty. Initially reluctant to comply because of the quest's rigor, Jin-Woo soon finds that it may just transform him into one of the world's most fearsome Hunters.

Rating: 8/10

Review: everyday that passes I find myself liking battle shounen less and less. This one is not bad, it is actually quite interesting, it's just not the type of stuff i'm into anymore, I guess.

That being said, if you're in the mood for it, this one if very interesting. Jin woo's life is now completely ruled by this game that allows him to level up, and he is getting a bit fucked in the head by it.

Animation is great, I love when his eyes get all shiny because you know he's gone Beast Mode.

Not a lot of characters introduced so far, but it's still cool to see Jin Woo leveling up on his own. I mean... a show named solo leveling has got to make sure that the solo aspect isnt boring lol.

For some reason tho I still gave it an 8, which is high, so... it's pretty good.

Jin woo is just a bit... generic i guess. Nothing you havent seen before from an isekai male lead.

Also... i miss his haircut from the earlier episodes, his current haircut makes him look even more generic.

CW: blood and gore, body horror, torture, death games. Big and scary god statue that smiles in a fucked up way and kills kills kills.

Drop Box

Animes I either already dropped for a specific reason or will probably drop in the future simply because I wont have time to watch everything I started this season, so among the 10 I started, these are the ones i'm least likely to finish:

Majo do Yajuu

Summary: Seinen, Action, Fantasy

Guideau and Ashaf are an ominous pair, working for a mysterious organization that deals with magic crimes. Guideau is a feral and unhinged girl/genderless beast with a curse she wants to break and Ashaf is her soft spoken and calm companion. They go from town to town looking for witches to defeat and trying to find the witch who cursed Guideau and get their revenge.

Rating: 7/10

Review: I do like this one, I just think that if it comes to it and I dont have time, I wont miss it too much if I never finish it.

The blood and gore are heavy, and that might be the reason why i'm fine dropping it, i'm not that big of a fan of gore.

Other than that tho, I find the two main characters extremely interesting and i want to learn more about them, specially Guideau and her curse and that crazy beast mode she goes on when she manages to put a pause on her curse sometimes.

CW: blood and gore, body horror

Gekai Elise

Summary: Reincarnation/Otome Isekai, Fantasy, Medical, Romance

(Again, stolen from myanimelist) In her first life, the renowned and genius surgeon Dr. Aoi Takamoto was Elise de Clorance, a villainess of noble descent. Elise's selfishness, insolence, and obsessive love for her fiancé—Prince Linden de Romanoff—led to the deaths of her family members and, eventually, herself. Only after being reborn did Elise realize the error of her ways and decide that, instead of ruining lives, she would devote herself to saving them. But a tragic airplane crash robs her of her dreams too soon.

By a miracle, Elise wakes up in her original body before her official engagement to Linden. Recognizing the chance to cherish her loving family and free Linden from an unwanted marriage, Elise wishes to use her advanced medical knowledge to continue down the path of saving lives. In a deal with the emperor, Elise is given only six months to prove that her true place is not on the throne, but rather with the wounded and ailing who desperately need her help.

Rating: 6/10

Review: I'd like to say I dropped this show for personal reasons, not because it is a bad show.

It is definitely not the best otome isekai of the season (7th time loop and Villainess 99 win by a mile), but it is quite good and has an interesting premise. The main couple didn't seem too promising or interesting to me tbh.

The thing that interested me the most was the fact that Elise's original life was as a noblewoman, her second life was as a doctor and then he got a chance to relive her first life and change the mistakes she made.

Unfortunately, I am a med student, and I simply can't watch medical related stuff without nitpicking it to hell and back. Mostly, I try to distance myself from medicine related shows because my life already revolves around it too much, u know. I just need a break from All That when I'm watching my silly little shows, so... i had to drop this one.

Also, the main character was kind of annoying, but that might just be me.

Anyway, check this out if you think it sounds interesting. I might not be the best judge of this one.

CW: plane crash, death, medical procedures, surgery

Gushing Over Magical Girls

Oh boy...

I'm putting the CW before anything else because this one is problematic and I don't want anyone acting like I didn't warn them beforehand.

CW: this is straight up softcore porn and the characters are all middle/highschool aged. The anime revolves around BDSM themes (so many and increasingly worse themes, from simple bondage to pain play, to age play and other stuff), and there is nothing more than that to it, all the character growth is about the characters becoming more and more uninhibited with their sexual preferences. Also extremely dubious consent for all of it.

This is just a hentai disguising as an ecchi. It's fully yuri tho. Small blessings lol.

Summary: Mahou Shoujo, Girls Love, Ecchi, Comedy

I'm tired already so this will be short. Utena is a girl obsessed with magical girls. One day she gets the chance to become a magical girl herself, however, she is fooled and actually becomes a villain. She is made to fight Tres Magia (magical girl group) and ends up realizing she quite enjoys inflicting pain against them.

Review: the animation is good, very clean, the boob physics is not all that bad (what. this is an honest review and the anime is an ecchi. i gotta talk abt the boob physics.)

It is indeed super funny and definitely unhinged.

Plot wise, it is pretty straightforward, girl likes magical girls -> girl finds out she likes to watch magical girls suffering and in pain and moaning (well, not only watch, she does a lot of touching too)

Do I recommend it? No. Am I having fun watching it? Yes, it is pretty funny if you're the type of person who can ignore A Lot of things.

I'll probably favor the other animes tho so this one is very likely to get dropped before the season is through.

Thank you for reading (if you managed to make it this far lol, although this list is definitely smaller than my fall anime list)

If there is any other anime you think I should check out this season leave it in the replies and I might take a look at it and update this review with it!

[wonderfulworldofmichaelford]

Psycho Analysis: Princess Azula

(WARNING! This analysis contains SPOILERS!)

This is one of those characters I should’ve done a long time ago, but just never got around to because I felt it was just way too obvious. I mean, come on, Avatar: The Last Airbender is considered one of the greatest works of western animation. Everyone and their mother has talked about this show at some point, so what could I even add?

Well, as it turns out, the way people talk about Azula is exactly what inspired me to write this! I have never seen a character so completely and critically misunderstood! Hell, this is a character that people like to disregard the core themes of the story to talk about! Discussion of her online made me so genuinely angry that I decided fuck it, it’s Azulain’ time! So here we go, my 200% anger-fueled analysis and review of the mentally-unstable Fire Nation princess who terrorized the Gaang!

Motivation/Goals: Azula has basically made it her life’s mission to be the ultimate tool of the Fire Nation, and specifically her father Fire Lord Ozai. To that end, she does basically whatveer he tells her to do? Kill the Avatar, conquer Ba Sing Se, take out her brother and uncle… So long as what she does has a net benefit for the imperialistic goals of her country, she’s down for it, and doubly so if she thinks it will get her even a little crumb of daddy’s attention.

Performance: Superstar voice actress Grey DeLisle of Literally Every Fucking Cartoon Ever Made fame lends her voice to the crown princess of the Fire Nation, and her smug, condescending delivery really sells Azula as a manipulative schemer who is constantly playing 4D chess to outmaneuver her opponents. I think I might even go so far as to call this one of DeLisle’s finest performances ever, for reasons pertaining to her delivery of lines in certain parts of the story that will be described below.

Final Fate: Azula’s fate is a perfect example of the show’s excellent writing because it robs us of catharsis in an extremely narratively satisfying way.

Throughout the finale, we watch as Azula’s mental health rapidly declines as literally everything in her life spirals out of her control for the first time. This is a girl who has defined herself as always being two steps ahead, always having everything firmly in her grasp, and yet her brother has run off with the heroes, her two best friends “betrayed” her, her father gives her the throne but only because he is crowning himself the Ultra Super Cool King Deluxe, and she is constantly grappling with feeling as if her mother viewed her as a monster while also subconsciously knowing that Ursa did truly love her. Keep in mind, all of this is happening to a teenage girl, so is it any wonder she completely and totally snaps?

Her final Agni Kai with Zuko during the height of Sozin’s Comet is epic, but it’s the conclusion where she is defeated by Katara and left as a sobbing, flailing mess that really knocks Azula’s character arc out of the park and cements her as the ultimate antithesis of Zuko. He had the guidance of a good, kind father figure, while she was stuck with Fire Hitler; he had a group of friends to love and support him, while she only had companions who put up with her out of fear and turned on her when they finally had enough; he was able to come to terms with his past traumas and grow to be better because of his numerous support systems, while all she had were toxic influences that led to her essentially collapsing under the weight of her internal conflict. She is what Zuko could have been if no one lent him a helping hand… and it is soul-crushingly tragic. The last we see her, she is a broken mess of a person, someone who has literally lost everything in their life, had the sole purpose of their existence stripped from them, and has just been reminded that she lost because she is a lonely, miserable, pathetic individual without any friends.

After her being on top for almost the entire show, this should feel like a triumph! But it’s not. It’s sad. It’s tragic. There’s no joy to be found. And boy oh boy, is it fucking powerful.

I’m just going to ignore what happens to her in the comics. It’s better that way.

Evilness: So here’s where things get really interesting, because while Azula does some truly evil things throughout the show, there is a tendency to exaggerate just how awful she is because most of her evil actions are just things she says she wants to do/has done. Combined with her smug, arrogant demeanor and it’s easy to believe she would do these things, but we don’t actually witness them. To wit, while she taunts Sokka about torturing Suki to the breaking point, when he finally reunites with her she sure doesn’t seem as cripplingly broken as Azula implied. I think it’s important to note that, as Azula is a massive liar, if we don’t actually see her do something (even something she’s threatening to do), it’s not really a mark against her. She’s a cunning manipulator, after all, conquering an entire city without lifting a finger.

On that note, though, she does have plenty of wicked moments under her belt. She conquered Ba Sing Se for the Fire Nation, she constantly tried to kill Aang and her brother while they were on the run in the Earth Kingdom, she had her friends locked up for defying her… Like she’s one messed up daddy’s girl. Even taking into account the inherent tragedy of her character and the fact she’s a teenage girl, she still kind of steps up to crossing the moral event horizon. She’s very much the product of grooming in an environment meant to espouse the joys of fascism and imperialism, and since she never had a strong guide like Iroh her moral compass is busted.

With all that being said, I think she’s a solid 5/10. She does some really nasty things, but at the same time a lot of what colors the perception of her is stuff she only implies. Also I’m not considering any of her pre-breakdown fights with Zuko as truly evil; this is just how siblings are. You bet your ass sibling squabbles would look just like that if they could shoot fireballs from their hands.

Best Episode: For all her badass moments, awesome schemes, incredible fights, and powerful moments… “The Beach” might be her best episode. This might sound crazy, but I stand by it; I think showing us an awkward, human side of her really helps to sell that Azula isn’t actually some unstoppable force. She’s just a teenager who has no social skills and can’t exist outside of the confines of being a royal or a warrior without looking like an absolute weirdo.

Best Quote: After outmaneuvering season 2’s arc villain Long Feng, who concedes to he rand says she’s beaten him at his own game, she flippantly replies, “Don't flatter yourself. You were never even a player.” I don’t think even Jet got so brutally murdered. It’s the sickest burn in the series aside from Zuko’s scar.

Final Thoughts & Score: The whole reason I even wrote this Psycho Analysis is because the constant and critical misunderstandings of Azula I see online constantly piss me the fuck off.

There is a subset of Avatar fans who completely and steadfastly believe that Azula is in fact an irredeemable monster, a complete sociopath with no redeeming qualities who needs to suffer and die. They reject any attempts at assessing the character in a more nuanced light, because “why can’t villains just be evil?” They treat her as if she’s some sort of pure evil being instead of an emotionally stunted child.“She’s crazy and she needs to go down” might as well be the mantra of these media illeterate Avatar fans, parroting opinions that mirror the words of Iroh after Azula almost killed him but ignoring that crucial context as well as Iroh’s entire character. Like, do these people actually pay attention to the core themes of the entire show? You know, mercy, redemption, humanity, the importance of all life? Did they miss the part of the finale where these core themes were cemented by Aang removing Ozai’s firebending with energybending, or were they too busy bitching about it being a deus ex machina to realize it’s thematically appropriate?

Like they want Azula to just be this evil, unredeemable cartoonish villain in a show that explicitly says no one is like this. There’s even a point in the final episodes where it’s pointed out that genocidal colonizer tyrant Ozai was once a sweet, cute little baby, and didn’t just spring forth as a fully formed Red-Hot Hitler. Azula is a person groomed by an unrepentantly evil father to be the Fire Nation ubermensch, the ideal tool for the conquest of the rest of the world. She was never allowed to have a normal childhood, as evident by her awkward behavior and social ineptitude when she’s actually allowed to cut loose and be around people her own age in a relaxed setting. Everything that she is—a liar, a manipulator, an attempted murderer, an egomaniac—are all the result of Ozai’s upbringing, being entrenched in the propaganda of her nation, and a lack of authority figures with a moral compass in her life. She didn’t have an Iroh to guide her, all she had was Ozai. In this sense, Azula is as much a victim as she is a victimizer.

But she is a victimizer. She is still consciously making bad decisions, she is still doing evil and sometimes appearing to enjoy it. There’s no reason to believe she couldn’t turn things around if given a helping hand like her brother was (though there would need to be a lot more effort due to her being in Ozai’s company unimpeded for way longer than Zuko), but she’s not some innocent little bean who’s being persecuted by others. Azula is still a villain, and viewing her as just a mere victim is a disservice to the character just as much as painting her as an inhuman monster. She is a very nuanced character, but she never gets the sort of POV work Zuko does to fully flesh out what’s on her mind and let us see the world through her eyes so the work done for her is more subtle, at least until her final breakdown. At that point, the show is literally beating you over the head with the fact she is an incredibly tragic character whose entire existence is pitiful and broken, and who lives as a mirror to Zuko, showing him a dark path he could have walked down if he didn’t receive love, support, and compassion.

Ultimately, Iroh wasn’t wrong when he said “She’s crazy and she needs to go down,” but I take it with emphasis on and. Azula is, in fact, crazy. She is incredibly mentally disturbed, her mind warped and molded by her father to the point she breaks if she starts to lose control even a tiny bit. And, as an antagonistic force working against the heroes, she does indeed need to go down. I’m sure he wasn’t too happy with his near-death experience, but you will not convince me that the sweet old Iroh, who himself changed and redeemed himself after being a fucking war criminal who nearly conquered Ba Sing Se, could not see the nuance in the Azula situation and genuinely saw his niece as some beast to be slaughtered.

But that’s enough with the ranting, let’s get to the actual final thoughts and score for Azula. She is one of the most engaging and magnificent villains in animation, a real firebrand (heh) whose numerous schemes are gripping to watch, building her up as someone you want to see finally get defeated only for the writers to pull the rug out from under you and remind you just what Azula really is. Avatar had no shortage of brilliant and subversive writing, but I think Azula’s ultimate arc is an unsung masterpiece among it. The character is so mired in discourse these days it’s easy to forget it, but she genuinely is a grand character.

For her score, I’m gonna say she gets a 9/10. She’s easily the best villain on the show, far outshining her rather generic father, the deliciously hammy but ultimately rather shallow Zhao, and the scheming but relatively minor Long Feng (to say nothing of the numerous minor villains that range in quality from wastes of time like Combustion Man to genuinely amazing and horrifying like Hama). I think the only thing holding her back from a perfect score is that sometimes it feels like things fall into place a little too perfectly for her, and she doesn’t face setbacks too much until the very end, but considering the immensely powerful culmination it’s nothing that ruins her. Azula is a character just as rich and deep as anyone else from the show, and I really wish more people looked at her with nuance.

I also wish the fucking comics didn’t exist. Maybe I’m asking for too much.

[reviewsthatburn]

*I received a free review copy in exchange for an honest review of this book. 

THE INNOCENT SLEEP, best read after SLEEP NO MORE, is Tybalt’s perspective on the time after Titania’s actions at the end of BE THE SERPENT. Because Tybalt has a radically different perspective than October (even more so than usual), trying to read this book first would spoil some mysteries out of turn. By necessity, as the books are a pair covering much of the time and even a few of the same scenes, some of the resolution is present in both. I love them singly and together, and am working on a long, spoiler-filled essay analyzing some of the key elements in both books.

Full Review at Link

[gunterfan1992]

Episode Review: “The Star”/“Jerry”

(Fionna & Cake, Eps. 7–8)

Airdate: September 22, 2023

Story by: Anthony Burch, Adam Muto, Hanna K. Nyström, Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang

Storyboarded by: Iggy Craig, Graham Falk, Jacob Winkler, & Sonja von Marensdorff

Directed by: Ryann Shannon (supervising), Hans Tseng (art)

It is hard to believe that we are already privy to the penultimate episodes of the Fionna & Cake miniseries. So far, this series has been hit after hit. So do "The Star" and "Jerry" live up to what has come before them? Read on for more...

The plot to "The Star" is deceptively simple: Fionna, Cake, and Simon are transported into a universe where Simon was killed by vampires, which led to Marceline being abducted the ice crown-wielding Vampire King (once again played by the wonderfully sonorous Billy Brown) and turned into his protege, known as "The Star." While the world has been almost entirely overrun by vampires, a Mad Max-esque version of Princess Bubblegum is still putting up a hell of a fight (Mad Max Bubblegum is aided in this task by Peppermint Butler-as-a-Tank, a human[?] version of Huntress Wizard, and a non-psychopathic version of Martin). Cake's shapeshifting impresses Mad Max Bubblegum, and so she decides to enlist Fionna, Cake, and Simon's help in defeating the Vampire King and his evil 'daughter.' Alas, as goes the best-laid plans of mice and men... The episode ends on a purposeful anti-climax: Fionna, recognizing that all is effectively lost, forcibly teleports herself, Cake, and Simon away from Vampire World while Mad Max Bubblegum and The Star struggle in the sky, with neither wanting to land a killing blow. The fate of Vampire World is thus left unresolved.

As a major fan of Stakes, I was delighted to be transported back into the world of vampires in "The Star." And this time, the show does a very solid job showing just how powerful and scary these monsters actually are (despite their Kermit the Frog-meets-Nosferatu appearance). And let us not forget Evil Marceline (oh, where to start)! I quite like that Ooo's Marceline is a heroic anti-anti-Christ, but even I found the titular antagonist of "The Star" to be a terrifying delight. It has been a good long while since Marceline has rightly pranked someone, and while I don't know if killing people or sucking souls count as pranks, it was nonetheless wonderful to see her ornery side return—only this time, turned up to 11. You can tell that Olivia Olson had a lot of fun recording her lines for this episode; her performance is energetic, her tone mocking. When I heard The Star taunt Mad Max Bubblegum and Co., it took me back to when I first heard Olson's voice acting in "Evicted!"

It was a clever move having The Star and Mad Max Bubblegum be sworn enemies, as it allowed the series to explore their dynamic as a couple without focusing on their past or present relationship. In the Vampire World, we learn that the two have never been in a relationship together. But despite this, still found themselves pulled toward one another in an almost preternatural way. Who knows… Just as the souls of Finn and Jake seem to be destined to always find one another, perhaps Marceline and Bubblegum are "soul mates" in a similarly metaphysical sense? Regardless, the hesitancy to kill one another that both characters show at the end of the episode speaks volumes as to how they feel about one another, even in a universe where they are sworn enemies. (Man, I really hope we get a Bubbline spin-off one of these days…)

Ah, I feel like I could talk about the Star for days, but there is more to consider, so let me move on to…

Airdate: September 22, 2023

Story by: Anthony Burch, Adam Muto, Hanna K. Nyström, Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang

Storyboarded by: Hanna K. Nyström, Anna Syvertsson, Jim Campbell, & Jackie Files

Directed by: Steve Wolfhard (supervising), Hans Tseng (art)

"Jerry" begins with Fionna, Cake, and Simon finding themselves in a dead and desolate world—humorously dubbed "Crapworld" by Cake—that we later learn was created by the Lich's wish in the season five premiere "Finn the Human." (As a mythological aside, when the Lich made his initial wish, it seems that Prismo did not simply wipe out all life in the Oooniverse; instead, he effectively created a copy of the Oooniverse within the Oooniverse. After killing off all life in this bubble dimension, Prismo then transported the Lich to his new wish-altered reality. Really, it is turtles all the way down…) While searching for the Crapworld ice crown, Simon tries to cheer up an increasingly despondent Fionna by telling him the story of how he and Betty met.

Eventually, our heroes run into Crapworld BMO, who upon learning that Prismo's remote is out of juice, attempts to recharge it with his robot heart. This does not go as planned (it actually results in Crapworld BMO spectacularly exploding, which is somehow both horrifying and funny), and Simon, Fionna, and Cake decide to track down Crapworld BMO's oft-mentioned friend "Jerry" and tell him that BMO has passed. Upon finding Jerry, however, the trio discover that he is actually the Lich… albeit a depressed Lich; it seems that after fulfilling his mission of ending all life, the Lich lost a sense of purpose. (I've been there, dude...) Simon sees this as an opportunity, and using the Crapworld ice crown and the Lich himself as a conduits, he manages to summon GOLB just as Scarab materializes to deliver divine punishment.

To be continued!

"Jerry" is a decidedly bleak episode that more than anything radiates the creative sensibilities of its supervising director, Steve Wolfhard. For those out of loop, Wolfhard was a storyboard artist on the original Adventure Time series, and he helped write some of the show's strongest outings (e.g., "Puhoy," "Lemonhope," "Escape from the Citadel," "Graybles 1000+"). Wolfhard has a unique approach to writing, often using humor/cuteness to paste over more existential horrors, and while he did not storyboard "Jerry," the episode nevertheless feels like the apogee of his "voice," brimming as it does with a darkness that is only lightly covered with a veneer of humor. Indeed, many of the episode's funniest moments (e.g., the scene in which BMO cheerfully, stupidly kills itself, the reveal that the Lich has depression) cannot be described as anything other than gallows humor. Wolfhard often joked in interviews that many of the episodes he pitched involved main characters dying. With "Jerry," he finally got his chance.

Ultimately, what prevents "Jerry" from becoming a bummer-fest is the way the episode is interspersed with flashbacks that tell the story of how Simon and Betty fell in love. Despite their being the emotional heart of the episode, I do not have much to say about these scenes other than they are sweet. They largely expand upon details that we already knew, but in doing so, they enliven those details, infusing them with a sense of affect that exposition or background detailing could never convey. There's a couple easter eggs thrown in for die-hard fans (e.g., several relics from the main series are name-dropped, we see when a photograph of Simon from "I Remember You" was taken), and its all tied-up nicely with a new HALF SHY song, "Everything in You." All in all, these scenes are the sweet, sweet eye bleach we need, given the tone of the episode's other half.

My biggest gripe with these episodes is that they both lean too far into Fionna's failures while somehow not leaning in far enough. The former issue is most noticeable in "The Star," the beginning of which sees Fionna follow up her candy genocide by making a series of increasingly bone-headed decisions, one of which leads to the direct death of a character (although, Mad Max Bubblegum was also quite bone-headed for letting Random New Girl put everyone in danger immediately after introducing them to her few crew members). Put simply, I feel the episode excessively plays up Fionna as a gullible girlfail, which seems a bit much. Paradoxically, in "Jerry," the show did not have Fionna properly, fully, believably consider the ramifications of the mistakes she had made; instead, the episode focuses much of its emotional energy on the story of Simon and Betty's relationship. Yes, Fionna does have a realistic breakdown in the middle of the episode, but almost immediately, the show decides to have Simon distract her with more of his own love story. None of this sinks the episodes, but it does make them less than perfect.

For some, the episodes' bleakness might also be a defect: indeed in both "The Star" and "Jerry," lots of characters die, and the fridge horror is off the charts. But while I have criticized the show for such cruelty in the past (e.g., my review of "Wizard City"), the bleakness in these episodes is not meaningless. Instead, it arguably serves to underscore that without Simon Petrikov existing and doing all that he has in the Ooo Prime universe, the world (any world) quickly goes to hell. (This is perhaps most noticeable in "The Star," given that the big twist of that universe is that Simon was killed by vampires, presumably before he placed the ice crown on his head, thus resulting in Marceline's capture and indoctrination by the Vampire King.) Even in his crazed "Ice King" state, Simon is something like a cosmic lynchpin holding together reality! Considering how much Simon/the Ice King is a woobie in the original series, it is nice to see Fionna & Cake accentuate just how important he actually is.

Final “The Star” Grade: A-

Final “Jerry” Grade: A-

[la-libreria-chula]

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💮 🍃april reads 🍃💮 I think this is the most I've read so far? And then two 5 star reads?! It was a good reading month honestly. Even if there were some with low ratings, I mostly read books that I own or had in my bookshelves for a while.

Let me say though, that for "The Scepter" and "The Sword" by J. Bree were a disappointment just because I wanted to know more information about Rooke and the rest of the characters we see in "The Crown of Oaths and Curses". I just felt like everything was repeated in the novel. But the novel was great. I truly enjoyed it and can't wait for the second one, which I am waiting for the physical format.

"Hotel Iris" by Yoko Ogawa was also a little disheartening, but it was also a little crazy to me. I honestly was a little surprised about what was happening, and just wanted to see how it ended. The reason I picked this one up is because I read her other book called "Memory Police", and that was so good! This book was definitely out of pocket to me.

"Vampires of El Norte" by Isabel Cañas was amazing to me. I love ghoulish vampires instead of the pretty kind (not that I wouldn't have minded). And I loved reading from both the mcs' point of view and I felt for them in their family situation. Nena did get in my nerves sometimes but she was fine in the end. And I did enjoy how Cañas mixed in historical aspects to the story. Which seemed similar to "Curandera Mecanina : The parliment of owls" (in Spanish, there is also an English version), a comic book set in a cyber punk-ish Mexico. The artwork was unique, and I loved the use of red and green.

"That Time I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf" by Kimberly Lemming was a fun read, I didn't really take it too serious. And the cover is so beautiful. It's the second book of the Mead Mishaps series. I didn't even read the first book, I just saw "werewolf" and I had to get it. My lovely friend gifted me the third book tho, so I'll be reading that next.

"Sunbringer" by Hanna Kaner is continuation of "Godkiller". Elo, Ina and her little god, go back to Kissen's home. It was a little all over the place in that Elo and Ina were grieving and had to figure out what to do next now that they knew their King Arron ended up sucking ass in the last book. While I am happy that we got the trio back together, I am scared how this story is going to end.

And lastly, "The Spider" by Leo Carew, second book following "The Wolf". Roper decides to get rid of the Sutherners once and for all, believing that they will not stop fighting each other even after their victory. So he gathers all his legions up, and makes allies with another group to bring down the Sutherners. Though I thought this was a big thing for Roper to do, especially because he's still new to the role of Black Lord, I could understand his reasoning for this. Upset that my favorite character died, but gonna move on from that..

[ingek73]

‘In the manner of a Hallmark movie, Diana is marked for death at every turn – you know, just in case you are unaware of the fate of the most famous woman in the world and have forgotten the frenzy of grief that gripped the country thereafter. She is, in The Crown’s telling of it, a virtual saint: see her talk about landmines! See her play normal middle-class games with her beloved boys! See her fall in love with sweet Dodi Fayed! See her furrowed brow as she takes the sensible advice of her therapist on board and pledges to start a new life as soon as she gets home from Paris and away from these villainous paparazzi who are following her into this tunnel! And thus the postmortem convulsions of an entire country are presented as no more than her due. By the time she has called William and Harry, the point has been so laboured that this is the last communication they will have with their mother that there might as well be a news ticker along the bottom of the screen screaming in capitals “TUNNEL COMING! SHE GONNA DIE SO BAD!”

And yet the worst is still to come: after her death, Ghost Diana appears to Prince Charles and then to the Queen as a kind of ministering angel, illuminating for them the way and the light and the best way of tending to the mood of the people, to whose every individual heart she has always had a direct hotline. She thanks Charles “for being so raw, broken and handsome” in the hospital when he saw her body. “I’ll take that with me,” she adds. My notes at this point are indecipherable, which is just as well, as I suspect what they say would be unprintable. By the time Ghost Diana takes the Queen’s hand and gently whispers “You’ve always shown us what it meant to be British. Maybe it’s time to learn, too”, and prompts her to cave in to the headline’s demand to “Show us you care, Ma’am”, I am having quite the out-of-body experience myself.

-

[khaire-traveler]

Tbh I mostly sent that ask bc I'm listening to someone review an ARC of Crown of Starlight which is supposed to be a retelling of how Ariadne and Dionysus met, but sci-fi and its just so many things pissing me off.

Like the Moirai are a cult????? Who are obsessed with like, purity culture????? Like the Christian kind???

And the author boasts that she's writing the first ever androgynous Dionysus when DIONYSUS HIMSELF IS ANDROGYNOUS AND ALWAYS HAS BEEN!! HE HAS AN EPITHET LITERALLY FOR HOW ANDROGYNOUS HE IS!!! HIS MYTHS FUCK WITH GENDER A LOT!! YOU DIDN'T INVENT SHIT!!!!

Ariadne is just a "I'm not like other girls" trope in such a stereotypical way and I HATTTTTEEE it. Like you can gave a girl not fit in and have it be interesting and not simultaneously shit on other women its not that hard. Like in Circe she showed interest in what Daedalus was doing and was curious about his inventions, and it made her more of her own character and also set her apart from the other women in her family. Not saying its the most perfect example but it's better than making her a fucking Pick Me girl who's pretending to not be a Pick Me.

Sorry just omg I could go on, I'm so glad this book will never be published.

Long rant incoming lol. Be warned.

Listen, I've come to accept that retellings will never be perfect to my standards because I'm a worshipper, and most of these authors are not. I've come to understand that it's ok for pieces to just stand on their own and exist without me interacting with them; I'm not being forced to engage with something I don't actually like. But this? What the hell even is this? There's a difference between creating your own retelling for the sake of artistic liberty with a story that means a lot to you and claiming to have created something that the thousands of years old culture you're basing your story on ALREADY created. See, there is a RIGHT and WRONG way to do retellings. The right way is more of a loose definition at times, but the wrong way sticks out like a sore thumb because it's typically extremely obvious.

This person has an interesting concept that fell right into their lap, then completely disregarded the original culture the story stemmed from. I don't want to ever discourage someone from writing again or trying to create an interesting story, since I understand how personal writing can be, but this is fucking ridiculous, and there is no excuse for being so blatantly incorrect about the source you're pulling your information directly from. "I'm the first writer to make Dionysus androgynous!" Read a book about Dionysus that isn't a retelling, and get back to me on that, jackass, because he's actually always been that way, and it's shitty of you to spread misinformation for the sake of boasting about your book.

People representing the gods negatively is no surprise to me, especially the Moirai - many authors seem to have a complex relationship with fate itself, in that way - but I really feel like they're being limited in a cult. It sounds so humanizingly plain, and I wouldn't enjoy that artistic liberty, personally, since to me, fate is inherently inhuman; I think it exists outside the bounds of human comprehension. It feels kind of boring and unnecessary to make them into a cult. There's so many other things you could do with them: make them into indifferent Eldritch horror space beings, depict them as strange yet slightly sinister sisters who live in the middle of nowhere and seem to have something just a little unsettling about them, or, hell, even depict them as animals who show up throughout the book as motifs of fate. Like, come on, a cult? I don't know; I guess it's just not for me. And making Ariadne a Pick Me? Ariadne? Really? There's so many things wrong with that interpretation of her, especially the fact that in the original myth, she was abandoned by Theseus on an island, essentially left to die, and was found by Dionysus who fell in love with her. It's not as if she was going out of her way to get picked up by him or something; she just happened to be there when he ran into her, from my understanding. She has gone through this incredibly traumatic experience and still persevered, and all this author can think of is "Lol she's such a Pick Me." Like???? Why???? Why do you think this???? You befuddle me. I am bemused. This reminds me of how people make Patroclus into a cute little UwU man who can't live without Achilles and can't really do much to defend himself, even though, in The Iliad, it took two soldiers and a GOD to finally kill him because he was so fierce in battle. I feel like a chihuahua barking at a wall about this, though, so I'll move on.

I'm not sure what book this is, but as a worshipper, and even just a fan of history, it's so frustrating to hear about. Like, if someone wrote a genuinely interesting book about this with the sci-fi elements, I'd find it extremely interesting, even if the gods weren't always depicted in the best light. Even ancient myths didn't always depict them in the best light, and that's ok, actually. Is it extremely annoying and upsetting when people lean too hard into it? Yes, absolutely. Is it an automatic reason to despise a piece of media? I'd say no because then you're going to miss out on a lot of really cool things that are out there. But there is still a wrong way to go about these representations, and this is one of the biggest ones: blatant misinformation for selfish gain. Another would be demonizing a god without giving them any redeemable qualities, since oftentimes, in myth, they are still rather complex, despite the wild things they do or that happen. It sounds to me like they've done this with the Moirai somewhat, though I don't fully know that.

These are just my thoughts on the matter, but yeah, this is wild. Thank you for taking me on this hectic ride lol. I'm always more than happy to hear about new weird things I've never heard of before, so feel free to share other things if you ever stumbled upon them. Also, I would love to know the name of this book if you remember it. I'm so glad I've never heard of this before, tbh. Take care, Nonny. 🧡

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 5/5

Book Blurb:

A grown up Little Red Riding Hood meets werewolves and witches in a stand alone, adult fantasy romance. To enter the woods as a human means death… But I am no mere human. They call me, “witch." As one of the last surviving witches, Faelyn’s sole duty is to keep the protective barriers on the forests where the lykin roam—creatures who can shed flesh for fur—sparing nearby humans from their violent, beastly natures. When she has an unlikely encounter with the rare, primordial spirit of the moon, Faelyn finds herself not only the object of the Wolf King’s desire, but essential to his ability to keep his crown. Taken to the magical land of Midscape, the Wolf King claims her as his bride to control the moon spirit’s magic that now resides within Faelyn. But Faelyn refuses to resign herself and the spirit Aurora to a life of servitude underneath the king’s cruel rule. Faelyn hatches a dangerous plan for them both to escape and help comes from an unlikely ally. Evander is the king’s blisteringly handsome, loyal knight, right hand, and Faelyn’s sworn protector…on the outside. But appearances are not what they seem. He plots against the king’s brutality at every turn and helping Faelyn escape will serve these ends. But altruism for Faelyn and the trapped moon spirit isn’t his only motivation… Evander is hiding secrets, and they might change Faelyn’s life forever. A desperate plot to escape. A brutal king. Ancient powers. And a sworn protector who can’t keep his hands off her… Will she be taken as the Wolf King’s bride? Or will she manage an escape that will free her heart and change her fate forever? A Dawn with the Wolf Knight is a complete, *stand alone novel*. For readers who love romantasy novels with second-chance/long-lost love, life-changing female friendships, deep lore, forbidden romance, slow-burn, and a happily ever after.About the Married to Magic Novels: Each Married to Magic novel is a stand alone, fantasy romance about a young woman being taken to the world of Midscape and falling in love with a magical man. These novels can be read in any order and have no overarching plot or characters.

Review:

A witch who wants to do what is right finds herself stuck in a complicated mess while trying to save the moon spirit... while dealing with a Wolf King who is determined to control her and take her for his new bride yet her forbidden attraction to the noble knight who is meant to guard her is getting harder to resist. Faelyn is one of the last weaver witches and after the last of her family passes awat she spends her days after collecting herbs and spending time with the spirits that reside in her home. Yet when she saves a strange girl in the woods who turns out to be a moon spirit running away from an evil wolf king hellbent on enslaving her, Faelyn feels duty bound to save her.... only the king has sent his knights to capture her and now Faelyn has been captured as well since the moon spirit has given her half her power. Evander is the noble and “loyal” knight of the wolf king, bound to him and his sole duty is to protect the moon spirit. Evander might seem loyal but his loyalties lie somewhere else and his motives are hard to tell yet one thing is certain, he hates the wolf king. The wolf king is determined to obtain the moon spirits power and if forcing Faelyn to marry him and control her then he'll do it whether she wants it or not.

Trust is earned, power is fought for, and a romance that even the fates can't break. A fantastic story with touches of Little Red Riding Hood and a bit of Howls Moving Castle. I absolutely adored this addition to the series. Faelyn and Evander’s romance was so well done and the way they were fated to be together and kept coming back for one another was just so well written. I also loved the magic and the friendships in this book so much. Faelyn is such a sweet character and Evander was the perfect love interest for her. If you love forbidden knight romances and fated romances, this is for YOU. I've been such a huge fan of this series and I can't wait for more from this world!

Release Date: August 1,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Elise Kova for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[darkpoisonouslove]

Could you tell us about the witch and witch hunter fic!

Well, like many other of my ideas, it started when I watched a review for a book that executed the witch x witch hunter premise (I think) badly. So naturally, I went "I can do it better!" only to take the very basic premise and run with it.

The idea is that Valtor was "raised" (read: held captive (just like Rapunzel)) by a witch (Belladonna) until he killed her and completed a ritual that transferred her ability to do magic to him. However, he wouldn't be classified as a witch but as a demon instead due to the specifics of the ritual. He became a witch hunter because he wanted to get rid of the other members of Belladonna's coven. However, looking into it, it turned out to be a huge, international organization that is constantly recruiting new members by making use of the current political climate.

Because of the Coven, all witches are perceived as a threat so witch hunting is completely out of control. The Coven only pours oil into the fire to force more and more witches to seek the protection that only they can grant and thus expand and become even more powerful. There are few independent witches that haven't joined them yet and they're all in hiding to avoid being executed.

Because of the reach and scope of the Coven, Valtor figured he cannot destroy them alone. He will need more resources so he decided to join the most openly witchphobic kingdom, which would be Eraklyon. He cannot stand Erendor but sacrifices have to be made for the sake of hia goal. He's pretending that his magic isn't dark and due to his efficiency, Samara is pretending to buy that even though some people in court are openly suspicious of him. However, despite his effectiveness, the Coven remains ever elusive.

Enter Griffin, who was on track to steal something important from Eraklyon (I haven't figured out all the details yet). She would have handled any other witch hunter but the uniqueness of Valtor's abilities proves to be too much for her and she gets captured. She gets offered a deal, however. The Crown has designed a new plan for infiltrating the Coven. Instead of getting burned at the stake, Griffin can choose to marry Valtor in order to act as his cover when they attempt to join the Coven's ranks. After all, a witch hunter would never marry a witch.

Griffin accepts, not so much for herself as much as because of her mother who's afflicted with a magical disease and needs intervention from Griffin's magic to continue living. That is a secret, however, that Griffin is trying to keep. She does marry Valtor and the two of them travel to Andros where they are supposed to get help from Crown Princess Layla and her own inside man that has already joined the Coven - Riven. The Coven is full of young magic users and is led by the Trix (who may or may not be possessed by the Ancestral Witches or are their reincarnations - I haven't decided yet).

I haven't figured out the rest yet but the Coven has plans for Domino's Dragon Fire (which incidentally, Valtor's power is identical to because the ritual he used to gain magic powers allowed him to pick any kind of power he wanted and he chose the one Belladonna was after - to spite her). Griffin and Valtor are, of course, going to fall in love over the course of their mission and uncover each other's secrets to leave them at a precarious position once the mission is over since it's unclear what Griffin's fate will be. No one promised her freedom after the end of the assignment. In fact, their most efficient witch hunter will be more useful without being married to a witch.

... I had kind of given up on this idea because I was having structural problems with it but... I think I just solved those while answering your question. Thanks for being interested in this premise, anon! You might have just helped me revitalize it! 🫶

Ask me about my WiPs

[gamerdog1]

Haikyuu: The Dumpster Battle Review

I am not a sports guy, never really was. I played baseball a bit as a kid, hardly keep up with major league sports, and couldn't really care less about who won the Stanley Cup. Maybe its the ridiculous amount of fanfare athletes get, or how male-dominated popular sports are, but I've never really been into sports.

Yet, I really like sports anime. Like anybody on the internet in 2015, I heard about Haikyuu, and got into it pretty quickly. Though I wasn't as obsessed with it as I was with shows like Naruto or Hetalia, I watched up to season 2, and fairly enjoyed it.

Smash-cut to this month, when a Haikyuu movie comes out, and is only out for a limited time. I think "Hey, it might be cool to go, but I'm not caught up with the anime...". But after getting assigned to make a tiktok covering an event for a journalism course, I knew that the stars aligned. It was fate: I had to see this movie, and cover it for marks.

And so, after struggling to film a 'stand-up' in front of the theater for 20 minutes, waiting in the lounge for an hour, and eventually getting to sit down and see the thing, I can say that Haikyuu: The Dumpster Battle was both an absolute delight to behold, and a bit of a disappointment.

The Dumpster Battle takes place directly after the last episode of the fourth season, and shows Karasuno's explosive match against their long-time rivals, Nekoma, and the Spring Nationals tournament. After coming this far, both teams are desperate for a win, and pull out all the stops just for any type of advantage.

Just like in the TV anime, the match is stretched out over the course of an hour and a bit, building tension slowly as points are won, strategies are formed, and flashbacks are shown. Without commercial breaks in between, what would normally be a few episodes comes together to form a cohesive whole that had me wondering what would happen next more than how much longer it would be.

Its also quite impressive how much content they've managed to squeeze into this 85 minute movie. It somehow compresses and stretches time, to make parts of the match more exciting while skipping over ones that aren't. All the while, it shows clips of characters' backstories, artistic moments for dramatic effect, and flashes back to key moments in the anime to make a point, while keeping within the runtime of just under an hour and a half, is absolutely mystifying. Its a testament to how good the writing of the source material is (since this is a direct adaptation), but also to the power of editing in film.

Though, that still doesn't hide the most glaring issue I have with this film: that it is pretty clearly multiple episodes stitched together. At least, it sure feels like it. Coming from a 5 day marathon of the third and fourth season, I've grown used to how the anime structures its episodes, and how its animation looks. Here, I could almost imagine the little bumpers playing at certain moments, or where it would cut to credits before the next episode. It doesn't really feel like its own piece, more like a few smaller ones put together without any openings or endings.

On top of that, the animation quality is on par with the TV anime, which is a bit disappointing. Usually, when a TV show gets a movie, the budget is upped, and you can see it in how the animation changed. Shading gets more complex, characters look more detailed, and there are sequences which would be too expensive to do on a tv budget. Here, I didn't really see much of a change. Its pretty surreal, watching something on the big screen that looks pretty similar to what you just watched on your computer at home.

Still, for the level of animation that's here, and the level that's usually in the anime, I can't complain much. Production IG really are the kings of sports anime, and this movie is just another jewel for their crown. The way they animate humans in motion is captivating, and I can't help but watch every set, spike, and block. Its quite realistic, and when they try to experiment more (like squashing and stretching limbs to make movements appear more snappy) it only enhances the beauty of the motion as a whole.

The characters, as well, look good here, but especially the Nekoma guys, who haven't been shown much in focus for a while in the anime. Kenma, of course, is a standout, with how varied his expressions are (ironic, for someone who is so detached and quiet!). I loved getting to see him react to stuff, just as much as the Karasuno guys, with every success or failure. Wacky expressions, snappy comedy, and quick one-liners got more than a few laughs out of me, and in my theater, I certainly wasn't alone.

I saw this in English, because I watch the English dub of the anime, and didn't want to get confused. I highly recommend this, as the voice actors did a fantastic job, going above and beyond in their respective roles. Hinata and Kageyama were and always are a joy, with their actors sounding exactly how you'd imagine from their faces alone. But (again), Kenma was a surprise stand-out, for how varied his actor's performance was. I haven't heard a voice actor yell like that since the first season of Attack on Titan, and for a character who is known for not being enthusiastic much, you can tell his actor was giving it his all in the booth.

But above all else, the main thing that got me invested in this is how it continued the story. Seeing the boys again, this time on the big screen, was an absolute joy, and knowing that whoever lost the match would be going home kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. I, as well as everyone else in the audience, had grown with these characters, and watched them grow in turn, seeing them learn new skills, face challenges, and get stronger. This movie felt like the culmination of everything up to this point, and there was a palpable sense of anticipation in the air that is hard to describe. For what its worth, you couldn't have paid me to not see this movie.

I don't watch sports. But for a movie continuing an epic underdog saga, with epic highs and lows, realistic character animation, over two dozen distinct and memorable characters that have their own mini-arcs, and a stellar English dub, I'll be there in the crowd, eager to watch.

(Also shout-outs to that first-person scene with Kenma. Holy fuck... I couldn't fit it in anywhere, but know that it is ICONIC, and will forever be badass.)

[chuluoyi]

Hey Chu! I hope you are well. Now hang on tight because I have so much to say about The Crown of Diamonds ! I know I am super late, but I was just so busy, and I wanted to have my full attention while writing this. SO, let's go one by one. My emotions went on a high drive reading this. Literally.

as he watched the pagoda, he built for you engulfed in flames. You were there. | I was so excited when I saw you post it and then when I read this particular line, my heart just stopped. That whole part before the past events...that is so beautifully written. The devastation in Satoru's words, the way you have described it, my heart kept on sinking.

Satoru's reaction to finding out that the empress is pregnant nearly had me in tears. That was so wholesome.

And then you delivered a masterpiece so exquisitely written that it set my heart racing and left me breathless…All the while I couldn't believe, she was sitting on his face how sexy that was. Chu, If I am being honest, that was sooo intense, given the situation, but it didn't feel forced or rough or "just for the story", you know what I mean. It felt right. Despite whatever was going on in empress's head, they were so passionate. And I loved that. You are so much better than you think you are, Chu.

Am I... a mess? Yeah... My beautiful mess, that is. | That is so sweet and even if I am wrong, this parallel with Polin from Bridgerton S3. 😭 And when he said A princess will be nice... she'll turn out to be as lovely as you. | I fell in love with him all over again. Knowing that it wasn't about having an heir, but simply a child that was part of both him and her, was something the empress didn't know she needed.

Now, I am sorry if this is insensitive but...Naoya learning he was shooting duds was the funniest twist of fate. I knew it. And the realisation that he has thrown away the only good thing he had in his life was so important. And about his dream or him still having the portrait of the empress and him, I don't think it's out of love, I just feel that he genuinely regrets everything he had done to her because they were once childhood sweethearts. Ofc, he cared for her, but that man is dumb, nothing can be done. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Hanabi! Just when I thought I could feel sorry for her…oh that conniving, deceitful hag. How could she even think about cursing a pregnant woman? The empress didn't do anything of that sort when she was supposedly pregnant with Naoya's baby. Well, I guess that's the difference between the empress and her. She should be thankful that the empress didn't retaliate for what she did initially.

even if you are my wife and the empress of this nation, should you commit any transgressions... I won't hesitate to accuse you of treason, Empress. | I hated him. Really, Satoru? How could you say that? Has the desire to destroy, and to call for war over the Eastern Empire blinded you so much that you no longer care about the impact it would have on your wife watching you destroy her homeland, even if you say you truly love her. I know what the Empress did was wrong too. Using Satoru as revenge on her ex-husband, but she truly loves him as well. It's just that he doesn't know that yet. But what Satoru is doing is despicable. And definitely not necessary… It's all just for the sake of his desire to bring bloodshed to the Zen'in line. He doesn't even care about the innocent lives he would take.

Oh, that is longgg! I am sorry I just felt if I didn't say it all, it wouldn't have done justice to this very incredible piece of writing. Chu, it was so great and so much better than the first part. There's so much more clarity and it's so elegantly written. I loved it so much. And to be honest, I am not worried about the cliffhanger and the next (& final) part, because I know you won't break my heart, Right! right? 🥲

love, Ady ❤️

ady! oh my god🥺🩵 i keep rereading your review bc i’m so giddy that you peel it one by one!!🥹 and ofc thank you so so much for reading the crown of diamonds!!! :’) this series is like my baby at this point i’m so happy to be able to interact with a lot of people with this🥹

ooh i’m actually happy that the first scene caught you— that’s intended from the start actually😋 and HAHAHA sitting on his face is actually an idea from milk nonnie and the moment she put that in my mind, i just had to :’) i’m glad you feel like the smut part feels right bc i actually spent 3 days to write it🥲 and thank you so much, ady🫶🏻 i melted from reading this paragraph alone🥺

YOU’RE RIGHT AHAHA🥹 i write that after watching polin so i just had to add that tidbit🥹 and gojo adores the empress so much that he really doesn’t put much thought about whether their child will be a boy or a girl—as you said, he isn’t in search of heir like naoya and the empress is so touched by that🤧

SHOOTING DUDS GOT ME LAUGHING HARD SHWJJW🥹🥹🥹 it’s never out of love with naoya, actually. right from the very start, empress might’ve thought they were childhood sweethearts… but naoya regarded the empress as his equal. but then he fell out of respect with her since she can’t provide him with a heir. the empress never understands that all this time naoya never really loved her tho :’) but at this point, she doesn’t care anymore anyway so that’s that

hanabi isn’t wise—that’s what makes her and the empress different🥹 she looks and acts like a royalty but deep down, she doesn’t really have what it takes💁🏻‍♀️ she idolizes the empress, wants to be like her, and so when she realizes naoya doesn’t acknowledge her and even gifted the former empress the very same necklace she once wore, she sees red and impulsively puts that curse out of jealousy :’)

and that… actually, he has been planning for this war for a while🥹 and he genuinely is under the impression that even if he were to destroy her homeland, she will accept it since she’s no longer there and naoya is a prick anyways🥹 and as of innocent lives… yes, gojo doesn’t care about that :’) he’s one who believes in “necessary sacrifice” so…

and again, thank you so so much ady!!!!🥹🫶🏻 gosh i can’t believe i let all this out too :’) i feel like there are so many little details i excluded from the story so it feels really good to know you actually notice it and to share this with you tooo😭 you’re so sweet and i honestly am so so happy that you read my stories <33

sending you much much love too!!!🩵 take a break and stay safe and healthy always🫶🏻✨