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cellsshapedlikestars · 1 year ago

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20 questions for fic writers

tagged by @hilarychuff

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

honestly, I'm sometimes embarrassed by how much I've written in the 3 1/2 years since I started posting. Currently 66

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

1,350,298. yikes.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

at this point, Jonsa. we do not talk about The Prior Fandom

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

a fairytale ending (by a WIDE margin)

the mating game

take me out

moth's wings

ever fallen in love (on national TV)

(shocker, it's all my romcoms lmao. also, let's not talk about how the top 4 are all fake dating fics. I can't help myself)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I try to. I used to do it on all fics, but as discussed above, I'm a wordy bitch and at points responding to all comments on, for example, one shot event fics that I would post back-to-back got overwhelming. So I allowed myself to stop responding to comments on one shots. Recently I had quite the mental health dip and didn't respond to any for a while, but I think I'm back.

Part of the reason I like fandom is the sense of community. I started responding to comments on my first fic because I hadn't resurrected my tumblr from the grave yet, so it was the only way to interact with the fandom. Then I continued to because I appreciated the comments, even if they were simple and I had nothing else to say except thank you. I still try to on chaptered fics because, let's face it, without comments and without community, I wouldn't be posting my stories.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

probably my WWI one-shot

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I try to write at least *hopeful* endings for all my fics. I don't know if I can quantify "happiest", because I think that's different for everyone.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

of course. I feel like it's a rite of passage on ao3 to get some shitty hate comments

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

*through clenched teeth* I sure do

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

I'm not really a fan of crossovers tbh

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

not that I'm aware of

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

not that I'm aware of

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

nope! I don't think I could tbh. I'm sort of a control freak and I even have problems letting people pre-read things, I have no idea why. I think the only people I've let pre-read anything are @hilarychuff (who is my brainstorm buddy) and @greenhikingboots (who is the reason the last chapter of the ghost inside made any coherent sense)

14. What’s your all time favorite ship?

I mean, Jonsa. I honestly don't ship that often

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

sigh. white knuckles.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I'm very fast at it lmao. Like, seriously. I type very fast. I'm also somehow really good at starting a fic off with only an inciting incident, no other real plans, and somehow coming up with a full plot/ending that I'm satisfied with, while posting it as I develop the story

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

outlines. smut.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I can barely handle English my guy

19. First fandom you wrote for?

hmmm that depends on what the criteria is. First fandom I wrote for was Sailor Moon, I just never posted it anywhere. Harry Potter was technically the first fandom I posted for, but it was one chapter and I never continued it and I genuinely can't even remember what it was called, all I remember is Harry melted Voldemort with a bucket of soapy water like in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles.

The first fandom I was actually active in and wrote more than just a chapter was... A secret. I'm actually a little embarrassed about it and my fics are still floating around out there and some of them make me cringe sooooo hard. I don't think I've ever admitted to it here on tumblr dot com and I don't think I will now

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

help me out of the shape I'm in

I'm always so anxious about tagging people and leaving people out and making them feel bad, but I'll try to do it anyway. @greenhikingboots @sibyldisobedience @thewolvescalledmehome @esther-dot @periwinkle39 @eruherdiriel and anyone else who wants to do this! (also, no pressure to anyone I did tag lol)

#ask game

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saelterlude · 17 days ago

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I did a thing last year where I listed all of the fics I've written in 2023 to celebrate reaching 50k words and it was a fun thing to do. Which is why I'm doing it again this year!

So happy new year and welcome to sael's ao3 fic recap 2024! With a total of 69.201 words across 23 works. Link Click fics galore!

(listed in chronological order)

January

Like Dreaming of Angels (< 1k, Link Click)

Just a short "how Lu Guang sees Cheng Xiaoshi" fic based on the song "Angels" by The xx. Very light and feel good, read before bed type thing.

February

Shattered Reflections (14.5k, Link Click)

Power swap AU between Shiguang and the twins. I have to subtract 8k from the ao3 statistic because only the (6k long) last chapter was posted in 2024.

Softly, Brush it Back (< 1k, Link Click)

Another short domestic fluff fic of Cheng Xiaoshi dying Lu Guang's hair. Contains my personal LG with poliosis headcanon.

March

Time in a Tin Can (12k, Link Click)

My longest oneshot and an actual case fic! Also doubles as a camping fic! With tons of Link Click trio moments as well as Qiao Ling's dad! A bit of our heroes looking back at the events of S2.

The Right Word (1k, Link Click)

Humor sells, y'all. My most Kudo-ed fic of 2024 is just Qiao Ling asking "Who tf is Lu Guang to me?" for a thousand words. Go ahead and read to find out the answer!

The Bad Ending (2.7k, Link Click)

So right after a funny fic, I followed up with what's probably my saddest and most tragic fic. One that follows Lu Guang who is stuck in a timeline where both Cheng Xiaoshi and Qiao Ling has died. Read at your own risk. Oh, I'm also really proud at the non-linear narrative I did!

April

Us, In(tense) (3.4k, Link Click)

Everyone!! My favorite fic of they year, my Magnum Opus, is here. And it's just highschool Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang doing homework. What's angst and tragedy? Definitely none of that here. It's domestic fluff only. (I lied)

I join the Shiguang Fluff Week 2024 event thus the following 7 works are from there. Guaranteed fluff, ain't that nice? Though due to time constraint, they're not my most thought out or longest works.

Hour to Midnight (1k, Link Click)

Not gonna lie, probably my weakest fluff week entry? Just Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang on a case an hour before Cheng Xiaoshi's birthday.

Beachwalk (< 1k, Link Click)

Lu Guang and Cheng Xiaoshi takes a walk on a beach, that's literally it. Nothing more, I don't know what else to add.

Blue of Your Eyes (1.3k, Link Click)

Confession fic? Does it count as a confession fic if the confession technically never happened? There's fluff, but the humor is more prevalent. LC Musical inspired.

Sent (< 1k, Link Click)

Highschool Cheng Xiaoshi writes (he does not send!) a letter to Lu Guang. It's for a school assignment. What should you write to your new friend about?

Familiari(tri) (1.7k, Link Click)

Just some hugs, hair ruffles, and kisses between Cheng Xiaoshi, Lu Guang, and Qiao Ling. Less shiguang, more LC main trio but fluff all the way!

Coma Berenices (2.4k, Link Click)

My personal favorite entry. Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang stargazes for a case. They search and ponders over constellations together. Coma Berenices is an actual constellation and is in fact my favorite constellation.

A Strip of Regret (1.7k, Link Click)

Once again, humor prevails. It's just shiguang on the tail end of their date deciding to go to a photobooth. Shenanigans ensues. Why wouldn't it? Cheng Xiaoshi literally has the ability to dive into that photobooth in the past.

May

Kick-off (2.6k, Link Click)

Pre-canon childhood shiguang anyone? Well here you have it. A chance encounter in a park only leads to more encounters. It's a good thing they like each other.

His to Believe (1.9k, Link Click)

Just answering the question. How did Lu Guang learns of Cheng Xiaoshi's missing parents. It's a good thing Qiao Ling is around.

July (Oops, I didn't write in June)

tick, tock (Goes The Grandfather's Clock) (1.6k, Link Click)

Long title, I know. Shiguang talks about a grandfather clock and I somehow connected it with Lu Guang's determination to save Cheng Xiaoshi.

August

It's All I Have (3.2k, Link Click)

Cheng Xiaoshi who realizes he's going to die decided he's going to give it all to Lu Guang and stops him from diving back in grief. It's uhh pretty domestic if you ignore like the last 300 words.

For the Soul (2.6k, Link Click)

It's literally just Cheng Xiaoshi cooking and eating chicken soup over and over again, through out the years.

September

Down to Zero. (2.6k, Link Click)

Okay, this one is also sad, though domestic. A countdown to Cheng Xiaoshi's death, though not in a way you might think.

October

In Ever-Changing You (8.1k, Link Click)

For the sgdlrminibang event where I hyperfocuses on keys and I compare those to many Cheng Xiaoshis across the timelines. With awesome art by Dx too!

Patri(steal) (8k, 2 chapters, DCMK)

Oh look, the only non LC fic I wrote this year, surprisingly one of my most beloved fic of this year. Kuroba Toichi and Kaito have an inheritance fight and the Kaitou Kid task force is sick of them. Kid task force and Kid (Jr.) feels here because I need more of those in my life. Toichi bashing.

November

If, (592, Link Click)

Just a short introspection into CXS's thoughts as he helps LG try to save himself (but not really himself? its him? in another timeline? he wont remember this evening he shared with LG. oh no, existentialism)

None from December I'm afraid, but here's to another great year of fic writing in 2025!!

#my fic #link click #sgdlr #dcmk #detective conan #magic kaito #ao3 #ao3 recap 2024

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ssa-dado · 1 month ago

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Pre-exam IQIWIANQLQPL, Chapter 21 updates and a desperate writer begging for your opinións (Help me, I'm spiraling 🤌🤖)

Hi lovely humans!

Long post ahead with lots of updates, so buckle up 🏎🏎🏎🏎

I’m temporarily rising from the dead to drop some info bombs! 👯‍♀️👯‍♀️👯‍♀️👯‍♀️ This week is pre-exam chaos central for me (two major reviews: one on Wednesday and one on Thursday), so I’ll only be sporadically active for a few minutes here and there. Wish me luck hahahahahhaha (I want to di*)

Now, onto the fun stuff: I have an ask about philosophy that I’ve been dying to answer for weeks (seriously, I’m so exciteddddd AAAAA) I’ve been working on some notes and promise to carve out a bit of time for a detailed, exhaustive response...... it’s going to be so much fun (warning: I might get a little overly talkative and probably a bit technical but I'll do my best to make it user-friendly)

Chapter 21 Updates:

I’m actually more than halfway through the chapter! If all goes well, it should drop this weekend (lessons wrap up Thursday, so yay, more writing time!). No more waiting 71,718 days for a new chapter!!!! WE CAN START CELEBRATING YEEE HAWWW LET THE BANQUET BEGIN! 🍝🍷🧃🍅🥖🥗🧀🍽

When I say “halfway through,” I mean I’m halfway through the outline I had in mind 🙃

If I stick to it, we’re finally looking at a decently sized chapter (10k-12k words - bye bye 20k monstrosities). These chapters have been trickier to draft because as you've seen they’re so heavily focused on Hotch (we’ve been spending way more time in his POV than Teach's. I love doing it idk why)

Idk if I've said it before (probably I did) but in a way, these last Act 2 chapters are a love letter to him, as each one (Logic, Physics, Ethics, and Logos) is designed to dismantle the idea of him as a stoic, using events and narrative to challenge the principles of stoic philosophy. Some heavy character development going on (because poor man he gets a divorce and also the girl he fucks with fucking explodes lmao)

But enough philosophy rambling.......you’re probably here for plot details, right? 👁👁

Right?!

Left?!

OK enough with those dad jokes

So, Chapter 21 follows the events of Criminal Minds episodes 3x09 through 3x11 (do with this information what you will). The title, Physics, is inspired by the Stoic’s highly deterministic view of the universe, where fate plays a central role.

(Hint: if you’re curious about this, check out the colors of Symposium moodboard... pay special attention to the color black 👹👹👹 Remember that both characters were involved in that case back then... just saying.)

The chapter will also include a flashback that ties directly into the present and impacts Hotch’s character. Most importantly, it will push SOMEONE toward figuring out how they really feel about a certain SOMEONE (yes, I mean Gissi or maybe not)

Help this poor lovely human being

As the story progresses, I’ve started to feel more pressure (in a good way don’t worry!!!!!) to deliver what you want to see. So, tell me, what parts interest you the most? What do you enjoy reading? This way, I can focus more on those elements and cut down on others.

Speaking of which, a while back, I wrote a scene set right after the last chapter where Aaron takes the reader out following their breakup with Peter. I was in a super fluffy, bantery mood, so naturally, I had him take them to a traditional Italian restaurant, complete with the classic nosey Italian staff 🤌🤌🤌🤌🤌 (I’m Italian, so I get a free pass on the stereotype, ty). Of course, the staff assumes they’re a couple (what a shame, really), and the two totally lean into it, turning it into one of their lawyer/philosopher-style challenges, only this time with some added hand touches and overly exaggerated flirts purely for the sake of the game (they’re still fun to read I swear)

It’s a trope I love reading, and I couldn’t resist writing it into this universe with these blind af characters.

But drumroll please 🎺🎺🎺🎺 I ended up cutting it because it was just cute fluff and didn’t really serve the plot. Typical me: I get so carried away with the pining and banter that even a "short" scene spirals into a 3k-word detour. Classic Phi.

I wanted to keep it to myself, but maybe you might want to read it as well! So I'm actually debating whether to put it back at the beginning of Chapter 21 (though the current opening feels right), or post it as a standalone one-shot preview, like a “Chapter 20.1.”

What do you think? Should I include it, or save it as a fun bonus chapter?

Also, while you’re waiting for the chapter, would you want to see any more WIPs, or would you rather experience everything as a whole when it’s done?

Alright, enough rambling and people-pleasing for today, I’m off to write 🏌‍♀️🏌‍♀️🏌‍♀️ Sending lots of love! 🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍

Phi (& Dado, the one and only chairman of the blog)

#phi over-talks #symposiumff #ssadado

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theimaginatrix27 · 1 year ago

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Coming Soon to AO3: the Sisko'Brien Salamanders AU!

I could not go another day without making this post. Because I intend to start posting this fic as soon as it's no longer November in Australia.

A few months ago, I was on my friend @kintatsujo's Discord server, telling her and my other friends on there, quite earnestly, that I believed I was incapable of writing Sci-fi, and was particularly nervous about writing for any Star Trek series, because the fandom was big and old and intimidating, and I was a Fantasy writer! I couldn't possibly get all the technical stuff right!

And then I started nattering on about my ideas for a Star Trek series that I'd had floating in my head for about thirteen years, and as I was doing so, I started looking stuff up on the wiki, made a couple posts, absolutely trawled the blog of someone who reblogged one of those posts, found a Deep Space 9-themed Discord server (and about a dozen new friends!), and started having plot tribbles populate my brain, all squealing excitedly at being allowed to run wild.

And one of those ideas was sparked by this post, which I found on that days-long blog trawl I mentioned, and which delighted me so much that I started imagining some of the scenes. And then imagining the fallout. And then having my own ideas about how it would all pan out, and I knew this story was a keeper.

The important points from the post that set my brain off, in case you don't wanna click through:

Benjamin Sisko wouldn't abandon his salamander babies if he ever went through a Threshold scenario (as in the episode of Star Trek: Voyager for the uninitiated).

Since this is a human-specific mutation, the other parent would have to be one of the other human cast

DS9's Threshold is clearly an O'Brien-must-suffer episode.

The very idea of this happening was hilarious to me, so in hindsight I shouldn't have been all that surprised the plot tribble moved in and started breeding like mad.

I let the idea stew throughout October, and have been writing for the AU all month. And I've written about 30k for it so far! Not all of it's for the main/initial fic laying a great deal of the groundwork/surrounding the events within the post (but with my own twists on some of the ideas because I was imagining the characters' reactions as I saw them and they flowed better than the comments in the post), but I do have six chapters almost ready to go, and will probably keep writing stuff after NaNo because I wanna tell this story! The rest of what I've written is for the pre/conquel I started when I decided we needed to explore Sisko and O'Brien's experiences while mutated (and that is going to be a fun fic!), and the sequel! Because once I established some stuff about the babies (like their names and personalities), they wanted to be doing things! And those things might have widespread impacts, but I will not go into details because that's for when the sequel fic goes up! Which it isn't until I finish posting the Main/original fic!

Milestone will be coming to AO3 on the 1st of December Australian time, and I wanted to let people know it was gonna happen. I'm so excited to start sharing this with the fandom!

@reginaldbroccoli @laurelhach @vermin-disciple @apolesen I am tagging you specifically to thank you for combining your efforts to create the post that made this story possible, and also to let you know someone is writing the thing. And I hope at least some of you will be interested in reading it and won't mind that I couldn't wait until next Threshold Day to begin posting said thing.

#Star Trek #Deep Space 9 #Threshold AU #Sisko'Brien Salamanders #That's the name of the series btw #I like the name

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firstsprinces · 1 year ago

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Thank you @anincompletelist for all your wonderful works you shared this past year. I can't wait to finally indulge myself with all of your fics! I hope you feel so proud of all the writing you've been able to do this year and here's to all the exciting things to come in your next writing year! (bridesmaidsbridesmaidsbridesmaids)

I've joined the fandom/fanfic writing during the end of October this year, so I don't have an impressive catalog. I even saved this tag until the very last minute to I could have more than one work credited for this year. One is to be posted January 1st but I technically completed it in 2023. Both of these are for exchanges, but 2024 will be a year where I'll finally be posting more works!

Thank you to everyone's who's cheered me on or has any interest in reading what comes out of my brain!

🤍 Kia

Take This House and Make it a Home (T, 4.9K)

When the discussion of the Christmas tree had started, Henry had already come to the comfortable conclusion they’d continue to use the fake pre-lit tree they’ve used their last couple of years in the Brownstone. For their farmhouse in Texas, Alex wants to go all out and get a real Christmas tree that will reach the high ceiling of the living room, right in front of the large front window, and off to the side of the fireplace. He also wants a second or third tree to put in their conservatory and the study. Part of the reason is because going out to a tree farm and picking their own tree reminds Alex of childhood Christmases before his mother’s presidency and his parents’ divorce. It brings him back to when Christmas had been nothing but innocent and magical for him and his family, and now that Henry’s part of his family, he wants to create the magic all over again and in a new way, one that’s completely and organically theirs. - or, Alex and Henry pick out a Christmas tree for their first Christmas at the Texas farmhouse. Written for the RWRB New Traditions Advent Calendar Event

Here We Stand Worlds Apart (E for later chapters, 5K)

Lips part from the other man and Henry’s eyes glance down to his throat, watching as the column of his neck constricts and expands to the intake of oxygen. Then when the man speaks, what comes out isn’t something Henry’s expecting. The voice, if Henry can even call it that, sounds like the cinematic mix of the raptors from Jurassic World with a little extra hissing undertone to it. He pushes his glasses up his nose, his eyes squinting as if that’s going to help him focus on his ability to hear. He’s unsure if he’s experiencing vocal damage from the crashing or not, or if this could possibly be his real voice. The man’s – if Henry can even call this Jurassic sounding thing a human at all – nostrils start to flare, his head turning to one side as if he’s studying Henry closely. His tongue pushes through his closed lips, and Henry notices that it’s ever so slightly split at the front, as it wriggles and tastes the air. - an Alien! Alex AU Written for the RWRB New Year's Gift Exchange

I'm leaving this tag open for all! I hope everyone can look back at their year of writing, no matter how big or small, and are proud of what you've accomplished! Here's to you!

#kia's fics #my fics #2023 writing round up #firstprince #firstprince fic #firstprince fanfic #red white and royal blue #rwrb #firstprince au

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comfortlesshurt · 6 months ago

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August 2024 Plans!

Hello again, and I am sorry to tell most of you, I am still only obsessed with Voltron. That being said, here are my plans for Keith for this month.

General Goals:

Newly published word count: 5,071/10,000

Have total VLD published WC surpass Spider-Man: 48,364/100,258 (I'm not calling this a failed goal! I never planned to publish 50k+ in a single month, to be clear. This is a long-term goal that I'm hoping to hit in 2025.)

Test new weekly writing schedule: my choice of any three weekdays from 6pm to 9pm and any one weekend day from waking up to going to bed (with short breaks as needed). Possible exceptions on the weekend hours during any pre-planned social events because I'm too good at isolating myself already. Schedule TBD during work travel but will be much less for those times unless I can get comfy writing in-flight lmao.

Bonus uncontrollable achievement for funsies: 250k total hits on AO3 (starting the month around 244k)

Augusnippets:

All are drafted because I overachieved last month

Publish 15 total snippets

Posting out of order because all my fills take place in one series, and it was more important to me to get the series order right than the challenge order

Currently working on c*mm*ssioning art for this story!

Bingo prompts:

Finish and publish at least one more bingo prompt this month (I'm open to requests for Keith!)

One request received! (Working on outlining it and expecting to draft and publish this month)

40k in 42 Days:

Drafted word count (not necessarily published like the goal in general goals)

Start 8/4

Complete by 9/14 (On track to achieve this one!)

Probably major focus on LTS(LTFH), but I'm counting all drafted words during this time period

(My Write Club linked above! Feel free to friend if you're participating in this or if you use it at all.)

LTS(LTFH):

Cleaned these goals up a little mid-month!

Finish full outline for fic 1

Continue drafting fic 1: 35% of 100k goal

Draft what I know of fic 2: 30% of 50k goal (with focus on events surrounding Augusnippets fills until I finish final fic 1 details)

Draft fic 0 (<5k prequel to provide background on a certain event)

Continue fine outlining fics 2 through 4 as new plot points are decided in fic 1

Incorporate feedback from Augusnippets for characterization/events

Refine expected publish date at end of August (starting August expecting fic 1 to be drafted and edited for continuity errors by end of December 2024; expecting to complete technical editing chapter by chapter to start a weekly posting schedule in January 2025)

Prep for next month:

Resist the urge to take on any September writing challenges

Filter through my published list and rank works by how much they need a solid round of editing (I'm hoping to edit everything next month, but I'll be prioritizing in case I can't get through it all.)

Longer term:

I don't know where I'll be in six months, obviously. These are loose plans, subject to adjustment.

August 2024 - LTS(LTFH) focus

September 2024 - edit existing works & draft LTS(LTFH)

October 2024 - possibly Whumptober (possibly LTS(LTFH) instead)

November 2024 - NaNoWriMo (I'm now 90% sure I'll be focusing on the third chapter fic in LTS(LTFH) for this project)

December 2024 - back to editing, focusing on unpublished works

January 2025 - begin publishing fic 1 of the big series; continue drafting fic 2

#month goals #mid month update: i think i'm COOKED on that newly published WC goal fellas #but 40k in 42 days is going great for unpublished words!

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farlynthordens · 1 year ago

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V9 post-reading thoughts

i enjoyed the book a lot. i was all for seeing bisco's wholesome and happy family life as well as red's absolutely soul-crushing and lonely existence. when i started reading, I was surprised that bisco and red get along so soon since i was expecting her to play an antagonizing role for most of it (and possibly try to do things like steal milo away). the cover and pre-release advertising kinda gave that vibe lol

it started off great then fell off for me at certain points in the middle, but then the ending saved it. we also yet again had a last minute plot twist/reveal of the true villain.

n'badu's identity was probably the most confusing part of the whole book and i did have to double back to make sure i understood what was going on. if he's the manifestation of bad timelines, is he a god of spacetime who can consequently only create negative events? it seems that way from when you look back on what n'badu had done throughout the book and what he threatens to do at the ending.

i thought this was going to be the end of the series, so as i got closer to finishing i was very confused how this was going to wrap up. i was pleasantly surprised that there's still going to be one more book. red's character arc is more or less resolved, but she obviously has multiple stakes in the new issues that have arisen so i hope she still plays a notable role in v10. i'm worried there's a good chance red will disappear for good when they inevitably defeat n'badu (see meta section).

i wrote down a couple of gripes/critiques prior to reading the final chapter, but many were resolved by the fact that there will be a continuation + the things cobkubo mentions in the afterword. ex:

i was sad that bisco/milo had zero scenes of just the 2 of them since those were generally the highlight of every other book. however, 9 essentially made red the protagonist and bisco/milo were more there to be HER support rather than the other way around like what we've seen in every other book. cobkubo mentions tho that v10 will be more about bisco and milo's bonds.

we never concluded what happened with milo and he's still stuck in another timeline, so that's yet to be resolved. as well as... like.. you know, everything else... I'm still sad that he wasn't there for the final battle tho.

Meta stuff

Early on we learn that red has never used the choushin bow, but its wish granting power was what I had thought to be the main thing that caused sugar's birth and why she turned out as a literal god, since sugar's powers are the highest form of the choushin ability. So in red's universe, sugar turned out as a normal baby bc red and blue never had that ability. Never being able to use the choushin bow ties into what red realizes at the climax, which is that she never truly believed in [loved] herself. She only fought and kept going bc she thought that's what everyone expected of her. She thought of everyone's love for her as obligations she could never fulfill, rather than seeing that everyone just loved her for herself and wanted the best for her regardless of what that meant in the end.

Because of this, red put the weight of the world on her shoulders and wouldn't accept losing or running away from what she thought was "her destiny". But she failed to save her universe at every opportunity she could have technically had, bc she didn't trust in herself or she doubted the love of those around her (like when she chooses to not kill blue). the timeline could have been saved had she gained the choushin bow, realized her true powers (and thus removed her achille's heel of the souls's power burning her when she used it), and/or if sugar was born as a god, etc.

when we learn at the end that red's timeline was just a copied reality and that she, everyone she knew, and everything she ever experienced were "fake"... my question was then "WAS it really all fake?" n'badu doesn't explain why he made the dark timeline, but i felt the implication was just that it satisfied his own desires of seeing 'bisco' suffer, since that was never able to manifest in the main timeline.

even if red's reality wasn't meant to exist, i don't think that makes her or her experiences any less real than bisco's. she is still a living, tangible being. and as we saw towards the beginning when n'badu tried to overwrite the main timeline, bisco too had begun disappearing in a similar way to how red did when she attacked n'badu. if all timelines are subject to be rewritten like that, then i don't see why one would be lesser than the other.

HOWEVER. framing red in this way makes me worried that she is going to disappear. i expect that in v10 she'll be around as a deuteragonist to bismilo, but in the end they're going to defeat n'badu and cause her to stop existing. it would be a very bittersweet ending, since bisco had invited her to be part of his family. another bit of evidence for this is the v8 epilogue... where in which red of course doesn't show up (cobkubo had not even thought of her character yet at that point).

there is a possibility tho for v10 to end well for red. since the antagonists are gods who can rewrite spacetime, sugar (freed from n'badu's control) may be able to completely remake red's timeline herself and allow her to live happily without rust/n'badu's existence.

re: the "do you love yourself?" bit from cobkubo's afterword:

milo is very confident in himself, bisco is unsure. i think this is exemplified by the parallel scenes of them trying to summon their special bows with only their own power. milo is able to summon it because he is extremely self-assured in who he is and what he believes he can do (thanks to bisco always believing in him/learning from bisco that he is a capable mushroom keeper). HOWEVER, this sometimes leads to moments of over-confidence that rebound negatively on him in some way. summoning the mantra bow completely exhausted him and put him in potential danger because he didn't have someone to share the burden of it with.

bisco was not able to summon the choushin bow at all because he needed someone else there to believe in him. he even specifically says "I can't do it without milo" because milo is the only person he's used that bow with/knows milo is the one who believes in him most of all. having red - functionally, himself - be there and say she believed in him opened up a new path to strength. it showed what he could do if he simply had the heart to believe in his own self.

Final thoughts

my initial impression upon finishing the book is that it probably ranks somewhere in the middle of my overall favorite volumes (maybe between v6 and 8?). i definitely enjoyed reading it a lot, the events felt more coherent than 8, and it surpassed my expectations in multiple ways. i'll prob have a more solid placement once i think on it for a bit longer.

positive/high points:

I think v9 has one of the strongest openings of any volume. the first 4~5 chapters were really good. I think the middle was a bit weak at times, but then the final battle saves it.

Has a pretty big cast of characters, both new ones and old ones who are brought back, but it was handled well and it didn't feel confusing. i think my summary probably made it seem more confusing

Red was overall a good and very enjoyable character. I liked getting to see/learn her backstory in pieces, because each new bit of info is a new sadness gut punch. she's also badass in the final battle.

I thought rust was a good antagonist. you could say there's not much dimension to him since he's just a ruthless and (literal) robotic murder machine who loves to see people suffer. but i like it. the whole point of red's dark timeline is that everything has gone to shit and is as terrible as could be, so rust matches that mood pretty well. not every villain has to be DeepTM

Continued the themes seen in 7 and 8 well, such as the idea that you should feel free to live your life the way YOU want and not feel burdened by others' expectations.

From re-reading thru the summary post and thinking back on the events, i felt like there were a couple hints to n'badu being the Real Bad Guy sprinkled throughout the book that i didn't notice during my initial read. in hindsight, this was not a complete surprise like the v5 ending's kurokawa reveal for example.

negative/low points:

I really disliked having bisco nerfed for most of the book by being turned into a kinoko. I feel like this detracted from the emotional impact of the conversations he and red have during this time. there surely could have been ways to showcase red's character than by eliminating bisco's usefulness to the plot for anything other than talking.

Related to above, while in kinoko form bisco often felt uncharacteristically goofy.

N'badu's speech pattern is annoying

Bisco self-cest hint at the end???? red isn't cool being kissed by milo but kissing her alternate reality self is just fine. it isn't cheating if it's with yourself.... i guess.......

other things of note:

This vol brings back citymaker, lifemaker, AND mantras with lots of new skills showcased for each one. i wouldn't say it was confusing, just maybe excessive.

We get a new tidbit of jabi lore

Domino comes back and gets to have a scene where she fights and is very cool. it was also fun learning her personality a little more since we don't really get to in 3

Salt is mentioned a couple times but literally does nothing the entire volume. i know he's just a normal kid in a story full of god-like powers, but they didn't even give him a single spoken line

#sabikui bisco #sbkb summary series #ITS PRETTY LONG IM SORRY I HAVE SO MANY THOUGHTS IN MY HEAD

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phantom-of-the-ruckus · 2 years ago

Text

The Hello Puppets and MLB "crossover"

Disclaimer: This is not a crossover, but a universe inspired by Miraculous Ladybug. I am not much of a fan of the series anymore but I do enjoy it. I probably won't tag it there because the fandom sorta terrifies me (hence this disclaimer) Although I may have problems with the creator and the show itself, I do think it holds pretty well and my rewrites and changes are entirely for my own universe and lore. This was just for fun

I am not really finished with this universe as I have other projects like Riley Drew and Fallen. I am doing this mostly as casual projects and fun ideas. This has been in my mind for about a year and I remember its existence until a few days ago.

As this was inspired by the MLB lore, I am showing my major changes:

No love square and love triangles will be in here. The guys the main duo is a pre-established couple and will remain that way (most likely the only pairing)

No master Fu will be present, Scout is a sort of spirit guide but she's not exactly the best (best way possible)/Might add the other Scouts

Mayura will NOT be in love with Hawkmoth. She would only be his partner in crime and is platonically friends with him

Some of the stories will be more linear and episodes will be connected.

The powers will be severely limited to keep it in balance (So no lucky charm that magically fixes everything.) I'm still working on that aspect

The story would be more about teens and up

There won't be much akumatized character because I don't have the brain power to create an akuma of the day. So akumatization would be occasional, and the powers of the moth will be different.

The villains will have some allies who they'll akumatize, so villains will repeat but upgraded

In a future I will also change a bit the Kwamiis as I am not really a fan of their designs (don't kill me)

Ok, let's dive into the fun part, and start with the basics of the series, the characters, some lore, and a bit of a plot twist which I won't give too much information. Be aware a long post is ahead!

Also, there will not be any cannon x cannon in this

Feel free to ask questions in my ask box ^^

Overall series summary: The Amazing adventures of Lord Bug and Lady Kitty Noir tells the story of high school sweethearts Sarabeth "Beth" Jenkins and Anthony Pierson. At day, they are aspiring journalists with a love of the supernatural, but in night they are the fighting crime famous duo: Lord Bug and Lady Kitty Noir. A duo of superheros fighting the forces of evil along with their spirit kid guy, allies and friends while also learning balance and the hardships of that heroes. often face.

As for now If I ever write this, this would be divided into 2 seasons with 24 "episodes" each (technically it would be divided by parts. Each with some specials each (chapters that connect to each other)

Season 1: After discovering a long time secret from her late Aunt and Uncle, Beth and her boyfriend Anthony decide to continue the legacy of the late heroes "Miss Bug" and "The Black Cat" as a new duo of heroes called "Lord Bug" and "Lady Kitty Noir" as an old enemy of the city returns along with some new faces, and a new partner in crime joining his side seeking revenge against the city.

Season 1 right now has six special episodes (Two special events, all of them add to six.) They would be the longest, and as episodes let's say about 40 minutes each.

Episodes 1 and 2: "Origins"

Episode 1: Miraculous

Episode 2: Lord Bug and Lady Kitty Noir

Episodes 9-12 "Rise of the Phantasm"

I haven't planned out the chapter names yet but this could be it/note: this could change. This will be Mayura's origin story.

Episode 9: "The peacock miraculous"

Episode 10: "A dark new dawn"

Episode 11: "Phantasmagoria"

Episode 12: "The Phantasm strikes"

Season 2: Beth and Anthony are still facing the harsh realities of being a superhero and at the same time joggling the responsibilities of high school students. Things don't look exactly bright however as Shadow and Phantasm started to make their attacks more frequent, disrupting their established balance, not to mention the introduction of a new miraculous holder makes things easier than they already were.

Season 2 is undecided what would happen, but it would complete the same format as 24 episodes/chapters, Two specials with the total of 6 special episodes.

Two parted special would not be the premiere of season two, maybe mid-season or season finale

Special: "Through the Rabbit's hole"

Episode TBD - "Clockin' around"/Tittle might change

Episode TBD - "MadHat Hattie"

Four parted special is still a name in progress "Hero's day", this could be either mid-season or season finale

Episode TBD/ Part 1 - Hero's day

Episode TBD/ Part 2 -Mr. Foxglove and Phantasm

Episode TBD/Part 3 - "Captain Honeybee"

Episode TBD/ Part 4 - "Certain truths"

This is what we have around with episodes, so now let's dive into the characters and their alter egos (I won't be sharing much information about some)

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Anthony Pierson (Protagonist)

Note: His actual hair and eyes are others, since I injured my wrist I have to limit my drawing and writing. His eye is actually gray, and his hair is more brown (close to black) and his hair is exactly like the picrew I originally made with the Vox Veritas' gang.

He's 17-years-old.

He currently studies at Summer Creek's High School in a journalist program with Beth.

He is the boyfriend of Sarabeth "Beth" Jenkins.

He lives with his mom, and takes care of his little niece Sally (@dolly-royal OC)

He had some troubles with the law around his preteen years due to many issues with his estranged father Victor, but he has worked his best to better his ways and works towards bringing awareness through journalism.

He's the ladybug miraculous porter.

Tikki's owner.

He's like a brother to Scout.

His personality is more like in the cannon version, but he's more laid back and keeps himself from breaking other laws again.

Alter ego is "Lord Bug"

"Lord Bug" - Anthony's Alter ego

He has a Ladybug shaped metal backpack that contains his wings to fly (not removable)

He's weapon is still a yo-yo. It's store on his

Under his goggles there is a mask like the OG Lady bug has.

He has level booths with some spikes as well (not removable)

He can't exactly remove his googles but he can move them up to his head. This help him have eye protection when he sees.

Once he activates his wings, his googles automatically extend to create a safety helmet.

His lucky charm is a bit different from cannon. He has the ultimate lucky charm, which creates a bigger item that he can use to fight crime but will disappear once his time runs out. He has the lucky charms, which are small charms with different uses. He has to limit his use because it would drain transformation energy.

He has the ability to fly thanks to his backpack, and other miraculous can activate their personal googles is he needs to carry them.

His booths and gloves give him the ability to climb and stick on the walls, although some surfaces are limited.

He has a shield that he can activate by spinning his yo-yo (a ladybug symbol appears)

This is what I have for now.

Sarabeth "Beth" Jenkins (Protagonist)

Note: Beth's appearance is in fact quite similar to the first colored drawing I gave her. I would just add some minor changes. She has a beauty mark on the left side of her cheek like in the drawing

She's 16-years old

Her mother passed away at birth and her father died while serving in the army. She lives with her Aunt Daisy (who is not her aunt, but she promised to take care of her after her best friend Amyrose died.)

She used to live with her Aunt Amy and her husband Owen, long before they mysteriously passed away in a fire.

Her personality is pretty much like in "Ambition" but she's more energetic and juvenile.

Anthony Pierson's girlfriend

Studies at Summer Creek High School at the same journalist program with Anthony

Is the high school journalist. She works with her counselor and editor Ericka Swan (no picrew yet)

She's like a sister to Scout

She originally was intended to inherit the ladybug Miraculous, but she chose to have the black cat miraculous.

Plagg's Owner

The Black chat miraculous holder.

Alter ego is "Lady Kitty Noir"

Lady Kitty Noir - Beth's alter ego

Just like the original Chat Noir, her gloves have claws, but she can get them out whenever she wishes too.

She has night vision and super hearing abilities.

Her weapon is the same as Chat Noir, but besides extending it, she can separate it into two.

Her suit grants her the ability to climb walls, although some surfaces are limited.

She has supper speed (like she can run around the same speed cats can) and can jump up to 6 feet tall thanks to her booths.

Her powers are still in definition but she can use catalyst (it will be like small ones) but it would take up her transformation time. They would look like cat scratches to be honest. She has the ultimate cataclysm which would be the equivalent of the OG power but to a larger scale. This would also take some suit power.

Her flexibility and a delicate sensor ability.

Her shield is activated through a special button with a kitty paw. She makes a circle with her weapon and it appears (it has a Kitty cat symbol)

This is all I have for now.

Scout (Tritagonist)

Guardian/Spirit form (True form)

Human form (Harper)

Scout is a kid spirit designated to care of the box of the miraculous and guide the next miraculous Ladybug and Black cat holders to the future (Recently assigned)

Although spirits have lived for centuries on earth, in Spirit age she's 12 years old.

Her personality is like in the games. She was a bit distrustful of the new set of heroes but eventually warmed up to them as their friend and spirit guardian.

She's rather clueless of her guardian abilities, but at least tries.

She can also turn herself into a golden retriever to get out of the world as it's too dangerous for her to live as a civil human.

She originally kept herself as a dog before Daisy learned the truth about the heroes. Now she can stay with her in her human form.

Her real power is being an annoying little shit/affectionate/positive

As a spirit she can fly

She gets the bunny miraculous on season 2

Fluff's owner

Alter ego is Madhat Hattie.

Madhat Hattie - Scout's alter ego

Her powers are way much different as the OG version because it was way over power. So she cannot travel in time, and her powers are more inspired by magicians and Alice in Wonderland

Her weapon is sorta her umbrella and is in her hat (she takes it out like a magic trick). Her real weapon are a limited deck of cards that she can use as shrikes

Her powers would be refences of Alice in Wonderland stuff. I haven't planned them out yet.

She can jump and run like a rabbit. Her umbrella will help her gracefully land by opening it.

Shield is activated by spinning her umbrella (bunny symbol appears)

Her superpower is Rabbit's luck. Her umbrella will become a drill that will let her create rabbit holes from a certain distance. It will also limit her super suit power.

Mayor Mortimer Handee - Main Antagonist

Mayor for about the two seasons before Rachel Breadstone takes the office.

Has an ok relationship with Nooro and treats him with respect. This is because there is a possibility that he'll have a redemption arc.

He's more serious and threatening but nowhere near his cannon version which is terrifying.

Has a vendetta against heroes and has a complex moral compass about his evil deeds. He doesn't do harm to people as he does take his duty to protect them, but questions if heroes are something necessary (quite complex that I am working on)

The moth miraculous (I am not calling the butterfly miraculous) was given to him by a minister during some duty stuff. He kept it ever since, and is presumably linked to the dead of that corrupt politician.

He actually was relieved when he stopped being mayor because the stress was bad.

Is in the search for the miraculous to keep them lock and end heroes as he believes there's evil that could abuse them as poor Nooro exhibits trauma.

Was good friends with Dr. Fred Ruckus

Moth Miraculous porter and Nooro's owner

Alter ego is "Shadow"

Shadow - Mortimer's alter ego

Note: I hate Hawkmoth and Mayura's design sorry not sorry

His villain name is because he's in the shadows and rarely makes appearances. He was named by Miss. Bug "Shadow" after he tried to akumatize her while introducing himself as simply "I am a simple guy in the shadows"

His cane is still his weapon. His shield is activated the same way Lady Kitty Noir activates her. It has a moth symbol.

He was the shadow for about 10–16 years.

Just like Lord Bug, he has a set of moth wings that he can activate, and his goggles can move up to his head. He was a mask underneath.

He still has the power of akumatization and can do it numerous times, but his suit time will run out and he would lose connection to the akuma. He can also upgrade former akumas and remove akumatization.

He actually creates the akumas with the power of his hands. I cannot take seriously Mortimer having a garden full of evil butterflies XD

For his ultimate power, I guess he can call an army of moths he creates that could work as a giant hand, or he as the ability to give himself one superpower with a time limit (TBD)

His personality is more jovial and cracks jocks. Phantasm is sick of his bird puns, but well sometimes he gets under her feathers

Dr. Riley Ruckus - Supporting character and now second main antagonist

Before becoming the Phantasm

Note: I forgot her freckles, sorry XD

Curator of the "Ruckus' Museum of Science" and daughter of Dr. Manfred "Fred" Ruckus.

She was friends and sorta is still friends with the duo. She tolerates Nicholas Nack (No. They're not related, and yes. I am keeping some of the cannon. No shipping) and had a rocky relationship with the mayor

She was very close to her father, Manfred (as her mother died in an expedition accident), and is the next Ruckus in line to inherit her family museum.

Her role was to investigate around the city and help the heroes find more about the akumatization.

Kids tend to stress her out a bit due to their lack of interest in her presentations as their attention was always drawn to the stupid Dino figure (who is historically inaccurate) Nick made as propaganda

Her family also found the book containing information about the miraculous, and her mother was the one who found about the peacock miraculous.

She used to have a bit of a secondary role until the special "Rise of the Phantasm"

She used to be an allied for the heroes.

After becoming Phantasm - Events after 4-part special

Note: The good boi is ok, he's being a good boi in the background doing good boi things

After the events and becoming the Phantasm, Riley became much colder and quite temperamental. She sorta remains friends with the main cast, but has become more distant due to the events

Her appearance drastically changed as she took over the museum she had to get into a more professional image, and was getting a bit more involved with candidate Rachel Breadstone and Mayor Handee was helping her with the museum.

She and Mortimer eventually learned each other's identities and formed an alliance as they fear the other could expose them. The eventually formed a Platonic bond and were in good terms, almost as best friends/ a mentoring relationship (No cannon x cannon shipping in this AU BTW)

She called off her deal with the two main heroes (in their hero alter egos) after they decided to redeem a group a bit related to her villain arc. She's rather cold and often ignores them.

She works very closely with Mortimer trying to translate the book her late mother found

Peacock miraculous holder and Owner of Duusuu

Duusuu does get along pretty well with Riley and she finds them tolerable. They basically adore her and drink Coffee with her.

Alter ego the Phantasm.

The Phantasm - Riley's alter ego

Note: Mayura is not really a pretty design and I gave her a mask for congruency. My AU my rules.

Her face mask is more reminiscent of a peacock. Her suit seems to be a dress, but it's a full suit with a not removable jacket that contains the peacock feathers.

Her fan is still her weapon and she can take one of the feathers and throw it as a dagger. She can also separate it into two to fight with her hands.

She works closely with Phantasmagoria for her public appearances, as she stays in the shadows working around and pulling variables to her advantage.

Her powers are basically the same as Mayura with the exception that she can create multiple amoks with the same consequences as Shadow has.

I haven't decided her ultimate power yet, but it's probably relating to creating a giant sentimoster to aid her. Sentimonsters tend to reflect what a person want and/or need the most.

Her suit can actually open her tail feathers, so that's her shield. They can also extend and make her land safely on her feet.

She makes clear that she's Shadow's partner in crime and not his assistant.

When contacting an amok or an akuma (if they're link) she can alter her voice to sound as Phantasmagoria.

Dr. Manfred Ruckus - Supporting character

He was more of a minor supporting character until the special "Rise of the Phantasm"

He was a great fanatic of heroes and the one who requested Nick to create Dino.

He took great care of Riley as she was the last remaining of his late wife, and the only family left.

His late father gave him the Ruckus museum and he often donated to charities

He rescued the Good boi and gave him to him as a gift for Riley during her time grieving over her late Mother

As Phantasmagoria

One day he was gone and the other day he appear to the public as Phantasmagoria.

Nothing is much know about his rise as a villain or his reason why. He's the face the Phantasm use for her public appearances.

He doesn't use his powers, but does fight with his fan (Which I forgot to mention it was made out of metal)

His mask is removable, but is speculated he uses it due to his accident. He no longer appears as Manfred but now as Phantasmagoria.

Nick Nack - Supporting character, now Anti-hero

Note: No, He doesn't have a fox as a pet is probably a statue

Artist and owns his own gallery. He has fair prices and sometimes lets people enter the gallery for free. His art varies from various inspirations

He made Dino the Dinosaur as per requested by Dr. Fred Ruckus. Riley told him to add feathers, Manfred told him to be created so he did not add them to piss off Riley. Dr. Fred loved his work

He's in an ok term with the heroes in their civil and hero form. He annoys them and they annoy him, but there is nothing that bad outside the occasional insulting Nick's supposed genius with criticizing his art

He's much nicer than the cannon version, and still has a lot of Daddy issues.

Mortimer ignores him, but at least he's in good terms with Daisy and she gives him goodies.

Owner and best friend of Trix

He found the fox miraculous and did try to tell the heroes but he was ignored. He kept it.

Alter ego is "Mr. Foxglove" (He gains it around season 2)

Mr. Foxglove - Nick's alter ego

His suit is more related to a fox but picrew was very limited.

Yes. He is named after Mr. Fox and Foxglove, it's meant to be a pun.

He has more of a trickster personality like a fox usually does in fables and stories.

Just like Lady Kitty Noir, his gloves have claws but he cannot exactly get them out whenever he pleases.

He has super hearing and speed. He has also the ability of camouflage

His flute is his weapon and he has to play a tune to activate his shield (Fox symbol)

He's more of an anti-hero as he helps both heroes and villains whenever he pleases or they convince him. He will help the Phantasm every time she threatens him (Why? Squirrels In My Pants/ They meet in season 3)

He accidentally slipped the whole Phantasm and Phantasmagoria deal after accidentally referring to Phantasmagoria as it and the Phantasm as she.

I am still deciding his powers, but he can make several illusions by playing minor notes. Prop ultimate power is a moving illusion with power suit consequences.

Daisy Danger - Supporting character, later hero

Note: not much info on her, so sorry Darlings

She's a character in progress sadly, so there is not much about her.

She's a home baker and a single mom. She took Beth under her wing and cares for her as an adoptive mother/aunt

She often helps with making pastries for special events and sent cookies to the Ruckus family.

She's sorta Riley's best friend and a mom friend to everyone.

She then becomes a mom to Scout, and makes sure she doesn't overwork herself during.

She becomes a miraculous holder thanks by Lady Kitty Noir choosing her to help her out. Beth gave her the miraculous back after revealing her identity. (Season 2)

She's now Pollen's owner

Alter ego is Captain Honey Bee

Captain Honeybee - Daisy's alter ego

Still under construction

Her googles basically function the same way as Shadow and Lord bug as well as her wings.

Her hair now has some black stripes and her suit resembles a bee.

Her weapon is still the same, but she can paralyze a couple of people. Still super suit downside

Her superpower would be the one that Multimouse has of becoming very small like a bee, which enhances her abilities to the max and is hard to spot.

Just as Lord Bug, she had to stick to the walls, and her vision is much better.

She also has super strength and her shield is shaped in a honey comb.

#Hello puppets #au #mlb crossover au #daisy danger #riley ruckus #mortimer handee #nick nack #scout hello puppets #superheros #villains #WIP #masterpost #inspired by show #Sarabeth “Beth” Jenkins (OC)#Beth Jenkins (OC)#Manfred Ruckus (OC)#Anthony pierson OC #No one is related and I have made my pov so many times that I am tired of repeating myself #yes I did call Nick that

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vanderwoodlings · 3 years ago

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Author Self-Interview

well @rainathorpe put out an open-ended tag so uh. here we go

Fandoms: I’ve published stuff for gossip girl and dc comics (mostly batfamily but I’ve also got a supersons series) and young justice 2010, took brief stops in pjo, rvb, and spn. I’m also working on stuff for btvs and hp (though given… certain things, I have no idea if any of those will ever get published) and I’ve put out some art for rwby

Most popular multi-chapter fic: that’s like a weird, murdery uncle you don’t invite to thanksgiving (batman, batfam&rogues gen) technically, which is a two-shot batfam fic, and also one of two multi chapters I’ve ever published, so… it’s kind of weird to see that given that’s it’s not one I think about much, but then again it’s very much something with wide appeal, so it makes sense

Favorite story you’ve written so far: this question is rude, but also Boy Hostage (supersons, jon&damian, au where damian doesn’t leave the league: jon gets himself kidnapped) which is the kind of “getting to where you can deal with your trauma” fic that I write over and over again, and it’s centered around the growth of a platonic relationship, which always makes me, as an aro, like. Vibe

Fic you were nervous to post: uh. All of them? Posting fics is kind of terrifying in terms of how much I crave validation lol. But in specific, but what good is a quick healing to go (yj, artemis-centric gen set in a soulmate au) because a) it’s the other multi-chapter and it’s actually got a plot, b) it’s a genfic in a soulmate au, and c) it’s one that’s does draw some off of my own experiences and that made posting it pretty uh. Exposing

How do you choose your titles: mostly just track down some songs to listen to that have the right vibe, and wait for a lyric to feel right, but there are a few titled after Shakespeare quotes/mangled versions thereof (see: If music be the food of love, then—shut up, Epsilon!) and a couple that are allusions to motifs or events in the fic (e.g. gorgeous)

Do you outline: not usually, but most of my stuff is pretty short — I do have an outline for the Michaelverse, aka the hp fic of doom, and one for an untitled spn series that I’m still debating about whether to even write, but both of those are rewrites for like. Entire series

Complete: uh. Not sure what I’m being asked, but I will say that I try to complete my fics before posting them — posting something and then abandoning it is a fear of mine

Do you accept prompts: I’d like to, but as contained under the above fear, I wouldn’t want to accept a prompt and then not fill it, and I’ve got the adhd so

Upcoming story you’re most excited to write about: recently started a Henry pov fic set in an au that diverges from canon post-series but pre-epilogue and its a lot of fun

Stories you’re most excited to read: thinking about the future is extremely hard, but I’m always excited to see what @rainathorpe comes out with next, and whenever @strideofpride updates I'm still alive (or, the Pearl Jam trauma series) I get inordinately excited

No pressure tags: anyone and everyone who sees this. Go wild

#tag games #this is a writing tag #I guess #original nonsense

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theseatofsacrifice · 4 years ago

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To continue supporting content makers, this tag game is meant to show the entire process of making creative content: this can be for any creation.

RULES - When your work is tagged, show the process of its creation from planning to posting, then tag up to 5 people with a specific link to one of their creative works you’d like to see the process of. Use the tag #showyourprocess so we can find yours.

I've been tagged by @lordbelacqua (thank you Dea! <3) to talk about Backlead aka: that one Masriel fic I wrote where I got massively carried away...

Rambling/essay under the cut - fair warning, it's a long one!

Okay so first of all just a little disclaimer that Backlead did not follow my usual writing process - the idea was 110% borne out of self-indulgence and it was also both my first foray into HDM fanfic and my return to fanfic as a whole after a long hiatus from writing, so for me this was really a chance to just get back into the swing of things. Everything from Heavenly Guard through to Swansong and all of my current WIPs follow a more structured process and I'm happy to discuss any of them in a separate post!

PLANNING: I tend to find with my fics that I either have a nice little timeline of events planned out pre-writing or I have a very specific event in my head and I just take that and see how things unravel from there and Backlead was 100% the latter.

All I had in my head initially was the ballroom dance scene and so a lot of my admittedly-minimal planning was around the technicalities of that particular section, as well as some of the more general details e.g Marisa's outfit, the setting of the ball, etc. Planning the dance was the most fun part because it was a chance for me to put a lot of my dance knowledge to good use and think up something that fits the back-and-forth way in which Marisa and Asriel frequently navigate their encounters. In a way though I'm actually very glad that a lot of this fic Just Happened instead of being planned out, sometimes it's nice to just run away with an idea!

MUSIC: This gets its own section because this is one of the most important things in my process. Every single fic I write is written to various pieces of music that just help me to put myself in the right headspace for whatever I'm writing at the time - sometimes its just a single piece of music (I wrote Swansong in one hour with just one track from the Unforgotten - a TV show in the UK for those of you not familiar with it - soundtrack on repeat) and sometimes its entire playlists. I do love geeking out about my music choices for fic writing so happy to talk more in a separate post about music for some of my other fics if anyone's curious!

For Backlead I found a couple of playlist-vids from the lovely raviolae on youtube that really worked wonders for my writing. This comes with a disclaimer that I did not necessarily attribute any of these specific songs to either dance scene and I wanted to leave that open for people's imagination - but it's still brilliant vibes for thinking about two once-lovers-now-enemies trying to one-up each other whilst ignoring how much they still find each other attractive.

The two playlist-vids in question are here: you're stuck on the dance floor with your rival and find out they're an annoyingly good dancer and you're dancing with your rival and both of you want to lead

WRITING: First step every time is to figure out who's POV I'm going to cover because that makes a major difference in the way I'm going to write. Characterisation is the big thing for me and there's nothing I love more than to really get inside a character's head and basically think like them, and figure out what makes them tick and how they'll react to the story I'm putting them in. With my initial idea for Backlead being basically about the subtle power dynamics of a ballroom dance, Marisa felt like the natural go-to for this one and I found it much easier in this instance to write in her headspace than in Asriel's.

I wrote this fic in a very out-of-order fashion. The first dance (the slower, waltz-style dance) was the first part I finished, then I did as hinted at above get very carried away and move onto the section in the hallway, then I went right to the start and covered the entire section leading up to that first dance. Then I revisited the hallway scene because I wanted to rework it (the initial version was planned to be more explicit and involved less dialogue - but I wasn't comfortable with writing out the former at that time and the latter got changed by way of me having a sudden burst of dialogue-themed inspiration). The second, more set piece style dance came last in terms of the 'major events' that I wrote purely because I spent a lot of time racking with my dance knowledge to try and make it work in a way that didn't feel forced.

My final major writing stage is to write the 'transitions' between each major part - small pieces where nothing particularly noteworthy happens but it helps the fic to flow from one conversation/event to the next and also sometimes allows me to sneak in a bit of characterisation that I couldn't fit in elsewhere.

Along the way I often leave sentences half-finished with a bracket indicator so I know to go back to it later or I make little notes if I've added something in that needs explaining earlier in the fic, and I make sure to sort those parts out before I jump to the self review/beta reader stage. A couple of examples are below:

Although sometimes this method does also annoy future me too 😂:

SELF REVIEW/BETA REVIEW: Whenever I finish a fic, it gets put away for a day or two and I stop thinking about it completely - if I'm using a beta reader (usually @thatlavanderbard but I sometimes enlist help from friends on discord), I'll send them a copy of my draft at this point so they can start going through and leaving comments for me to work on, but the idea is that when I go back to my work a few days later I'm looking at it with semi-fresh eyes and can properly sift through each sentence to make sure things make sense.

When I'm self-reviewing I generally tend to follow this order of operations: spelling/grammar check (via docs') -> flow check (making sure any deliberate time skips/POV changes/etc in my fic flow smoothly from one part to the next) -> address beta reader comments (because they almost always pick up on things I myself would've picked up on anyway) -> general detailed final read through to make sure I'm happy with every single line and it all makes sense.

Backlead didn't get a full beta read because I had hit a point with it where I just wanted it up ASAP and my impatience got the better of me, but the rest of the above self-review stages still happened and I still spent a fair few evenings going through it properly and also running the occasional sentence or two by some helpful discord friends if I didn't like the way it flowed but couldn't quite figure out how to remedy it!

POSTING: First step was to reset my AO3 password because I forgot it yet again whoops

On a more serious note this part is pretty straightforward - once I'm ready to post a new fic I generally just go on autopilot for this part of the process (other than when I get to 'additional tags' and immediately get brain freeze...). As soon as it's up on AO3 I swing by here to make a post about it, then swing by discord to drop the link to friends who may be interested in reading it and then I normally nervously scuttle away from my notifications for a while out of fear that people hate it lmao.

That last part was especially true for Backlead because of it being my first trip into HDM fanfic and I always get extra nervous when posting my first fanfic for a new show/game/etc. Thankfully I got quite a few nice comments both on here and on discord that provided good motivation to stick around and post a few more things!

I always panic when asked to tag people lmao but I'll tag @fortheloveofwii for any part of the Onward, Onward series, @lyracordelia for any chapter in Hiraeth or the fic as a whole, and @glassrunner for this absolutely gorgeous gifset of beautiful game soundtracks. Please don't feel like you have to do this if you don't want to though!

#stel talks #showyourprocess #y'all thought i rambled in my fics just look at me rambling here #i'm hoping this makes sense!#it was nice to dive into how my brain works when i try to write things #my writing

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rangerslayer-97 · 3 years ago

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Right, I never get involved with metas like this. There's 101 ways interpret stuff in the likes of SW, may it be canon or legends, both. I'm well aware some members of the fandom tend to lock horns. Which is usually why I stay neutral or avoid getting involved in debates. My explanation to why these are good points is in the undercut below.

The above point from the previous reblog is pretty valid. Now I'm gonna throw in some SWTOR stuff, this is legends, which means it's technically not canon. Either way, these are the exact points that apply to my female Jedi Knight, who is in essence Anakin in a way. This Jedi Knight I named in SWTOR is Violcrik.

In-game mechanics-wise, she's Dark Side Tier V. Here's where I have to add why I made some specific dialogue choices and some personal headcanons to literally explain why she is a bit of an Anakin Skywalker.

A bit of background explanation of the Old Republic. Slavery has been around for years, thousands of years and we see in the prequels, well up to the Original Trilogy, it's still a problem. Y'know that old song "99 Bottles of Beer on a Wall?" you take one down, pass it around, there are 98 bottles of beer. But instead of 98, figure 99 remains. Even if you reduce the number, something else will replace it and bring back the numbers again.

Here's the major difference between the Old Republic and the Galactic Republic. Between the Old Jedi and the modern Jedi we know. There were far more Jedi running around in the Old Republic, than the 10K we are canonically told about. They also worked far more closely with the Republic Army. The Sith fought in the OR era were far more numerous, this is pre-Darth Bane and Zannah's Rule of Two era. Sith titles such as Lord and Darth were treated as ranks. Those are only the handful of differences between the eras over 3000yrs apart.

A brief background on my Knight I developed. Violcrik was born on Alderaan into a lesser noble house known as House Baliss. Violcrik is born a Baliss (ignoring the fact she has a twin and a half-sister), the catch she was born out of wedlock, so she was frowned upon and ridiculed by the noble society of Alderaan. Her father refused to acknowledge her, she's not even on the family tree. Fast forward when she's first brought to the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, it's soon attacked by Darth Malgus when she turned 10 in an event known as the Sacking of Coruscant. This event traumatises her, as did her childhood. Like Anakin, she could never really talk about it and instead, when found again at 11.5yrs and sent to Tython, taught under various Jedi Masters, before being sent back to Tython for her Padawanship. She bottled it all up and repressed it.

The Jedi of the Old Republic hold similar views to Yoda. Even Satele stated that Jedi do not seek to lead (as in places of power like the Senate) or to rule over people. They are there to help those in need, despite the tensions of the Cold War which was well leading towards the Second Galactic War.

A very brief timeline (rough timeline honestly, of the important events).

0 BTC/ATC (3653 BBY) - Sacking of Coruscant/Treaty of Coruscant is signed/Beginning of Cold War

10 ATC (3643 BBY) - The Prologue of the 8 SWTOR classes (Knight, Consular, Smuggler, Trooper, Warrior, Inquisitor, Bounty Hunter & Agent)

13 ATC (3640 BBY) - Rise of the Hutt Cartel

16 ATC (3637 BBY) - Shadow of Revan/Knights of the Fallen Empire - Chapter 1

21 ATC (3632 BBY) - Knights of the Fallen Empire - Chapter 3-16

23 ATC (3630 BBY) - Knights of the Eternal Throne - Chapter 1-9

You'll see why these are the more important events that shape my Knight and why the above points from the previous post apply and why forcing your will on others is NEVER good in the long-term.

KOTFE & KOTET is where it all goes down the garbage chute for my Knight and her morals, which were questionable at best, and her morality for others. The expansions pretty much complete her fall to the Dark Side. Who was responsible for her fall? It was mostly Violcrik herself and her inability to look inside herself and figure out how to solve her own faults. Instead, she blames others for her problems. She blamed Grand Master Satele that she isn't a Jedi Master and it was even some luck my Knight was given the title of Battle Master, especially when her darkness was acknowledged again. The major key player that brought Violcrik to her inner darkness was Valkorion. Tenebrae, Vitiate, one and the same person, spirit. The Sith that wore many faces. The Sith was the closest to achieving godhood.

In KOTFE/KOTET, Valkorion was the primary key player for Violcrik's fall. He was the catalyst, but ultimately it was Violcrik who allowed herself to fall, to stoop to the levels of the Sith themselves to get what she wanted. To strive for ambition and power that a Jedi would not concern themself with. Factor in, she let herself be manipulated by the person who consumed Ziost and told herself, believed his word, that he was nothing like his previous identity. Valkorion had changed.

Below is one of the conversation companion quests and one I find quite vital to Violcrik. Kira Carsen states that the galaxy would be in a better place if the Jedi took actual charge in the senate rather than just playing diplomat or mediator. She's takling about taking an active role, Jedi being politicians since they have the experience of seeing the state of the galaxy. They'll know what the people want, even stating Violcrik oversees the Military. Granted, not all is rosy in the garden. Politics is a messy business, as it is in real life.

Herein lies the problem, Violcrik, during KOTFE/KOTET, took into account Kira's words. She completely forgot the 'we' part, it was just 'I'. As I will show in a series of dialogue from the choices made. Look carefully at the dialogue screenshots below.

From even those two alone, Violcrik has ambitions of forcing her ideals onto the people of the galaxy, thinking she can place herself on the highest power offered to her on a 'silver platter' without resistance. Note the personal, possessive terms like 'I' and 'me'. Violcrik is thinking for herself.

She alone thinks she can solve the entire galaxy's problems under her rule of the Eternal Alliance. Unfortunately, I have no images or footage, but if choose the DS choice and jump into War for Iokath, you are met with a choice. The two existing factions: the Republic and the Sith Empire are already gearing to go at each other's throats, but not a hope in hell go near the Eternal Alliance due to the sheer size and force of the Navy that is the Eternal Fleet. Do you think Violcrik, a Force user, the most questionable Jedi Knight I created in SWTOR, would have any resistance and people speak out against her short reign? Wrong! A group of unhappy Zakuulan rebels says differently. She has a choice to either negotiate with them or well... the not-so Jedi method. Does she choose to negotiate? Hell, kriff no! By the time Violcrik ascended as Empress of her own growing Empire, controlling a SIZEABLE portion of Wild Space, her arrogance and ego is already the size of a planetary sector, thinks she is untouchable and very much, is just an asshole in general. What does she order Theron to relay to her troops while her advisor is investigating Iokath's superweapon? She orders to execute the rebels, which is a serious red flag, that Violcrik will eliminate any threat without a chance to negotiate. It's her way or death. And those rebels are not the only ones to die by her orders or by Violcrik herself.

Violcrik, on top of Valkorion's manipulations, plus some other factors that soured her thoughts on the Republic, are reasons she wanted to rule so bad. One example, this smug, asshole, former Supreme Chancellor Saresh.

Back to the main point why I did a lengthy post, longer than usual post anyway. Violcrik already shares traits and thoughts of what Dooku was thinking: order, control, power. Violcrik is basically supporting dictatorship. She doesn't care what others say, she'll listen to her advisors, but the people? Tough shit, live with it.

You know what, even if Violcrik fixes the entire galaxy's problems, more problems will arise. She could eradicate the Hutts. All of them. Dismantle the Republic and the Sith Empire, but will that solve the galaxy's problems? No. Not only will others rise to rebel, but Violcrik is a problem. She's a tyrannical Empress. Violcrik is helping herself, consolidating power, and abusing said power. She could help people, she could help planets, but only when under her control. Violcrik wants everything under her control and wrapped up in a neat package, under her watchful eye.

So, is power in the hands of one person a good idea? Theoretically yes. Does it depend on the person? Definitely. Long term? No. Empires are bound to rise and fall. Is democracy any better? It has its uses, it's a better option and less oppressive in theory, but you can have possible corruption. No method of rule is perfect, it's not flawless and has plenty flaws, but it can make the galaxy safe and better in a way. Though certain individuals who care, really care can make the galaxy a better and brighter place.

Sorry for the lengthy post some probably will or won't take the time to read (and I won't judge). I'm not forcing anyone to read it, hence the under cut.

Didn’t think I’d find myself agreeing with Count Dooku but here I am.

#star wars #swtor #jedi knight #violcrik #long post #semi meta #meta in a way

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snailmp3 · 3 years ago

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icon edited/coloured by me // blog header by kate beaton

content on this blog varies wildly, good luck!

hello ♡ im lev and this is a sideblog for @starfai

i'm genderqueer and my pronouns are he/they :)

i am an adult so if that bothers you please block/unfollow. i dont particularly mind if minors follow me, but i do occasionally post/reblog stuff geared more towards adult audiences so use your best judgement ♡ take care of yourself

i write fic sometimes! maybe check out my AO3 if you want? fic tag is lev.fic!

→ if you've found your way here from either of my current jjk wips (any greater meaning or yuuta, child of divorce) and are hoping for some sort of indication as to when im updating again: im hoping to switch to a twice monthly update schedule this year, but that's across all of my wips, so it's hard to say when either will update. any greater meaning is my priority, so please be patient with me.

please do not talk to me about shipping discourse, i do not care and i do not want to hear about it ♡ block me instead

list of all my current/planned fics under the cut ↓

It can't be summer all the time (A series of stories in the same canon-divergent universe as "Any Greater Meaning")

Cigarettes, Strawberries, Sunsets, Fields is a summer-sweet series of vignettes from Satoru and Suguru's high school days. Primarily an exploration of their friendship across the years. Pre-slash. [Not yet posted.]

Mind The Gap is a short scene taking place shortly after Suguru's defection, wherein he reflects on a memory. [1/1 chapters and 423 words (for now)]

Counting Back From Ten is a series of disconnected vignettes featuring how various people see and interpret Gojo Satoru in the years after Geto Suguru defects from Jujutsu Society. [Currently 1/11 chapters and 1,224 words]

→ Any Greater Meaning is a satosugu fix-it fic that takes place primarily prior to and partly during the Shibuya Incident, in which Suguru gets his body back from Kenjaku [through means that are explained in the fic]. The story is slow moving and focuses mainly on character relationships and how Suguru's return changes the events of canon. [Currently 8/29 chapters and 38,580 words]

Heliophilic is an itafushi companion piece for Any Greater Meaning that takes place alongside and in the background of the main storyline for this series. Megumi-centric. [Not yet posted.]

[as of yet unnamed series]

→ Yuuta, Child of Divorce is a JJK0 au, in which Yuuta is picked up by Geto's cult shortly after Rika's death, and raised alongside Mimiko and Nanako. Yuuta still ends up joining the Tokyo Jujutsu Technical College, but through different circumstances and to a different end. The fic features both Yuuta/Toge and Yuuta/Maki, though no cheating or breakups are involved— it's a poly situation (no Toge/Maki, however). satosugu is also present, though not the main focus of the story. Currently 3/13 chapters and 8,534 words.

Divorced, Never Married is a satosugu focused follow-up to Yuuta, Child of Divorce, focusing on how Satoru and Suguru mend their relationship after the events of the main story. [Not yet posted]

Infidelity Clause is a Nobara-focused follow-up to Yuuta, Child of Divorce, in which she comes to very interesting conclusions about her senpais and their relationship(s). [Not yet posted]

Stand-alone stories / One-shots

Carrion Birds is a canon compliant satosugu fic featuring time travel and a love that persists to the end. [2/2 chapters and 13,591 words]

JJK Fic Concepts (disconnected scenes from jjk stories i'm probably never actually going to have the time or motivation to write in their entirety)

not every haunting is for horror is a scene from a canon-compliant au in which suguru is haunted by haibara's ghost [568 words]

Kalopsia is a scene from a post-shibuya incident canon-divergent au where suguru finds mimiko and nanako in the ruins of shibuya [480 words]

fics for borderlands linked on my other sideblog @snailpdf ♡

#i dont have a dni #ill just block you♡#lev.txt #lev.art #lev.fic

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meowsaidmayaanime · 7 years ago

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What I'm Watching August 2016 as of 8/31

Natsume's Book of Friends 8/31 partial watch

This is an adorable anime, I started watching italmost right after Durarara, and if school hadnt just started this week, I would have been fully caught up. As of this post I have only watched seasons 1 and 2 fully, and a little bit of season 3. So in technicality I will write my opinion of it after I am all caught up on the September monthly watches, but because I got halfway through the series while still in August I decided to put this little note here, haha.

So yes, I have been watching this super cute, heartwarming, feel good anime. It's about a boy named Natsume who can see yokai. Often times I get very weary about plots (whether anime, tv show, movie, ect) where the main character can see something no one else can. However this anime does a good job focusing more on the stories rather than simply torturing the main character through ostracization. Well, I will pick this first impression review that I usually do in September when I finish the four season that have been released. So look forward to it!

Durarara 8/27 Addendum (see original post below Time of Eve)

I talked about this anime a little further down in this post after I finished the first season (so read that first if you haven't yet). I finished the entirety of the show last night and wow. It's an incredible story, so intricate and everything is woven together. It's one of those shows where because they switch between multiple characters and plot lines within the show, and because it is a mystery with new information and twists happening all the time, that you forget your own emotions about the characters sometimes.

Tons of things happen that make you feel for the characters and suddenly exclaim in reaction to something, but because your so constantly wrapped up in the story line, trying to figure out how this relates to that, and what this persons motives are, and whats going to happen next that you focus so much more on that than anything else. It constantly has you thinking, which I love about the show. A show that doesn't rely on pure emotion and shock to keep the audience in, but sheer curiosity. It's a good mystery, a really, really good one.

Though I can see why some people may not like it because it makes you think too much, or because there's less pure emotion, or because it's so intricate and you can't keep up, or even because the pacing is somewhat relatively slow. But I assure you, if you can get past all that, this is an amazing show. It's not one that I will gush over, and try to force you to watch, because that's not the kind of show it is. It's just well put together, as I assume the light novel is.

I've just starting reading the light novel, and there is so much more to it. I'm on chapter two and while the anime's first episode did a wonderful job capturing the events and feel of the light novel, the light novel has the intricate detail and thought of the characters that is impossible to convey through any other medium. I am really excited to be reading the source material, and I hope that it will be able to expand and close up some of the holes from the anime that the studio could not fill. When I finish, I'll definitely talk about it (when is the question since not all the novels have been translated...), so look forward to that, because I know I will.

Great show, good to watch if you like intricate, multi-character, multi-story, mystery, action, somewhat supernatural, 'semi-natural' anime. (p.s the dub is pretty dang good.)

Time of Eve 8/21

Yes, yes, I'm well aware that in this giant span of time I've only managed to watch one short 6 episode-er anime. I was on vacation and then fell down the rabbit hole which was the Lego Harry Potter years 5-7 game.

Anyway, I had seen this anime in passing a few times, but finally decided to give it a chance when one of my co-workers recommended it to me. It was definitely worth the watch. Time of Eve is a sci-fi anime taking place in the not quite as distant as you might think future, where androids are commonplace within the average family home. We follow Rikuo who, after reading the location log of his family andriod, discovers that the andriod visited a cafe of her own free will. Confused and concerned, he visits the cafe to find that its only rule is to treat humans and androids equally without discrimination. From here on he, and the audience discover that there is more to androids than just being a robot, and that they are, or have been steadily developing their own individuality.

Right off the bat I was immediately reminded of both Ghost in the Shell and Chobits. Mostly Ghost in the Shell for the political-socio topics the anime discuses. Its actually quite fascinating, not just the topics and themes, but the personalities of the characters as well whether or not they are human. Its a very realistic/natural anime, with a surprising amount of character development for being only six episodes long.

My only critiques would be about the animation itself. Its generally rather smooth, the art style included, however there are many moments where the movement of the camera and characters is very choppy and shaky. This happens mainly when there isn't much movement happening during the scene. Whereas scenes where characters are doing a large amount of movement are very smooth and well animated. I'm not sure how intentional the 'choppiness' of the animation was, but I can tell that the studio chose to focus its animation budget on certain areas more than others.

Regardless, the animation is easy to brush off considering how well the show drew me into the story, mentally and emotionally. I would recommend this to anyone interested in sci-fi, robots/androids, and those who like to question what it is to be 'human'. (It's also a good commentary on 21st century culture and what kinds of things our technology could lead to).

Durarara (season 1) 8/8

Its about a boy named Mikado who decides to go to a highschool in Ikebukuro to fulfill his longing for the excitement of city life in contrast to living in the country where nothing every happens. Here he hears about and witnesses strange rumors about the headless rider, gangs, and other odd phenomenon that are happening in the city. That's how it begins, but we learn very quickly that Mikado is not the only main character, and that there is a lot more going on in the city than just Mikado would know.

I actually decided to start watching this because of this shirt I got with my Akibento back in May featuring Celty the headless motercylcist from Durarara and Haruhi from the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. (btw not my own image)

Yes this was back in May, and yes I did start watching it a few months ago only to now finish the first season. Its a very slow paced anime, like a slow burn, which is why it took so long for me to get through. Don't get me wrong its a good anime, and I did want to watch which is why I periodically came back to it after i finished binge watching a bunch of other anime. It's just slow paced, and not one that will hook you and chain you down to your seat for the next 6+ hours. Hell, I've binge watched anime that I've liked much less than this one.

That being said, its not just slow paced but it also has numerous stories happening at once. Which makes it hard to give a good synospis on. We immediately learn about or at least meet almost all the characters, and are introduced with a number of plots, topics and questions. All which seemingly have nothing to do with each other, but end up intertwining to create a complex and fascinating story. by the time I finally managed to get halfway through, I consistently watched the remaining episodes back to back. The fact that it was available in English dub on crunchyroll also really helped, that way I could do my packing for my vacation while watching it.

Its a great low key supernatural mystery anime. I say low key, because the supernatural aspect is sort of laid back? It's not an in your face over the top kind of supernatural, and it being supernatural is not even the main point of the show. Which is very nice. It's like a semi-natural action/mystery/supernatural anime. Further the characters and story lines are well put together.

All in all, I really like it and I'm going to keep watching. I don't know if it's something that I would necessarily be able to recommend, because that relies heavily on what kind of anime you would like. If you like semi-natural, complex, slow paced, laid back action/mystery/supernatural then you'll like this. But if you cant handle the slow pacing, or prefer more out of the above genres this is not one for you.

Dance in the Vampire Bund 8/6

I actually remember watching this anime, or at least i remember watching the first episode, back in middle school? Possibly? we either way, I loved the first episode, even re watching it now I still really enjoyed it, which was disappointing when the rest of the anime turned out to be so different.

In the show, vampires have just come out of hiding and declared their presence to the world. The princess of the vampires, and current ruler Mina, pays Japans debt and intends to use her political hold over the government to purchase an Island and have it become its own separate country designated only for vampires. Meanwhile Akira a highschooler who recently lost his memory finds out he and Mina have an important past that he cannot remember.

The problem that I have with this anime is that they try to mix a very 'young' or immature story line with a significantly more mature one. They try to mix a highschool vampire warewolf memory loss, basically everything that is the epitome of a bad pre-teen romance with mature themes such as the VERY heavy political aspect that takes up a good 50% of the anime. And not just government politics, but socio-historical political relations between different species and cultures. Don't get me wrong, its still a better love story than twilight, but the fact that it is a highschool love story pretty much ruins it for me.

I wouldn't recommend this, hell i didn't even have the will to finish the last few episodes. The political parts were great and fascinating, but the immaturity of how conflicts are resolved between the main characters is very disappointing. The show either tries too hard to appeal to an older audience, or tries too hard to appeal to a younger audience. Either way I didn't really like it.

Hyouka 8/2 TOP PICK FOR THIS MONTH!!

So the first thing i need to mention is that this show is first and foremost a slcie of life that happens to include a lot of mystery. Not a mystery that happens to be a slice of life. I originally thought it was the latter which was why I was disappointed that it didn't end the series with a mystery arc, but instead the way a slice of life would.When you acknowledge the show for what it really is, a natural slice of life, it is amazing. For numerous reasons.

First the artwork is so incredibly detailed and beautiful. Second the visuals are distinctly different for each thing ti tries to convey, and completely succeeds in doing so. The audio is amazing, the music is beautiful, the animation is so smooth and they even animate things that aren't necessary to the plot but are animated anyway to make it all feel so REAL. Not to mention the episodes and mysteries are so well written!

look at the incredible amount of detail they put into EVERY SINGLE SCENE.

even when the background is blurred!

even people who we never learn about or see again have details in their clothes, faces, and expressions. I checked, we NEVER see these people below actually interact with the main OR minor cast.

I almost forgot, this show is about Houtarou a high schooler that sees the world in 'gray'and whose motto is "If I don't have to do it, I won't. If I have to do it, I'll make it quick." Convinced by his already graduated sister, he joins the classics club which was endangered to be disbanded because there were no more members. He meets a girl named Eru who also joins the club and discovers that he has a knack for solving mysteries. That is, only when Eru earnestly goes to him and yearns for him to solve the mystery because her curiosity cannot be contained. From there they quickly discover that the classics club has a past shrouded in mystery.

Its incredibly well done, I love slow the pacing myself, because it fits the flow and nature of the anime. However I do have a number of issues with it myself (some reveal content spoilers so I won't state those here). I admit that the way they ordered large mystery arch and single episode mysteries was not handled well at the very end. Don't get me wrong the ending fit the characters incredibly well and was very good and realistic, however considering the quality of the larger mysteries that were prevalent through the rest of the anime, I feel that they should have ended the series with a multi-episode arc and then one final single episode arc, rather than many single episode arcs strung together. The anime was an adaptation of a light novel, which covered 4 out of the 5 published novels. I've taken a look at the titles of the chapters and it seems that the 5th book is quite the elaborate story. One I would have liked to have seen in the anime, though would clearly have gone over the 22 episodes the anime ended at. Perhaps since this write up for the episode is already so long, I will create a post just about this anime. It definitely deserves more talking about!

Anyway, I do recommend it to veteran-ed anime watchers. It has a wonderful pace that does not push by quickly, great character development and insight, and fascinating mysteries and dialogue regarding such. Its perfect for anyone who loves natural slice of life. Those who enjoy mysteries would also enjoy this, as long as they understand that it is mostly a slice of life, and thus will follow the format of slice of life and not the format of a mystery anime. Its a stunning anime.

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