#this series of books ToT i love the characters i am up for IT

[journalsouppe]

Professor Layton and the Spectre’s Call!! I actually discovered ordering the game from the UK with shipping was actually cheaper than ordering the American version of the game, there were no major differences that I could tell as they still had the original English voice actors.

I enjoyed this game!! Not my top favorite installment but I still had a great time and loved the new characters. The puzzles were well designed and had nice scaled difficulty and the mini games were really neat too. The Eternal Diva references were so blatant lmfao but I’m excited for Miracle Mask! I was also super exhausted when writing the summary so sorry there’s so many errors and I use the word fun a million times ToT

The Descole and Tea sticker are from JordyDrawsMerch! All other stickers are from Daiso. Writing typed below!

Rating: 8.3

Played: Sp 2024

Port: DS on 3DS

Favorite? Y

Replayable? Y

Recommend? Y

Series: Professor Layton

Comments

Emmy and BABY LUKE!!

OH THANK GOD IT’S CHRISTOPHER ROBIN MILLER

Ngl im so excited to watch the anime, I love the animation sm

Oh Layton is not taking Claire’s death well at all

I love how animated the background now is!!

Beautiful music as always

Does Clark have the same VA as Dmitri lol

THE WORLD WILL END? Damn Luke

The specter looks like one of those little kingdom hearts guys

Luke’s been a LaytonMobile hater since day one lmao

Luke is especially funny in this game

Layton taking Luke to the black market is so wild

THE PUPPET PLAY IS ADORABLE

I’m going to fight aunt taffy

Ooo we get to play as Emmy

Holy shit Emmy

GIRL FROG

Emmy asking if Layton always pokes lamps he sees is making me think he physically touches everything the player taps

The convo with the meowing man???

CHELMEY AND BARTON

Based anti-cop npc

THE DYNAMITE WORKS LMAO

Is Hershel gonna get a cask of amantillado’d T^T

The canals are so pretty i like the design of misthallery

Oh i do not like the police chief

I LOVE YOU EMMYYY

Grosky is very funny

Omg the cliff death police cover up reminds me of killer frequency which i just watched a playthrough of

FUCK JAKES

Where’s phoenix when you need him

JAIL BREAK JAIL BREAK!!!

I love descole’s voice

YAAA LADDER VS STEP LADDER

NESSIE???

The story book stories and animations are so CUTE!!

I wonder if Naiya was added to the game to hit at the Eternal Diva

This kinda reminds me of a pokemon movie but I don’t remember which one it was

^^ it was pokemon heroes when latias and latios were caught ^^;

AN OCARINA!!!

Creepy fucking factory music ToT

Oh dear. I seem to have stepped on a hexagonal spanner

Descole always serving massive cunt

Woah the golden garden is beautiful

Ohh so that’s why Luke was fork life certified in plvspw

ZAMN T^T

THE WAY THE SPRITES WALK KILLS ME LOL

I really like these little episodes from others POVS! ^_^

Summary

This was such a fun origin story for Luke and Layton. Very much a classic Layton game with world ending machinery and gorgeous environment design. I really liked both Emmy and Descole, there’s a more serious undertone than with Don Paolo as the main villain (even though I do love Don Paolo). Emmy is amazing!! I was afraid she would be sidelined like Flora was but I’m glad to she stands her ground and does what she wants to do. I alos like how we got to go on our own adventure as her to London, she’s a character that doesn’t need to rely on Hershel to solve everything. Meeting Luke was great, loved his blank stare. It was fun seeing his origins and how Clark and Hershel knew each other. I’m curious how the prequels will play into the New World of Steam, especially now that Luke’s family have stories and sprites (unlike in the original trilogy). Loved the ACAB story, v nice to play while I’m still so mad at what’s happening to university students currently. Descole was so fun, I am obsessed with his outfit and personality. Unfortunately I was spoiled on who he is but I’m very excited to learn more. I think similar to Ace Attorney, the fourth installment is that last game in the classic 2D style, which is sad but PLvsPW makes me very hopeful about 3D Layton. The overall story was fun, I really liked the sub plot about the Ravens - that was really fun (i was so tired writing this omfg). I wish we got a little more backstory on the rich guy who died, I feel like there’s more to the story. OO I loved the little episodes, especially the one about Chelmey. They added a lot of fun context and gave more life to the NPCs. Such a fun and classic Layton game, I can’t wait to play Miracle Mask! (And read the light novels). This wasn’t my favorite Layton game but I still really loved it and had a great time and loved the puzzles — that’s all I want from PL!

[faeriekit]

🍌🍐🫐

🍌 In your opinion, what’s the funniest joke/reference/pun you’ve made in a fic?

I have no idea! Real talk, I put all my points into making words instead of remembering them, so I know what I've written, but less...how?@nutella-icecream keeps a little digital quotes book of a lot of funny fic lines, which is how I remember most of them, but I'm a little proud of "the phone cord had more kinks than Brucie Wayne" in Blister Pack.

🍐 Is there anything in canon that you absolutely hate and love to fix in fics? A wrong choice made, a fuck-up in characterization, a misunderstanding never cleared up, a conversation never shown onscreen, etc…

I don't know! Mostly everything I do is about stuff that happens in the margins-- logistics, thoughts, feelings, mental health struggles, unhealed plot points, so it all sort of blends together... But Valerie and Danny should have been endgame, or at least had a conclusion. Real talk. Everything else is variable due to taste and plot of the week, but Valerie deserved better. I dunno, I think of a new problem in canon to fix once a week.

Unless we're talking about PJO, in which case, TOT is entirely about uprooting canon from the ground up and chopping it up for salad. What the hell. This cannot stand. I am still convinced I can rewrite the whole series.

🫐 What’s your favorite underrated thing in your fandom? (A ship that only you seem to write for, a character there’s almost no fics about, a trope that criminally hasn’t been written yet, etc.)

I have two crazy people ships, and that's Tucker/Jason and Bruce/Desiree. I believe (as of last I checked) that they are still the only ones in their specific ship tag. No one sees what I see, and that's because, like, why would you; Bruce/Desiree are doomed aro worsties, of course, but you CANNOT convince me that Tucker/Jason does not have a chance!!!!!!!!! LOOK AT THEM. THEY COULD DO IT. THE WORLD'S MOST TRAUMATIZED ANGRY MAN AND THE WORLD'S BIGGEST DORK TECH TWINK. COME ON. OPEN THINE EYES AND—

Ahem. Also I like very normal things, like TimKon clone baby fics and silly domestic shenanigan in absurd circumstances fics, but these ships are, by far, the most out there thing I write. Have written. ...Both...?

These were fun! Thanks for asking!! 🧡🧡🧡🧡

[mejomonster]

Ive been playing Metaphor re Fantazio and. Much to say.

The short of it is though: thank fuck for a NEW game. Really new. Not part of some series, not a sequel or a prequel or a remake, new. New! I would appreciate companies continuing to make new games once in a while! Taking a fucking risk. Thank you.

The long of it is: if you like jrpgs, turn based games, a distinct art concept, and would like to play a game where you live out a life in a fantasy fairy tale esque world where your childhood best friend the prince has an evil curse causing him to slumber, and the man who cursed him in order to usurp the throne has just also killed the King and escalated his power grab by purposely summoning humans* (the most terrifying monster in this world), amd you need to undo the curse on your friend the prince and combat this killer save the world? Then this is the game for you.

It has some vibes that remind me of Drakengard (which I'm fucking thrilled by - the humans as monsters, a world of no magic as this story's own fantasy stories it tells, the banning of technology, the curses and monstrous humans and ancient relics of unknown origin, the fantasy novels in the game of a utopia of an equal world, the very well developed various cultures and political issues), bits that remind me of Dungeon Meshi (the main guy just being a Guy - whom I love a lot - with a regular guy voice and a regular ass height and an ordinary low status elda and just in the plot because he cared about his friend the prince initially! The group you gather as a party, the worldbuilding is very fantasy with some darker elements in their lore but the visuals are very Embrace Colorful fantasy the way Dungeon Meshi is). The politics of it, very heavy politics (you're spending part of the game trying to gather support to be king from the people), the character designs, remind me a bit of Berserk. I get a little bit of Dragon Age Inquisition vibes (but inquisition wasted so much of my time with side quests w no payoff and mundane tasks and no real ending unless i got the dlc so i dont wanna think of it) and Metaphor already is is giving me payoff in story, what I love most, for whatever I do in the game... whether I travel, spend time with a supporter, read a book in the game, do a random task to increase my traits skills, or progress the plot with main story dungeons... I'm rewarded with story and worldbuilding and character stories. I love games like this. In a way, its like Yakuza for me, because Yakuza games also always reward me with story or lore or an activity I have fun doing, so no time in the games is ever actually boring or annoying for me.

The difficulty level of Metaphor, for me, is also awesome. Theres easier modes if you just want a good story (so anyone can enjoy it), and I am able to play on normal and actually manage it! If you enjoy harder difficulties then I cant speak for how good or bad those are, as I'm too chicken to play a turn based jrpg on hard. I dont like level grinding ToT. Normal difficulty so far has not required me to level grind much, just fighting as it comes up in my playthrough has been enough to get me to the level needed to continue managing the main story material.

Give it an hour to see if its your kind of game, there will be story setup and combat by then. Give it until the big assassination attempt, if you want to get used to the feel of the story and if it's going to be something you want to get deep into. Because I'm guessing this is going to be a Persona kind of game in the sense of an 80-100 hour fucking story. I mostly only play 30-50 hour games (except Yakuza and Lost Judgement really entertain me lol so those easily get me playing all the mini games for hours), so for me, I needed to know I was going to be into the story.

I think the game is incredibly charming, plays well, has interesting worldbuilding and story (thats not just surface level - they thought it out well), and the anime cutscenes are cool but throw me (Im used to seeing 5 special ones in old ps2 games, and none nowadays, so i feel like im playing a show for a second every time i get another animated cutscene). Its extremely fun if you were looking for a good fantasy game, with a NEW story and world.

(Again. Im super grateful and excited that this game is not a part of an existing series. Its a whole new world, and that feels great.)

[shiroi---kumo]

//So what inspired you to write Kumo? I'm very curious

|| So I actually started writing Kumo many many years ago before I created this blog

This blog was born of the fact that I lost the log in for my old blog so I simply moved him. I've been writing Kumo (on Tumblr) since 2014 in truth. (Whoo ten years now)

I've been apart of the FFU fandom since the old days of the Japanese fandom sites and artist website galleries and circles and when the series DVDs were releasing one at a time. I saw FFU for the first time when I was 15 and it was on one of the trial DVDs that had like 1 episodes of a few different shows per disc that came in my friend's NewType magazine.

I fell in love with Kumo at first sight. He's been my favorite character since day 1. Since I was 15. It's been 21 years and I'm still desperately in love with this man. Kumo isn't just my favorite character, he's my dream cosplay and has been since I was just a teenager. So I've been invested in him and everything he is and everything that concerns him since I was just a wee tot in high school, so picking him up as a muse was really just everything coming full circle.

I picked him up as a muse because despite my nervousness because no one knew him my RP friends at the time encouraged me to do so. They knew I loved him and they said they would write with me even if they didn't know him at all ( and they did 😊).

I learned quickly how easily I could cross him over with literally anything and how versatile of a muse he was but personal matters drew me back from writing and I took a break from Kumo for a while. My intense love of FFU sparked again speaking to other friends in 2020 and being on a layoff from work at the time because of the lockdown, I rebuilt Kumo's blog.

Here we are. Four years later. Drowning in world building and lore and at least 50 OCs deep. Kumo and Kiri (his older brother (yes I write him too)) have always been special to me. Since I was a kid, and I mean that with every depth of my soul when I say that.

I mean begged my grandmother to go up to town with me on my learner's permit driving to the store with every scrap of money from pop bottles and other various ways a 15 yr old in 2004 can manage to find money I could manage to find saved up for months just to buy the next volume of FFU (vol.5) because the DVD that has Kumo and Kiri's episode on it finally dropped after months of collecting these DVDs starting at vol. 1, one at a time. The release date for Vol. 5 of FFU was highlighted and circled in my school planner because I waited so long to watch Kiri and Kumo's episode. It was important to me and still is. I've rewatched that episode alone more than 100 times.

FFU was my SHOW.

I can't put that in words enough. I watch it at least once a year every year for the last 20 years because it is my "I'm depressed and I need to be happy so I'm going to watch a thing I love" show.

Kumo's face has the power to cure depression and end wars to me I swear to fuck. I cannot give you the proper words to explain what I mean when I say that it's been 21 years and I'm still desperately in love with this man.

His voice just soothes me. His face melts my depression away. He is just - the best. He's my favorite and it took a long time for me to let myself be okay with that because some of my IRL friends teased and mocked me relentlessly for liking FFU as much as I do, but I can tell you right now - it's been 21 years and I am still desperately in love with this man - so yes of course I would write him.

Of course I would write him and expand his world and give him the backstory and home world and proper culture he deserves. So fun fact, FFU ran for 25 of 52 planned episodes and was cancelled 1/2 through because SquareSoft went bankrupt. The second half of the series is referred to as "Final Fantasy: Unlimited After" (After 2 / After Spiral) and was only ever released as a script book that was never seen outside of Japan. The day I got my hands on it, I cried.

It's been 15 years of me owning the novel "FFU: Bond of Two / Twin Stars" for Google to give me the tech to scan a page and translate it but my god I'm reading it now. 15 years I waited to read this novel and we're doing it dammit.

I can't begin to tell you what I mean when I say FFU is my show but it is and it's not perfect and has problems and it's so quirky but it's my quirky and I adore it to pieces.

So really it only makes sense that I would go whole hog on world building build Kumo's entire society and culture from the ground up for him. The creators sure didn't so someone needs to. They gave me a cookie cutter outline of Misterica and now it's mine to go crazy with and do whatever I desire.

And Kumo is so fun to write. He's so fun to write and explore and listen to him talk to me to tell me about his life and his people. It's so fun to meet his family and his friends and his society as a whole. Misterica is so dear to me, I just - can't. I love them so much.

I've loved Kumo as a kid, so of course I love him now. It's been 21 years and he still has my whole heart.

[siena-sevenwits]

Jan 2 - Day #3 - A Fortnight of Books

Book that made you laugh?

The Saga of Didrik of Bern (Of unknown authorship - translated by Ian Cumpstey)

This was a read aloud to my brother, and oh my word, how we howled over it! The Thidrekssaga is a Scandinavian heroic cycle composed in the mid-thirteenth century, and we rather expected something along the lines of the chivalric romances we were familiar with. Something like Chretien de Troyes' Arthurian works, perhaps, or like the Nibelungenlied, with which are it shares some characters and loose story arcs toward the end.

BUT

it was only like them in their bizarrest aspects (all the literature of the time is bizarre, but this was JUST the weirdness.) These stories have NO depth to them - just as wackiness. Some favourite moments: Knights managing to swordfight in the dark-of-the-moon by banging their swords against rocks so that sparks fly, allowing them to see by spark light. Hagen finding mermaids swimming in the river and deciding he will hide their clothes while they are in the water. Then asking them to tell his fortune and cutting them in half before they even half a chance to head for the shore. Being told what a kind, mannerly, thoughtful, loyal, courageous man Samson was, followed by the example of the time he kidnapped his liege lord's daughter and took her to a house in the woods where he started a bandit camp and went about the countryside threatening to burn cities down if all the men in them didn't join him in marching tot he next city and threatening to burn it down. Didrik becoming so mad at being called an elf's son that he randomly breathes fire at his opponent and thus kills him. The only remotely moral person in the cycle was Hornboge Jarl, who was apparently the jarl of Vinland, which as a Canadian makes me happy. ;-)

I mean, we had fun, and it's interesting from a historical point of view. Tumblr Arthurians are sure to love it. Those looking for some depth of thought or beautiful writing will not.

Book you most anticipated this year?

The Lockwood and Co. series by Jonathan Stroud

It's been a few years since these came out, but I got to anticipate them in the sense that I got to take a trip to Indigo to buy the next volume every couple of Tuesdays after school, which became an outing I really looked forward to. These books are good fun. They belong to that genre I enjoyed so much in childhood, of children having to live independently and create their own unusual home in the midst of a strange situation. One can extrapolate some good ideas from the books if one is of a mind to do so, Portland Row becomes quite dear to me, and they're great if you like a spooky atmosphere but nothing all that scary. (I did get the chills over one scene in Book 4 - but it was an insomnia night and I was reading at 2 AM during a huge thunderstorm, and the chill factor was more adventurous than horrifying.) They're not perfect. Can we PLEASE stop with all the comments on George's appearance? It clashes horribly with the subtle arc where Lucy becomes more comfortable with her own body that we're CONSTANTLY being mean-spirited about George's! The books themselves had real ups and downs in terms of quality, and the language got a bit harsher at the end than I like. But they also became something I enjoyed sharing with my dad this year, and connecting with him over books of various sorts has been lovely. Anyhow, good fun.

[skrs-cats]

yea!! not to spoil too much but it focuses on her grieving and finding friendship in dove who shes only just really met as it takes place after tigerhearts se and fills the gap before tbc begins, its sweet sometimes the novellas really hit sometimes they dont i have a friend who skips them completely and i dont get it they add so much NIGHTSTAR MY BELOVED </3 i first read about him in yellowfangs se and thought damn i wish i could read more about him and then his manga came out and i was so happy lol, hoping we get cannon merch of him someday i love how hes written, gonna make a note to make fanart of him aha, unfortunate how he was treated but it feels like it shapes who he is i suppose ohh that makes so much more sense now i thought i was just loosing touch with the fandom and not being able to keep up with names, i was never rly good at it. 💀 i was talking about that with a friend recently too tpb used to repeat backstory about characters so much that it became frustrating but the newer books cut back on it and now when they introduce a character you have to really sit and remember it because they arent explaining it EVER again yaaa!!! u get it lol i started reading other YA series i never read as a kid and thought id reread wcs with a friend for the hell of it (and cause i had so many of the books i never got to) and it was great but as soon as i got to new stuff id never read before it kinda lost its charm and i took a break, sometimes you just arent feeling it, tho the longer you wait the more there is to read when you come back to it who knows maybe holly will be back from the dead again or we will get a jay, holly or lion se, were getting an ivy one after all and theres holly and jay content in the bonus scene for tbc 1

that sounds so sweet ToT SOMEDAY ILL FIND THE TIME TO READ AND REREAD THESE NOVELLAS ive forgotten most of them LMFAO. i think the ones i remember most are hollyleaf's, leafpool's, goosefeather's and dovewings which is.. wow. i def dont have a preference

and yes ur def right that the way nightstar was treated added to how he is generally perceived and his character, it kinda reminds me of mudclaw too! (whos manga i have also still Yet to read rip) i feel bad for them both but their unfortunate circumstances are what makes them such interesting characters T-T

i feel like we are old men yelling at the clouds but in a GOOD WAY HAHAHAHA im glad that despite it, we are talking about the series either way so i guess that means we still feel quite passionate about it, whether in positive or negative manner lmaooo

i think whats stopping me from continuing in reading the new books is that i want to reread it from the very start first, so i am very much stuck in my own way khkjahkljf tbh though whenever i see snippets of the new books in socials i actually find them very interesting! but i def also had moments where i just grew tired and felt like getting away from it all. i am praying so fucking hard for more og po3 content i miss them SO damn MUCH WAHHHHHH

speaking of the bonus scenes, a few weeks back i found out i completely forgot they happened! MORE SPECIFICALLY W HOLLYLEAF, WHAT. I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST W JAYFEATHER AND HIM GRIEVING FOR LEAFPOOL. YOURE TELLING ME THERE WAS HOLLY CONTENT TOO??? what the fuck is my brain doing forgetting this information what the hell im such a fake fan TTTTTTOTTTTT

[wonwooslibrary]

hi sammie :3 i just wanted to apologize for not sending you any messages all this time TT i've been so busy all my hw and projects have been piling up

AYAYAYAYA CONGRATULATIONS ON SOCIOLOGY IM SO PROUD OF U U WORKED SO HARD :D yeah it hit me like a truck when i also realized i had to write... i haven't written anything in ages so i'm way too rusty... beware of poor writing.

omg im so happy u enjoy the matching tattoo prompt cus im doing something similar to that for my fic to you ehe

omg i have so much nostalgia from pokemon, esp pokemon xyz. i get so emotional thinking about it. and the lore is just *chefs kiss*. my fave games tho are rhythm games because i love to jam out to music and break my thumbs in the process. IM SO SORRY BUT I ABSOLUTELY HATE MIRACULOUS. i loved it a lot before but they keep on drawing out marinette and adrien's entire love story so now i hate it ToT. i just don't have the patience for that long, esp with love stories.

social anxiety is the worst TT its ironic because humans are meant to be social creatures that rely on interdependence. I've been trying to get medication for it since it's been getting increasingly worse to the point i feel like I'm gonna get a heart attack ??? yeah but somehow im being "dramatic"... anywho enough ranting

sigh i love people whose love language is physical touch <33 esp since i love to be hugged. my personal love language tho is words of affirmation simply because i also love to read!! im not much into tiktok romance books (ironic because here i am on tumblr to write the corniest stuff ever) but i like to keep those two realms separate ykyk.

it's question time! im just gonna send u one question this time tho.

what do you do whenever it's the holidays? anything fun?

i love talking with you, stay safe <3

🕯️anon

HIII ANON <3 pls don't apologize for not sending a lot of messages, I understand that people are busy!!! trust me, i am also busy with coming home for the holidays and helping my parents around the house in their new apartment.

OMG POKEMON i used to play pokepark 2 on the wii with my brother all the time and that game is one of the many reasons why gen 5 is the best pokemon generation...also bc snivy, tepig and oshawott are the best starters :)))

RHYTHYM GAMES OMG i used to play the superstar series and i cried for WEEKS when superstar bts was shut down...and then again when superstar pledis was shut down. i love playing rhythym hive tho!! i acTUALLY PULLED AN XR MINGYU EARLIER TODAY???

Also pls so many people hate miraculous and I'm ngl it's so dumb but sam (pls ignore the 3rd person lmao) is brain empty no thoughts so dumb plots with overly cliché main characters and extreme slow burn that lasts 7 years makes me happy (tho apparently the timeline in the show it's been like 9 months??? weird)

To answer your question, i honestly don't really do anything that interesting during the holidays. my family celebrates Christmas and so we just have a small Christmas at home, and then we go to my grandma's for a bigger Christmas with all of my aunts. What about you? what holiday do you celebrate? do you have any cool traditions?

I BELIEVE IN YOU, YOU'RE DOING GREAT ON ALL YOUR TESTS AND PROJECTS!!!

sorry about the short message, i can't wait to hear back from you!!

happy holidays, sammie <3

[bertilakslady]

1. Hard to say, but probably the medieval text I wrote a book about. Good thing it’s a corker.

2. By whose standards? The top 5 I’ve enjoyed the most, or the ones I think are highest quality (whatever that means…)? One I used to recommend to my students is La Mort le roi Artu (translated — Penguin Classics — as The Death of King Arthur — & no, that’s not the one I wrote about, but my friend did!). So many of the books I’ve loved and rated highly spoke to me strongly because of my circumstances at the time. Passion Simple (Annie Ernaux) is one. And, everyone should try to read at least one Shakespeare. Probably Hamlet. But do see a production, as well!

3. I don’t have a favourite genre. Don’t read horror (nightmares). Do love sci-fi. And drama (plays or books).

4. Almost any (except horror). I have a LOT of books.

5. Anywhere and everywhere. Lately, mostly eBay.

6. In the last 3 weeks or so: The Snow Spider trilogy. Hothouse (Brian Aldiss). Border Country (a couple of my followers will recognise a common thread here). And Roger Lancelyn Green’s retelling of Robin Hood.

7. Too long ago to remember. When I was a tot, my Dad used to read me the Winnie the Pooh books (amongst others, but those are the ones I remember). Other influences: the J4 teacher who introduced me to myths and legends, as well as the Narnia books; the J6 teacher who read us Swallows and Amazons. Years later I finally learnt to sail (though not in the Lake District) and it was every bit as much fun as I’d imagined when I was a little kid. In French, the Petit Tom series got me started, in particular, Petit Tom Protège la Nature (which was well ahead of its time in terms of topic!)

8. Maybe Madeline in Paris, or one of the Babar, or Miffy books. Or Grey Rabbit, or Beatrix Potter. Those were the ones I remember from around that age.

9. My jobs have always involved a lot of reading — so, all the time.

10. My guilty faves are all fanfics.

11. Too many! I have a lot of interests, so I have a lot of books on lots of different non-fiction topics.

12. Yep, Shakespeare. We started with Julius Caesar (why?! So many kids get put off by this play) but the next year we did Macbeth, which was awesome, and in our last year, Hamlet (which is the greatest thing ever).

13. No

14. Dog ear, never. I used to work with literally priceless manuscripts so my default is to treat books with great care. Work texts are heavily annotated, but always in pencil.

15. No time to review right now, but strongly recommend Hamnet, Circe, and The End We Start From (all by women).

16. No idea, but probably around 30 (not counting work).

17. I’m not up-to-date at all in the genre, but I’d say you can’t go wrong with Marcia Williams’ brilliant retellings of myths and legends (particularly the one on King Arthur, which I am qualified to judge).

18. Yes. Almost any, if it’s a good story, well-told and well-written. Middle Ages unsurprisingly tend to be a favourite period.

19. 50 Shades of Puke. When it first came out, I glanced through a copy in an airport bookshop and decided it was so appallingly written I put it straight back. I love fanfic, as most of you who follow me here will already realise. But it’s got to be good.

20. Argh I do this sort of stuff for a living… But. The obvious: good story, compelling characters, literate style. If your grammar or spelling is dodgy, help is available — use it. Attention to detail — and clarity — is important.

book asks:

book you’ve reread the most times?

top 5 books of all time?

what is your favourite genre?

what sections of a bookstore do you browse?

where do you buy books?

what books have you read in the last month?

is there a series/book that got you into reading?

what is the first book you remember reading yourself?

when do you tend to read most?

do you have a guilty fav?

what non-fiction books do you like if any?

did you enjoy any compulsory high school readings?

do you have a goodreads?

do you ever mark/dog ear books you own?

recommend and review a book.

how many books have you read this year?

top 5 children’s books?

do you like historical books? which time period?

most disliked popular books?

what are things you look for in a book?

[rigelmejo]

Y'all I finished reading 盗墓笔记1 in chinese, what do I read next?! ToT (below are realistically what I feel up to tackling potentially, but I'll note alternatives for when I'm at that reading level ToT)

寒舍 by 夏灬安兰 (pingxie supernatural au, favored because I've read 2/3 of this before so I know I can read it extensively which is faster... though it's like 300k characters so faster is relative)

盗墓笔记2 (upside? It's like 40-50k so short, and I'll probably start picking at this as the alternative reading choice to go back and forth with something else. On the flip side, I just read the first book and would prefer learning some more varied vocab right now)

云村笔记 (yuncun village dmbj story, very slice of life iron triangle living in a village, upside its that slice of life adult vocab I lack and its fairly easy reading, downside its maybe also better as an alternative I switch to when tired of Main Reading material)

苍兰诀 (Love Between Fairy and Devil novel, upside I do think I can handle reading this alongside the audiobook which could be cool, and some xianxia vocab. However it is a bit more challenging since it's xianxia)

琉璃 (Love and Redemption novel. Upside is I was listening to this audiobook today, and like canglanjue I think I could just listen along to audiobook with this. Same challenges/benefits: I learn more xianxia vocabulary but it's more of a slog. It's longer than canglanjue which is Intimidating as I've only finished a 124k characters story so far, nothing longer.)

撒野 (upside: big potential increase in daily life vocab, I can also read this extensively making reading faster. Downside is it is a LONG novel and I'm not sure modern romance teen setting is something I can focus on consistently right now to actually make much progress... it's not one of my fave genres... also the chapters are like 4k characters a piece, quite long.)

镇魂 (upside? Could just read along with audiobook. Downside? It's quite long, like 撒野, and I'm a bit scared to tackle something much longer than 100k... I want to like... work my way up in novel size I can handle... I've finished 20 chapters of 镇魂 multiple times but attention burns out about that far in. Also i love this story so me not knowing every word perfectly may demotivate me, causing me not to finish Again, and ultimately the goal right now is just to read a LOT so... that would not be ideal).

SCI (I do like a good murder mystery, and this series meets several criteria: I can handle reading this author right now without much difficulty, it's in case format so I could read a section then stop for another novel and come back later - dmbj also has this benefit - and I could pick up some modern day and crime novel words, which woulsd benefit me trying to read 默读 and 破云 later. In addition, this author ErYa also has another novel in a different time period, which I'm considering for picking up some vocabulary in that setting. So anything by ErYa is up for potential reading).

成化十四年 (novel Sleuth of Ming Dynasty is based on. A candidate because surprisingly this is a bit easier for me to read than 天涯客 - and 天涯客 is one of the priest novels I can tackle extensive reading right now - and I am interested in reading the story. I could pick up setting vocabulary, some case vocabulary, and i imagine it's somewhat split by cases which may help with reading it in chunks... so yes any cases/arcs structure novels will be easier to read since I don't have to commit to reading a full novel in one go, but instead just one section at a time)

???

[quinntamsin]

Thus has opened the Book of Boba, the story of the last of the line of Fett!

“I will rule with respect.”

Book of Boba, Episode 1 “Stranger In A Strange Land”, I’ve noticed a lot of people seem to have just disliked this episode off the bat. Honestly, it was a bit weak, but that’s beacuse like a lot of Pilot’s it has to seriously set the stage for everything else. First, the expanded view of the Tusken’s was a good idea. Showing this and connecting it to Boba’s dreams in the Bantha tank was solid. Comparing it to his struggle to survival to establish his family and his place as Warlord (I’m not so sure about the usage of Daimyo), was a good call. Plus, the Tusken history gives us a greater sense of why he had the Gaderffi stick in general.

The fact that we are obviously doing a hardcore rise to power story as the crimelord of Tatooine is something I’ve wanted in forever. My hope, is that we get a serious underworld storyline. I want to see a ton of fucking Hutts and yes, a bunch of the fucking Black Sun. Plus, some harder looks at more than just the Tuskens, but also the wildlife of Tattooine. The story had some great action and some good one sided dialogue, but it didn’t hit land as well as the Mandalorian pilot did for me. Book of Boba, Episode 2 “Tribes of Tatooine”, we finally hit stride and get a stronger sense of the setting. I didn’t mention this up above, but I really do love how Temuera looks in his formal Fett armor. It makes me hope we’ll see more members of House or Clan Fett down the line. This compares really well when we push past the pageantry of his standdown with the “Twins” to more of his backstory with the Tusken Tribe. I like how you can just sense his Mandlorian battle skills allowing him to adapt to the Gaderffi.

The yell all male singing is interesting, and I think in a way it plays well tot he harsh beige color palette of the open desert. Our major enemy is a heavily armored swoop train (or hover train) that Fett must lead an assault on.

“Like a Bantha yes?” - His fucking face!

Now, this makes mse think of why maybe more of the Raider clans haven’t used Swoopbikes. Maybe it’s just this one tribe, but it would make sense to get one right? I do notice that a lot of people on the planet prefer desert animal mounts. Perhaps the bikes are shittier over great distances? Hey Star Wars stans, TELL ME WHY

My headcanon is the hooded Raider who teaches him to fight is female, I dunno why. But it just seems awesome for that gender assumption to be non-male to me. Honestly, I would prefer it if Tusken’s had fucking alien as hell reproduction like fucking Andorians.

Action scenes in this series are sufficiently awesome. The swoop bike heist against the Pykes, was on a level I have come to expect from Star Wars. It’s what that fucking heist in Solo should have been!! Yes, and with less fridging of random characters for “PLOT RAISONS”. Whoever they gnabbed to do the stunts is skilled!

Temeura is a king of silent action focused acting. He doesn’t say a lot, but his movements, face, and even little stupid groans fit well. Why the hell would “BOBA FETT” be monologuing. Nah, he’s Mando’ade, and he will act rather than speak! When he does, I can see that the writers are taking advantage of everyone loving Gravelly action dudes. I AM LOOKING AT YOU GERALT! Back to Temuera, his words definitely have a distinct tone of magnanimity befitting a man who wishes to be warlord.

Continuing the usage of heavy sign in the Tusken language. I loved this development from Mandalorian, The fight for the train is done with the the Pykes forced to pay a toll. We are now introduced to the LSD lizard who gives Boba a dream to make his Gaffi. The overlay of arms and the gutts of the Sarlacc are pretty simplisitc symbolism. The part where he sees his dad in memory leaving Kaminoa was a nice touch. And him hangover strugging back with the stick to be his gaffi was a nice touch.

A ceremonial dressing scene is nice, because it shows that a lot of acceptance into a group isn’t just about you magically have their colors, or the costume. It gives us a sense that you are now considered part of the Clan, because you earned it. Plus, it was a bad ass outfit when he killed those troopers. I like that he learned to make his own gaffi. Honestly, this scene was as every single little bit we saw of making a damn lightsaber.

However, ites letting us see how one of the most unique weapons outside of LASERsWORDS Star Wars had. Gaffi sticks are a distinct weapon of the Tusken people. Sure, this episode and it’s scenary are cheesy. But I like it, it’s good background story telling. Oh and the dance incorporating a kata is nice, and it shows all the warriors  and gives a nice sense of fucking bonding with  a warrior culture.

Hottakes:

Heh, the new humming and shouting music makes me chuckle. Somehow it fits this really weird ne setting we’re exploring.

Tusken Warleader is my favorite and is stealing this show.

This episode lack Ming-Na I demand more Shand!

I want to write a Mando and Tusken raider love story now!

[whyiask]

HAPPY NEW YEAR

There are so many people I’ve met on this site, so many friends I’ve made. I joined tumblr only a few months ago, but my life has already drastically improved. I smile more and laugh more and I feel happier all the time, knowing that you all are just a click away. I’ve often heard people refer to tumblr as a hellsite, but I don’t fully agree with that. True, some things on here are crazy, but more than that, I’ve found people like me. I’ve found people who understand me, who think like me and feel like I do. Ya know, before I joined tumblr, I had never met another bisexual person(crazy, right?). Y’all have made life more enjoyable and happier and brighter, and for that, I’ll never be able to thank you enough.

I have soooo many people I have to thank, so I’ll try to keep the list of people as short as possible: all my closest friends and all the people who have been amazing and I have loved seeing since I joined tumblr earlier this year <33

@one-neat-nerd you were the first blog to ever follow me, and I don’t remember if you were the first blog I followed, but you definitely were in the first 10. You were a wonderful introduction to tumblr, and I love everything you post/reblog. We’ve never really talked, but I still want you to know that I appreciate you.

@warblerjeff you’ve changed your url more than 3 times since I first followed you, and it always takes me a second to recognize you aha! But when I do, I’m immediately have a rush of happy memories- all your Glee posts and all of the Glee content I get from you. We’ve never really talked, but seeing you on my dash is always so amazing.

@jesussavedevenme aha hi! We’ve never really talked, but you were one of the first few blogs I followed when I first joined tumblr, and I know I tagged you in a lot of stuff at first (because i didn’t have any other friends lmao), so sorry about that! 😅 You’re really cool and I hope you have an amazing 2021.

@strawberry-seraph we haven’t talked in a while, sorry about that! Talking with you is always super fun, you’re a fun person and I hope your having a great day! You were one of the first TLC blogs I followed and you were definitely the first actual friend I had on tumblr. Thanks for being so nice to me <33

@cerenoya Ceren... where to begin. We haven’t talked a whole lot, but you are such an amazing friend and super kind when we do! You were my first tumblr idol for so long, because I aspired to be like you/run a blog as cool as yours!! Have a great 2021, you deserve it.

@cindersnightmare I felt very distant from you when I first followed you. You were just so COOL and your artwork was so GOOD, I didn’t know how to approach or even begin to express my love for your work. When you followed me back, I tell you, I was s h o o k. We’ve never talked, but I consider you a friend, is that okay? You’re amazing, keep being amazing <33

@books-and-starss oh gosh- I don’t even know where to begin with you! I love you so much, first of all!! So, so much. I love talking with you, you’re really sweet and ahhhh your writing is SO GOOD!!!! You are a great beta reader and so eager to help me- it just warms my heart that you would offer up your time to help me. Everything you reblog is so positive and encouraging and awesome, it’s so nice to see that kind of stuff on my dash. All the aesthetic pictures you reblog are super cool and pleasing to look at. I absolutely ADORE seeing you on my dash every day. <33333

@dylxn-lee aha hello there!! I first met you because you were one of Abi’s friends, but now I’m in your fanclub and ilysm. You’re really cool and nice and deserve to have a wonderful year <333

@theaberrantone ahaha for so long I pronounced your name wrong in my head- I just want you to know... I see you. I see you every day, liking every single one of my posts. I see you in my notifs many times a day and I just- wow. It means so much to me, I am honestly so touched that someone as cool as you takes the time to scroll through my mess of a blog and like the things I slap into it. You’re amazing and someday I aspire to be as cool as you <333333

@mochiowo-20 hi there :333 ilysm, and we haven’t talked for a few weeks, and I haven’t gone through your blog in a while, but I STILL LOVE YOU SO MUCH. You are amazing and ily. Your so sweet and cool and ahhhh you deserve to have the most wonderful 2021 ever. (i love your blog aesthetic btw) <333

@teawithhoneyharper I know you’re taking a break from tumblr for a while, but if you do see this, then I want you to know that I care about you so much. I love you Darcy, and you are amazing. I hope your mental health is getting better and I hope life has been better to you <33 ilysm, take care of yourself, and have a wonderful new year <333

@fablehavenfandom hi there friend!! Your posts are amazing!! I love your writing so much!!! and all your headcanons are beautiful and I 100% think of them as canon now. I hope you’re having a great day, and I hope you have a great year <33

@fairiesandstarlight omG your posts are all so cool! You’ve got a beautiful blog aesthetic and I love everything you post!! I hope you’re having a wonderful new year love <333 wishing you the best

@maya-livingstone hi there!! you’re a very, very new mutual, but I hope we’ll be able to get to know each other and become friends over the course of this new year!! I also just got the Renegades series, and I’ve noticed you like that, so hopefully we’ll be able to talk about that soon!!

@pluckycluckyducky hi plucky!! It’s Joy from the nevermoor server. we haven’t interacted on here very much, but you’re really cool and you should know it. have a wonderful 2021 <33

@fablehavenandfandomsfanatic hi there!! you had to break for a while, but you’re back now and I love all of the things you post! Have a great year <3

@fablehavenfangirl you’re really cool! Everything you post/reblog is great and I enjoy just scrolling through your blog when I’m bored. You’re amazing, keep being amazing <3

@renegadenebulahufflepuff heyyyy! how are you doing? you’re amazing, we haven’t talked much but you’re really cool and I am wishing you only the best for 2021 <333

@bookishfangirl14 hey there!! I love seeing you in my notifs!! we don’t have very many overlapping fandoms at the moment, but you’re still really cool and I love looking at your blog (even if i don’t understand most of the posts). aha, i hope you have a wonderful new year <33

@introvertedtater-tot hii! we don’t talk much, despite having a LOT of overlapping fandoms, and I don’t know why. Let’s fix that this year, shall we? I hope I can get to know you more, you’re amazing and sweet and i hope we can build up a solid friendship in the coming months <33

@devils-on-a-stereo oh my GOD. Okay, honestly? I am still s h o o k that you actually follow me, I mean, c’mon. Your art is literally the coolest thing ever, and I am honored to know you. You deserve way more attention as an artist than you have, and honest to god you are the coolest most  i c o n i c  blog I know. Stay awesome ;)

@its-liiinh-cinder-official heyyy there!! You are literally a top-notch comedian, I aDORE all of your ‘linh cinder’s random posts’. They are hilarious and your stories are hilarious, and you seem like such an amazing and chaotic person. I wish i knew you in real life, you would be so fun to hang out with. i love seeing you on my dash every day, and you’ve got such a v i b e going on. Have a beautiful, wondrous, and magical 2021 darling <333333

@just-another-freaking-dreamer it’s so awesome to see you in my notifs all the time. You’re really cool and you deserve cool things. Have a wonderful new year and I hope we can become better friends and interact more <3

@ragingbisexualcore ahhaahah you are the single most chaotic person I know. If you lived in a book, you would FOR SURE be that one character who is dead set on overthrowing the government and cackling madly as you take over the world. You are amazing and I hope you take your chaotic self and go wild in 2021.

@queenofsassgard hey there!! I hope you know that occasionally I just go scrolling through your archives and liking everything- anyways, you’re amazing and I hope you have a wonderful new year!

@elysian-starbucks-frappe heyo! what’s up? I hope you’re doing great, you deserve to do great. You’re super cool and amazing and ahhhhh you just deserve to have a wonderful 2021. ily and have a great year <33

@as-the-stars-foretold Caelum. You. Are. Fantabulous. You are my mother, you adopted me into this weird, chaotic friend group, and I will be eternally grateful. You love the stars and I love listening to you ramble about them in the server. You’re so passionate and strong and I love that about you. Life wouldn’t be the same without you. You might love stars, but you yourself ARE a star. You are a star, you shine brilliantly, and you are too good for this galaxy. We don’t deserve you. I love you so much, and you deserve every single goddamb good thing in this universe. You’re always there, ever present, and I love you so. much. Please stay your fantabulous self and I wishing on every star I see that you will have the best 2021 ever <333333

@carolinelikesdinner Carol. God, I have so much to say to you. First of all, thank you. Thank you so much for being you. You first introduced me into the big wide world of the Fablehaven fandom, and ilysm. You’re so cool, too cool for me, and I treasure every single conversation I have with you. You’re so funny and an amazing artist. All of your art is SO DAMB SPECTACULAR. You are gorgeous, your art is gorgeous, and your writing is gorgeous too. Take care of yourself love, stay safe, and have the best 2021 you possibly can <3333333333333

@operation-crown-jewels Caraaaaaaaaa ilysmmmm <3333333333333 I love talking with you and I love you so. freaking. much. I can’t even- I can’t even describe how much i love you. You are so special and sweet and supportive and I just can’t- you have NO IDEA how much that means to me, how much all your little comments mean to me. You are amazing, and special, and ahhhhh. You are SO special. So unique. And I’ll never find another friend like you <33333333333

@addies-invisible-life hey emma :3 You are actually the coolest person I know.You are so capable and smart and beautiful. You are kind and supportive and you are open to everyone who talks to you. You love with all your heart, and I love that about you. In everything you do, I can see the love behind it, the work and effort and love that you put into it. Every conversation I have with you lifts me up and energizes me(which is really rare because most conversations tire me). I still, after all this time, still can’t believe that a person as amazing as you even chooses to be friends with me. I love you so much and I will never stop loving you. You deserve the world, but I can’t give you that, so just take my reassurances that I will ALWAYS, NO MATTER WHAT, be here for you. ily and have a wonderful 2021 <3333333333333333333333333333333333333

@arushahisatroll my god. Ru, I love you so much. You are my internet girlfriend and I care about you so much. You are incredible, honestly. Your art is immaculate and you’re always so cheerful and fill me up with energy just THINKING about you. you always eager to commit arson, which is a very good trait, and I love plotting crimes with you. Every time I see your icon, my face lights up and I internally scream, bc “oh my god someone as perfect as ru exists in this world- i didn’t know that was possible.” You are the best, you are the absolute best, my bestie, and ily. Have a spectacular and immeasurably awesome 2021 <333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333

@starry-tea-party Abina. Abina you are my rock. You are my light, my star, my sunshine, my galaxy. I love you so much, I can’t even begin to describe it. I don’t know if I can do justice to just how much you’ve helped me. Words... words have never been my strong suit. I love writing because I can weave stories together, piece together words I like to form sentences, and use those sentences to form narratives. Writing has always been easier for me than talking.... because in writing, I don’t have to worry what others will think, or how others will perceive me. I select the best words, and I present those words- the words I meticulously chose and nit-picked- to the audience. Life is a stage, and I have never been great at improv. I often find it hard to tell people things, to convey my meaning in the best possible way and to know exactly what words I need in any given situation. Talking is hard for me. But with you... with you, I never have to monitor what I’m saying. I never feel the need to reread and reread my messages before sending to make sure everything is in perfect order. It’s... it’s easy to talk to you. It’s easy to speak and I don’t worry when I’m with you. You make me feel so at ease, and I love you so much. I don’t have to worry about saying the wrong thing, because I know that you’ll always support me and be by my side with a kind word and a heart of gold. Because that’s who you are. You are a creator, a dreamer, a lover, a visionary. You’re a friend. You are the hand that pulls people out of the water. The light that shines the pathway. You are the rock- the mountain we stand upon and look out over the beautiful sea. We look down at the seas below us and say, “how have we climbed so high already?” The reason is because you stand so tall, so bright and so magical, that we climb, we climb and we look out at the world below us. Not only are you tall, strong, powerful, but you lift people up right alongside you. There is nothing like the high of seeing the world stretch out beneath your feet, swinging you legs through the open air but knowing you’ll never fall. You represent that high in my mind. You represent and you remind me of the exhilaration of feeling untouchable- uplifted by love and kindness, able to reach heights you’ve never been to before. There is so much that can come when someone extends their hand to you. So much more can be achieved when there are two, holding each other up. You have held me up for so long. Every since we met, you have brought a smile to my face at the thought of you. Every time I think of you, my heart swells and I can’t breathe. Every comment you make or put on something I post has me screaming internally ans smiling uncontrollably. Whenever I see your icon I know my day is about to get one million times better. So thank you, Abi. For being my rock.

[bleachbleachbleach]

HELLO.

I just wanted to say that I love, love, love your tags on that character/tool post a lot! Some of my favorite shows/books involve characters that can't keep it together and just barely make it to the end of the story or make it there in an "inconvenient way" and tbh I find that usually the narratives that follow these characters don't really work away from them either--the narrative is just usually more questioning instead of fully formed.

Like, 'what if/how would', y'know? There's less of a clear meaning and more just 'what if they hadn't done that. what if they had done that. what if all that meant nothing. what if that struggle was all there was'.

But oh boy, when they DO work away from the narrative. *chefs kiss*

I mean, most of my favorite Bleach characters are narrative nightmares who either hinder or cut off lines of theme in the story entirely. And, in general, I think there are A LOT of characters in shonen--a genre known for very long narratives that can't possibly complete every thought but also can't just abandon all those characters introduced ESPECIALLY the fan favorites or personal favorites--work in the way you described.

Tbh i think your tags really highlight why so many ppl get drawn to these characters/why they're so fun to play with in fanfiction.

If you have more to add or more thoughts about this you want to lay down I am here, eagerly awaiting and ready to pick them up.

Also, who do you think in Bleach is the most fun characters who sort of drop kicked the story, in your opinion? Who's the one you like the most? And who's the one you dislike the most?

[For posterity the referenced post is this one.]

Aww, thank you! That’s really lovely to hear. I was anxious about even putting it in tags because I don’t think I presently have the capacity to explain it well—and even if I did might still sound bananas to many. Or at least the bit about negotiating with characters and how *they* feel about being subjects in stories. Because as much as that really is my practice saying it out loud takes me back to like… FFN in 2003 where every store was prefaced by extensive chat-form back-and-forths between the fic author and their character "musies" and that is not something I think fandom would benefit from bringing back in force, hahaha. But anyway.

Here’s the part where I disappoint because I don’t think I actually know Bleach well enough to speak to it in this context. WHICH SOUNDS DUMB EVEN AS I TYPE IT BECAUSE LOL WTF IS THE NAME OF THIS BLOG WE ARE CHARLATANS AND POSERS FOR CLAIMING AS OUR NAMESAKE NOT ONE BLEACH BUT THREE BLEACHES but truly, my experience of Bleach has a shallow depth of field. I feel like I have weirdly intimate knowledge of some severe rabbit holes but a non-existent to uneasy sense of the gestalt.

Like idek man, in my "slow re-read where I am actually paying attention" Ichigo hasn’t even met Byakuya and Renji yet. ToT

I'm gonna put this behind a cut because it spidered all over the place, but in summary:

characters and their capacity to produce narrative failure

the charm of longform serialized series and their invitations to imagine stuff

me attempting to talk about Hitsugaya and feeling a fool, as usual

I guess in general terms, I’m really interested in characters and their capacity to produce narrative failure. Not failure as in 'bad' but failure as in things that break form or are circuitous or are actively detrimental to a narrative arc. All my strongest examples of what I’m thinking of are from a different fandom and therefore not relevant to this blog, alas. By comparison I think anyone in Bleach can keep it together better than the characters that are immediately coming to mind, lol. But I think this idea dovetails often with trauma narratives, or depression narratives, because these things are often… non-narrative? Like, there’s no fourth or fifth for minor fall or major lift. Sometimes it’s the same thing over and over again, or maybe nothing. Maybe it’s the exact same self-sabotage narrative dictates could have been avoided. Maybe it’s some act that emanates forth but cannot be explained because it cannot be explained and will never be explained. That’s a version of what I’m talking about, in any case, though not the only version.

Your note about longform shounen definitely resonates with me, too. In my mind I don’t like long things and I prefer series that are more self-contained but whenever I have ever landed in a long-term fandom, with a piece of media I felt obliged to carve out chunks of my life for, and to interact with at that level of creative fannishness, it’s always been something stupid long and serialized by the seat of its pants. I know plot holes or dropped threads bother a lot of people (makes total sense, don’t get me wrong) but I find these things incredibly attractive. I see them as invitations to join in the fun. Especially when it’s so much a part of the form and genre to have this, as you said, lack of real expectation that every thread will be followed to its conclusion (or that it would be worthwhile to do so) and every thought completed.

There’s this piece by David Grann that was published in The New Yorker in 2004 that I really love that speaks to part of this idea, albeit in terms of fictional universes versus fictional characters. But Grann is talking about Sherlock Holmes (Doyle original) and the ways that Sherlockians would like, approach apparent lapses in narrative and then solve them according to the established rules of the universe. I just love that. There’s also the line, "Never had so much been written by so many for so few," which LOL if that ain’t fandom I don’t know what is!!

I feel like I’m actually talking about three distinct but related facets of these thoughts in this post, except all at once and without clear transition, uhhhhh.

Gah, I am broken and now can ONLY think of examples from my not-Bleach fandom, but to try a different tack and add yet another facet to this already funhouse-mirror post, my various attempts to write Hitsugaya often feel like they come up against a version of this. I think Hitsugaya has aggressive side character energy, and I find it difficult to make him the center of a story and have it feel right to me. He feels different to me than writing other minor characters, where they can be the center of their own stories even if their story is not the main story. Like, two of my fave characters in my other fandom have literally like… three lines in 350+ episodes and it feels easier to imagine THEM at the center of their story and I think what it comes down to is that Hitsugaya probably prefers what he not be written. And when he does become more narrative I think he’d prefer that none of it was happening in the fist place. But at the same time he always seems to be…around??? whether there is really a good reason for him to be present or not. XD So while, say, he and Bartleby "would prefer not to" (because THAT'S what this post needs, a Melville reference), Bartleby actually opts out and Hitsugaya out here volunteering.

He also often feels non-narrative to me because he feels very declarative, if that makes sense? Like, the coming-to-decisions or coming-to-realizations parts of existence happen pretty quick, or are approached perfunctorily. I feel like I find narrative in the "coming" part of that equation and instead Hitsugaya will be like, well, I’ve already done that part without you, and/or plan to do that part in the future and it will still be without you, the audience. Anyway, here’s the determination I’ve made, here’s what I’m going to do, and here begins the long and probably tedious process of my doing that thing (off 2 go train in a cave for a bit). I don’t think he actually believes the world is that simple, Tab A into Slot B, but I do think he’s already made that assessment and can see coming to terms with that as a horizon, if that makes sense. So even if he doesn’t know the answer to something, or is completely at a loss of what to do (what to say to Hinamori? how to productively address the number Aizen’s done on him) there’s still not necessarily a story there. Maybe the answer is you grind, and it is repetitive and boring. Maybe you just hold things. There’s not even the act of learning how to hold things, necessarily, just the practice of doing so.

Wow, that probably doesn’t sound good! I feel like I need to suffix this with the assurance that Hitsugaya is my absolute runaway character in the whole series and this was true 15 years ago and it is still true now (truer, even) and everything I just said are reasons why I love him.

[joeys-piano]

Writerfest - Joey’s Interrogation

Tagged by the lovely @thewriterinthecottage , who really wanted to pick my brain and see what kind of writer I am so we can compare notes

Fandom: I’ve written for a few different fandoms in the past; but as of right now, my focus is on Bungou Stray Dogs. I’m not much of a fandom-hopper when it comes to creating content, so you won’t find me juggling a lot of fandoms at once because it’s easy for me to lose track of things that way.

Where do you post? I post on Twitter, Tumblr, AO3 and sometimes my Kofi page. All of those links are in my blog description. Twitter is more for experimental writing and whatever floats my boat, my Tumblr audience gets the best content I curated from my Twitter writing, AO3 gets the best content from both Tumblr and Twitter, and Kofi is there for me to post some wholesome stuff occasionally. So if you want to participate in polls and vote for wacky shenanigans or writing challenges you want me to do, Twitter is my sandbox in that regard while the other platforms get my more polished stuffs.

Most Popular Oneshot: For the BSD fandom, my most popular oneshot was an odazai smut I wrote back in April called Hold Me A Little Closer. I was stressed with my creative writing professor at the time and pretty much wrote this story because I wanted to create something that I wanted to create. I was sick and tired of his assignments and pretty much fueled all of my pent-up creativity and into this lovely oneshot that many of y’all have enjoyed :’3

Most Popular Multichap: For the BSD fandom, I don’t really have one. For fandoms that I’m no longer a part of, I have a few.

Favorite Story Written So far: Hands down, it has to be the grueling and very monostorious fic I wrote back in August for Oda - called Savor The Moment. As of right now, it’s the longest BSD project I’ve ever published and it’s at a whopping 12.5k ish. Oda is one of my favorite characters from the series and what inspired this story was my fascination for Dark Era, my fascination for Oda’s past and where he came from before joining the Mafia, my fascination with his relationship with the kids, the curry shop owner and Dazai, and my love for writing about the weather and food. I wrote, rewrote, edited, and revised this story in the span of a month and of everything I’ve written, you could tell how much love I had for this project and for what I was doing. It’s not an easy read by any means and you definitely have to take your time with it because it dives into light and heavy themes, but it’s a worthwhile read if you really love what I mentioned and want to see how I flesh out Oda.

Fic you were nervous to post: Anything regarding physical intimacy because I don’t get it, but I find it fascinating. As an autistic biroace, exploring physical intimacy through writing is an interesting endeavour and I do believe it shapes how I approach a lot of the relationship writing that I do and what I tend to gravitate towards when I write how comfortable characters are with each other and when they share some sweet or indulgent moments. I wouldn’t say I’m nervous, per se - but as someone who’s exploring topics like this through my own perspective and what resonates with me, it does make me wonder how people not like me perceive it. If that makes sense.  

How do you choose titles: I’m not ashamed to admit that I wander through Goodreads and see what titles are being published, find a few that I like, take the elements that I do like, and mesh something together that I find fitting for a story. I like looking at published books for inspiration for titles to see what the trends are and how other writers do it. Sometimes, I’ll use phrases or lines of dialogue from my fic as the title if I find it fitting or I literally use the theme or main message of the story as the title.

Do you outline? I outline enough to know the rules of my story so I can figure how I want to break them (if it’s a multi-chapter project), and I outline enough to at least know the beginning of a story so I can start writing. I struggle with beginnings so knowing how I want to start makes things easier for me. Sometimes I’ll draft what the general path of the story will be, but I always deviate when I’m actually writing because I’m a discovery writer and through the act of writing, I have a much better grasp of what the story wants to be. I don’t care if I deviate a whole lot or if I have to rewrite what I’ve written. To me, that’s just part of my process and I embrace that. I find that I enjoy writing a lot more when I’m loose about these things because that’s where my experimental style really thrives.

Complete: Ever since April of 2020, I’ve made a goal of publishing one fic onto AO3 per month. That’s why I’ve been a productive fic writer this year despite the world going to shit and the Hell that is remote learning. More than anything, that goal has taught me a lot of things about myself that I didn’t know and it’s helped me fall back in love with writing and in me figuring out why I write and what I want to write. Since April of 2020, I’ve posted 18 works onto my AO3 and many more on my Twitter and Tumblr. Ranging from drabbles to ficlets to oneshots and poetry!

In-progress: I’m currently working on a writing challenge that my Twitter followers voted on, and it’s an AU where Oda and Dazai left the Mafia together and burned the belongings that indoctrinated them into the organization -- Dazai burns his overcoat while Oda burns a pair of sunglasses (reference to his original character design where he wore sunglasses ToT). Another fic I’m working on this month is transcribing a poem I wrote in October and making it a full-fledged fic! Once again, it revolves around Oda and Dazai. However this time, they’re an established and domestic couple who’re snuggling under a blanket as winter encroaches upon their futon. That’s a feel-good fic and I’m all for it!

Coming Out Soon/Not Started: I have a TBW (to be written) list that I don’t want to reveal just yet since those fics will come out in 2021, but I can tell you that they’re intricate character studies and of me exploring different relationships and dynamics that may’ve occurred while in canon :3c

Prompts: I fulfilled 10 kiss prompts that I received in October and finished the last one earlier this week or a week ago. With the holidays approaching and with me wanting to finish some stories before 2020, I’m afraid I won’t be taking on any more prompts for this year. However, if you want to prompt me something for me to think about, my Tumblr ask is always open for that or you can participate in my random and occasional Twitter polls where you get to pick what I do for a story.

Upcoming Work Most Excited About: I have a soukoku WIP that I wrote back in September. The first draft is complete. It just needs a lot of rewriting and edits. But when I’m done, that’ll be my longest published work for the fandom. Why this excites me is because it’s the only time I’ll ever write a main pair fic that’s 20k+ in word count and knowing how this fandom views soukoku, I’m interested in what engagement would be like compared to me writing for my OTP and just experience what that’s like.

[popculturebuffet]

Jake Reviews Stuff: Amphibia: Marcy at the Gates

Marcy arrives! The Plantars make it to Newtopia but first have to deal with a slight ant problem and a new addition to the family, as we finally meet the adorkable Marcy. Legs in two months under the cut. 

So as you could probably tell by the tone the last few weeks, doing this has weighed on me a bit. While I do love talking about this show week after week, as well as having a recurring series here to bring in readers, the split quality of the Season thus far has been a challenge. Now when I say split I don’t mean like star vs season 3 where it was either really damn good and some of the show’s best writing or “oh god what have they done to marco’s character this time”, it’s more either really good standout episodes ore more forgetable average ones. See a good episode I can gush about, dive into big charcter stuff, motviations, that sort of thing. I defintley will with owl house at some point and have with other shows. A bad episode can be taken apart and taken to the cleaners, which I haven’t done much of but probably should and if you want any taken to task yourself, I do comissions. But self promotion aside, the point is a meh episode just dosen’t leave me with a lot tot alk about and hte recaps became really dry as a result as I just couldn’t find a lot of jokes, and having a busy few weeks on top of that didn’t really help, nor did the antipciation for this week and the intersting setting of newtopia. 

Thankfully a combination of a really good few days, a better sleep schedule, and a really good episode this week, and a pile of scary go round collections for a dollar have reinvgorated me, so hopefully I can get back to doing what I love: Overanalizing children’s cartoons. So with that we can dive right into the episode. The keithdavidpocalypse is upon us! Pitter Patter! We open with Spring and Anne in the cart. Their close to newtopia, but Anne is worried they never found Marcy, while Sprig isn’t because her last friend turned out to be “Evil”... which Anne harshly rebuffs. And both sides are understandable: To Anne, Sasha was her friend.. a manipualtive and bossy friend sure but one who genuinely cared for her, she just may not know how to deal with people. To Sprig, Sasha is some asshole who abused his friend, tried to murder his Pop Pop, and works for a guy who tried to murder his whole town. It’s really understandable he woudln’t have the same warm fuzzy feelings Anne has.. insert your own Sashanne joke here.  We also get our first actual look at Marcy who to my suprise, rather than be another form of manipulative.. is simply an awkward nerd, constnatly playing video games, reading books , cataloging shit, and trying to get her friends to play d and d. So me if I knew what d and d was in high school. 

Anyways, the family finally DOES make it to Newtopia, impressive as you’d expect when the guard won’t let them see the wizard no way no how. Antique references aside, the guard at the gate actually has good reason for not letting them in as they have a tiny barbari-ant problem. A species Hop Pop is, in a nice touch, unfamiliar with due to the Valley not having them. We quickly see them in action as one approaches the plantars, basically a giant ant with ant-lers. Yes I used a pun there sue me. Anyway, our heroes ward off the ant they do find with some really cool team manuvering, and Polly showing she has spiked teeth. It’s a cool sequence. However they quickly find themselves outgunned, outplanned, outnumbered and outmanned. They gotta make an all out stand. Their gonna need a right hand man. Also I finally saw the film version of hamilton, as you can tell. Utterly magic. 

Said Right Hand Man, er woman, er tween comes in the nick of time as a cloaked Marcy sprays some black goo and sets it ablaze, scaring the ants off, snatching a stalemate from the jaws of defeat,  then rappeling down on a rope shot from a crossbow, also making polly want one because of course. She then.. Faceplants. Still a solid 8/10 entrance Marcy.  Marcy is played by Haley Tju who you may remember from such shows as The Loud House. And that’s all I know her from but given Stella’s one of my faviorites and Haley’s performance is part of that, so it’s unsuprising she’s great here. Also fun fact I learned by looking at her trope page: She actually played a younger version of London, brenda song’s character, on the Suite Life I Pray for Death but Death Won’t Come.. or On Deck for those who’ve never watched it. But I like the fact two londons are now on the same show together.. and an actually good noe at that! Horay. But yeah Haley is a great VA and what little i’ve seen her in and a welcome addition.  Marcy and Anne happily reunite once htey both realize who the other is, and hug and etc, before Marcy decends on the plantars, talking on and on and on about geeky stuff and how she likes the found family trope. ... I may really relate to this  mediums sized child, as I too am a huge nerd with no filter and was probably a lot like her at that age. It’s also clear she very transparently sees this as a combinaton of a video game and a d and d session, but said skills have actually benifited her as rping a rogue allowed her to easily bluff her way into the kingdom’s good graces and now she’s a sworn agent of the king as we’ll find out.  She quickly wins over the Plantars, measuring hop pop’s head, gushing over him being a farmer (which he almost instantly adopts her over and asks to point blank later), and then noticing Polly’s legs are about to come in and giving her the note seen in the review image, my faviorite gag. Sprig however is more out and out hostile and has his reasons we’ll get to in a second.  Marcy escorts her new family and sorta girlfriend to the makeshift war room set up by three scholoary newts who quickly resolve their planning disagreements by beating the piss out of each other. Just like real politics.. and that’s not a cheeky jab between the actual caning in the sentate that happened once and the various duels in the revolutionary and early america eras.. yeah the only reason the preisdent hasn’t been shot for challening one of hte many people he hates for a duel without realizing he really can’t see through that squint too good is that it’s now illegal and not the kind of illegal he can hide like usual.  Anyways after the Newts scoff at our heroes, but Marcy vouches for them and reveals that the ants are getting closer because i’ts gotten warmer....

Marcy has a plan though: Spread scentshrroms around that will release a pheremone which will drive them off, having throughly studied Amphibia’s various flora and fauna and thus knowing how to deal with them. I’ts something I like about the character and how she adds to the other huamns group dynamics. Alll three deal with issues diffrent ways; Anne has plans, but rarely thinks them through, Sasha does think hers through and is a master manipulator while Marcy is a ballance between the two: She does throughly think things out and have well thought out clever plans.. she just also tens to rush into things or go forward with a nose in a book or without a thought to how dangerous soemthing is. She’s prepared, she’s just not very aware of her surrondings, which is amood. 

But Anne is nervous about her coming along as is sprig which sets up both’s conflicts with her for the episode: Anne wants to protect Marcy, since she just got her back and her only other remaning friend now clearly wants to stab her and she has a better option now love interest wise. However Marcy convinces Anne, 2nd capefire this episode nonwithstanding, she can handle herself. She also calsl her annabannna which is fucking adorable.  The other conflict is that Sprig dosen’t trust her.. he has no rational reason not to give she’s a sweetie, but is a bit gunshy about another human girl working for a dictator popping up in their life. And while he’s probably wrong, while I think Marcy isn’t working for the best people probably she’s likely too oblivious to genuinely relaize she’s doing crimes if they have her doing them or was given a fake justification. I could be wrong, and will gladly eat crow. Metphorically i’m not going to bake a real crow. I don’t have the right seasoning. And i’d also be cursed but eh I doubt I can get poorer. But it’s understandable he has reservations, especially since while he dosen’t say it he’s likely worried Anne will get hurt again. He’s a good boy, he’s just being paranoid over probably nothing.  Anyways onoto the plan: The plantars and new girl marcy are gonna:

Okay phermone them whatever, the point is they head into the Ant Hole, witht he conflicts continuing as the plantars progress; Sprig is naturally suspcious and Anne is worried about her precious gurl. The group fight some more ants, and Marcy seemingly wonders off.. only to instead BLOW THEM A FUCKING TUNNEL with some chemicals from some flowers she found, then instant sprout a plant cage.. and accidently trap polly. NOOOOO.> Thankfully she frees her and tosses some plants on the ants, which is fun to say.  We then get to our climax. OUr group find the queen who ihs horrifying.. a good mom as sprig points out but horrfing. Nice design though i’m just.. not an insect guy and sometimes this show leaves me in abject terror. this is one of those times. Our heroes plant the mushrooms, phrasing I know but this review is late as is and i’ve already used up my archer refrence for the day.  Anne dives to Save a seemingly oblovious Marcy.. whose mad at Anne over it.. while Anne is udnerstandable Marcy wants her , NEEDS her to understand...

No not that erik. That, much like Anne herself, Marcy’s grown and changed over these past three months. She can handle herself now and she needs her ot see that. Also sprig gets attacked by an ant baby, which not only wakes up the queen, who can hear but can’t see but now knows something’s arry, but causes said queen to unleash a hoarde of ants.  Marcy however naturally has a plan: She’ll dive into the queen’s belly and get sprig, the plantars will hold them off and Anne finally trusts her lady enough to fiht off. I don’t have a lot to say I just really like this character arc and Marcy’s character: She’s a bit oblivious, ab it obessed with nerdy things which again relate.. but when push comes to shove she’s also clever, a master planner and has clearly studied her ass off about this world and knows it well. She’s throughly likeable.  And that likeablity finally gets through to sprig when she gets him out and swings him. Trust earned, anne’s faith in her gained and the mushrooms go off and send the ants running. Misson Complete.  With the mission complete our heroes finally enter Newtopia and meet the mysterious Lady Olivia, whose been sending Marcy on her missions, and is likely her spymaster. Not that i think Marcy realizes that but Marcy’s love of midevil fantasy means she blends in well with thier courty apperance and introduces anne and co to her.. Olvia isn’t impressed but is cordial about it at least.. even with Sprig breaking shit. And yeah , Amphibia has a king over all of it, as Hop Pop puts it “We aren’t savages”. It does make sense it woudln’t come up every day though, it’s not as if the king really cares about the valley... but more on speculation about him in a minute. Hop Pop wisely gives the two “Friends’ some alone time, and the two talk things over: Anne explains how she found sasha.. and it didn’t go great, and Marcy vows that the two of them can go their own way now. Maybe iwth tounge. we dunno. The two then look over anne’s phone while anne recounts her anne-tics.. and we get to the king. And it’s KEITH DAVID BITCHES AS WAS PROHPISED A FEW WEEKS AGO. And he has myserious plans and wood carven figures of both our heroines and possible gaybies. “The game can finally begin. “

Final Thoughts: This was a really damn good episode. Whiel I summarized more than usual , both conflicts were great, all the plantars got to shine, there were gags a plenty, an intriguing new member of the main cast and a mysterious new antagonist. I mean given it was revealed the Newts were behind Toad tower a few episodes back, I figured Andidas wouldn’t be a good guy, even if he’s played by upstanding gentleman and god among men keith david, , but it’s a question of what his end goal is, how the girls got here, and what his plan ofr them is that i’m curious to see play out as the season goes on, as well as see if Marcy is a pawn or not. Newtopia also looks intresting and i’ts nice to have a new solid setting to build on now we’re here, as well as new mysteries to unlock> Ther’es also the honest possibliity marcy, who claims to have found bubkuss, might simply want to stay in a world where she gets to live out her dreams and isn’t picked on or bullied. Again we’ll see all speculation but this episode was damn good. For now this is the clear highlight of the season and i’tll be intresting to see where it goes from here. Until next time courage. 

[disney-is-mylife]

3, 15, 18, 28, 32, 62, 70, 74, 76, 94. :)

My goodness, that’s a lot! ^^” Thank you! ❤️

3. bubblegum or cotton candy?

Bubblegum, I guess. I consider cotton candy to be a special once-in-a-while treat (like going to a theme park or something) 

15. favorite book you read as a school assignment?

Haroun and the Sea of Stories, for 9th grade English. I also loved To Kill a Mockingbird (10th grade), and it’s in fact “higher” on my favorites for books as a whole, but technically, I initially read it in middle school, so for a FIRST time read, Haroun remains my personal favorite from high school. ❤️

18. ideal weather?

Warm and sunny, not too hot or humid, with many a cool breeze or two 😊

28. five songs to describe you?

.... oof, I’m terrible at these. I’m not the kind of person to have “playlists” for things like my fics, OTPs, moods, etc. I just.... put my “Favorite Songs” list on YouTube on shuffle lmao XD And even THAT list is new! In the past, I’d just listen to Pandora, my CDs, or just listen to my various favorite cover playlists, etc. But I did some digging in my aforementioned “Favorite Songs” list and here’s the “closest” results I could think of: 

- “Someone Like You” from the musical Jekyll & Hyde 

- “Perfect” by P!nk 

- “Fight Song” by Rachel Platten

- “Right Here Waiting” by Richard Marx

- “Because You Loved Me” by Celine Dion 

32. top five favorite vines? 

Sadly, I am unfamiliar with vines and tiktoks, except when shared here on Tumblr sooooo can’t say I have any “favorites” lmao XD 

62. seven characters you relate to?

Gods, it’s amazing how the older I get, the harder this question becomes -.-” Many “adult” characters are a little too jaded, depressed, awful, mean, etc for my taste, and even the more nuanced and interesting ones that I genuinely like I don’t quite.... relate to. 

So here’s my “usual” faves, characters who are either a Perpetual Mood™️, Younger Me to a T, or simply an ideal I wish to live up to. Have fun deciding who is who lol XD

- Belle, from Beauty and the Beast (1991)

- Rapunzel, from Tangled (2010)

- Yuki Cross, from the manga Vampire Knight 

- Kagome Higurashi, from the anime/manga Inuyasha 

- Fluttershy, from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic (2010-2019)

- Hermione Granger, from Harry Potter book series 

- Anne Shirley, from Anne of Green Gables book series 

70. left or right handed?

Right handed

74. at what pain level out of ten (1 through 10) do you have to be at before you take an advil or ibuprofen?

I honestly have no idea lol ^^” I can’t take pills, so I usually go with liquid Tylenol whenever I have cramps or a bad headache or something.... my threshold for pain isn’t very high so I can’t really say where the “scale” lies with me 😅

76. what’s your favorite potato food (i.e. tater tots, baked potatoes, fries, chips, etc.)?

Baked and/or mashed potatoes 😋

94. favorite season?

Spring. An underrated season, imho. Most Tumblrites worship autumn, and I do enjoy that season aesthetically, but I love spring physically. I can go outside and enjoy the warm air without needing to bundle up, I can enjoy ice cream without it melting super fast, and I love how green everything becomes. It’s a very short window of time where I’ve always lived, but nevertheless, late March and early April are just *chef’s kiss* beautiful weather. ❤️

More “Weird” Questions Here!

[textsfromthetofu]

8 Things We Might See in Wakfu Series 4

I sometimes get asked what I think will happen in series 4, and I have genuinely never thought about it much. So I’ve taken a little while to watch the last few episodes of series 3 to refresh my memory and take some time to write down my thoughts and predictions. Given the questions that the end of S3 brought us, this could all be way off base, but I’m going for what I think is most likely to happen. This is quite long so click below to read the whole lot.

1) A darker tone

As ToT mentioned in his blog, the series was dropped by France Télévision in part because it had become too adult, and series 3 continued in that vein - we had Pinpin literally murdered in front of his family, a pregnant Eva impaled by a ‘spell’ and a lot of violence. I think series 4 will go further. I didn’t watch the original OVAs (Noximilien L’Horloger and Goultard le Barbare) until much later after Wakfu, and I was surprised at how dark they were. Nox’s descent into madness in the former is genuinely disturbing, and Goultard le Barbare is full of blood, stabbing and his dead wife and kids hanging from the ceiling WHAT THE HELL ANKAMA.

While I don’t think Wakfu will go quite as dark as those, it’s an indication that, when free from the restraints of a TV channel or Netflix, the creators will lean to a slightly less kid-friendly audience. So I’m expecting more violence (and possibly blood), more mature themes and almost certainly more sex jokes.

2) No English (or any non-French) Dub

This one is something that I pray won’t happen, but I can easily see it. The limited budget for S4 means that Ankama will need to keep their costs to a minimum, and I fear this means that not hiring VAs for overseas dubs will be a way to do this. I’m sure there will be an English subbed version, so it won’t be entirely French-only, and maybe some dedicated fans may step in. But I’m not expecting to hear it in English. 

That said, it’s not all bad. The French VAs are brilliant - even if you don’t understand them, the sound of their voices and the way they speak give you a real sense of emotion and the character.

3) Yugo’s fear

Throughout S3, Yugo’s story has been plagued by the negative effects of him trying to do the right thing. The fallout from using the Dofus in the OVAs (both in terms of the argument with Adamaï and the creation of the Eliotropes), the mind games Oropo played with him over defeating Nox (and feeling responsible for his death) and banishing Qilby will have given him so many regrets. 

That’s why I think the big struggle of S4 will be that of Yugo with himself. He’s still a kid, yet wields huge power that has the potential to destroy lives - he’s saved countless lives too, of course, but he has (indirectly) killed because of it, and that’s what he focuses on. Yugo wants to save everyone, and those he doesn’t haunt him. His fear of doing the same again will make him reluctant to fight, maybe even refuse to get involved, and he’ll need to beat his inner demons and use his power for good to help the rest of them. But he won’t be the only one who can help...

4) The Gods

Since S3 ended with our heroes and the Brotherhood stranded in Inglorium, the realm of the Gods, it’s very likely we’re going to meet them. Initially, I think this will give us a bit of light relief (I mean, imagine Ruel meeting Enutrof!), but ultimately, its their power that will be needed to help return everyone to the World of Twelve. I can’t imagine convincing them to use that much power will be particularly easy.

5) Return of the Eliatropes

I’m not entirely sure how this will link into their being in Inglorium, but I’m reminded of what Balthazar said at the end of S2: Yugo is not ready to rule over the Eliatropes, and the World of Twelve is a dangerous place to have the Eliacube. Well, great news Balthazar, the Eliacube was destroyed (I assume). I think that Yugo ultimately winning the battle with his fears, and being instrumental in saving the gods will become proof that he is ready to assume the responsibility of being King again.

6) A happy ending... but definitely an ending

I love a good happy ending, and I’m sure we’ll get one, unlike S3. Here’s why - the season 3 we got, according to ToT, was the first half of the season he had planned, so the ending was written with the intention of it being continued. Of course, it wasn’t, so we got a real cliffhanger and that’s why everyone’s so desperate for closure! 

Season 4 will be written with the intention of ending Yugo’s story. There almost certainly won’t be a season 5, so they’ll need to wrap up the story. That, to me, means a happy ending - it’ll happen, but we’re going to go through a lot first. But eventually, everything will return to a peaceful, happy life.

7) Yumalia Endgame

Come on, it’s going to happen. Yugo’s rejection of Amalia during S3 really hurt, but that smile he gave her right at the end... he loves her!

I think they will sort out the awkwardness fairly early on, but Yugo will remain adamant that he and Amalia can never be together. As the season progresses, I think either he’ll change his mind, or the power of the gods will come into play. Could they make Amalia age as slowly as Yugo - remember the time trap where Oropo tells her that her beauty can never be tarnished by time? Maybe she already has the slow aging thing down!

Either way, I’m fairly certain that they will be together by the end of the show. And talking of the end, I’m afraid to say that I think Amalia will return to find her father has died. I’m not sure how the monarchy of the Sadida works, but could she become Queen? And with Yugo King of the Eliatropes, their relationship would be a united force!

8) If it doesn’t happen...

Of course, all this is dependent on the upcoming crowdfunding being successful. I hope to God it is, but I worry that the amount it takes to create even half a dozen episodes will be more than we can manage. However, if it doesn’t, I can imagine there being a graphic novel or something similar to round off the story. I know ToT wants to finish the story as much as we want him to!

The downside to this is that, in common with the last couple of books of Wakfu: The Manga, it’s unlikely to be released outside France or in any other languages. The upside is that I’ll probably translate it in some way (doing a whole scanlation of Book 5 of the manga was a time-consuming task, so whether I’ll do that again is debatable), so in the event they substitute the series for the printed word, if Ankama won’t do it, I will make sure the English-speaking fans won’t go without.

--

So that’s what I think. I’d love to hear what you think will happen (and why you think I am so very wrong about everything!)