#u can tell from the level of detail on it vs everything else that i have the mask On The Brain

[cleverpaws]

quick fun doodle of everyones favorite hero!!!! he's in a bit of a predickle pickle

(some alt versions under cut)

also heres him but happy :)

[swinging-stars-from-satellites]

idk how many people would even want to see this BUT i wanna yell about Leela and Brax so here's a list of all their scenes togethr/scenes pertainng to them that i can recall (pLEASE add on if i missed anything/ you have any additional thoughts!! i could talk about these two all day!)

right off the bat in Weapon of Choice when Leela is on the outskirts of the Citadel and Brax goes to bring her back (which is interesting in and of itself, bc usually i would imagine a chancellery guard would go do that so what made Brax decide to instead??), Leela kinda goes off at him bc she's hurting and instead of trying to actually explain what's going on Brax doesn't even try to argue he just says "we need you" which is great bc Leela has that instinctive desire to be needed and to help people and he's speaking right to that -- also as far as we know, this is Leela and Brax's first actual meeting in canon? it's implied that they know of each other, which makes sense, but it doesn't seem like they've ever directly interacted before: Brax seems almost slightly uncertain, and Leela is combative, but when he's gentle with her she's actually quite receptive

the literal next scene after that, where the OT4 is all in one room for the first time (they still kinda hate each other at this point but still !!!). Narvin explaining Gryben and being a real jerk about it and Leela (understandibly!) questions if Gryben is a prison world, and Brax (who to this point has been mostly quiet as Narvin and Romana brief Leela) jumps in to both clarify Narvin's previous xenophobic statements while also maintaining the inherent questionable/negative connotations

(btw it's actually pretty important to note that Romana self-edits herself a lot when talking to Leela, especially in the earlier seasons; you can actually hear her revising the things she says to put it in terms that she thinks Leela will better understand. and i mean she does it out of genuine consideration for her friend associate but it often comes across as varying levels of patronizing. Narvin also obviously "dumbs things down" when dealing with Leela early on, but like... Brax never does that on any level. the only difference i can tell in how he addresses Leela vs how he talks to anybody else is that he seems much more kind with her than almost anyone else???)

their conversation about the Matrix in The Inquiry: this is REALLY important (and if you've ever talked to me on ao3 i've probably gone off to you about it lol) because it's layered. they're talking about the Matrix but they're also not because in answering Leela's question Brax is making a very thinly veiled allegory (which he outright states a minute later) to Time Lord society/politicians/most importantly HIMSELF -- he's actually strangely open about his morals/beliefs in this scene and i'm living for it tbh -- and i find it very interesting that even though he does directly explain what he means ("how do you know all this?" / "because i am a politician.") he also leaves it for Leela to work out the implications. like it's a very nuanced conversation bc there's double meaning in it and most people on Gallifrey seem to think that Leela is tone-deaf and can't pick up on that stuff (even Romana sometimes oversimplifies things to her) but Brax totally just lets her take from it what she will bc he believes her intelligent enough to understand. he doesn't think her any lesser because she's human.

ALSO on a secondary note to the above: the fact that Leela has a question/needed clarification (sorry, haven't listened to this in a while i forget how it actually happened) and actively sought out Brax to talk to about it?? like she knows Romana better she could have gone to her but i feel like Leela kinda imprinted on Brax and someone she can go to for help if she needs it; maybe it's partly bc she knows he's under marginally less pressure than Romana is but also the truth of the matter is that Brax was the most genuinely helpful person to her in the previous stories and that probably means a lot to her (esp. bc he acts like the essence of everything she hates about Gallifrey but he doesn't treat her the way she would expect from that). btw this topic is gonna come up again in a hot minute

that part where Brax gives her that information that might help her re: the Andred thing, even though he really probably shouldn't have done that -- it kinda makes me think about what he must have been like with Theta tbh???

actually this is mostly my own conjecture but there's some neat stuff in Spirit bc during the *waves hand vaguely* bodyswap dream sequence thing, Romana is very "!!!! Brax can help us !!!" which is tecnically Leela brain talking, so like there's the implications of the stuff i've said above about Leela having this idea of Brax where she knows he's someone she can go to for help

can u tell i'm soft for them

Leela sounding really sad/distracted when she talks about how Brax isn't there YES i'm grasping at straws but a lot of this relationship really is conveyed through the voice acting bc of how little direct focus there is on the characters. there's actually several scenes in Mindbomb where she mentions him and she outright says that she misses him during her discussion with Matthias

that implied scene with them in Mindbomb!! i have a Lot of thoughts about that!!! it's all conjecture and fanfic fodder!!! but the reason i mention this is because it seems pretty meta that out of the whole Gally Gang, it's Leela who first sees Brax when he comes back to Gallifrey and in turn she's the first person (besides Matthias, i guess) that he sees upon his return?? idk i just feel like that's somehow a meaningful detail??? also her reaction of utter shock after spending the entire episode missing him and how worked up she is when she tries to tell Romana, like I desperately need to know what happened in this missing scene MR RICHARDS PLEASE TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED

Leela insisting on going with Brax when Pandora starts hurting him and their whole conversation there is just. so good. like they're both just so soft and then when Darkel comes in Leela instantly goes into protective mode. like they just have such an open relationship bc Brax doesn't even try to be all pretentious with her, like he doesn't even try to keep up any facades when he's with her he's just very genuine and it really says a lot about both of them -- Leela is so good at seeing people, like getting down to the core of who people are and what makes them them (which is why she's good for Romana, btw, bc Romana has a lot of identity issues) and Brax is so tangled up in who he presents himself as that he barely knows who he actually is anymore but Leela can see that and she makes it so he can truly be himself and he doesn't have to hide. also she's so gentle with him when they talk about Pandora, she's very caring and empathetic and wants to make sure he's okay and i am WEAK

it's been a hot while since i listened to Panacea but I think i remember Brax being really soft with Leela when he first brings the gang to the Axis, like just sounding really glad to see her

ok other than the fact that Brax is lowkey relatable in Reborn (daydreaming fanfic about yourself/people you know? simping for Mary Tamm Romana? yeah mood, my man) there's that scene where they're first appraoching the Citadel on the alt!Gallifrey and it seems like none of them, and Brax specifically, have seen it from the outside in a good long while bc he's very in awe and he tells Leela that he wishes she could see it and he sounds sO hEcKiNg sOFT oh my word-

and once again with Leela thinking of Brax as someone she trusts for help: in Dissassembled when everything is going to crap she straight-up says that she wants to go find Brax bc he'll know what to do/be able to help

at the beginning of Annihilation when Romana is depressed and questioning if Brax truly was her friend and Leela INSTANTLY, NO HESITATION assures her that he was; i lost where i had her exact lines written down but she actually kinda goes off to make sure Romana gets the point

literally forcing myself to talk about this bc it makes my brain stall out but like,,, the Brax Hound in Annihilation,,, Leela being like "goodbye, Braxiatel... again" she sounds so sad and like UGH i always kinda forget how sad it actually is for them to lose Brax in Dissassembled bc like, it was so sudden and they didn't get to say goodbye and Leela is always losing people and i have many many feels about this scene and how all that emotion is made very clear in how they each respond to the Hound (might make a separate post abt this later if anyone is interested ::eyes::)

Enemy Lines is utter bullcrap about these two and I will never stop being salty about how they not only sidelined the very good, very subtle friendship they had in s1-4, but they??? made Leela acutally not trust Brax??? when literally this entire time she's been the one person who probably genuinely trusts him the most?? what the heck, David

I haven't heard TW3 or 4 yet but i'm assuming there's nothing worthwhile in those with regards to this duo (correct me if i'm wrong tho lol, i would love to be mistaken in this assumption)

TL;DR Leela and Brax mututally imprinted on each other and have probably the most open and healthy relationship within the OT4 and it is an absolute CRIME that nobody besides Gary Russell and Justin Richards cared enough to actually build on it in canon

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 287: Family Reunion

Previously on BnHA: The Tomura For One VS Deku And Pals clusterfuck reached new levels of clustfuckery as AFO possessed Tomura’s body and stabbed Kacchan and Endeavor. Shouto was all “good thing I leveled up offscreen so as to be able to fly around whilst carrying 400lbs worth of people”, and did just that and it was like, damn, son. Meanwhile Deku’s rage went Mach 100, and he kicked Tomura’s ass for almost two whole seconds, but in the process he apparently forgot that IF TOMURA TOUCHES HIM THAT IS VERY BAD, and so he stupidly let Tomura touch him and Tomura was all “GAME, SET.” Fortunately for Deku, his quirk plays by its own rules, and so the chapter ended with us cutting to the METAPHYSICAL OFA/AFO PARANORMAL DREAMSCAPE OF MYSTICAL BULLSHIT, where AFO!Vestige was all “lol Tomura y u mad”, and Nana!Vestige was all “SUP DEKU, YOU’RE JUST IN TIME, LOOKS LIKE IT’S ASSKICKING O’CLOCK.” I’m paraphrasing a bit, but that’s more or less the gist of it.

Today on BnHA: AFO is all “well if it isn’t Tomura’s grandmother who I murdered that one time”, and Deku is all “?”, and AFO is all “fucking vestiges, man, wild”, and Deku is all “??”, and AFO is all “ANYWAYS GETTIM TOMURA”, and OFA is all “NOT SO FAST”, and Deku is all “???”, and really, same. AFO then goes off on some wild tangent about how Deku is unworthy because he couldn’t protect everyone and needed help from OFA and got mad about his friends being stabbed, which is such a cold take it gave me hypothermia, but it ends up not mattering since Deku and Tomura both wake up seconds later with OFA still in the possession of its rightful owner, HOW ABOUT THAT. The chapter ends with the LoV approaching on Gigantomachia’s back with Dabi practically salivating at the mouth, and Toga trying to reignite an old fandom blood feud. Toga why would you do this to me. Toga.

YESSSSSSSSSSSSS

[CROWD LOSING THEIR MINDS] FINALLY THE NANA HAS COME BACK TO BNHA!! IF YA SMELLLLL WHAT THE NANA IS COOKIN!!!!! [RINGSIDE BELL CHIMING WILDLY] [LOUD AIRHORN NOISES]

“chapter 287: mistake” omg. yeah I’ll say you made a mistake, AFO. I HOPE YOU ENJOY THESE FLEETING LAST MOMENTS OF YOUR SHITTY EVIL LIFE

(ETA: so in all seriousness this must be referring to AFO’s belief that All Might/OFA made a mistake in choosing Deku, right? “I can’t believe you went and chose this shounen manga protagonist as your champion, what were you thinking.” I’ll just put this out there: however many comic books AFO read as a child, it clearly was not enough.)

wow Deku how slow are you

yes you’re inside OFA you dimbulb, did you think your clothes suddenly vanished out of the blue and the ghost of Nana just randomly appeared in the real world by some freak coincidence?? can you believe this kid. breaks his arms a measly 10-15 times in a row and all of a sudden he can’t think straight, get it together Deku

but also brb having a moment at the fact that his thoughts immediately run back to Kacchan, even with all of this nonsense going on and Nana about to lay the beatdown on AFO’s potato-lookin’ ass. forget that noise, all he wants to know is whether or not Kacchan is all right. fuckin’ geez. AM I OVERREACTING HERE A BIT. probably

(ETA: ALSO!! the way he just trails off!! “Kacchan is...” and then he can’t bring himself to complete the thought. oh my god my heart.)

HOLY SHIT

okay,

damn but this man sure knows how to ruffle my feathers. as eminently detestable as ever!!

could it be any clearer here that AFO is not on Tomura’s side?? for a moment I thought he had actually grabbed him by the back of the head in order to get him to look. but nope, he’s just resting his pointing hand on top of his head instead while he’s all “HEY TOMURA LOL IT’S THE GHOST OF YOUR DEAD PATHETIC GRANDMA”

for those keeping track at home, this would be the first time that Deku has heard this information -- that Tomura is Nana’s grandson -- and possibly the first time Vestige!Nana has heard it as well. Nana died when Kotarou was still a child, so for all we know the Vestige!Nana didn’t even know she had a grandson, lol. TODAY ON “MAKESTE RANTS AT LENGTH ABOUT THINGS THAT WILL PROBABLY BE ADDRESSED WITHIN THE NEXT THREE PANELS”, anyway moving on

lmao for the record I fucking LOLed at this giant question mark immediately bubbling up over Deku’s head

no idea what AFO is about to ramble on about now, haven’t read that far yet. but let the record show that Deku’s immediate reaction to hearing “BTW NANA IS YOUR ARCHNEMESIS’S GRANDMA LULZ” is everything I could have hoped for

(ETA: fandom nailed the shit out of this one with the confused Mr. Krabs meme lmao.)

okay so now AFO is monologuing at length about how he would sometimes have “riveting dreams” about the previous owners of all the quirks he stole. but once he gave the quirks away they stopped bothering him?? holy moly let me just take all the notes

okay so he’s saying that Vestiges are created whenever someone has their quirk stolen by AFO. but if they then disappear when he gives the quirks away, does that also mean that whoever receives the quirks also gets the original owner’s Vestige bundled in every time?? that would be wild okay hold up let me read the rest of this

so he’s saying that the Vestiges are actually the “consciousnesses” of the original quirk owners, which have become embedded in their dna or something. SOUNDS INCREDIBLY DUBIOUS TO ME LOL but on the other hand this is a world where children can be born with airplane heads, so my disbelief can hardly afford to pick and choose what it’s gonna be suspended at! anyways though, how does he know he’s the only one who was able to converse with them? did you conduct detailed six-month follow-up interviews with everyone you gave quirks to or what

and if it really is the case that this ability was formerly exclusive to him, isn’t that more evidence than ever that OFA and AFO are actually THE EXACT SAME QUIRK oh whoops am I getting ahead of myself again, sorry

MEANWHILE TOMURA IS ALL, “GRANDMA?”

“WHY AM I HERE, WELL LET ME TELL YOU A STORY, GRANDSON. YOU SEE THAT MAN GROWING OUT OF YOUR RIBCAGE THERE? WELL IT’S JUST THE FUNNIEST THING, ACTUALLY”

WAIT SO IS HE SAYING THEY’RE SOULS OR NOT??

this makes it sound like they won’t ever get to rest, which sure sounds like a soul thing to me. well whatever, soul, consciousness, I guess it’s just semantics at the end of the day

anyways though, so this asshole is finally done talking (I’m sure that won’t last), so now we can finally have the heartwarming reunion we’ve all been waiting for

sigh

-- actually, no, not “sigh���!! you know what!! because Tomura says “whatever the reason”, but that’s only because he doesn’t actually have a fucking clue about the reason. like, I don’t know if the knowledge that AFO killed Nana would be enough to give him pause, but if he knew the whole story and knew that AFO was behind not only Nana’s death, but the rest of his family’s deaths as well... now that would be a whole different thing

anyway. but at least it’s becoming clearer now why AFO spent all that time raising Tomura up as his heir and brainwashing him even though he seems to have been planning this body takeover the whole time. it’s all because he loves making people miserable! yaaaaay

btw HAS NANA HAD THE EXACT SAME MOLE ON HER CHIN AS TOMURA THIS ENTIRE TIME WTF. am I just the least observant person who ever lived lmao

lol wtf

ground: [randomly starts exploding]

Deku: “ONE FOR ALL IS BEING ERODED!!!” LOL IS THAT WHAT’S HAPPENING HERE, OKAY THEN. I’ll take your word for it

y’all I cannot fucking get over this “AFO growing out of Tomura’s hip socket like a fucked-up ventriloquist dummy” shit though

you do realize that absolutely no one can take you seriously right now, right?? it’s important to me that you know this

WHAT’S THIS NOW

seems like SOMEONE has had it up to here with a certain SOMEONE ELSE’S bullshit lmaooo bye Felicia

I SAID GOOD DAY!!

you guys why is he not dying!!

-- OH DAMN

love how Deku is just lying there like “YOU KNOW THOSE DAYS WHERE YOU’RE LIKE, THIS MIGHT AS WELL HAPPEN.” poor Deku

(ETA: where in god’s name is OFA Prime standing. why are my thoughts fully consumed by this lmao.)

are Nana and OFA Prime even doing anything?? why are they sticking their arms out like that. wait hold up is this all a big metaphor for the back-and-forth going on between Tomura trying to steal OFA and OFA being all “actually no you can’t, please enter your password and click on all the boxes with bicycles in them to prove you’re a human first”?

OH SNAP OFA PRIME SAID NO THANKS

“SORRY BRO WE’VE ALREADY MADE OURSELVES AT HOME HERE”

I have only just noticed that metaphysical!Deku has the same scars as actual!Deku. and yet his arms are not currently broken! that doesn’t really seem consistent to me but whatever!! maybe he saved right before the boss battle, that would be smart of him

anyway, that’s great and all that OFA Prime is here helping out, but I really wanted to see Nana fight AFO in a one on one though so I’m a bit disappointed. also why is it only the two of them?? where are Banjou and the others. of all the times to be sleeping on the job

FOR FUCK’S SAKE, THIS MAN

WOULD YOU STOP. WOULD YOU JUST QUIT IT ALREADY

oh shit hold up

doesn’t this confirm that the reason he wanted to transfer his power to Tomura is because he believed it would make him strong enough to finally take OFA because of Quirk Singularity? jesus christ. and here he was so sure of himself. but it turns out he doesn’t actually know shit! you can’t just fucking take OFA like that ya dingdong that’s not how it works

(ETA: SO, A THOUGHT -- is there any sort of subtle hinting here in the way that he words this? “if your strength is combined with mine”, as opposed to “if my strength is combined with yours”? no idea if the admittedly-so-small-as-to-be-almost-inconsequential distinction between those two sentences exists in the original Japanese or not, but I find it very interesting that the English wording implies that he’s the one adding Tomura’s strength to his own, rather than vice versa.)

now he’s insulting Deku!!

excuse me sir WHO ASKED YOU anyway. and never mind that being consumed by an, AND I QUOTE, “unquenchable” rage is your protege’s whole THING, and that he also needed your help to avoid being burned to a crisp a short while ago. where do you get off I swear

(ETA: also just want to point out that in the panel before this one he says that he’s been “watching through Tomura”, which pretty much confirms that his consciousness or whatever is alive inside of him all the time. Tomura is definitely not getting rid of this guy any time soon.)

WOW

first he calls Kacchan useless, then he calls Deku a simpleton, and don’t even get me started with Nana. just, you guys. this man is just... a very, very rude man

NOW OFA IS ALL “THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT MAKES HIM SUCH A GOOD PROTAGNIST YOU BUTTMUNCH” AND OMG PREACH

“DESPITE HIS COMMON SENSE” sdfkllk my man he already has one brother roasting him, take it easy guy

AHH WHAT

IS THIS BACK IN THE REAL WORLD

YEP

hahaha nice try Tomura

so Deku’s all “I didn’t lose my power! BUT” and I assume the “but” is the part where his arms are still broken and shit, and meanwhile Tomura’s body is almost healed up now finally

they’re both wiped out and now AFO is again petitioning Tomura to let him take over goddammit

“you won’t lose your mind” yep, he sure won’t! scout’s honor!! pinky swear!!

meanwhile Deku is getting fucking desperate flkjl;k my baby. and Machia is going to show up any second now too, probably. what else can fucking go wrong at this point

oh shit I shouldn’t have asked

get ready to rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrruuuumble, probably

OH MY GOD

WELL AT LEAST SOMEONE HERE IS HAVING A GOOD TIME. jesus

so as soon as he heard Endeavor was there he got all, “TIME FOR THE BIG REVEAL”, is that right? WELL JOKE’S ON YOU TOUYA, YOUR DAD DOESN’T SEEM ALL THAT CONSCIOUS AT THE MOMENT, SO THAT’S GOING TO DRAIN A LOT OF THE TENSION FROM THE SCENE WHEN YOU GO ALL REVERSE DARTH VADER ON HIM AND HE’S ALL “ZZZZZZZZ”

meanwhile Toga is having unsettlingly quiet angst

jesus christ Toga this is all we need right now

“WAS JIN-KUN NOT A PERSON” sdkfjlk Horikoshi I swear. please have mercy on this fandom. this is the debate that refuses to die!!

but seriously ffs, the issue isn’t that Jin deserved to die, it’s that the countless people whom Jin would have either directly or indirectly killed didn’t deserve to die either. people don’t only become people when you attach names and faces to them! we all loved Jin because we’d gotten to know him, but that doesn’t mean his life was inherently worth more than the lives of all the people he would have killed. sometimes there’s just no good answer

like, it’s just crazy to me that because the heroes are all “we want to protect everyone!” but then aren’t always able to do so because that’s literally impossible, whereas the villains are all “we don’t care about anyone other than the select few people that we actually like!”, the villains somehow wind up getting the better PR. it just so happens that it’s infinitely easier to be loyal to the interests of a few people as opposed to ALL THE PEOPLE. like, no shit, it’s easier to stick to your moral code when you barely have a moral code. and so the villains can kill thousands and no one bats an eye, but if a hero fails to save even one person they’re hypocritical moral failures. like what the hell

BUT ANYWAY, sorry to go off on a tangent there lol, it’s not really a big deal. I’m just preemptively trying to stave off more discourse about it lol but who am I even kidding

anyways lol, but of course they won’t kill you unless they have no choice, Toga. but when it comes to catch-22 situations, it’s a bit much to infer that the heroes don’t consider the villains people just because they opt for the choice that spares more innocent lives. I sure as hell don’t want my babies out here killing people, but to say that they can’t no matter what or else they’re no different from the villains is just...

anyway so the chapter has now just ENDED, just like that!! on a shot of Ochako’s face!

I SENSE ANOTHER THROWDOWN COMING. and it had better not be a total letdown like the last one! NANA BARELY DID ANYTHING HORIKOSHI, WHAT THE FUCK. I started out with such high hopes lol

but I will settle for Toga VS Ochako, and Deku VS Tomura: The Sequel: Shouto’s Revenge! SPEAKING OF HEROES WHO HAVE NO QUALMS ABOUT MURDERING PEOPLE lmao

[grailfinders]

Fate and Phantasms #159

Today on Fate and Phantasms we bring you the outlaw star himself, Assassin of Shinjuku! As always, it’s hard to go into detail about Sassyshin’s abilities without giving away his identity, so true name spoilers below the cut.

Check out his build breakdown below, or his character sheet over here!

Next up: Wait a minute, I thought King Arthur was a girl!

This build blends Yan Qing’s Shadow Monk techniques with the Doppelganger’s shapeshifting, here represented by the Whispers Bard levels. Kill people, steal their identity, repeat!

Race and Background

Technically Yan Qing is part ghost, but it’s a lot easier to call him a Variant Human instead. If you really want to lean into the doppelganger thing Changeling’s right there, but then you won’t get +1 Dexterity and Charisma, Acrobatics proficiency to jump up entire castles with ease, and the Observant feat to show off why they call you the Skillful Star. This feat gives you +1 Wisdom, the ability to read lips, and you get +5 to your passive Perception and Investigation scores so your disguises are a bit more detailed.

Of course you get the Criminal background, giving you Deception and Stealth proficiencies.

Ability Scores

Speaking of being the Skillful Star, all that martial arts training should make your Dexterity pretty freaking high. After that is Charisma, you’re really good at disguises, and almost as good at making convincing arguments. Almost. After that is Wisdom for more skill and more observational skills. Your Constitution isn’t half bad, you can take a lot of damage and keep going. When you’re fighting against Guda. When you’re actually on their team, that’s a different story. Your Strength should probably be a bit higher, but it’s not very useful for the build. Finally, dump Intelligence. Sassy-shin is many things to many people, but Himbo is definitely one of them.

Class Levels

1. Monk 1: Starting with monk will help you get your shirtless scenes going earlier thanks to your Unarmored Defense giving you an AC based on your dexterity and wisdom. You also get some Martial Arts, letting you use dexterity instead of strength when fighting, giving you a minimum of a d4 in damage when using unarmed attacks, and you can attack as a bonus action if you attack as an action.

On top of all that, you also get proficiency with Strength and Dexterity saves as well as Athletics for even better climbing skills and Insight, because you can’t manipulate people if you don’t know what they want.

2. Monk 2: Second level monks get Ki points each short rest equal to their monk level. Currently, that lets you Dash, Disengage, Dodge, or Attack Twice as a bonus action, but more stuff will come up as we go. Your Unarmored Movement also lets you move just a bit faster while shirtless.

3. Bard 1: Your impersonation powers come from the doppelganger, a fictional creature (also you’re fictional, but hush), so bard’s as good as any class to get their powers from. Grabbing bard second gives you Perception proficiency for even more detailed disguises, as well as Bardic Inspiration. Right now they’re a pool of d6s that recharge on long rests. You can hand out to allies to help them with their d20 rolls-checks, saves, attacks, all that good stuff. Unless your DM somehow incorporated C. Stars into their game, this is one of the closest ways you have to get the actual Skillful Star skill in D&D.

Beyond that, you also learn a couple Spells that use your Charisma to cast. Light helps your dumb human eyes see in the dark and also do the glowy hand thing. It won’t actually help with damage, but it looks cool, and that’s what’s really important. You also get Vicious Mockery, tbh stealing the memory of an enemy’s loved ones means you can get some really disturbing insults.

For first level spells, grab Bane for more insults, Disguise Self for a cheapo disguise that doesn’t even work physically, Longstrider to press your speed advantage further, and Heroism, because you’re a pretty nice guy when you put aside the identity theft.

4. Bard 2: Second level bards are Jacks of All Trades, adding half your proficiency bonus to checks that you’re not proficient in, even making you a little bit faster by boosting your initiative bonus. You can also use a Song of Rest to add a d6 to the healing your party does over a short rest. I mean, you’re a character in a novel, you’ve got to have some good stories to share, right?

For your spell this level, grab Speak with Animals. Working with Lobo is always rough, but at least now you’ll be able to tell his “I’ll tear you limb from limb” bark from his “I’ll tear you limb from limb later” bark.

5. Bard 3: Your doppelganger side grants you the power of a bard from the college of Whispers. When you join the college, you can use your bardic inspiration to create Psychic Blades, adding 2d6 psychic damage to a weapon attack once per turn. I’ve given up trying to figure out if hitting things with your hands count as weapon attacks, so maybe just keep a knife on standby.

You also learn Words of Terror, spending a minute alone with your target to force a wisdom save (DC 8+proficiency+charisma mod) or they become frightened of a creature you choose for up to an hour or until it or an ally takes damage where it can see you. You can use this once per short rest, and if they succeed on their save there’s not tell that you did anything. You also get Expertise in Insight and Deception to make your disguises flawless.

Your spell this time is Enhance Ability, making you even better at whatever you set out to do by giving you (or another creature) advantage on one kind of ability check. For those of you playing along at home, this means you now have a +8 to deception checks, with advantage. Even without your disguises, you’re already doing pretty well for yourself.

6. Bard 4: But “pretty well” isn’t perfect. We can do better. Use your first Ability Score Improvement to grab the Actor feat, rounding up your Charisma for extra inspiration and stronger spells. You also get advantage on deception and performance checks to act as a different person, no spells required. On top of all that, you can mimic the speech of a creature you’ve heard talking for at least a minute, requiring a contested Insight check vs your Deception check to figure things out.

For those rare times you’re trying to be yourself, you can also use Friends to get advantage instead. When that inevitably backfires, use Mirror Image to create some shadow clones for an easier escape. The spell makes three copies of yourself, and when you would get hit by an attack there’s a 75% chance it will hit one of them instead. After they take a hit for you, they pop, reducing the odds of blocking the next attack. MI is technically UA, but it’s not exactly a massive power boost.

7. Bard 5: Fifth level bards see their inspiration dice grow to d8s. While that doesn’t affect your psychic blades, your Font of Inspiration does, letting you recharge inspiration on short rests for more consistent support and damage.

You also learn how to Feign Death to escape any criminal/detective duos on your trail. Admittedly this isn’t as effective as disguising yourself as a civilian, as it basically knocks you out for an hour, giving you resistance to most types of damage and prevents any sort of effect from diseases or poison.

8. Bard 6: The sixth level of bard is where our plan really comes together. No, I’m not talking about Countercharm, get that shit outta here. We’re here for the Mantle of Whispers, letting you steal a humanoid’s shadow when it dies nearby once per short rest. Using their shadow, you can create an hour-long disguise that not only makes you look like the person, but gives you information they would give away to acquaintances. Creatures can see through the disguise with an Insight check against your Deception check, but you get a +5 to that, on top of everything else.

9. Monk 3: Stealing peoples’ identity is nice, but it’s time we got back to punching good. Third level monks get their way, and Way of Shadow helps you take advantage of Shinjuku’s oppressive atmosphere to make the town your own. Your Shadow Arts lets you cast spells like Darkness, Darkvision, Pass without Trace, or Silence using your Ki points. You can also cast Minor Illusion to take your stealth to the next level with some free distractions.

Besides all that, you can Deflect Missiles, catching them out of the air to reduce damage and possibly even throwing them back as a reaction.

Now that you have a bunch of things eating away at your Ki points, you can use your Ki-Fueled Attack to attack as a bonus action if your main action uses your Ki. Now nothing can stop you from delivering those hands.

10. Monk 4: Been a while since your last ASI, huh? Use this one to boost your Dexterity for a better AC and stronger attacks. You can also Slow Fall as a reaction, reducing fall damage by five times your monk level. As Moriarty could tell you, falling off a skyscraper hurts.

11. Monk 5: Fifth level monks get an Extra Attack each attack action, and you can turn those attacks into Stunning Strikes by using Ki. If the target fails a constitution save all attacks on them for the round have advantage. Great way to fish for crits for your psychic blades.

12. Monk 6: Sixth level monks get Ki-empowered Strikes, making your unarmed attacks magic against resistances. You’re a Tier-3 character, you’ll probably need this.

You can also use your brand new Shadow Step to teleport between shadows as a bonus action. Moving so quickly also gives you advantage on your next attack.

13. Bard 7: Seventh level bards get fourth level spells, like using Phantasmal Killer to create a more offensive shadow clone. For up to a minute one targeted creature needs to make a wisdom save. If they fail, they’re frightened and at the end of each turn they have to make another wisdom save or they take psychic damage.

14. Bard 8: Use this ASI to bump up your Charisma again for stronger spells and inspiration. You can also use Freedom of Movement to escape from impossible binds. Just disguise yourself as a free person, I can’t believe nobody thought of this before.

15. Bard 9: Our last level of bard charges your Song of Rest to a d8, and you get a fifth level spell. Mislead lets you move so fast enemies will have to hit your afterimage, simultaneously turning you invisible and creating an illusion of yourself.  The illusion lasts for an hour, but you only stay invisible until you attack or cast another spell. It can speak or gesture just like you, and you can even see through its eyes.

16. Monk 7: Seventh level monks finally get Evasion, turning your dex saves into supersaves. Now your failures deal as much damage as your successes, and your successes avoid all damage entirely. Your Stillness of Mind also lets you shut down effects that are charming or frightening you.

17. Monk 8: Use your last ASI to bump up your Wisdom for a stronger AC. Technically grabbing more Dexterity would be better here, but I like rounding stuff up more than capping it out. Makes room for DM stuff.

18. Monk 9: Your Unarmored Movement Improvement lets you run up walls and over water, so long as you don’t end your turn there. You can finally climb up that huge freaking castle you’ve been eyeing for a while!

19. Monk 10: Tenth level monks get a Purity of Body that makes you immune to disease and poison. At least this isn’t your capstone?

20. Monk 11: As an eleventh level shadow monk gets a Cloak of Shadows, letting you disguise yourself as a Vashta Narada as an action, becoming invisible in dim light or darker. This lasts until you attack, cast a spell, or leave the shadows. I’m pretty sure this qualifies for that whole “cast no shadow” thing you’re always going on about, right?

Pros:

You are the one true imposter. With advantage as well as +21 to all your deception rolls to disguise yourself, you’re pretty much undiscoverable. On top of that, you’re also great at reading people with a +15 to insight. The only person doing impressions around here is you, thank ya kindly.

Like all monks, you’re really fast, with 50′ of movement speed, dash options, teleporting options, and ways to make yourself even faster via magic. You go down harder than the KT event, but you’re fine as long as you don’t get hit.

You also come with tons of ways to mess with the enemy. Make yourself invisible, shoot darkness like a squid shoots ink, have them chasing an illusion, or even just disguise yourself as a loved one. You are a terror to fight.

Cons:

Touching on that thing I said back in Pro #2, you’re pretty squishy, with barely over 100 HP and only 17 AC. Stick to the shadows, you’ll need them.

You also have a serious issue with range. Anything that can outspeed you will find it pretty easy to have you running in circles, since your best ranged attacks are cantrips.

This build is also a little bit complicated, with balancing your Ki, inspirations, who you can disguise as, who you can mimic, and all that fun stuff. Like a lot of the clever people builds, don’t expect to play this one like you would a barbarian.

[milkbreadtoast]

Hey so! I’ve been wanting to share one of my Kurama(yu yu hakusho) headcanons for a while, but have been too lazy(and scared) to put it into words and share it w/ my followers ahah. But i’m finally gonna share it..! This is one of my headcanons that’s most crucial to how I interpret his character... and I want to preface this with saying that everyone has a different interpretation of a character, and that’s ok; u don’t have to agree. Interpretations can feel very personal sometimes...this one means a lot to me personally haha. Anyway, here goes: (BIG SPOILER WARNING!!!)

Basically... I think the current Kurama, “Shuichi” Kurama with the red hair, is LITERALLY a different person than he was in the past, due to the unique way he escaped death by merging with the unborn child of a human woman, and that his current personality makes a lot of sense if you think of him... as a fusion, in a sense... kinda like a Steven Universe fusion(not exactly, but hear me out)...

The present day Kurama is shown to be a really different person than the legendary thief Yoko Kurama. This difference becomes starkly apparent when the Yoko Kurama of the past makes his appearances in the dark tournament, and he’s very sadistic, cruel... very different from the Kurama shown until then. 

Although the current Kurama has the same memories and consciousness, intelligence, etc. and is still fully “Kurama”, and a 1000+ year old demon, he also seems to act...like a normal teenage boy. He giggles, jokes around, cares a lot about his friends, and of course, loves his human mother... 

Hiei describes Kurama in an internal monologue in ep 47, and it’s very interesting...

Kurama also describes himself in this way, in the same ep:

Although not in the manga, Kurama also says this in ep 108:

When Kurama talks about how he’s changed since being reborn, and how he’s become a different person...  I think... it's more than just a change of heart. He's literally a different person, because his soul merged with that of the boy who would have been born as Minamino Shuichi.

And moreover, Kurama himself seems to be aware of this? in the way he describes himself...the whole “we’re merged,” “while I am Kurama, I am also Minamino Shuichi,” “no longer the same Kurama that I used to be”... And perhaps most convincingly, in this line he delivers in “Two Shots”: 

Specifically describing himself as having a “human side”, despite also explaining to Yusuke in his introduction that he is fully a demon, despite his human appearance. 

Given his wisdom and intelligence, retained from his past as Yoko Kurama, this--his self-identity--is surely something he’s thought hard about over the years, and this is the conclusion he’s come to... Even though he is classified as a demon, this is the way he describes himself... as a fusion of sorts, as being part “human”... (and Hiei’s description is mostly likely influenced from what Kurama has told him, along with his own understanding of Kurama). 

The current Kurama shows a profound duality, and it makes him such a fascinating character... in certain moments, he shows a coldness, a brutality, a willingness to take lives, and wisdom and intelligence that certainly goes far beyond his human years. Yet... stuff like how he giggles and jokes, and how he outsmarted Kaito by making a funny face... to me, this is something new... something unique to his current self...something the old Yoko Kurama wouldn’t do. 

The way Kurama acts in the present day...  the way he's 100% a demon, yet distinctly...human... makes so much sense if you think of him as being like a fusion?? When “he merged with the body of the human who would have been born as Minamino Shuichi”, I think their souls also merged. (edit: This also makes sense if you consider that in his severely wounded state, Yoko Kurama was essentially reduced to a bare soul, disembodied and dying--If this fusion between his dying spirit and this fresh, living human soul did not take place, he would not have survived. The unborn baby is not yet conscious, so Kurama’s concsiousness took over completely, but the fusion still occurred...)

Kurama is still Kurama-- but there’s something added, something more.  I think the human who would have been born as Shuichi would have been a very gentle person... so some of that got absorbed into Kurama's soul when they merged... and so his current, softer personality is not JUST a cruel demon who got touched by human kindness and had a change of heart... but a fusion of the original yoko’s personality, and the personality of the human boy he merged with. He did have a change of heart, but this was facilitated by him gaining... a new capacity for feelings? in a sense? due to this fusion. 

This interpretation I have of him... it makes me feel so much for him...b/c even tho he's...not the same person anymore, he still has the same memories and consciousness; he both is, and isn't, the same person.  I think it probably contributes to the guilt and self hatred he feels on some level, which is evident in what he tells Yusuke in the beginning...

It’s true that he said he tried many times to leave throughout his life, to return to his previous life in the demon realm, but it’s also true that he was never able to. His mother’s smile, her sacrifice for him, her genuine warmth and love for him... it moved him, and he decided to stay, and to protect her and the things precious to him now. And I argue that the “human” side of him, the result of a fusion of souls, enhanced his capacity to be moved, weakened his resolve to return to his past life...

When other yokai accuse him of "going soft"... that's not quite what happened...it is, in some ways, but not the full story. Although he is still the ancient, 1000+ year old demon Kurama, and retains all his memories and sense of self... there is still a part of him, a new part, that really IS as young as he looks... one that is gentle, empathetic, kind, and constantly haunted by his past.

In some ways, this added layer of softness can be seen as a fallibility, an exploitable weakness... how convenient, for the cruel and merciless, cold and calculating thief to become “soft”... a soft point, a weak point, where there was only hardness before. But,

Kurama himself believes it is a strength. Although I do think he harbors some level of hidden self hatred, he doesn’t hate this side of himself. In fact, he embraces it, is proud of it, and will fight to protect what he has now with his life on the line. He has found people and things he wants to protect... he’s come to see the beauty of the human world around him, even the mundane... he’s come to see the beauty and power in something as simple and fragile as a rose. 

And the important people in Kurama’s life(e.g. Hiei), unlike the yokai who jeer and mock him, also see this part of him as a strength and not a weakness, and accept him as who he is today. 

Kurama has a war in his heart... and this inner conflict and duality makes so much sense with the fusion interpretation. Itsuki makes this observation:

“affection” and “carnage”... two sides of himself, at war... consistent with his past life of violence and cruelty, and the gentle human soul he merged with that literally made him a different person...  But again he’s still “Kurama”; he’s 100% yokai, not a human, and he remembers everything.

This headcanon of mine is why it doesn’t really feel right to me when I see people joke that Kurama’s just an old guy hanging out with a bunch of kids (like that steve buscemi meme lol). Again, in my interpretation... in some ways he IS just a teenage boy... even though he’s 1000+... which is why it makes sense that he genuinely enjoys having friends his “own age”... it’s more than just a facade of pretending to be a kid, I think. 

And I mean...just look at him. HE...... IS BABIE 🥺🥺🥺

TL;DR I see the current Kurama as literally being a fusion of souls, literally “not the same Kurama” as before, and this colors the way I interpret him haha,,,

.............................

OK THIS POST IS ALREADY LONG AS ASS, WHY NOT MAKE IT EVEN LONGER BC THERE’S SMTH ELSE i WANTED TO POINT OUT

This might be unique to the anime, but it fits in nicely with my headcanon... In the original Japanese cast, Kurama(as Shuichi) is voiced by Megumi Ogata, and the Yoko Kurama of the past is voiced by Shigeru Nakahara (i.e., when he appears in the dark tournament, and in subsequent flashbacks to Kurama’s past). However, when Kurama transforms into his yoko form on his own in the Chapter Black arc, not by the influence of the potion that literally turns back time...he keeps his Megumi Ogata voice even in that form... whereas in flashbacks he's consistently voiced by Shigeru Nakahara.  ITS A REALLY NICE TOUCH....and it confirms what he says when he's like i haven't actually reverted back, my body just transformed due to my heightened yoki.

And not only his voice, he even looks different... his yoko form is given a slightly different design in Chapter Black arc. In the dark tournament, his outfit is sleeveless, he has frayed eyebrows, and his ears are smooth. 

In black chapters... for some reason they started giving him sleeves

and more solid eyebrows...

and raggety ears? vs smooth

(SO CUTE I LOVE THEM...) 

These differences are shown in this production note from the anime, indicating that this was a conscious design choice in the anime: 

(I can’t read the text, but I see that episode #90 is specified in the right pic, which is the ep Kurama transforms into his yoko form in Black Chapters)

Anyway, these are very subtle details, but to me they’re another indicator that even in his yoko form he's not the same Kurama as he was before...!

OK THAT WAS LONG AF BUT I’M DONE NOW I THINK......... enjoy these kuramas before u go ^_^

[jincherie]

pebbles to recommend!

✑  in the light of recent situations and the fact that a few of you have even been so kind as to share some love and positivity with me, I’d like to share some of my own! these are some of the fics that I’ve been reading and loving lately! I haven’t had time to read much, but I hope u all enjoy what I’ve managed to stumble upon as much as I have!

ps. lets leave them something nice and let them know how fantastic they are!

✎  blood magic by @cakebite ​

maknae line x reader | magic au, fantasy au, royal au, yandere au | series

  ➥  in a word, fantastic. i’m not sure how many of you know, but yandere is my guilty pleasure and it’s not that often that I come across it being actually well written and portrayed. This is one of the few fics for the genre that I’ve read and deeply enjoyed. But aside from that, I love the way this world is brought further to life with each and every installation, I adore the fantastical nature, the little tidbits and factoids revealed to me one by one-- it has me thirsting for more! This is a read I easily got immersed in, and it’s not yet complete but I’m looking forward to more adventures in magic, mystery, fantasy... god I’m ready.

Part of why I love well-written fics of this genre is the inner workings, the finer details and each little turn of the cogs that makes the clock tick. I absolutely love that in this fic that is incorporated so seamlessly. From the beginning, there is tension and there are stress conditions-- and while they maintain and level out, with each introduction of the boys (without reader knowing they’re the princes, which is a dynamic i die for btw) and further build of their relationship, along with the glimpes of their background and the environmental factors that are probably going to lead to one or all of them Snapping... it all blends together in a magnificent mass of tension, and for each update that comes I’m on the edge of my seat. I don’t think there has been one in a while, but this is the kind of fic that I’d drop whatever I was doing to read!

✎  quarter quell by @chinkbihh

jungkook x reader | hunger games au, yandere au | series

➥  another yandere story, another insight into my guilty pleasure. again, i don’t often rb or rec many yandere fics simply bc its not often i find one that really pins it and I love enough to rb-- but luna never fails to provide, and I’ve found myself enjoying a number of her stories, most recently this one!

Usually, what I look for and enjoy reading about is the slow build, the climb and increase in yandere behaviour as they grow more comfortable/more obsessed with the character. Even so, this fic dumps it all on its head and I find myself loving it nonetheless. It’s the setting, the unique conditions that allow the yandere features to come out immediately and unabashedly-- and watching the integration of it all, how every aspect of oc’s situation is working together, is fascinating,, and putting yourself into oc’s shoes is terrifying. Luna puts a lot of effort into her fics and each installment she publishes is long and carefully put together,, and that’s something I really appreciate. I love a lot of her works, and this one in particular, because there is always just such attention to detail, such immersion around it all that draws me in and hooks me. I’ve seen her musing about where to take this on her blog and to be honest I’m really excited to see wherever it goes!

(ps. please send some lovely things her way if you end up checking this out, we all have times where we’re a little more in need of some tlc than others!)

✎  immortals by @bang-tan-bitches ​ 

ot7 x reader | supernatural au?, drama, smut, dark fantasy | series

➥  this is one i read a little further back, but one I definitely am still hooked on! What I really love about this one is just.... the mystery of it all. I’m a sucker for dark fantasy and urban fantasy and this bad boy rolls it all into one. Each installment reveals a little more and yet,,, not enough to fully satiate your hunger for knowledge. there are a lot of conditions, restrictions, barriers for the reader-- the push and pull of her innate desire to go to them vs. the constraints of her life and her thoughts is delicious. I remember in particular that each little interaction with each member made my tummy dip, they were so cute and so... thrilling? These two have a real talent and it shows through with fics like this one. I’m not sure when the next installment is, but I’m definitely waiting for it with baited breath!!

✎  beastly gods by @lemonjoonah ​ 

taehyung x reader x ?? | hybrid au, dark fantasy au, slight dystopia au?? | oneshot

➥ i read this as soon as it was posted and honestly.... I haven’t stopped thinking about it since. there’s something about it that just carves out a piece of you and replaces it with a piece of itself. It’s so memorable!! I love it dudes. The whole tone and vibe of the fic from the beginning, the chase and the combination of thrill and fear,,, and Taehyung.... I love the way that the story was set, the premises and tone, and I love how it was maintained all throughout-- what I abolutely love the most about it is that it allowed for that fucking FANTASTIC twist of an ending!! This story, to me, had OOMPH, and I love that man. I’m going to revisit it sometime soon and I definitely recommend checking it out yourselves. I wish I had read it more recently so I could gush more readily, but definitely check it out for yourselves and send some love!!

✎  agape and pragma by @uwugalore ​ 

ot7 x reader | hybrid au, poly au, smut, fluff, angst | series

➥ this is one that i’ve been reading consistently, and have been hooked on from the beginning. from the very first chapter the premise is so heartbreaking, and i was able to really align with the oc and what she was feeling, how her world had been turned so upside down. and then, seeing throughout the following chapters as the members slip into her life & home one by one, healing the pieces of her bit by bit... ugh i might have wept. it’s so soulfully sweet and lovely, this fic, and the spots of angst really just serve to make it sweeter. I love a fic that makes me soft and fuzzy while still having some hot as fuck smut, and this definitely serves that. plus hybrid au! already pinpointing several of my weaknesses. i definitely recommend checkig this out because it quickly became a favourite of mine :) 

✎  beautifully misfit by @orphicbts ​ 

maknae line x reader | hybrid au, angst au, smut? (subby maknae energy) | series 

➥ this is another kind of recent one that I’ve been enjoying over the past few months, and can i just say it’s got a firm hold of my heart and my future puth. If you’d read florescence u know i have a budding weakness for shy boys, blushy boys, and GOD when she introduced each of the boys it had me cooing--- ESPECIALLY jimin. i cant wait for things to bud and bloom and develop, the little hints of nice things the reader is going to do-- ahhh i can’t wait until jimin gets glassses!!! and sees oc all the time!!! and blushes more!!! aaah!!!

It’s just so very sweet mixed in with the little tidbits and aspects of their past which, are sad and angsty but mfkgjdg u know.... u know that hurt/comfort shit hurts so good. I’m really super excited to see where it goes and how their relationship and dynamics develop in the coming parts!

✎  home by @zerotexas1975  

jimin x reader | hybrid au, fluff, angst? | series

➥ I remember reading this when the first part came out ages ago and immediately being hooked, because I saw the prompt by hybridfanfiction that it was based off and love it. And straight away it was so sweet and cute and wholesome, and as we’re quickly discovering I’m an absolute slut for shy boys!! It was standalone for a while, but let me tell u when i saw there was a second part out i screamed and dropped everything to read it-- and!!! it’s so good!! she’s starting to implement the plot now and she’s making us WORK for that sweet validation, work thru the angst on the near horizon, and i appreciate that. it took such a turn that i really wasn’t expecting it but I love how the dynamic between them and the relationship has budded and begun so far. 

✎  euphoric endeavours by @/haveagreatday (AO3) 

ot7 x reader | vampire au, college au, mate au, poly au | series

➥ this is another fic that I’ve been reading for a long while, and from the very beginning I loved the fire of the reader, the spunk and how she wasn’t afraid to go up and confront one of the biggest names on campus. and then reading further and observing the change, the transition in their dynamic. when she found out, vs where she is now. I really love the way she had the reader change and grow, and that seems to be a very big theme in this fic that I really admire! The reader consistently looks to herself for ways to grow and change, and do the boys. The story is so rich and in depth with their history and backstory, all the dynamics and the goods and bads of their past and how it affects them i the current day. I definitely recommend it for an investment and a good time. 

✎  twisted tails & thunderlight by @stskpop ​

// ot7 x reader | hybrid au, poly au, angst | series

// ot7 x reader | supernatural au, fantasy au, witch au/magic au | series

➥ twisted tails is one that I found recently, and although there’s only one part out that I’ve seen, I really love where it seems to be going so far! it’s an interesting spin on the au that I haven’t seen very often, but god... I’m really excited to see how she’s going to spin it and how it’s going to play out. how the grief they must be feeling over oc’s sisters death is going to work with everything else happening, how they’re going to interact and feel about her.... I’m keen to discover how it will all blend together.

And thunderlight... can I just say, I love love love this one! I found it through twisted tails and !!! i love it!!! it’s so rich from the very get go with plot and narrative exposition, the way everything is being set up so smoothly. I’m absolutely hooked, I want to know who this demon is, and whether it’s going to have the gratifying happy ending that I crave so badly... god I love it, and I’m eagerly awaiting the next installment!

!! let’s use this as an opportunity to make their days!! I think it would be really awesome to use this to spread a little more love & positivity, so please send something nice their way and even feel free to reblog this with some fics you’ve been loving yourselves if you’d like! I’d love to see what you’ve been into and check it out!! :) <3 

[laiqart]

The Untamed vs MDZS Anime: Which is better?

Going to japan now. Currently in the plane. The in flight tv is broken. So... ive been watching mdzs on youtube!

Hot damn the animation is beautiful. Every frame is a work of art. How the hell. Its so beautiful. I mean they use 3D a lot for the backgrounds and boats but its still gorgeous and not too jarring. The lighting is so realistic, scenery too. All the fighting choreography is beautiful. The way the swords swing in the air looks so fluid, and when swords clash its in flashes of light the color of their sword. Such a tasteful yet stylistic choice. Everyone's, esp wwx, hair is so flowy, so detailed every strand sways in the wind. The waves reflect light and move smoothly. How the hell did they do that. How. I was thinking of doing those screencap redraw thingy with the scene when wwx whacks lwj's boat. (they also emphasised how far lwj's boat was sinking into the water, which makes it more convincing how wwx can deduce that theres something underneath vs the live action where lwj's boat looked normal..) it was damn beautiful. The thing is, the point of these redraws is that the animation looks simple, so the redraw would enhance the scene. But for mdzs, everything is already in peak quality, redrawing it will only look worse. Its like writing fanfiction of books. The original writing is so damn beautiful, fan fiction ends up being such a stark difference that the reader cant help but compare the 2.

Drama, as everyone says, shows better facial expressions due to the live actors, so emotions hit harder. But anime def LOOKs way better in all action scenes. Angles that follow the characters are used to emphasise scale between enemy and chracters, and all the movements feel so dynamic, and i love how when they use talisman spell thingies they got a circle of light in an intricate pattern thats super beautiful. In the drama, its just a piece of paper.

However, i prefer drama's lwj. Maybe cos wyb looks so young, its more believable when he freaks out over the adult book that wwx gives him in the library scene. In the anime, he looks 20+-30+. Its a bit hard to believe that he'd be worried over that. Idk theres a kind of innocence and naivety that leads to the stubborn refusal to express emotion that young lwj is plagued with that we have in the untamed (was this intentional on wyb's part or is it because the teenage lwj wig made his eyes look floaty, so he seems more like a teenager and naive, less experienced as a cultivator vs lwj 13 years later? Dk but it works!). In the anime, he looks like an adult thats calm and level headed already from the get-go. Idk maybe i just havent watched enough (only seen up til the water demons in caiyi town). In both anime and drama, everyone and i mean EVERYONE besides the fricking babies looks the same 13/16 years later. It doesn't feel like time has passed at all. I wish they would have maybe a change in costume, or hairstyle in the anime. The drama at least changes their costumes a little and neatens the hairstyle of jiang cheng and lwj to indicate maturity.

Btw i love that in the anime for the water demons section they had wwx and jc casually chatting (though its a blatant cornetto ad which is fricking weird. How can there be frozen treats back in those days), then wwx beautifully catapulting himself onto a boat and rowing away showing the unique and romantic af mode of transport in caiyi town, then smoothly transitioning to the lan bros on the bridge right above them with lwj asking why lxc decided to bring them along. Its just tying together so many scenes, quickening the plot along and yet doing it so naturally and seamlessly compared with the novel and drama.

Though i like that the drama involved wn and wq and have wwx save wn, and makes way more sense why wn would want to risk his life to help wwx recover his parents fricking corpse illegally right under the nose of wen chao and wen zhuliu.

The anime removed the entire mystery plot of a yan and the fairy goddess statue and thats honestly the best best best choice to make. In the drama, it was one of the worse sections ever cos i didnt understand who all these random ass characters were (it was one of the first mysteries in the drama) and yet it didnt go into detail like they did in the novel, so not only did i not know what was going on, i also didnt give a single shit about the characters. When i saw that they completely did away with the random passer bys who screwed around with the fairy statue, i was thoroughly impressed.

I liked that the drama let nhs have his own trouble making moments tho, like having him sneak a live bird into class. It makes it more convincing that wwx would be friends with him because they both have a mischievous side that they can both appreciate in each other. In the anime, nhs just looks like a loser nerd thats weak in swordplay and does wwx's homework for him, without a will of his own. It doesnt make sense why wwx would keep him around. Then again, maybe itll make the reveal that nhs is a conniving mastermind more impactful for the anime, oh well only time will tell.

I liked that lxc and lwj look similar in the anime. Its more convincing when people call them the twin jades of the lan clan. In the drama, they hardly looked like brothers. Lxc looks more like lwj's mentor or teacher rather than an older brother. In the anime, they look more siblingy.

I miss drama wen ning. I rmb when he looked so fierce and terrifying in his first appearance. I was legit intimidated. Oh how hes changed! Hes so fluffy now. In the anime hes equally menacing. His fight scene with the statue goddess was so beautiful. Doesnt it take a long time to animate the chains moving so fluidly yet dynamically yet somehow looks like it can disintegrate rock in an instant? The lighting on it too, how it reflected the fire of the forest around them. Have i mentioned how beautiful having that fight scene at night was? It was dark and ominous looking, yet the fire cast an epic looking light over the scene with warm orange glows. And the animators had that fiery light reflected in anything they could find: eyes, chains, swords.

Ooh but jiang cheng's whip looked prettier in the drama than in the anime, which is kind of weird given they were both cgi-ed. Somehow the lighting of the whip in the drama was brighter, looked more like real lightning vs the whip in the anime looking a little dull, like they colored it then added a gray filter. This is kinda bizarre given the laughably bad effects of the effects for everything else in the drama. Visuals for non human things is not the drama's strong suit, so it makes u wonder what happened for the anime whip. Maybe in the dark, the lightning would have to look hella bright and reflect on the surroundings (tedious to color) more so than in the day, hence why it looked worse in anime vs drama. Oh well.

As for lan sizhui, its weird that his voice is so deep in the anime (and audio drama!). Ive always seen him as a kiddo thanks to the live action, so hearing him sound mature is kinda off-putting. He sounds like a leader, and gives off lwj vibes vs in the live action where he gives a goody two shoes studious nerd vibe, whos just trying his best. Maybe this is better, he feels way more like a lwj-raised child(serious and business-like) which makes more sense. Live action lsz feels like a wwx(optimistic and intelligent) AND lwj(well-behaved and sensible)-raised child. Anime lsz looks like hes got his shit together. Jinling is fairly similar in both, maybe less prideful in the anime (in live action theres the scene where im pretty sure he indirectly kills one of his men by wishing for the fairy goddess statue to come to life. That was a hella asshole move. This was omitted in the anime.) Jingyi in the anime somehow looks snarkier. Maybe cos he straight up duels with jinling and kicks him down a dark cave. Ive been wondering why all the tumblr posts depict ljy as this sassy ass short tempered kid when he was quite tame (though sassy by lan standards) in the live action. Now i know.

The costumes for the drama is better, more detailed though thats expected i guess. I just love that they have little white gusu lan clan uniforms that wwx jc and friendos are required to wear. Its so cute and such a cool detail. In anime, theyre all in their usual garb, and they just look like random people who decided to turn up at lan qirens class. In the drama, it looks more like a school that they have to attend for half a year and it feels characteristic that gusu lan clan would require their students to have a uniform, given their incredibly strict regime type. It also serves to separate the happy carefree school days from all the other tragic af events in wwx's life. His costume starts out white showing innocence and purity of his naiive teenage years who had yet to experience hardship and still feels invincible as a youth. After school, he wears dark blue, as he goes on an adventure with lanzhan and experience how important the yin iron is (gives up the joking light hearted nature as a teenager by realizing the gravity of situation if the wen clan gets their hands on it) and maybe that hes not truly part of the jiang clan who wears purple. Then his costume eventually becomes black as he experiences his first life and death situation that he isnt sure he can handle. That child like assurance that "oh the seniors will let me off" or "im sure jiang fengmian will come to my rescue" gets demolished when he undergoes cruel indoctrination at the wen clans. This visual development may be a bit on the nose, but personally i love subtle representations.

Overall, the anime does do a better of job of explaining the world's mechanics, which is quite important. The drama is quite faithful to the book, at times even more so than the anime, so it irks me that this is the one thing they decide to skim on. The god damn premise, the first thing the audience needs: why the hell is wwx alive again and what is mo xuanyu doing?? I guess the drama thought that it explains itself but it doesnt really. It was really confusing. The anime, though somehow faster than the drama, still has the time to properly explain mxy. A technique ive noticed is that they do exposition during the fight scenes, which is so ingenius. Its visually appealing, as always, so its not boring, the viewers gets to understand whats going on AND it gives the sense that the characters are so skilled that they carry causal conversations while fighting supposedly weak enemies like zombies and water ghosts, which is accurate seeing how wwx and lwj and friends are supposed to be one of the most powerful cultivators.

TL;DR both are good lol

[itsthatsillygoose]

Kit, a raggedy ass analysis

I wrote an analysis of forthbeam last week and y'all we're dragging the others to hell saying they weren't as complex so let me prove you wrong starting with Kit ft. a lot of Ming. If u want my summery Mingkit analysis it's the last paragraph on this post but I'll post it separately too:

Something that really intrigues me about kit is his capacity for other people’s attention. We see through out the first series that Beam is quite a ladies man and is seen many times trying to hit on the stars of the university but for Kit this is rare. Aside from Pha, Beam and Forth, Kit is rarely seen interacting with anyone one else closely and think that speaks volumes of his personality. He may be stubborn and sometimes aggressive but I think deep down he's compensating for a lack of security, all he really wants is that resounding feeling of safety and he finds that with in the tight knit friendship between him, Beam and Pha; and perhaps that’s what makes his relationship with Ming so infatuating.

Ming is the very definition of what Kit seems to avoid, he is bold and loud, clumsy with his feelings, a stranger. He's a player and doesn't need that sense of security like the other which seemed to be the biggest red flag to kit during their development. Imediately when the two first properly meet there’s a sense of surprise from the shorter when he finds that Ming still remembers him, and straight away he throws up his guard. Through out at least the series so far it's almost like Kit wants himself to hate Ming or at least he feels like he should; he knows Ming is everything he seeks to avoid and so he tries to act accordingly. He constantly seems frustrated around him but rather than being agitated by Ming, I think what's really bothering him is himself and the way he can't help but yearn for these moments of having the other around. Doesn't make sence right? Surely he'd be happy if he actually wanted to see him? Well you'd figure, but perhaps it causes Kit such anguish as he knows while having Ming around he loses control and he doesnt want to give him self the oppertunity to get to know him or like him as even just a friend,,, and so instead he snaps at him. Again I think this was a really subtle and lovely way of displaying Kits issue; he truly is an increadible example of head vs heart.

I loved looking deeper into these two as they appear to have such a typical dynamic of cat and dog, but I really think the second series explored so much deeper into their personalities and character. I think what is really being portreyed by these two is so much more than just a spunky journey of two boys in love. Really I think that we delve into dealing with the concept of searching for trust and a sense of clarity in not only someone else but yourself too. I do think that kit is perhaps the “protagonist’ of this idea. Ming is very much the big scary monster in the dark for him. Whether Kit had had partners before or not I'm unsure but I think the reason why Ming really affected him so incredibly was that he’d never been loved in such a way, so shamelessly and intensely, especially by someone like Ming. Someone he’s so unalike in so many ways. Really I think their arch isn’t about Ming breaking into Kit's abrasive character but rather Kit searching for truth and a reason to believe in ming and the insecurities on both ends of that.

We see many times that kit is appalled by Mings ways, for example the way ming had so many ex partners, this was such a big piece information to just be brushed over; infact its exactly what knocked kit so far from feeling like he could reach out and grasp onto Ming. Again referring back to before, I think kit really yearns for a sence of safety in everyone he brings close to him, a place to relax, someone he can trust enough to not hide behind his front; he doesn’t care to be played with or used so seeing that ming would throw away his past relationships so readily perhaps triggered that insecurity as he rightly so doesn't feel that sense of security with ming. He appears unpredictable to Kit, almost as if he throws his feeling around carelessly, but we know this isn't true and that in fact Ming is increadibly predictable.

We see more of this when Kit storms away at the beach telling ming to stay where he is (which he does). Personally this is still one of my favourite scenes as it's fucking bursting with emotion and crammed with developing concepts i've already mentioned but it really does just get me every time. There's so much to unpick, it really was the turning point for the two- at least in my eyes. It admittedly does just appear as if Kit got short tempered and barked at Ming who then got upset and sulked, but really the scene is a lot meatier. It was really a big eye opener for kit as though neither of them spoke about what happened, it really felt like they both knew Ming was proving to kit that he takes his word seriously, and isn't afraid to commit to him. Kit seemed guilty when the scene returned to him and the others drinking but when Ming was dragged in by another friend Kit seems shocked realizing he probably would have sat there all night if it had played out that way. Maybe he assumed ming had gone back to his room but the fact he didnt was such a slap in the face. I love this cause Ming stares at him sadly, knowing full well he's proven a point. Kit knows he's upset Ming and realises that rather than Ming not taking the idea of a relationship seriously, perhaps he himself was the one dismissing any chance of something real, some clarity. Maybe he was his own scary monster in the dark. He knows full well that Ming is harmless or else he wouldn't have appeared so guilty when returning to the hang out without him.

The whole beamkit scene where beam pulled a doozy on us and pretended he and kit were dating is another obvious telling of his character, (nines expressions in those few seconds were fucking ace btw, the absolute utter panic swirling into sorry eyes, then a punch in the gut and finally regret) in those few moments alone its obvious that he knows he's done Ming wrong, but if you really look closer there's a whole ugly ass betrayal hiding in there. In the chat they just had in a prior scene, Kit makes a point out of not wanting to get hurt by Ming leading him on only to ditch him for another person, but what did kit just do to Ming? Huh?¿?? Exactly, its easily missed but it's an awesome detail i picked up when diving into this and i have to say it was another perfect example of Kit being flung between head vs heart. Kit's been trying so hard to get Ming to use his head rather than his heart, but by using his own head to try and protect him self Kit's only gone and done the exact thing he was so afraid happening to himself to Ming. I think realising this he understands that even though they're so different and worlds apart, they're both just dumb fucking humans and he shouldnt be so hard on Ming, especially when Ming's been nothing but loyal and honest. Perhaps Kit is scared of committing but he's projecting that onto Ming because he doesn't want to admit it, he only sees what he wants to see because thats all he knows after putting up a front for so long when ever his emotional well being is threatened.

Honestly Kit's really just been his own problem this entire show and he really ought to sit the fuck down and let him self live 👏🏻

Thought it was endearing when he took Pha out so he could get drunk. Obviously getting wasted to forget your problems isn't particularly endearing, but like i said about Beam last week, it makes him feel more human. Especially when Beam shows up acting like the whole beamkit couple thing was a joke (when it clearly wasn't) and Kit's just like fuck you you're so annoying. Smh he really is boo boo that fool. He's just so completey oblivious that his best friend in the entire world is head over heels in love with him, so gullible just believing what ever the fuck anyone says. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt seen as he was drunk but Idk it just tickles me that he's always so tense and always so on guard yet the level of dumbassery is just,,,, how's he gonna be a doctor when he's literally a raw nerve on fucking legs. Bless.

He really lets things bother him, but he's much more readable than beam which we know even just from Phana knowing right away what was up. The fact he hid from Ming when Ming entered the bar(?) too really emphasized how completely not as hard as nails he is despite how he tends to act tough. Thought that was a sweet detail in unravelling Kit's personality and how Ming seems already to have completely knocked his walls down; Kit's not even trying to act like he's unaffected anymore.

We all joke about Beam being an emotional wreck but fr kits really not that far behind. He deals with everything horribly and always seems to make shit worse for both himself and Ming. He just wants what's best for everyone but sometimes that's harder than it looks and he really proved that. He goes into panic mode if Ming so much as breaths in his direction which actually does the complete opposite of intended as rather than seeming tough and cold, it just shows Ming that Kit's easily flustered around him, EG, HE FUCKING LIKES HIM, KIT JUST WRITE IT ON YOUR FOREHEAD AT THIS POINT. He thinks he's so mysterious fr, boy the whole world and it's goldfish has you sussed, who do you think your fooling with that attitude?

Can't not mention the kiss and how sweet that was on Kit's end. After all that mess and acting unaffected, as soon as he sees Ming move towards him he imediately melts back into his big softie boyf as if he'd been waiting a life time to kiss him. He literally called him a 'bastard' seconds before, if that ain't some sort of chaotic then what the fuck is he. Jkjk, back to the point, Kit does this thing where he lies to him self, C O N S T A N T L Y. He's forever telling himself that he's in control, he's forever telling himself that Ming's out to get him, he's forever acting as if he doesn't want anything to do with Ming, but this scene was so satisfying cause it really just ripped everything he'd been pretending to be from right underneath him. He kissed Ming so readily and for the first time in the relationship he actually seemed put together and calm and in control. He's never known what to do with Ming's attention yet here and now with his lips on his all he could do was reach out and grasp on to his 'scary monster in the dark' (Side note i absolutely fucking adore how Kit's gone from being so rough and brash with Ming to being so ridiculously shy after the kiss. I think it's forced him to face facts and he finally realised there was no point in keeping up his walls. Ming knows now, theres no need. It's sweet showing his vulnerable side for once, this is some healthy character development i can get behind.)

You'll have noticed this gradually got less formal and is slowly making less and less sense. That's because as i'm writing this it's 5:40am and the brain juice is running low but the next bit should be a pinch more coherent sorry,

What i love about Kit and Ming's relationship is the whole role reverse as the series progressed. At the beginning we see Kit, part of a solid group of friends and he's comfortable and confident where as Ming's just a new student at the university, finding his feet. We expect him to perhaps be naïve or immature, and yes he's a little clingy but really Ming is one of the most stable characters going and exactly what kit needs despite how he first appeared. Not once has Ming changed his goal of pursuing kit, not once has he fucked up, not once has he ever panicked. Ming- even though he's sulky- is really quite mature with his dealing of Kit. He's honest and really does what ever he can to make it work. I loved the example of this where he backed off after the kiss. It was so so sweet considering how clingy he usually is, and it really shows he takes great time and contemplation when considering Kits feelings and that he has a really deep understanding of how Kit's mind actually works and how he may react. He backs off knowing Kit likes his space and that maybe he over stepped the line pretending to be black out drunk, but again i really love this as this creates that safe space and feeling of clarity that i keep bringing up as it meant kit could reach out in his own time and really come to terms with things without any pressure. It meant that for once Kit would have to make the move to communicate and take a step in their relationship and i think for Ming to take that initiative to really somewhat place their fate in Kits hands for a while was really quite sweet and mature of him. We stan our emotionally healthy engineering boys fr. We come to realise by now that perhaps Kit is actually quite bashful and somewhat of a baby dear when it comes to emotions, charging head first into anything but initially losing his footing right off the get go. But Ming is stable, he is collected and cool and surprisingly gentle. Its really quite tell tale that kit spoke so much about ming maybe lacking in commitment when really he was the one too afraid to commit, he was clearly insecure. This arch really was kit heavy and though i already said what i think their arch focuses on, i just want to add that it also explores growth and becoming a better person because of a relationship. They bounce off eachother in such an interesting way, and so intunely that they cant help but work. Kit never knows what to say or how to approach ming but its okay, Ming has that covered and always comes to find him. Ming's very flirtatious, and kit and easy to fluster. Kit needs time and Ming is patient. All these little north and south traits really just pull together and i love how these two were written with such harmony. I know I've delved way deeper than was ever intended for these characters but i think we shouldn't take for granted the complexity of such a wonderful thing.

This is the reason why i think 2moons2 is miles ahead of 2moons the series. Aside from the cringe music, over dramatic zooms and lingering shots which can sometimes make it difficult to watch, 2moons2 really seeks complexity in each character and i admire that itch to bring them to life as i feel 2moons was increadibly 2D in this aspect. I only really believed in Kit when i watched that series, but 2moons2 really forces you to believe and invest in every main character and i just think as someone who writes that it's rather lovely.

What are your thoughts? Do comment if you have time, I'd love to hear more on these two :)

[sunsetsover]

Happy Birthday!! I always enjoy your eastenders content! If you want a prompt, I am p interested in how you view Ben trying to become less crime involved and what that means for his character, and how you think Phil will react to Ben's behavior??

thank you!!! and thank you for enjoying my ‘content’ (calling what i do content seems disrespectful to the people who do create actual quality content lmao), i’m glad!! i’m not exactly sure what you mean by prompt, but i can certainly talk abt my opinions on it all a little bit!!

from the spoilers, i believe we’ll actually get the answer to these questions in the coming weeks! i won’t go into detail in case you don’t want spoilers, but all i will say is that we’re going to see phil’s reaction to ben’s choice sooner rather than later.

as for my take on it, i think ben’s relationship with crime is kind of a complicated thing tbh. as much as i love dark ben, i don’t think those cruel, manipulative parts of him were ever just like... a part of his nature. they’re like.... adaptations, because of the things that have happened to him during his life and because of who his family are and who his dad is. i don’t think a life of crime - no matter how serious or petty the crimes in question were - would have ever been on the cards for ben had his dad not been phil mitchell. like he was a quiet, shy kid who liked musicals. not exactly criminal material, is it?

but then he moves back in with his dad when kathy ‘dies’ and sees how much of a ‘man’s man’ phil is and is not too young to realize that phil doesn’t really know what to make of him and then you combine that with stella’s abuse and manipulation (telling ben - a 10 year old child - that he was weak and pathetic and that his dad thought he was weak and pathetic too because ben wasn’t like him and that phil is the Epitome of what a Man Should Be, and that he has to be like his dad or else he will be weak and pathetic forever) and him realizing he’s gay (i don’t need to explain why this was a fucking nightmare for phil mitchell’s son, do i?), and him changing and becoming bitter and cruel and acting out makes sense. not only was he essentially manipulated into it, but it was a survival tactic on so many levels. plus he was a little boy, and he wanted his dad’s love and approval and attention! that’s normal! that’s understandable! but the sad reality is ben’s dad is phil mitchell, and basically the only way he could get any of those things was by acting out and doing bad things which undoubtedly reinforced the idea in his head that if he does bad things and hurts people then his dad would love and respect him more, and then the older and more confident and more desperate for his dad’s love and attention he got (not to mention the fact that he probably felt the need to ‘make up’ for the fact he was gay), the worse the things he was doing would get. and eventually this way of thinking changed from ‘if i act this way, my dad will love me’ to ‘if i act this way, people will respect me’, and then eventually it became less of an act and more an uncontrollable part of his character. but really, he really stood no chance at all in that house. he was bound to get fucked up to a certain degree, just growing up and seeing what his dad was like.

and now he’s an adult, and he really was not lying when he said he doesn’t know anything else. what the audience need to understand is that the way ben views things - himself, his relationships with others, how to create and maintain healthy relationships with others, how to treat other people etc - is fucked up! it’s warped! and it’s warped mostly because of his dad!! and i think ben is at a point in his life now where he can recognize these things (to a degree - although that’s much better than not bein able to recognize it at all - and imo ever since he first come back this has improved a lot) and can recognize that most roads lead back to phil, but he’s also not necessarily able to change those things. he’s trying, that much is obvious, but this is years and years of ingrained abuse and trauma and learned behaviour!! he can’t just get over that, especially not alone!! he needs help! and were it up to me, he’d be getting professional help!!! which is why i think callum has been so naive about this whole ‘just stop doing illegal things!’ thing he has going on - not only in the sense that you can’t just go ‘oh i’m on the straight and narrow now’ and have there not be any repercussions, but because this is years and years of ben’s life that he’s having to basically give up (ok you could argue that it’s not much to give up, but that’s not the point, and that doesn’t make it any easier), and also because imo ben’s relationship with crime is directly linked to his trauma and directly linked to his relationship with his dad. the only time his dad wants anything to so with him or shows him any kind of respect is still when ben’s doing jobs for him, p much. to a certain degree, ben’s ability to do dodgy shit determines his self worth because it has always determined how his dad sees him, and how his dad has seen him has determined how ben sees himself imo (again, not entirely, but to a certain degree). plus it’s a respect thing. he’s talked about his reputation before, and if he has a reputation then he has respect and ben wants respect, that much is clear. and i think that’s to make up for the fact he rarely got that respect when he was growing up, you know?

(plus, just my personal opinion, but i still think there’s a part of him that feels the need to ‘make up’ for the fact that he’s gay in his dad’s eyes. i think he’s come a long way (esp when you look at harry’s ben vs max’s ben) and i don’t necessarily think he’s ashamed of or sorry for who he is anymore, but judging by his actions i do think there’s still a part of him that’s like ‘well i couldn’t be the son he wanted in that respect, but i can be the son he wanted in this respect’, does that make sense? like a ‘i know he doesn’t like me being gay, so the least i can give him is this’ kind of thing, mixed in with the ‘this is the only way i can get my dad’s respect, this is the only way i can make him love me’ thing.)

basically: imo ben’s desire to do these illegal, criminal things is not as much to do with him liking doing them or wanting the money or anything like that, but it’s more bc in his head that kind of behaviour is linked to his relationship with his dad and his trauma and how he views himself. and despite his best efforts, ben was never gonna be able to just walk away from it all and have that be that, you know? because it’s not that simple.

as for phil’s reaction, it’s gonna go exactly how you expect it to go: badly. there’ll probably be some manipulation (i see something along the lines of ‘what, you’re gonna fuck over your own dad for someone you’ve been seeing for five minutes?’ being said) to get ben back on side. probably some dramatic shit about ‘ruining the family legacy’ or smth. he’ll probably make fun of ben similarly to how jay did but in a much less jovial, ‘i’m only teasing’ way. probably say some shit about callum. i see ben putting up a fight and defending himself (and callum) at first, but phil can wear ben down like no one else and will having him doubting himself in record time. phil will probably say some shit like ‘you gonna let callum tell you what to do, are ya? he says jump and you say how high, is that it?’ and that will absolutely press ben’s buttons and he’ll be desperate to prove that that’s not the case and phil will have manipulated him back onside, just like that. like it’s that easy. which it is really, bc despite what he says ben still wants his dad’s love and approval more than anything.

it’s gonna be horrible, basically. ben’s gonna be caught between a rock and hard place, not knowing what to do or who to listen to. he’s going to be so conflicted between not wanting to fuck up his relationship with callum (bc he clearly cares about callum A Lot) and keeping callum happy and allowing him to do what he wants to do and also trying to keep his dad happy and not fall out with him bc like i said, despite what he says ben still wants his dad’s love and approval more than anything and it would crush him to be cast out by him again after everything that’s happened, esp after they seem to have been getting along so well. so i think he’s going to struggle a lot over the next few weeks, trying to decide what to do. bc u know... despite him adoring callum and wanting their relationship to work and ben taking steps to make that happen, it’s been clear that he hasn’t exactly been over the moon abt going legit. (callum definitely didn’t force him, but after it was clear callum wasn’t changing his mind, ben obviously felt like the only options were him going legit and them breaking up, and after realizing he didn’t want to lose callum, he was only left with one option. so it wasn’t really a choice for him, was it?) and phil has a hold over him like no one else does, so who knows how this is all going to play out. like ben being on the straight and narrow isn’t going to last long - at least right now - but beyond that? callum’s reaction? the long term? who knows!! not me!!

but yh it just sucks bc you know ben has a Struggle coming and it’s gonna be horrible to watch bc no one deserves to be happy more than ben :-(

💖💖💖

[stars-and-rose]

emily’s notes on dealing with INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS

so it took me an hour and a half to fulling watch the video because I ended up taking seven and a half pages of notes??? i might make a separate post analyzing the characters/the plot in Dealing With Intrusive Thoughts, but we’ll see. with that out of the way, please note that these notes are in chronological order. spoilers under the keep reading

 seven warnings. seven freaking warnings. shit has hit the fan

why is Thomas ME in the mornings

wait no THOMAS BABY AHHHHHH

Virgil and Patton’s expressions when they first come in, oh god, Virgil looks absolutely done and Patton’s playing the ‘nothing is ever wrong’ game again 

ROMAN. THERE IS SOMETHING OFF WITH MY SON AND I’M NOT EVEN TWO MINUTES IN

Patton singing to himself is pretty cute not gonna lie

“secrets secrets are no fun, share with me or else we’re done.”-Roman is me yet again

also “i have yet to receive my invite to the pity party” Ro i can’t-

okay so it seems Virgil Patton and Thomas all know something and they don’t want Roman to know

not gonna lie, watching these three play cover-up is pretty damn funny and Ro is on to them

I AM ONLY 2 MINUTES AND 28 SECONDS INTO THIS AND I WANNA C R Y

Roman calling in Logan for back up? WHOOOOOOO we stan

AHHHH SOMETHING IS VERY W RON G

Logan gets one FALSEHOOD a day?

honestly can't tell if they’re trying to protect Roman or they don’t trust him rn and ahhh that hurts

I’M VERY CONFUSED

i feel like i’m witnessing the logince vs moxiety war

so everyone but Roman knows and everyone but Logan is desperate to keep it that way

???????

 NO ONE IS OKAY

they’re all coming for Ro’s role as the Extra side, huh? we’re hitting some extremes

“you all are acting fishy.” “so what, i’m acting fishy, sush- sue me.” “don’t pretend that wasn’t on purpose.” Roman and Virgil at their finest

why isn’t Roman allowed to know about Thomas’s intrusive thoughts???

“i’m going to prohibit your breathing if you keep this up.” Virgil NO

Virgil Patton what are you doing 

Roman is not going to fall for that distraction

wait no he did

i think everyone is a wee bit high

“have you ever imagined killing your brother”-HOLY SHIT SHIT IS HITTING THE FAN

OH MY GOD THE HANDS BEHIND RO AT 5:58 I JUST SCREAMED

THERE IS A CREEPY RAT MAN BEHIND THE TV

Patton covering his mouth and whispering out evil, and Virgil dropping into his tempest tongue when they see creepy rat man AAHHHHHHHHH

OH MY GOD HE HIT ROMAN HE HIT ROMAN WITH A MORNINGSTAR OH MY IS HE DEAD

“it’s the Duke.” thank you, Logan, BUT WHAT THE EVERLIVING FUCK DOES THAT MEAN

The Duke is so freaking scary i can not-

state farm ad: everything in life is alright with state farm!

me, in hysterics only eight minutes in: nOtHiNg Is AlRiGhT

the Duke’s costume though... the clear elements from Roman but the inverted colors and the Duke feels gaudier

the Duke’s song is so creepy i can’t oh my god he'd been on screen for five minutes and he’s terrifying. The imagery, how dark everything is, how easily he moves around the other sides i’m chilled to the bone

did Roman call the duke bro??? um what???

also isn’t roman unconscious

I WANT MY ROMAN BACKKKKKKK

oh god what happened between Deceit and the Duke

the Duke is fucking terrifying. have i said that yet

i don’t wanna see the dark sides anymore! i’m good

that song is going to haunt me FOREVER

so the Duke is dark fantasies and corrupted creativity definitely Ro’s dark side

i no like

maybe the Duke was able to pop in because Roman’s been hurting recently????

HE JUST PULLED OFF HIS EARS OH GOD

Logan is the only one keeping himself together, i hope he can rationalize the Duke but i fear not

“you’re not creativity!”

“yeah! that’s the brave, handsome (Patton your gay is showing) unbeatable Roman!

*camera cuts to Ro still unconscious muttering about mashed potatoes*

Virgil looked so cute when he blew his bangs out of the way!

back to the angst

‘you’re scary’

*camera cuts to hurt/unimpressed Virgil*

ALSO THE DUKE IS NOT SCARY HE’S TERRIFYING 

everyone is pointing fingers ahahhahah

how quickly Patton believed Logan was actually Deceit OOF when the only evidence for this was based on the fact Logan didn’t agree with Patton/Virgil’s method of dealing with the Duke

Lo: *trying to logic through the situation*

Vee and Pat: please shut your mouth

Logan:*talks about how nothing is black and white*

Thomas: *points out the difference between Roman in white and the Duke in black*

which is an amazing visual for character!Thomas’s black and white thinking

and it’s also an amazing detail to contrast Roman and the Duke. i thought the contrast between Patton and Deceit's suits was cool in SvS, but this is another level

Roman is still unconscious on the floor. the Duke is standing over him. alright, trash rat bastard.

wow i can’t believe my favorite side has a twin brother that’s an actual rodent

holy shit Thomas is such an amazing actor i genuinely cannot handle it, applause applause applause

“Wow, I hate him.” YEAH ME TOO THOMAS

the entire side conversation between Logan and Patton regarding the cradle in the treetop is gold 

have i mentioned that the duke is disturbing yet? there is an EYEBALL on his shoulder

“...........maybe?” oh Patton bb you are trying but you’re not there yet

wow what happened between the Duke and Virgil, because the Duke really don’t like him

ROMAN YOU CAN G E T U P NOW

okay Virgil, that’s fine, break my heart

we’re still stuck on this “is Thomas a good person thing?”

WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO LOGAN YOU GO SMART BABE

the flashback is just as creepy every time it plays gOD

well Vee got in an uncensored curse

Patton is shook

Virgil legit looks at him like,”you’re really hung up on THAT right now?”

“I’m about to smash the hulk!” what is happening.

“One of you is enough!” yes and I’d prefer Deceit right now!!

Deceit is a shit but he’s a shit with a cause

the Duke is just a rat

Patton is really playing the ignore all our problems card,huh

that didn’t work his arc why is he trying it again???

“this isn’t about me wanting to be listened too” SHOT THROUGH THE HEART, AND YOU’RE TOO BLAME @ logan

Logan almost calling Virgil paranoid HURT

that brings me back to the whole “paranoviligant” scene from the Hogwarts video. both Ro and Lo have prevented themselves from calling Virgil paranoid, even though I feel like meaner things have been said. the word paranoid is significant then. 

also logan quickly fixing his mistake there damn i love him

Thomas pleading with Virgil and Patton hurt me so much AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

“well that can’t be where the bar is” WHAT A PARALLEL

Logan’s speech on religious really hit me. 

i’m Catholic, but I’m also Pansexual.

watching an openly gay man talk about Religion freely made me feel really happy and accepted and i might have cried

also it was such a good way from Logan to make his point

the Duke really threw Patton and Virgil through a loop, huh

LOGAN IS THE BREADWINNER LISTEN TO HIM G O 

okay, theory time: the Duke gets more powerful the weaker Roman gets and vice versa. so to keep the Duke away, Ro needs to get himself in a better place to figuratively defeat the Duke. but how can he get to that better place when it seems everyone is against him?

“i said figuratively. and that is why i say it. THAT *clap* IS *clap* WHY *clap* I *clap* SAY *clap* IT *clap* Lo really went off there, you go you funky little nerd

also Logan claps to emphasize his points a lot and it’s cute

“despite his best efforts, Virgil's could never stop being the bad guy~!” OUCH

you can see the vivid hurt on Virgil’s face when Logan says that it’s his faiult, it looks like he was slapped

and Logan quickly adding “oh and uh Patton.” 

“rEcOrD sCrAtCh?” shut up stinky trash man

and Virgil’s shock that he isn’t the only problem, that isn’t not completely his fault?

and logan’s shock in realizing he isn’t the problem??

not like i needed a heart or anything

wow the Duke finally realized that Logan is going to smite him only took 25 minutes

he really just went off on Logan and Lo’s not even fazed

did the Duke just-

yeah he vored the deodorant

i can’t take this anymore

THE DUKE’S NAME

first of all, he just gave it anyway like it was nothing. the others gave thier names at key moments for them, and the Duke is like, yeah I’m Remus

also I SAW the little look he gave Virgil he’s not fooling me

wait is that why he gave his name so early? to spite Virgil? because Virgil hid his name for so long and such?

that’s it I’m voring the stinky trash bastard 

second, the significance of the name itself. i’m assuming Remus is named after the Remus in Roman mythology. You know, the twins Romulus (hint hint RO nudge nudge) and Remus, the founders of Rome, but in the end Romulus killed Remus and became the city’s namesake

based on the connection of the names, and hoping that Roman is the Romulus of this story, Ro will be able to ‘defeat’ Remus one day

DID LOGAN JUST BARE HIS TEETH AT REMUS

he did OH MY GOD

Roman, still unconscious on the floor, telling Remus to shut up and defending Lo? we stan (one) creativity twin 

well Remus just shuriikened Logan in the forehead

Logan simply falling for a brief moment then fixing the wound? he’s really a badass huh

Logan just summed up this entire shebang by saying,”if things one and two stop fearing the psycho asshole he’ll have no power.” alright Lo you go

LOGAN ALL THE WINS

Remus is really fucking dramatic huh, really seeing how he can be Roman’s twisted twin

really, Ro is chaotic good and Remus is straight up chaotic evil

“is he gone” you can’t be falling for that they’re ten minutes left on the episode

they fell for it

Virgil’s brutal honesty in listening off Thomas’s problems oof

“what if you sniffed your dogs butt?” Remus is getting a bit milder the more Logan talks him down, Lo is truly a king

“just shut up” WHOOOOO THOMAS

Patton and Virgil listening to Lo? GIVE ME AN AMEN

now we just need Ro to jump on the listening-to-Lo-express

 AND LOGAN SAYING “IT’S OKAY” AND COMFORTING THE OTHER THREE  AND BEING GENTLE WHOOOOOOO NO MORE OF THAT EMOTIONLESS BULLSHIT LOGAN WE KNOW YOU CARE ABOUT THEM

Logan’s speech on therapy? FANTASTIC, GIVE HIM AN AWARD

Patton admitting and realizing his over controlling methods and flaws??? we stan character development

VIRGIL JUST CALLED REMUS A COMMON COLD I CAN’T

but really, Virgil telling Remus off and calling him a pest not worth his time?? a king

“it was just like old times!” the look Patton and Logan share, they definitely are aware of Virgil’s past with the dark sides/ possibly being one and they are done with Vee being harassed

STINKY TRASH BASTARD IS GONE

ROMAN IS NOT DEAD

but his line, “I can see now why everyone was reluctant to tell me what was going on.” confused me

why didn’t the other warn Roman that Remus could be coming? it’s not like Roman didn’t know Remus existed (they are literally twins) and the other knew Remus existed so I'm not sure what all the secrecy was about. if the sides warned Ro, he could have been prepared, and you know, not unconscious for most of the video.

EVERYONE IS SO CONCERNED FOR RO AHHHHH

literally i might have screamed

i definitely did

when Roman used the same insult/nickname as Remus to Logan, how distraught he looked oh god

maybe that’s why Roman’s so much of a perfectionist,,, he’s so desperate to not be like Remus, Roman forces himself to be the exact opposite and it’s causing him pain

the little smiles everyone gives Lo at the end??? AHHHHHHHH

Thomas thanking logan and calling him Cool, and Logan just sinking out in response?????

SOFT SOFT SOFT

the entire like thirty seconds Roman and Remus share the screen, RO looks so uncomfortable 

there has to be something else that happened between them,not just they being exact opposites... not sure on what

it also seems like Logan is getting better but Roman is falling down the rabbit hole and getting even worse

the funhouse mirror metaphor HURT

Roman is really coming for Patton’s nothing-is-ever-wrong game huh?

also just noting the parallels between Roman and Remus, the hand gestures, even how they both sink out with the same BYEEEEEEEE!

Virgil babey don’t blame yourself-

holy shit Virgil just dropped the mic

really that scene broke my heart

it wasn’t the reveal itself, but damn the delivery

Virgil looks on the verge of tears,puts himself out there and telling Thomas that he was a dark side and being met by silence???

my HEART

Thomas is such an incredible actor i cannot-

side note, how did Thomas not know? i believe the other sides know (someone please ask me about this so i can rant) and Vee was never exactly sutble about it and Deceit and Remus both taunted him about the past??

is character!Thomas just that dense??

so it seems like Logan is doing better, Patton is decent for the moment, but Virgil and Roman are both struggling right now

it feels like Roman’s arc is very drawn out, so i feel like things are getting worse before they get better

as for Virgil, i REALLY want the next video to be about how the past doesn’t define you and end with the other comforting Vee.

dear G O D why is Remus eating deodorant??

also, i really want to know what is actually the deodorant

or is Thomas actually eating deodorant

SOMEONE PLEASE CALL POISON CONTROL-

[womenofcolor15]

Tekashi 6ix9ine Is BACK & Making Everyone BIG MAD, Including Billboard & Snoop Dogg! + Gets Help From Known Clout Chaser Celina Powell

  Rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine is ruffling feathers after being home from prison for a little over a month. Watch the "GOOBA" rapper come after Billboard and Snoop Dogg (with help from famed clout chaser Celina Powell) inside...

Rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine is causing controversy on social media just like he used to do before he was released from prison on racketeering charges last month. He was released on April 2nd and kept a pretty low profile on social media…until now.

On Monday, Billboard released the Hot 100 chart and Tekashi’s new single “GOOBA” debuted at the No. 3 spot, falling behind Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber’s new “Stuck With U,” which nabbed the No. 1 spot. Doja Cat’s “Say So Remix” featuring Nicki Minaj fell to No. 2.

Now, the “FEFE” rapper is taking aim at Billboard, calling them a fraud.

”You can buy No. 1’s on Billboard,” Tekashi said in an IG Video posted to his official account.

The 23-year-old rapper claims he and his crew have an “ongoing investigation” and they found out that Ariana supposedly purchased thousands of units with “six credit cards.” Well, it certainly wouldn't be the first time an artist did that.

”Explain how you buy 30,000 [units] with six credit cards,” he said in the video.

"@billboard CAUGHT CHEATING. @billboard YOU’RE A LIE AND CORRUPT. YOU GOT CAUGHT CHEATING AND THE WORLD WILL KNOW," he wrote in the caption of the video.

He also named dropped Jay-Z and Nicki Minaj in the video. Peep the clip below:

        View this post on Instagram

                  @billboard YOU’RE A LIE AND CORRUPT. YOU GOT CAUGHT CHEATING AND THE WORLD WILL KNOW.

A post shared by IM BACK AND THEY MAD (@6ix9ine) on May 18, 2020 at 10:46am PDT

  Tekashi then posted a picture of himself holding six credit cards, claiming he'll be taking the No. 1 spot next time.

          View this post on Instagram

                  Don’t worry we going #1 next time @billboard

A post shared by IM BACK AND THEY MAD (@6ix9ine) on May 18, 2020 at 4:53pm PDT

  And he hopped on IG Stories trashing Billboard:

So, here's the thing.  If you've publicly trashed and discredited Billboard and labeled it as a fraud, why on earth would you still care about being on it, let alone spend your own money to be on it?

After accusing Ariana of purchasing units, she went on Instagram to respond to Tekashi's claims.

She wrote:

"thank u to everybody who supported this song, this cause and made this happen. we love uuuuu so much.  there’s so much to celebrate today. however, i would like to say a few things. anyone who knows me or has followed me for a while knows that numbers aren’t the driving force in anything i do. i’m grateful to sing. grateful to have people who want to listen. grateful to even be here at all. i didn’t have a number one for the first five years of my career and it didn’t upset me at all because from the bottom of my heart, music is everything to me. my fans are everything to me. i promise i couldn’t ask for another fucking thing. so with this celebration today, i would like to address a few things which i don’t usually do (i don’t give my energy to drama or strange accusations normally but this has gone a little too far)...my fans bought the song. JUSTIN’S fans bought the song. OUR fans bought this song (never more than four copies each, AS THE RULES STATE). they are ride or die motherfuckers and i thank god every day that i have them in my life. not just when they fight for us to win (even when i ask them not to as i did this week) but because they’re some of the greatest people i know. sales count for more than streams. u can not discredit this as hard as u try. to anybody that is displeased with their placement on the chart this week or who is spending their time racking their brain thinking of as many ways as they can to discredit hardworking women (and only the women for some reason.....), i ask u to take a moment to humble yourself. be grateful you’re even here. that people want to listen to u at all. it’s a blessed position to be in. i’ve had a lot of “almost number ones” in my career and i never said a goddamn thing because I FEEL GRATEFUL TO EVEN BE HERE. TO WANT TO BE HEARD AT ALL .... and you should feel that way too. congratulations to all my talented ass peers in the top ten this week. even number 3. and thank u to @billboard for this honor. and thank u to everybody who helped us raise a lot of money for a very important cause this week. love u all a lot."

Tekashi then responded to her, saying he wasn't coming for her. His beef is with Billboard.

"@arianagrande All I’m saying is I worked super hard to make it out of Brooklyn NY. I speak for the millions of kids who aren’t as fortunate as you. The millions who weren’t fortunate to be on T.V.. LIFE is REAL when you’re on welfare LIFE is REAL when you grow up with out a father. You don’t know what that is like. You say for me to be humble .... I don’t think you know what humble is.......... YOU ARE VERY TALENTED AND BEAUTIFUL GOD BLESS YOU. But you will NEVER UNDERSTAND MY PAIN"

  Justin also chimed in:

Now, Billboard is addressing Tekashi's allegations. In a new article, they explained how this week's numbers were calculated, breaking down how they calculate streams and airplay. Billboard also responded to Tekashi's claims that Ariana's team purchased unites with "six credit cards."

"Billboard and Nielsen Music/MRC Data conducts audits on all sales reported with access to purchase-level detail, and works with data partners to recognize excessive bulk purchases and remove those units from the final sales total. All titles this week, as in every week, were put under the same scrutiny. (Billboard has reached out to Fame House/Bravado, retailer and reporter of director-to-consumer sales, for further comment about the sales data provided for 'Stuck With U.')"

You can read their full explaination here.

Now, for the Tekashi & Celina Powell vs. Snoop Dogg drama.

It started when Snoop continued to call Tekashi a rat and encouraged others to NOT support a "snitch" like him. That's when Tekashi got petty and decided to post a video of Snoop cheating on his wife, Shante Broadus, with famed clout chaser, Celina Powell.

  Tekashi 6ix9ine posts video of Snoop Dogg cheating on his wife #6ix9ine #SnoopDogg pic.twitter.com/Z6F16GL2jM

— Lil Mixtapez (@LilMixtapez) May 17, 2020

  The video seems to be old and one we posted a while back as well.

Tekashi also posted a video of himself watching a video of Suge Knight insinuating Snoop is an informant. Check it:

  Tekashi 69 tries to insinuate snoop dogg is a snitch pic.twitter.com/2MfTyFy5Qm

— The Internet Is Undefeated (@livekomik) May 16, 2020

  Snoop denied ever telling on Suge and said he and Suge are on "great terms."

        View this post on Instagram

                  #snoopdogg denies ever telling on Suge or anybody else. He also states he’s on good terms with #sugeknight now

A post shared by DJ Akademiks (@akademiks) on May 16, 2020 at 4:45am PDT

The Doggfather then posted (and deleted) a video warning Tekashi to stay in his lane:

  Snoop Dogg after 6ix9ine calls him a snitch

pic.twitter.com/GjSj6FRaCw

— RapCentury (@RapCentury_) May 16, 2020

  Before Snoop deleted the post, Tekashi hopped in his comments, pointing out that Snoop never denied there's paperwork that would confirm he cooperated with law enforcement. "Still hasn't even denied the paperwork. lEaVe Me AlOnE 'you're blowing my cover,'" he wrote.

Tekashi of all people calling somebody a snitch.  That's rich.

The rainbow haired rapper also posted a screenshot of Snoop allegedly threatening him in DMs.

          View this post on Instagram

                  #tekashi69 says #snoopdogg is threatening him in the DM. Does this count as snitching ?

A post shared by DJ Akademiks (@akademiks) on May 17, 2020 at 5:04pm PDT

  “Can someone tell the police snoop dog is threatening me [laughing emojis he mad,” he wrote in the caption of the screenshot. He has since deleted it.

Celina Powell then enters the group chat with a video of Snoop calling her. It's said she might have called him first and he was returning her call and that's how she got him on video:

"@snoopdogg I’m not interested in teaming up with you against @6ix9ine, stop calling me askin why I’m egging him on ... And showing me your dog @juelzbroadus so I don’t screenshot you, was a rookie mistake.. you know I stay with two phones #TEAM6IX9INE," she wrote in the caption.

Check it:

          View this post on Instagram

                  @snoopdogg I’m not interested in teaming up with you against @6ix9ine, stop calling me askin why I’m egging him on ... And showing me your dog @juelzbroadus so I don’t screenshot you, was a rookie mistake.. you know I stay with two phones #TEAM6IX9INE

A post shared by CELINA POWELL (@celinaapowellxo) on May 17, 2020 at 4:11pm PDT

  Snoop is likely kicking himself for even responding to Tekashi in the first place. Now, it seems he's turning the other cheek to the social media drama. He posted these memes after Celina's video was released:

          View this post on Instagram

                      A post shared by snoopdogg (@snoopdogg) on May 17, 2020 at 6:31pm PDT

            View this post on Instagram

                  Last dance

A post shared by snoopdogg (@snoopdogg) on May 17, 2020 at 9:10pm PDT

  As far as cheating goes, Snoop's wife, Shante, told her fans on Mother's Day not to come to her for relationship advice because she has taken her man back 81 times. Peep that post HERE.

This entire thing is ghetto...

Photo: Tekashi's IG

[Read More ...] source http://theybf.com/2020/05/19/tekashi-6ix9ine-is-back-making-everyone-big-mad-including-billboard-snoop-dogg-rapper-get

[chromsai]

Top 5 Arc V Moments.

OKay so this is very over due as hell I’m sorry like sincerely apologizing here. I don’t really have an excuse since I’ve known my definite favorite moments for a while, I just felt I had to… emotionally prepare myself to write all this out. And well

(it’s fucking June now…) as you can see it takes me a just a bit to become emotionally prepared for anything Arc V, especially so when it comes to deciding on JUST 5 Arc V moments but alright. Here they are:

5. Episodes 69 & 99 (tie): Melt My Heart

Yeah, I know I’m starting this list off with a tie just to emphasize how hard this is for me. Well anyway…

I’m choosing both of these episodes as a tie because my favorite thing about them both is, you guessed it!, fruitshipping.

Fruitshipping is, of course, my favorite pairing from Arc V (honestly, it’s my favorite in all of YGO in general by like… a really, REALLY long shot) and I’ve already talked about why episode 69 is my favorite fruitshipping moment from the entire show (tl;dr: it’s what made me go from casually shipping it to full blown “I WILL DROWN WITH THIS SHIP WITHOUT REGRET”) but the reason why I’m placing it tied to episode 99 in this list is of course because

this. Amazingly touching reunion. And although, yes it was short lived, nothing takes away how satisfying everything about this scene is, imo at least. Maybe you ship this, maybe you don’t. Either way, I’m not sure you can’t deny how heartwarming it is that Yuya isn’t holding back his feelings here. Okay, perhaps he is maybe slightly (goddamnit Yuya cONFESS ALREADY DAMNIT U DENSE BOY). Even the entire present cast finds it hella endearing:

Shingo’s satisfied look of approval pretty much confirms he ships it.Gongenzaka is beyond happy to see his best friends reunited, as they should be.Sora probably going thru the biggest sugar high of his entire goddamn life from how sweet this reunion is.

Look. At. Reira’s. Smile. Damn shoulda just shown baby Reira/Zarc a pic of fruitshipping… but then maybe Arc V would have ended 5 episodes sooner…Tsukikage, the cool stoic ninja, has been shipping this from the shadows but this scene was too perfect he dgaf about hiding it anymore.

Jack & Crow transcending shows just to show their approval of this ship.

Fruitshipping is all according to Reiji’s keikaku, and Shun seems glad he was awake to see this.

Not to mention my favorite part of this moment:

I get this is YGO and who knows if we’ll ever get an on-screen kiss but… the amount of time they stared directly into each other’s eyes without even blinking once, like… I know I wasn’t the only one who thought they were actually gonna kiss there for a moment… it’s symbolic of something, ya feel?

sweartogodithoughttheyreallywereandasiwatchediwasscreaming

This moment was too pure, too good, too heartwarming………

Anyways,,,

4. Episodes 31+32: A True ‘Entame’ Duel

Again, this is a moment I’ve talked about as being one of my favorite Yuya moments recently.

 There’s a lot I can add about why I love this duel (for example:

giving Shingo some character development as well as demonstrating that he actually really is a skilled duelist and a true entertainer in his own way, not just a follower or an imitator

Yuya using this duel to challenge himself and push himself to reaching for his father’s level of Entame Dueling which is his dream

the cliffhangers they left us off with at the end of ep 31, the one that happened at the beginning of 32 with Yuya diving into the collapsing castle (which, Idk about anyone else, but that legit got me anxious AF too cuz how unpredictable the duels in this show are sometimes) and of course the other one towards the end of the duel as he made his ‘destiny draw’ while calling for the audience to cheer him on, etc.

but what really makes this duel the textbook example of what makes Entame Duels so fun to watch is the flawless call and response (aka back & forths) between Shingo and Yuya and their absolute dedication to keeping the flow of their entertainment as intense and unpredictable (even for themselves) as possible.

Also, as far as YGO goes, there is always going to be moments where the protagonist has to rely on a ‘destiny draw’, but the way it was implemented in this show (pretty much always like this moment) was a really creative way that fits into the world and story-telling of the show extremely comfortably but also adding to the anticipation since both we AND the actual in-universe audience are expecting something BIG.

Another rewatch bonus here: the stark contrast between Yuya’s Entame Dueling vs Zarc’s vengeful, overpowering dueling- this duel is the prime example of everything that Zarc strived to achieve as an entertainer but was unfortunately ultimately swayed away from despite his true intentions.

Last note for this moment: this duel was will always hold a special place in my heart for happening at a time when I really needed it. It was a nice reminder to not be afraid to Take A Step Forward With Courage.

(Side note: this episode was also immediately followed by, without a doubt, the best written duel in Arc V: Shun vs. Sora, so that just added to this moment in retrospect due to the contrast between dueling for smiles & entertainment vs dueling for war & vengeance, which was brilliant considering these 2 duels perfectly showcase the 2 sides of of the single coin that is Arc V and its overall themes, so you could say that, yeah, MCS arc was fucking good.)

3. Episode 1 + 2: A Solid Intro that AWED

Alright, so I’m very aware that not everyone shares my opinion on this, but again this is a list based on my experience and perspective of Arc V so lol anyway,

Episode. 1.

I’ve told this story plenty of times before, I think, but I’ve left some details out. After watching + finishing Zxl (as it was airing, mind you) I was left feeling kinda… mostly… “meh” about YGO as a whole. The last few episodes of it, though, we got this a few times:

And I was kinda… also “meh” about it. *cries writing that*pastsaiyoufool Tbqh with you, my only reaction to him at first was “he’s riding a hippo while playing card games… does he even know what it means to be a YGO protag? Where is YGO going…” but it was also “eh, it’s YGO. Nothing’s changed probably.” Then, a certain someone was confirmed as “main rival” for Arc V and I was motivated to watch. “It’ll probably be just okay but I’m watching for Hosoyan,” I told myself, fucking clueless as fucking hell. “Plus this is the first time I get to watch a YGO RIGHT as it airs RIGHT from the start.”

So episode 1 finally came around and this happened

within the first… not even 2 mins in. And part of me was “ok” and the other part of me was nothatwasntcutethatwasnOTCUTEATALL*denial* (I am a known tsundere when it comes to the things I end up loving the most [see: Chrom, Shun, Zarc, etc.]). Then the next thing that caught my attention was:

. By now, I was internally being even more aggressively tsundere because Fuck that was cute… but he’s ridiculous! Dressing up like a clown?! NNNNO. though on the outside I just kept watching with a straight face like okay okay it’s the first episode, he’s allowed. I’m very dense too just like him.

My first impression of the duel was actually that it was rather okay & somewhat interesting for the most part and that the action cards seemed fun but oh boy a new gimmick but I continued watching, cuz again, I wanted to give it a chance.

My expectations, going into the show, were “this is just gonna be another silly, happy-go-lucky kinda theme, eh I already got thru Zxl so why not?” + no real expectations at all.

And then, 

this happened:

My first reaction: oH MY GOD LOOK AT THOSE EYESSS!!! (little did I know this was the beginning of my being zarctrash… yuuup… since episode. fcking. 1.)

I don’t know exactly why, at the time, and I don’t know about the rest of you but this was basically me right after:

Then the next episode continues the duel, Yuya wins, and again, I’m like

And to top that off, they give us this too:

First of all, that ending screencap of Yuya looking at the screen confidently right after he Pendulum summons for the first time and leaves everyone (including me) in shock… I’m sorry but, to me, THAT’S how you end a first episode. The animation. The soundtrack. The pacing and writing. Yuya’s sudden and mysterious (at the time) complete change of demeanor, along with the mystery of the Pendulum itself, is what left me in absolute awe, especially so seeing that even Yuya himself was not expecting it. It was all perfect. Then going on to the next episode and learning that Yuya suddenly had no idea what had just happened or where he even was… that got me hooked instantly.

But the ending to that first episode… haha… I started watching this show for Reiji Akaba and suddenly forgot he existed right after this moment happened. When he finally made his dramatic, opening double-doors + scarf flowing in the wind (in his office somehow?) debut, I was like “Oh sHIT there he is! Right… I was gonna watch this show for him… right…” Barely an episode in and I had completely forgotten why I was even watching anymore. I didn’t care. I just wanted to watch more. (And thankfully Reiji Akaba ended up also exceeding my expectations of his character like by a lot.)

I’ve seen this episode way too many times to count. I enjoy it thoroughly each and every time. But I honestly just really wish I could relive seeing it for the very first time. It was… such an incredible experience. To me, this is the best first episode of any YGO. I went in expecting nothing or even less than that and instead, fortunately, got everything I didn’t even know I ever wanted.

2. Episode 135: The Perfect Episode

I. Am an angst. Hoe.

Part of the reason why I enjoyed this show so much was because it gave me so much well-written angst that hit all the tropes I enjoy so much and then some.

This episode was and then some.

First of all, let me just address the fact that the duel between Yuri and Yuya was hyped and anticipated for 2 fucking years ever since Yuri was first revealed. Don’t lie, our first thought when we saw Yuri was “So WHEN are they gonna duel??!?” 

For 2. Entire. Years. This duel was hyped up, and I’ll even dare to say it was more anticipated than even the Yuri vs Yugo duel, honestly. Even up to the last minute. I can’t tell you the amount of polls and discussions I saw debating who would win the duel because not only was the duel hyped, after seeing the first half, (in keeping with the surprise nature of the show) the result was still pretty damn unpredictable (a lot of those polls I mentioned were split almost evenly half the time).

Then it finally happened.

And it delivered. My god did it deliver.

But alright, I know I titled this “The Perfect Episode” but yeah there was some flaws in the duel writing (Yuya, my boy, you forgot your monsters have Pendulum effects?, Yuri I get you were losing your shit too and just wanted to hitotsu ni but you also forgot to use your dragons’ effects or just didn’t bother, etc.) buuuut I’m going to call this off as somewhat realistic in the fact that when you’re feeling you’re going insane and panicking you just might not be able to think entirely straight and might miss a few card effects or so.

But besides that.

The animation for this episode, directed by Ebina, and the sound direction as well was spot fucking on. And the script throughout was…

Oh my god. The script throughout this episode…

Let’s just say, during the span of less than 24 minutes I

cried

and cried

and died cried.

A lot.

just getting those screenshots hurt… beyond words…

Major shout out to Kensho Ono for this scene in particular because. wow. 

(Side note 1: just in general, I thank the gods every day for casting Ono Ken as Yuya because I cannot think of anyone better to voice him ever. He left his own personal mark on Yuya’s character [Yuya’s “Ladies & Gentlemen!” was his own added touch and was not originally in the script, gods bless 🙌] + on the YGO series as a whole.

Side note 2: This is more of a personal one with regards to this scene in particular…I say often that I relate to Yuya a lot and let me just say that watching this scene was incredibly hard to watch through tears especially the first time around because, as someone who went through a terrible depressive episode that lasted months in 2014-2015, it just… reminded me… of that exact feeling… and I felt so. goddamn. horrible for Yuya… he never deserved that. Ever. This episode broke me so bad for a good while…)

Of course, I think the thing we all anticipated the most was… Zarc. We knew for certain that he would revive by the end of the duel. “How?” was the main question. Most speculation lead to the theory that Yuri would forcefully merge with Yuya despite losing, but that didn’t happen. Instead,

Zarc did it himself. Of course.

I think by the very end of the duel it was obvious but… that still didn’t stop me from spouting “no no they aren’t doing this tHEY AREN’T REALLY DOING THIS THEY CAN’T FUCKING DO THISSSS NOOOO!!!!” as he walked towards Yuri. And I knew exactly what was about to happen. And it still broke me anyway. And when Yuya’s Pendulum hit the ground

so did I.

*sniff* Fun times.

[Here is where I was gonna put some honorable mentions but the list was pretty damn long so I’m omitting it because honestly I’ll just end up listing like every single episode (besides episode 19 ofc well now y’all know my least favorite Arc V episode… wow… shocker, right?)]

1. Episode 37: Point of No Return

Welp. This is it. My favorite. Favorite. Arc V episode and moment.

The one episode I’ve seen like……. idefk how many times. I pretty much know the script by heart now. Yeah. In Japanese.

What is it about this episode? Maybe it’s the-

No! Stop we’re not there yet!

I think it’s the fact that this episode

is, imo, when shit TRULY. HITS. THE FAN. 

As I titled this entry, this is literally. The Point. of No. Return.

Nothing is the same anymore after this episode. The plot is completely, entirely on autopilot from this point on.

“Destiny Starts to Move.”

This fucks with me, man. How much so? Here look:

Yeah I know this was just 5 months ago, but my god. You never know what fate has in store for you. Look at this other thing that I just found again also:

haha “lol”. 

I can go on forever about the massive foreshadowing this episode is, or about how tragic it is, or both. OR. I can just… appreciate what they’ve done here.

I love Arc V because, as I said before, this show hits at like literally ALL of my favorite tropes, combines them with YGO and Arc V’s relatable AF characters, and then deconstructs those tropes immensely.

So for example, this episode alone:

A PLOT MAJOR duel NOT involving the main character/protagonist, yet still affects his life forever anyway.

“Kills” (ymmv) off a plot-important character within less than the first half of the show.

Said character STAYS that way (almost unheard of in YGO).

Said character’s dying words aka his last fucking will remains unresolved for pretty much the entire show until the very last episode. (FORESHADOWING WHAO)

You can’t. Escape. Fate. (The end result would be the same regardless of what happened this episode.) You can’t even change fate, in this situation. Not even slightly.

No. You won’t even fix your fate either. Hell, this is a trope that Yugioh usually actively avoids.

Yes, I know this episode is cruel in so many ways, and even more so in hindsight, but as I said before, I love angst. And I love deconstruction of tropes. And I love foreshadowing.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t just love this episode in hindsight. There are so many things going on

“Destiny Starts to Move” - yeah, after all of Ray’s bracelet’s struggles of keeping them away from each other, Zarc finally made his first definitive move sending Yugo here and now three of his four pieces are gathered in one spot, two of them misguidedly pissed at each other for extra hitotsu ni- dueling motivation, with not a single bracelet in sight. There’s no turning back now. Just another win-win Sunday night for Zarc.

And, oh yeah, this was Yugo’s debut. Just to emphasize the fact that their coexistence is unnatural.

Lmao no matter how you see it, their story is so damn sad fite me

Out of hindsight, though, I’ll admit that, besides Yuya, I still wasn’t entirely attached to the characters (or at least not to the extent I am today, even regarding Yuya), but this episode was, as I titled this, the point of no return for me as well. If I ever thought about quitting the show and just coming back to binge it later (which… never actually crossed my mind, I don’t think lol), this was the episode where I thought “shit… I’m definitely here forever now.” I mention the whole quitting and then binging thing cuz that’s what I pretty much eventually did with all YGOs before it, even DM, but not with this show.

Of course this episode is also where we get a hint of what’s been going on with the introduction of Yuri and Leo Akaba asking him to bring Yuzu to him, but doesn’t give enough away that it’s obvious at all. Pretty much all the mysteries gathered in this episode here quite nicely but the shock ending- Yuto dying- gave us all something even greater to ponder about… we knew when it happened that this was only the beginning…

“When the paper’s crumpled up, it can’t be perfect again…”

Honestly, I can continue talking about a bunch of other things regarding this episode for forever, but… talk about… otanoshimi wa kore kara da… so many things that came after this in the story were built upon this moment, it’s definitely one of the most important moments in this show. 

And it’s my favorite moment in Arc V.

[beardycarrot]

Nintendo E3 Hopes and Dreams

It’s probably dumb to actually hope for...anything, BUT HOPE IS THE THING WITH FEATHERS DAMNIT. Nintendo will have a twenty-five minute video spotlight, presumably showing off trailers for new games, while Treehouse Live will be going more in-depth with gameplay.

Nintendo’s big game this year is Super Mario Odyssey, which will be playable on the show floor, with Treehouse Live probably showing off some levels not available to the public. This is pretty much all we know for sure; anything else is just speculation (and wild hopes) on my part.

No Arms

Rebel that I am, I decided to start my list of things I want to see with something that I don’t want to see. Arms is coming out just three days after Nintendo’s presentation, and the reviews are already in. Anyone attending the event who would be likely to put out good press has already reviewed the game, so there’s not much point in making it playable on the show floor. I can see Treehouse Live dedicating a few minutes to showing off the game and maybe teasing some of the free DLC that will be coming out, but I really hope that’s the only focus this game gets. The spotlight video is only twenty-five minutes long, so they’d better not waste time on Arms.

Kid Icarus: Downfall

That title is completely made up, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see a sequel to Kid Icarus: Uprising. Sakurai is working on a new game, which probably isn’t just the Switch port of SSB4. I can totally see Sora and Platinum collaborating on a new Kid Icarus game for Switch. Maybe this time with an option to keep in the Japanese voice acting? It’s a crying shame to dub over Minami Takayama.

Mo’ Like NOkémon

Yeah, I, uh... I don’t want to see any of the stuff from this week’s Pokemon Direct in the Nintendo spotlight. That trailer for Pokken Tournament was great and really showed off the potential of the Switch, but it’s a game everyone expected to see a Switch port, and we already know everything important about it for the time being. I’m okay with Treehouse showing off some of the new content, but I don’t want it in the spotlight. Same with Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon. A trailer wouldn’t be useful to us at this point, so just show some gameplay during Treehouse Live and explain what the game is there. Speaking of Pokemon, I hope that we’ll finally see an English release for Detective Pikachu, though I don’t know whether that’s really worthy of showing during the spotlight.

Golden Sun 4

This is a long shot, but a friend recently reminded me of the cliffhanger ending to Golden Sun: Dark Dawn. Unfortunately, that game wasn’t great, and didn’t sell well, so it’s entirely possible that nothing will come of the sequel bating. Which sucks, because the first two games in the series were fantastic. Since Dark Dawn, Nintendo’s just had Camelot working on bland Mario Sports titles... but with the latest one, Mario Sports Superstars, they’ve finally brought all the Mario Sports games (...and... horse racing) together into one package! They had the team from Namco that worked on Mario Super Sluggers helping out, so maybe the extra man power meant they were able to divert some resources towards a new Golden Sun pitch? I mean, with five sports games in one coming out just a few months ago, there’s no need to release another in the near future, so that totally opens them up their schedule, right? Right? Please, Nintendo, even just a teaser image showing silhouettes of the four Djinn types will do. PLEASE?

Retro Studios 2D Metroid

I know what Nintendo was trying to do with Metroid Prime: Federation Force. They knew that there was a big market for online gaming, and Splatoon’s unexpectedly huge success encouraged them to push ahead. Tri Force Heroes was... less, of a success, but people clearly liked online play and were clamoring for a new Metroid game, so it seemed like a perfect fit. Unfortunately, this is one of the few instances where Nintendo’s “develop a gameplay concept and then choose a Nintendo franchise to use it in” approach didn’t work. People seem to thing that Nintendo doesn’t care about the Metroid series, having done nothing special for its thirtieth anniversary... but bear in mind, Federation Force DID come out during the anniversary month. It just... would’ve been nice if they’d actually acknowledged it. ANYWAY, while Metroid isn’t nearly as popular in Japan as it is in the US, Nintendo DOES care about the series; it’s their only franchise in the Metroidvania genre, and it’s bad business to leave a market untapped.

All that said, Retro Studios has been quiet since Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze came out three years ago. They apparently didn’t like working with Kensuke Tanabe, and his role as a producer on Retro games and point of contact with Nintendo was supposedly filled by Yoshio Sakamoto, the director of the Metroid series. Considering Retro’s history with Metroid and their recent foray into 2D platforming with the Donkey Kong Country games, with or without Sakamoto, their secret project definitely feels like it must be a 2D Metroid game. When they finished working on DKC:TF coincides with when Nintendo should’ve started really thinking about the next Metroid game, and the silence on both the Retro and Metroid fronts is telling. It’s gotta be time to reveal what Retro’s been working on, and all signs point to it being Metroid... and a 2D one, I hope.

Zelda Maker

Somehow, it’s been over a year and a half since Tri Force Heroes, and three and a half since A Link Between Worlds. That’s not too soon for them to be far enough into the next handheld Zelda to at least tease it, right? Tri Force Heroes was barely even a game! Okay, maybe it’s too early for the next main series Zelda game, but they could definitely show Zelda Maker. It would need a lot more variation in visual styles than Mario Maker so that every dungeon doesn’t look exactly the same, and a ton of items and interactive elements so that people can make original puzzles, but I think it can be done. Realistically, I don’t think Zelda Maker is likely to happen... but this isn’t a “realistic expectations” list, it’s a HOPE AND DREAMS list!

Ice Climber. Wait, what?

This is completely out of left field, but... new Ice Climber? Nobody’s asking for it, nobody wants it, but I think they could do something with it on Switch. Y’know, a competitive co-op mode to make use of the Joycons? There are plenty of developers this could’ve gone to... Next Level, Sora... maybe a even Namco or Capcom? This game is probably never happening, but if it ever does, I can see it as a Switch eShop title.

Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle

A Mario/Raving Rabbids crossover RPG was rumored months ago, and while there wasn’t really anything to support it, it seemed too weird of a concept for someone to just start a rumor about. Then, a few weeks ago, what appear to be internal materials from Ubisoft regarding the game were leaked... and then the Brazilian ratings board issued a rating for the game, pretty much confirming it. It’s unfortunate that all this was leaked, as this game was probably going to be one of Nintendo’s big reveals at E3. I don’t imagine the leak will impact their plans that much, so this will probably take up a good portion of the spotlight.

Fire Emblem Warriors

Nintendo’s been all about the Fire Emblem lately, and while I don’t expect any details on the next major game in the series, Fire Emblem Warriors is supposed to be coming out sometime this year. The reveal trailer told people pretty much everything they need to know, but I expect it to show up in Treehouse Live, and at the very least in a sizzle reel during the spotlight. Assuming the only sizzle reel isn’t indie developers, which it might be.

Animal Crossing Something-Or-Other

Switch is a great console for Animal Crossing, and I’m excited to see what they do with it. They’ve already announced some kind of mobile Animal Crossing game, which is another perfect platform for the series (assuming it’s not some weird Animal Crossing-themed puzzle game or something). If Katsuya Eguchi’s been working on the mobile game he probably hasn’t had time to work on one for Switch in addition to everything else he’s been involved with... buuut, if they originally started development on Wii U, the game could be close to release by now. Either way, I’m hoping to see something Animal Crossing in the spotlight.

amiibo-Centric Games

I love amiibo, but I’d like to see more games (other than the ones they’re made for) that use them. amiibo Tap is basically just demos of NES and SNES games, and I don’t know anyone who played that Mario vs DK-type game that uses amiibo. The best use of amiibo I’ve seen is in Super Mario Maker, where scanning an amiibo unlocks that character as a skin, and Breath of the Wild, where every amiibo gives you random materials (and Zelda ones give you special items). Codename STEAM also has playable Fire Emblem characters unlocked via amiibo of those characters, which is... random as hell, but still pretty cool. I want Nintendo to put out some games that make use of amiibo in a cool way, something like Skylanders or Disney Infinity.

Switch VR

I’m not all that interested in VR... at least, not as it currently stands. The Switch, however, seems to have been designed with VR in mind. Sure, the main appeal is that it’s a home console that you can take on the go and even has portable multiplayer... but it could also easily become a portable VR system as well. I mean, the unit is a screen with two detachable motion controllers; all they need to do is release a headset to mount it in. I think the screen on the Switch may be kind of a low resolution to use for VR, but it’s definitely a much more attractive solution than other platforms that do VR and nothing but.

Monster Hunter XX

I’ve been waiting for another console Monster Hunter game, and it’s finally coming to Switch with Monster Hunter XX! Currently it’s only announced for Japan, but the series is also incredibly popular in North America, so I’m sure we’ll get it. C’mon, Capcom, give us a date! Also, while you’re at it, work things out with Arthur Conan Doyle’s family (or just ignore them, they have no legal claim to early Sherlock Holmes stuff) and release Dai Gyakuten Saiban here!

RPGs! JRPGs! ARPGs! SRPGs!

I want Japanese role-playing games. We’ve seen enough of Ever Oasis that if it’s in the spotlight it will only be part of a sizzle reel, and... I’m really not sure what’s up with Octopath Traveler, but hey, weird lighting engine aside it looks pretty cool. I wouldn’t mind seeing more of it. I feel like they’ll finally be showing off the Switch version of Dragon Quest XI, though I expect it to be close to the PS4 version. Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is pretty much guaranteed to make an appearance. That’s all nice and good, but I want more. I want the Switch version of Dragon Quest X to come out in North America. I want Slime Morimori 3 to finally come out here. Hell, Nintendo and Namco have been working together a lot recently, how about a new Tales game? A NEW MARIO & LUIGI GAME WITH WARIO AND WALUIGI PLAYING AN IMPORTANT ROLE.

I think that’s about all I’ve got. I really don’t know what they’ll have time for in a twenty-five minute spotlight, but there will supposedly be announcements made during Treehouse Live as well. Hopefully the trailers for things we already know about will be short and most of the new stuff for them will come from Treehouse. I really don’t want ten minutes of the spotlight to be taken up by Super Mario Odyssey, Mario + Rabbids, and Xenoblade 2.

[tfw-no-tennis]

mtmte liveblog issue 12

lets do itttt

I love nick roches art...he draws rodimus so twinky, its a delight

ohhh I forgot abt the non-linear storytelling this issue. bangin

rewinds feet don't even touch the ground hhhhhh tiny

i fuckgin love that panel of skids talking abt briefing vs debriefing, everything both he and rodimus say is just golden

I love hearing tailgate tell completely made up stories from his primal vanguard days, that slaps storytelling-wise

HHHHHH and the fact that tailgate’s happiest memory is movie night at rewinds ;_; gosh

lmao I love whirl kicking down the door 

OOOOH and then the time skip!!!!!!!!! I fucking love non-linear stories

jesus, swerves whole face being gone is still disturbing

magnus rlly is a grade A badass. I forgot he has missile shoulders

rodimus saying ‘wham, bam, in the van!’ is my fuckgin favorite hvbsdhhfbhdjkf that's my son right there

cd saying that rewind is allergic to ultraviolet light [eyes emoji] remember how UV light is the only way to see mnemosurgery marks? that little detail must be in there for that ‘cd did mnemosurgery on rewind’ plotline that jro didn't end up doing (thankfully) 

I love how mtmte came up with a name for cybertronian marriage :) that's the kind of lore I want baybe!

also rewind and cd hhhhhh they....the og canon gays...confirmed outright in issue 12, which is so early on, considering!...its a beautiful thing. I will talk about the representation in mtmte Extensively throughout my reread since this is, yknow, Just The Beginning when it comes to canon gays - which, again, what a beautiful thing!

actually I'm not done. thinking abt the fact that this issue came out in 2012 and also this is freaking TRANSFORMERS of all things - a long-running franchise whose primary audience is adolescent boys - is extra amazing. augh, the representation! it gets me man.

ok, so, the story! jesus poor cyclonus

chromedome riding on the trex guy hbhsjkfbjshdf dude. I choose to believe that that’s his go-to tactic here bc he’s probably pretty terrible at fighting. idk how canon that is but I just see cd as the type of dude who cant fight well at all, regardless of how many fights he’s actually been in

minibot squad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm really interested in the little we see of general cybertronian attitude towards organics - obvs the decepticons think very little of them, and the autobots generally believe all life is important, but the post-war attitude seems a little more grey and I like that 

tailgate!!!!!!!!!!!! I love tailgate SO much. the way he volunteers to defuse a bomb that he has NO idea how to defuse, and the way he lies so quickly and casually? fucking love it 

and then he takes all of his bomb disarming cues from rewind, who ALSO isn't a bomb disposal expert by any means - like, tailgate risks both his own life and everyone else’s, just because he wont come clean about his real job - that's some [chefs kiss] characterization right there, I love it

augh I love how he prompts rewind, who of COURSE would have some idea about this as an archivist, for help, and rewind doesn't have any idea that tailgate’s even more clueless than him

but tg, being a generally good person, still tells rewind he should proooooobably stand clear - just in case!!!!! 

and then rewind whips out some marriage issues and tg is like ooookay then lol

cyclonus just stabbing people w/his hands....icon

whirl quoting the raw ass line ‘you, who are without mercy, now plead for it?’ nice

swerve. WHY would you point a gun AT YOUR OWN FACE. especially a gun made by BRAINSTORM. why did anybody let swerve handle firearms if this is how he does it. actually, why did anyone give swerve a gun after the thing w/rung. jesus yall. so not only are hipaa laws basically non-existent on cybertron, but gun safety is a rarely-taught thing as well. no wonder yall have issues

so cd must not like cyclonus bc cyclonus was the one who attacked kimia, where cd worked. right?? am I remembering tfwiki correctly? lmao 

OOOOF cd saying he was born w/out innermost....I cant remember, is it canon or just extrapolation that that isn't true, and rather it was that cd gave all his innermost energon away w/his previous husbands and whatnot, but he doesn't remember since he forgot about them? either way, oof

all the functionist history stuff is so INTERESTING...I could read an entire comic about just like, pre-war when the functionists were just taking over

tg saying he hates dominus - is that that tweet from jro where somebody asked him why tg said that, and jro basically said ‘he’s petty and jealous’ lol I fucking love it. I love how a character like tailgate, who is very ‘pure’/innocent, has flaws as well

cd has a good point - its hard to kill tfs. so, that makes it extra fucking depressing that cd was seeking out death to that extent

gahhhh the whole rewind-dominus thing is so INTERESTING - I love how vague things are...we only hear about dominus from other people’s perspectives; mainly rewind who clearly thought highly of him, but he’s obviously biased, so it’s hard to tell what dominus was REALLY like, especially with the unavoidable power gap between rewind and dominus...UGH its so interesting

oof, the whole dynamic of cd thinking that rewind cares more about dominus - dominus the ghost, and finding out what happened to him in general - than chromedome himself, is just so Ouch

and the fact that cd thinks that the SOLE reason that rewind is going into battle is so he can look for dominus, but tg makes a good point - rewind is likely also worried abt cd’s safety, especially after dominus disappeared how he did - rewind is probably terrified that the same thing will happen w/cd, bc rewind cares about cd just as much as he cared/cares about dominus, but cd cant see that. AUGHHHH the Complexity!! mannnn

HHHH and like I adore that this first gay couple we get isn't perfect, and that's OKAY bc they’re not The Gay Rep, we get plenty of other gays with their own 3-dimensional relationships....augh bruh it Gets me ok

AHHHHHHHHHH THE OVERLORD STUFF. AUGHHHHHH

who was that talking to cd?? I don't remember....it must've been drift, I think? or maybe brainstorm...

whirl :’) I mean, we find out later that its kinda his fault that rewind was blown up, but still, him putting his own life at risk to save rewind...aww

cyclonus be nice to tg, he’s trying to give you his cool baja blast innermost energon

CYCLONUS BE NICE :( :( :( 

we gotta have our slowburn, tho....OOOOUGH

hhhh and then cyclonus like, realizes how much of a dick he’s being and goes back to help tg.... ;_; 

cyclonus my man u are lucky that tailgate is so forgiving

and then we have whirl and cyclonus, which is another relationship i LOVE. their development is just...[chefs kiss]

cyc just grabbing tg by the head and YEETING him out the door...lmao

cyclonus’s extremely detailed threat to whirl came at like, the WORST possible time lmao 

alternatively, rewind unfortunately asked the worst two people for help at the worst time

also alternatively, tg defusing his first bomb ever based on instructions from another amateur was maybe not the best move

and of course whirl just deciding to lock cyclonus (and rewind whoops) in with a bomb lmao

the requisite to joining the lost light is that you have to be a complete disaster of a person, on some level 

cyclonus shielding rewind ;_; 

fucking love how they managed to have a cliffhanger w/the bomb going off, despite us seeing exactly what the outcome of that was earlier in this very issue. brilliant

ah, issue 12, the issue that officially canonized the gays and introduced us to a whole bunch of worldbuilding on cybertronian relationships. i love it! plus we have some fascinating backstory and some cool character stuff, and relationship development for tg and cyclonus. awesome stuff!

up next: humansona business! oh fuck yeah

[newyearseveacthepier-blog]

TICKETS ARE ALREADY SELLING EXTREMELY FAST – JOIN US FOR AC’s BIGGEST & BEST NYE PARTY!

The biggest NYE Event in Atlantic City with 6 Parties under one roof and room for 3,500 people! Join us at the Playground Pier at Caesars in Atlantic City and party until 4:00AM.  The event sells out every year before New Year’s Eve.  So, don’t wait – buy tickets now.  This party will offer something to everyone.

HERE’S WHAT EVERYONE CAN EXPECT:

5-Hour Premium Open Bar The Premium Open Bar goes from 9pm till 2am (Upgrade to VIP & 6-Hour Open Bar!)

Live Band & Entertainment Join us for a live band in our pub

20,000 sq. ft. Nightclub Featuring top DJ talent spinning dance, EDM, and all the party favorites

Dueling Piano Bar One of the most interactive parts of the evening our superstar piano players

Karaoke Bar Come sing your heart out this NYE and be the life of the party

Roaring 1920’s speakeasy Featuring classic craft beers and craft cocktails giving you a taste of the old Atlantic City charm

VIP Lounge with catered food stations Dine on upgraded buffet for VIPs and light snacks for General Admission. VIP Buffet: (subject to change) * Two Types of Pasta: – Penne with Red Sauce – Linguini * Two Types of Salads: – House Salad – Caesar Salad * Pulled Pork Sandwiches * Assorted snacks – including soft pretzels from Philly Pretzel Factory * Assorted Desserts

THE MOST bar space in Atlantic City This will insure fast service and a world-class experience

Amazing Views Take-in breathtaking views of the Atlantic City skyline while overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. It doesn’t get any classier than this.

WHAT EACH TICKET TYPE INCLUDES:

Tickets start as discount and prices go up as we sell more tickets and get closer to the event date. It’s best to buy early and save.

If you need a hotel rooms in Atlantic City for New Year’s Eve, click here.

For discounted parking rates & options, please click here. Please do not drink and drive.

General Admission Tickets

5-Hour Open Bar (9pm to 2am)

Light snacks provided throughout the event

Doors open at 9pm for General Admission.

Party until 4am – prices will go up, do not wait to purchase!!

VIP Tickets

6-Hour Open Bar (8pm to 2am) Yes, enter the event before everyone else an hour early!

Express VIP line entry

Free coat check

Access to the VIP areas

Upgraded liquor brands

Catered food buffet stations 8-11pm

Party until 4am – prices will go up, do not wait to purchase!!

Ultra VIP Bottle Service

Includes a VIP table all night long

VIP Access (everything included with VIP Tickets)

A bottle of Moet Champagne and a bottle of Grey Goose Vodka (per 5 people)

Minimum of 5 guests required for purchase.

Starting at $200 (prices will increase closer to the event if you wait)

Party until 4am – prices will go up, do not wait to purchase!!

Note this event is under new management and will be held in the entertainment section on the first floor at the rear of the Pier.  Expect an incredible night like no other in AC ringing in 2018!!!!

FAQs

Dress Code? We suggest dressing to impress. This is New Year’s Eve.  It’s a special event. We are not enforcing a strict dress code unless someone looks like a slob and should be at the gym vs an event like this. You can dress casual or classy, just know that most of the crowd is coming dressed up.

Hotels or Room Options? You can book a hotel here: https://www.hotelscombined.com

Are There ID Requirements or an Age Limit to Enter the Event? This event is 21+ only.

Can I Get a Refund For My Ticket? All sales are final.  Please note that there will be a $20/ticket refund fee if you need a refund (must contact us prior to 12/28/17 at 11:59 PM), all other amounts paid will be refunded.

What are my Transport Options Getting to/from the Event? Is there parking? For discounted parking rates & options, please click here.  We suggest taking Uber (Get $50 in complimentary ride credits, Code: EVENTS), Lyft (Get $50 in complimentary ride credits, Code: EVENTS), or a taxi. Please do not drink and drive.  We always want you to know that we want you to please drink and enjoy yourself responsibly.

Flying in from out of town? Check out Atlantic City International Airport for flight schedules.

Other Transportation options: Private Helicopter from NYC – check out HeliNY.com. Party Train from Philadelphia and NYC leaving daily – Check NJ Transit and Amtrak.

For Tickets and More Information on New Year’s Eve in Philadelphia 2018:

www.NewYearsEveTickets.com www.UpcomingEvents.com

ABOUT EACH VENUE AT THE PLAYGROUND

T-Street Imagine the iconic streets of Broadway in Nashville and Beale St in Memphis… Surrounded by unimaginable ocean views! We welcome you to T-Street at the Playground…

Monkey Bar Pull up a chair, grab a drink and make new friends while you wait for your old ones to arrive on scene. 3,615 square feet of bar and lounge space boast multiple flat screens broadcasting the sports of the season and live feeds from behind the glass doors of the nightclub. Monkey Bar is at the center of it all!

1921 Glamor, grace and iconic style – 1921 pays homage to the birth date and place of Miss America. Step back in time and enjoy a cocktail in this vintage-style speakeasy. If 1921 were in a pageant, we’re sure she’d win the crown with crystal chandeliers, gold details, and retro-art deco style. In honor of this retro theme, enjoy some retro-bands that play your favorite hits from back in the day or some blues that speak directly to the soul. You don’t have to be a beauty queen to hang here, but we’d sure love for you to show us your shoes!

Nightclub Measure the decibels of sound in waves with no limits. The nightclub brings an eclectic music and events space to Atlantic City, NJ. The only nightclub in the Northeast that actually sits over the Atlantic Ocean. 20,000 square feet, 2 Levels, Massive dancefloor, Mezzanine overlooking Dancefloor, O5 Gigantic Bars, VIP Area with Bottle Service, 200K+ watts of sound, State of the art DJ Booth, 40 ft LED Screen.

Bo’s Bo’s celebrates classic style with the perfect blend of playfulness. Clean finishes accentuated by retro pieces invite you in and the dueling pianos in the center of the room really steal the show! Where else can you find this kind of entertainment in such an amazing space? We’re not telling you what to order, but this place just makes you want a martini. Settle into a U- shaped booth and relax, Bo’s is where fun comes easy – could you ask for anything more?

Purdy Country slang for pretty, Purdy is just that. Hand-stenciled walls show the incredible detail in this intimate space. Cozy, retro furniture invites you to sit down and stay while. The hottest solo acts and dynamic duos will perform here, along with Americana – classic Americana music with a folky feel. There’s so much to see and experience at T Street, but Purdy will make you want to order that second glass of wine before venturing out. Purdy is a date night destination done right.

Tag Tonkin’ American Grandstand is place to find some good ol’ fashioned fun. Reclaimed wood, antler chandeliers and a mechanical bull transport you to the south – South Jersey, that is. Rock and roll will keep you stompin’ those boots at the perfect place to hang up your hat and get down to some good music. This is the place where you come to play – TAG, you’re it!

The Bluey Australian slang for a person with red hair, this Irish Pub feels like your favorite watering hole with its eclectic, vintage décor and laid back vibe. Enjoy the sweet sounds of country music that will keep your toes tappin’ and heads bobbin’. One of the larger spaces in T STREET, The Bluey has two bars and plenty of space to hang with some mates. Decked out with retro pieces collected from across the country and across the pond, it feels like this pub has been here forever, doesn’t it?

More Info on The Playground Here: http://www.playgroundpierac.com

GET YOUR TICKETS HERE!

General Admission (Early Bird Discount) – $49.95

General admission includes entry to the event at 9pm, 5-hour premium open bar, snacks, champagne toast at midnight PLUS everything else listed below, at a discounted price. PLEASE NOTE – Once the # of tickets left reaches zero, the next ticket price increase will happen – HURRY, PRICES WILL GO UP!!!

Ticket Sales End at: 11/30/2017 11:55 PM (or if sold out)

General Admission (Group Discount) – $39.95

Includes everything with regular General Admission tickets, just at a great group discount for buying 8 or more tickets together.

Ticket Sales End at: 12/31/2017 9:00 PM (or if sold out)

VIP Admission (Early Bird Discount) – $69.95

VIP admission includes Express VIP entry to the event 1-hour early (8pm), free coat check, 6-hour upgraded open bar (8pm – 2am), food buffet, champagne toast at midnight champagne toast at midnight PLUS everything else listed below, at a discounted price. This is a discount price and will go up after the limited amount sells out.

Ticket Sales End at: 11/30/2017 11:55 PM (or if sold out)

VIP Admission (Group Discount) – $59.95

Includes everything with regular VIP Admission tickets, just at a great group discount for buying 8 or more tickets together

Ticket Sales End at: 12/31/2017 9:00 PM (or if sold out)

Ultra VIP Bottle Service – $149.95

Includes a table all night long, a bottle of Moet Champagne, and a bottle of Grey Goose Vodka PLUS everything listed under VIP tickets. Minimum of 5 guests required for purchase.

Ticket Sales End at: 12/31/2017 9:00 PM (or if sold out)