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cafalla · 11 months ago

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Dorothy, Volume 1 (2005) Scans - Chapters 3 & 4 + Bonus Covers // Part 3 of 3

Here is Part 3 of my Dorothy comic post!

Please refer to Part 1 for some background info about this book and its old website, and Part 2 for scans/story overview of Chapters 1 & 2!

In this post (Part 3), I'll cover Chapters 3 & 4 of the comic, completing the Volume 1 book.

Chapter 3 begins with Dorothy and To-2 aimlessly wandering around, unsure of which way they are supposed to go to get to the munchkin village. They stumble across the scarecrow shown at the end of Chapter 2.

Dorothy and the Scarecrow banter back and forth for a bit.

He's so creepy looking! But he is harmless. According to Dorothy, useless even.

Dorothy begins walking away, and she has quite a funny thought as she's leaving.

Dorothy and To-2 keep walking on, and stop at a beautiful blue river to drink and rest. Dorothy is so hungry that she contemplates eating a bug that looks like a ladybug with spider legs.

She takes a breather to collect herself, and realizes there is a cave located behind a waterfall. Dorothy and To-2 walk underneath the waterfall into a cave, video game style.

Exhausted, they curl up on the cave floor for a nap. Dorothy dreams of being a kid, and of Aunt Em giving her a little stuffed doll that used to belong to her father. Aunt Em calls the doll a Scarecrow, and says the doll can scare the bad dreams away. Dorothy muses on how the doll is nothing more than scraps at the bottom of her backpack now.

Dorothy awakes to a giant snake, who claims that she was sent to him as a sign, as prey for him to eat.

Dorothy tries to offer the snake the wrapper of a long gone Baby Ruth bar from her backpack.

Remember when I said there was foreshadowing earlier?

Well, when the snake isn't impressed with the empty candy wrapper, Dorothy remembers one thing she does have available to defend herself.

Dorothy manages to incapacitate the snake, and her and To-2 run out of the cave to safety. Unfortunately, Dorothy did get bit during this altercation, and the wound looks quite nasty.

Homegirl ain't looking so hot.

Good little To-2 helps lead Dorothy back to the Scarecrow, where she asks for him to accompany her.

It's quite sad and sweet really, considering we now know her comfort toy was a stuffed plush meant to be a scarecrow.

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Instead of starting with Chapter 4, there is a small interlude chapter that opens up with a man writing a letter. Essentially he states that he knows this is his last day in Oz, and that the one most dear to him is away and safe. He concludes with "Despite those who seek to choke that spirit, Oz never dies".

The man is then taken away by robots, but saved by...some guy who just wandered in?

This page is actually so funny to me.

The laser gun? His outfit? Him basically saying "Get down, Mr. President!!" His pose and expression in the bottom panel?

Either way, we learn that letter guy is a Lord of some sort. The Lord of Oz, perhaps?

We also learn our laser gun man is Malo, and that he was supposed to be with her, who we can only assume is the Lord's dearest person he hid away.

Oh no.

Oh god.

I've only just met you, and now you are gone.

Goodnight, sweet Prince. My favorite character, brought into my life and taken away from me in the span of a couple pages.

So yeah, Malo is killed by the robots, and the Lord is knocked unconscious by the robot army.

We then go back to Dorothy and company to start Chapter 4.

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Chapter 4 starts with Scarecrow on the ground. I'm assuming the Scarecrow is meant to be the Lord from the interlude, who we saw get knocked out and fall to the ground.

Dorothy is not looking good for wear, after her injury from the snake monster. Her and Scarecrow talk as they're on their way to the munchkin kingdom. We get a LOT of exposition about the war and the Wicked Witch and all that jazz, which honestly...I don't care too much about. So I'm skipping it LOL.

The crew make a fire and stop trekking for the night, and Dorothy wakes up feeling worse. Here is a page depicting how long and gangly Scarecrow looks.

Actually terrifying. Would never want to be approached by THAT in a dark alley.

However, he is harmless, and seems to care about Dorothy's dwindling health.

We cut back into the exposition story. Scarecrow had been describing a man as "the Fool", who is meant to be the Lord that was kidnapped by the robots.

He is brought before the Evil Queen. They go back and forth, and she sentences him to "the hallowing".

Which is not a good thing.

As the text says, he believed he would have been killed, and is surprised to find himself still alive. Weirdly enough, the man recognizes where he is, and pleads for his life with his interrogator.

He ends up tortured and beheaded. Don't worry, I won't show those panels, they're actually quite graphic.

While he is recounting this story, Scarecrow begins to see flashes of the man's life, and begins questioning himself.

Scarecrow recalls being shown the head of the man by his "maker" (the interrogator/torturer), and is told that he (the Scarecrow) will be a symbol used to put fear into the people and scare away the rebellion.

Scarecrow tells Dorothy that he was brought out to the field and strung up for this reason. At this time, Dorothy begins falling against Scarecrow, unable to keep walking.

Scarecrow thinks back on this some more, and remembers a woman being brought into the dungeon he was in before being taken out to the field.

He doesn't recognize her, but she seems to recognize him. She is the woman shown in the flashback panel and is the "dearest person" mentioned earlier.

She is then killed in front of Scarecrow, and he puts it as them "making her go away". Dorothy is practically unconscious at this point, and Scarecrow picks her up in the present time and says that he doesn't think he likes it when people "go away".

Dorothy weakly looks up at Scarecrow and muses how he reminds her of the stuffed doll her father had. Here are the final two pages.

Gasp, cliffhanger!

Poor Scarecrow and Dorothy.

At least the munchkin kingdom is in sight? I don't have the remaining three comics, but I imagine it picks up with them going there.

Sadly enough, even if I did have the remaining comics, the series abruptly ends on a cliffhanger and is never resolved.

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And that's it for Dorothy, Volume 1!

It's been pretty cool visiting the first four chapters of this old, abandoned comic.

After the fourth chapter, the book includes copies of all the comic covers.

Here they are!

Love love love that these were included.

There are also a couple of what appear to be teaser comic covers/promotional pages for the upcoming chapters.

Very cool!

As much as I personally am not that interested in The Wizard of Oz or retellings of it, I do appreciate the vision and work that went into creating this comic. The photographic acting against a digital backdrop is such a unique concept, I haven't seen anything like it before.

All in all, I think this was an awesome thrift find!

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As always, you can read the whole book and see higher quality scans on my Internet Archive account.

Thanks for stopping by!

Part 1 -> Intro & Background Part 2 -> Chapters 1 & 2 Part 3 -> You're Here!

#txt #dorothy #dorothy comic #dorothy volume 1 #dorothy gale #comic #comics #comic book #2004 #wizard of oz #scans #part 3 #long post #books #catie fisher #greg mannino #mark masterson

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dashawfrostart · 11 months ago

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This Week In "Time & Again" #8: Achievement (Almost) Unlocked! And A Pre-New Year's Mess

Does it ever happen to you that you're so energetic, and hyper, and full of determination and all - and then you take a deep breath, sit down happily on your comfy couch, and you're ready to start writing a new and lovely blog post!.. ... but then you realize you have absolutely nothing to write about. Or - perhaps, to be more precise - you feel like there's nothing worth mentioning that would make an interesting, succulent, and informative post.

That happens to me once in a while - which is odd, considering how much of a babbler I tend to be when it comes down to self-expression in written form (it must be, Lothar affects me in a certain way and alters my usual behaviour, because normally in my life outside any artistic activities I am fairly quiet).

The aforementioned little hiccup on my way of the "ultra-completionist of the Pre-2024 To-Do List", unfortunately, hindered my progress, and the final number of the blog posts ended up a tad smaller. I don't think there are any complaints from the readers though 😎 I'll try to keep up next year. On a side note, one of the goals on the list has been removed and deliberately postponed until January. I have reasons, trust me 😁

But most importantly, Christmas season of "Time & Again" turned out to be pretty good! Just as planned, at this point of time, just a couple days short of 2024 (because I started writing this post yesterday), The Lineart is 98% done - it only needs a sparkle of perfection and and a short session of filling up the gaps and missing spots here and there on different pages. AND DONE. Moving on to The Colouring Stage right after all of that has been properly handled. (oops, unintentionally, I lied: I already started to partially colour some peculiar things... too excited; can't hold back, LOL!) I would say, this is truly a great achievement. Well... almost got an achievement anyway. Working on your grand project every day, little by little, and watching it growing, evolving, and getting fleshed out a little more day by day is hard to describe in a verbal form. I wonder about this sometimes... Perhaps, those who have never been in a similar situation will not understand this emotion very easily. But I'm telling you with 100% honesty, as usual - this emotion is priceless and really makes you feel that you're doing something important in life.

So, in short, everything goes steadily and as planned. Plans change sometimes - but that is totally fine. Currently, everything is indeed as planned - and I can't help but rejoice 🥳

As a treat for reading yet another one of my excessively talky talky longreads, I'll tease you with some rather unpredictable snippets now ;)

Just who are those guys???.. And what's the situation??? They sure look feral! You will definitely find answers to all of these questions after Chapter 5 is released sometime in 2024 ;)

... In the meantime, as I've been working on a peculiar troublesome background, I have discovered a handy option in Krita's Assistant Tool that I believe has a possibility to make my life easier in the future. I used Assistant Tool before, and quite profusely. But thanks to a certain video I came across, I happened to find out that there's more to that incredible tool. I'm excited to cover this topic in the next blog post, so stay tuned!

I also made a horrible mess on one of the pages that currently looks this way:

How do you like the funny lettering???!!! 😁 Those are not stickers, by the way (although that's certainly a good idea to turn those into stickers!.. That'd be a story for another day tho). Why those are needed - that I'll keep a secret for now. But I wanted to show you what they look like - especially when cluttered altogether, hehe. Also, obviously, this is not the final version of each one of those sound effects bubbles. There's more work to do eventually 😉

For now... let there be silence. In a bit over 24 hours, the calendar will show 2024 on this side of the globe. So I'll stop typing right now and I'll save more stories for later. ... I'm also wrapping it up for today with my ridiculous habit to scatter vaguely related song references across the text, so, yup - time for a small break 😅 (And I should also take a break from listening to Ultravox on repeat, otherwise my non-existent vinyls are gonna get non-existent holes in them... wait... how does that work exactly, again?..)

So, for a bye-bye, I'll say show this:

Bah-bye, my friends! And see you next year! 👋🥳😁

#TimeAndAgainbyDWF #This Week In Time And Again #krita #wips #graphic novel

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dreamii-yume · 4 years ago

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My guy's birthday is on the 18th Yume, there's a scarce amount of spice for him unfortunately, so for a crumb idea

Ruggie wanting to confess after receiving a gift, even though it wasn't the gift he really wanted if you know what I mean 😏

Anonymous asked :

"No thought, head empty, just fluffy romantic Ruggie with mc on his birthday"

*****

Ruggie looks SO GOOD in a suit Σ>―(〃°ω°〃)♡→

An extravagant birthday party.

A delicious feast spread out on the table.

A well-made suit.

Ruggie’s eyes could scan his entire surroundings all day and would still find something worth to notice about all of this. Despite already having experienced such luxury celebration in his first year here in Night Raven College, he couldn’t help but be impressed by the number of things he can receive in this particular day. Not that he’s complaining though, look at all these donuts he can eat, all the gift his friends got for him, all of which something that he can only dream of having as a child. For someone like him who was born with nothing of value, a piece of cake alone was the highlight of his day, so you can forgive him for savoring such moments.

Though there was just one little thing that this year had that made it more special than the last, that was you socializing in the background, a great distance away from him. With a donut stuffed in his mouth he rests his cheeks on his palm, just staring at you with a drink in your hand, conversing with someone so happily. Even as his powerful ears twitched in effort, he can’t get a good grasp over what the conversation is all about. He’s curious, you looked excited that it was bothering him a little, what are you talking about?Glancing over to the side instead, he saw the small mountains of gifts from friends piled up on the floor. All special in its own ways, yet one thing only sticks out to him the most is the one that he had on his hand.

A sweet little thing, a hand-sewn plushie of a cartoonish hyena with similar color scheme as him, wrapped in a neat ribbon with a birthday tag that you clearly written yourself. It wasn’t food that can fill him up, or any tool that can help him in his daily life, but it was something that put a smile on his face. It wasn’t the best plushie in the world, he could see the little ripped seams on the side that you tried to cover up and uneven stitches, this probably wouldn’t cost much if he were to sell it, but who said he’s going to do that? It was cute to see effort place on a gift like this. Though, it made Ruggie chuckle a little remembering how you gave it to him, smiling ever so nervously to cover any mistakes you might make.

“Here, so you won’t be too lonely at night, hehe…” You sounded like you were joking around, and it did make him laugh, though he knew it that you were only half-serious about it. That childish reasoning was endearing after all, and if we’re talking about something embarrassing you should’ve heard his thoughts at that moment. The moment you walked up to him with a smile and a cute little blush in your cheeks, it got his imagination going crazy.

Wouldn’t it be funny if that gift could be that three special words that he wanted to hear from you? One that can confirm his feelings in return.

...But of course, he’s kidding. There’s no way in hell that you’ll actually ever say that, this is just his own delusion after all.

“Ruggie-senpai, do you want some milk to go along with those donuts?” Ruggie flinched as he suddenly heard your voice and quickly turned around to face you, for a moment he thought he might be imagining you again. He was too distracted by his own thoughts that he didn’t even notice you strolling down towards him. In your hand was a glass full of cold and fresh milk, one that would really go well with his favorite treat.

You smiled, and Ruggie couldn’t help but be mesmerized by it for a split second, he thought of how shining it looked in his part. Eventually, he did give a toothy grin right back at you, before anything could be considered suspicious. “Right. Thanks for the offer, (Y/N)~ I’ll happily take them~” He said as he gulped down the dairy liquid, washing off the sweetened flavor of the donut with a satisfying gulp. You tilted your head to the side, blinking as you observed how his ears twitches excitedly because of it.

“I’m glad that you seemed to be having fun, Ruggie-senpai. This is a day to treat you like a king after all, so please help yourself as much as you want.” You said, Ruggie couldn’t agree more as he nod excitedly and quite shamelessly in the matter. He noticed how you stared at him curiously as he grabs another donut from the plate, you look like a newborn puppy. “...Those donuts really look good too, huh...I wonder…”

Ruggie heard you mumbled out the last part as he bit into the dough, and turned to you as he chewed it. It took a few seconds until he puts on a mischievous smirk when the both of you just realized that you said something you don’t intend to be heard by anyone out loud. “A-Ah, wait...! That’s not—!” You hold your hand up in defense, cheeks flaring up.

So, you wanted a taste, huh? Well, if there’s a giant plate of delicious treats in front of him like this too, he can’t blame you for wanting to grab one for yourself. “…Want one?” He asked in a clearly teasing and smug fashion, his tail wagging behind him.

You pouted like a child, but your mannerism clearly shows that you do. “N-No, thank you…This should be something that’s only for you…! I don’t have the right to…have a taste…” You said, averting your eyes away from the temptation, but he could clearly see those small glances from time to time. The way you gulped down your saliva as well, your voice slowly lowering down the more you talk. Ruggie could only sigh, you’re such an easy book to read that he worries how you’ll even survive out there. “I’ll…I’ll go for something else, like…Like the cake or something…”

“Alright, alright~ I get it, you’re a humble little lady~” Ruggie said, sighing loudly with a shrug and for a moment, you thought he gave up in trying to convince you. However, you were proven wrong as he looked straight back at you with his usually lazy eyes looking weirdly intense. “But I like you if you’re a bit naughty too sometimes, y’know~?”

Then, he pulled you by the arm so suddenly that you almost stumbled over, but quickly caught off-guard as he grabbed your jaw in a tight hold. Grinning, he holds out his half-eaten donut in front of you. “Right, open up, Sweetheart~” He said in a teasingly loving way, pushing your cheeks together to force open your mouth, enjoying the little surprise noises you’re making. Then, he began to push the donut inside, allowing the sweetness to fill your taste buds almost immediately. Trusting that there was enough dough filling your mouth to not let the rest fall to the ground, he let go of your jaw and chuckled. “See~? It’s delicious, isn’t it? Crunchy on the outside, fluffy on the inside!”

Though still in shock and confusion, you unconsciously nibbled on the piece of treat, slowly basking in the taste and your eyes sparkling at the sudden burst of flavor. You bit a piece off with a hand ready to catch the remains, but before you could do so, Ruggie leaned closer and holds the piece for you. “…Especially when you share it with others.” He said as he opened his mouth and bit the other side of the donut.

Gasping, you widened your eyes and blushed deep red, he was so close and was coming closer every time he bits off a piece of the dough. You tried backing up, only to realize how his hands were wrapped tightly around your wrist, preventing you from getting away. Stuck onto the other side of the donut, your heartbeat began to race as Ruggie began closing in on you. He’s inches away from your lips and like a deer in a headlight, your mind and body froze, you didn’t know what else to do. Shutting your eyes tight became your last resort as you felt his breath brushing against skin, a drop of sweat fell in the side of your forehead.

Ruggie opened his eyes slightly to see your reaction, to see how much your body was trembling, your lips trembling from his presence alone. Your nervous breaths, shaking and airy with your hands slowly dampening up against his. He thought of how cute it is that even with the other side of the donut stuffed in your mouth, it almost seems like your lips were puckering up to ready themselves for what’s about to happen, for him. One literal bite away and your lips would touch, Ruggie couldn’t help but to wonder how it end up like this, it was the force of habit and was something he thought of right on the spot. He’s heart was racing just as much as yours, his cheeks are probably just as flushed as yours too, but there was not a tinge of hesitation in his actions.

…He was going to do this. You being right here in front of him, eyes closed and unconsciously preparing yourself for something that you don’t even realize is a kiss, it’s a risk that he was willing to take…Who cares if he didn’t get what he really wanted for his birthday? It doesn’t have to be a special day to show you his own side of the story, what he’s really feeling for you. He…can say it, he can show it at any time of the day, as long as you can understand.

And with the final piece of the donut gone, and your soft lips clashing against his, Ruggie had taken the first step towards that goal.

I ended up making a sweet and spicy dish lol Sorry, Darling~ (*/▽＼*)

#twisted wonderland #ruggie bucchi #Birthday Crumbs (Ruggie)

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connan-l · 3 years ago

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All right, so now that I finally digested the final a little I have some random messy thoughts about Fruits Basket 2019. It got really long lol, but this has been stuck in my head for a while so I needed to get it out!

Honestly, it was a very good adaptation and I’m still in awe I was able able to see the whole manga animated. Fruits Basket is pretty important to me, as I read it for the first time when I was around twelve and it was definitely one of the series that impacted me the most — the way it tackles themes of cycle of abuse, loneliness, grief and moving forward still feel very special to me even now (I briefly wrote a post about it months ago after rereading the manga), so of course I was delighted upon hearing the reboot announced and for the most part, it didn’t disappoint. I’d never truly thought I’d be able to see characters like Rin or Machi actually move on screen in my lifetime so in a way it still feel surreal lmao (RIP to Komaki though). It was really refreshing to revisit the story in that way, especially given amusingly enough I am myself in the middle of some big changes in my life where I have to leave things behind so it felt sort of... well, I won’t say empowering per se, but quite encouraging and satisfying to watch Furuba, and especially its final, at this timing, in a way. It wasn’t perfect, there are certainly a lot of flawed directive choices that I question and unfortunately quite some important cut contents — but even at its lowest it stayed all in all good. I’m genuinely a bit stunned there are people who thinks the entire thing is worthless or a failure, because man, I have seen what a bad anime adaptation looks like, and Fruits Basket 2019 definitely isn’t one. Natsuki Takaya herself was clearly very invested and satisfied in that adaptation — I mean, just the fact she drew arts for every single episodes or for the season 3 ending really shows that I think. And while there’s a part of me who will always have a soft spot for the 2001 anime, there’s no contest that the 2019 one is the superior one and more representative of the original manga as a whole.

I believe some people really don’t realize how... uncommon it is to get such a consistently good-looking and complete anime adaptation for a shojo manga? Shojo really aren’t lucky in that prospect usually; they rarely get animated, and when they do they’re usually very bland or outright bad, or they get one short season of like 13 episodes that never receive any follow-ups — even shojo considered like classics tend to get poor treatment, unless they’re Sailor Moon of course or a long-running magical girls franchise like Precure (and even then we could have a discussion about the way Sailor Moon’s treated compared to say Dragon Ball for example, but that’s another topic entirely). So yeah it is quite awesome we were able to get this kind of anime adaptation that covers the full manga with good quality from start to finish, and I am so, so glad it exists and that it managed to revive and makes the series so popular again. (Hopefully its success means we’ll be able to get more good anime adaptation of shojo manga from now on!)

But yeah, that doesn’t mean there wasn’t problems with it and I also understand why some of the manga fans had issues. We were kind of hyped with the fact this would be a complete adaptation and in the end we only got a... sort-of-complete one lol. The art and animation stayed fine during the run (there certainly were some episodes that were uhhh, lacking in that sense, but that’s just how it is sometimes with productions and budget), but I admit I was a bit letdown regarding the direction, where it often seemed… a bit uncreative or heavy-handed. There was some very beautiful and smart shots here and there, but on the whole I really had an issue with the adaptation failing to actually take more ambitious decisions on its visual aspect, especially compared to the pretty pannelling of the manga — and when it did take these decisions it just was… kind of obnoxious and in-your-face, like the show is trying to hold the watcher’s hand (with unnecessary things like Kyo’s father record player derailing or the whole big ropes symbolizing the curse that often slapped you all over the screen, which usually just made me want to roll my eyes because of how annoying it felt.) Multiple people also pointed out the overdramatization of some scenes like the Kyo and Tohru’s confrontation at the end of season 1 or Akito and Ren’s fight which was, indeed, not very good and a weird choice. Fruits Basket is already a pretty dramatic show and these scenes are already intense, there was no need for such over-the-top theatrical display of emotions that only made them comes off as comedic. I’m probably nitpicking here but it also bothered me some characters’ expressions didn’t feel properly retranscribed (Shigure especially, whose characterization depends a lot on that, really suffered from this), or that odd habit of making some big panorama plans instead of focusing on the faces and bodies, which particularly sucks during emotional scenes (like the backgrounds were pretty I guess, but that’s not what was important here lmao).

Also that might be just a personal thing, but can I point out that the openings were pretty disappointing to me... They're not bad, but they all looked so... bland. The songs are fine but the rest feel so uninspired and it's kind of sad... I dunno, I wasn't asking for much but I just think they could've done more than just scrolling each character looking vaguely melancholic or making them walk randomly one after another :/ The endings have at least pretty illustrations and I'm okay with them (I liked what they did with Kyoko’s photo in season 3 too), but the OPs kind of feel as if they ran out of budget and ideas for them or something. I kind of feel the same with the OST as well, where they’re generally fine but were a bit lackluster, and sometimes… they were kind of played at bad times? I remember the Rin episode in season 2 were the music felt a bit out of place and took me out of the immersion, which is a shame cause it was otherwise a pretty good episode. But that might just be a me-thing here lol. The voice actors were awesome though! (The Japanese ones, at least, I didn’t watch any other dubs). I’ve said it before but special kudos to Maaya Sakamoto cause damn she’s so perfect as Akito, and Shimazaki as Yuki and Toyosaki as Rin truly delivered too. I didn’t know Manaka Iwami at all but I was really impressed by her Tohru, especially in season 3 — she really was good at capturing her character’s subtle emotional turmoils (I think she makes a better Tohru than Yui Horie too, although I admit I missed Horie a little lol.)

Anyway, on the topic of lack of ambition, that might be an unpopular opinion but there’s also the fact that I’m sad they didn’t actually... try to change or add more original scenes. By which I mean, obviously we had some changes, but not ones that were really interesting (when they’re not actively detrimental to the story). For example, I was really hoping that we’d be able to get at least one original episode focused on Ritsu (and Mitsuru too why not) in season 2 or 3, or on Kagura or Kisa; I dunno, it would’ve been a good occasion to give something more to the characters that got sidelined in the original manga, or add some moments that would’ve been nice to develop like about Akito post-cliff confrontation, but we never got that. And well, that makes sense now that we know they seemingly had an episode restriction (at least on season 3), but, yeah, that’s still a shame. Honestly in the end Ritsu’s character made even less sense in the anime, because like, it was nice they tried to adapt his introduction episode so that it feels less “you have to adapt to gender norms to feel better about yourself,” (the gender non-confirmity is definitely one of the bits that aged the less well in FB) but then they still made him cut off his hair and give his feminine clothes to Kagura at the end so why lol. (And speaking of his episode introduction, I dislike that they cut off his conversation with Tohru after the suicide attempt, not only for Ritsu but also for Tohru cause it is one of the small instances bringing up her issues that is set up early on and that is crucial to her, but I’ll come back to this later.)

And now about the biggest problem to me being, the cut content and episodes rearangement. So, just so we’re clear, I definitely don’t think an anime adaptation needs to be a page-by-page adaptation of the manga to be good. Every decent adaptation needs to have changes, and the ones that tries to just follow the source material without any heart often tend to get pretty bad. So changes are good! Cut content are needed sometimes. But in Furuba 19, it really... wasn’t the case.

And the most unfortunate thing being that the one suffering the most from this is the show’s main character herself, Tohru.

So, obviously other characters also got done dirty by this; Yuki and Machi’s relationship was so incredibly shifted in the background and rushed it’s almost funny. I’m one of the people who thinks that, while I do think they’re cute, I definitely agree on the fact their relationship was a bit underdeveloped in the manga — and that Machi’s character especially suffered as a result by being a bit reduced to just "Yuki’s love interest" when she was a character with so much more to offer (and as a whole I also tend to agree with the fact that Yuki probably didn’t need a romance at all and that his arc is more meaningful while focusing on his platonic relationships, but that’s another topic entirely) — but man, if the manga already underdevelopped them, then ohhh boy, the anime just completely dropped the ball. It feels very odd because to me it seemed like season 2 was taking their time with setting them up, so if they knew they had only 13 episodes for season 3 then they should’ve started the changes there; instead we got 1 nice Yuki/Machi/Kakeru episode, and then it’s like "Yep, they’re in love, just trust me." (It does makes me wonder if season 3 wasn’t originally supposed to be longer but then got restrained because of budget or covid or something…) Kakeru also very much suffered because of them cutting off his girlfriend and his complicated relationship with Tohru… Now, to be honest, I’ve always found the Kakeru/Komaki/Tohru subplot pretty... contrived and useless, and Komaki’s not so much a character more than a device for Kakeru’s development, but it does have some good moments relevant to the story’s themes (I like the ‘‘you can’t play suffering olympics with people’s pain’’morale) and it is important to his character (and Komaki is cute, I admit), so it was still sad they shafted it entirely. (Also I kind of like the tense relationship between Tohru and Kakeru. The fact they both seem to not appreciate each other even afterwards feel sort of refreshing even if it’s never explored unfortunately orz.) I was still surprised they didn’t actually try to make a Komaki cameo at the end? Cause I think it would’ve fitted and Kakeru’s girlfriend had already been mentioned in season 2 but... for some reason they... didn’t. (Mayyybe we’ll get an OAV like with Kyoko and Katsuya? Who knows.)

One scene that was skipped/rearranged that I’m very bitter over is the whole Tohru/Kagura confrontation and Kagura/Rin scene — it might not seem like much, but the moment of Tohru refusing to forgive Kagura is very important, and I was pretty annoyed they turned Rin’s trauma response to Kagura’s violence and her subsequent apology/hug to a gag, it legit felt tasteless. The Tohrin scene they removed at the very end too was frustating; it was great they managed to fit in the "Rin doesn’t want to forgive Akito" bit at least (I was afraid they’d cut it off entirely), but it was so essential for her to say to Tohru, not to Haru and Momiji (plus the way they put it in felt very random and awkwardly placed there, when they were initially talking about Tohru before orz). OH AND the Akito/Hana friendship too! Yeah I know it’s not a Big deal but I absolutely love the little glimpses of their friendship and it’s very important to me so I’m disappointed over them not including the ‘Ah-chan’ scene… (It was kind of weird that the show sort-of implied Hana and Kazuma got together too cause that’s… not the vibe at all from the manga… oh well.)

Most people I’ve seen generally only bring up season 3 regarding the cuts/rearangement because it’s the most obvious and the biggest offender, but I personally think there were already problems with season 2 and 1. At first glance I didn’t have much issue with some of the rearrangement, because early Furuba can indeed be pretty episodic, but thinking back on it as a whole I think it might’ve been better to leave some stuff, like Hana and Uo’s episodes for example, to season 2 (I do wonder if they did this specifically so the reboot would offer original content and differ from 2001 early on...) and cut off other not-so-important things from S1 & S2 — because as a result season 2 kind of suffer a bit by being The Yuki Season, which, for as much as I love Yuki, did end up being a bit annoying and made his development feel less natural and gradual, as well as the fact it sidelined the other characters a little and left them with not much conclusion in its final. So this added to how much they ended up cutting in season 3, it makes the show as a whole feels really unequal. I think they did overall a good job in season 3 with what they had, and they really nailed some of the dramatic and Kyoru moments (the sheets scene, cliff confrontation and post-hospital confession were practically perfect), but it is a shame that it ended up as an extremely marathoned emotional roller-caster rather than a more well-paced watch that we would’ve had if it had been 20 or so episodes. (I know others argued that season 3 was what it was because there wasn’t enough content left to cover for 22 or 24 episodes, but I disagree and even if there weren’t, it would’ve been the perfect occasion to add original episodes then. But I think it was more of a budget and Covid issue personally.)

But anyway, all of this isn’t actually what I’m the most annoyed with (and YES that’s a already a lot lmao), those are stuff I can live with, but like I said earlier the most problematic is what they cut off from Tohru’s character. And that indeed includes her parents’ backstory.

So, just so I get this out of the way; yes, I do understand why people were relieved to not see Kyoko and Katsuya’s relationship play out on screen, and yes the age gap and teacher-student thing is creepy and I do kind of wish it hadn’t been written that way. (Though I was a bit amused by people who thought we didn’t get the backstory because of the questionable age gap when, uh... you know I very much doubt the anime industry has an issue with that. Like, to start with, we wouldn’t have had Uo and Kureno’s romance if that was the case (even if Uo and Kureno is less problematic, it’s still the same basis of a underage high school girl/20+ adult man relationship), and second there was a literal romcom anime about a high school girl and an adult man that was broadcasted at the same time as Furuba season 3 lmao. So nah, it wasn’t there the problem to them, it was just time and episode restriction, which was pretty much confirmed with the announcement of the OAV focused on them.)

So, Kyoko and Katsuya is definitely Problematic and I agree on their relationship being uncomfortable; however, I’m a bit baffled that people were literally cheering on not having that part in the show, because it is... it is not just like a small bit of family trivia, it is Extremely important and actively essential to Tohru’s character and Fruits Basket’s themes and narrative as a whole. It’s very important to understand Kyoko’s character, of course; to humanize her and finally present her as a very flawed person and not just the idealized mother that Tohru project upon her, and it is extremely important simply to understand Tohru herself as well; to understand where her way of thinking, her trauma and attitude stems from, and this in a way that just isn’t possible to see with the little fragments of that flashback we got or the bits of Kyo and Kyoko’s interactions.

See, Tohru’s character is principally constructed around two things; her grief over her mother and her almost-pathological selflesness and people-pleaser needs that comes from her abandonment issues and loneliness, and her arc is very much about letting go of both of these things and finally moving forward and letting her life change. There’s this perception of Tohru I see sometimes that she’s not a very interesting character especially compared to others like Yuki or Kyo, or that she ‘‘stays the same kindhearted, naive girl from start to finish,’’ and while I deeply disagree with this I know where it comes from. The thing with Tohru is that she is firstly an extremely emotionally repressed character, and so a lot of her depth and development is made through small, gradual details scattered throughout the manga. It’s done in such a way that except for some obvious scenes those small, apparently insignificant moments are easy to miss or disregarded, and unfortunately it is a lot of these details that the 2019 anime cut, or rearanged in a way that feel less impactful or makes less sense; such as, like I pointed out earlier, her conversation with Ritsu after his suicide attempt. As I’ve seen others point out, this result in altering Tohru’s portrayal and rendering her character mostly about her romance, undercutting and downplaying all of her small, subtle character moments and developments, and miss a bit the second part of the story where the narrative actively challenge the ‘savior/therapist/mom’ that other characters and Tohru herself projected upon her.

And as a result it also means undermining things like her parallel and relationship to Akito, which idealistically should’ve been slowly built up throughout the last season but because of how rushed season 3 was in the end felt a little flat. (Akito’s character in general had some issues also because of the unequal pacing and rearranged scenes, though admittedly I think this was also an issue present in the original manga.) Kyo’s character and his romance with Tohru is the one element that managed to get out of this mostly unscathed (although Kyo also does suffer a bit from it), but because of what was removed from Tohru’s character it still inevitably impacted them by making their characters as individuals lacking. It’s not like it is a complete failure, mind you; I think the anime at least did a decent job at showing Tohru is Not Okay even at the beginning in season 1 (they certainly did a better job at it than the 2001 one lol) and managed to roughly portray her issues well enough overall, but it is just… lacking in the subtlety and nuances that, to me, makes her character and writing really special and unique.

(This post explains what I’ve tried to say here in a much more eloquent and better way that I ever could, and this all put into perspective what I basically love so much about Tohru and Fruits Basket in general.)

And, you know, it would’ve been sad but comprehensible with any other character, but here we’re talking about the story’s literal protagonist, which is why it is the part of the adaptation that makes me feel the most bitter. Tohru and her story is truly amazing and well-written, the thing I was looking forward to the most with this reboot — and while I do understand the episode restriction and I do believe they still did their best with what they had — her arc still deserved to receive a full proper adaptation, not a kind-of-half one.

So, yes, I am at least glad they’ll adapt Kyoko and Katsuya’s story in OAV, but the fact that it will never be included in the actual main narrative is still actively detrimental to it, and it will never have the same effect that if it had been played out before the Kyoru sheets scene where it should’ve been. (I hope they also won’t cut the fact that their story is narrated by Kyo, because that is also a very important detail for both Kyo and the story, but I have the feeling they will…)

Welp, that was quite a long, messy rambling. Not sure if anyone will actually read all of it but if you did then congrats lol. I feel in the end I’ve been really harsh and negative with the reboot… I do love it a lot! If someone asked me I would wholeheartedly recommend it (though I guess I would still argue to read the manga first if you really want to experience the story in all its nuances). I think they truly did an impressive job — even with season 3, which a lot of its episodes were beautifully done and did make me tear up a few times lol. I’m just sad it couldn’t actually offer a better, more nuanced delivery of the story’s depths and of one of my favorite manga protagonists that means a lot to me. But that’s an adaptation that so many fans wanted for years and I’m happy and grateful it’s here cause Fruits Basket deserved at least that much!

#Fruits Basket #Fruits Basket (2019)#Long Post #Connan's Ramblings #Text #Fruits Basket Anime

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petri808 · 4 years ago

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Hauntober prompt Ghost (sort of lol)

Bakudeku requested by @nona-inc Angst w/happy ending, AU modern times. Longer than I’d planned to write but stories go where they wanna lol.

Got the idea here

A Second Chance

In his adulthood, Izuku Midoriya did quite well for himself career-wise. He had a nice home and lived comfortably even though it was alone. Relationships had never really crossed his mind, which he chalked up to the turmoil of his childhood. It wasn’t a terribly horrible one but coming from divorced parents is never easy on young child minds. Why get close to anyone if they’ll probably leave eventually? That was a lesson bolstered by the end of primary school when his best friend ditched him for the popular kids.

It was Halloween night, and Izuku’s simply followed his normal routine after work consisting of dinner while watching a bit of television. Trick or treaters were a rarity in his neighborhood, so there was no sense in celebrating the holiday. As he waits for the news, he lets the current show drone on in the background while he scrolled mindlessly through his social media. He didn’t pay a lot of attention to what acquaintances posted and mostly looked for interesting or funny posts instead.

“Deku...”

Izuku’s brow furrows slightly at that ancient nickname. He looks at the television characters on the screen, had one of them said it? But instead of the tv show, he finds a fuzzy, staticky screen. He grabs his remote assuming something had gone wrong with the channel or service when...

“Deku, I’m sorry...”

“What the?” Izuku starts clicking the buttons and getting no response. The screen stays stuck, yet that voice... it was a familiar voice from long ago...

“...I’ve watched you from afar for all these years, because I could never admit how much I loved you and now it’s too late. I’m so sorry Deku. You’ll always be my only true love.”

Silence. Dead silence for a flash of a second when the television loudly blares back to life and startles Izuku out of his seat into a standing position. “What the fuck is going on?!”

The show had ended, and the news is now on in its regular-timed slot.

‘Breaking news, a major four car accident on the I10 highway has left 3 people dead and one in a critical condition. The victim identified as 37-year old K. Bakugou had been transported to the hospital for treatment. Police have closed off the highway in both directions, so anyone traveling in that area should use alternative routes...’

As he watches the footage of the accident story, Izuku’s hand unconscious covers his mouth and tears gather in his eyes. “Oh my gosh....” That was the voice he’d just heard! Of course, Katsuki was the only one who ever called him Deku.

He quickly calls one of the nurses at his hospital and they confirm that the man had in fact been transported there 15 minutes ago.

“Oh! Dr. Midoriya! We were just about to call you! Yes, patient Bakugou was brought in unconscious, lacerations to his arms and chest, broken leg, possible punctured lung, internal bleeding, concussion, and brain swelling which is why I was just about to call you in.”

“I’ll be right there.”

The entire way there, Izuku struggles to rationalize the message. If Katsuki was unconscious, how could that have been his voice? Then again that’s if you believed his television had somehow sent the message in the first place! Oh, this was entirely crazy! Izuku didn’t even know why his logical mind was allowing him to believe it had happened if not for the coincidence of the news coverage.

But as a neurosurgeon, he had to put all those questions aside and focus on the task at hand. The description the nurse had given him already indicated major problems, but it wasn’t until his own physical examination that determined the true extent of the damage. Primary surgical nurse Uraraka already had set up the operating room by the time Izuku arrived.

“The patient was revived once by EMTs in the ambulance and a second time in the ER after his heart stopped. Right now, the patient is intubated and prepped for emergency surgery.”

“Thank you, nurse Uraraka.”

Along with a fellow doctor, Izuku switched into a hyper focused mode. He works to repair the damage to the patient’s brain while the other doctor simultaneously focuses on internal chest injuries. Time was of the essence to stem the blood loss and mitigate further damage if they had any hope of saving the man, because even if he made it through the surgery, only a miracle would bring him back at this point.

It was now a waiting game. They keep Katsuki in a medically induced coma for the first three weeks as his body worked hard to repair itself. Once he was brought out of the induced coma, he still didn’t wake up, was breathing with the assistance of a machine, but at least the man’s heart was functioning normally. Surprisingly, Katsuki’s parents remembered Izuku and were grateful their son was in familiar hands. They’d initially flew in after the accident, but the cost to stay for such a long length of time would be too steep. So, after they returned home, he kept them up to date.

Each day that passed by, Izuku would check in on Katsuki’s progress like a normal doctor would, but at night he’d go home and ponder the ghostly message that had come through the television. He’d told no one about it because who would believe something so crazy? It just didn’t sound like the man, or rather child he remembered. Never once was there any indication Katsuki had romantic feelings for him, especially considering it was him not Izuku that ended their friendship. They saw each other in passing though middle, then high school and still nothing. So why is he now being told this?

Some say that when you die, any regrets you have must be released or your soul cannot ascend to the next plane. Izuku wasn’t religious or spiritual and before that Halloween trick he would have said he didn’t believe in anything beyond what he couldn’t see, touch, feel, and analyze. Ugh! Maybe that’s why this was all driving him so crazy. He wanted answers but the one person who could give it to him was stuck in a coma.

“Everything okay doctor?” One of the LPN’s asks Izuku. “I just need to check on the patients vitals.”

“Do what you need to nurse, I’m just visiting before I go home for the night.”

“Yes, doctor.” The woman makes her chart notations and leaves them alone again.

Because of Izuku’s standing at the hospital, he’d gotten Katsuki a private room. The man was taken off the breathing machine a week earlier and this way he could monitor the man without being pestered. There were times he would spend a few hours just watching the man sleep, trying to study what had become of his childhood friend. Through research, Izuku learned Katsuki had moved here around the same time that he’d started his internship at the hospital. Before that the man lived in the same town as the medical school he attended. It appeared Katsuki really was keeping track of Izuku, never married, and just worked in the marketing field.

Izuku squeezes the man’s hand with his eyes closed in a silent conversation. The only sounds being the beeps and noises of the machines to break the stillness. Lost in his own thoughts, he didn’t know what to think, what to feel, just that this man was dredging up long buried emotions that part of him was afraid to open up. Hadn’t he built up a good life, albeit a lonely one, it was still by his own wit and merits whereas Katsuki always had it so easy. The man was a smart, handsome jock, popular, and had been on track to do great things. While he was the geeky kid with freckles and wild green hair who the popular kids teased.

They were so close as little kids, all through preschool and the first years of primary. Katsuki was the extroverted one pulling him along on make believe adventures to emulate a shared love of a comic book character. In fact, it was with Katsuki’s help that he’d weathered his parent’s divorce. He idolized the stronger boy and wished he was Katsuki, not a weak like little nerd... perhaps having his child’s heart broken, really was the reason he swore off ever caring about anyone else again.

Did he just?! Izuku’s eyes pop open when his hand squeeze is returned by a weak one. Katsuki’s eyes are still closed and nothing else seemed unchanged. Perhaps it was just a nervous tremor, they happen sometimes. But no there it is again! Izuku stares down as the weak squeeze slowly turns into a grasp of his hand.

“Katsuki?”

A third squeeze. That meant the man was alert enough to hear and understand! Friend or not, it was the kind of thing to get a neurologist excited! Izuku quickly moved into doctor mode again and starts checking all the stats as well as alerting the nurse on shift.

“Welcome back Mister Bakugou.”

The man squeezes his hand.

“I’m your doctor, Midoriya. You might remember me...”

The man squeezes again and tries to talk, but after being intubated for a long time the throat tends to be dry, sore, and the muscles weakened. All that comes through is so faint it’s barely audible.

“Mister Bakugou, you’ve been unconscious for almost two months now, please try not to talk just yet, everything will be fine.”

But that only makes the man angrier. Furious red eyes flashing, Katsuki grips harder to Izuku’s hand using what little strength he has to try and pull him closer. So, Izuku leans in. “Calm down, it’s gonna...”

“Ma—y...” angry growling noises. “Mar...”

Obviously, the man wasn’t going to stop until he gave in, so Izuku leans in even more until his ear is practically next to Katsuki’s mouth. “I’m sorry?”

“Marry me damnit!!”

Izuku shoots straight up. “What?!” Is the guy serious?! The first words out of his mouth is that?! Wow... Katsuki really hasn’t changed, feisty as ever even after almost dying.

“Pa-pa—per pen!”

“H-hold on, just try to calm down please! I don’t want you to strain your heart!”

Midoriya grabs the chart, flips the paper over to the blank backside, and puts a pen in Katsuki’s hand. He holds it steady as the man scribbled shakily. ‘No waste 2nd chance marry me Deku.’

“Mister Bakugou, this is...”

The man pounds his fist on the bed then scribbles more. ‘Stop call me that! nickname!’

Izuku sighs and squeezes his eyes closed for a second. He hadn’t used that name since primary just like he’d hadn’t heard Deku all these years. “Kacchan. Happy now? I-I can’t just say okay. You—y-you ditched me remember and now you suddenly pop up and expect me to marry you?! Kacchan you almost died, I get it, that’s a scary thing to deal with, but you just need time to process...”

Katsuki writes, ‘Nothin 2 think bout. No more regrets,’ Then he mouths out the rest in a whisper, “I love you Deku.”

Izuku sighs, “I’m not saying yes or no Kacchan. Just get well first okay, then we’ll talk about everything.”

“Fine.” The man closes his eyes again seemingly satisfied with the answer.

He squeezes Katsuki’s hand. “I’ll see you in the morning Kacchan.”

When Izuku leaves that evening, he couldn’t help but walk out with a flutter in his chest and a pang in his heart. There really was a lot he still needed to get off his chest, but... he felt the honesty from Katsuki. If his dying regrets had been strong enough to reach him via spiritual mail, and the first thing he wanted to talk about was love, then... ‘take the second chance Izuku.’ Not everyone gets one.

#hauntober #bakudeku #prompt ghost #Bakugou katsuki #Midoriya izuku #bkdk #bakudeku fan fic #bakudeku fan fiction #katsudeku #bnha

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purplesurveys · 4 years ago

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921

LOL was gone for a while to attempt doing that ridiculous 5000 survey myself again and I really thought I was going to breeze through it this time. 2 1/2 weeks and 2500 questions later, I need a fucking break. Need normal surveys plz.

What was the best thing to happen to you this week? Got to visit Gabie today! I brought Cooper as well so that she, her sisters, and their puppy Tofu could finally meet him. Fun day, but I am beat. The blackout yesterday also made me revisit painting, and that felt so good too.

Where do you put your keys when you get home? It always differs, idk why I never picked up a routine. Sometimes I set it on the dining table, other times on the decorative table in the living room, and other times I bring it up with me to my room.

Do you prefer hot coffee or iced coffee? I preferred hot (warm would be more accurate) for the longest time but once I went iced, I never wanted to go back.

What's your phone background picture? I recently changed my lock screen to one of Audrey Hepburn. My home screen is still Hayley Williams.

If you could move to any country, what would it be? Anywhere with a clean and honest government sounds like heaven.

Have you ever seen a snake in the wild? No. Can’t say there’s a lot of them here in the city, and I’ve never seen any in my trip to provinces either.

What's your favourite movie from the 80s? Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.

Do you have any posters, paintings or other artwork on your walls? I have at least one of each of these, yes.

What would your dream wedding be like? Huge. I’d want a long guest list, expansive food choices, and acts that can provide good music throughout the evening. I never really throw parties for myself, so I would want at least my own wedding to be big.

Would you ever take a trip to space if given the chance? Yesssssss.

How do you cope with anxiety? I'm lucky to have found different outlets, so that said I usually choose from taking surveys, watching a favorite channel on YouTube, turning to my dogs, going to social media to see dumb memes, or taking a nap altogether. Of course there’ll always be those days where none of these work out and I’ll have to just cry through the anxiety attacks until they’re over.

Are you expecting any phone calls or emails? I’m expecting an email from my college, yes. I’m currently applying for civil service eligibility and they’re asking for documents that only the college can provide, so I emailed them a couple of days ago asking for assistance, and that’s considering we’re still under a lockdown and most offices are still under skeleton staffing.

What's the weather like in your part of the world right now? LOVELY. I actually wear oversized sweaters to bed now and I even managed to wear a thick denim jacket out today. The rainy weather has settled beautifully, and I’m perfectly fine with 24ºC-28ºC everyday.

What was the last takeout food you ate? My mom bought me and my siblings a chicken sandwich and chicken nuggets each from McDonald’s last week.

Who makes you laugh the most? Definitely someone from my college barkada. I can’t decide whether it’s Aya, Kate, JM, or Jum; they’re all equally hilarious as fuck.

Do you know anyone with the same middle name as you? See these questions are always weird to me because my country has its own naming customs; it’s basically a mix of American and Spanish customs. We have two first names (where Westerners would understand their second ‘first’ name to be their middle name) and our actual legal middle name is our mother’s maiden surname (which I think doesn’t apply at all in the Western world). So to answer this I’ll go with our own customs and say that no, I don’t know of anyone who has the same middle name as me. It’s not a very common surname anyway.

What did you have done the last time you saw a dentist? Had a tooth removed. I don’t think it was a wisdom tooth; it was just a tooth at the back of my mouth that had been in pretty bad shape for years but was only discovered at that time.

What does a successful relationship look like to you? I believe the formula is different for every couple. Like I value constant communication and checkups, but others might not feel the need to be clingy or update their significant others all the time.

What do you like to put on your baked potato? Don’t really have these a lot, but I remember when my mom used to make baked potatoes with bacon and cheese and those were unbelievably good.

What field of science interests you the most? Biology. <3 I’m sure I would’ve taken up medicine if I only wasn’t so bad in the rest of the sciences.

What's the closest shop or restaurant to your house? There aren’t any nearby shops since I live in a gated community, but once you get out of the village’s main gate, the first thing to the left is a McDonald’s. To the right is a small complex with a hair salon, burger place, music school, and one of those boujee stores that sell hype clothing.

Do you have any family that live in another country? So many relatives. We’re Filipinos, man. We migrate everyfuckingwhere. As far as I know I have family living in the US, Canada, Vietnam, Japan, China, Australia, and New Zealand.

What colour is your couch? Gray.

Do you know how to care for plants and keep them alive? Not at all. Every single plant that I’ve been given as a gift or party giveaway has died on me.

What was the most memorable birthday you've had? 18th was awesome. Cruise trip, hotel stay with friends, Tiendesitas + noodle date with Gab. How I got away with three separate celebrations without my parents saying anything about it I’ll never know.

Would you rather go to the beach or the mountains? Beach. The area where I live is mountainous as it is; as someone who’s always lived and studied in the city, a trip to the beach in the province never gets old.

What do you do for work? I don’t have any yet but I’m waiting for openings for our national agency for either history, or culture and the arts. My plans have shifted recently and I’m now eyeing to work for either instead of rotting away while underpaid at a corporate agency.

Have you ever been to see the circus? No. I wouldn’t be interested either; they all just seem so harsh and unethical.

Are there any words that you hate or make you cringe? Sure.

What is the best house you've ever lived in? The one we live in today has been the most comfortable; but I also hold a lot of nostalgia for my dad’s parents’ house in Tondo because of how raw Manila life was there. Life wasn’t pretty, but it did feel real.

What was the first CD you ever bought? The first CD I actively wanted my parents to buy for me was probably the High School Musical soundtrack, heheh.

Do you look in the mirror before you leave the house? Yeah, always. Wanna make sure my shirt is tucked in properly (if it is), or that my jeans aren’t cuffed funny or whatever else.

What's the most unusual thing you've ever eaten? I’ve mentioned this before but it was the Indian dessert gulab jamun. Really did not expect the flavor that came in when it hit my mouth.

Have you ever seen someone quit their job in a dramatic way? I’ve never had a legit job, but when Jeuel quit the org a couple of years ago because of ~irreconcilable differences~ between him and us officers in the executive board it did feel a tad bit dramatic and passive-aggressive.

What movie reminds you of your childhood? Shrek 2 or The Game Plan.

Do you know why your parents named you what they did? The singer named Robyn was really big then and they ended up being fans of the name.

Do you have any bills that need to be paid? None of my own. My parents usually pay the family bills immediately, so I don’t think we have any pending payments for now.

What do you like to dip your fries in? Mayonnaise.

Is your house clean or messy right now? It’s always clean as my mom is extremely tidy.

What was the last email you received? It’s one of the job-hunting websites I’ve signed up for, giving me job alerts for new openings in my chosen industries.

Do you know someone who speaks without a filter? Yeah and I know people who do it responsibly and those who just come off as tactless.

Are you in any social groups? We call our college group the Daydrinkers, since our friendship began when we started constantly hanging out at nearby bars at like 2 PM, during our breaks lol. I used to be in a barkada in high school but Angela and I broke apart from that since we couldn’t deal with Athenna’s toxicity anymore, though I still keep in touch with most of them, like Chelsea and Kaira. Since then Angela and I have formed our own group consisting mostly of Angela’s friends from architecture and Hans’ friends from Ateneo.

How many hours of sleep did you get last night? Sigh, around 4. I don’t know why it was so few, but it also means that I’m currently drowsy as all hell at 9:03 PM. I will most likely turn in for bed after this.

What's your favourite kind of museum? Those that cover history, so museums that have artifacts and fossils and shit.

Do you believe in alternate universes? I like the idea, and I love literature that explores the idea of alternate realities, multiple universes, pocket universes, etc. Whether or not I believe they exist...idk. I don’t think about it that much in literal terms. < Yeah pretty much. Gaby Dunn wrote an amazing piece on multiverses and that was what got me to find comfort in the idea.

Whose house did you last visit? I was at Gabie’s place this afternoon. We had burritos, talked about career prospects, and puppy-sat our babies.

What games do you play on your smart phone? I turn to 1010 when I’m bored or anxious. I have like 30 other games but I never touch them lol, but I do keep them should the time be right to whip them out.

Have you ever been to Los Angeles? I have not.

What was the first concert you ever went to? Paramore, February 2013. I was a late bloomer; kids my age started going to concerts at least three years before that.

Do you know anyone who is colourblind? I don’t think so.

What's your favourite season and why? The wet season, because it’s colder and I hate the heat during the dry season.

Are you the youngest, middle or eldest child in your family? I’m the eldest.

If you had to make something for a potluck, what would you make? I recently watched this phenomenal recipe for 48-hour chocolate chip cookies that looked absolutely bonkers when they were done baking. I’d for sure give those a try for dessert. If that fails I’d just buy the food so that what I bring is more guaranteed to be good.

What kinds of decorations do you put up at Halloween? My family has never cared much for Halloween. It’s not even a legit holiday, so as much as I love Halloween I don’t think I would spend for decorations myself to decorate my own place. The only instance I imagine doing so would be if I have kids of my own who may want to get into the Halloween ~spirit.

How many tabs do you have open right now? In my current window, eight.

What's something you've been meaning to do but keep putting off? Taking another online course, just because it’s great to learn new things and earn free certifications while at it. I haven’t been doing a good job at being consistent with them, though.

What's the first thing you check on your phone at the start of the day? Facebook since it’s my primary social media now. Literally never thought this day would come.

Have you ever flown a kite? Yeah but it’s been a while.

Who was your favourite music artist when you were 16? This was the time I was slowly moving away from my punk phase and inching closer to Athenna’s music tastes, so I was into acts like Hozier, Banks, Daya, Twenty One Pilots, etc.

What are three things you usually always have in your fridge? Water, bread, eggs.

#survey #surveys

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silver-lily-louise · 4 years ago

Text

Shadowhunters Rewatch! Episode 1x02: The Descent into Hell isn’t Easy

- The descent into hell isn’t easy but it’s easiER when you have cramps and there’s a plumber opposite your bedroom again lmao Let’s do this

- Damn Jace no need to be RUDE

- I really love the dilapidated church cover thing btw

- See the tech was something that bothered my sister about the series, she preferred the more medieval feel of the first book and movie. Personally I love it lmao but then again I’m more of a sci fi nerd than her

- I totally forgot the misinformation thing they did after the revolt ew. What kind of coverup bullshit

- Lol early Sizzy moment #godbless

- I feel like this whole ‘runes on the floor will kill mundanes’ thing is underutilised in the future… may have to use it in a fic lol

- HA I forgot they made Izzy’s lack of cooking skills show-canon as well lol

- Additionally Alec’s character development is very interesting to me in a ‘wtf did Magnus see in s1 Alec’ kind of way, so I’m starting a separate list to try and track his motivations and biases and stances to see how they shift. Probably gonna do the same thing for Maryse bc I buy her redemption but I can’t quite pinpoint WHY I do (except my favourite thing is when people are nice to Magnus lmao)

- OH LOOK IT’S HODGE. FUCK U HODGE (ahem. Moving on)

- (Main shadowhunter squad looking around their parents) Isn’t there ANYONE HERE WHO WASN’T A FUCKING TERRORIST??? (Shh Louise we only know Jocelyn and Luke so far)

- Clary I get that you feel bad but apologising once was enough, Hodge is a big boy who can make his own decisions lol

- ‘What is a GI Joe’ lmao

- ‘No training and no plan gets you killed’ I think that’s interesting, because it speaks to Jace’s idea that as long as he trains hard enough and have a plan, things’ll work out.

- I thought it was pretty cold of Clary to seriously consider Jace’s ‘what if Dot is working for Valentine’ point, but then again LUKE has turned on her as far as she knows so I guess that’s a reasonable amount of suspicion

- Izzy looks so proud of herself aw bless

- ‘Jace is the ultimate protector’ oh no oh help I’m having smol-boy-Jace-Wayland-carving-himself-an-identity feelings

- I just noticed the runes drifting in the background of the UI all Matrix-style lol. Can u believe Shadowhunters tried to tell us that WARLOCKS were the #extra ones lmao

- ‘A little too much in my opinion’ imagine thinking Izzy is straight lol couldn’t be me

- ‘He’s in good hands with the boys’ oh POOR Simon XD

- LOOK at the connection between these two. I’m love them. Can u believe they were already kindred souls BEFORE becoming parabatai, truly beautiful

- oKAY canon divergence I want::: Simon leaving without a hitch, googling how to kill demons and FIGURING IT OUT. He comes back for Clary and now the gang have this mundane demon-killer on side lol, and Alec’s all like ‘he’s a fucking MUNDANE he can’t be here in Shadowhunter business learning secrets and getting himself killed’ and Izzy’s like ‘he killed four demons wtf you worried about bro???’

- Seelie scouts??? The Clave really will make a show of unity when it suits them huh

- They were KIDDING about the floor runes are you KIDDING me XD I figured it was just a continuity problem lmao (also I know they’re being dickheads but that little smirk between Jace and Alec is maybe the first time we properly see them as a brotherly team aha)

- Okay but with hindsight you can really tell this whole cold demeanour ISN’T Magnus. His mannerisms are SCREAMING ‘coping mechanism in a time of crisis’ rn

- That being said if Dot’s magic is dangerously low I bet he regretted leaving her behind alone and vulnerable, she’s a grown woman who can make her own choices but it’s kiiiind of a dick move especially since he entreated her with sarcasm instead of earnestness to try and convince her to come with

- It continues to be exceedingly funny that Pandemonium is never mentioned outside of S1, when it’s painted almost as Magnus’ MAIN job in that. I mean it kind of makes sense that we see his public face in this beginning and his more personal details later on – the warlock stuff, the clients and politics that are more ‘core’ to his job and identity – but still. Not even MENTIONED, I don’t think. XD

- All of them stepping out of the van… Scooby Doo vibes lol WHERE is my mystery-solving AU with these five???? Do I have to write all of my unvoiced fanfic ideas myself??? Unbelievable

- Clary talking about the void she felt… I’m not crying about 3x22 you are

- ‘Wasteful warlock life’ Valentine. My dude. She has CENTURIES to learn and love and travel and experience, and you’re wasting your handful of decades on racism But go off I guess lmao (loser)

- I know the liquid is bad but also there is a HUGE bubble in that syringe. Valentine how is she gonna be useful to you after a mahoosive stroke

- Random shot of the moon. I mean I love her but WHAT ‘Look it’s night-time!!!! Spooooooky!!!!’ XD

- Okay Izzy is halfway-smitten, lbr. She and Simon fit so well okay

- ‘I can’t be here anymore’ Listen s1 Alec is a serious, grumpy lil shit but he DOES have a sense of humour okay

- Jace LET THEM HUG :C

- ‘We carry it to remind us that light can be found in even the darkest of places’ Jace stfu it’s a TORCH X’D (Like, no disrespect to traditions in general, but that one just SMACKS of Clave Sanctimony lol, and by Jace’s next line he knows that aha)

- …Is Nephilim the dative??? I need to look that up lol. Also think it’s funny that Hell (in its various realms) is the one place Shadowhunters CAN’T go, re 3x21

- ‘You assume I have feelings’ Jace. Bro. You are perhaps the CRYINGEST CRIER IN THIS SHOW. Let go of the toxic masculinity friend, you’re gonna be nicer once you do <3

- I’m revisiting my earlier point: WHY ARE LITERALLY ALL OF THE PARENTS CIRCLE MEMBERS LMAO

- ‘No more I’m sorries, you’re a Shadowhunter now’ YIKES if that don’t say it all about Shadowhunter hubris lmao. Apologies are good and necessary <3

- RECOGNISED THE CLAIRVOYANCE RUNE, HIGHKEY PROUD OF MYSELF AHA

- Think how much less beautiful and adorable the Malec wedding would have been if Brother Zachariah looked like this kind of Coraline experiment gone wrong lmao

- I’m not always a fan of a flashback but that ‘you’re strong enough’ one definitely makes it seem less like Clary’s just being reckless aha

- ‘It’ ALEC STOP BEING SUCH A RUDE BITCH. Also I do love Sizzy but I definitely think Izzy needed to be in a less defensive position when they got together (re ‘he passes the time’, I don’t ACTUALLY care I’m just a heartbreaker out for a good time), I’m kind of glad they waited until her caring side had been more nourished instead of stifled

- SIMON. YOU SAID YOU HAVE SEEN HORROR MOVIES. WHY DID YOU PUT HEADPHONES ON

- ‘The night children have broken no laws’ Wait, so kidnapping a Mundane ISN’T against the law??? I mean I get Shadowhunters not being able to KILL them for it - …oh. OH. HANG ON. Are the Accords just to stop Shadowhunters KILLING Downworlders for the smallest of crimes???? Does Raphael mean ‘kidnapping no longer constitutes a capital punishment (like it did before)’??? Either this is a script issue (bc if Shadowhunters protect Mundanes, kidnapping one SHOULD be against the law) or a hint of just how fucked up the Accords are, that ‘the law’ isn’t the law how WE understand it but instead ‘things which are still valid excuses to severely punish Downworlders, when we used to do so willy-nilly’ :S

- Season tagline: ‘Everybody wants that damn cup!’ Valentine wants it to wield it, the Clave wants it APPARENTLY to protect people from Valentine, Luke hinted that the werewolves want it, now the vampires…. Damn.

This one gets an 8/10 for enjoyment – I’m having fun! – and actually a 7/10 for quality. Not NEARLY as many script issues and cringe factors as in the first ep lol. Thanks for reading. ^^

#louise rewatches shs #rambling on #long post

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let-it-raines · 5 years ago

Note

BotB prompt: After the last chapter, I’m definitely going to need a flashback to when Emma told Killian that she was pregnant. Please and thank you!!

@onceuponaprincessworld: After that prompt in botb I would love to see how Killian has to travel for work to promote a movie and Emma finds out that she is pregnant or already know it and how they deal with the distance in that plan. Thank you!

It’s funny because before I got your prompt @onceuponaprincessworld I already had this prompt written this way, so great minds must think alike😘

AO3: Beginning | Current

-/-

When Emma wakes up, her neck aches, some of the muscles very obviously pulled, and tentatively, she stretches out a bit, lifting her head off of her pillow and reaching over to her left to feel the cold sheets next to her. It’s a habit, one that she isn’t really fond of, but she does it nearly every morning. It’s almost like she’s forgotten that Killian isn’t home, forgotten that he’s not going to be next to her when she wakes up in the mornings. For at least those first fifteen seconds of waking, the light coming back to her eyes, she thinks that she’s going to see the rise and fall of his chest, the soft smile that graces his lips when he sleeps, the long, dark lashes landing against his cheeks.

But he’s not there.

And she knows she’s being dramatic. She really does. Going into this relationship, she never quite knew what to expect, but once she was in, she was all in. And if being in meant having to be separated from her husband so that he could be happy with his career, she was fine with that. She is fine with that.

It doesn’t mean she doesn’t miss Killian.

He’s her best friend, the person she trusts most in life, and he’s currently in Prague filming. Prague is decidedly not Santa Monica, and she wishes it was.

Two more weeks.

She can wait two more weeks until he’s home for a long, long time, and then she is not letting him out of her sight for, like, a month. She has work. He has obligations. They have friends and family. That’s never going to happen, but she can at least have him all to herself for a weekend. They deserve that.

For all the talking and video chatting they can do, there’s nothing quite like being able to feel the strength and warmth of his arms around her before she goes to bed or in the evenings when they’re cooking dinner and Killian tries to distract her by running his lips across her jaw and coaxing her out of making whatever it is that she’s making…as if she’s the one who makes dinner most often when that’s usually Killian.

So two more weeks.

They can do two more weeks.

After running her hand over the sheets and the comforter one more time, she rolls over to her nightstand to unplug her phone, turning the brightness down, and pressing her thumb down to open up her notifications.

Ruby: What was the nail polish that I let you borrow? I can’t remember the name, and Dorothy wants to use it.

Mary Margaret: Do you have any time off this month? I was thinking about the boys and I coming to visit?

David: lol.

She fires off responses to all of them except for David’s text, not having anything else to add to him laughing at a joke about detectives that she sent him last night while she was wide awake and he was fast asleep. Half of the people she talks to are in different time zones, and it can get the tiniest bit confusing.

Seriously. Killian is nine hours ahead of her.

Killian: Good morning, darling. I hope you slept well. I have a pretty normal filming schedule today, so I’ll call you before I go to bed, yeah? I love you.

Emma: I love you too. I hope you’re having a good day!

Turning some music on her phone and connecting it to the speakers installed throughout the house, she slowly climbs out of bed, her head a bit groggy this morning, and tries to make quick work of taking a shower. But she stays under the warm spray for much longer than she should, letting the water work out the aches in her shoulders and the still tense pinch in her neck. Damn, did she sleep on it wrong. Obviously her bed is not her friend lately, and that’s her favorite place in the world.

Talk about betrayal.

Eventually she turns the water off and gets out of the shower, moving the soft towel over her legs and her body before grabbing another one and wrapping her hair on top of her head. She has absolutely no idea where her robe is, probably in the laundry room somewhere, so she grabs Killian’s off of his hook and wraps it around her, tying it at the waist to combat some of the chill from the air conditioning blowing on full blast. She doesn’t even want to think about their power bill for this month, but honestly, it’s worth it for how warm it’s been this summer.

Seriously. It’s been miserably hot. She misses winter, which is something she never would have said living in Boston.

(She misses Boston too, but this move was the right decision. She doesn’t regret it.)

After brushing her teeth and washing her face, she grabs her phone and walks downstairs, opening the curtains and blinds as she goes to let in some natural light, the sound of the ocean coming through the open back doors that lead out to the deck. She’s not really feeling like eating, but she knows that she needs to. She’ll forget otherwise, and then when she goes to Liam and Elsa’s for dinner tonight, she’ll go through their entire pantry, which is much less acceptable to do than gorging out on her own food. But nothing seems good, the cereal and bagels unappealing, the eggs and anything she has to cook even more so, and the only thing that she will even consider is a grapefruit…which may or may not be rotting.

It’s fine. She’ll go grocery shopping tomorrow…and also pick up all of the clothes and glasses that she has scattered throughout the house. It’s not that messy, something she’s worked on since messes drive Killian crazy, but if she knows her husband at all, he’ll come home, take her to bed, and then wake up to go and clean the house. So obviously she needs to clean up a little bit more, maybe break out a duster.

Dusting is the worst.

This view of the beach, though, is the best.

She and Killian have found that most of their time since they moved back (well, since Killian moved back and she moved for the first time) has been spent out on the covered deck or in their bedroom with the doors leading out to the balcony wide open. The sound of the ocean is a background noise she always wants, so she turns off the music on her phone, the guitars fading from the speakers, and sits on the cushioned swing, slightly swaying back and forth while she sips on her water and watches the shoreline. Their neighbor has her dog running through the water, the golden retriever leaping into the air to catch its toy, and Emma wonders if they should get a pet. She’s not sure how that would work during the times when they’re both gone, but it’d probably be nice to have a dog or a cat around when it’s just her, at least so there’s more noise than the air conditioning and the televisions that she leaves on at night.

But then again, Killian is coming home soon and she’ll have no need to replace him with a cat.

Wait. That sounds weird. She’s not replacing him with a cat, though they probably have the same amount of hair.

Whatever. She’ll think about it and bring it up with Killian sometime soon.

Her phone dings next to her, and she looks down expecting a text back from Killian or Mary Margaret only to see a notification that makes her stop breathing.

Seriously. Her breath hitches, her stomach rolls, and her mind starts running a marathon when she hasn’t gotten the chance to even lace up her sneakers.

You haven’t tracked your period lately! Make sure to update all information so we can monitor your cycles as accurately as possible.

Holy shit.

Holy freaking shit.

(Why did she just censor herself in the middle of a curse?)

While her heart decides to drop to her stomach and beat at what has to be an unhealthy amount of beats per minute, she clumsily attempts to unlock her phone, her thumb not being recognized so that she has to type in her wedding date for her screen to open up to her period tracker app. Her mind is so frazzled that nothing is really clear to her, not even the screen in front of her, and it’s because she’s trying to remember the last time she had her period. Her app says she hasn’t logged it since May, which means she didn’t do that in June or when her period was supposed to start two days ago.

And that’s fine. It really is. Two days is nothing. Two days is barely anything. And so what that she didn’t track anything last month. It’s an app. She forgot. Plus, she very well could have had her period last month without typing it into her phone. That’s possible. Not everything has to be logged into her phone to be real.

But did she have her period?

She honestly can’t remember. And it’s not like she can ask Killian. He hasn’t been here. He’s been thousands of miles away.

Shit.

Killian totally would have noticed, and he definitely can’t help her figure this out. Because she definitely can’t tell Killian that she’s trying to figure out if she missed her period…which means she’s trying to figure out if she’s –

Pregnant.

Well, there’s a word that she didn’t think she’d be thinking for a solid few months, maybe a year. Maybe even two.

Woah.

It’s not that they haven’t talked about it. They have. Killian is very big on talking things out even when she isn’t quite ready. They’ve talked about kids before, talked about the fact that they both want one, maybe two if the first one doesn’t kill them, but then back in March they’d been sitting in bed sharing a bag of chips while watching Stranger Things and Killian brought it up. It made sense. It really did. It’d been a gradually growing conversation, the lead up building, but when her face was stuffed with several salt and vinegar chips, she wasn’t really expecting to have to talk about the reality of what it would be like to have a baby and know that there’s the possibility of her having to raise the baby by herself if Killian is away. And then also how that can impact their future, impact their kid’s future. She knows that Killian wants to work less, or work closer to home more frequently, once they start their family, and that’s something they were talking about.

They were talking about trying when he got home.

It might be a little late for that.

Or early, really. She could be ahead of the game.

When in the world did she miss a pill?

Taking a deep breath, she tries to turn her mind off but can’t. She really is ahead of herself. She has no idea if she’s even pregnant yet, and she needs to take a test. But she most definitely does not want to take a test by herself, does not want to be sitting in the bathroom all alone when she finds out if her jeans aren’t about to fit in a few months (because that’s obviously the most important thing) and have no one know this secret but her, so she needs to shut this thought process down until Killian gets home.

Two weeks.

She can do two weeks.

By the time two o’clock rolls around, she’s spent the entire morning deep cleaning the house, deciding to take her worries and frustrations out on the things she needs to do, and she almost completely forgets that she could have an entire human being inside of her uterus.

(She’s a liar. She definitely doesn’t come anywhere near to forgetting.)

But then her phone rings, Killian’s face popping up on the screen from his contact, and she nearly vomits with nerves over the fact that she’s about to not tell him the reason she’s having a meltdown.

The vomiting thing is probably a sign, which is really a horrible symptom, and there should definitely be some kind of solution to that.

“Hello, beautiful,” Killian sighs, and she can practically feel his smile on the other end of the line, thousands of miles away in a hotel bed that’s not theirs. “How’s your Saturday?”

“It’s good.” That may be a lie. That may be the truth. She has no idea. “I slept in, cleaned a bit. I’m going to go to your brother’s for dinner later.”

“Emma Jones, you cleaned?” he gasps, and she rolls her eyes imagining him sitting shirtless in his room with his hand dramatically thrown over his heart. “Are you dying? Is there something you need to tell me?”

“No,” she blurts out, definitely too quickly before she scrambles to cover that up, “I just knew that if I didn’t clean now, I’d never have it up to your standards by the time you got home.”

“Love, all I care about when I get home is the fact that you’re going to be there.”

“Charmer.”

“Undoubtedly.”

“You’re definitely going to care about how clean the house is.”

“Eh.”

“Babe.”

“Love of my life.”

“Oh my God,” she groans, tossing the wipe she was cleaning the bookshelves with in the bin and walking toward the couch, falling back against the cushions and turning the phone on speaker before placing it on her chest, “you can’t just say things like that.”

“I can’t say the truth?”

“Not when you know you’re going to get me all flustered with it.”

“To be fair, love, you already seemed pretty flustered. You are cleaning, after all.”

“Hey, again. I clean.”

“Debatable.”

“KJ, I can change the locks on the house.”

“There’s always the windows. Hell, I’ll climb the damn balcony.”

She laughs despite herself and reaches down to tug at the robe she’s still wearing, pulling on the string before running her hand over her stomach, almost unconsciously. The words are on the tip of her tongue ready to be spilled, but she doesn’t know. She doesn’t know if she’s right, if the words are true, but the one thing that she does know is that if she tells Killian she thinks she’s pregnant now, he won’t stop worrying about her until his feet step inside of this house.

And there’s still the fact that she doesn’t want to take the test alone.

Pushing it all aside. That’s what she’s going to do.

“You’ll climb the balcony to get to me?” she asks instead, going along with the conversation.

“I’ll climb the balcony to get to my bed. If you happen to be in it, so be it.”

“There you go charming me again.”

“I try.”

She and Killian talk until his words are a little slurred, sleep calling him more than she is, so she tells him goodbye and that she loves him, chanting that two more weeks mantra to him before she, too, falls asleep, waking hours later with pillow marks on her face and her phone flashing five seventeen, a little under an hour until she’s supposed to be at Liam’s.

She hasn’t even put on underwear yet. That’s probably something she should do. They’re family, but there are some things that family does not need to see. Her vagina is one of those.

Her thoughts get weirder every day.

Thirty minutes later she’s dressed in a pair of athletic shorts and a t-shirt, her hair underneath a baseball hat, and letting herself into Elsa’s house after knocking on the door, which is really only a courtesy since Liam tends to barge into their house…still. After one too many times walking in on she and Killian, she really figured he’d learn to wait for them to answer the door.

“Hey,” Elsa calls over her shoulder when Emma walks into the kitchen, “how are you?”

“Um, good,” she mumbles, sitting down at a barstool and tapping her fingers against the countertop, wishing she had something to settle her stomach and all of the unease that she’s going through. Her mind will not calm down, and she really needs to calm down. “How are you?”

“Great. It’s so hot, isn’t it? Liam is outside on the playset with Aiden, and they’re both going to be drenched when they come in. But Aiden insisted, you know?”

“Yeah.”

She taps her fingers again, thinking about Aiden and Liam and the bond that they have. If she and Killian have a son, will they have a bond like Aiden and Liam? Would it even matter if it was a boy? Killian would have a bond with a daughter too. So would she. But there’s something so cute about watching Liam with Aiden even if Aiden is the spitting image of Elsa.

Genetics and all that.

How would that work for her kid?

Her hypothetical kid.

“Emma?”

“Uh huh?”

“You want to stop playing an entire piano concert on my counter and tell me what’s going on in that head of yours?”

“There’s nothing,” she lies, her voice a squeak as she looks up at Elsa and smiles, hoping that it’s a normal smile. “I have nothing on my mind except for how good that pasta smells. And the bread. I love your garlic bread.”

Elsa raises a perfectly groomed brow and flicks her braid over her shoulder, leaning forward and propping her elbows up on the island. “Emma, you can talk to me. You know that, right? You’re kind of going through a lot right now, and you can’t pretend that you’re not. You stay with us too often for me to not know how hard Killian being away is for you.”

“I’m fine.”

Elsa nods her head up and down once, twice, three times before tilting it back to her cabinets. “Do you want something to drink? I bought this new wine that I – ”

“No, I’m good,” she blurts out, completely and totally ready to bury her face in this granite. “I’ve got to drive home, and I really don’t think I want anything to drink.”

“Mmm, okay. Do you want to go to lunch this week? I think there’s this really great sushi place downtown that just opened.”

“Sure. I lo – oh, um, can we get something other than sushi? I think I’m going to give up fish.”

“Why?”

“A new diet or whatever. I’ve gained a few pounds.”

Lie.

They’re all lies.

When did she turn into such a bad liar?

“Ah,” Elsa sighs, resting her chin in the palm of her hand, “I get it. I, too, gained weight when I was pregnant. Though, I don’t think it was when I was as early on as you. Maybe you’re having twins.”

Every word that she knows flees from her brain. Every single one. She’s not sure if it’s the thought of her having twins or if Elsa has caught her in her lies, but honestly, it’s mostly the fact that she was caught that quickly.

Damn.

Elsa really is some kind of magical being who can read she and Killian far too well. It’s creepy and wonderful and terrifying all at once.

And she could most definitely cry right now simply because she is feeling all kinds of overwhelmed.

Emma leans forward to rest her face in her hands on the countertop, the cool marble refreshing. “How did you know?” she mumbles into her skin. “I don’t even know for sure.”

“It was a guess, but the no to wine and no to sushi, two things that you love, were a pretty big clue. Plus, you’re acting like a strung-out maniac.” She feels Elsa’s hand on her back, and when she opens her eyes, she can see that she’s moved to the other side of the counter to sit on the barstool next to her. ��Have you taken a test?”

“I just realized I’d missed my period today. And I may have missed last month’s too. But, like, I haven’t been nauseous or anything, so I didn’t think about it. I honestly figured it was stress related.”

Elsa nods her head up and down, a soft smile on her face as she continues to rub Emma’s back. “I have some tests upstairs – no, I am not pregnant, but I had a scare a few weeks ago and bought, like, every test in the CVS I went to. Why don’t you go take one, just so you have a bit more peace of mind about it? And then when Killian comes home, you’ll either have some really great news to share or you can tell him about the time that you peed on a stick in his brother’s house with absolutely no context.”

She huffs, unable to stop herself or the twisting feeling inside of her, before leaning over on the stool and hugging Elsa, wanting all of the comfort and support that she can get since the rest of her support system are scattered across the country.

And the world.

Elsa asks if Emma wants her to come with to take the test, but she says that it’s alright, that she’d kind of like to do this part alone if she can’t have Killian with her. Even opening the box is nerve-wracking, but the worst part is definitely the waiting two minutes to find out if she’s going to be a mom a little bit sooner than she was expecting.

The phrase what to expect when you’re expecting comes to mind, and she feels like that can’t even really encompass everything.

How in the world do people do this every day?

It’s like a mixture of excitement and terror, and the only other place she’s ever felt like this is a rollercoaster.

That’s actually a pretty good metaphor for having a baby.

And according to the positive sign on the test, she is having one.

Wow.

It’s a lot to take in, but over the next two weeks, she becomes more accustomed to the fact. It helps that she makes a doctor’s appointment, gets it confirmed, finds out that her due date is February fifteenth, and that she is definitely not having twins.

She’s been secretly worried about that ever since Elsa made the joke.

That would be…overwhelming.

Mostly, though, as much as she’s gotten used to the idea, gotten excited about the idea, all she’s wanted to do was share it with Killian. And she’s not about to tell him he’s going to be a dad without him being in the same place as her. This is too big of a thing for her not to be able to hug him afterwards.

But he’s in the taxi on the way to the house right now, and she could throw up out of excitement. And the morning sickness that finally hit her, but that’s not what she wants to think about right now.

She’s definitely wearing down a hole into their hardwood from all of her pacing.

Her phone dings with an alert that there’s movement at the gate to the house, and her stomach does this actual swooping thing that should not at all be possible. It very apparently is, though. And while she’s never been a woman to want to run into someone’s arms out of excitement, that’s changed ever since she met Killian. When they were dating and had been apart for awhile, getting to see his face, even if it was for a day, was the greatest day. Now that she’s living apart from her friends, when she gets to go to Boston to see them, she most definitely runs into Ruby’s arms to hug the living daylights out of her. The same with David and Mary Margaret and their kids. And now that Killian’s been gone for months, she pretty much feels like her legs are going to launch her over the fence instead of into his arms.

Who knew it was possible to miss someone this much?

She guesses she did.

Instead of waiting inside like a sane person, she tosses her phone down onto the couch, and quickly walks outside, not even bothering to put shoes on. Her throat closes for a moment when she sees him, her eyes trying to take him in and catalog all of the differences and similarities all at once as he unloads his bags from the back of the car.

“Hey, Jones,” she calls out, running down the steps as he turns around, his hair flipping with the movement.

“Emma,” he laughs, his smile practically taking up his entire face.

God, she missed that smile.

It’s all a blur as she runs forward, her body colliding with his as her arms wrap around his neck and his arms wrap around her shoulders, tugging her closer so that she’s fully pressed against him. He’s solid, just like always, and his heat overwhelms her as she smells the slightest bit of his cologne mixing in with that awful airplane smell that seems to happen whenever anyone so much as steps into an airport.

He’s home.

“I missed you, Swan,” he murmurs into her ear, rubbing his hand up and down her back as he starts trailing his lips along her jawline, electric sparks spreading across every nerve ending that she has, some of them probably twice.

“I missed you, KJ.” She pulls back to look at him, her hands moving up his neck to cup his cheeks, thumbs tracing over his scruff and his freckles and everything as she looks at the blue eyes that she loves so much but has only been able to see through a video screen. And then she presses up on her toes and kisses him, kisses him like a woman who hasn’t been able to kiss her husband in months, a woman starved of the love and compassion that she’s been without for far too long. It’s all like coming to that safe comfort of home, which is perfect since he’s back and everything is in its right place.

“Hey, man, I need you to get your bags so I can go,” the taxi driver calls out at them, the displeasure in his voice obvious, and she and Killian break apart with blush on both of their cheeks.

“Sorry about that,” Killian grumbles, very obviously not too sorry about it, before he turns around to grab his backpack out of the backseat, handing the driver some cash, and closing the trunk before he drives off. “I don’t think that man liked watching you make out with me, Swan.”

“What’s not to like about it?”

“Exactly,” he winks, grabbing her hips and pulling her closer so that he can softly glide his lips over hers, his tongue quickly licking into her mouth in a burst of heat and pleasure before he’s retreating. “Darling, will you grab the black bag? I have no idea how I managed to pack so much stuff.”

“Sounds like a plan, Stan.”

Killian reaches forward and slaps her ass, making her jump. “I missed that idiotic phrase.”

“As you should have.”

She picks up the black bag off the ground as Killian takes his others, the two of them carry them to the front door and placing them inside before Killian closes the front door and pushes her against it, her back hitting the wood as his hand snakes up underneath her shirt, warm flesh against her skin, and his lips start working at her neck, vibrations trembling down her spine.

“I have thought of you every day.” He punctuates each word with a kiss or a teasing of her skin with teeth, and she nearly melts right then and there at the deep rumble of his accent. “I’m not sure if I’m ever going to be able to do something like that again.”

“I love you,” she gasps out as his hand starts to fumble with the waistband of her leggings, yanking them down as heat curls between her thighs. But it’s then that she remembers that she has something kind of big to tell him. How could she possibly forget? “Wait, wait. Killian, wait.”

He pulls back, his head retreating into his neck as his brows raise and his eyes scan her face, typical Killian 101 trying to figure out what exactly is going on with her even as his hands still run across her stomach, itching to go beneath her leggings once more.

“What’s wrong, love?”

“Nothing, nothing,” she promises, swiping her thumb across the apple of his cheek as her stomach does that twisting thing again. She needs it to stop. “It’s just that, well, I’m pregnant.”

It’s not the smoothest way to tell her husband that they’re going to be parents, but when has she even been smooth and graceful and perfect with her words? Never. He blinks a few times, his lashes landing against his cheeks, and when his lips part, she expects some kind of word, but it’s really more of a…squawk? Is that the right word? She has no idea.

“KJ?”

He blinks once more before leaning forward to press his forehead against hers, his nose pressing into her cheek and his lips lightly brushing over hers as he speaks. “You’re pregnant? We’re having a baby?”

“I mean, technically I am the one having a baby, but you helped us get there.”

“Thank goodness I’m the father. I was unsure for a minute.”

“Shut up, you idiot,” she laughs, shoving at his chest to move him away only for him to pull her closer.

“I may be an idiot, but I’m the father of your baby. You can’t change that.”

“This is not how you were supposed to react.”

“How was I supposed to react?”

“I don’t know. With affection or something?”

“Me teasing you about the paternity of our baby isn’t affection?”

“Eh, maybe.”

“If it’s a boy, we should name it Stan.”

She barks out a laugh, her head falling backwards, and everything in her life rights itself. Killian is home, he’s teasing her, and he’s so unbelievably happy that her stomach finally settles.

This is perfect.

“I am not doing that.”

“I was kidding,” he teases, pressing his lips against hers once, twice, three times.

“Were you though?”

“Possibly.” He fumbles around under her shirt until he’s pulling his hand out and grabbing onto her left wrist, brushing his lips on her wrist dot in the way that she’s missed, the romantic fool. “I love you, and this is by far the best welcome home I’ve ever received.”

“I know. I’ll probably never be able to live up to it.”

“You can always try.”

“Eh, too much effort.”

Killian chuckles before kissing her wrist again, holding it to his lips as his eyes close and a soft smile forms on his face. “My love, I will always be happy to see you, both of you.”

-/-

@ultraluckycatnd @nikkiemms @resident-of-storybrooke @wellhellotragic @onceuponaprincessworld @jennjenn615 @mayquita @captainsjedi @teamhook @skyewardolicitycloisdelena91 @branlovesouat @dreadpirateemma @kmomof4 @ekr032-blog-blog @andiirivera @superchocovian @cs-forlife @qualitycoffeethings @notoriouscs @mariakov81 @jonirobinson64 @ultimiflos @idristardis @galaxyzxstark @thejollyroger-writer @lifeinahole27 @bmbbcs4evr

#cs fic #cs ff #captain swan fic #captain swan #betting on the bullseye

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ocular-intercourse · 5 years ago

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4, 5, 13, 16, 17, 20, 21, 22 for our new child!

Thank uu for making me think about them, ha. I’ve decided tocall them Raime (might have been watching ds playthroughs while drawing them*cough cough*), but Anathi is what their mom calls them as a term of endearment.

How much effort does your OC put in when it comes to giving presents tofriends?

None! Or a lot maybe,just by generally knowing exactly what people like, I guess there’s some effortinvolved in getting to know people so well. They don’t think much about it whenthey see something they know their friends would enjoy they just get it forthem, whatever it might be. That also makes them less of a person that wouldgive gifts on special occasions, more someone who just randomly hands yousomething that made them think of you. I don’t think they would feel the needto give a gift when it is generally expected, and would not feel embarrassed bynot doing so, they generally don’t care much for social rules and expectations.Their motto here is: Gifts should come from the heart and not on a schedule!

Does your OC have a role model or someone they idolize? How would theyreact to meeting them?

Okay now.. is it kinda upmy own ass making Gyo that person?? But here’s my reasoning: Being a soldiernow, lil’ Raime is obviously very interested in the military, so there you havethis highly decorated army general, a man that went from being sentenced todeath for murder, to selling his life to the army as a way out, to becoming aliteral war hero in his very first battle despite being a nobody without even aname except the one the army gave him, that made it to being proposed for theposition of general at an incredibly young age only through his deeds and onlythen revealing his noble background cause social norms would’ve never allowedhim to fill the position otherwise, that went to train the most specializedelite troop of the empire, that reached immortal status which is basicallyalmost unheard of??? [Who is now mostly being used as a babysitter which I’msure the other army generals find highly satisfying and amusing…] There is aHUGE legend being built up around Gyoubu some of it exaggerated but a lot of ittrue and it’s a story underdogs absolutely love cause it makes them think ofthe things they could accomplish themselves. So when Raime grows up and decidesto want to join the military for whatever reason (maybe even that legend itselfwho knows, they come from a very simple background and the only way to rise tothe top would be by their actions too so that should be inspiring) and ofcourse there’s a lot of admirable generals, all of them nobles of some kind,and to be fair so is Gyo (though the rumor is he is not really the person heclaims to be and Raime really enjoys that idea), but nobody’s quite asinspiring considering Raime’s background. So they train and train and train andgo through basic military training and then come to the point where they hit awall, where the others learn to supernaturally strengthen their abilities, asis custom for soldiers in and out of the empire to a certain degree, to enhancetheir reflexes and senses and speed and strength, Raime just.. can’t. Not likethe others at least, and these things are dangerous enough even when they suityou. Which is crushing their spirit cause how can they ever be as much of abadass as General Gyoubu now?? So you have a bunch of instructors justscratching their heads cause this kid somehow still managed to keep up with theothers to this point, where others that aren’t capable of the enhancement areusually weeded out and join provisions or whatever. But they still can’t reallyfigure out what to do with them, cause in theory they are inferior in any wayto any potential basic enemy soldier and nobody wants to be the person thatsuffers losses cause they put a weak link on some task. So they advise them tosay goodbye to their military career, at least in action, and look for anadministrative position or anything else off the battlefield. And then fuckingGeneral Gyoubu himself!! says ‘eh I’ll take them idk I’ll find something forthem to do’ which does not sound very heroic maybe but at least they can stillbe of use in a way they imagined as a child. So in their mind Gyo hasabsolutely saved them which is absurd to them cause the thought that Gyo iseven aware of their existence is wild and now he even sees some potential inthem even when nobody else does?? So when they first meet Raime very much plansto be all courteous and collected and stuff but in their mind Raime has made thisconnection between them as two people fighting the odds and ends up acting inappropriatelyfamiliar, which I think is already the way they cover up nervousness anyways,so they end up being a little too loud & close & booming, and I thinkthat is exactly what makes Gyo give them their job, cause of all the peopleunder his command they are definitely the last person someone would look at andrecognize their military training.

How well does your OC take compliments? Do they get flustered or try toturn them down?

I think that dependsentirely on the kind of compliment, and if they find it actually flattering orsomething they have never considered themselves. Compliment their martialprowess?? They’d laugh and grin and probably even agree, chest swelling withpride. If it’s something they are insecure or unsure about themselves thereaction would probably be a little more timid, but still accepting. Outwardlyat least.

How does your OC feel about their mortality? If they’re immortal, dothey see this as a curse or a blessing?

Ahh, frustrated I thinkwould describe it well? Maybe as a child they have imagined reachingimmortality, but they never really believed they could get there, so it’s notexactly like they sit there thinking ‘now I’ll never get there!!’ but more like‘I can’t even do the simplest step on the way there’ so it just reminds them ofhow hard they failed, even if they always expected to fail, they never thoughtthey wouldn’t even get to try. It is probably only the knowledge of thepossibility of prolonged life and immortality in their world, but they considerit vastly unfair to only have been given that short amount of time while othersget more. At the same time they don’t fear death very much, or rather they don’treally consider the consequence all that much, they just don’t think that farahead.

If your OC is trained in combat, what kind of opponent would they dobest against? What kind of opponent would they lose horribly to?

I think Raime’s entireadvantage in any situation is unpredictability. They do best against peoplethat are bad at reacting in the moment, people that think and plan rather thanfeel. They would do the worst against opponents that have fought them before oroften enough to know Raime’s tricks. Other people, in most cases, they don’texpect their competence, they don’t consider them a threat, they consider themdumb and believe they would fight straightforward only with strength andwithout much tactics. They underestimate that Raime is incredibly adaptable.They can look at a situation and instinctually end up with the best reaction.That makes them blend in very easily, pick up peoples habits and imitate them, charmthem, or act exactly the way people expect Raime to be to direct theirexpectations. Then they use the confusion in deviations to strike.

Your OC overhears someone talking smack about one of their friends. Dothey come to their defense or get involved in any way?

Oh yeah. Immediately andpassionately, loudly. Not exactly aggressive, but they make it very clear thatthat kind of talk is not going to be tolerated any longer while they are around.They might even drag them to apologize, if the friend is present.

Your OC’s neighbor is blasting loud music in the middle of the night.How do they react?

Electronics don’t existso it’s more like people playing instruments, having a party?? Lol Either way,if they really are annoyed by them Raime would have no problem to go over thereto shut the whole thing down, again, not aggressive but determined. Buthonestly in most cases I think they would probably just get roped up in the partymood and just join them?? They love having a good time, they mix easily withothers, unexpected party?? Hell Yeah!

How does your OC react to cheesy pick-up lines? Would they ever use one?

Uhm yes please, and yesvery much. What even is cheese? There are just pick up lines and Raime is bothvery fond of using them and fairly susceptible to hearing them. Raime isearnest and eager and honestly can’t see a fault in being cheesy, and I alsothink somehow they manage to radiate that they actually just want to say somethingnice or funny and are not trying to be skeevy, so I imagine people generallyreact in a positive or neutral way.

#mangosandchili #ocs #gyo #raime #casual gyo lore drop on the side #gyoverse

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marshmallowgoop · 5 years ago

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Kill la Kill Books!

Got a small haul of Kill la Kill books the other day!

SUSHIO CLUB LOVE LOVE KLKL has been a glaring omission from my collection, so when I saw a listing of the book for 3,600 yen—which usually goes for 10,000+ these days—I bought it right away.

And I figured I might as well pick up a few more things while I was at it, right? To make the shipping more cost effective?

That’s definitely the only reason.

But anyway, my growing mass of Kill la Kill books and magazines has now reached 36 items.

And I’ve talked about some of this merch before; you can find my post about the Febri volume 21 issue here, my post about Fractal 10 here, my post about the Talking About Composite books, The Complete Script Book, and The Art of KLK Vol. 3 here (and I have a whole tag for the script book, #klk-script-book), and I yammer on about the nine Blu-ray key art collection and artboard books here. I also have several essays discussing the official manga adaptation:

Kill la Kill Manga Chapter 7

Kill la Kill Manga Volume 3, Chapters 8-17: Thoughts and Impressions

Kill la Kill Manga Volume 3: Translation Notes, Anime Differences

Kill la Kill Manga Volume 3: Worth it?

Manga Differences

And now, I wanna briefly (lol) yap about the six new additions to my collection.

Because I have a lot of love in my heart for this ridiculous, ridiculous anime.

SUSHIO CLUB LOVE LOVE KLKL

So, I got this book for cheap because it was allegedly in poor shape and “not suitable for collection.”

(My reaction to “not suitable for collection” is always, “It’s suitable for my garbage collection! I’ll give your ‘ugly’ copies a loving home!”)

But, like? There are a couple of dents and folded corners, but the condition is really not bad at all. The art is completely intact and beautiful.

Sushio—who is the character designer for Kill la Kill—has shared much of this book on his Twitter, and I would definitely recommend fans of the series to scroll through his photos and have a look. There’s such a cute, sweet charm to Sushio’s work, and along with the polished, colored pages from LOVE LOVE that he shares online, he also shares sketches of his own fanart for the series, too.

(Okay, maybe this isn’t exactly the best demonstration of Sushio’s absolutely precious artwork, but. It’s one of my favorites from the book. Ryuko resorting to such wild extremes to be with Senketsu again is just. My heart. Kill la Kill is actually adorable.)

In any case, I don’t think any of the content in LOVE LOVE was new to me, but there’s just really something about having the book in my hands. I know there’s such a strong desire for digital media these days, but call me old-fashioned—there’s nothing quite like holding this art and really seeing every stroke and line in person.

Being able to physically flip through the pages also makes me notice things I didn’t before. For instance, I found myself charmed by the little detail of Barazo, Mako’s father, loving and adoring Sukuyo, Mako’s mother.

I mean, aw? It’s stuff like this that really makes me wish Kill la Kill were a kids’ show (as Sushio himself seemed to want!) Barazo is so much more likeable when there aren’t any signs of his less-than-pleasant behavior and he’s a loving, supportive husband and father.

Seriously!

Another thing I notice from having the book now is the order in which the pages are organized. Like, I couldn’t help but be amused about how Ryuko gets her own page here...

(Smiling for her Starketsu in the sky, right? Just like he asks her to in “Till I Die”?)

...and then the next pages have Satsuki beside Nonon and Mako (and Mataro) beside Ira...

...which strikes me as a bit funny because this isn’t exactly how Sushio organized his Tweets of these images. There, Satsuki was next to Ryuko, Nonon was next to no one, Mako and Mataro were next to Ira, and Uzu was next to Houka:

So, in LOVE LOVE, is Sushio deliberately trying to say something with the changed placement? Especially when it comes to the direction of the ladies’ eyes?

Yeah???

I kid, I kid.

(But really, it looks much better to give Ryuko her own page and not have Nonon standing next to nobody.)

Also, one of the first things that popped out to me about LOVE LOVE is how Senketsu’s pages are right next to Ryuko’s pages. As they should be.

They belong together, okay?!

And speaking of Senketsu and Ryuko, I remember a comment years back that said you could probably find pics of your OTP with matching expressions in this book.

But, uh. Just compare Senketsu posing to Ryuko posing...

They’re kind of different types of people, lol.

But hey, they do both make cute sneezy faces.

As a final note about my copy of LOVE LOVE, I will say that my only disappointment is that I received the version with print errors. As such, this page of Nui...

...was accidentally printed twice, and I miss out on this page of Nui as a result:

There are also some minor goofs, like Mako’s arm getting cut off by the background here:

But considering I got this beautiful thing for only 3,600 yen, I really can’t complain!

Now I just need Sushiotan 2 to complete my Sushio Kill la Kill doujin collection....

Takepro

This charming little volume is a collection of animator fanart for the show (and other shows). The book includes a short profile for each featured artist, and their big Kill la Kill pieces are—like all titles in Kill la Kill—named after classic Japanese pop songs. You can read and see more about Takepro here.

It’s hard to pick favorites from this doujin because there is so much adorable and wonderful artwork, but I especially love Naoki Takeda’s “ここに幸あり,” or “Here is My Happiness,” named after the song by Yoshitsu Ootsu.

youtube

The picture features Ryuko, Mako, and Satsuki sitting together, all having a good time, and there’s just something so sweet about seeing happy Satsuki.

I also found an English translation of the song’s lyrics, courtesy of beast-senior 810:

The storm breaks and the rain falls Thorny as the women's path might be I would still keep on living with you And my happiness is here in the blue sky

I could not tell anybody of my scars A bird of love that resided in my chest If only I wander about crying and evading A sorrowful night wind will blow through the streets

I call out your name from the bottom of my heart Who will be awaiting me at the end of the echoes? Snuggle up to you and cheerfully look up to your face And my happiness is here in the white clouds

Aw. This song is so Satsuki.

And speaking of Satsuki, I can’t get over how cute she and Ryuko look on the cover of this book. Like??

Aw!

I also am quite fond of a small piece by Syuichi Iseki, which is in a super-deformed style and features Satsuki comforting Nonon after her uniform is destroyed during the Naturals Election. Nonon cries, and Satsuki pats her head. In the background, Ira looks distressed at the display, Houka seems to be deciphering it, and Mako smiles. It’s really, really cute.

Yoshie Endo’s “僕笑っちゃいます,” or “I’m Laughing,” named for the song by Shingo Kazami, is also real cute. It depicts Mataro holding up Guts, who licks his face. It’s another one of those, “I-so-wish-Kill-la-Kill-were-a-kids’-show” kinda pieces....

youtube

Hiroyuki Imaishi’s Doujin

Admittedly, I don’t actually know the title of this one, but it’s a very small doujin by Kill la Kill director Hiroyuki Imaishi. There isn’t too much Kill la Kill content, but there are two pages of Ryuko and Satsuki in their respective Kamui, accompanied by some text.

I thought the text might be something about the show, but it seems like it’s actually about Imaishi’s experience working on the show. And... it’s rather sad? He talks about how he’s able to accomplish more now, but he also has to consider a lot more as well, and he doesn’t have the time and energy that he used to. It’s a lot about aging and growing old.

At least, I think that’s what’s being communicated. Here’s a transcription, though:

なんだろう。

初会社役員とか。

昔よりやれることは増えたが考えなきゃいけないことも増えて時間と体力は足りなくなっていく。

年相応とも言える。

だけどいつまでも大人気なく生きていきたいものだ。

One last interesting thing about this doujin is the material it’s made from; it’s different than any other book in my collection. I’m not an artist, so forgive me if I sound totally ignorant here, but the paper reminds me watercolor paper. It definitely took me by surprise!

SL Sketch 3

SL Sketch 3 is a small fan doujin by Buzin. You can find most of the art in this book on their Tumblr!

Sketch 3 is a really fun collection of sketches, and I especially love the cover. I’m so desperate for art where Senketsu is acknowledged as an actual person that I’m just all heart eyes over Ryuko smiling at him here.

March 2014 Newtype

Okay, so this one’s really a magazine, not a book, but wow. I was taken aback by what’s inside!

I’ll definitely have to look at this issue in more depth because there are a bunch of Kill la Kill goodies in here that I didn’t even expect. And I don’t think most of it has been translated at all!

I also realized that I’ve been mixing up my Newtypes and will have to fix my resources page. But on the bright side, there is so much to love about this issue.

Like, the Elite Four Light Novel got reprinted in the Kamui Bansho, but it’s way better here because it has pictures!

I also love how Nonon, out of all the Elite Four, is the only one who stands beside Satsuki in these illustrations.

And I don’t even know what this is (VR or something with Ami Koshimizu, Ryuko’s VA?), but it’s cute and got me smiling:

And Ryo Akizuki, the mangaka for the official Kill la Kill manga, made a small comic about his experience working on the project. I like the little title panel with Ryuko, Senketsu, and Mako a lot:

Plus, there’s a shiny ad for the manga’s second volume, too:

One of the things that most caught my interest, though, is an article about the second opening song for Kill la Kill, GARNiDELiA’s “ambiguous”:

I got so curious about this bit because I’ve heard varying, conflicting information regarding the meaning behind the song’s lyrics. On the one hand, I’ve heard that half of the song is from Ryuko to Senketsu, and the other half is from Satsuki to Ryuko. On the other hand, I’ve heard that the whole song is from Satsuki to Ryuko. But I’ve never found any concrete sources for either of these claims!

So, I was hoping the Newtype article would help, but it’ll take a lot more digging into. Still, briefly looking over the page, I did find this bit:

そんな私の思いと歌詞が一致しました。『キルラキル』でいう流子ちゃんと神衣・鮮血の関係に近いかもしれませんね。

Roughly, it says, “As such, my thoughts about the song agreed with its lyrics. You might say it’s like the relationship between Ryuko and Kamui Senketsu in Kill la Kill.”

I’m not totally sure about the context here—and I admittedly don’t even know the author’s involvement in the making of "ambiguous”—but this article might explain where the Ryuko-and-Senketsu reading of the song came from. It’s definitely something I’d like to delve into more.

Because I really love the Ryuko-and-Senketsu reading of the song, okay, and I’d love some actually official backup for it!

Finally, another favorite part of the Newtype is simply all the art. Takafumi Hori’s spread is particularly great:

(You can find a cleaner image here.)

Just... dang. I wish I got a little poster of this instead of the ones actually included in the Newtype! The artwork is just stunning.

And one of the cutest things about the Newtype is all the fanart from its readers! I particularly love the little Valentine’s Day special; there’s an illustration of Ryuko giving Senketsu chocolate, and there’s also a Ryumako piece, too!

Kill la Kill Storyboard Ep. 01

Finally, one of my favorites from this haul is the Kill la Kill Storyboard Ep. 01. The book was included as a shop bonus for the original Japanese Blu-ray/DVD release, though I was able to win it by itself in an auction. I do think I overpaid a bit, but gosh, it’s a lovely addition to my collection. It’s just really neat to see the production process of an anime in action. I wish there were storyboard books for every episode in the show!

Hiroyuki Imaishi’s storyboards are also just super amusing. Here is a small sampling of some of my faves (because there is so much gold in here, my goodness):

And that’s all for now!

...I guess this really wasn’t so brief at all, huh?

Shocker.

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kittae · 6 years ago

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Catastrophic Karaoke

Pairing: BTS OT7 x reader

Genre: light comedy? lol idk, Vampire!AU

words: 1516

Warnings: strong language, mentions of blood, fainting

Disclaimer: prompt found on @writing-prompt-s and used some oneliners from this list, also inaccurate representation of Goth culture as a whole with no ill intentions.

⟶ Halloween prompts masterlist

You’re not entirely sure how you ended up here, if you’re being honest. ‘Here’ being standing in the middle of a living room that isn’t your own, your shirt drenched with blood that isn’t yours and surrounded by a group of wide-eyed men while My Chemical Romance on Singstar still blares in the background.

“Um… is this...?” You gesture at your chest, the dark fluid sticking to your naked skin through the formerly white cotton of your T-shirt after Namjoon’s spilled the content of his cup all over it. You still cling onto the smallest shred of hope, the minuscule possibility that maybe they just like to make their party punch this deep red and...thick. Even when the trenchant smell of rusty iron keeps filtering through your nose and making you sick to your stomach.

“___-, we can explain.” Namjoon grimaces upon watching you gag, Jin’s eyebrows shooting up to make a face that translates to ‘We can?’.

“It’s not not blood.” Taehyung helpfully contributes to the situation, earning pained groans from the older men and a fistbump from the only younger one.

“Oh my– Whose blood is this?!”

Hoseok snorts in slight disbelief, although accompanied by a smirk of pure amusement. “Uh, not the question i’d thought you’d ask but okay.”

Jimin furrows his eyebrows, confused. “Wait, what question should she be asking then?”

“Answer the damn question!” You shriek, already in the process of peeling off the blood-drenched article of clothing as any ounce of shame gets thrown out of the window along with your dignity, to make place for skin-crawling horror as you strip down to your bra.

“Don’t worry, ___-, we’re not monsters. People consent to getting their blood taken when they volunteer.” Namjoon tries to placate the circumstances but quite possibly only manages to make it worse.

“People volunteer to get their blood taken from them?!”

“Well, duh? As if you’ve never donated blood before?” Hoseok counters.

“Yes, Hoseok, to the fucking hospital!”

“Exactly! Which is our main source, so it’s all morally justified! Aside from the fact we don’t exactly have permission to take those donations.” He pulls a face. “Oops.”

“Have you ever considered you’re taking this whole thing way too far? Like, out of the seven of you, there was not one of you who didn’t want to be a part of this sick shit? I knew you guys were hardcore but you’re drinking human blood! What the fuck, you guys?!” You angrily throw your hands up and allow yourself to breathe after your breathless rant.

The group exchanges worried looks before Jin speaks up, talking slowly as if he’s trying to make something clear to a toddler. “___-, we don’t really have much of a choice…”

Watching how your expression goes from angry and disgusted to utterly confused and lost, Jimin comes to rub your back in an attempt to comfort you. “Oh honey, we thought you knew…”

“What?” You ask, voice significantly smaller now you’re suddenly not sure about your earlier convictions anymore. An even crazier thought briefly crosses your mind, though you quickly push it to the back just when jimin’s compassionate voice forms a strong contrast with the words he speaks.

“That we’re vampires. We just thought that, you know...You knew.” He shrugs a little sheepishly.

“Vampires? No, you’re just hardcore goths. Like wannabe vampires because there’s no such thing as...Actual vampires. You’re just pretending!” Nervous laughter bubbles up your throat as you try to make light of the situation by treating it as a joke. Of course it’s a joke! “You’re just messing with me for Halloween, aren’t you? With the fake blood and all, you almost got me there! Ha ha!”

Instead of the expected roaring laughter, an uncomfortable silence fills the entire room for ten excruciating seconds before Hoseok releases a fake breath. “Well, this is awkward.”

“Speaking of awkward, where’s Yoongi?” Jungkook suddenly remarks, pointing out the elder’s absence for the first time that night.

Yoongi! He hates pranks even more than you do, so he’d definitely be on your side when you tell him how the others tried to scare you!

“Probably still sleeping downstairs– Wait, ___-, where are you going?!” Namjoon calls out for you, alarmed, when he watches you sprint down the stairs and into the basement.

“You don’t think she…. She’s not going to…?” Jimin sputters, eyes wide in fear.

Namjoon nods his head, a sad and sorry expression marring his handsome face. “May she rest in peace.”

It’s not like you’ve never seen the basement before, but every time you visit the underground room, the view still manages to astound you. Most people have a clear picture of what basements should look like and more often than not it’s a bare, cold place where you just stock firewood, wine and cans of peas or something. Well, picture the complete opposite and this is it. It’s spacious, cozy and fully furnitured including seven luxurious coffins. You stopped asking questions a long time ago, taking your friends’ odd lifestyle choices not too seriously. Some people just get really into their subculture and that’s completely fine. Who are you to judge, right?

“Yoongi.” You call, three polite knocks on the rich black oak of the closed coffin signaling your presence.

The cover of the casket opens slowly, mechanically, until it reveals the sleeping form of a pale and black-haired man, eyes closed and brows furrowed in a displeased frown.

“Who has the audacity to wake me up but not actually die?” He murmurs, still not opening his eyes and laying as static as a real corpse.

“Yoongi, you have to get up there. They’re all messing with me and I need you to tell them to knock it off.” You plead, feeling slightly guilty for interrupting your friend’s nap but you seriously need an ally up there.

“Oh, it’s you. Why is that my problem?” He peels one blood-red eye open to watch you pout down on him. “Where is your shirt?”

“They also opened your one hundred year old bottle of whiskey.”

The little white lie doesn’t miss its effect as Yoongi’s practically jumping out of the coffin to sprint upstairs, and that’s saying something considering you rarely saw him doing more exercise than moving from the couch to the basement and back.

“Which one of you fucktards opened my father’s whiskey?! Answer me!” You hear his voice thunder from the living room before you join them again.

“Ooh, fucktard! That’s new!” Hoseok quips and whips out a small notebook to quickly write something down. “By the way, ___- thinks we’re either hardcore goths or pranking her and she lied to get you out of the coffin.”

“She thinks we’re what?”

“Goths. Google it.”

Yoongi begrudgingly does as the younger man says and fishes his phone out of the pocket of his robes, briefly scrolling through the results and shrugging. “They have no idea what it’s like being a real vampire but i like their style.”

“Yeah. Apparently some even drink each other’s blood, too.”

“Humans do? Wild.”

You can’t believe your own eyes. Yoongi, playing along with all of this?!

“Look,” You raise your voice, sternly planting your hands above your hips, “I may not be the sharpest tool in the… toolbox. But I’m not buying this vampire crap! And someone give me a fresh shirt, for fuck’s sake!”

“Honestly, ___-, we really are vampires. I just thought you already knew.” Yoongi rolls his eyes.

“Some of you wear cross necklaces. Jimin wears silver rings.” You counter.

“So?”

“I don’t see any of you catching fire?!”

The long overdue collective laughter finally resounds through the living room and a shred of relief washes over you when you think they’ve finally decided to drop the act because they can’t keep it up anymore. So you wished.

“Sweetie, those are just rumours from hundreds of years ago. I can’t believe you’d still fall for those.” Jimin manages to enlighten you between laughing fits after falling off the couch.

“So what, I’ve accidentally joined a vampire coven, then?” You ask, sarcasm dripping from every word.

“Yeah, pretty much. We thought you were funny so we decided to keep you.” Taehyung answers seriously, but still flashes a warm, boxy grin at you.

A wide, boxy grin. A toothy grin. Two long, pointy teeth. Fangs.

As you look around the room, at your friends still roaring with laughter, you start noticing the same lengthened teeth with sharpened ends in each of their smiles until everything goes dark before your eyes and the last thing you see is the Singstar mic rolling out of your hand and onto the ground.

The laughter stops abruptly, another tense silence taking place as they all stare at your limp body on the floor in shock.

“I found a T-shirt...” Jungkook feebly announces, holding up the shirt he’d just gone to get you from downstairs only to find you knocked out cold.

Hoseok takes a hesitant sip from his own cup. “This is going to sound controversial, but I think that went well.”

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lightsandlostbells · 6 years ago

Text

Druck episode 7 reaction

I fell behind with Druck because the release of the clips from this episode threw me off, lol, but I’m catching up now!

Some of these comments are outdated as I wrote them before seeing the clips that came out after this episode.

Episode 7

Clip 1 - Leonardo DiCaprio sweetie...

Sam’s hair!!! Love it.

Unfortunately I do not love that Sam is somewhat encouraging Kiki in her Alexander-related delusions.

Tbh, I wonder how Sam copes being a friend of Kiki since Kiki is racist, but then again racist people can be selective. They’ll have bigoted beliefs about one marginalized group, but they’re OK with another group.

Kiki referencing Titanic and being like the film is based on a true story!!! And Amira being like, uh, just the iceberg and sinking part. Well, Titanic is applicable to real life, in that Kiki and Alexander are the sinking ship. But also, Jack died at the end of Titanic, so maybe Kiki should pick something with a happier ending, anyway.

Mia has incorporated the famous red lipstick into her style.

Amira asking about the party and Sam saying Mia twerked, good for her.

I adore Amira messing with the girls and saying costume parties are haram. Even Mia, the self-designated progressive feminist of the group, falls for it. But I love that Amira can joke with them and tease their expectations and it’s casual and friendly. Pay attention, Kiki.

Awww, even the Hanna/Jonas guilt making out is too cute! I’m going to savor it while it lasts.

Clip 2 - Hanna confesses to Matteo

Matteo settled on a different hairstyle, I see.

So I guess Hanna did end up joining the refugee tutoring program, and Matteo did too. Despite the less-than-enlightened attitudes we saw from the group representatives in the first episode, I’m glad to see Hanna is involved in another activity, at least. Since she’s very insecure, volunteering and participating in activities can give you some sense of purpose and direction. And Matteo - I don’t think we ever saw Isak really involved in anything at school? Just kosegruppa, which he was blackmailed into. Which is fine, I just like seeing Matteo doing something productive. Also, I enjoy seeing something that Hanna and Matteo do together, whether that was intentional or not on their parts.

After seeing a few versions of this scene, I prefer it when the Isak character needles the Eva a bit into confessing what’s up rather than Eva just spilling her secret unprompted. It makes sense in that Hanna/Eva might need a push and also gives a subtle hint about Matteo’s/Isak’s investment in their relationship status.

I laughed out loud at Hanna being like “I made out with Sam” and Matteo being like “Well yeah, girl Sam is hot.” I mean, she is a babe, but Sam is the one girl Chris character who does not flirt with the Isak character (from what I remember), and it turns out to be the one time that the Isak says that the girl Chris is hot. Even though I don’t think it’ll matter much, lmao.

Also Matteo being like whyyyy are you telling me this right now … in front of a bunch of students within earshot. True!

LMAO AND FATIMA AGREES WITH MATTEO, HOLY SHIT? I hope that this poor girl isn’t going to be like … a red herring as to who spilled the beans.

Clip 3 - Kiki gets a much-needed pep talk

Kiki just cuts straight through the bullshit and figures Hanna has a thing for Samuel.

Well, now we get the “I’m not a lesbian” comments from Kiki. I wish they would go there with her. Honestly, after Skam Austin, this is the version of Skam I would most expect an f/f storyline (other than Skam France which has girl Alex as bi but it’s not much more than Word of God and a couple offhand comments.)

Kiki asks Mia if she’s a lesbian and Mia says she doesn’t think in categories like that … which does not rule out the possibility of her being into girls … I am just saying …

“Just because I’m pretty does it mean I need to have a penis inside me?” Well damn Mia, when you put it like that.

Alexander repeats the same bullshit lines on different girls. I bet he compliments them on their stomachs because so many girls are self-conscious about having rolls or belly fat.

Kiki is near tears, and she gets Vilde’s line about everyone saying it’s not her fault, but it is her fault … because that’s how she feels. I’m glad they kept in that line, and it does make you think about how “of course it’s me” would feel in light of S2. I mean apparently Vilde didn’t care that it was Noora who ended up with William, but if you think about it, William apparently was willing to settle on a girl. It just had to be Noora. And IDK, to me that would kind of sting regardless of my ultimate feelings for this dude - because apparently I wasn’t enough to make him stop acting like an asshole, but for another girl he could act like something resembling a decent person (in certain opinions).

The girls making a Hanna and Mia sandwich with Kiki inside is so sweet.

Clip 4 - Mia tells off Alexander

“You’re a proud, confident pussy!” Aw, that’s a lovely line in context.

Mia is, out of all the Nooras, the one who most feels like a feminist or at least someone who is heavily guided by feminist principles and has done the required reading.

I was going to say it was a bummer that Sam went against Kiki’s idea to stand up to Alexander, but the way the actress played it, plus the line “That’s how I always do it” made it feel like there was more going on with her than just not wanting the party invitations to stop. Like the pressure to be chill and not take anything too seriously, especially relationships, was something that weighs down on her. If she’s like girl Chris, perhaps she feels the need to be the fun party one, too. (Heh, I actually thought of the infamous Gone Girl “cool girl” speech, believe it or not. A lot of these insensitive teenage boys don’t want a girl who’s going to have feelings and inconvenient stuff like that, they just want a girl who’s cool to do whatever. And I think there is some pressure on girls to not be like “those other girls” who cause drama by speaking up for themselves and not taking crap from boys.)

And I like Amira’s point of view, which was the same as Sana’s, but which was explicitly compassionate and trying to help Kiki keep her dignity.

Also Hanna is just like “No idea” which is in-character for the whole not-having-her-own-opinions, going-along-with-what-everyone-else-does theme.

Alexander wasn’t as bad of an actor as I expected, though he needs to work on his dead eyes. Maybe he meant it but it’s going to be hard to deal with that in the long run.

His version of this put-down is one of the cruelest in a way, though. It doesn’t even feel like he winds her up as much, he’s just callous. And he had the temerity to tell her to stop crying. Because crying is inconvenient for him.

He mimics Mia’s smirk back at her when she steps up which was a nice touch.

I’m glad that Kiki stuck around in this version so she got to hear someone stick up for her. It is sad that her moment becomes Mia’s moment but it’s nice to see the girls immediately defending her, Amira stroking her arm.

I’m not sure Mia had quite the fire to pull off that scene; however I am liking her more and more in general because as I mentioned above, I think she’s convincing as a baby feminist character and she’s good with supporting the other girls.

I loooooooove Sam giving him the finger as she walks off. itswhathedeserves.gif

Clip 5 - Hanna and Jonas in bed

They’re easily the best Eva/Jonas outside of the original. They just have great chemistry.

“By the way, I found out there are studies that prove the danger of cell phone radiation.” Wow, I didn’t know Jonas was channeling my 72-year-old auntie.

So cute with him talking about getting down and asking for her hand!

“Society made me do it, a boy from the streets like me, what can I do?” Jonas is definitely the most endearing drug dealer in the Skam extended universe. Ahem.

That description makes him seem like Aladdin.

Oh god they’re so cute. I don’t have much to say except they’re fabulous together.

don’t break them up

Clip 6 - Fight!

NO NOT THE SCARF. Wrapping her scarf around his neck! I know what happens next for them, you assholes!!!

The girls are ridiculously cute when they pose for a photo. Mia giving Hanna a kiss!

Also they love Mia so much for her smackdown. And Amira stroking Kiki’s arm <3

Brawl time!

Lol, this is the least convincing Iben.

DON’T TOUCH SAM’S BEAUTIFUL BLUE HAIR YOU JERK

I love that all of them got involved in the fight. Amira seemed like she was trying to stop the fight at first but then it looked like she was trying to put that girl in a headlock. Kiki went all in, too, jumping on that girl’s back and holding on with her thighs.

Lol, a teacher actually yelling at them to knock it off and them breaking it off on their own? How novel.

Clip 7 - Hanna and a reptile

Hanna actually has a bruise from the fight so that’s a good detail.

That line from Matteo about Carlo being friends with Jonas and not with Hanna ... buddy … you’re going to want to consider that line more closely, considering I can think of someone who’s friends with both Jonas AND Hanna who’s also screwed her over.

Jonas asking her to stop calling when her phone background is all pics of her and Jonas being affectionate :( :( :( You know, just to rub it in.

Matteo were you fucking SMIRKING after you gave Hanna a hug? Is that an actual smirk or is that just his face? Duuuuude, I do not approve.

Clip 8 - Leonie dropping hints

Lmao, it’s not really funny but those are some A+ celebrity sunglasses that Hanna is wearing to presumably cover up her bruise and hide from the world.

Love how shook and upset Hanna gets from just spotting Jonas through the window.

Kiki is probably the biggest asshole of any of the Vildes but not gonna lie, I still kinda like her? She is a jerk but she feels like a very specific, realistic type of jerk, like she feels very believable as a character.

Also, something I’ve never thought much about is how Vilde/Kiki fixates on Eva/Hanna being considered a “slut” to the whole school, and obviously some of that for Vilde has to do with the impact it’ll have on their bus group. But this is also happening right after Vilde lost her virginity to the most popular guy in school, wore his hoodie that marked her as a trophy, and was treated like trash by him afterwards. So for Vilde/Kiki/the equivalent characters, is it possible that there’s some projection going on here? I don’t know if I’d say for certain because she seems so eager to have sex, but the aftermath also messes with her self-worth, and that’s mostly indicated by her eating disorder but I think it’s possible she may have internalized some ideas about slut-shaming that could apply to herself.

Mia loves Hanna so much. I don’t get the mega-flirty vibes between them I got from Eva/Noora or Eva/Eleonora, but Mia just cares for her a whole lot. I’ve had some doubts about Mia’s performance but the writing for her has made me love her quite a bit.

Oh, I love that Hanna kinda snapped at Leonie and that Mia took a bit more of the caring, leave-her-alone approach at first but then got all forceful and told her to go away.

Mia either thinks Kiki needs to shut the fuck up or she’s noticing that something’s up with her attitude.

Clip 9 - Hanna and her dad

Is that plant symbolic of something? “There’s a lot going on and I just forgot to water it”? Or you know, sometimes a plant is just a plant.

The dad! I love him being all concerned by his daughter’s banged-up face.

And he’s being so sweet and supportive when he sees Hanna is having a hard time! Gosh, Druck is really like the sweet and soft remake. The baby lamb version of Skam.

Hanna also freely confesses to him that Jonas broke up with her instead of it slipping out in a fit of frustration like with Eva. The dad is sympathetic and wants to help and tries to reassure her that it can happen to anyone, but Hanna is just too upset and stressed for it to have any effect.

General Comments:

I have no idea what’s up with the production on this one. I’ll be so bummed if it doesn’t get another season. Honestly, this is still my favorite of the remakes - it’s the one where I have the most fondness for the characters. I enjoy almost everyone by this point.

This is also easily the version where I would want a S3 and S4 the most (other than a Shay-focused season of Skam Austin), as I think Matteo and Amira could potentially pull them off; they both have conveyed plenty of youthful vulnerability. Mia/Alexander is the least convincing Noorhelm yet but Mia has grown on me a lot. And I think girl Sam and Jonas are fantastic and would love to see more from them.

Just to say it again: girl Sam is wonderful and I would looooove just a full season of her.

I guess the Druck team posted a little message on IG about Kiki’s eating disorder and a link to a hotline? That’s really great, I’m glad they did that.

Not to compare remakes but when Meg and Marlon from Skam Austin make out: 😒 😒 😒 When Hanna and Jonas make out: 😄 😄 😄

I don’t speak German so if I miss some context, feel free to correct me.

If you got this far, thank you for reading!

#druck reactions

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deathgatesideblog · 6 years ago

Text

The DGC Anime, Part 1

So let’s figure out what DGC would be like as an anime.

(Cut because it’s PRETTY LONG)

Basics:

The theme/opener would be a narration (think Avatar: The Last Airbender) explaining how the Sundering happened and the Patryns and Sartan hate each other. As each world is mentioned, you see images associated with them.

Arianus: a dragon-ship, the Kicksey-winsey, and maybe the High Realms?

Pryan: lots of greenery (with a dragon or two blending into the background), the citadels, a tytan

Abarrach: a corpse that doesn’t look like a corpse (so it’s fresh) but has a creepy phantasm behind it (also you can’t see the Sartan hair, so I guess it’s bald?), the Fire Sea, Kairn Necros

Chelestra: an iceberg with… something… inside it… and the iceberg gets a little smaller each episode until all you see are red red eyes…. Surunan, maybe just a shot of the ocean?

Nexus: spires and pretty forests and stuff

Labyrinth: the River of Anger, the Final Gate, lots and lots of bones (possibly being gnawed on by horrifying monsters)

Vortex: idk, a big room, I guess?

*****

Someone would have to figure out Sartan and Patryn runes so that the spells make sense. I do not envy this person.

*****

Character designs are important. Each world and race has a slightly different style. I like to think that Patryns in the Labyrinth wear things like furs, leathers, and low-quality cloth in colors that help them blend into the background. Geg fashion is inspired by the 1800s and early 1900s, aka the Age of the Factory. The Kenkari need to look like butterflies. Humans on Chelestra can be kind of Polynesian-inspired.

Haplo: It’s apparently traditional to garb the hero/protagonist in red and blue, so let’s start him out in a very dark navy shirt and the most blend-in-everywhere brown pants imaginable. And bandages, of course. As the series progresses, he gets to wear lighter blues and maybe a bit of red. If he stays in an elemental world a long time, he keeps his basic color scheme but starts dressing like a human of that place to better blend in… until he gives up pretending he’s not a Patryn, that is. (It would be kind of funny to give him a trace of jailbird orange because he ends up in so many prisons, but I somehow can’t really imagine him in something like that.)

Alfred: He canonically has a pretty dumb, fancy outfit, but I can work with that. It’s purple, but the shirt beneath his coat is off-white. White is the color most associated with the Sartan, but Alfred is a bit, well, off for a Sartan (Zifnab might have a different shade of off-white in his design too). As the series progresses, he loses his frills and stuff so that he looks a bit more influenced by Sartan and/or Patryn styles. Also, it is very important to me that his eyes are the exact same shade of blue as rune-magic/Patryn tattoos to symbolize that 1) he has rune-magic, 2) is in fact obscenely powerful, and 3) has an affinity with the Patryns.

Hugh: Does not wear black because that’s the Kir color. He could also potentially wear dark blue at first because he’s the decoy protagonist. After his resurrection, maybe he could wear very dark purple to symbolize how Alfred has negatively affected him.

Bane: He needs to look nothing at all like the king and queen.

Marit: In flashbacks, she and Haplo wear typical Patryn garb. In the present, she’s kept the colors and general style, but the quality of her clothes is nicer. Less fur, more fabric. Practical hairstyle. I know it’s long on the one canon picture we have of her (though you could argue that cover art isn’t particularly canon), but maybe short or just shoulder-length? Also weapons.

*****

There are only six seasons. We skip over Elven Star almost entirely. On Abarrach, when Alfred asks Haplo if he found any Sartan on Pryan, Haplo gives like a three-sentence summary of important things we need to know, adds that it was awful and Alfred should be glad he didn’t have to suffer through it, and then we move onto the good stuff. There can be a few more flashbacks when Xar visits the citadel to explain anything more.

*****

Footnotes can be those little pause-things where chibi versions of the characters explain stuff. I don’t know what they’re called. However, we shouldn’t need footnotes about timekeeping because let’s just pretend that everyone uses days and years to avoid confusion, okay? Because the canonical timekeeping systems just confused me.

*****

That’s it for now. Next time I’ll ramble on about my thoughts for the musical score (I do not know much music theory).

Oh wow, what an excellent surprise! These are some really cool thoughts, allow me to add some of my own!

Theme/opener: I like the idea of the first opener being a narration/backstory kinda thing, but I have to also hold out for that classic Anime OP packed with symbolism and showcasing the characters fighting and junk. So gotta have some of those types of openings after the first hypothetical season.

Character designs: I really really did the Geg’s fashion/society being based off Industrial Revolution kinda stuff. Another route you could go is more steampunkish (and you’d have precedent, considering how the video game portrays Drevlin– not that you really want to use the video game for anything, but you feel me, lol) but that’s already kinda based on that time period anyway, so *shrug*

Haplo: iirc Haplo’s usually wearing a white shirt with brown pants and a vest, but heck, man, this is an anime, and more complicated costumes are kind of par for the course. Red-and-blue is a fitting color scheme, certainly.

Alfred: Here’s where anime’s proud tradition of ridiculous outfits can truly shine. Make me proud. Canon-wise he literally spends the whole series in that outfit, and I think it would be kinda funny to reflect that by having him wear the exact same coat all the time but in different colors, to suggest that he’s using the exact same pattern every single time. I think no matter what happens with the rest of his outfit, the coat’s probably staying. He just likes it a lot, okay??

Hugh: I like the idea of dressing Hugh up as a decoy protagonist, very appropriate. To me, his outfit is less important than what his hair’s doing, honestly, lol. He’s got a beard with a braid in it!! That’s cool!! And in the fifth book/season, when he’s depressed, he would look really sloppy and not taking care of himself.

Marit: LOOKS NOTHING LIKE THE ONE IMAGE WE HAVE OF HER, FIGHT ME, IN WHAT WORLD IS CHESTNUT HAIR BLONDE ANYWAY???? But yeah, pretty much what you said :P

Skipping Elven Star: Interesting idea. I mean, sucks if you happen to like that book, but I’M not going to argue with that, certainly, and it definitely seems like it’d be possible to do… You’d miss out on a lot of the setup, and you’d have to rearrange some things, especially concerning Zifnab, which could get messy, but I definitely think you could do it effectively.

(Relevant addition to this conversation: Hand of Chaos feels like the kind of season you get when the animators are waiting for the manga to get ahead so they make a filler arc. Except it’s not quite a pure filler arc. But it’s disjointed enough from the rest of the series to kind of feel that way. You get me?)

Little chibi characters explaining stuff in lieu of footnotes: OH MY GOODNESS CUTE (would also fit great for bonus episodes, or those little end-of-episode previews that are sometimes a thing)

#wow this is intense #love it though!#i love talking about this lol #submission #death gate anime

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