#why did so much of this manga have to be about her and shu

[mintfluffysweater]

Them>>

[callmeklair]

I wonder what are your favourite pairings in DL? Can you give us a rank of DL ships 👀

//contains route spoilers and sorry if it gets a little long 😭

there are so many cute and adorable ships, in their own way, that it took me years to select my fav ships, and here they are with rankings:

1. shinyui: aside from shin being embodiment of anger and impatience, i seriously have lost the count of how many times i have re-read his DF route, like the character development and their bonding is so wholesome. the way yui is ready to give up everything even if it means she will have to keep running away from people for the rest of her life with shin, she was ready to throw it all just so she can be with shin and shin trying to push her away so that she can be happy in a comfortable place instead of being stuck with him in his mess and get targeted. even in LE he pushed her away scared that she might get endzeit and suffer from its symptoms and he didn't want her to wither in pain and would rather let himself go through it alone than see her harmed.

2. carlayui: his character development was so smooth and amazing to watch, seeing him and yui bond over books was also adorable to watch especially it was the first time his soft side came out, i think it was also due to Yui that he gave up on taking revenge on karlheinz and instead BOWED to him just to bring yui back to life.

3. shuyui: shu giving yui queen treatment by still being his lazy self>>>>>>>> the difference in shu's behaviour can certainly be seen from the first game and the latest game despite keeping the same lazy attitude. the development is so good, if i keep talking this post will become endless.

4. reiyui: Reiji slowly opening up and protecting yui in his own rational way by planning instead of going all fighting so that she won't be hurt or get involved in this dangerous battle is the best character development. yes he was like that from the start about planning and all that, but he who was prideful and always boosted of being a vampire started to question where vampires come from and if they were originally human in DF route. and he even said that he will choose yui over being a vampire. and in his more blood vampire ending, when little Reiji said how servants are afraid of him and his inventions because his mother and brother are distant from him. Young Reiji also mentioned how he always carries his self made ointment around because his brothers are clumsy but nobody wants to use it. proof he was the best boi from the start in his own way.

5. subayui: SubaruYui was my first ship that i would do anything for. I mean my tsundere gentle boy deserves the whole world. I haven't read HDB routes much because too much violence isn't my cup of tea ik ironic but i did read manga and also his MB route, there was a lot of development I can say. and let me not get started on his DF route, not only in his route but it can be seen that subaru had soft spot/feelings for yui in others' routes too, even in kou's LE route, he didn't give up on Yui. He is very protective of her in anime too, probably why they were my first ship.

6. rukiyui: his DF route and anime is what attracted to me this ship because of all the angst. His MB route and CL route definitely didn't disappoint me. In DF he pushes away Yui to not betray karlheinz but later confronts karl as yui is the most important person and the best thing happened to him in his life aside from his brothers. In the MB he was even ready to become a snake and actually became a snake to take yui away. His CL route felt like I was reading a married couple's life and it was refreshing to read compared to all his other routes which involved angst and drama

7. kouyui: The ups and downs in his MB route for his character development was understandable especially after knowing the kind of environment he was in. there were times when I just wanted to smack kou so badly on his head for his treatment towards yui. Then i read his DF route and it was literally all angst and i think when yui said "what do you mean useless!?!???" when kou said he cannot become Adam while crying, thinking it's useless for Karl's plan but still wants to love her after almost ahem himself from the terrace and Yuma & Azusa saved him from his own pool of blood.

8. azusayui: i just recently started reading his DF route and oh my god he is literally the best boi, I'm still reading his route but he is already getting into my heart because he is such a cinnamon boy 😭.

one of my fav ships is ayayui too but the way all the above ships have raised my standards... i still love them and enjoy their content.

[ecargmura]

A Magic Steeped In Poison - Book Review

AAPI heritage month already passed, but I’ll be reviewing a book written by an Asian author! Well, I chose to read this book not because of the special month, but because I wanted to read more books written by Asian and Asian American authors. I think my fondness for Asian authors stemmed from me liking manga and also Tablo’s Pieces of You.

I found this book when I was book shopping in Walmart. Yes, I shop for books at Walmart. I held off from reading it for a while since I had other books to read. When I finally got to it, I was excited.

Fortunately, the premise of the book is good. Magical tea magic with Chinese mythology? How unique! I am an avid tea drinker, so I was immersed in the world Judy Lin created with tea magic having the power to do anything from discerning truth from lies, peering into the future, etc. It felt like I was a Shennong-shi in this alternate reality of China.

The main character Zhang Ning wants to find a cure for her poisoned sister, so she decides to head to the capital where they are holding a tournament for tea magic apprentices, shennong-tu, in order to become acknowledged by the Princess. However, the catch is that she’s actually not a true apprentice and that she’s only taking her sister’s place because competing is the only choice she has. However, she still has a vast knowledge of tea magic and capable, which is why she’s still able to survive in the tournament.

What I love most about this book other than its premise is Lin’s detailed writing. She is very detailed when describing things and it helps me paint a visual picture of what the world, food, characters, and tea all look like. Her flowery descriptives are amazing to read. Despite her flowery words, I think my favorite portion of the story was when Ning was healing Ruyi, the princess’s handmaiden. Inside Ruyi’s body contained a very grotesque three-headed snake that could be or could not be a spirit. The way Lin described how it looks and its movements really grossed me out. I commend Lin for being able to write beautifully.

While the premise and writing style are strong, it doesn’t mean it’s perfect. There are many flaws in the overall writing execution. The story starts off with Ning on her way to the capital. I sort of wished the story started a bit before her travels, precisely, the moment she had realized she had poisoned her sister Shu. All the moments of Ning mentioning she had poisoned her did not compel me as much since it was more “told” than “shown”.

The tournament was a bit of a miss for me. Tournaments story arcs in general can be a hit or miss. Especially in manga, they’re either a hit or a miss, depending on the execution as they can be a rinse and repeat of the same thing but written by different authors. How was this tournament arc? It was a bit of a slog to read, honestly. I think what it lacked was more distinctive characters? Like, I wanted to see a rival for Ning or someone who’s always one step ahead of her and pushes Ning to her upmost potential. It was interesting, but given that 90% of the story focused on this one tournament felt like a bit of a let down. However, I did like the sudden twist at the end of it.

The characters that aren’t Ning are quite interesting. Lian’s sassy; she’s my favorite. Princess Zhen has something going on with her handmaiden Ruyi and I love it. Kang’s a bit iffy for me. I do like how they’re all essential for Ning to develop and none of them seem out of place or just there for a need of a minor character.

The ending of the story definitely shows the need for a continuation. There is a sequel, A Venom Dark and Sweet. I’ll try to buy it when I can after I take a break. While I want to read it, I’m dreading over the fact that the last few chapters was building up for a revolution arc. In all honesty, I dislike revolution arcs. I just feel like they’re the same thing. MC gets dragged into revolution, teams up with people to stop the big bad, big bad turns out to not be the big bad and there’s an even bigger bad behind the big bad, and biggest bad gets destroyed and everyone lives happily ever after. I think reading Mockingjay made me dislike revolution arcs. I just hope this one won’t be rushed like how that book kind of was.

Overall, I give this book a 4/5. I think it’s a perfect representation of the capabilities of what Asian-American authors can do! The book industry is rough for us Asians and I’ll support them by reading more AAPI books! If possible, give me a recommendation! Also, let me know your thoughts on this book if you have read it!

[liannelara-dracula]

Hey, sweetie!

How old you think are the sakamaki, mukami and tsukinami? i have seen lots of posts and all says different things from each othe, i'm really confused--

Hi Love,

This is a really good question. Its something I've always wondered and have been struggling to answer but I will do my best. A while ago I did some extreme math to calculate their age which I will say, I do not recommend such torture to anyone. Plus, I completely forgot the logic behind the formulas so whelp to that. And I think I am either correct or Rejet is inconsistent with their ideas. Either case, something is off and I'll do my best to explain what I think their age range is.

-Liannelara

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Prompt

Requests are open

Rules

Warning:

*certain words have been censored for Tumblr guidelines.

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Okay so as I'm sure most of us know, we are aware of their physical age but when it comes to their actual age its tough to say but there are some estimates that could pinpoint a rough estimate as to how old they are.

For example. in one of the drama CDs I believe Reiji was the one who explained to Yui that the mansion that we see in the anime was given to them back in the 18th century? or was it 1800s? I can't remember overall it was a long time ago. And whichever it was they were all grown up to live there on their own as a family. This means for over 200+ years they have looked like teenagers!

The Tsukinami's age also helps us determine the Sakamaki's age. In the Young Blood manga, you can notice that Carla looks just as old as he looks now, and this is when the Sakamaki's were only children. So he and Shin are fairly old. Plus it was stated that they were trapped for thousands of years, so they are old considering that they had some business with their father.

If we also look at Beatrix's attire that Rejet gave her, it is a style that leans more toward the 15-1600s and her children where very young at the time. Of course these years are somewhat misleading because if you think of it, that dress is probably from the demon world so their way of doing things hardly changes. So there is a chance that the attire doesn't greatly respect the time.

However! In another drama CD when the boys were asked about their age Shu said he couldn't remember how old he was exactly but that he was roughly in his early 1,000s. Reiji, Laito, and I believe it was also Kanto who admitted that they were several of 100s of years old. (This was all on the CD which of course I don't remember which one.)

So having said this I've dug far deep to give a good estimate on all this so here it is:

Sakamaki

Shu:

1,051.

Idk why but this exact number is what I always think of when I see him.

Although in terms of range it would be 1,030-1,080.

Reiji:

932-986

he's approaching 1,000 real soon.

Laito:

743-870

Kanato:

720-850

Ayato:

715-820

I know they are triplets and they were born on the same day, but it's hard to picture they're all the same age. So I gave each a different range for each one because I don't know what to pick, but for them I would say the range is roughly : 715-870

Subaru:

660-700

Kino:

I always feel like he was older but it turns out he's younger than Shu?

890-950

Mukami

Now considering that Shu met "young" Yuma or "edgar" in this case, centuries later, it shows how slowly purebloods age and just how fast a turned vampires age, so while the Mukamis look to be the same age as the Sakamakis they're actually younger.

I know the Mukamis are psychically a year apart from each other but you know vampire aging works a little differently. Plus, we don't know how much they really are I'm just going by what age range I see on them.

Ruki

He is old and was probably born in 1500-1700s, as much as I want to say 1800s but we know it's not accurate.

Now idk why but I feel like he was born in the year 1570. (It just sounds right lol)

So for age wise its 518-640

Yuma

He's younger than Kou and it's just so hard to believe.

He's probably 460-580

Kou

500-620

Azusa

440-550

I could see him being in his mid 400s

Tsukinami

Oh my, they are very old.

And I'm just going to say it, they do not look like teens. I always felt that they looked like they were in their 20s. Honestly all of them look like their in there 20s.

But anyways, lets keep in mind that Carla looks exactly the same as he does now when the Sakamaks were kids. (This was in the young blood manga btw).

(also please let me know if I'm wrong about my facts so just let me know.)

anyways I feel like they are quite old and over a thousand. they said he was trapped for thousands of years so they are really old.

Carla

5,018-5,480

Shin

3,080-4,660

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

˗ˏˋ 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑚𝑦 𝑤𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑖𝑠 𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝐼 𝑑𝑜 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠 ˎˊ˗ ©𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟔~Present

[adiabolikpastel]

New Years Post '22

Hello Everyone!

It is so crazy to think that we are ready to being a new year! The 20s have been a crazy time - but I am thankful that I have gotten to continue them with all of you! In order to properly appreciate the year, I thought it would be nice to reflex on what this blog has done this year.

If that's not your thing, that's okay! Thank you for all the support through the year, and years! Let's continue to do our best in the next year! Love you~!

●・○・●・○・● | ●・○・●・○・● | ●・○・●・○・●

January '22

9 post

This month featured some very sweet anons! Their high praise gave me the confidence to continue and evolve the stories on this blog. My favorite from the month would be the ask about expanding the Adler kingdom. It was thought provoking and it expanded the DL Universe!

February '22

9 post

Mostly art reblogs this month! Shout out to @diabolikal-eve and their adorable art that month! The only thing we started this month was the Kayre Art Page. Issuing in the art for my Karlheinz and Skye ship!

March '22

21 post

A lot of Burai reblogs! Building that Vibora King character through different blogs is amazing! We also saw the end of the Young Blood Manga - still have so many feelings about it. March also is the triplets birthdays - and I celebrated with post for Kanato and Laito!

April '22

27 post

This was a developing month for Callista! We started an ask challenge that will never be finished - I am sure. Got our first ask for Shu and Reiji for her - which was so fun to answer. We had a fun Pink Moon that month too!

Developed more about Lapin Demons too! Dialovers had their collab with Sanrio - so we explored the blogs marches. One of my favorite moments was talking about Kanato's character in the Tormented Reverie storyline. Want to shout out to my friend @the-sloth-woman for publishing her story Under the Surface!

May '22

23 post

Finished up the last of the ask challenge for Callista - sorry again I will never finish. Most of this month was about the Wedding of Shu and Callista - all prompted by you guys! I loved that you were all so interested! We had Shu's attire - the wedding set up ! It was asked about Shu's sadistic side.

We also got to talk about Burai and Rose's relationship! My favorite thing tho - is getting to muse about the different wedding traditions for the different major demon clans! It was so much fun!

June '22

14 post

Mostly reblogs - a lot of Kanato love this month! It was PRIDE, and really all I got to publish Skye's official theme song. And I saw a lot of love for my Adult Kanato sprites!

Worse part of the month was missing Yuuki's birthday. I am so bad at that.

July ' 22

12 post

More Kanato art reblogs. The major thing this month was the 'Demon' Art for the Diaboys. Which is funny cause they are demons - but that is fine. My main 'problem' with this line - is that ALL THE BOYS are clearly different types of Oni - or like horned demon. But Azusa and Kino are Tengu.... like what? Why!?

August '22

26 post

Started the month with some Pokemon Musing in order to prepare for the new games! We looked at Yuuki, Kanato, Kanaye, Yukio and Rini's teams! There will be changes now that the new Pokemon are out - stay tuned for those post!

Probably one of my FAVORITE DiaLover lines Black x Aquamarine was released this month! I loved seeing all of the OC art for this~! It still makes me smile seeing everyone's art for this line - cause it was the best!

Personal Blog wise, I finally published the official layout for the character bios. Yuki was my first - and his came out beautifully. We also got a beautiful commission from @seven-re for Rose - which is absolutely perfect.

September '22

13 post

I lied - this month we were graced with the Secret Memories art for DiaLovers. This. line. is. so. cozy. There were also beautiful fan-art this month that was reblog!

October '22

3 post

I got married IRL this month! So low traffic - but real life greatness.

November '22

20 post

We finally did it- Tormented Reverie's Home Page is completed! Yuuki's bio along with it! There was another ANOTHER outfit drop for DiaLovers Good Night, Black Sheep.

What was the best part of this month, was the questions from all of you! The blog was given plenty of world development this month!

Halloween Ask

Carnelian Calamity

Karlhinez Story Involvement

Excruciating Duplicity 'What comes next if...?'

The War - Excruciating Duplicity

Here comes Winter

Thank you all so much for the love! Getting ask like this mean the world to me - they help evolve the world of this blog so much!

December '22

10 post (including this one!)

Being of the year, we were at 9 and we end the year at 10! We wrap up the year with ANOTHER new line of DiaLovers Yammy Yamme x Bad Blood. Some more art reblogs - and one big announcement.

●・○・●・○・● | ●・○・●・○・● | ●・○・●・○・●

And thus we have come to the end. The end of the year. The end of this post. For making this far - I want to give you another preview from the big announcement.

I wont tell you who they are shipped with, but I can give you some more information on these terrible siblings. They will be in the Excruciating Duplicity Universe, kukuku.

They are Spider Demons

Her main inspirations are Sir Integra and Balalaika

His main inspirations are Shunsui Kyōraku and Eiri Yuki

I hope to give you more information in the new year! Thank you all once again for everything this year and all the years before. Here is to many more.

[shu-sakamaki]

are there sex scenes in the games? I don't really know if "Yui" really has slept with the boys or not during their routes as I'm not the best at getting any implications. Maybe I'm missing something?

((I’ll speak only Shu-wise because I know his Manga and routes like the back of my hand if not even more.

((In-game, the sex scenes are subtle but canon. In HDB it is even a key element/Point for Shu’s End2 - as he made clear what he and the MC/Yui had was a “meaningless fling”, something, again, explored in MB

((In the manga, we also have scenes like these, with Shu clearly rubbing his leg between the MC/Yui’s legs - causing friction against her sex

In MB, Yuma loudly yells that Shu thinks of the girl as “annoying”, even though he is banging her:

(( We also have in-game scenes that heavily suggested sex, like in HDB Maniac 9 when Shu is clearly touching the MC/Yui in places she wouldn’t want to be touched and doesn’t want to name it, probably her vagina? All translations made by DIALOVERS-TRANSLATION

Yui: Kyah!

Shuu: …What?

Yui: Wai…Shuu-san! Taking advantage of the situation (1) like this, where are you touching?

Shuu: Where? No idea. I can’t see a thing after all.

Yui: Where…Well…

Shuu: If you want me to stop, tell me loud and clear where and how I’m touching you right now, and why you don’t like it.

Yui: W-Why are you…!

( I…I can’t say that…! )

Shuu: If you won’t tell me, you’re basically giving me free rein, right?

[link]

((And Yui/MC thoughts at the end of the Chapter:

Monologue

Before arriving at this manor,

I had definitely devoted myself to God.

However…When Shuu-san touches me in this way,

and let out these shameless cries (嬌声), I’m almost like a dirty witch…

I have seemingly fallen victim,

to “lust” (色欲), one of the seven deadly sins of this world.

While I’m like this, I may already no longer have the right,

to devote myself to God…

Is it my body that has become corrupted?

Or my heart? Or maybe…

((And Maniac chapter 10 when Shu heavily suggests she wants to do more than just “touching” Yui/Mc

Shuu: Haha…I haven’t even told you what I want yet…What were you imagining?

Yui: T…That’s…

Shuu: Come on, say it.

Yui: Well, you see…Touching…and stuff…

Shuu: Do you really think I’ll be satisfied with that much? I wish you’d stop acting like a kid already.

[link]

And a scene that, pretty much, gives it away that Shu had his way with the MC/Yui on the floor.

ー She hugs him

Shuu: …

Yui: Shuu-san…I’m…glad it’s with you.

Shuu: …I see.

*Thump*

Yui: ( For me to take initiative and hug him, there must be something wrong with me… )

( …However, I wonder why. I’m not scared… )

*Thump*

Yui: ( How come…? )

Ah…

Shuu: What a nice voice. …Cry out more.

[link]

((And also his Maniac 03 Chapter when Shu heavily implies that “sucking her blood” and offering it is too “Mundane” and he wants more

Shuu: Hm…But you know, do you think I’d act after being ordered around by you?

Yui: Eh…?

Shuu: Did they never teach you that when you want to request something from a person, you need to offer something of equal value in return?

Seems like you haven’t been educated properly. No wonder you always try and reverse what has been said at first.

Yui: Then, what should I…

Shuu: Let’s see…Try and entertain me.

Yui: You? But…How…?

Ah, I know! You like music, so should I try singing you a song?

Shuu: …Are you out of your mind?

Yui: ( Uu… )

( What should I do…What would satisfy him…? )

Uhm…Would you like to suck…my blood?

Shuu: You really are absurd. Do you think that would count as entertainment?

Yui: No good? But, you’re always sucking me…

Shuu: It’s too mundane and not fun in the slightest. Try using your brain a little more.

Yui: ( Even if he says that…Something Shuu-san would enjoy is really… )

I’m sorry…Please tell me. What should I do so you’ll return home?

Shuu: Heh…Let’s see.

How about this…Strip.

Yui: Eh…!?

Shuu: Did you not hear me? Take off your clothes right now.

[link]

((Among plenty of other situations that highly suggests and leads to sex, in one of the other games, Shu shows up to the MC/Yui completely naked, she, of course, acts on it and is all shy -, but Shu goes as far as saying: “It is nothing you’ve not seen already” or something like that - lowkey.

((Usually the chapter just “ends” before anything more explicit really happens, apparently, HDB-wise, Reiji is the only route you don’t have sex with, and Kanato is the one with the most suggestive/sex act in it out of all the brothers. So in HDB any that is not Reiji, you’ll pretty much find the sex being implied somehow. 

[placebogirl7]

Why Jodie is so hated in DC fandom? - Analysis of an underestimated character and clarification about wrong assumptions

Preliminary remark: this post is just a personal opinion. No intention to start wars of any kind, I respect everyone’s opionion so I want my opinion to be respected too. If you don’t share it, it’s totally ok as it’s totally ok if I don’t share yours.

During these last 5 years I’ve been back into DC fandom, I notice all around the web many people spreading hate towards Jodie (not only here on Tumblr but everywhere, especially in forums and social media pages). It’s ok to not like a character, but you need valid reasons to hate it. If you hate it for bullshit, then it’s only hate based on nothing. And this is what I see everytime I read a bad comment about Jodie’s character. This is really annoying for a fan, to be honest. Now I want to point out some of the most popular reason why Jodie is hated and analyze them (maybe I have already explained my point of view about them in some other posts in the last years, but I will clarify them again).

1) “Jodie has become useless, she’s no more interesting and mysterious as she was at the beginning” You (Jodie haters) really notice this change only in Jodie’s character? Because I can mention at least other 10 characters who, at their first appearance, were described as mysterious and cool and whatever else, but now are “lying on the shelf” for Gosho’s choise. Jodie has been introduced in a mysterious way becase she was suspected to be Vermouth, so Gosho created the suspance around her character and made her act in a shifty way to make the readers believe that she could be one of the BO members. Once it has been revealed that she wasn’t bad, there were no more need to make her act in a shifty way. Many other character who were suspected to be Bo members but in the end were not have shared the same fate. But it’s Gosho’s decision, not Jodie’s fault. It’s not something related to her way of being, it’s a choise of the author.  She has become usless? Ok, let’s face the reality: who is useful among the characters? A very few. Let’s take all the FBI Team: Gosho has painted them as a bunch of idiots that without Akai can’t do nothing. To make Akai “shine” he has denigrated Jodie, James and Camel. Camel doesn’t do nothing of his own, he always wait for Akai’s orders; James is supposed to be the chief but actually he does what Akai says; Jodie seems to make mistakes everytime she did something, even if she’s doing it in the right way. But again, it’s not their fault because we have seen them doing even very good things and being brilliant, so they have potential: it’s Gosho who decided to treat them like dumbs so Akai can be like a God who will save all of us. Don’t get me wrong, I love Akai, but I hate what Gosho is doing to put him in the spotligh. Again, it’s Gosho’s fault, not the characters who suddenly became usless and not interesting. The hate should be towards Gosho, not Jodie.

2) “After Akai’s death Jodie has become so annoying, she’s weak and she’s always crying” Ok...question for you Jodie haters: if you suddenly lose someone you love, what will be your reaction? Will you laugh as you were watching a sitcom, will you organize a big party with your friends or will you start throwing confetti in the air? Because if you do one if these 3 things, then...congratulations, you have won the highest award for the most cool /stone-harted/ heartless person in this world! You have no rivals, not even Shuichi Akai who is now jealous of you!  Seriously...if the man you love so much dies suddenly, it’s LEGITIMATE to cry, to be desperate, to lose yourself. It’s like losing a part of you. But despite feeling lost, Jodie has been the only one among the FBI who never believed to Akai’s death since the beginning and she fought long and hard to find out the truth behind his death. Since when on the TV they show the incident at Rahia Pass and they say a man was dead burned in his car, she immediately thought that it wasn’t Shuichi and that he had surely used a trick to escape. Guess what? She was right! Do you still think she’s stupid?  Jodie isn’t weak, she just faced an emotional breakdown due to the loss of a person she loved. This is being human, not being weak. Jodie isn’t always crying, she cried when everything and everyone around her was making her believe that Shuichi was really dead. At a certain point she stopped crying, when she saw hope, a hint that Shu was still alive. She isn’t a crybaby, she just needed hope. 

3) “Since Akai’s death, Jodie hasn’t done anything interesting or exciting, she has become boring” If you didn’t notice by yourself, then I will reveal you the biggest secret of all: after Akai’s death, or better to say after the end of Scarlet Arc when Jodie and Camel discovered about Shuichi being alive and hiding behind Subaru’s identity...FBI hasn’t appeared anymore in the manga for ages, since the last files which came our recently! How are they (included Jodie) supposed to do something exciting or interesting if they don’t even appear? Gosho put them in the closet with the naphthalene and he concentrated his attention on other characters (first of all Amuro, which in my opinion deserves more hate than Jodie because of his behaviour but somehow is adored as a God in the fandom).Then one day he get up and he had the big flash of genius: “FBI still exist in my story, so better take them out of the closet and make them do something”. But in the end, as always, only Akai did something relevant. Camel has been a puppet in the hand of Akai and Jodie made a mistake. So, again, it’s not Jodie who have changed and become a worst character, it’s how Gosho is painting her and the other FBI agents which makes them appear less interesting or capable at the eyes of the readers.

4) “Jodie has become stupid” About this I made a “funny” post long time ago, so I will put the link below. I think it’s enough to explain all:

https://placebogirl7.tumblr.com/post/156414088650/jodie-has-become-more-and-more-stupid  

I will also add something that surely will unleash the wrath of somebody and maybe they will start complain, but I honestly don’t care because it’s nothing against someone in particular but just something I noticed. This is absolutely not an attempt to start a ship war nor a free criticism end in itself, because I reaspect everyone ship and opinion even if I don’t agree with that. The fact is that I noticed that often (not always of course, but often) these criticism about Jodie are moved by ShuKemi fans, and considering what I said above it seems that their hate for Jodie is just because Jodie was Akai’s girlfriend before Akemi and she has the possibility (if Gosho wants) to be his girlfriend again the future, not really because they analyzed Jodie’s character before spreading shit about it.  So I would like to point out to these ShuKemi fans who idolize Akemi’s character so much and tell shits about Jodie that Akemi sentenced herself to death with her own hands after making the worst and wrong choise she could have ever done in her life. I’ve seen many times Akemi being called “a hero” but chosing to death without obtaining nothing in return isn’t being a hero, it’s just being stupid in my opinion. Being a hero is another thing. You’re an hero if you sacrifice yourself with the goal to obtain something that worth your sacrifice, but if you sacrifice yourself knowing that you won’t obtain nothing apart from your death...well, that’s not being a hero at all. And before someone will say “You talk like this because you’re a ShuJodie fan”, please be aware that Akemi’s death has been shown before Jodie appearance and before knowing that Jodie had a relationship with Shu before he started dating Akemi, so I would have no reason to say these things just because of such trivial matters. The reason why I’ve never been touched by Akemi’s death since the beginning is because I think she has consciously chosen to die since the beginning of her “masterplan”. C’mon, how can you really think to make a deal with criminals? There’s a reason if they are criminals... She really thought that Gin would have kept his promise? If the answer is yes, then I’m sorry to say that but she’s stupid twice. So before saying that Jodie is the stupid one, at least analyze the things deeply and objectively. 

Now I know that this will make someone mad but I’m sorry, it’s what I think. And not because I see Akemi as a “threat” for Jodie’s relationship with Shuichi, as I always said I don’t need to spread shit on some character to covince myself and the other that my couple is better, I really don’t need this. I love my couple and stop, the rest doesn’t matter. If I don’t like a character, there’s always a deeper motivation behind, which has nothing to do with OTPs and trivial matters like that. But before saying I don’t like a character and draw up charges on it, I always analyze the character. I’m sorry that nobody do it with Jodie. 

Please also note that I used Akemi as example of character being idolized for no real reason because, as I said, I noticed that who talk shits about Jodie are often ShuKemi fans, but there are also other characters of course who are idolized when they actually have nothing to be idolized for. Another example is Amuro, I recently made a post about what I think of him.  Now if you don’t like what I think and what I said you are free to unfollow me, I’m sorry but I really needed to make this post because it has become more and more annoying to see nonsense unkindness things about Jodie.

Peace, love and Jodie Starling ♥

[yeonchi]

Kisekae Insights #19: Madoka Magica Part 2 (Yuki Magica)

(Art by アスカール)

In the last instalment, I talked about Takumi Kamijō and Madoka Magica’s involvement in my project, but I stopped after Gokaiger because things are about to get complicated; there is another story thread that I need to cover before we can continue.

In this instalment, I’ll be talking about another magical boy who became a GARO-esque Kamen Rider. He and his powers have their own backstories which would normally be impossible in the eyes of other Madoka fans (if Takumi’s story wasn’t crazy enough). Basically, I’m the Australian Shinichiro Shirakura and I’m breaking all the rules. Wait, was I supposed to save that joke for the Decade instalments? Oh well, anyway…

One man’s trash, another man’s treasure

In the sixth block of the 50th Anniversary Series, I made an adaptation of The Name of the Doctor but with Hiroki instead of the Doctor. When Hiroki’s timeline gets invaded by a vexatious villain (not the Great Intelligence), he makes a contract with Kyubey to save his past, present and future. He meets Goddess Madoka and becomes a magical boy similar to that of Madoka’s magical girl form. Calling himself the Loveshy Boy, Hiroki enters his own timeline and sends out splinters of himself across his timeline to repair the damage. Zhuge Shu and Nodoka Manabe were among those echoes, along with five individuals whose syllables of their names spelled the syllables of “Nodoka Manabe” and “Madoka Kaname”.

The only other time Hiroki used his magical boy form was in the ninth block when he fought Girl Power and his other enemies in Koshi Castle. He is shot and sent flying in a desperate attempt to save Akari and that is the last we see of Hiroki’s magical boy form – though Walpurgisnacht would influence his next (female) incarnation, he would no longer be a magical boy by the time he moved into his final incarnation.

But by some miracle, Hiroki’s magical boy powers would show up again in 2018, albeit utilised by someone else. How did that happen and why? You’ll find out very soon…

Yuki Yamaki: Secret Inside

Yuki’s timeline is a bit complicated to pinpoint, but it doesn’t matter since this project runs on wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey stuff.

A note before I go on – Yuki’s name would usually be written as Yūki given his Japanese name and my usual habit of denoting long vowels with macrons as per Hepburn romanisation, however I only found his Japanese name recently in an old document I wrote ten years ago, with that same document denoting Takumi’s surname as “Kamijou”. Then again, I didn’t know much about the rules surrounding romanisation back then, so I’ll continue to write Yuki’s name as I have and not bother changing it for the sake of consistency.

Naisho no Tsubomi (Secret Tsubomi) is a manga series that covers topics centred around female puberty and sex education, with a different girl (named Tsubomi) featured in each volume. The first volume was adapted into a three-episode OVA in 2008 and was released in North America by Sentai Filmworks in 2018. Spoilers if you haven’t seen it (but given the premise of Kisekae Insights, you shouldn’t be surprised by now), but based from what I’ve read about in reviews and my own observations, it seems that the character of Saya Endō is likely to be the spirit of a dead girl who reincarnates as Tsubomi’s little sister, or Tsubomi’s little sister who died and came back into the past as a spirit or something. But that doesn’t really matter because this is Doctor Who, what did you expect?

Yuki was born in 2008, the same year as Tsubomi’s little sister, Saya, in a universe where the Third Doctor is the Prime Minister of Australia. In 2018, they joined their universe’s Torchwood at the age of ten and a year later, they were sent on a mission back to the year 2008 to investigate anomalies involving Tsubomi and Yuki’s cousin, Shisei Nagato (長遠志成). During that time, Yuki, Saya, Tsubomi and her friends came to the Doctor’s universe three times over five years from their POV (in our POV, they came once each before, during and after the Salacian Time War). It turned out that Yuki and Shisei are Parker and Hiroki’s counterparts in that universe and that Shisei was taking the place of Futoshi Kuki, who was exterminated by the Daleks. They were unable to find any conclusive evidence regarding the anomalies when they were called back to their time (2023) to fight the Beta Uprising.

Torchwood then sent Yuki and Saya on their second mission in the past, which was to kill Elliot Rodger on his Day of Retribution, 23 May 2014, and prevent the Beta Uprising. Their comrade, Alex Schmidt (played by Alex Williamson) was with them, but he disappeared by the time Yuki and Saya returned to their time. The two had fallen in love during their time together and by 2028, they decided to get married. However, when they were having yum cha with their friends, Alex came in with a group of Chads and revealed his betrayal to everyone; he went back to 2014 and helped Elliot Rodger with his Day of Retribution before spurring Chads and Stacies around the world to fight the incels (nerds basically). He killed Yuki in 2018 because somehow, he was the anomaly surrounding Tsubomi and Shisei that was motivating the incels to continue fighting – Tsubomi and Shisei were never the problem at all.

The 2028 Yuki was killed along with his fiancée and their friends and was taken back to 2018, where he was “fixed up” and prepared to be married to Hideko Kimihara (NOTE: The Kikuchi Clan were not involved in this incident). Kyubey arrives and offers to turn Yuki’s pain into power; Yuki accepts and makes a wish for someone to come and get him out of his mess. It is then that Hiroki, Kayley, Firerose, Narutaki and the Salacian Riders (including a future Yuki and Marcela) were brought to this universe through a dimensional hole. At the same time, Marcela (see #13) arrived to protect Yuki. It is then that Yuki transforms into his magical boy form, which is exactly the same as Hiroki’s Madoka-esque magical boy form (due to interdimensional genetic multiplicity, as Takumi would later speculate), by swinging his Soul Gem necklace in the air similar to how Barago transforms into Dark Knight Kiba in GARO.

(Hiroki and Yuki’s magical boy forms are based on that of Madoka’s magical girl form, albeit genderbent. Art by 黒野ユウ and Makarii)

Hiroki and the Riders from his world help the past Yuki and Marcela out by attempting to hide with one version of them (past or present) for two weeks, but they are captured after four days. While the Stacies brainwash Marcela, Yuki and Hideko are hooked up to the Progenitor, combining their DNA and making super-soldiers from them. Yuki begins to fall into despair, but despite Hiroki telling him not to give up, he transforms into his witch form, Legendorgarc, which is similar to Kamen Rider Arc’s Legend Arc form, freeing himself in the process.

After a few moments however, Yuki manages to change his despair into hope, allowing him to cast away his witch form and combine it with his magical boy powers into a stronger power. Yuki’s rose bow transforms into the bladed Barayumi Rose Bow (バラユミ), which he swings around him to transform into Kamen Rider Magica, similar to how Aguri Kusugami transforms into Sky Bow Knight Gai in GARO: Yami o Terasu Mono. Two of his signature finishers are the Rensha Ranbu/Rapid-Fire Attack (連射乱舞) and the Naginata Ranbu – Gōka Midaresaki/Naginata Attack – Luxurious Bloom (ナギナタ乱舞・豪華乱れさき). Magica’s Rider design takes inspiration from GARO and Kamen Rider Hibiki, particularly the latter as Magica was originally planned to take its place in Decade before being reinstated.

(Kamen Rider Magica logo concept. Art by aqmr)

Hiroki as Decade kills Alex and destroys the universe to get back with to his own universe with his friends and the Salacian Riders, taking the past Yuki and Marcela with them as well. The two, having lost their memories of what happened due to their timelines not being in sync, were left in the past and the only thing that they remembered was that they were enemies; Yuki blamed Marcela for killing his lover and destroying his world, while Marcela blamed Yuki for killing her family.

Decade Episode 7 happened and during the final battle, Decade’s use of the Magica Final Form Ride card allowed Magica to unlock his final form, Loveshy Form, upgrading his weapon into the Ultimate Barayumi Rose Bow in the process. Subsequent transformations only require Magica to squat down and draw a circle on the ground around him similar to how Takeru Jakuzure transforms into Flame Sword Knight Zen. In this form, Magica can split his Ultimate Barayumi in half and use it as a nunchaku or a pair of swords. One of this form’s finishers involves shooting an energy beam from his bow, with the first such usage being aided by Decade using the Magica Final Attack Ride card, breaking Marcela’s brainwashing in the progress.

Following that adventure, Yuki and Marcela reconcile and agree to help each other find the truth about their pasts. By the time they encounter their past selves again in their home universe, they have become a couple. Later, they would thank Hiroki and Narutaki for bringing them together, saying that without their help, they would have kept wandering the land fighting each other without realising their true feelings.

Soulbound and Magia Record

A few days after the last instalment was published, it was announced that there would be a new Madoka Magica film produced as a sequel to The Rebellion Story. This, along with the Magia Record game and anime, means that I can’t have a definitive happy ending for Takumi when my project ends this year, though I might be able to do something for Kamen Rider Zi-O.

Soulbound Series 3 is where Takumi and Yuki’s plot threads converge, with the Madoka Magica tribute being shared with the tribute for Sea Princesses (see Dark Sea Princess in #13).

Following the events of Gokaiger and Decade, Yuki and Marcela begin living in seclusion from humanity, working to protect it from various threats as the “rejected beings of their universe”. Meanwhile, with the rise of magical girls in nearby Kamihama, Takumi started becoming territorial and competitive towards other magical girls, including his own comrades. Despite his efforts to save magical girls from becoming witches, Takumi became frustrated that no matter what he tried to do, the universe seemed to rewrite everything and ruin the work he put in. Unbeknownst to Takumi, the Incubation Cleanser was sabotaged, leading to the continued appearances of witches and other evils; said device was taken out of the equation when the Doppel system came into effect. Takumi’s rivalry with Homura still continued, though they began siding with each other so they could fight warriors (including Kamen Riders and magical girls) for their own enjoyment. Takumi and Homura even attacked Yuki and Marcela, only to be saved by Mami and Hitomi.

At the start of the two-parter, the Barrier Base and SEPTAN crews arrive in Kamihama, where Kyōko and Sayaka, alongside Takumi’s twin sister, Kumiko Hayashi, ask them for their help in saving Takumi. When the Salacian Riders appear along the coast in response to a protest against the human exploitation of marine life, the Barrier Base crew and Torchwood Pleiades fight them. After a while, Takumi and Homura arrive and single-handedly defeat everyone, inviting them to bring more warriors to fight them next time.

Following the battle, the Salacian Riders agree to work with the Barrier Base crew, the SEPTAN crew and Torchwood Pleiades to defeat Takumi and Homura. After Torchwood Pleiades gathered up all the magical girls they could find (technically all the playable Magia Record girls released on the Japanese server up to the end of the Rumors in Disguise event in October 2019, not including Tart Magica or crossover characters), they all confront Takumi and Homura outside of the city. During the battle, a number of magical girls use the power of their Doppels and so do Takumi and Yuki; Takumi’s Doppel resembles Walpurgisnacht to differentiate it from Sayaka’s, namely Oktavia von Seckendorff (but also because he was somehow able to command Walpurgisnacht’s power), while Yuki can only use his Doppel, Legendorgarc, for a maximum of 99.9 seconds (like the Makai Knights in GARO) because he only became a witch for a very short time and as such, is unaccustomed to its power.

The negative emotions and minus energy gathering above them from the constant fighting manifests into the Despair Monster, Kanaderos, a sight observed by Kyubey as he thanks everyone for providing the universe with more energy. Hikaru Tomokaze transforms into Ultraman X while Yuki and Marcela transform into Gaia and Agul to fight Kanaderos. After Exceed X uses the Exceed X Slash to purge the despair from Kanaderos, he joins Gaia and Agul as they fire the Xlugger Shot, Photon Edge and Photon Crusher, but the monster is still standing because of the sheer amount of despair still powering it. Gaia powers up into Supreme Version while Hikaru switches into Ginga. The three Ultras finally defeat Kanaderos for good with the Sparion Beam, Photon Stream and Agul Stream.

After the battle, Kumiko convinces Takumi and Homura to stop fighting and work together to investigate what is going on in Kamihama. Following the two-parter, Takumi would appear again at the end of Arcs 11 and 12, while Yuki and Marcela would only return at the end of Arc 12 alongside the Salacian Riders.

Takumi gained further development in Soulbound Series 4 when he was featured in a two-parter at the end of Arc 13, which was just recently broadcast at the time of publishing this instalment. Due to an increase in dimensional fluctuations through the Cardiff Rift over the past 18 months (since the end of Series 3), Kamihama and Torchwood Pleiades disappeared from this universe and so did Takumi, however he resurfaced recently with his comrades nowhere to be found; he had been cut off from his friends and the magical girl circle. Whether Kyubey and the Incubators had anything to do with it is unknown, though even if they did, the most they would have done is indirectly manipulate events to achieve this goal.

Upon receiving a message from Torchwood in Cardiff notifying them of Takumi resurfacing, the Barrier Base crew head to Mitakihara to meet with Hiroki, Akari, the Doctor and Captain Jack Harkness. After encountering Yuki and Marcela nearby as well, the group heads to Porthcawl (one of the entrances to Kamihama) upon hearing that police have spotted Takumi there. When they get there however, Takumi had killed the police officers cornering him and it is then that Yuki realises that something is wrong. Takumi asks where his lover, his friends and his comrades are before taking his cutlass and transforming into his magical boy form similar to how the Golden Knight Garo transforms.

In the ensuing fight, Takumi summons another cutlass and uses it with his other cutlass to transform into Kamen Rider Serranon similar to how Rei Suzumura transforms into Silver Fanged Knight Zero. Serranon was created as a secondary Rider for Magica in response to Geiz Majesty (I had to create a Rider whose name rhymed with Zeronos so that I wouldn’t need to change the transformation tune because this wasn’t like Decade where I could just do whatever and get away with it). At the moment, I don’t have any plans for Serranon’s final form and it’s likely that he won’t be getting one. Takumi’s cutlasses transform into a set of twin swords called the Yanagiba Sōken (柳葉双剣) that can combine into the Yanagiba Ryūtō (柳葉流刀). His finishers are the Sōken Ranbu/Twin Sword Attack (双剣乱舞) and the Ryūtō Ranbu – Mugen Shinken Nuketsuki/Cutlass Attack – Blade of Infinity (流刀乱舞・無限真剣抜けつき), the latter being similar to the signature attack of Zodomas/Skatana from Gokaiger/Super Megaforce.

While the others fight the familiars that Takumi summoned, Yuki and Takumi fight in their Rider forms, resulting in the former being defeated. Takumi is later spotted at the Roald Dahl Plass, right above the Hub, with the intent of opening the Rift to find a way back to Kamihama. Though the Doctor, Jack, Hiroki and Akari try to stop him, he is only stopped when another villain, Doctor Wells Moreau, shoots him out of nowhere. Moreau later approaches Takumi and offers him a way to get back to Kamihama. Takumi is given a gun which he uses to transform into Galactron MK2 and attack Cardiff, but is defeated by Ultraman Ginga.

After the battle, Hiroki and the others convince Takumi to use his powers for good and so, he takes up Captain Jack’s offer to join Torchwood for the time being until his friends return. While the magical girls will be featured in Soulbound Series 4, they will have to part ways with Takumi again at the end of the series because of Magia Record and the fourth Madoka Magica film.

So this is it for the involvement of Puella Magi Madoka Magica in my personal project. I’d like to remind everyone not to worry if you’re confused at anything you’ve seen so far in Kisekae Insights; chances are that I will address it eventually.

[courage-a-word-of-justice]

Sk8 2 - 8 | Kemono Jihen 2 - 3 | Wave!! 2 - 5 | Back Arrow 3 - 6

Sk8 2

What’s with the filter over the recap?

These dance moves are cool (a derpy kind of cool)…but I’m seeing them all with the volume off (due to background noise), so I’ll have to find out what the audio is like later. Update: Rude-Alpha! Someone I actually do know!

I was worried about Truck-kun causing another Isekai Incident ™ there…phew…*wipes sweat off brow*

Is Langa…left-handed, perhaps? Or are left-handers not necessarily better with their left foot?

Langa’s mother’s so funny! It’s rare to see a mother who isn’t dead or just not talked about in anime.

Why is it that parody Sailor Moon transformations always happen with the buffest dudes possible…? That’s why it’s rare to get something like Boueibu, where it takes itself (semi-)seriously.

Lately, the urban aesthetic is cool. HypMic, Akudama, IWGP and now this…

Langa is 17. *takes notes on eligible bachelors, LOL*

“A huge family only embarrasses you.” – *nods*

I see! Although I don’t know anything about skateboarding, I can relate to him when he’s fixing a board up for Langa because I can see it’s Reki using his passion for a friend.

Oh, that’s why they call it Sk8 the Infinity…!

I keep calling it “wiping out” in my head when I watch…I’m no surfer, but I guess I’m more used to surfing lingo.

Hitori piledriver = piledriver by oneself ( I guess…?).

Sk8 3

I’ve never heard of this Takuma Nagatsuka (voice of Miya Chinen). He sounds like Kohei Amasaki…

Hmm…normally skateboarders wear protective gear, right? Couldn’t Langa have gotten some of that (now that I think of it)?

I guess this is also Reki’s pride as a board mechanic on the line here…never saw it that way until I thought about it like that.

I think I remember reading a comment once about Bakugo and Midoriya from BnHA – about how Bakugo seemed sluggish in his progress because he’d been training his Quirk from day 1, while Midoriya was trying to catch up. I think Chinen is in a similar situation.

I think what Chinen has is stability, above all others.

There’s a piece of paper in the back that has “supoort” (sic) written on it.

Chinen’s not…“smiling with his eyes”, you call it. In retail, you learn how to smile with the eyes even when it’s fake.

Kemono Jihen 2

Inari? Like the fox shrine?

So Shiki is a spider-guy and…what is Akira? I’ve heard whispers he’s a yukiotoko, but I don’t know at this point in time.

Kabane’s kinda short, LOL, even in comparison to Akira.

Shiki is definitely Bakugo, Spider Version…LOL.

Oh, BnHA came out in 2014 and Kemono Jihen in 2016 (manga).

Oh, that drip apparatus. I’ve only ever seen it in real life, I think – my dad uses one for his coffee.

Kemono Jihen 3

…hmm, I don’t think I’ve seen much set in Shinjuku. I think there’s Mayonaka Occult Koumuin, part of HypMic…and that might be it.

I laughed at “small meeting room”.

Apparently “biddy bait”, according to Urban Dictionary, is meant to mean “a lure for hot women”. I don’t particularly like Urban Dictionary, because the editors who make these definitions are clearly biased in some way or another while writing their definitions, unlike an actual dictionary.

Aw, come on! Why is it fire from the tail?! Fire from the mouth like a dragon is cooler!

Kabane’s getting ahead of himself! (LOL)

Just noticed Kon’s hoodie has a design that says FOX, but the X is inside the O.

…thank goodness for Shiki’s hand…

Akira’s been a bit of dead weight recently, so I hope he gets developed soon.

Back Arrow 3

I wonder if Shu Bi is asexual and/or aromantic…?

“…inherited the spirit of the former sheriff…” – That’s Atlee’s job…oh wait. It’s about the undies again…

This is fishy…this whole “paradise is beyond the canyon” thing.

Ooh, I get the feeling Shu Bi and Arrow will either come to blows with each other or fight on the same side…

Sk8 4

I wonder if episode 8 will look weird in the titles…? I mean, it will be “Sk8 8”…

I would think Reki’s straightforward emotions would be spiky shapes.

I knew women were something objectified by S, but…Langa, the deuteragonist? That’s new.

It just hit me: This would be so good with a dub…!

*Langa casually eats 10 burgers* - LOL.

“This has gotta be way too late!”

So now an anime character has stolen a motorcycle…LOL.

Back Arrow 4

The title of this episode seems to be “Is Today Yesterday’s Tomorrow?”, the service’s title that I’ve got in front of me is “Does Genius Come When Least Expected?”

This map reminds me of +Anima’s continent.

I seem to remember Boueibu was constructed as half an episode of idle talking, half fighting. Why do I bring this up? Because Back Arrow seems to be constructed similarly, episode-wise.

The reason I like the hot-blooded mech series and not the serious ones…is stupid things (<- I mean that affectionately) like Shu Bi pulling out a phone in a world like this.

What’s with the shot of Elsha’s butt…? I know it seems somewhat justified, considering the position her Briheight’s in…but the leery angle is a bit annoying.

…I keep thinking Bit will get a Briheight one day and he’ll be like Zenitsu – powerful only when he doesn’t know it.

Shin Fusui, right? “Ren Sin” kinda makes sense, given we didn’t know any better, but so does “Ren Shin”…Sin as a first name though…? Anyways, it’s Shin Fusui, Kei Suiitsu, Nen Kasei and Ko Chisen. Their names match their elements.

I never realised how skimpy Kei’s outfit was until she was without her Briheight on the ground…eesh, women and their skimpy outfits in this universe…

Wave!! 2

I’m going to differentiate this anime from the other Wave (Wave, Listen to Me) with 2 exclamation marks…also, I’m not able to mark this episode down until 4 episodes have gone, or until AniList makes a TV entry for this. Update: AniList did eventually make an entry for the TV version (i.e. the version I'm working off) of this anime.

Nalu was playing an invisible ukulele even in the bath, LOL.

I noticed Masaki keeps his corgi between his legs so that the dog doesn’t run away. That’s probably only a thing dog owners do, because I don’t think anyone inexperienced with pets would know if they could do such a thing.

Why do I get the feeling the symbol on one of Masaki’s shoulders is (meant to be) Rip Curl…?

I read some of the 4koma for this series (found on the website) and…Sho’s so cute, envying this ‘warm family”. Nalu still has his ukulele, even at the dining table, LOL.

LOL, random rainbow. Every time I read subs about Masaki extolling surfing, I’m reminded of what I call “translator’s high”. It’s the feeling of working under deadlines and being inspired to churn out a high-quality release.

…well, this is a surfing anime. I should have known this would talk about places that get lots of hot weather and big waves (like Australia) because Joel Parkinson is from Tweed Heads, Sydney.

Who’s Jojo Pardinen?

Why does Masaki call Tanaka “Murphy”?

Wave!! 3

Oh, so that man is Masaki’s dad…Right.

The real spirit of characters is shown after they’re defeated…that’s my thoughts, anyway.

I know what a repechage is…in fact, I learnt about that through the FP and M manga.

Oh! It’s “Nalu”, but written “Naru”.

Wave!! 4

Is there a 3rd place in these competitions?

Wait, so the guy in the pink shirt is Masaki’s dad, but then the Hawaiian shirt dude owns the shop. Am I right on this now…?

There is a magical girl called Sally, IIRC, and the description does match.

LOL, I like how the teacher is so indecisive.

Back Arrow 5

Shu Bi’s so pretty…I had my eyes on him from the beginning and now that’s paying me back tenfold.

I wonder if Shu will ever get a Briheight…? (I wanna see it!)

Back Arrow 6

Pretty boy farms!!! It sounds like abuse in a sense, but it also sounds like a dream (?!)

Bit reminds me of Sousuke (Classicaloid).

Oh, so the funky gold hat-thing with the purple ribbon is what the head diviner wears.

LOL wut…his name is “Bruh”? *tries to hide stupid smirk on face*

Wait, if it’s a pretty boy farm, how do you produce new pretty boys without women…? *scratches head*

Question: What is Gote’s conviction?

Wave!! 5

Kadomatsu (the bamboo), huh? Must be New Year’s. Likewise, the bush warbler (uguisu) means it’s spring.

Sk8 5

Milk, straight from the carton…*sigh* Boys… Update: (This is referring to how guys are typically shown chugging straight from the carton. As you can tell from the comment, I don't particularly like it.)

I like how suddenly, all the barriers come down for these guys, even though Kaoru said at one point they shouldn’t be coming down.

Battle of Ganryujima.

Sk8 6

…this woman Reki has the hots for is going to be a dude…that’s normally how this joke works.

Oh well, that was also a funny moment.

“Dangerous stuff is forbidden.”

Hiromi in a swimsuit is…vaguely disturbing.

Kamata? Y’mean, she has the word for “scythe” in her name and she’s a “mantis woman”? Makes sense.

Even on their day off, the Sk8 crew are fun to be with.

Sk8 7

Whoa! Straight to the OP!

…I’m suddenly scared. What if Langa’s mother gets put in danger…? (Like in Kanon.)

Sk8 8

I want Langa to punch Adam. In the face. Now!

…is Snake…Ainosuke’s butler? I can sort of guess from the hair…and the matching theme [of Adam, Eve and the snake in paradise]…

It is the butler!

[reroseshi]

🦇Psychological Analysis of Diabolik Lovers❤:

Hi! I've decided for my first own Tumblr post that I should talk about the franchise that I have been a fan of for 6 years: Diabolik Lovers. After being in this fandom for so long I felt personally kinda cheap for me to just do a short funny post about DL

… sooo~~~ i've decided to share my personal psychological analysis on all the diaboys! Disclaimer: 

1-My memory is quite short and trying to analyse 13  fictional mentally ill boys is quite tricky so please be easy on me.^^

2- English isn't my first language so there might be some mistakes so please pardon me for that!

3- I am currently still working on the Mukami's, the Tsukinami's and Kino so they aren't gonna be in this post!

4- I based myself on the manga and MAINLY HDB and MB for my analysis.

Thank you and have a good reading!^^~ <3

-Rero

Sakamaki's:________________________________

-Shu Sakamaki:

Shu is the first born and the heir of the Sakamaki family. Thus, whether he wants it or not, it was decided even before he was born that he will be the victim of a lot of pressure. That pressure to become worthy of being the heir not only came from both of his parents but the servants as well. He couldn’t be free for two seconds. He was obliged to stay inside the castle/mansion (sometimes in the garden with his mom) to study and train, but he wasn’t allowed to go somewhere else. As he lived in a strict environnement, he wasn't happy as a kid and wanted to escape from that life. Meeting Edgar gave him true happiness. He was his first real best friend and he eventually lost him in the flames of his village. Imagine the thing or person who made you discover true happiness burning in front of your own very eyes. You will most likely lose hope in making other close relationship with anything or anyone. That's how Shu is. A depressed, borderline suicidal man who doesn't have any hope anymore and thinks that it is all his fault. Refusing anyone close to him and empty on a daily basis, he uses music as a way to cope with everything. If you think that Shu is easier to love because "he is less harsh than the other brothers" then you are wrong. Shu doesn't want to be involved with anything or anyone. If you try to get close to him, then get ready to be hurt because he is a sadist like his brothers and can hurt you if he doesn't want you near him.

-Reiji Sakamaki:

(If you want a more detailed and a well done analysis, please go check this one:

Reiji was severely neglected as a child by both of his parents. He basically spent his entire childhood trying to get their attention or at least some recognition from them, especially his mom’s, but never got any or if he did it was to remind him that he should be a good younger/brother/servant/right-hand man for his older brother, the next heir of the Sakamaki family Shu. Thus, as he grew up he developed a strong feeling of jealousy for his brother to the point of having a severe inferiority complex. In addition to that, the bitterness that he has for ages inside of him about his mother still resides in him and as we know he is still trying to revive her. Reiji is a man who holds grudges from his past and seeks revenge. He is also someone who loves attention (maybe not as much as Kanato) and wants to be recognized as superior to his brother whom he despises so much to the point that you cannot even talk about Shu around him without having either a death glare or a ass whooping. By putting high standards on to himself, not only in the present but also in his past, he’s become a perfectionist who cares a lot about image and manners. He even forces Yui in his route to learn the perfect lady etiquette. Why does he act this way? Simple, in my opinion it is because he likes to keep a perfect image of himself in a way to detach himself from his brothers whom he despises a lot. You might also ask: if he hates his brothers, then why didn’t he kill them yet? Well, Reiji in one interview (https://prevolt.tumblr.com/post/103068375676/diabolik-lovers-dark-fate-stellaworth-complete )admits that he doesn’t completely hate living with his bros, also if he would’ve killed them, his father would’ve punished him. Even if he seems not that bad with his gentleman personality, Reiji isn’t a kind man. Reiji can easily kill someone. To end this, to go back to the butler-like image he gives himself, I think it could be a mask to hide the insecurities he has. I also believe that he constantly lies to himself and that he doesn’t truly understand his own emotions or even himself has seen many times in his HDB route and in the manga.

-Ayato Sakamaki:

(For Ayato I fell upon this really interesting analysis if you are interested ) 

Ayato, in his childhood, like all of his brothers, was not treated well by his father but he , most importantly, got overpressured by Cordelia to be number one. He couldn’t get out and play freely like any normal child can do because when he would sneak out, he got punished and got slapped in the face by his own mother telling him that if he cannot be number one, he is not allowed to call her “mother” again.(Also, do I need to remind you all the lake scene from his childhood… )For him, you cannot be loved and/or appreciated if you’re not number one. Because he had to live such a childhood, he developed a severe narcissistic personality. Narcissists are not born, they are made, and they are made by being over praised as a kid for their success (such as having a good grade at school, winning a competition or an award, being the best in what they are doing) and by being emotionally neglected. (Ex: throughout the day the child is getting good compliments from their parents by being the number one at school but when the kid will start crying, the parents will ignore or punish him for it. Not giving him any love or support. Which will lead the kid to build himself an ego higher than Yūma’s height and rejecting his own emotions.) I think it describes Ayato’s behaviour and his past pretty well. Another thing that is important to consider about Ayato is that he looks as if he is frozen in time. (Which is a trait that can also be found in any real life narcissists) Even if his mother is dead and that he has nothing to prove anymore, he is still stuck in the “I need to be number one” as if his brain didn’t move on to the present. In addition to that, Ayato is a really childish man. I mean: he needs Yui’s attention and approval all the time, pouts like a kid, acts like a kid (when he asked Yui to stroke his hair in a childish way, plays pranks on Reiji, …) and sometimes speaks like a kid when things are not going the way he wants them to go. Also, once states that he doesn’t wish to have someone special in his life again because the last one who was special (his mom) broke his heart. Ayato himself and himself only and the only goal in his life is to prove that he is the best. To do that, he will use ANY sadistic method and won’t stop even if you beg. Heck, it’ll only excite him more. He is a narcissistic sadist who keeps his emotions far away from him.

-Kanato Sakamaki:

(For this character I highly suggest that you take a good look a this psychological analysis since in my opinion really detailed and the author made a really good job making it: . Thank you~)

Just like his brother Laito, Kanato throughout his childhood was severely neglected and treated very harshly by both of his parents. The only thing that was valuable to his mother’s eyes was his beautiful voice and literally made him sing until his vocal cords bled. I suspect that Kanato probably suffers from Asperger syndrome from how he acts when he is mad, the fact that he doesn’t understand his or the emotions of others and his overall behaviour. In the present we can all see that he is almost, if not, the scariest of all sakamaki brothers and I think that it is mainly due to the lack of attention and support from his parents. Of all the Sakamaki’s, Kanato is the one who, from very early in his childhood, needed attention and support the most. Why do you think he always has a teddy in his arms (with his mother’s ashes in it must I remind you..)and makes his own doll made out of the body of dead women? Kanato simply cannot stand being alone. He would rather have you dead by his side for all eternity than being rejected or even worse, ignored.(I really recommend to read Kanato’s analysis since it really explains well his behaviour on that aspect^^)

He is maybe cute, remember that he is unable to understand your emotions and that he has no problem killing you. Also to be able to survive with him, you will have to abandon your logic and read in between the lines which isn’t an easy task..(This one is shorter because I think that Kanato isn’t that complex. He is just really different but still stays, in my opinion, pretty simple and easy to understand)

-Laito Sakamaki:

Laito is what I would call an empty pervert who uses sex as a coping mechanism. He believes that there’s nothing more real than pleasure. He even goes further in his “crazy” beliefs that “even the sweetest pain can become the greatest pleasure”. Behind his playful, sociable, perverted personality is a really cruel, cunning and manipulator expert who knows the best tricks to manipulate someone since his mother uses those on him in his “young adulthood” to have sexual intercourses with him. Only used as a sex partner by his mom as a child and never received any unconditional love from his parents, he has a bad definition of love. For him love=lust, real love (true love or even unconditional love) doesn’t exist and that it is all fake. He spends his time having sex to forget about the women that broke him and would even go as far as threatening Yui to death if she resist him when she doesn’t want to get involve in his “activities” or “little games”. But even after all that he can’t forget her and still is captive of her “love”, still feeling her, remembering her scent and everything about her. He can’t escape from that jail. Finally, it’s important to remember that Laito is a sadist who takes an amount of pleasure by having someone succumbing to him in a mental and sexual way. He is not someone to be taken lightly. You might not see the danger totally at first by that’s just how Laito is. He even says it himself in his HDB route, he is the type of man who will follow his prey in an alley before attacking it. Therefore, he is not like most of his brothers, he is not going to attack fully. He’s slowly going to take little bites of you and before you even realize it, you won’t be able to escape from him anymore.

-Subaru Sakamaki:

First of all, we need to know that Subaru was born (just like almost all of his brothers) just for the sake of Karl’s plan. What is different about Subaru is that his mother became crazy when she had her child. (I just want to state that she did want the child and Karlheinz did not totally raped her since it is stated that she accepted but we also all know that she was being manipulated. Since for the moment I want to concentrate more on Subaru I will not spend too much time explaining his parents relationship but it is something that we should definitely analyse as well in my opinion) Subaru was severely neglected by his father and he never knew what it was to have a normal mother. Throughout his entire childhood, he’s witnessed his mother’s unstable mind, bipolarity, her tantrums episodes and even worse, not only her insults being thrown directly at him but her literally asking him to kill both her and Karl. Because of that, he’s developed anger issues, a lack of trust with women, a severe depression and he is, if not, borderline suicidal. I also want to state that (He even states in his route in HDB that the two people he hates the most in “this world” is 1) Karlheinz 2)himself)Subaru is one if not the most sensible emotionally. So that means he feels harder than the others. You can also see that he has developed similar traits has his mother has you get to know him more in his route such as: bipolarity (when he orders Yui to always come and tell him where she’s going and then get mad when she does so telling her that he doesn’t care) and random tantrums. (when he gets mad à Yui for no good reason and even makes false assumptions) Not only does he usuels violence as a coping mechanism but he also always isolates himself, not letting anyone in his hard shell because he believes that he can’t do any good and that he is useless. In his presents, he still believes in his mother’s insults and thinks of him as someone filthy, disgusting, weak, a monster who can’t do anything to help the person he loved, his mother. He hates himself. He is constantly irritated by everything. If you want to love him you will have to endure the violence that he’s going to give to you and live with his confusion and irritation against not only everything that surrounds him but also against himself and you, and you will have to give up your life to make him trust you entirely.

[recentanimenews]

Bookshelf Briefs 6/8/20

Ace of the Diamond, Vol. 26 | By Yuji Terajima | Kodansha Comics (digital only) – The fall season has begun! Furuya is wearing the ace number and dominates the first game, much to Eijun’s distress, since he’s still suffering from “the yips” after striking a batter with an inside pitch. Thankfully, Miyuki and Coach Kataoka arrange for Chris to drop by and teach Eijun a new trick, which seems to help get him out of his doldrums. Meanwhile, Furuya’s performance begins to deteriorate, rumors about Coach Kataoka’s imminent departure begin to circulate, and the guy who’s been observing them (but who is probably Kataoka’s replacement) plans to focus solely on cultivating Furuya the ace and objects to how much time and effort Kataoka devotes to the other players. I mean, I can only assume that this guy is going to get sent packing at some point, but I definitely appreciate that Terajima-sensei is able to make me this anxious about his presence. Perennially recommended. – Michelle Smith

A Certain Scientific Railgun: Astral Buddy, Vol. 3 | By Kazuma Kamachi, Yasuhito Nogi, and Kiyotaka Haimura | Seven Seas – The first half of this volume is a giant flashback, and you know those are always bad in the Indexverse. Expect dead kids, dead adults, and a whooooooole lot of evil science. Unfortunately, there’s also a lot here that relies on the reader knowing one of the antagonists is from New Testament Vol. 11… which we have not seen in English, and might never see. Too much continuity. Junko continues to be laughably retroactively strong, going toe to toe with a level 5 here. And there’s the bond between her and Misaki, which may be “master and servant” but is also a close friendship (and yuri tease, as Misaki herself demonstrates). Railgun fans will like this. – Sean Gaffney

The Girl from the Other Side: Siúil, a Rún, Vol. 8 | By Nagabe | Seven Seas – The eighth volume of The Girl from the Other Side is unbearably sad—so much so that I struggled to finish it, as watching Shiva come to terms with losing Teacher is a shattering experience. Compounding my sense of anguish were the final chapters, in which we learn why the Inside world was so desperately interested in Shiva. The parallels between her situation and our current health crisis are impossible to ignore, reminding us about the human cost of capitulating to fear, ignorance, and superstition in the face of a pandemic. In a less fraught moment, I’d be inclined to recommend The Girl from the Other Side for the lessons it imparts, but I think it’s OK to decide that Nagabe’s allegory is a little too on-the-nose to offer insight or comfort right now. – Katherine Dacey

Go with the Clouds, North-by-Northwest, Vol. 3 | By Aki Irie | Vertical Comics – After two messy but interesting volumes that see-sawed between mystery and travelogue, Go with the Clouds, North-by-Northwest finds its groove in volume three. Michitaka—who disappeared from the previous volume—takes center stage in the latest installment, as Kei inadvertently stumbles across some important clues about what happened to his aunt and uncle back in Japan. Though Kei’s discovery propels the story in a new and unexpected direction, the latest plot twists feel earned; the sometimes awkward shifts in tone and genre that characterized the first two volumes are smoothed over by new revelations about Michitaka, and a new sense of urgency about solving the trail of gruesome deaths he’s left behind. The result is a compelling story that has the trappings of a Scandinavian crime show but the soul of an X-Files episode. Recommended. – Katherine Dacey

Kakushigoto: My Dad’s Secret Ambition, Vol. 3 | By Kouji Kumeta | Kodansha Comics (digital only) – Whereas Zetsubou-sensei made a point to seemingly attack everything in the world for leaving the author (and, by extension, Nozomu) in despair, Kakushigoto is zeroing in on the manga profession in particular. Here we get mysteries answered, such as why are the pages of weekly magazines colored differently, who determines the order the stories go in, and what is the exact nature of a deadline? We don’t get real answers for any of these, as it turns out things are very fluid. As for Hime, she’s still cute, and still investigating things with her not-Zetsubou girls mystery club. And there’s still that flashforward threatening us with the death of Hime’s father. Will the series get that dark? – Sean Gaffney

The Misfit of Demon King Academy: History’s Strongest Demon King Reincarnates and Goes to School with His Descendants, Vol. 1 | By Shu, Kayaharuka, and Yoshinori Shizuma | Square Enix – This isn’t my usual fare, but I hoped it would help with my Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun withdrawal. And it actually did! Anoth Voldigord was the all-powerful demon king, but sacrificed himself to end a perpetual war with humanity, pledging to reincarnate in 2000 years. When he does so, he’s invited to a school attendend by his many descendants but nobody believes he’s who he says he is because his magic is too vast to be measured and all of the facts about his reign have been distorted or forgotten over time. Anoth isn’t too likable at first, but the fact that his smug announcements of superiority garner no reaction, his jokes fall flat, and he must deal with a pair of doting and dimwitted human parents all help to humble him a bit. I guess it sometimes pays to venture out of your comfort zone! – Michelle Smith

My Senpai Is Annoying, Vol. 1 | By Shiromanta | Seven Seas – Thankfully, the senpai is not annoying in the way that I feared—this is all on her. Futaba is a new OL at a company who is so short she looks about twelve years old. She also has a near-terminal case of tsundere. This mostly comes out when around Harumi, her senpai at the company, who is huge, nice, helps her with her work and occasionally lightly teases her, and she is absolutely not ready to deal with it. This manga has one joke—Futaba is embarrassed and gets mad to hide it—and if you like that joke, it can be fun. It’s also based on a webcomic, with most “chapters” being about two pages. Towards the end, there’s longer original content, and that works much better. Recommended for those who like 4-komas and tsunderes. – Sean Gaffney

New Game!, Vol. 9 | By Shotaro Tokuno | Seven Seas – You got the sense that Kou wasn’t going to stay in France forever, and sure enough, she’s back by the end of this volume. There’s some nice stories here about not-quite-rivalries between her and Aoba’s friend Hotaru, and of course the inevitable yuri tease between Kou and Rin, which will never rise above a certain level but that level is pretty damn high. Other than that, a big part of this volume features the danger of farming out parts of your game to outside companies to complete, as they’re harder to control and can easily affect quality in ways that need to be fixed somehow. We also see Aoba continue to grow into her role as a real adult, even as she continues to never quite take the starring role. Cute. – Sean Gaffney

Primitive Boyfriend, Vol. 1 | By Yoshineko Kitafuku | Seven Seas – Kamigome Mito is popular with the boys at her school but feels nothing for any of them, finding them all insufficiently manly. Mito is lamenting her circumstances while working on the family farm, when she suddenly receives a visit from Spica, Goddess of the Harvest. Mito’s hard work has not gone unnoticed and as a reward, Spica sends her back in time 2.5 million years to meet her soulmate, a member of the species Australopithecus Garhi. He takes care of Mito, she falls for him, and when she’s sent home just as his life is in peril, she’s desperate to return. It’s pretty fun, I guess, if you don’t let yourself get bogged down in the realities of how their relationship will never work. Thankfully, it’s also only three volumes long. It’s short, it’s unique, and thus I will keep reading to see how it all plays out. – Michelle Smith

Species Domain, Vol. 8 | By Noro Shunsuke | Seven Seas – The series has now reached the Culture Festival, and seems like it might slowly be gliding to an ending, which in a series like this means pairing up more people. The “joke” confession that wasn’t in the last volume gets revisited here, with much embarrassment all around. Kazamori’s desperation for other girls to be attracted to Ohki may end up getting her in trouble down the road. Mikasagi explains why he isn’t ready to commit to anything, etc. There’s also an extended bathhouse scene, for those who like fanservice, which includes discussion about where Mizuno should be, on the men’s or women’s side. Again, I appreciate the care they’re taking with this character. Fun. – Sean Gaffney

The Way of the Househusband, Vol. 3 | By Kousuke Oono | Viz Media -As I have said in previous reviews, you read this series for its one gag, and should not expect more than that one gag done extremely well. Beyond that, here we see that our househusband is not the only former yakuza trying to make a living doing mundane everyday things, and that it’s much easier to change what you do than how you act. We also see why he’s such a good husband, manipulating things a bit so that his wife can meet some live action Pretty Cure actors (or rather the non-copyright violating Pretty Cure knockoff). That said, I think it’s Santa’s appearance that is absolutely the highlight of the volume, along with the stunned reaction of all the children. Hilarious. – Sean Gaffney

By: Katherine Dacey

[mikami]

Death Note Audio Drama 06

Disc 6: Grey-zone  - a summary / partial translation

Prior translations / an explanation as to what the fuck this is.

In this: Rem dragging business men, a lot. NightGod228, the playboy. A minor character gets confirmed as gay, but only as part of a homophobic humorous quip, so let’s not get excited. There’s also some fun focus on the internal relations of the Yotsuba Eight, but sadly nothing becomes of it in later discs. 

Hatori is inexplicably nicknamed ‘Harry’.

_______

We begin with Rem explaining the rules of the Death Note to Higuchi, as well as telling him what he is supposed to do / who he is supposed to kill. Rem also somehow discloses that someone she is closed to is accused of murder.

Higuchi’s catchphrase in this is “business is war”.

______

TITLE MUSIC

______

L visits Soichiro in his cell. Soichiro insists on living in the same conditions as Light, even if he could have better. L tells Soichiro that the new Kira murders continue. L is not totally convinced of Light’s innocent anyway, thinks he’s in the grey. He suggests a test to Soichiro, to ‘take some drastic measures’. (Soichiro: “Oh? And we haven’t done that so far?”)

______

Light in his cell. He’s getting taken out of it now, against his will and without explanation.

______

Aizawa trying to get into the new headquarters they just now moved into, in a scene that references the anime one with the belt (just without the belt). Aizawa in this somehow goes by “Shu” with people in the task force, short for his first name “Shuichi”.

Thew new HQ has been downgraded to 10 stories instead of the 23 from the manga. Watari shows Aizawa around. Aizawa refuses to move into the building, due to his daughter going to school totally elsewhere. 

______

Soichiro and Misa in the car. 

MISA: Is that you? The pervert who held me captive this whole time?

SOICHIRO: No! No, I.... I have a daughter.

MISA: Congratulations, I have a cat. Orrr... I had a cat. Uugh, I bet she ran away already and gets her food elsewhere. Uuhh... How long was I gone? How long was I held captive?

At another stop, Light is also brought into the car. The dialogue here is close to the manga. 

______

The task force is waiting at the junkyard that is planned for the fake execution.

______

Light and Misa assume they’ll be let out, but Soichiro informs them its their execution instead. Light tries to... ask for a lawyer. Pretty calmly, too.

But in response, Soichiro is just like ‘well, you’ll not actually be put on trial’ and thus a lawyer is useless. Soichiro says that L promised to kill himself if the murders don’t stop after these executions. 

Soichiro declares that he personally has to execute Light, you know the deal.

Wohoo, mock execution.

______

Matsuda accidentally parked at the wrong entrance to the junkyard, so they have to very quickly drive to the other end in order to reach Soichiro and co.............

______

Soichiro explains to Light why he did the mock execution and how L accepts that as evidence.

______

L talks to Watari. He isn’t actually convinced that Light didn’t just look through the bluff. Thus, he’ll let Misa go as long as she is under police ‘protection’. And Light has to work in the task force.

______

Meeting of the Yotsuba Eight. First Mido presents the yearly finances, which is very quick and without detail.

OOI: If all bullet points get done so quickly, we’ll all end up becoming better at playing golf. 

Laughter.

OOI: Point two. The development of real estate in the Tama Hills. What does your department have to say to that?

TAKAHASHI: I-- I didn’t even realize this was a topic today. Could we delay it? 

SOMEONE: Seriously?

TAKAHASHI: Everything’s gonna be fine. I just don’t have the numbers with me today. 

OOI: I can only let that pass with an explicit warning. The financial department is getting stricter and stricter with the paperwork. One-time delay until the next meeting, but then it really has to happen, Mr. Takahashi.

TAKAHASHI: I’m sorry. It just slipped through.

OOI: It’s fine, we’ll do it next time. Point three and after that we’ll be done already. Who are we going to kill this week?

______

L explains to Light that he can only leave the building if handcuffed to him, but no mention of handcuffs within the building is made. The whole conversation about regulations, dates, and Light being like ‘uh, are we a couple’, etc... those are all pretty much like the manga. L presses the whole memories about their meeting thing for a while and L’s actor will NEVER learn how to say ‘Aoyama’, please save me. 

______

Back at the Yotsuba meeting.

REM: Just look at them. Pretending to think really hard. Like little school boys. Is this really the best that an economic force like Japan can offer?  

OOI: Oh please, gentlemen, someone has to have an idea.

REM (mocking): Just toss dice, Mr. Representative. Let them draw lots. Toss money in the air and check who’s collecting the most. 

SOMEONE: It’s getting difficult. Kira stopped killing criminals and started killing innocent civilians. 

HIGUCHI: Quite apparently Kira is now looking for victim’s from whose deaths he can profit somehow. 

SOMEONE: So, Kyousuke, you are claiming he’s a hitman now?

HIGUCHI: So far there’s been no complaints. Least of all from you. You all agreed to the deal. We can’t just back out now.

REM: What an important point, Kyousuke. Tell that to these men. Eight different departments in this group and not a single woman in the room?

They keep discussing the Kira matter and why Kira is doing it. Shimura brings up the idea that one of them could be Kira. They decide to not look a gift horse in the mouth and to just kill people. In the end, Rem tells Higuchi to just make name suggestions and so he does.

______

Matsuda is declared Misa’s new manager / bodyguard / observation agent. Light finds this ridiculous. L then also asks Light to get more information from Misa, since she loves him so much. Light says he doesn’t like the thought of playing with girls’ feelings.

Light: [...] Someone is seriously going to get hurt. [emotionally]

L: There are human lives at stake in this game. [shitty translation, but ‘to be at stake’ in the German INCLUDES the word ‘game’ already, idiomatically.]

Light: I don’t play.

L: Strange, because that’s exactly how I’d describe your old self.

LIGHT: What?

L: Who is Kiyomi Takada?

LIGHT: A girl I had a few dates with. So?

L: Who is Yuri Ohara?

LIGHT: A girl I had dates with.

L: 73% of your contacts on social media are women, did you know that? 

LIGHT: I’m popular.

L: Over the last two years, you’ve been NightGod228 on two different dating platforms. With more than 500 likes?

LIGHT: I am pretty sure you’re implying something here. But I’m still puzzling out what.

L: It’s just... up until a little while ago, you’ve been a very busy boy. 

LIGHT: That’s not a crime.

L: And now suddenly this change in your attitude. Suddenly a romantic. Did you give a damn for Kiyomi Takada’s feelings? You haven’t called her in a month. And don’t you wonder how Yuri Ohara got over the busjacking you led her into?

LIGHT: I’ve got a lot of friends. Some of them are girls.

L: Most of them.

LIGHT: At least I’ve got friends.

______

OOI: With that, we’re all present.

REM: A handful of idiots.

OOI: Thus I declare this meeting of the Yotsuba group---

TAKAHASHI: Mr. Representative, I have to apologize, but this was a little unexpected and--

OOI: It was unexpected for all of us, Mr. Takahashi.

REM: Because you’re idiots.

TAKAHASHI: I just thought I had until Tuesday to get this sorted out.

OOI: This meeting is not going to be about the financial situation of Tama Hills, Mr. Takahashi. 

TAKAHASHI: Oh. Of course.

It’s actually about Kira, of course. They figure out that impossible death conditions won’t take place and default to heart attacks. 

Someone points out their goals are getting reached anyway.

SOMEONE: That’s not it. We’re starting to get careless.

REM: You’re only starting now?

They point out that these killings are too obvious and that’s an issue.They wanna do something about it.

_______

Soichiro and Kitamura talk. Soichiro tells Kitamura about the new building, Kitamura is jealous of the luxury. Soichiro revels in this. And then Kitamura announces that the Kira investigation is going to be quit. 

______

Matsuda drops Aizawa off at home. He presses Aizawa to move into HQ, but Aizawa still does not want to move in. His wife doesn’t even know he’s on the Kira team.

Matsuda gets called in his function as Misa’s manager and informed she won a contest and gained a movie role. Matsuda obviously has no fucking clue what any of this means and is just concerned that Misa shouldn’t act in porn. The lady calling is audibly confused by the lack of enthusiasm.

_______

Soichiro and Kitamura discuss more about the closing of the task force. Kitamura is very dismissive about the use of the investigation. Kitamura also reveals that the politicians are being blackmailed by Kira to cancel the investigation. Soichiro is appalled.

_______

Light found out the link to Yotsuba. They treat this as if they’d always known Kira can kill through means other than heart attacks, even though in the manga that was a big reveal. RIP.

_______

Higuchi and Shimura in the elevator.

SHIMURA: I’ve been meaning to talk to you, Kyousuke. 

HIGUCHI: Oh really?

SHIMURA: About our weekend project. 

HIGUCHI: What’s with it?

HATORI: Even if you succeed in getting the police to stop their investigations, this L is never going to stop.

HIGUCHI: Maybe not... but.... I don’t know how we’re supposed to get to him. He might be one of the world’s top detectives, but nobody has ever seen his face before and nobody knows his name. 

SHIMURA: And if we had those two things, our... friend could do the rest, right?

HIGUCHI: Yeah.

SHIMURA: Then let’s get out own detective. L is not the only player on the market. Let’s get another detective to find out what we need to know.

HIGUCHI: I like that. 

SHIMURA: Gerald Coil. He’s not cheap, but he knows what he’s doing. Let’s put him on the L case. If we get rid of L, we won’t have any more problems. 

HIGUCHI: Do that.

________

Soichiro informs the task force of Kitamura’s decision. Everyone except for Aizawa agrees to quit. L tells him to decide right now, even though he wants time to think. When Aizawa hesitates, L wants to fire him, but Watari chimes in as he does in the manga. L then asks Aizawa to talk in private.

________

Higuchi and Hatori are golfing.

HIGUCHI: Good blow, Mr. Hatori.

HATORI: My friends call me Harry.

HIGUCHI: Your jaunty golf friends?

HATORI: Well, in that case it’d be you, Kyousuke.

They talk about some golf terms as they play, no idea what that means. 

HATORI: Now we’re almost at the goal.

HIGUCHI: Thanks for the heads-up, I’m not much of a golf player.

HATORI: Well, who’s able to afford that anyway? This field is top league. Most golf players have to earn their money abroad.

HIGUCHI: It has to cost a fortune to be a member in a golf club like this.

HATORI: Well, there’s also candidates who are simply the son of the boss, even if he was never married to their mother.

More golf talk. Higuchi expresses surprise that it’s only the two of them.

HATORI: I wanted to talk to you in private. About our... secret helper.

HIGUCHI: What about him? 

HATORI: It’s a quite intense form of insider business. And it costs human lives.

HIGUCHI: Business is war.

HATORI: And we’re playing the nuclear bombshell card. We’re using... I don’t know, black magic, to get rid of our rivals. That’s going to have a price, I know it. Listen, Kyousuke, I... I want out. I don’t want to do this anymore. It isn’t right.

HIGUCHI: You know what isn’t right? For you to become boss of the marketing department when you’ve just graduated college. Just because your mother is fucking the company president. You know what you signed up for, Mr. Hatori. You could barely believe your luck as you could announce 20% growth for your department, despite that pathetic ad campaign for Space Land theme park. 

HATORI: I understand. Well, I thank you for your honesty. I came to you first because you hardly mince words. 

HIGUCHI: You haven’t talked to anyone else yet?

HATORI: Not yet, no, I---

HIGUCHI: Okay, listen. I understand what’s on your mind. Maybe we’ve gone  a little too far, maybe... we can take a little break. Talk about it. Let’s keep this conversation among ourselves for now. I’ll bring it up at the next meeting, Mr. Hatori. 

HATORI: My friends call me Harry.

HIGUCHI: ... of course.

________

L encourages Aizawa to quit for his family, even if Aizawa is still hesitating. L tells him he needs 110% from his team. Aizawa calls Ukita his best friend here, bringing him up as something he already sacrificed. L says he can’t let Aizawa add weight to his conscience too (by dying). Aizawa accuses him of having no conscience and storms out.

_________

Hatori sitting down at the golf club bar alone, Higuchi already left. He’s having a whiskey. Takahashi is on the phone.

TAKAHASHI: Harry. What can I do for you?

HATORI: Hey Takahashi. That... thing we talked about. I... I, uh, talked to someone else from the meetings. He’ll bring it up in the next session.

TAKAHASHI: So I shouldn’t say anything. 

HATORI: Let him talk first, then support him. It’s going to look like it’s happening without coordination. I’ll also support it, and then we’ll have 3 votes. Ooi is going to remain neutral, as the meeting leader. That means we’ll have enough votes to cast doubt on the whole operation. 

TAKASHI: Okay, so I’ll stay put and wait first. 

HATORI: You can definitely do it. Later.

TAKASHI: Wait, who did you even talk to?

But Hatori already hung up. He starts coughing soon after. Coughing turns into a collapse. He dies.

_______

L informs Soichiro that Gerald Coil was hired to find him and also that that’s him. Soichiro finds the double identity thing morally questionable, due to being a trap. L is unimpressed. Also L wants to bug the Yotsuba building.

________

At Misa’s movie shoot. Misa refuses the kiss, as in the manga.

MISA: I have a reputation, you know. A brand.

DIRECTOR (angry): A-ha. And this is just a movie!! In reality, you’re not an angel!! And Hideki doesn’t even fancy girls in reality either!!

MISA (chuckles darkly): I’ll believe that.

So... here we have our canon gay character for the drama, done for a homophobic joke. Woohoo. The director continues to be displeased with Misa as an amateur actress and wants to talk to her manager.

_________

Inside Yotsuba, Matsuda justifies entering the building by being Misa’s manager. Arguing in the background, between a man and a woman. The woman rushes off to the lady’s restroom. The man, with a heavy French accent, tries to excuse her behaviour. This distracts the lady from the reception long enough for Matsuda to slip away.

________

L and Soichiro still argue about ethics, especially in light of L’s coworkers being criminals. Wedy is called Wendy here and Aiber is called Ivor, do NOT ask me why, I have no answers. 

The poor Yotsuba secretary tries to mediate between Wendy and Ivor by following Wendy into the lady’s room to deliver a message from Ivor. Wendy, however, is not in the lady’s room anymore.

She now notices that they are intruders and calls Namikawa. Namikawa does not take it seriously. He runs into Matsuda after the phonecall. Matsuda offers Misa as image girl for Yotsuba to him. 

_________

Wendy and Ivor are placing bugs and cameras. Wendy and Ivor call each other ‘babe’. Ivor still has the hideous French accent. He also... caused a minor fire as distraction for them. Neat, Ivor.

_________

Matsuda informs everyone that he got Misa an interview at Yotsuba. He had no idea they were already bugging the building. Wendy casually thanks him for giving them more time for being in the building. Matsuda is shocked to find Wendy and Ivor are part of the team.

The cameras are now operational and they can watch today’s meeting live.

OOI: Gentlemen, let’s begin.

[poetryandnightmaress]

My favorite Quotes of my Romantic F/O’s

Toma:  "I promise you that I would protect you from anything scary from then on." (I love protective boyfriends so so much!) Trevor:  “ I'm Trevor f-ing Belmont, and I've never lost a fight to man nor f-ing beast!” (Yeah, he’s a bit rough- but somehow, that’s so cool) Dante: "Well well... O king of stench and filth. I'm impressed! Those are the two best badass women in the world. And I know only one guy that can defeat them... Jackpot!" (Even he’s facing the demon king, he is still slayin!) V:  "I curse my stars in bitter grief and woe, That made my love so high and me so low." (actually a William Blake quote, but along with the strong “I have no name”, it’s just so- woah-) Ayato:  “Oh no, why are you shivering? You're not scared, are you? Whenever you feel frightened come seek me out. I’m willing to teach you, over and over again until you know me most intimately. I need for you to feel me from head to toe, and pursue me heart and soul. I will not be denied. Understand this, you belong to me forever." (Yes, this one is a bit possessive. But romantic in a weird way as well) Shu:  "Don't make any mistakes, I am a vampire. I'll show you a whole new world." (if you couldn’t tell, I have a thing for vampires) Noctis: “Walk tall, my friends...” (*cries in a corner listening to Stand by me* I’m still not over this game after all this years) Lon’Qu:  "Choco, if you die out there... I'll kill you." (I just love this one. Lonny, you dork, you can’t kill a person twice!) Chrom:  “You are the wind at my back and the sword at my side. Together, my love, we shall build a peaceful world... just you and me.” (If this isn’t romantic, slap me with a fish!) Jakob:  “Once we were master and servant, such a tidy distinction. I wasn't so comfortable growing this close, but now... I welcome the mess.” (best. butler. ever.) Shiro:  "I could spend the whole day with you just talking... or not talking, if you prefer." (CUTIE. CUTIEEEEE) Angel:  "Amai, amai, amai!" - "Naïve, naïve, naïve!" (She is rude af. But I love her akjsnask) Kusuriuri:  “ My friends, let me ask you of your Truth and Regret. So long as Mononoke roam this world… “ (he’s so gorgeous and mysterious, I love him...) 2B:  "Everything that lives is designed to end. We are perpetually trapped in a never-ending spiral of life and death. Is this a curse? Or some kind of punishment? I often think about the god who blessed us with this cryptic puzzle...and wonder if we'll ever get the chance to kill him." (MY FUTURE WIFE I WANNA CUDDLE YOU NOW-) A2:  "I never quite realized...how beautiful this world is." (right in the feels-) Raihan:  "In the aftermath of the furious battle... I feel as pure and refreshed as when the sky clears after a storm." (It sums up his whole personality, it’s perfect!) Leon:  "My time as Champion is over... But what a champion time it’s been! Thank you for the greatest battle I’ve ever had!" (those words still hurt me ;;) Kogami:  I'm sorry. I couldn't keep my promise. I wanted to go into a line of work where I could protect people. That's why I became a detective. But Makishima changed everything. That man will continue to kill people. And yet, the law can't judge him. As long as I'm a detective, I can't touch him. This case made me aware... that the law can't protect people. (I’M SORRY SWEETHEART YOU DESERVE BETTER) Link: HYAAA! (What did you expect? I still need to read the manga!)

[fangirlfordayz-blog]

Reiji Sakamaki is great, okay?

I feel like Reiji Sakamaki is severely underappreciated in the Diabolik Lovers fandom. I've always wondered why I don't see as much about Reiji as I do for others like Ayato or Shu for example, because he's been one of my favorites (can never decide on a favorite) since I was first introduced to this series. I've seen people talk about how he's such a jerk or something... But aren't almost all of the guys in Diabolik Lovers kinda mean and messed up in some way or another?... What's so different about Reiji then? 

Reiji has a formal, cold, and intelligent attitude about things, and he's one hell of a perfectionist... But I really like him. He's a perfectionist to a fault and sometimes he loses it and hurts people... But don't the other boys do that too a lot of the time? What's so different about Reiji? I mean, I get it if he’s just not your taste but if that was the reason I feel like there’d be more Reiji fans... Diabolik Lovers is actually rather popular, even if the anime wasn’t too good it was still rather popular and their games are even more popular I think... 

Reiji did cause almost all of Shu's problems, but Shu and his mother also caused Reiji's issues as well. When I found out that Shu was the fan favorite (I saw a poll, and since then I've seen others that put him as the favorite as well) I thought maybe since everyone seemed to be very sympathetic with Shu that perhaps they were harsher with Reiji. I'm not sure how accurate that statement is, but it would make sense... 

Reiji's issues stem from his mother, Beatrice, basically ignoring him and any/all of his hard work and accomplishments. She focused on Shu becoming the heir for the Sakamaki family, so she neglected Reiji. Shu didn't even want the responsibility of being the heir, but Reiji studied and studied because he wanted to prove himself... I mean, how would you feel if your parents ignored everything you did or achieved and just focused on your (seemingly lazy) sibling (there’s a bit more to all of their issues, but that’s Reiji’s biggest issue I think)? You'd feel hurt and angry, right? I feel like a lot of people either misunderstand Reiji or just don't bother looking more into his character. Reiji isn't just a stuck up jerk... He's a cold and sadistic perfectionist who has some problems, but I still find that he's one of the more... Stable characters in Diabolik Lovers. 

I remember reading the manga for Reiji (it's like his HDB route I hear, but I haven't played his HDB route yet) and when Reiji tries to save Yui from Cordelia... It was just so nice. I love when you get to see that other side of him that's sweeter. I also loved that one Heaven Scenario in MB for Reiji where Yui goes to get out of bed and Reiji actually wants to stay in bed with her for a little while... Saying that it's not so bad to relax and sleep in sometimes, and of course it takes Yui by surprise lol. Reiji can be so adorable sometimes, I swear.

My point is that I love Reiji and I wish more people would love/appreciate him and his character 'cause he deserves love. There are more characters I feel are underappreciated, like Azusa for instance, but for now I'll just keep this talk about Reiji... Feel free to say any thoughts you have or something you like about Reiji ^^

[duhragonball]

Dragon Ball Z 108

Garlic Junior Saga!     No last-episode-recap this time.    It’s a brand new arc, and we’re gonna jump right into it.   

And we start with our first three civilian casualties.    Garlic Junior doesn’t waste any time.   He’s only got nine episodes to work with here.

I never really caught on to why Garlic and his henchmen were killing these people, probably because Funimation didn’t seem to get it either.    In the dub, the frightened humans are like “We didn’t do anything!”  and the bad guys are like “We never said you did!”    The implication is that they just felt like killing some random people.  

But this time around, I’ve seen Dead Zone recently enough that I finally recognize the scenery.   This is the ruins of Garlic Junior’s castle from his movie.    The throne, the big tree, and the fruit he’s eating are all from Dead Zone. 

So I guess the people they just killed were squatters?  I’m kind of surprised that regular people just stumbled across Garlic Junior’s fantabulous evil stronghold one day.    I don’t blame them for wanting to move in, though.    That place looks awesome.   I’m pretty sure it’s a long drive to the store, though.

Also, the narrator helpfully informs us that it’s been about ten months since Goku defeated Frieza.    The Dragon Ball Wiki says that this happened on Christmas Eve, which would put the Garlic Junior Saga somewhere in mid October, I guess.   Perfect for Halloween.

And here’s a nice shot of Goku’s house.    Wow, he lives right on the edge of a cliff, huh?   

All right, we got a lot to cover, so I’m putting it behind a cut.  

I was a filthy casual when DBZ first aired on Toonami in the late 90′s.   Consequently, I didn’t see the Garlic Junior Episodes until January 1, 2001, when Toonami ran the episodes as a marathon for New Year’s Day.   I always assumed that they had purposely held back those episodes just for this occasion, because in 1999-2000 I only knew the Frieza saga had ended and the Trunks/Androids/Cell stuff had begun.   Much later, I found out that the Garlic Junior episodes had been aired on Toonami in order.    I probably just missed the entire thing because I wasn’t paying that much attention to the show.  

So for me, I kind of have a soft spot for this arc, because with the way I first viewed it, it felt like a hidden stash of “secret” episodes, telling a side-story of what happened while Goku was away.    This has alaways been my approach with writing fanfiction.    I prefer to find a lull in the canon story and write a side-story set during that.   That’s basically what Katsuyuki Sumisawa did with this arc, although he was just creating filler episodes to allow the manga to pull further ahead of the anime.   

To give you an idea of the real-world motives behind this arc, Episode 108 aired in Japan on September 18, 1991.   A few days later, Chapter 342 of the manga was published, which featured Goku getting beaten by Android 19, which roughly corresponds with Episode 128.   Now that may seem like a pretty safe cushion, but remember that more than half of the twenty episodes in between are filler.   

108-117: Garlic Junior Saga

118: Mostly filler featuring Gohan and Mr. Shu

119-123: Adapts the Trunks chapters from the manga, mostly.

124: The Z-Warriors training

125: The Driver’s Ed Episode.

126-128: Mostly adapts the early Androids chapters, featuring Marron.

If not for all those filler scenes, the Goku vs. 19 fight would probably end up airing only four or five weeks after it saw print.   Thanks to the Garlic Junior Saga, Toei managed to push it all the way out into February of 1992.  

I’m not sure how things got to that point.   I suppose Toei was struggling with adapting the later portions of the Frieza battle, since there wasn’t a lot of room for filler scenes.    To be sure, they stretched it out as much as they could, but probably not as much as they would have liked.    The Saiyan and Namek arcs made it a lot easier to add filler, because they had longer time frames and more characters in play.     The whole Frieza battle takes place in maybe under an hour’s time, with the climax featuring two guys fighting alone for less than five minutes.    Toei managed to stretch that into six episodes, but they probably needed sixteen to facilitate their production schedule.

And that’s where the Garlic Junior Saga comes in.    This is the first story arc to be all-filler, and so it’s far and away the longest stretch of filler episodes.   You can skip it and not miss a thing.   Indeed, Dragon Ball Kai does exactly that.   I dig that, because a lot of younger fans got into the show by watching Kai, and for them, the Garlic Junior arc is a hidden stash of secret episodes, just like it was for me eighteen years ago.   Are they any good?   Ehhhh, not really.  I like ‘em though. 

I’m not sure why they went with the plot they did.    My guess is that they went to Katsuyuki Sumisawa and told him to write a ten episode filler arc.    Well, who are they gonna fight?    Toriyama clearly had other plans for Frieza and Vegeta, and they were the two main villains.   The Androids were off-limits because they hadn’t been introduced yet.  Piccolo’s a good guy, Tien’s a good guy, Pilaf is a joke, and all the other villains are dead.   

I suppose they might have decided to invent a new character to be the villain, except they already had with the DBZ movies.  By this point, you had five: Garlic, Dr. Wheelo, Turles, Lord Slug, and Cooler.  The middle three on that list were killed pretty convincingly in their movies.  Maybe Cooler might have been up for consideration, since he ended up returning in Movie 6, but Cooler would be a little too much for the good guys without Goku to back them up.  

So that leaves Garlic Junior, the one bad guy that never got killed, because he wished for immortality.  

There’s two problems with bringing back Garlic, though.  First, his movie never fit into continuity in the first place.   Dead Zone features Goku and Piccolo teaming up to rescue Gohan, as a sort of alternate version of the Raditz episodes of DBZ.    So it doesn’t really make much sense as an even that takes place concurrent with the Raditz adventure.   In both stories, Goku acts like joining forces with Piccolo is unprecedented.    Dead Zone can’t have taken place after the Raditz episodes, because they end with Goku getting killed.   They can’t take place before the Raditz episodes because none of Goku’s friends are supposed to know about Goku’s son until Episode 2. 

Katsuyuki Sumisawa’s answer to that is to sort of handwave it and hope no one looks at these episodes too closely (ha!).   Basically, Garlic jumps from the movie to the anime like it’s no big deal, and all of the other characters remember him and the stuff he did.    As long as no one brings up Raditz, it works, and let’s face it, Raditz has been long-forgotten by this point.  

If you’re a hardcore continuity nerd like me, it’s probably easier to think of the Garlic Junior Saga as a made-for-TV movie sequel to “Dead Zone”.   Call it Movie 5.5: Dead Zone II.   Or you can do like me and try to pretend that some alternate version of Movie 1 fits into canon as a prequel to DBZ.   But that probably doesn’t work well either.  

The second problem is that Garlic only survived his first appearance because he was trapped in the Dead Zone, supposedly forever.   The whole point of the movie’s conclusion was that Garlic managed to become immortal, only to end up trapped in place where death was the only escape.    So how did he get out?  Well, we’ll cover that in a later episode. 

So let me get on with recapping the episode properly.   Krillin goes to meet Gohan and he’s dressed in fancy clothes and he has a swank car.

He’s also got a girlfriend.  For some reason he leaves her in the car while he goes to talk to Gohan, and then when Gohan asks him to join him for a swim, he starts stripping down like it’s no big deal.  

His whole purpose for this trip is to invite Gohan over to Kame House for a get-together.   Apparently the gang hasn’t met since they wished Tien and Chiaotzu back to life.   Also not appearing in this episode: Tien and Chiaotzu.   Of course, Gohan has to ask his mother first, because he’s babby.  

Gohan finally realizes after they leave that Marron is Krillin’s girlfriend, and he gets all excited for Goku coming back to find out about this.   Then we see a cloud that looks just like Goku.   Drink it in, because this is the most we’ll see of Goku for the next several episodes.

Meanwhile, Kami pays a visit to Piccolo and offers to install Piccolo as the new Kami.   This makes absolutely no sense to me.    Even if Piccolo were a worthy successor (he was a villain less than two years ago), he can only live as long as Kami, because when one of them dies the other dies too.    So the only way this works is if Kami’s planning to retire and Piccolo can find another successor before Kami dies of old age.   

Piccolo angrily refuses the offer, and warns Kami to pay attention to his job, since the Demon Clan has been becoming more active lately.    In the dub, Piccolo warns of “disturbing images” in his meditations, which he suspects may be insights into the future.  I find this a little easier to swallow than “The Demon Clan has been becoming more active lately.”   How does Piccolo even know this?

While Kami is away, Garlic Junior invades the Lookout and captures Mr. Popo.    He introduces his new henchmen as the “demonic Four Monarchs”.   The dub calls them the “Spice Boys”, because they wrote the dub in 1999 and the Spice Girls were a thing, you see.   And their leader is named “Spice”, so that kind of works.  

At Kame House, the gang meets Marron, although they really don’t find out much about her except that she’s a huge ditz.  

When Krillin is reluctant to call them a full-on couple, she starts flirting with Yamcha instead.   Geez.

Master Roshi wants to touch Marron’s boobs.    What pisses me off about Roshi is how he will absolutely be that direct about it, but first he has to set it up with this long build up before he does the line.    As if there could be any other punchline.  

Roshi: Hmmmm..... Krillin, I’m being very serious right now.   Very serious.

Krllin: Okay.    I ought to know better, but I’m listening.  

Roshi: ......................................................................................................

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

............................................................................................TITS.

It’s not even funny when Bulma hits him, because I’ve seen it so many times.   Of course she hit him.  

Anyway, Gohan’s not there because his mom won’t let him go.    Can you really blame her?   Roshi’s literally being a jackass right now.   Besides, the last time she let Gohan go to Kame House, Goku got killed and she didn’t see him again for a year.     This is what they call in parenting circles a “no-brainer.”

Meanwhile, Kami finally gets back to the Lookout, and the bad guys capture him too.  

Garlic hates Kami, but he won’t kill him just yet because he plans to use the Dragon Balls...

... to revive Garlic Senior, who was Kami’s old enemy from long ago.    I’ll touch on this later, because this post is pretty long already, but mostly I want to point this out because I always thought reviving Senior was a dub-ism.    Surely, I thought, Toei understood the rule that you can’t wish people back after they’ve been dead for over a year.  Then Resurrection F came out and I realized that this rule probably never really existed.   Kami told King Kai in the Frieza Saga that Shenron could only revive Frieza’s victims going back one year, but apparently for resurrecting a single individual it’s not as big a deal.  

Of course, Garlic Senior’s been dead for a long time, I think.  Maybe it really is impossible for Shenron, and Kami is just keeping that to himself, since it’s the only thing keeping him alive right now.

Meanwhile, Gohan sneaks out of the house with Icarus, aka Haiya Dragon.  Yeah, so Icarus is a character from Movies 3, 4, and 5, who has never appeared in the anime until now.  I guess Toei figured they were already using movie characters, so one more wouldn’t hurt.   It’d be kind of neat if Garlic had recruited some disfigured henchmen from some of the other movies.   Dr. Cohin, Neiz, and some of Turles’ guys were probably still in somewhat decent condition.    Garlic could have turned them into demonic monsters or something.

Back on the Lookout, Garlic has declared himself the new Kami, and he leads his team inside to rummage through Kami’s attic.   There, he finds his father’s secret weapon, which was confiscated by Kami a long time ago.   

Ugggggghhhhhhhh....

In the dub, they call it the Black Water Mist.   I never quite understood the name, since calling it “water” and “mist” seems redundant.    Turns out, this was an embellishment on the Japanese name, which is literally just “Aquamist”.    Not a translation.     Garlic’s voice actor says “Akua Misuto”.   I’m guessing Funi just added “Black” to it so there’d be an extra syllable to support the lip flaps.    That, or they recognized that “Aquamist” and “Water Mist” are stupid names for an evil potion.

Also, it’s black, so why not call it the Black Water Mist.    I think “Black Mist” would be more direct, but I do like the way “Black Water Mist” sounds.     Anyway, the deal with this stuff is that it turns people into demons when they breathe it.     Well, the word “demon” gets stretched pretty thin in Dragon Ball, but we’ll cover that later.   Suffiice to say, the BWM will turn everyone evil, which works pretty well for Garlic Junior’s scheme to conquer the world.    It kind of makes me wonder why Kami held on to the bottle all this time.   Maybe there just wasn’t a safe way to dispose of it.   

I love the visuals of this episode.   The Garlic Junior Saga isn’t exactly Shakespeare, but it does offer some high-quality cartoonish supervillainy.   Garlic stormed the Lookout, deposed Kami, and now he’s dumped Evil Gas all over the world.    Big shots like King Piccolo, Frieza, and Vegeta would talk a lot about what they would do in the future, but Garlic’s already doing it.    He wished for immortality in his first appearance, and now it’s his second appearance he’s already conquered the world.   To be sure, his evil scheme really kind of goes downhill from this point, but the sheer amibition on this guy is a think to behold.   We don’t get to see just how his new world order was supposed to look, but we do get a bigger taste of it than most of the other villains ever did.   Just look at all that Bad Guy Juice just spilling off the Lookout.    The Lookout, that was once the vaguard for peace on Earth.   

Meanwhile, the good guys are all.. having a party, completely unaware that anything is wrong.   Oh, and Bulma’s red pants are back.   Enjoy it while it lasts, Bulma.   Enjoy it while it lasts. 

[uzyplus]

9. March 2019 Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress I'll write it tomorrow, coz I have time to do so all day + I'm too psychically unstable rn, feels like I'll cry any second now, even writing Inuyashiki in this state was a terror (2021 self: wtf you talking about?) current time: Day after around 2:57pm So I'll start with my reasons to watch this one. 1. I'm taking a break from these romance slice of life animes (still read like 60 romance manhuas weekly...) 2. Aimer - Ninelie & Egoist - Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress, which are both really incredible songs and it'd be a shame not to watch something that has Chelly's singing in it. 3. It simply got recommended to me~ Art style was soooo beautiful, I loved how well shaded it was, most of all the perfect hair style, then the whole character appearance and all the surrounding. So many people described this anime as Knk with zombies, which was quite accurate. People lived in villages surrounded by high walls, fearing the creatures in outside world ~titans/kabanes~ Mc becoming this hybrid and fights for same purpose, which is saving everyone. Actually I've seen similarities with GC as well, which is the last episode where Ikouma's ~our mc~ transformation due to releasing his whole power looks pretty much the same as what happens to Shu upon using his own void. Well I could compare it to many other animes, I mean plenty of them have mc that saves world... I could also compare it to World Embyo ~this way I'm just advertising my favorite manga~ in a sense of their appearance changing cooler once they become hybrids. I liked Ikouma's personality, he was fair, good, smart, clever and forgiving. He only wanted the best for his friends and basically everyone whether he knew him or not. I also liked how he always chased after Hozumi ~Mumei~ and wanted to save her from Biba ~that guy was seriously a creep~. It made me happy that he had his individual goal set on her besides the whole saving the world thing, oh well~~~ He first wanted to save the world, because he want's to stop the whole bloodshed coz of people fearing each other, but then he promised Hozumi to save a world, because of her ~Sooo I take it he's not the kind of mc that saves a world coz monsters killed his family, but because of his will to make a girl happy?~ Hozumi, I liked her appearance very much, she's super pretty and cute  (〃＾▽＾〃) Regarding her personality... we could say she lacked quite much at the beginning, she had wrong ideals that Biba taught her and hurt quite some people's feeling coz of it. She was constantly being deceived by Biba, which made me really sad and even sadder when it happened time and again. In the end she chose Ikoma's side, which made me very happy to see.

Regarding the last episode ~why did Biba give Ikuma his antidote~, 2 options seem right for me: 1. He had some kind of affection toward Mumei and didn't want to further hurt her feelings 2. He wanted to know who's side will she take Or perhaps both at once, which seems pretty right, coz why would he ever want her to chose him if not for his affection towards her ~maybe it was his ego as well?~ I really liked Ayame Kurusu ship and from characters I most liked Yukina's design. Most of story took place surrounding these trains - Koutetsujou ~oh wait it means iron fortress... just now realized how did the anime name become~ it was quite surprise for me ~I mean I never watch trailers and so, just a simple judging book by it's cover~ Somehow youtube managed to shift from Egoist - Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress, through ngnl, goblin slayer, Overlord openings to Darling in the Franxx (it took me less more 50 mins to write it to this point) There might be few more things I'll mention about the anime, which will be completely random without any kind of order to them. ~Well is there even any order in these review posts? I should create a stable form for them~ I liked the butterflies moment the most of all, that's why I choose just this picture to represent this post. The thing about Ikoma being an only blue butterfly among all the red butterflies makes me happy, it's visible that he's special to her and that he gives her hope to live on, even though bad memories hunt her. In the end when she was trying to wake him up I thought: You know how these princesses wake up after being kissed by prince.. .Try it! Try it! Try it!! Nope, she just started to shake with him more... ~my broken feelings, give them back to me~ I'm also looking forward to movie releasing around Summer 2019, depending on it's performance I could push this series onto a higher position (and youtube jumped onto Los!Los!Los! totally random) Right after completing this anime I started feeling really happy, sad, frustrated and dunno what else at once, I felt like crying, didn't happen tho and this state lasted for like 2, maybe up to 3 hours This is pretty much where I end it, coz Jingo Jungle Jungle forces me to beat into rhythm instead of thinking... (4:03pm) +3,5