#zack angles of death

[deathc-re]

zack is obsessed with you. from the top of your head to the bottom of your feet he worships every single inch of your body. the thought of anyone else touching you, the thought of anyone else even looking at you drives him into a quiet frenzie, blood boiling and hands itching for his scyth.

that's how you ended up here, late at night in the bathroom of some random convenience store. getting pushed up against the wall, his calloused hands covering your mouth and red eyes staring into yours dangerously.

"you like him huh? that fucking cashier?" he huffed, maneuvering his pants with his free hand. "you like how he looked at you and smiled? i bet he wants to fuck you, baby. y'know he can't, right?"

you nodded, feeling the heat rush between your legs. he moved his hand and took your lips for a kiss. he was hungry for you, starving, and you could hear it in his groans that came out like growls. he pulled away and smiled at you wickedly, before pushing you down to your knees and tapping his angry red tip against your lips. diligently, you opened your mouth and took him in, looking up at him with this eyes that drove him even crazier.

"oh you're just gorgeous." he breathed, reaching down to cup your face. you took more and more of him in, eyes screwing shut at the tight feeling in your throat.

he whimpered, grabbing your hair to guide your head. it usually started off slow, him letting you adjust to him, but not today. his pace was brutal, and you were sure he'd bruised the back of your throat. the tears at the corners of your eyes and gags that rang through bathroom only spurred him on further, the coil in his stomach loosening.

"ugh- fuck babe yk i love you right? hottest f-fucking thing to walk-" his voice came out pitchy and desperate. the heat you felt between your legs only grew with each of his praises.

suddenly he pulled you off him. with a huff you leaned back against the wall behind you, drool dripped down your chin, tears stained the corners of your eyes and cheeks, and you looked at him with confusion. he stroked himself at your look, grunts and moans spewing out of him in a tangle of sounds.

in a burst he leaked onto your face, hot ropes landing all over you. he let out a deep sigh, turning to lean against the wall with you, weakling placing himself back in his pants. you looked over at him with mild annoyance, wiping him off your face and standing to go rinse in the sink.

"where are you off to handsome? don't think i'd leave you hanging."

an: first request omg!! it's a male reader but i wasn't too specific so hopefully everyone can enjoy it 🗣️

not my best work but i'm writing this on the plane back from germany (i'm paranoid the lady behind me is reading this filth lmao)

[nightqueen1221]

Angels of death request zack x male reader who is innocent bubbly sweet and kind and is the most pure reincarnation of sunshine headcanons

-God, a side by side comparison most look so funny.

-Just a dude with a bloody hoodie and a scythe, next to a bright and happy man.

-And the fact that you have so much energy and emotion, but he hasn't killed you? It's a miracle.

-Zack isn't one to get embarrassed, but he is dumber than a rock, using that to your advantage is important.

-He gives into you more than other people, but that's only because you two are dating.

-Rachael is like a sister, or daughter to you guys. She is a bit confused on how the two of you are complete opposites. Yet, you're dating.

-She still favors Zack over you, only because she knew him longer. She doesn't ignore you or anything, but she goes to him if it's something more private.

-Zack questions how you're so happy all the damn time.

-"You know we could die anyway, and you're sittin' here smiling?"

-If you want hugs, he's... really aggressive. You could just be sitting down when all of a sudden, he just comes up from behind and pulls your head into his chest.

-Do not ask him for a kiss, he doesn't really like em. The most you'll probably get is on the cheek, and that would be him doing the action. He finds kisses oj the lips "gross" and "Why would you want to do that?"

-(I would also try and help him learn to read and write.)

-Once he begins reading and writing, he'll leave you little messages.

-"i LikE u"

-It's simple, but cute.

-He also loves to hear you laugh, and will do almost anything to try and make you do so.

-Laughing wasn't really in his childhood, but when it was, it was usually at him. Knowing that you're laugh with him makes him much better about himself.

[rosekyu]

꧁•⊹٭𝚁𝚊𝚢٭⊹•꧂

[arcwrath]

There's just something so pleasing about Zack's voice 😩

[bullet-clubs-bitch]

AEW Wrestlers Pregnancy Headcannons

Summary: AEW Wrestlers (Ft. Zack Sabre Jr and Nic Nemeth) reactions to finding out you are pregnant

Wrestlers mentioned: Kenny Omega, Nick Jackson, Matt Jackson, Jay White, Zack Sabre Jr, Nic Nemeth and Samoa Joe

Part 1 Part 2 Part 4 Main Masterlist

Kenny Omega

It wasn't a secret that Kenny didn't want kids

He didn't even want a long term relationship as he claimed he wanted to be 100% focused on wrestling.

That was until he met you, he was instanly headover heels in love with you. Yet his opinion on children never changed

When you found out you were pregnant you were terrfied

You didn't know how Kenny would react to the news.

When you told him he broke out in tears.

Deep down inside he always wanted to be a dad

Kenny would not leave you side during your whole pregnancy

He would talk to your growing bump and fall asleep listing to the baby's heart beat

Kenny is such a girl dad, he would be the best father

Of course his daughter would come out with Kenny's gorgous curls

Nick Jackson

When Nick found out you were pregnant he was in pure shock

The two of you always wanted children but it never seemed to work out

When you unexpectedly found out when you were pregnant you coudn't wait to tell Nick, knowing how happy he would be

Nick would be all over you during your pregnancy

He would'nt let you lift a finger, he would take such good care of you. He's such a sweetheart!

He would be a great father

Matt Jackson

When Matt thought you were messing with him when you told him you were pregant. He thought you were playing a joke, although there was a bit of fear in his eyes.

Not because you were pregnant but because you were just pregnant a few months ago. He was more confused on how you were already pregnant again.

Matt would definitely keep you locked away at home constany pregnant. I know he only has two kids but I know he definitely wanted like six.

He would show you off, he was so proud of creating a life with you

He would deffinitly brag about how he got you pregnant

Jay White

You stood looking at the pregnancy test in shock

You couldn't believe you were pregant, you were so young

Jay had just taken over bullet club, this was no time to be having a child

Jay had to find out the hard way that you were pregant because you thought it would be easier to hide it from him

When you confessed you were pregnant he was shocked on why you were so upset about it.

He thought it was a great thing that you were pregnant

Although young Jay (Jay without the beard) was not the best father he sure did try his best.

He loved playing with his son, the two of them were best friends and looked identical

You practically cloned your boyfriend

Zack Sabre Jr

When Zack found out you were pregnant he was confused, almost like he wasn't sure how the two of you could have possibly made a baby when he damm well knew how you made a baby.

Zack would be the paranoid dad

He would read every parenting book to make sure he was doind everything right

He would love that child to death and protect the hell out of them

At times it was like Zack was also pregnant because he swore he was getting your pregnancy symtoms

He would get you whatever you were craving at whatever time

Sometimes he would judge your weird food combinations

Zack is the dad who would be holding three cameras all at diffrent angles to get the perfect shot of your kids christmas concert

He would play with your kid for hours outside and whever you went out it was like he was preparing for a zombie apocalypse

The man carried everyting needed to preform open heart sugery on him at all times, it was almost concerining

Nic Nemeth

Nic always wanted to be a father but he accepted early on it just simply wasn't going to happen

Relationships just never seemed to work out for him, that was until he ran into you one day. And I mean ran into you. Nic had physically run into you at a show one day.

From the moment he saw you he fell in love, you were the girl of his dreams and he knew he couldn't mess this relationship up

For once Nic felt like thing would work out for him

When you told him you were pregnant it was the best day of his life

He coudn't wait to be a father! The thought of being a older dad never bothred Nic, he was just happy he could finally do the one thing he wanted most

He would build you a beautiful nursary and love that child so much

Samoa Joe

You just know Joe would be a massive teddy bear

He would take such good care of you and your baby

If someone even dared to look in your direction he would go into attack mode, he was exteemly overprotective in the best way possible

Joe would cater to your every need, going to get everything you were craving. Even if it was in the middle of the night.

Joe would be sympathetic during your pregnancy

He would probbaly eat all of your cravings with you so you didn't feel alone

He would confort you during all of your emotional outbirsts and show you so much love

This man's love language is acts of service and physical touch to you know he won't let you lift a finger during your pregnancy

[eddiesshovel]

From what I know t

The original (from what I know) is below the cut

[vancedis]

I don't really draw anything, so I'll show you the concept of a shield created in the likeness of a Calabrass, the first idea about it appeared 3 or even 4 years ago, but I took up the implementation only now....

DON'T COPY/USE IDEA (or I'll eat you...)

The red lines indicate the positions of the eyes of the seven seas

I'll show you the initial concepts below

The shield consists of plates layered on top of each other, its abilities are still in development, but here's what I've come up with at the moment: The sharp protrusions on the shield extend and slightly shift into an angle, creating blades like a shuriken.

This was created specifically for the Eye of Aria, when activated, one of the abilities just pushes out these protrusions and forms a stream of air that spins the shield, as a result of which you can send it flying and / or cause damage

One of the abilities of the Eye of Beru allows the shield to attract water to the inside, the owner can stand on it and travel across the sea without a ship or any other means of transportation

Blaze - shoot fire from the center of the shield - basic attack

I think with Desert, one thing will be like Zack's, like the shield will be covered with stones, strengthening its strength

And at the end I'll leave a list of what inspired me to create the shield:

1. Calabrass

2. The Wheel of Holy Death (Aztec culture)

3. Flyboard (thanks to the Fog)

I would like to say a special thank to my friend @freedomgolden for help in several details regarding the shield

[a-random-pillow]

When the Heating System Breaks

Despite Shinra being a muilt billion dollar business the heating system for the SOLDER floor breaks on what just so happens that to be the coldest day of the year.

Lazard is the first person to really feel the chill since he is not enhanced. Only compounded by the fact that his office has window that isn’t making his situation any warmer. On top of that he didn’t bother to bring a coat today because he toke the completely underground and completely insulated subway.

Angeal can hear the director’s teeth chattering as he walks by and his office, enchanced hearing you know. So Angeal peaks in (Angeal is still in a sleeveless top) and sees Lazard trying to work while freezing. Angeal is a good, honourable person who would not let another go cold if he can help it. So Angeal goes back to his room and gets is warmest sweat shirt and brings it to Lazard.

Lazard knowing Angeal is a good person who probably dosen’t haven any alt tier motives, accepts.

For a few hours, everything is fine, until the SOIlDERS start feeling the chill. Zack, remembering cold winters cuddled up with his family and their dogs during in front of the fire place descides the best course of action is to drag the blankets off as many beds as he can find and then bring all those blankets to the break room. The break room has no fire place but it dose have a bunch of comfy couches(thank Lazard for those).

The first one to join Zack in the break room is Genesis who came looking for his blankets. He storms in all angery and literally sparking, Zack realizes he has found his fire place. Thanks to some combat, a lot of negotiation and a promise to let Genesis play his audio copy of Loveless: Read by the Broadway cast, Zack convinces Genesis to stick around.

When Rouche sees this paradise in the break room he decides in that moment to dedicate the next 30 minutes of his life to run around the 1-2 solider floors to get as many people safe and warm as possible. Most people who come join the break room nest bring their own blankets and pillows, soon the whole room has been consumed by soft, warm and cuddly things.

When Angeal walks in to see this, he smiles and goes to make his famous hot chocolate.

Sephiroth had a similar idea but only with Genesis, Angeal and Zack instead of everyone but he can’t find them. So he is kinda sad when he goes to round them up, pillow and a bunch of his sweaters in hand and all of them being nowhere on sight or seemingly anywhere in their floor. In fact, no one seems to be anywhere in the SOILDER floors which is worrying. But thankfully he hears the sound of chatter and Loveless like a call form a Siren and finds the break room.

When Sephiroth joins in be isn’t really comfortable being so near so many people, so he carves out a small nook for himself in the corner of the room with only Genesis, Zack and Angeal allowed in. (Sephiroth gives Gen,Angl and Zack all one of his hoodies because he read on the web that hoodies form male friends are extremely warm and cozy. Especially if they come form a tall male friend)

Zack very dramatically declares that he needs to go find Cloud and dramatically opens the door, pretends to be buffered by winds before slowly walking into the hall.

The infantry still has heating but that doesn’t stop Zack form grabbing Cloud and dragging him back to the break room with him. Cloud realizes he is stuck here and join’s Sephiroth’s quite corner.

Angeal remebers Lazard an un-enhanced person who might me dead because of the cold(there was no chance of Lazard dying). When Angeal shows up Lazard is napping and Angeal thinks he might be dead and because Lazard is the only director SOILDER universally likes he kinda panics. Angeal picks him up which wakes up Lazard.

L: What are you doing?!?

A: Saving you! Good to see you are alive

L: why won’t I be?

A: you nearly froze to death??

L: I did not

A: …

L: can you just pick up my laptop before you drag me off to where ever you are planning to take me?

Angeal comes back with Lazard who he then wraps and blankets, gives hot chocolate and places in the middle of the SOILDERs. Lazard just roles with it and continues his work.

Later Rufus comes looking for Lazard because he thinks his secret brother might enjoy working in a warm office rather then this cold hell. He looks around and is rather concerned to see no one on the Soilder floor so he calls the Turks.

It takes five minutes to find the break room, Reno manages to take a few photos before he is noticed and chased out. Ten minutes later the heat returns and they all clean up the break room before heading back to their rooms. Expect for Cloud, Genesis, Angeal and Zack who Sephiroth brings to his room to order take out.

TEMPERATURE TEST: SUCESS

It appeared that the the failure of the heating system caused the Soilders to pool their resources and make a Base of operations within the break room. They used specific skills like Commander Rhpadous’e fire materia control to heat the room. They defended the base form any attacks and even brought in non-SOILDERS for support. Genral Sephiroth even joined although he allows Fair to take the lead, clearly a form of training.

Notes:

Vice President Shinra:

Before you do this again alert me, it would have been nice to develop better relationships with Director Lazard.

Turk Reno:

Lovely to see. they were like Owls. Like to see this again.

Professor Hojo:

I will ensure Sephiroth is not in the building next time this happens. Gifting iteams of clothing is a sigh of developing relationships. Also I demand somone get me somone of Commander Hewley’s hot chocolate.

Lazard looks up form the PDA he ‘borrowed’ form President Shinra’s desk. He wonders if he could kill them all the with poisoned hot chocolate.

[rottenpumpkin13]

Cid Highwind is offering Soldier free rides on the Tiny Bronco. But this is still when Cid liked to fly a little wild. How do they take it?

• Zack and Angeal go first.

• Zack is having the time of his life and treating the whole experience like a theme park ride. He's begging Cid to go faster and to do loops.

• Cid takes a liking to Zack and promises to let him fly the next round.

• Immediately upon hearing this Angeal starts screaming his head off and demanding to be let off.

• Sephiroth and Genesis go second.

• Genesis can't shut up about his will and testament. He has accepted death and is listing off his prized belongings and which one of his friends get to keep them.

• Sephiroth informs him that he does not, in fact, want to keep his collection of rare Loveless memorabilia.

• Genesis insults Sephiroth's lack of worldly possessions because he "doesn't have a personality to attach anything to"

• Sephiroth punches him in the face, knocks him out and now he's sedated for the rest of the ride.

• Sephiroth loves the landscape from that height and finds the view captivating. He wonders if he should take more trips where he gets to explore nature and see the planet from that angle. It's very grounding.

[pen-and-umbra]

It freaks me out that people fuckin revered Sephiroth while he was killing Wutaians, but when it were people in Nieblheim, he is suddenly a mass murderer?? like wtf. Those folks in Nibelheim effing KISSED the ground he walked on, wanting pics for posterity, to dine with him and whatnot. Um, helllooo?? You praised the guy for being good at his work, you considered hima goddamn hero BECAUSE he was a trained killer..but as soon as he turned on them they took off rose-tinted glasses and went OOOOH HE'S A MURDERER. Well guess what, he was and you were fine with it

I get what you're saying, and you make a reasonable point. For certain, there is an aspect of in-universe double standards being applied to Sephiroth and, by extension, the ShinRA and Wutai conflict. However, the way you phrased your idea is a touch crude, and it may mislead readers into thinking that you believe Nibelheim's inhabitants had it coming. So, as a preface, let me state unequivocally that they did not. They did not deserve it, regardless of how hypocritical or ignorant their ideas may have been. Now with that out of the way...

People in Nibelheim, Midgar, and pretty much anywhere ShinRA had established its turf saw Sephiroth as this larger-than-life hero who turned the tide of the Wutaian campaign (which, by the by, was a fabrication contrived to bolster ShinRA's recruiting numbers). It never occurred to the typical citizen that “being a war hero” entailed — directly or indirectly — murdering or otherwise harming people, potentially including civilians as collateral damage. Regular citizens, just like Nibelheim residents, in places just like Nibelheim. The difference was that the violence was happening off-screen and elsewhere. On Wutai's land — under false pretenses meant to conceal ShinRA's true goal of establishing an economic & power supply hegemony... Point being, it didn't involve them. The townpeople seemed utterly unaware of anything. Children like Cloud and Zack were transfixed by the romanticized notions of SOLDIER and war glory. Heck, even little Tifa during her water tower date with Cloud goes “SOLDIERs are heroes, heroes save people”. So when Sephiroth razes Nibelheim, people call him a monster, despite the fact that this is something they were okay with being done to *others*. Wutai, Rhadore—you name it. They regarded Sephiroth as if he were a celebrity, despite the fact that his trade and status as a Wutai war hero involved death and efficient destruction.

I suppose it is a testament to both Shinra's propaganda machine and the way society operates. An everyman is complacent and self-absorbed, relying heavily on the comfort of routine. It's very easy to cultivate a "us vs. them" and "rules for thee and not for me" mentality when you provide every gift of civilization, including jobs, amenities, and power supply, as well as exert control over the media to disseminate a favorable angle (all of which ShinRA is involved in). People in Midgar were certain of Wutai espionage machinations because Wutai was appointed as The Enemy, so to an average Joe ShinRA had every right to eliminate hostile foreign elements and their supposed allies, such as Avalanche. After all, ShinRA is the benefactor, Wutai is treacherous, and combat zone is far away, so who cares what happens there?

The same teenage Sephiroth appeared to struggle with reconciling killing Rhadoran youth and the elderly, and when Glenn questioned him, he reverted to spouting propaganda pieces supplied to him by ShinRA. Only after this does he begin to display signs of uncertainty in his actions, which Glenn notices. Or take Zack in Crisis Core for instance. It does not seem to register with him that by bombing Angeal's and Genesis' hometown ShinRA is pulling up a dirty black-op (and Rebirth further underscores that cover-ups were a regular ShinRA response, fake Nibelheim or Corel cleansing being such examples). He doesn't begin to seriously question their modus operandi until much later.

So to quote Barret, “screw ShinRA for deceiving honest folk” by brainwashing them and conditioning people to see the company as a sole source of good. Regardless of the ignorance and double standards that ShinRA city folk might have shown regarding Wutai and the nature of Sephiroth’s trade, Nibelheim is still a tragedy, and these people needn't have died. Just like people in Wutai needn't have died for ShinRA's lofty goals. That said, the way SE portrayed the average folk attitude is true to life and quite reflective of society. People care about whatever media tells them to care about and repeat whatever narrative is drilled into them. That's how it works.

👋 @pen-and-umbra

[lemonswoop]

You're not allowed to make fun of my play hours for rebirth. I was only mildly obsessed with this game.

Full journal entry and more art under the post

Start date: 2/29/2024

End date: 5/11/2024

Platform: ps5

Hours played: 156 hours

Rating: 4/5

I went into this game from the perspective of someone who has grown up with this game,from someone who accepted that this was a sequel and not a true remake. I was excited to see where the series would go from where remake left off. And boy, was this a very long adventure. This game was a BEHEMOTH! Where to even start...

Again, I think this game did not miss with its characters. They were as charming and lively as they were in part 1. One thing I loved most was Cloud himself. Cloud in the original was a broken and unreliable narrator, but with the game medium moving from pixels to 3D, letting Cliuds perspective shine seemed to be the focus and highlighted Cliuds crumbling mental state. Towards the end, Cloud went from unwell to downright scary. Creatively, I think the focus on Clouds warped perspective, that can't be entirely trusted, was a good move.

Now onto "that scene." The one everyone and their brother knew was coming. To me, that scene is the "Luke, I am your father" and "Snape kills Dumbledor" of gaming. It's hard to be in the gaming sphere and not know about it. And because of that, I'm probably going to have the unpopular opinion that it's not obligated to emotionally hit in the way that the original did. Actually, making it hit the same way it did in the original would be a near impossible, herculean creative task. It's damn near impossible to make an iconic moment that hinges on shock his hard when 90% of the audience it sitting around saying "-and this is the part where she's going to die" (I know I was guilty of that as the moment drew closer).

With that in mind, I think they made the correct creative call. They doubled down on Clouds broken and unreliable perspective instead of the original emotion players had 20 years prior. The whole scene is playing out from the pov of a man who barely has a grasp on reality instead of the shock and sadness present in the original. They chose to focus on the moments surrounding it, like the trials of the main cast living out their most traumatic moments (of which Barrets and Aeriths hit me particularly hard). Those moments hit way harder knowing what was about to come.

The themes of loss, to me, weren't in the inevitable. It was in the loss that surrounded the inevitable.

It was in the last ditch date before Aeriths death where nothing went right.

In Cloud, losing his sense of self and his unwillingness to accept loss.

In Zack's false sense of freedom and choice no matter what path he chose.

It's in the parties loss leading up to that moment and what they still stand to lose.

In the false hope of Biggs and Wedge surviving.

In the timeliness where Aerith doesn't join the life stream and can't cast Holy, a time where humanity accepted its inevitable end; a slow creeping death.

Thinking about that hit a lot harder than what I already knew was coming. Everything seems to be hammering home that despite their best efforts, fate is a lot harder to change than they thought. That loss is still the main overarching theme, even if the story of "how" is told differently. It was those moments that tended to hit me a lot harder.

Speaking of Clouds' character, there is one shot in particular that really stood out to me as well done. After Cloud gets ahold of the Black materia, Barret takes it from him. The shot of Cloud demanding it back is shot in Barrets' perspective, intentionally making Cloud look small and not totally in control from a simple camera switch. He looked like a petulant child. As a big appreciator of creative uses of camera angles to tell story, that one was just *chefs kiss*

This is a series I'm still very much along for the ride, and I have to let it play out. I have my gripes, as I always will even with my most beloved series, but so far, I'm pleased with how they played with expectations. The game play loop was fun enough for me to sink hours into and i got plenty of laugh out loud moments from this journey.

The wait for part 3 will be a long one!

"Loss... it engulfs fleeting moments of joy, transforms them into rage, sadness, and hatred."

[deathc-re]

masterlist!!

! indicates suggestive & !! indicated nsfw

multifandom hcs:

smoking you out !!

cream pies !!

cream pies pt2 !!

phone sex !!

he’s an asshole !

gym !!

sick reader !!

older bf !

house wife

one piece:

whole crew - headcanons !,

franky - mechanic franky !!,

usopp - oneshot !

doflamingo - oneshot !!,

crocodile - oneshot !!

jujutsu kaisen:

geto - ghost face geto !!,

choso - x afab!reader !!, house husband !, drabble !!

yuuji - drabble !!

yuta - yandere head canon !!

megumi - drabble !!

my hero academia:

shigaraki - october

aizawa - a good stuffing !!

fat gum - headcanon !!

angles of death:

zack - gn reader, male reader !!

black panther wakanda forever:

princess shuri - lemme take you home !!,

namor - relationship imagines !

spider man (across the spiderverse):

hobie - head canon 1 !!, head canon 2 !!

moon knight:

marc spector - drabble !!

demon slayer:

inosuke - request !!

cod:

könig - head canon !!

2024 all rights reserved to ©deathc-re !! do not translate, repost elsewhere, or steal/ plagiarize any of my works.

[itsdappleagain]

BARK BARK ITS FINALLY TIME FOR THE STOCKHOLM SYNDROME CAPER

not giving up on my trademark of being late for csweekly even though i vowed i wouldn't be late on this one. i have an excuse. i was doing audition prep/submission for a musical

OKAY ANYWAY

i think if i ever actually visited the belltower i would take damage just from being in the space

notes under the cut as always!

OKAY starting thoughts. this is. literally my favorite episode in the entire show. my favorite. im so fucking stoked you don't even know i love watching my blorbos get beat up. me 🤝rueitae

anyways. biting this episode and shaking it violently

i like that the faculty tie actually makes sense and they have solid motivations. it isnt just a plot device for a tie

love this shiot/angle of bellum btw so behold her. she is so amazing

okay hi. immediately stopping to go on a rant about the atmosphere in this caper. its. fucking. incredible. the scenery is so perfect. the right balance of beautiful and desolate, and it changes as the mood does. i could do this later but i will do it now because idk i want to its my post

notice as the episode goes on how as the tone gets darker in carmen's plotline, the scenery and mood around her gets colder and literally darker as well.

ivy's backgrounds, meanwhile, stay pretty light throughout because she has somewhat of a more comedic and hopeful storyline while carmen dies in a ditch somewhere.

also, as soon as carmen calls chief, the snow/light of the hologram/shot composition away from the dark trees shows that there is hope now

just....hope that is tinted with cop fingerprints all over it. i just GOD i fucking LOVE how you can VISUALLY SEE HOW HER LIFE IS GOING its reflected by the very environment around her. compare any shot after she gets acme in to the very last one i put in that set of five.

no moment is darker for carmen than when she gives up, on the brink of death, and calls for help, submitting herself to prison and interrogation in the hopes that even if vile wins today, she can somehow survive to take them down again another day.

man, i am barely a minute into the actual episode and i have a lot to say. that trend will continue. sorry not sorry. back to the actual liveblogging.

fun fact the first time i watched this episode i did not notice the acme agents on top of the building watching "carmen"

i love the little hints dropped to audience members who arent entirely in the know yet (7 year olds) that its ivy, not carmen, and that something is up here. lack of gigantic poofy brown hair, different stature, ivys little smile as she goes past. of course, if you're obsessive like me, youve memorized every characters outline and can tell even with wigs on

OH hey my favorite acme agent hang on

its her. she is drop dead gorgeous and has a nose piercing. she also i think gets all of one line in the s4 opener telling crackle to do whatever (or maybe its her partner but anyway i love her)

I have already earned from her

have you been GAY for twenty years chief? julia has

julia slays so hard in this episode. wish devineaux stayed dead longer because she thrives when she's by herself

episode is literally so gorgeous

i love zari just being like oh my god this bitches gay. bad for them

that soft little "i should have known" smile julia does when carmen puts her hand on her shoulder guts me like an animal

live acme (ants to classify and monitor evildoers) reaction

hey!! next time ivy gets into a frozen adventure with carmen in germany she gets an earbud upgrade :D

zack too!!

that "but powerful" line is literally gay. happy pride month from ivy "muscles" "milady" "i feel powerful dressing in my girlfriend's clothing" lastname

obsessed with zack's little finger wiggles to emulate typing when he imitates player

i love just how. rrgh casual they are. yes carmen is super serious and focused this caper (for good reason. launch codes) but they get in a little. julia notices something small about carmen and that she's cold and the playful tone in the reply from carmen before everything kind of goes to shit. "had to loan my coat once I spotted your reinforcements!" its just a bit of information but its some that she trusts julia with. she asks julia if chief is listening but if she was. carmen would have already blown ivy's cover. i know she stole the pen for good measure but seriously she TRUSTS her

i love how julia pats her jacket and then does not react in the slightest she was just making sure that was HER pen not someone else's

ivy being horrible in snow gag is the best part of this episode

i love julia showing off. she doesnt get to infodump to anyone else but she knows carmen will appreciate it. and shes trying to be coy about knowing what carmen is there to do (sorry jules. you would have been right any other time)

i also like that as julia is infodumping shes absorbing MORE by walking backwards and gazing around the city hall

fun fact: i always wondered how the hell the acme agents got into/hid in the hall without anyone seeing them but there are doors in between all of those pillars!

also

this hallway does in fact exist! i mean considering the cs team probably went there to location scout in person (see below picture of duane and the team in san fran) it makes sense!!

anyway. should i made an "only vaguely related tangents" tally counter for these things at the end of the post lmao

i love how super serious carmen gets here. this episode is so much more mature in its theming than some other episodes. from the launch codes to the fakeout suicide to the continued death before capture thing carmen has going on. man. i cant tell if ivys comic relief section is good for lightheartedness or tonal whiplash lmao

she has for a split second the look of a mother who just heard her child say "i frew up"

ARGH and i also love how literally nothing julia can say in that time will help. she tries- oh, she tries- but "its not what you think" mistakenly sounds like she was still in on it. it looks, for the moment, like julia was trying to distract her or this acme agent missed her cue or something. of course later in the ep carmen has plennnty of time

interestingly cs does away with the doors in between the pillars for a more ethereal and sophisticated look but there are doors in my heart

i love how carmen turns to run sideways. girl even if there weren't acme agents there where were you going

i also just fucking love carmen's completely silent analysis once shit gets really serious. she calculates and recalculates what she needs to do to survive here. and she's RUTHLESS about it. i think this is kind of the one time we really see her vile training come out in comparison to someone other than vile itself. she takes those acme agents OUT

part of me wonders if carmen, in that little pause by the door, thought that maybe her chances were better backtracking but she didn't want to have to hurt jules to get out. maybe im just gay and wistful idk BUT okay here's my reasoning!! hang on! stay with me!! carmen equals BAD in tight spaces. saw it in rio, saw it in nz, saw it in poitiers. its everywhere- she does better with more space. however, she does like her high grounds, so honestly this is pure headcanon but like,,, not wanting to hurt julia. send post

also you can see in the background julia TAKING OFF after the other agents....no gun drawn of course

this fight scene with carmen is so fucking fantastic

she never. NEVER. EVER does full fight scenes where she does a lot of offensive but this situation is so different. she SPRINTS at that bitch she holds him HOSTAGE and while of course she's acting so that she doesn't get caught the fight almost portrays her a little villainously with the trail of bodies she leaves behind her as she goes

ALSO THAT FLIP OFF THE WALL MOVE IS SO DAMN COOL. she tricks the acme agent into gassing herself almost effortlessly and only takes a split second to coldly look behind her to make sure there's no one else coming before she takes off again

and then the other three who didnt get knocked out start going after her again which distracts her just enough to let zari catch her with the shot

the shaky "camera" and blurred vision pov as carmen fades in and out of consciousness while instinct alone keeps her going up the stairs is just ARGH chefs kiss

fun fact zari's "there after her" line gets reused in the series finale

btw carmen falling of the tower scared me so bad when i first watched this at like 13. suicide fakeout <3 scared me so bad

also how the camera keeps moving even when carmen doesnt even seem to be in the picture anymore before her glider catches up with it. top. tier

and then the stockholm music kicks in. hoo mama the music in this episode is fucking unparalleled. that incessant, chilling, repetitive string instrument motif as carmen's situation begins to get really dire. aurgh.

carmen's continued pov as player starts getting really concerned about her and she fades in and out. carmen weaving all over the sky and crashing into shit grggrgrgr its so good

ivy getting tazed. yeah.

ivy can pass as an....argentinian.. right boys

player and zack when two out of four of their active teammates just went mia in the span of a minute: 👁️👄👁️

man do you think they thought it was an ambush or something. like i mean it was but an organized effort by one team. do you think zack was scared he would be next and that player would be left in the dark. anyway

the way moose picks ivy up by the scruff like a cat kills me

the citizens of stockholm on this day watching a foreign police strike happen at city hall and then a tourist get tazed, mugged, and kidnapped by some locals: 👁️👄👁️

IN WITH THE HIGH NOTES ON THE PIANO IN THAT SAME REPETITIVE, INCESSANT, CHILLING STYLE OF MUSIC THIS EPISODE HAS AS CARMNE LIES MOTIONLESS IN THE SNOW ARGEHDHDHGDGSDGSDHD

i really enjoy that they show us this desolate, still shot of carmen, completely motionless, trapped in a ravine, miles and miles away from the city. she doesnt wake up. its just the cold, harsh reality. and its starting to snow a lot harder.

julia just snatching the pen gets me every time

i love the emotion dropping out of chiefs tone once she sees the 5'2" pissed off lesbian on the other end

YES julia GO OFF she should have gotten to do so much more. she should have gotten to kill someone.

julia glancing back at zari when she says "chase her away and squander her trust" and zari turning away and balling her first is such a juicy little character moment

the venom in "we had an agreement." fhrjhgfejsjjd step on me

you know how people want that throwback spinoff series for the owl house with the lost moments. that but cs. shadowsan's malaysia mission, how the team operated and the jobs while carmen was recovering, more of black sheep's time at vile/her holdover year, her and player learning together once she tours around after escaping, the shanghai job (not the tsonts one), the cairo job, the swiss bank job. how julia got into law, how chase chose his name, more on carlotta and dexter, the two years after vile's defeat and before their reappearance, more of evil carmen, player's backstory as told in silver lion. there is. so much i want to see. tangent tally.

god. player's decision here is such a hard one. he's like sixteen, and he's potentially juggling the lives of two of his best friends with that line. the decision seems obvious, but in this case it is completely, entirely wrong. player's choice to save ivy instead of carmen damn near kills her, and there's no way he could have known. player guilt angst, please!

once again the music. thank you.

carmen's cry of pure pain as she moves juuust tickles something in my brain. she has no one to put on a brave face for and that crash landing HURT.

also how hoarse her voice is

the more groans of pain as she forces herself off the ground they are so good.

i love this episode for its look into carmen's psyche. so much of her is playing off of others, but in this one she is utterly alone. we see her thought processes in the worst of times with no one to fight but the weather and herself. fantastic shit. never forgiving sarcastic chorus for skimming over this episode and saying nothing happens did you watch it

the puff of breath when carmen says "player"!!!

carmen's tone when she goes "oookay." just is so good. gina did not skimp out on this performance and part of me wonders if she could have done better if she wasnt always trying to play the emotionless, suave hero figure and she let carmen be more human, like in this episode. carmen is seeing that she is injured, acme is trying to reach her, her glider is broken, she has no protection from the cold, and that player and any other help is completely out of range and she is not happy about it

carmen crying out when she slips even more when she's trying to climb its so tangible and delicious

FUN ANECODTE because i havent gone on enough tangents for this post already but the first time i ever saw this episode my dad came to pick me up for his half of the week right here. i had to leave the episode right here, with ivy kidnapped and mia and carmen alone in the frozen ravine, the acme pen blinking. i didnt have access to netflix to finish the episode. for. four. days. let me tell you. um. this episode literally did not let me sleep. that first night i was lying in bed i stayed up until like 3am just staring at the ceiling replaying the scenes and making theories. i was dry in the mouth. when i fell asleep i dreamed about it and kept waking up in the middle of the night. i cornered my dad and recounted the entire episode to him and then reeled off my theories to him. i reeled off my theories to my friends. i was literally consumed by the ending of this episode that i could not see. it was Not Healthy and it impacted me VERY HEAVILY as you can see.

but anyway my one theory was that carmen was going to be forced to call acme for help and be arrested because they kept doing closeups on the pen. good job, thirteen year old me. the foreshadowing worked.

back to the episode

ivys literally so cute in this episode

look at her.

ottoman has chihuahua vibes

the ice lodge staff watching two guys drag some poor red haired white bitch into the hotel like a sack of potatos: im sure shes fine they probably told them she was drunk lmao

im goosebumping something wicked here is one of the phrases of all time

DUMSKALLE

that raw, desperate "no" and scream from carmen is so good. that fall hurt five thousand times more because it was a failure. and also she probably just broke all the ribs that weren't broken before

it took me a few watches originally to see that carmen hits her glider on the way down. first time around i was like where tf did she get that wack ass blanket

draw me like one of your moose boys

moose boy unironically seems like a nice guy who got dragged into this by otter

can you imagine if they showed up with ivy and were like HAHA. CARMEN SANDIEGO. what would the faculty do with this poor white girl who is definitely not carmen. probably wipe her memory and boot out otter and moose but can you imagine their reactions

MOOSE BOY IS VOICED BY SONIC THE HEDGEHOG?? SCREAMING

or maybe it was right here that i got cut off with the panning shot of the pen and carmen sitting away from it staring at it. whatever it was but anyway yeah

the sadness and defeat as carmen shivers and tells this imaginary chief that vile is winning today either way just kills me i love it so much. carmen's death before capture ideology (almost. capture wins but it almost doesnt)

LAUNCH CODES? AS IN NUCYULAH?

also team red. didnt know what was on the data crystal!! they didnt know what the handoff was!!! they just knew it was fucking serious and that makes this all the more scary. had ivy not gotten kidnapped they would have missed it. i mean carmen would have probably tried to drag her foot on deaths doorstep ass over to the ice lodge to try anyway but she would have gotten triple pulverized

someone swinging (insert wieldy object) at a gigantic villain and it doing nothing is my favorite battle trope

more ivy appreciation

she said NOPE

ivy is literally so cool in this episode. she's still herself but she's trying to channel carmen and fill her gigantic shoes by making her proud. but she isnt carmen, and thats okay. she ends up doing it with a mix of carmen's help and her own goofy, clumsy style

AND IVYS TWANGY LITTLE VERSION OF CARMENS THEME AS SHE SUITS UP. ITS AWESOME

again. ivy being terrible on ice gag is the best. winters in boston must have been torture

man it doesnt even show all of it but you can see the agonizing that went into carmen's decision to call acme. once she makes it she doesnt hesitate in grabbing and clicking it. she does it seamlessly and with resignation. shes already fought with herself enough in her own head.

carmen: literally in the middle of the woods, shaking like a travelling fair rollercoaster ride, and bleeding from a thousand cuts chief: oh hey! sorry about that

MAN CARMEN THREW THAT PEN A LONG WAY

i also like that carmen has to heave herself up from sitting, and that she's only standing as a last display of control when every other ounce of it has been ripped from her. she has to lean on the tree, still, even to manage it. as soon as she pushes off of that tree and starts walking towards chief she collapses.

chief those business negotiations. can you wait

i do appreciate that chief doesnt play dumb or think carmen is dumb. she's been calling that pen for as long as carmens been staring at it. she knows carmen knows what calling her means and doesnt try to hide that theyre coming for her.

haha. where in the world is carmen sandiego reference. get it

MAN AND THEN EVERYTHING GETS SOO BAD. you realize just how serious this is when carmen drops the tough act and just reaches out. she does a quip, but her face is just hopeless and she drops like a STONE. she was barely hanging on. already dumped this onto rueitae's post but i think that as soon as she knew she'd done everything she could do and had exhausted every single option except dying on the spot. well. she didnt have a reason to hang on anymore. she gave up every single ounce of control to chief when she clicked that pen and her body needed to shut down to save her. so so so good

i really really like chief running over and hesitating before she puts her "hand" on carmens shoulder. she knows she cant do anything, but she can pretend and she can hope

i really do think she was concerned about carmen here, not just about the intel she was potentially losing. this scene mirrors her past with wolfe nearly perfectly, and it NEVER gets talked about. once again a call chief made on a person who turned out to have innocent intentions (gun was really car keys, julia going off the grid was really just her and carmen talking it out) gets them killed- or, in carmen's case, almost. chief, this time, has the power to save her and fix this mistake. parallels are also fun because obviously carmen is wolfe's daughter so double angst.

ivy immediately switching to suspicious spy face after she slams into the bar is so funny

YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW OFTEN I USED TO JUST RANDOMLY SAY "hello, im shady mcshade from some sleazy rogue nation, check out my briefcase full of untraceable cash!" to just RANDOM PEOPLE IN MY LIFE with NO CONTEXT

the bartender is not paid enough for this

I LOVE THE LADY WHO JUST GETS TF OUTTA THERE WHEN IVY CRASHES INTO HER CHAIR

the little trill of carmens triumph theme when ivy looks at the grappling hook is so good

girl. ivy. you missed that REALLY BADLY for someone who threw an anchor up three stories with pinpoint accuracy like a couple years ago

poor ivy she was doing so well with the quips and the competence until she announced it to the entire ice lodge

warrior cats girls on the playground

ivys unhinged scream as she barells towards otter is so fantastic

it would really have super sucked if zack had run ivy over

again. this episode is so beautiful

i love that otter and moose would normally have never even been glanced at for an episode because they suck so bad but because it was untrained baby ivy (who still kicked their asses) they could be there also who assigned them the nuclear fucking launch codes. who did that

oh man you can see the smile drop off ivys face when zack asks where they can find carmen. she doesnt even think that carmen is still missing. she probably thinks carmens back on track by now, not that it would be HOURS later and shes still missing.

zack getting to ivy on the other side of stockholm: 🐌🐌🐌 zack getting to carmen twice as far away in the middle of the woods: 🦔 (too lazy to find sonic meme. sonic meme.)

julia just giving zari the most disappointed look when zari kicks carmen when shes down

FUN FACT OF THE DAY! in the original storyboards, julia and zari were supposed to get a SHOOKETH reaction shot when chief offers carmen a way out with z and i. they cut it. rude.

the pen lowering down to reveal julia behind it has always felt like such an important shot and i dont know why. like theres some symbolism im majorly missing out on there

ahh, the heartbroken look between friends

AGAIN this episode punches you like an elephant on steroids with that quiet "is she going to make it?" CARMEN IS ON THE BRINK. OF DEATH. AND HER FRIENDS ARENT EVEN CERTAIN SHES GOING TO MAKE IT THROUGH THE NIGHT. MAN. it raises the stakes up so high like obviously she wont die but in a tvy7 kids cartoon this is so fucking serious

carmen, delirious with the cold and pain, wondering if someone made a clone of her:

addressing all groups of people from now on as "student body most vile"

hey vile has a sick waterfall wall

it is really interesting that they do in fact shut down the academy. no one is allowed at the castle anymore once they move there. its also cool that in s4 because bellum doesnt have to be there teaching she can go to the himalayas and tinker full time!

wow. zuko and luz are in that crowd <3

okay. so. best episode ever. i love it so much and ive already gushed about it way too much so i wont keep you much longer.

tangent tally final count: like at least five it depends how specific you are

sorry about how long this is take it up with a brick wall it will be remorseful than me

[nextstopwonderland]

Masterlist of Bryan/Nigel content I've posted: part 1

Click here for additional masterlists:

Graphics

(Original post with the song lyrics / quotes)

(Original post with quote)

(Original post)

Video clips

Post-2 out of 3 falls match clip + protective Nigel supercut

“You don’t want to see Desmond Wolfe vs. Lloyd Boner?”

In which they slap each other then shake hands

Bryan Danielson & Nigel McGuinness’s promos ahead of their AWF WSW match “International Assault 2” - June 1, 2007

And another AWF promo

Bryan and Nigel’s entrance at NOAH in Japan July 2007

Video of Nigel talking about his love at first sight prior to diving into the Clamdigger origin

Promo after their first singles match

Those sexually charged handshakes tho

Nigel pulls Bryan’s pigtails while also calling him the GOAT

Nigel with Monkey ‘Brittle’ Danielson at All In Fanfest

“Oh he’s fine to wrestle now is he?”

“Nigel McGuinness has succinctly pointed out, many times at this point, that we have 206 bones in our body, and 205 of mine are perfectly okay

Bryan and Zack and Nigel and mox

Nigel meets yarn Danielson

“Yeah, darling, but it’s not your fault” - Bryan and Nigel, post last ROH match (includes photos)

“We’re both here for the same goal.” (Includes screencaps and gifs) aka the one that looks like a porn setup

Nigel and mox on wrestledream commentary

“If it weren’t for Clamdigger brittle Bryan Danielson I would’ve had that match”

“You need me to take care of this for you Nigel?”

In which Nigel is finally confronted on collision by Kevin and Tony about wanting to wrestle Bryan

“You know, Nigel doesn’t like him.” Danny talks Bryan, Daddy Magic brings up Nigel

Tag team comedic gold in ROH

“Are you okay?” - wxw clip

“Looking at me like that!” - in which we get our first official aew interaction

“Does it hurt??” - interaction number 2

“I would love to wrestle Nigel … I worry about fan expectations” - in which Bryan finally addresses Wembley this year, and lies some

“The other night after Collision ended Bryan Danielson, Nigel McGuinness and I sat in the back and talked for an hour.” - Tony S talks about Bryan & Nigel

Video compilations/fanvids

2023 Bryan and Nigel talking about potentially facing each other again (intercut with some 2006 clips)

“There’s something about Bryan Danielson” (video/audio edit)

🎶two of a kind, we’ll find a way🎶 - fanvid set to Slide Away by Oasis

Video compilation of the nigel talking about Bryan parts of aew unrestricted podcast

Pre and post match moments - first in-ring match (trios)

Compilation of Bryan and Nigel talking about Bryan’s 205 good bones + how magic and professional wrestling are intertwined

Nigel being unhinged on commentary

“That’s Dragon’s favorite perch”

Death match supercut

Collision roast supercut (feat ZSJ)

Supercut of Bryan and Nigel from Wrestling Road Diaries (and Nigel once again talking about that certain something of Bryan’s)

Another wrestling road diaries supercut (mostly Bryan) with some screencaps

Tag team supercut

“You’re obsessed with trying to one-up me, aren’t you?”

“I’ve seen that look on Dragon’s face before”

“You don’t meet many people like that…”

Compilation of Bryan parts of Nigel’s HEY(EW) ep

“Yeah darling but it’s not your fault.” - yet another camera angle of this moment, edited with other footage

“Out of the ring, we bicker a lot.” - another compilation of some WRD clips

Audio posts

Nigel’s favorite career moment of course features Bryan (includes interview text, January 2023)

Nigel talks about Bryan's charisma, clamdigging, and how only one of his bones is broken (August 2023)

“I had this very strange sensation” (May 2021)

Sweet nothings from Nigel (circa 2009)

“I enjoy making fun of him.” (Audio edit, February 2024)

Part 2

[puroresu-musings]

NJPW NEW YEAR DASH!! 2024 Review (Jan 5th, Sumida Ward Gymnasium, Tokyo)

NJPW World TV Championship - Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. Ryusuke Taguchi **1/2

Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI vs. Kaito Kiyomiya & Ryohei Oiwa ***

El Phantasmo & Hikuleo vs. Yuto Nakashima & Oskar Leube **1/2

Tama Tonga, Shota Umino, El Desperado, Master Wato, Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma vs. EVIL, Ren Narita, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, SHO, Yujiro Takahashi & Dick Togo *1/2

Will Ospreay, Jeff Cobb, HENARE, TJP & Frencesco Akira vs. David Finlay, Gabe Kidd, Alex Coughlin, Clark Conners & Drilla Moloney ****

Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi, Yota Tsuji, Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI vs. SANADA, Taichi, Yuya Uemura, DOUKI & TAKA Michinku **1/4

KOPW 2024 Championship ~ Pinfall Only 10 Minute Sprint - Toru Yano vs. Great-O-Khan vs. YOH vs. Taiji Ishimori *1/2

Kazuchika Okada, Bryan Danielson, Jon Moxley & Tomohiro Ishii vs. Zack Sabre Jr., Mikey Nicholls, Shane Haste & Kosei Fujita ***3/4

Photos.

This was your typically fun, brisk NEW YEAR DASH!! show, that was as always was more about the angles and story progressions into the year ahead (or indeed, lack there of) as opposed to great matches or anything. Debuting in the Sumida Ward Gym, the show was a mystery card, with the matches only becoming apparent once the participants entered. Things kicked off with Tanahashi defending the World TV Title against Ryusuke Taguchi, in an inoffensive, but totally superfluous opener. It only went 5:40, and was pretty much all your typical Taguchi comedy bout, which Tana obviously won with a cradle. The post match was eventful as a video aired of none other than Matt Riddle challenging Tanahashi, so that's certainly an interesting development. Tana claimed to have no idea who Riddle was. Next up, NOAH Ace Kiyomiya and NJ Young Lion Oiwa put in a losing effort against former tag champs Bishamon. This was a nice little match which saw Goto pin Oiwa after the Shoto in 7:40.

The next outing was Young Lion's Nakashima and Leube's official last match before their excursion. They took on the new Tag Champs, ELP and Hikuleo in a standard tag match. Phantasmo pinned Yuto at the 8 minute mark with Thunder Kiss 86. After bidding the Young Lions farewell, Chase Owens attacked the champions, and announced himself and KENTA as their next challengers. Fab. It was 12 man tag action next as the entire House of Torture took on the New Japan Babyface All-Stars. This was pretty bad, and devolved into the usual HoT nonsense. Umino pinned Togo in 8 minutes after a Death Rider, then the heels beat everyone down in the post match. Narita focussed on Shota, so their feud continues, Kanemaru laid out Despy with a whiskey bottle, so there's his next Jr. Title challenger, and EVIL laid out Tama, cut his hair, and posed with the NEVER Title, which he then stole. I can't possibly pretend that any of these pairings interest me in the slightest, but if there's one positive, it's that at least EVIL isn't anywhere near the main event scene.

United Empire battled the Bullet Club War Dogs next in a 10 man. This was all excellent. The match itself only went 5:10, but it was all-action and super intense; they brawled around the building, Akira hit a balcony dive, Connors Speared and beatdown the referee, Gabe Kidd juiced a gusher after hitting the exposed buckles, the War Dogs all threw chairs and guardrails from the crowd into the ring, and the match was thrown out, ruled a No Contest. There was a crazy post-match beatdown, which included the heels trying to gouge Akira's eye out with a metal object, and he juiced too. Just when it looked like they were done, the UE fought back and cleared house, only for Gedo to blindside Ospreay with a lowblow. They were about to take him out when TJP made the save by Misting Finlay, and Ospreay hit Gedo with a running Powerbomb through an upright table in the corner. Ospreay then said his last night in New Japan is New Beginning in Osaka on February 11th, and challenged all 5 guys to 10 man war fare, and he'd let Finlay choose the stipulation. The new Global Champion chose a Cage Match, so that should be outstanding stuff. This was the highlight of the show by far.

LIJ and Just Five Guys faced off next in a total House Show affair. It wasn't bad, but certainly wasn't good, and the post match didn't fill me with much excitement. TAKA scored his first win in maybe 15 years when he pinned BUSHI with a Michinoku Driver II at 8:47. The post match saw SANADA challenge Naito to a rematch (meh). I'd much rather someone else challenge for the World Heavyweight belt at this point, maybe even Taichi, but this was the inevitable issue with putting the belt back on Naito. There just aren't many/any fresh matches for him. The 2024 KOPW Champion was decided in the next match, which was a pinfalls only 10 minute sprint. This sucked, the crowd was dead, the action uninspired and even though it only went 10 minutes, it felt 30. After O-Khan pinned everyone, Ishimori snuck in, stole a pin, then ran away to beat the clock and win the Championship. Whatever. I think this belt is way past its Use By date now.

And then it was main event time, as the Dream Team of Okada, Ishii, Mox and Danielson took on the TMDK guys. This was lots of fun, everyone looked great and all the individual stories made for a compelling watch. Ishii tore the house down every time he got in there, and Danielson and ZSJ's exchanges were the best wrestling on the show. Obviously. The finish saw Haste and Nicholls put Ishii away with the Tank Buster whilst Sabre had Danielson tied up in a Manjigatame at the 13:50 mark. The post match saw Zack challenge Danielson (now THAT'S a rematch I can get behind!), with both guys promising to tap each other out (despite all the talk of submissions, their last match ended in a pinfall), then Fujita said he, Nicholls and Haste were next for the NEVER 6 Man Titles. Okada was very annoyed at this, saying Fujita was in no way ready to face him, then they stared down Tanahashi on commentary to end and eventful show.

NDT

[janeiteoftheslums]

Now that Advent Children (Complete) is being released in theaters prior to FF7 Rebirth, and we know the events of that movie will remain canonically in line with the outcome of the Remake trilogy, I want to talk about some scenes that I find especially relevant to the upcoming title.

1. This one speaks for itself:

No way we won’t be seeing every angle of this gorgeous scene in Rebirth, and the devs want us to be excited for it.

2. When Cloud has a Geostigma attack at the place where Zack died, in which he hears Sephiroth say the following:

“Don’t pretend you’re sad… Why tremble with anger that’s not even there? Face it, Cloud… all you are is an empty puppet.”

Expect even more chilling lines from Sephiroth at the end of Rebirth.

3. When Cloud says to Aerith, “But… I let you die.”

We already know when and where. But how? How is it going to come about this time? And why is he so convinced it’s his fault? Those are my burning questions.

4. When we hear Aerith’s voice say, “I never blamed you, not once. You came for me. That’s all that matters.”

The words “I never blamed you” are in the past tense, one of many indications that Aerith’s consciousness has lived on in the Lifestream ever since her death. And just as Cloud came for her when she was being held at Shinra Tower in Remake, he’ll come for her again, even if he’s terrified of what he might do. Will the stakes be raised even higher this time?

5. When Cloud arrives on the scene during the attack on Edge and sees Denzel and Tifa in danger, he has mirroring visions of two tragedies in his past he couldn’t prevent: Zack charging in alone to his fateful stand against the Shinra army, and then this:

OK, we get it, this is still happening, but again, what else is going to lead up to this moment?

6. There are too many fun moments with the OG FF7 crew—all of them alive and well—to count: Barret being loud and bold as always, Yuffie getting queasy after parachuting in, Cid running like an old man, Cait Sith riding on Red XIII, Vincent’s broody, cape-flipping flair; and, of course, Tifa, taking center stage with her steadfast courage and commitment to those she loves. Not to mention the warm-hearted slapstick duo of Reno and Rude (sadly, Reno’s JP VA passed away in 2020 and the role wasn’t recast so he won’t appear much in Rebirth, but Elena will probably pick up the slack). And the hilarious banter (“Lassie, shut yer gob!”) on the airship while Cloud fights Kadaj. Imagine how much more these characters will be fleshed out, how many new interactions we’ll get!

7. At the very end, when Cloud is reunited with family and friends and has found forgiveness and peace with himself, he not only hears but sees Aerith and Zack together, bidding him a final farewell before they disappear into the Lifestream.

How are we to understand the conversations Cloud has with Aerith and Zack throughout the film? Are they really there together, or are they just in Cloud’s mind? If only Aerith, as a Cetra, can retain her consciousness in the Lifestream, how are she and Zack able to speak not only to Cloud but to each other, when they joke about Cloud being too big to adopt? I’m convinced Rebirth is leading up in some way to their reunion after death, and I can’t wait to see how it plays out.