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[prozd]

my favorite things this year

Best Games I Played in 2024

Balatro

2. Super Mario Bros. Wonder

3. Ace Attorney Investigations 2: Prosecutor's Gambit

4. Final Fantasy VI

5. The Walking Dead: The Final Season

6. Celeste

7. Portal 2

8. Yakuza 4

9. Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia

10. Yohane the Parhelion: Numazu in the Mirage

Best Shows I Watched in 2024

Delicious in Dungeon

2. Pluto

3. Game Changer

4. Sound! Euphonium 3

5. Pokemon Concierge

6. The Apothecary Diaries

7. Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu

8. Vinland Saga 2

9. Cyberpunk: Edgerunners

10. Skip and Loafer

Best Movies I Watched in 2024

Blue Giant

2. The Bad Guys

3. Klaus

4. Lu Over the Wall

5. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero

6. Wolfwalkers

7. Sound! Euphonium: Ensemble Contest

8. Ringing Bell

9. Wicked

10. Suzume

Best Board Games I Played in 2024

1. Ticket to Ride Legacy: Legends of the West

2. Charterstone

3. Slay the Spire: The Board Game

4. The King's Dilemma

5. Dune Imperium: Uprising

6. Thunder Road: Vendetta

7. Bullet <3

8. Clever 4Ever

9. Ubongo 3D

10. Loopin' Louie

[prozd]

my favorite things this year

Best Games I Played in 2023

1. Pokemon Scarlet

2. Luck Be a Landlord

3. Great Ace Attorney Chronicles

4. Meow Tower

5. Until Dawn

6. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team

7. Fire Emblem

8. Yakuza 3

9. Dragon Quest V

10. Final Fantasy III

also good: Aggretsuko Match 3, Dragon Quest II

Best Shows I Watched in 2023

1. Bocchi the Rock

2. Physical 100

3. The Devil's Plan

4. The Last of Us

5. Love Live Superstar

also good: One Piece (live-action)

Best Movies I Watched in 2023

1. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

2. Blackberry

3. John Wick: Chapter 4

4. RRR

5. Ride Your Wave

6. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem

7. The Shape of Water

8. Nimona

9. Promare

10. Heart and Yummie

also good: Conan O'Brien Can't Stop, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, The Lighthouse, Booksmart, Barbie, Miss Hokusai

Best Board Games I Played in 2023

1. Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion

2. Pandemic Legacy: Season 0

3. Welcome to the Moon

4. Two Rooms and a Boom

5. Kitchen Rush

6. My City

7. Pandemic Legacy: Season 2

8. Star Wars: The Deck-Building Game

9. Undaunted: North Africa

10. Dorfromantik: The Board Game

also good: Exit: The Game - The Gate Between Worlds, Anomia, Fabled Fruit, Monikers, Sky Team, Phantom Ink, Adrenaline, Honey Buzz, Godzilla: Tokyo Clash, Clever Cubed, Heat: Pedal to the Metal, Tales of the Arabian Nights, Poetry for Neanderthals, Legendary Encounters: The Matrix

[prozd]

my favorite things this year

Best Games I Played in 2022

1. Yakuza Kiwami 2

2. Pokemon Legends: Arceus

3. Vampire Survivors

4. Pokemon Snap

5. Kirby's Adventure

Best Shows I Watched in 2022

1. Ranking of Kings

2. We Are The Champions

3. Space Battleship Yamato 2199

4. Murderville

5. Aggretsuko 4

Best Movies I Watched in 2022

1. Turning Red

2. Shoplifters

3. Everything Everywhere All at Once

4. Luca

5. Marcel the Shell with Shoes On

6. On-Gaku: Our Sound

7. Drive My Car

8. Words Bubble Up Like Soda Pop

9. Jackass Forever

10. Glass Onion

also good: Bodies Bodies Bodies, Nope, Belfast, Barbarian, Uncut Gems, The Banshees of Inisherin

Best Board Games I Played in 2022

1. Clank! Catacombs

2. Forgotten Waters

3. Long Shot: The Dice Game

4. So Clover

5. Rolling Realms

6. Tyrants of the Underdark

7. Sniper Elite: The Board Game

8. Sidereal Confluence

9. Aeon's End: Legacy of Gravehold

10. Paleo

also good: Ark Nova, Eclipse: Second Dawn of the Galaxy, Spartacus: A Game of Blood and Treachery, Smartphone Inc, Aquatica, Dinosaur Island: Rawr n Write, Super-Skill Pinball: 4-cade, Flamecraft, Iki, Kanagawa, Trapwords, Insider, The Guild of Merchant Explorers

[prozd]

my favorite things this year

Best Games I Played in 2021

1. Hades

2. Her Story

3. Danganronpa V3

4. Super Mario Bros. 3

5. It Takes Two

6. Divinity II

7. Tacoma

8. A Short Hike

9. ABZU

10. Later Alligator

Best Shows I Watched in 2021

1. Aunty Donna's Big Ol House of Fun

2. Love Live Sunshine

3. Beastars 2

4. Harley Quinn

5. I Think You Should Leave With Tim Robinson

6. Ga-Ra-Ku-Ta: Mr. Stain on Junk Alley

7. Space Dandy

8. Squid Game

9. The Mandalorian

10. WandaVision

honorable mentions: His and Her Circumstances, My Neighbor Seki, Tonkatsu DJ Agetarou, Oddtaxi

Best Movies I Watched in 2021

1. Only Yesterday

2. Minari

3. The Suicide Squad

4. Sound! Euphonium The Movie

5. Paddington 2

6. Shirobako: The Movie

7. Birds of Prey

8. Jaws

9. Arachnophobia

10. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

honorable mentions: Tremors, Hush, Onward, Poltergeist, Spider-Man: No Way Home

Best Board Games I Played in 2021

1. Clank! Legacy

2. Lost Ruins of Arnak

3. Dune: Imperium

4. MicroMacro: Crime City

5. Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition

6. Summer Camp

7. Destinies

8. Paranormal Detectives

9. Maracaibo

10. Shards of Infinity

honorable mentions: Paladins of the West Kingdom, Star Wars: Outer Rim, PARKS, Project Elite, Calico

[prozd]

Bones of the Forgotten

For those unaware, when I was 12 years old, I used to write very gritty Mario fanfiction.  The only reason this exists is because we hit a charity milestone for Extra Life (which by the way you can still donate to here: https://www.extra-life.org/participant/450294)

I decided to write the sort of fanfiction that 12 year old me would've enjoyed writing, so here is my love letter to my youth.

A question block can come in handy in a variety of ways.  You just gotta know how to scrap it down.  Easily done enough with a precision focus Fire Flower blowtorch.  The first thing you gotta do is realize there's nothing bringing that sonuvabitch down; those fuckers float in the air forever no matter how much you push or pull 'em.  Instead, you gotta carve off pieces from it as it's floating up there. Awkward at first, but by the fiftieth time, it's fucking clockwork.

Melt down the pieces and you've got the golden goo perfect for crafting all sorts of nasty tools.  A bat made from question block has just enough lightness for a easy swing, but just enough density to still effectively break a kneecap.  A blade still won't pierce, say, a Chain Chomp, but it can at least pierce most Koopa shells.  Plus, some people just like the gold color; they think it looks sick.

I personally think the best use of question block goo is making bullets out of it.  They're denser than most others and they maintain their speed for longer. The only downside is they stand out if you leave them in a body at a crime scene, but that's irrelevant as long as you're cleaning up your messes properly.  If anyone had the time and resources to search the bottom of the sea near Rogueport Docks, I imagine you'd find a glittering trove of golden bullets scattered among the bones of the forgotten.

One of those bullets dances idly through my fingers as I listen to one of my subordinates, a Craw with the quite frankly unfortunate name of Garf, lament about his recent mistreatment by the Syndicate.

"Ishnail, they just stomped the shit out of us!  Gus and I, we weren't doin' NOTHIN' and those leafy fucks attacked us.  Everyone knows the Plaza's neutral territory, we gotta DO somethin' about this."

Craws get a bad rap, in my opinion.  They get labeled as savage, but I've always found them to be much more thoughtful than people would assume.  Even in this moment, as my eyes gaze upon Garf's tattered, bloodied vest and bandana, and his curved beak squawks in rage, I notice the slightest trace of tears at the very edges of his eyes.  Aw.

"Let me ask you one question, Garf."  Out of respect, Garf immediately goes silent. Again, thoughtful.  "Were you and Gus carrying your spears?"

"I......I mean.....we have to, it's part of Craw culture...."

"I'm well aware, but Garf, I'm sure YOU'RE well aware that no weapons are allowed in the Plaza.  I mean, at the very least, keep a goddamn gun hidden in your pocket, don't wave a fucking SPEAR around.  You're just asking for the Piantas to give you a beating."

I get up from the dingy sofa I've been lounging on and dust myself off.  "But I can't have Don Pianta thinking it's okay to fuck up my guys.  I'll have to have a word with the ol' mustachioed fuck."  I pat Garf on the cheek and wipe a tear away with my thumb.  He nods in appreciation.

I motion to two of my subordinates, a scrappy looking Goomba named Goomfrey and a laidback Hammer Brother named Hamma.  We step outside HQ and into the bustling, grimy streets of Rogueport's east side.  

As long as I've lived in Rogueport, it's always carried the smell of the sea in the air.  It's a welcome scent to me, having grown up in the Seaside Kingdom.  My mom was a Bubblainian; she raised me when my deadbeat Koopa dad left us, and what she gave me was the snail shell on my back and a love for the water.  Merchants shouting and the occasional "STOP, THIEF!" ring out as my muscle and I make our way through the Plaza.  We pass the gallows where the Shadow Queen's corpse was supposedly hung from one thousand years ago.  Fittingly gruesome lore for a city filled with murderous rat-bastards.

A sickly sweet scent starts to mingle with the smell of the sea and garbage I'm used to. It's an indication that we're entering the west side of Rogueport. Sure, it's a much tidier area than where the Robbos and I live; there may be fancy-ass things like "flowers" and "benches," how hoity-toity.  You can put lipstick on a Li'l Oink, but it still smells like shit.

We walk into Westside Goods.  There's no need for the customary password; Peeka, the Boo shopkeeper, knows why I'm here.  She opens up the back door, and we walk up the stairs in the back alley to Don Pianta's office.

"Ishnail, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

Don Pianta stands behind his desk; as much as I hate to admit it, his presence is overwhelming.  "And you brought friends, too?" he notes as he sees Goomfrey and Hamma.

If you want to live long in Rogueport, every time you enter a room, you have to mentally gauge 1. the quickest way to escape, 2. who you may need to disable and/or kill to escape, and 3. how easy that's all going to be.  Two giant yellow Pianta in suits stand guard at both sides of the Don's desk. A blue Pianta in a white suit, the Don's underboss Frankie, closes the door behind us.  

Piantas are not easy to injure, let alone kill; I know this from years of tangling with the Don's gang.  The little palm trees and skirts would make you think otherwise, but Piantas are naturally built like fucking dump trucks and hit just as hard.  Hamma's a Glitz Pit fighter, and I've seen what he can do with that hammer.  Goomfrey gets underestimated for his species, but his reputation precedes him; he has bitten off more fingers than your average Rogueportian.  Still, a fight against four Piantas, even with my question block bullets, would be brutal.  It's telling that you never see a Pianta with a weapon because nothing will kill you faster than simply their own fists.

"Your men attacked mine, Don.  And for what, carrying spears?  You and I both know that's bullshit."

"My men....have been on edge.  Your little Bandit friends have been scuttling around, picking too many pockets they shouldn't be.  Keep that shit on the East Side where it belongs, and we'll be fine."

As Don Pianta talks, he habitually cracks his knuckles.  Out of all the Piantas in the syndicate, Don Pianta is truly a mammoth; his muscles are barely contained by the suit he's wearing.  Honestly, if he wasn't my ultimate arch-nemesis in this town, shit, I'd fuck him.  I like my men beefy.

"Alright, Don.  I'll tell my boys to keep their weapons out of the plaza.  You and I both know no one benefits if we fight in the streets.  Bad business for both your establishments and mine.  Let's keep things quiet."

"Agreed," The Don extends a giant hand.  I shake it firmly.

I turn to leave with my muscle in tow.  As I open the door to leave, I hear a whisper.

"Get your slimy shell outta here, you fuck."

I pause.  I give Goomfrey the look, and he smirks.  Goomfrey's eyes quickly dart and I know he's already memorizing every little detail about the yellow Pianta who whispered the insult.  Without another word, I close the door behind me.

---

There's one more use for question block goo I forgot to mention.  It's perfect for weighing things down.  

I breathe in the salty seaport air; it's particularly sweet tonight.  The golden bullet dances between my fingers; I know it's a bad habit, but it's fun to fidget with.  It'll go to good use though.  I load it into my Fire Flower pistol with a few others and carefully attach the silencer.

"Now, listen, uh...what was his name again?"

"Paulie," says Goomfrey, standing to my side with a grin.

"That's right, Paulie.  I'm a pretty patient person, I think most people including your boss would agree, but I've got a real sore spot about the shell, ya know?  It's just, it reminds me of my dear old ma, and I love her to bits.  You understand, right?"

There is no response from Paulie due to his crushed windpipe courtesy of Hamma's hammer.  Quite frankly, I'm impressed he's still conscious from the pain.  He looks up at me from his crouching position eyes filled with hate, his hands and feet encased in reforged golden question blocks.  Piantas are heavy, so four blocks worth is safest.

"I did promise the dear Don that I'd keep things quiet, so let's cut to the chase." I point the gun at his forehead and before he can react, I fire three shots.  There's no need to prolong this shit; I'm not a sadist. Hamma and Goomfrey pick up the body and toss it off the port into the sea.

"For what it's worth, boss," says Hamma in a low, pleasant baritone.  "I like your shell.  Looks good on ya."

"Aww, thanks."

[prozd]

my favorite things this year

favorite video games

1. Dragon Quest XI 

2. Yakuza: Kiwami 

3. Firewatch 

4. The Stanley Parable 

5. What Remains of Edith Finch 

6. For the King 

7. Golf With Your Friends 

 8. Sayonara Wild Hearts 

9. Fall Guys 

10. Inside

also great: Journey, The Beginner’s Guide Mario’s Super Picross

favorite shows

1. Chihayafuru 3

2. What We Do in the Shadows

3. Bojack Horseman

4. Aggretsuko 3

5. Documental

6. Beastars

7. Run With the Wind

8. Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken

9. Mr. Tonegawa

10. Prison School

also great: The Promised Neverland, My Hero Academia 4, Vinland Saga, Love Live! School Idol Project

favorite movies

1. One Cut of the Dead

2. Liz and the Blue Bird

3. Shin Godzilla

4, John Mulaney and the Sack Lunch Bunch

5. In This Corner of the World

6. Knives Out

7. Portrait of a Lady on Fire

8. Little Women

9. Lady Bird

10. One Piece Movie 9: Episode of Chopper Plus

also great: Duel, Legend of the Galactic Heroes: Overture to a New War, Hamilton, Swiss Army Man

favorite board games

1. Perudo

2. 6 nimmt!

3. Wavelength

4. The Crew

5. Targi

6. Watergate

7. The Search for Planet X

8. The Isle of Cats

9. Azul: Summer Pavilion

10. Twice as Clever!

[prozd]

my favorite things this year

Here are my favorite things I consumed this year.

favorite movies

1. Parasite

2. The Farewell

3. John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum

4. Gerald's Game

5. Shazam

also good:  Us, Free Solo, Alien, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Steven Universe: The Movie, Cats Don't Dance, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

favorite video games

1. Fire Emblem: Three Houses 

2. Slay the Spire 

3. Yakuza 0 

4. Stardew Valley 

5. Pokemon Shield

also good: Tetris 99, Tetris Effect, Donut County

favorite shows

1. Mob Psycho 100 II 

2. Tuca and Bertie 

3. The Haunting of Hill House 

4. Devilman Crybaby 

5. My Hero Academia 3

also good: gen:LOCK, Megalo Box

favorite board games

1. Aeon's End

2. Zombicide: Green Horde

3. Space Base

4. Just One

5. The Mind

6. Zombicide: Black Plague

7. Legendary Encounters: An Alien Deck-Building Game

8. Undaunted: Normandy

9. This War of Mine: The Board Game

10. Sub Terra

11. Sagrada

12. Everdell

13. Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra

14. Welcome To...

15. Dice Town

16. That's Pretty Clever

17. The Quacks of Quedlinburg

18. Wildlands

19. Alchemists

20. ICECOOL

[prozd]

Did you do any voices in Tuca & Bertie? I'm on ep 7 and could have sworn Ultra-Sam and Larry the Bird were you, but IMDB lists a different SungWon Cho...

yeah, I submitted fixes, but I voice Ultra-Sam, Dirrtygoat, and Larry, as well as a newscaster and pageant kid in the final episode

[prozd]

Question- if we send you a game to play, do you keep it afterwards, or return it?

we keep it

[prozd]

So, what Fire Emblem game would you recommend for a first timer? I've got a New 3DS XL, for context.

awakening

[prozd]

According to imdb, you were a voice actor for ace attorney investigations? Is that real?

no, but I was Gregory Edgeworth in the fan translation of the second game

[prozd]

Rewatching your guys' Paper Mario playthrough for MAR 10~!

nice

[prozd]

What characters from DongoBongo 2 did you dislike?

kazuichi and mikan were probably my least favorite

[prozd]

I just want you to know that EVERY SINGLE TIME I see a Lucina art post or whatever, I mutter "Lasooona" under my breath. So thanks I guess.

you’re welcome

[prozd]

my favorite things this year

Here are my favorite things I consumed this year.

favorite movies

1. Into the Spider-Verse 

2. Won't You Be My Neighbor 

3. The Act of Killing 

4. Three Identical Strangers 

5. Black Panther 

6. The Death of Stalin 

7. The Anthem of the Heart 

8. My Life as a Zucchini 

9. Crazy Rich Asians 

10. The Look of Silence

also good: The Handmaiden, The Boy and the Beast, Paddington, Undefeated, Captain Underpants, Spotlight, Isle of Dogs, BlacKkKlansman

favorite video games

1. Super Smash Bros Ultimate

2. Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle

3. Fire Emblem Warriors

4. Card Crawl

5. Holedown

also good: Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, Battle Chef Brigade, Florence, Peggle Blast, Pokemon Quest

favorite anime

1. My Hero Academia 2

2. Aggretsuko

3. Full Metal Panic: Invisible Victory

4. Laid-Back Camp

5. A Place Further than the Universe

also good: Wotakoi, Tsuredure Children, Made in Abyss, Hinamatsuri, Land of the Lustrous

favorite TV shows

1. OK K.O.

2. Terrace House: Boys and Girls in the City

3. Barry

4. Tokyo Encounter

5. My Brother, My Brother and Me

also good: Craig of the Creek, The Good Place, The Crown

favorite board games

1. Pandemic Legacy: Season 1

2. Deception: Murder in Hong Kong

3. Time's Up! Title Recall

4. Azul

5. Clank!/Clank! In! Space!

6. Terraforming Mars

7. Secret Hitler

8. Mansions of Madness: Second Edition

9. One Night Ultimate Werewolf

10. Spyfall

11. Dixit

12. Five Tribes

13. Blood Rage

14. Legendary: Villains

15. Scythe

16. Lords of Waterdeep

17. Captain Sonar

18. Codenames Duet

19. Suburbia

20. Telestrations

[prozd]

Hey I really love your vines and sketches, and I've been watching the Ace Attorney play through on pbnt and it's the most spectacular thing I have ever seen.

glad you’re enjoying it

[prozd]

I may be misremembering, but didn't you do an audio post of the "great big bonkhonglaroos" post? Apologies for not being clearer about it

nope