#<- technically has the same/similar history as well

[lighthouseborn]

actually I don't know if I've said this on the blog before: modern verses Henry has a tricky thing going on with his travel sometimes because he was born on international waters and also may or may not have an official birth certificate i actually. i haven't done enough digging to decide one way or the other yet, but. the whole thing was very non-standard and sometimes causes problems, is what i do know.

[zalia]

Destiny Architecture

I went on a whole ramble about the architecture of the various factions in Destiny and thought I'd share it here. I'm not an architect, so my knowledge is basic when it comes to technical things, but hopefully it is interesting!

They did a fantastic job with the architecture of the different factions and what it says about them.

The Red Legion and Caiatl's Ascendency are all pragmatic, organised military designs - fortifications, the round buildings with windows on each side linked by trenches. Watchtowers. In the Arms Dealer strike, you have areas where there are loads of vehicles meticulously organised. They are prepared for the long haul, dug into the planets they land on, and they are proud of their machinery, both literal and metaphorica - it's all on display, the pistons and furnaces and engines. There are service shafts and hangars! It's all very practical (and makes the Glykon even more unnerving because the passages and service shafts don't make any practical sense in the way that they connect!).

Calus on the other hand... the Leviathan has the same base in terms of doors and the like, you can recognise some of the same basics - like the shapes of the doors etc. but the pragmatic things are hidden away - they're reminiscent of the servant quarters in old British stately homes - you need them for the place to function! But the people in charge don't want to see them. Calus wants to be surrounded by gold and riches and luxury and not think about the things and people that make it possible. It's always been something that I've thought of when it comes to his empire – he acts like all of it was a place of luxury and hedonism and art, but like the Roman Empire that inspired the culture, that luxury is truly only available to a few people, and is only possible because a much greater number of people are working to provide the materials and labour. We don't really hear or see much about the people the Empire conquered beyond the Psions, but were they living in such luxury? Probably not.

The Eliskni architecture all feels very cobbled together and makeshift - there are visible seams and bolts, spots where colours don't match. It's makeshift, which suits their history as a people who have been forced to flee and exist on scavenging for a long time. And there's always a lot of nautical theming going on too - rigging and nets and hoisted awnings like sails. They feel like places made by people who are expecting to need to pack up and leave at any minute. Everything tends to be rounded, which is particularly obvious when you see the Devils in Rise of Iron - everything is more angular because of SIVA and the Rasputin influence, even the shanks. I'd love it if we could get a look at the original Riis architecture.

The Hive are very gothic architecture with a dash of Gaudi (take a look at the Sagrada Família for what I'm thinking). High chambered ceilings, flying buttresses, all the carved figures and motifs - except when you get closer you realise that it's also uncomfortably organic. And it's also decaying – once you get inside the dreadnaught especially you find it full of piles of festering debris, wormspore growing from the corpses of thralls. There are spaces where anything could jump out at you. It's like a civilisation mocking the grand architecture of other species by warping it into something rotten (and also very gothic literature as well - the grand imposing gothic mansion with the dark secret and unpleasant history). The names of the locations in the Dreadnaught often tie-in with the architecture since a lot of them are religious: the portico, basillica, the crypts, the Cathedral of Dusk. They are a species worshipping Oryx, the very real and tangible god.

The Moon under Crota has a similar style, but where the Dradnaught is organic, the areas under the surface of the moon (outside the Red Keep) are more technological - there are still the flying buttresses and supports, the spikes and and pillars around the Hellmouth, but they're blockier, less rounded, stone and metal rather than chitin.

Savathun's Throne World has similar architecture, and returns to the organic feel of the Dradnaught, but in blinding white and red rather than browns. It's similar to the Leviathan in a way – the public areas are much cleaner feeling, regal and filled with Light, but when you dig down you can find the same rot and debris as the Dreadnaught (thinking especially of the 2nd mission of the Witch Queen campaign). Where the Dreadnaught was a mockery of other species, the Throne World feels like it's trying to copy them – this is what Savathun thinks the Light is, look she's changed, really! But in the end, it's more like a coat of paint slapped over a wall with a bad mold problem. The names also switch from kind of Catholic, to more magical and alchemical - Apothacary, altars, temples etc.

The Awoken are really doing the whole fantasy elf thing in a lot of ways, but more with stone than woodland than in Tolkien when we see the Dreaming City. Everything fits in seamlessly with the landscape (which makes sense since it was essentially created with wish magic to be exactly what Mara wanted!). The buildings follow the lines of mountains, pathways carved into crystal caves, the bridge which has supports like the branches of trees like they've grown up from the ground. And there's nature everywhere! But it's not a natural environment. Even when it seems like you're in nature, it's very cultivated - like the garden of a stately home which wants 'wilderness' so has landscaped it. It's also deceptive in the way you go from the 'wilderness' to these very high fantasy buildings, and then as you walk you see these technological marvels like the Oracle Engine, just integrated into it. The Dreaming City is very much portraying an image and is a very finely tuned machine in itself. I kind of wonder what the other Awoken settlements beyond the Dreaming City and the Vestian outpost look like.

Clovis Bray facilities are very minimalist and very obviously designed to make you think 'lab' and 'high technology'. He really wants you to see his stuff and have you think 'this is the future' in a way that draws 70s sci-fi ideas of the future - the way all the sharp edges are rounded off, the bright blocks of colour, the way all of the technology is very conspicuously on display, the massive windows that make all the conveyors and machinery visible. He wants to show off his stuff, and also make everyone who works there know that they're being watched. There's also the huge open spaces and massive drops like Eternity and Creation, which are utterly impractical but also feel infinite and are designed to make you go wow.

You see similar architecture on Neomuna (since Clovis was involved with the colonisation efforts) but on a much more human scale. They have a lot of the same components – the pillars and display screens, the curved bases of the walls – but they're softened with plants and murals, places to sit and socialise. It's not a lab, it's a city where people live. And also it's Neptune, they are a long way from the sun, so everything is bright and vibrant to make up for that. I think you can also see a lot of influence from the Ishtar Collective locations on Venus in Neomuna - they also tend to have a lot of display screens and neon and lots of spots for plants to grow. And then you get outside of the City and see the Veil Containment bunker and see the concrete and metal pragmatism that underpins the city.

The Iron Temple/Vostok is a place that is trying very hard to be a medieval castle with all of the statues and bonfires and the whole aesthetic of the Iron Lords. The statues of the Iron Lords all bear axes and swords. But when you look at it, you can see the very Soviet brutalist foundation of the place. So much of it is blocky concrete - the walls are squared off and unornamented, the observatory is concrete and metal. Every time I go in to where Tyra stands, I'm surprised that the pillar she's standing by is not round, because it's very easy to buy into the illusion they're projecting. There's also the concrete pillar that serves as vault and lights up when you approach - it has the technology, but like the Dreaming City, it's integrated into the landscape. Unlike the dreaming City, they really don't want to show you it.

Raputin's bunkers are just fantastic design in so many ways. They have a very clear shape (you can see the shape of a door and know immediately that this is something Warmind related), everything tends to be at right-angles. It's all very pragmatic and logically laid out. There is definitely technology there, and it's not really trying to hide, but it isn't showing off like Clovis does. Where Clovis is 70's aspirational sci-fi design, Rasputin architecture has a very Cold War vibe to it - none of the technology is flashy - it's chunky terminals running the most basic looking command line UI. It's thick cables and pipes and probably a million redundancies. The kind of tech which is designed to be found in a few centuries and still be reasonably functional. Also unhackable unless you are physically present. Rasputin is an AI so advanced that he can out-think the Vex, but his facilities are built to have the resilience of a Nokia 3310 phone, and are inspired by bunkers designed to survive nuclear war.

(I also think it's not accidental that the Warsats are made up of many angular shapes, especially triangles, trying to be a sphere, considering the whole motif of the pyramids vs the Traveller)

Pyramid Architecture is really really trying to pull off the sword logic 'pared down to remove anything extraneous' and present the idea of a universe united as one in its final shape... and is failing miserably at that. At first glance it's all straight clean lines, black stone, leaning towards brutalist, but they just can't keep it up – they're full of pillars serving no purpose, statues, coloured stone insets. Rhulk's pyramid is full of artwork painted onto the walls. There's so much symbolism built into them. They're incredibly ornate! Because as much as the Witness wants everyone to believe that it is one united force with one specific goal, it kind of isn't. It's made up of many many individuals. Even if those individuals that made it up all agreed on the final shape, it's nearly impossible to get one person to have a 100% consistent view of the universe, let alone hundreds! And especially in the Witness' pyramid ship in Root of Nightmares, you get the impression it's something of a mausoleum for its species and the other species its destroyed. There's lots of coffin-shaped and sized objects in there, and relics hidden away. It isn't as clean and focused as it would like the universe to think.

[originalartblog]

Answering some asks about the dad Murase lives AU under the cut because you are forcing me to think about what I've created (❤)

@inkingkitsune

Murase had to know about N's less-than-savoury work. He was hired as a security guard (thanks to his brother) for a military facility for which he was told to kill any trespassers on sight. And his brother had been legally dead for a decade! But the main difference between the two brothers is that while N will still do horrors in the name of his job, Murase has spent his life after the war trying to help people to atone for what he had to do to survive. I think having to face concrete proof of what his brother did/does, especially without the immediate pressure of war and survival to "justify" his actions, to a kid he's grown somewhat attached to? That would be really hard on him.

-

Frankly I had never heard of that theory before, and after considering it, I can't agree with it. The government has expressed barely any interest in Chuuya, N seems to have acted on his own. The PM has so many ability users, and abilities are so unknown to the general public, with or without Chuuya, it was an important move to make, and there was no normal legal way of getting it.

As for Oda... I fear he's going to suffer the same fate. In another post I did wonder if Mori would try to be more careful with Dazai, since we know he was very careful to nurture Chuuya's loyalty and bond to the mafia. But after thinking about it, while Mori felt bitter after Dark Era (please read the light novel), he says he would still do it because the permit was so important to get. Chuuya going away here wasn't his fault, so I see no reason he wouldn't do things especially differently. Maybe he'd feel even more bitter though.

-

If Oda dies the same way... it's a fun question. Dazai would leave, Dazai would still refuse to work for the government, so his options are limited. I can't imagine Chuuya leaving at 16, join the ADA, and the mafia not knowing a thing about it? So what would Dazai do? Chuuya left and joined a group and now that group is his only option in Yokohama. If he wants to join them, he'll still have to wait two years for his records to be erased and hidden. And he knows Chuuya is gonna be there, and he knows him!! How frustrating and stressful is that wait going to be?

I'd like Chuuya to be gone when Dazai first joins, so Entrance Exam can still take place in a similar way. Maybe he accompanied Ranpo on his contract out of town? I do wonder if he'd confront Dazai publicly or in private... I'm still not sure how much he told the ADA about his own origins.

-

I've decided that Chuuya leaves after the Dragon Head Conflict (after loosing a second set of friends in the same year), because this time, he has someone waiting for him to offer him an out. And this is interesting from a skk point of view. At that point, Dazai has already met both Oda and Ango, and technically, Double Black has made a name of themselves. Chuuya would be leaving at the creation/peak of Double Black, barely giving it enough time to get their name. But all that we know (so far) of what they were up to as teenagers has happened already! And Dazai has met Oda and Ango, he has a support system now! They'll be fine. Well, as fine as their canon counterparts anyway.

This is also funny because their "history" is less than two years of absolute hell, then a 5/6-year gap, and suddenly they're coworkers again.

-

Honestly I don't know if Murase would have an opportunity to see it or its repercussions? I doubt he saw Chuuya directly after Verlaine (you know, mafia and all that), and I think Chuuya would be the one to seek him out after the DHC. I truly think you could count the amount of times Corruption was maybe used by Double Black in canon back then on one hand, and in this AU, it's literally only twice. Unless Asagiri planned for another big event and hasn't told us yet, I don't think Chuuya has had to use Corruption again in this AU until Lovecraft.

MAYBE someone would notify Chuuya's dad guardian that his son charge was badly injured, but with Yosano in the room, I doubt it would make it back to him. Same thing with Dead Apple. Murase lives in a blessed world where he knows Chuuya's powerful, but doesn't know the extent of it.

Have a lil' doodle for making it all the way down here! (it's Chuuya's first week or something)

[eyesforahead]

Mxtx x male reader

A cross over.

When a modern era young man transmigrated in PIDW that has crossovered with other Novel's such as MDZS & TGCF thing's are bound to be both fun & traumatizing!

-----

Name & Description are different but originally this was on my ao3 some things are arranged to suit it being an X reader. My ao3 is Elijah_Ezra.

TRANSLATION MAY NOT HE ACCURATE.

-- MAIN SHIPS WILL NOT HE CHANGED ( such as hualian , wangxian. )

-- SHEN YUAN IS NOT HERE.

shang qinghua is. I have favorite's.

-- Canon, what canon plot line?

-- Don't like, don't read.

-- Hate towards me or anyone is not tolerated.

-- This is a crossover.

-- A lot of spelling mistakes probably.

-- No upload schedule.

-- What Ships is reader in? I'm aiming for it to be a Liu Qingge X Reader however if this is not liked I take recommendations as well.

THIS IS PIDW TECHNICALLY NOT SVSSS.

• SHEN JIU'S PAST!!!!

• TW FOR THAT. PLEASE, STAY SAFE.

Shen (Name) groans and sighs before getting up from the chair to grab his sword Bǎohù

It was time for the Disciple selection..

He flew down and was immediately greeted by the peak lords he was well liked and loved unlike his elder brother Shen Jiu or also known as Shen Qingqiu.

That’s right he (Last name) ( First Name) , A lazy modern guy , died and transmigrated into PIDW not only that as an OC insert the scum villains younger brother!

Airplane , what kind of messed up tragic sad backstory did you need to give Jiu-Ge?!

Naturally they grew up together which meant his childhood sucked too!

Granted not that bad compared to him as that Qiu Jianluo took a very good liking to him and loved his naïve personality he was rarely beaten.

Which now knowing WHAT Qiu Jianluo liked and was thinking made him want to scream cry and rip off his skin to erase the feeling the skin that was touched by him.

What seemed liked innocent hugged were actually very much not innocent.

years later and after much trauma he became a peak lord!

So, that's that! Yippie hooray for you.

The (History of God's and Ghost's) "神与鬼的历史" (Shén yǔ guǐ de lìshǐ) peak lord!

It is the same ranking as Qing Jing Peak.

In this peak they learned about God’s and Ghost’s that are hidden and roaming around somewhere.

Their cultivation was communication with them.

Some Ghosts would occasionally help them when in need by lending them their strength.

In turn they would also help the ghost move on.

However, this is not safety assured as ghosts can be deceiving.

Shen (Name) would know himself, he’s half possessed by one called SYSTEM who forces him to do certain shit!

{ HOST, QIU JANLUO DID NOT NEED HIS DICK! }

Shen (Name) grimaces remembering that memory when the SYSTEM took control of his body and just chopped off someone’s dick.

‘ You didn’t need to use my body! ‘

{ D: Then, who else would SYSTEM posses? Your brother? No, thanks. }

‘ Die. ‘

{ SYSTEM will die when HOST 002 dies. }

Ah, right. Did he mention the author transmigrated with him?

Airplane Shooting towards the sky transmigrated into Shang Qinghua.

“ Didi, are you alright? You’re frowning. “ Shen Qingqiu asked snapping him out of his thoughts.

He hummed and looked towards the disciples hoping that today he will meet the protagonist Luo Binghe .

Yue QingYuan nodded at him and asked if he will choose a disciple.

Right, He himself rarely accepted new disciples they had to be specific and needed to be blessed or gained the attention of a god or ghost.

But as he looks down no one seems to have the veins that are gold or red.

Gold means a god has noticed them.

Glowing Gold means they have been blessed by one.

Red means a ghost has either noticed them or blessed them.

It was surprising to learn ghosts can bless people.

A ghost’s blessing boosts up your QI similar to the gods blessing but a ghost blessing also gives you luck while God’s give you some protection but not luck that would be on you!

Suddenly again he heard Liu Qingge and Shen Qingqiu fighting which is normal. However, they were fighting over a disciple.

He didn’t feel like getting involved and zoomed out before Shang Qinghua whispered to him.

‘ Bro, Go with Shen QIngqiu that’s Luo Binghe he took! ‘

he glared at Shang Qinghua for not telling him sooner and ran after Shen Jiu.

MEANWHILE…

SO, IT BEGINS TOUGHT A MAN WEARING SIMPLE WHITE ON A THRONE HIGH ABOVE WHERE NO ONE CAN REACH HIM.

THE man was beautiful with long brown hair and warm eyes.

The male wished he can help the poor soul yet, he is not allowed to interfere only drop some helpful information nothing more…

---

His peak was often described as a picturesque peak ( he was very proud of his peak ) adorned with tranquil ponds. The water is crystal clear, reflecting the beauty of the lily pads floating gracefully on the surface.

Koi fish gracefully glide through the water, their vibrant colors adding a touch of elegance.

The croaking of frogs adds a harmonious melody to the scene. The air is filled with the sweet fragrance of blooming flowers, and the sight of fluttering butterflies brings a sense of joy.

The overall ambiance feels inviting and pristine. Even the teachers and classes exude warmth and friendliness. It's a place where one can find solace and inspiration.

Near the peak lord's house you'll see a more beautiful building. The building is a shrine. Inside of it is a statue of the main god they learn about.

However, the statue isn't alone along with it is the God's husband.

The crown prince and also now heavenly emperor Xie Lian & his husband Crimson Rain Sought Flower Hua Cheng.

If you're lucky enough (or you're Shen (Name) ) you'll see silver butterflies flying around.

It make's a wonderful painting , silver Butterflies in the moonlight.

From the outside the shrine has an ornate and elaborate design, with intricate carvings.

Inside the shrine, you'll find a serene and reverent atmosphere. 

To the side inside the shrine is a long table where offerings and candle's are lit.

His peak is always calm and right now that's where he wants to be not in his olders brother bamboo house with tension so high he's surprised the kid Luo Binghe hasn't fainted.

' It's the tea scene where he pours hot boiling tea on him ' he thinks.

He wishes he can move from his brother's side yet he can't.

The tea is poured , the child gasps and the master leaves looking back once at his brother.

Shen (Name) immediately goes to the poor disciple.

He grabs the towel from the table and gently wipe away the hot tea.

"I'm sorry, please don't mind my brother."

The child looks up naive brown eyes shining at him.

"N-no shifu it was this Disciples fault."

The peak lord can't help how his heart melts.

Shen (Name) from the past hated this scene and didn't understand why Shen Qingqiu did this. The Shen (Name) who he is now understands.

Luo Binghe's eye's and hair are similiar to Qiu Jianluo.

The child's name make it even worse. Luo Binghe..Luo...

Ning Yingying didn't help either immediately calling him A-Luo...

... something Qiu Haitang used to call her brother Luo-Ge...

Still, it's no excuse to what happened to this child but he can be sympathetic.

He'll show him around himself and leave he can't be absent from his peak but he can visit his brother and this child.

Maybe, in the way he'll see his cute shidi Liu Qingge.

Dropping off Luo Binghe at his dorm's in which he knows he won't be staying there longer Shen (Name) leave's and goes to the shrine.

He needs some advice..

He knows the god probably won't respond but he'll feel his presence and that's enough.

[aragornsrockcollection]

I can’t remember if I ever posted this before but I absolutely think about it all the time:

So the history of Tolkien’s world is absolutely riddled with threes, especially in regards to elves and the light of the trees (which is thematically tied to the time of the elves the way the sun and moon are tied to the time of men). There are some earlier threes, like the three Valar who contributed most to the creation of the physical world, (Manwe, Ulmo and Aule), and he corresponding three elements they represent (Air, Water, and Earth/fire). (One day I’m going to edit and release my rambling thoughts on the elemental symbolism in the Silmarillion and then they’ll all be sorry).

There are also three main races in Middle Earth, the Elves (who first had three awaken), then the Dwarves (who had seven, a number unrelated to three, but that makes sense since they are the adopted children so being ever so slightly out of tune with the rest makes sense) and then finally the Men, (who had nine originally awaken, aka three times three).

Then there are the groups of powerful artifacts that reflect those elements, first the Silmarils, which are fated to be lost to the sky, the fires of the earth, and the ocean. These obviously contain the light of the two trees, which is the light of creation. And then of course the three Elven Rings which parallel the Silmarils, not containing the light of the trees, but based in those same three elements and crafted by Feanor’s grandson: Vilya the ring of air, Nenya the ring of water, and Narya the ring of fire.

But here’s the thing parallel story beats also tend to happen in threes. A great example being “significant character held captive by the enemy in tower/tall place is rescued by a loved one who finds them by singing a song and having them answer” which happens first with Maedhros and Fingon, then Beren and Luthien, then Frodo and Sam.

So… where’s the third instance of three powerful artifacts based in the elements of creation in the story? It feels super weird that there isn’t a third instance of this.

My completely out there answer to this problem I just created is there is about to be.

Because one character just received three of something with the light of the trees in it, and has stated that he is going to make objects that sound extremely similar to the Silmarils with them;

Gimli is about to make the Silmarils 3.0 with Galadriel’s hair.

So let’s go back to the years of the trees real quick. Feanor asks for Galadriel’s hair, which she refuses to give him. He asks three times. Why does he want it? Well, we can assume it’s because the light of the Two Trees is said to be captured in Galadriel’s hair, and Feanor is obviously interested in figuring out how to capture the light of the Trees in physical objects, because he’s about to undertake the forging of the Silmarils, which are literally just physical objects with the light of the Two Trees in them. In at least one version Tolkien wrote that Feanor was inspired to make the Silmarils by Galadriel’s hair.

It isn’t a leap to think Feanor believes studying her hair can help him figure out how to make the Silmarils, or even that he originally intended to USE her hair to make the Silmarils. He obviously figures it out without whatever knowledge he would have gained from it, and he captures the light and puts it into imperishable crystal that according to the translation of elven history we are technically reading, no one else knows how to make.

But the elves don’t know the secrets of the dwarves. Who the hell knows if they have created a similar material. We do know that when Gimli is asked by Galadriel what he will do with her hair if she gifts it to him, he says he will encase it in imperishable crystal.

Which… to me… sounds like he’s about to make some imperishable crystal with the light of the trees in it. And that is basically a goddamn Silmaril. That is what a Silmaril is. HE JUST DESCRIBED A SILMARIL. Gimli is planning on making Friendship Silmarils.

And it makes sense that the last iteration of three powerful objects in the vein of the Silmarils would happen in the dawning of the age of men, because the significant number for Men is three times three. This would be the third instance of three powerful artifacts being made- three times three.

Also just going to point out that breaking into Valinor without permission is explicitly shown to be made possible with a Silmaril. And Gimli is the first dwarf to go to Valinor. Hmmm. That’s interesting.

I personally believe he’s the first dwarf to ever want to go to Valinor, and similar to Tuor, the Valar just straight up hadn’t set up a rule against it yet and that’s how he gets in. But crafting three Silmaril-esc items and bringing them to the Valar has so many juicy possibilities for what it would do for the world, especially the elves of Valinor, who at their strongest relied on the light of the trees that would be reflected in these objects.

Needless to say, whatever Gimli makes will be super powerful, but in the theme of Tolkien’s work, not as powerful as the objects they are reflections of. Power trickling down through the ages and being increasingly watered down is a constant in this world.

Also this is obviously a stretch. But I do think about it.

All.

The.

Goddamn.

Time.

[nahidasgarden]

Welcome to Nahida's Garden of Knowledge!

RP Genshin Ask Blog! Feel free to send things in!

I hope you enjoy your stay!

Tags!

OOC info below

Hello! The admin of this blog is @pennpenn

I'm a 21 she/her that really enjoys watching the Tumblr RP interactions and thought I'd give it a try!

I have a big passion for researching!(Specifically biology or history) So if you need any fun facts or need help finding an answer to something feel free to ask! I might even make you an infographic or fact sheet!

---

I know I already previously stated it in the rules: but expect sexual content to be ignored. While I am an adult and I'm not bothered by those kinds of interactions... and while Nahida is technically 500 years old... There is nothing that says that gods have the same maturity cycle as humans meaning that as a god she could very well still be considered a child. Also she tends to talk similar to a child and has a child body-type in game. So sexual content will not be entertained.

I just feel like it's important to state that again just cuz I'm unsure how clear it is in the rules picture. :P

[wanderersrest]

G Gundam Prelude: The Real Robot vs Super Robot Debate

So before I begin talking about Mobile Fighter G Gundam, I'd like to take a minute to preface that conversation with a companion piece of sorts. This involves the nature of how the mecha "genre" of anime is divided into two subgenres, and how this subdivision (*synth and bass solo play at the same time*) is often used as a sort of dick-measuring contest by fans to argue that their preferred genre is better than the other.

Tetsujin 28-go, Mazinger Z, and the "Super Robot"

To understand the two sub-genres, we first need to understand the general history of the mecha. Technically speaking, our story really starts with Osamu Tezuka's Mighty Atom (Astro Boy in the west), but the giant robot style of mecha would not appear in earnest until Mitsuteru Yokoyama's Tetsujin 28-go (Gigantor in the west) and Go Nagai's Mazinger Z. Tetsujin and Mazinger would go on to codify a lot of the tropes common to a lot of these early robot series alone. If it wasn't either of those two, chances are likely Ken Ishikawa's Getter Robo will have you covered.

These so-called "Super Robots" were known for their superhero-like power sets. They were usually powered by either nuclear power or a fictional power source such as Photon Energy or Getter Rays. Almost every single robot in these stories were made with some sort of Super Alloy (or Chogokin), and each super robot had a whole arsenal of weapons, including but not limited to swords, axes, drills, lasers, and, of course, the rocket punch. These super robot series would dominate a lot of Japanese television for most of the 70's. But behind the scenes, one man would be forging his own path. And at the end of the decade, he would release a show that would turn the canon of mecha stories on its head.

Gundam, VOTOMs, and the "Real Robot"

In 1979, the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam would air on Japanese television for the first time. This is one of the many mecha series directed by anime legend Yoshiyuki Tomino, and follows a direct lineage from his other works such as Brave Raideen, Zambot 3, and Daitarn 3. Gundam, however, would herald a new style of mecha stories thanks in part to it ditching a lot of the more fantastical elements of its "super robot" forebears in favor of a more grounded war story. These would be the so-called "real robot" style of mecha stories, and would further be codified by Ryousuke Takahashi's first two series, Fang of the Sun Dougram and Armored Trooper VOTOMs.

The "real robots" were a hard departure from their super robot brethren in that they were grounded in reality. Gone were the super alloys and the fantastical weapons, which were now replaced with weapons similar to that of a modern military. More importantly, the stories were now about wars, not with aliens as the antagonist, but other people. Humans. These stories would dominate a lot of the 80's, though the more traditional robots of the 70's would still be around as well.

There's just one problem with the term "Real Robot." The realism doesn't come from the machines themselves.

The Realism of Really Real Robots (It's Not What You Think It Is)

(Wanderer Not Mention Patlabor Speed Run [IMPOSSIBLE])

One of the issues with the term "real robots" is the fact that the realism in most "real robot" shows does not necessarily come from the robots themselves. Take blog favorite Patlabor, for example. Part of what makes the Labors as realistic as they are is not necessarily due to the imagined mechanics behind these machines. It's how the existence of these giant machines changes the lives of the characters. It's little things like how having a special police division that's devoted to Labor crimes is a bit of a money pit, or how SV2 has constant insurance problems due to the fact that Division 2, even in their best moments, are just as destructive as the people they're supposed to stop.

Or take the original "real robot" series, Mobile Suit Gundam. The realism does not lie in the design of the RX-78-2 Gundam. The realism comes from the One Year War and how it affects all of the characters. We can see this in how badly it affects the Gundam's pilot, Amuro Ray, as the poor sod of a teenager basically develops PTSD throughout the original show's run. And it's not just Amuro that's under a lot of stress. The infamous Bright Slap happens not only because Amuro refuses to get back into the Gundam, but because White Base captain Bright Noa (who's 19, by the way) is also at his wit's end. Never mind the fact that the slap makes everything worse.

So What Does This Have To Do With G Gundam?

Everything. There's this idea that being a "real robot" series is what gives Gundam its bite and that G Gundam spits in the face of Gundam's original vision by being a hot-blooded "super robot" anime. There's just a couple of problems with that line of thinking. First, it's insulting to the series to say that it has nothing worthwhile to say. Y'know, G Gundam. The series that opens with the Gundam Fight (the Future Century replacement for traditional war) making its way to a ruined Rome, where the poor people who could not afford to leave for the space colonies are panicking as the Gundams literally crash onto their homes. The series where some of the last dialogue of the series is how, even after defeating the imminent threat that was the Devil Gundam, there is still work to be done when it comes to fixing the world, namely by finding a more sustainable replacement to the Gundam Fight. This doesn't even touch on the fact that all of the nations of the world join forces to face an threat that could wipe out all of mankind.

Second, and the part that I think is more insidious, is the idea that G Gundam is a lesser series because it went for more of a classic robot anime vibe as opposed to the serious war story that Gundam is known for. I say this is insidious because it not only ignores the fact that Gundam had just come off of the heels of the extremely depressing Victory Gundam and needed a bit of a palette cleanser, but it also implies that only so-called real robot stories can have serious storylines. God forbid something like Space Runaway Ideon exist, which is probably one of the most serious classic, pre-Dougram robot series out there, or Combat Mecha Xabungle, which is a really goofy but technically a "real robot" series.

This is also related to the idea that G Gundam is just "dumb fun." This line of thinking I can understand, because let's not kid ourselves here. While I wouldn't call this series dumb, G Gundam is kind of known for being insane (but in a good way). What makes this take just as grating is when a similar series can get away with a similar style of story just because it's not related to an existing franchise like Gundam. A series like, oh I don't know, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. And that's a series that's often treated as somehow being different from most other mecha shows because "it's about the characters." Gurren Lagann is one of those shows, and people often treat it like it's a literary masterpiece while G Gundam, which I'd argue is one of the former's progenitor series alongside Getter Robo and GaoGaiGar, is treated as B-movie schlock. It's not, and I hope you'll join me when I dive into the insane masterpiece that is Mobile Fighter G Gundam.

[techmediabooks]

Alternatives to RARBG for Free

Best Sites Like RARBG to Search and Download Torrents with these best RARBG Alternatives currently available on the web.

RARBG is a popular torrent site or torrent provider that was founded in 2008. It provides its millions of users with a massive collection of torrent links and magnetic links from various genres such as movies, TV shows, games, e-books, and much more. Due to legal issues, the site was shut down in December 2008 (the same year it was founded). Allegations included a violation of entertainment laws.

And the site was taken down for a week due to BREIN's legal pressure (an association that is responsible for the protection of the rights of the Entertainment industry Netherland). Many alternatives have emerged since then via the internet. There are numerous options available. So, to save you the trouble of searching for them individually, we decided to put together a list of the Best RARBG Torrent Alternatives for your convenience.

Alternatives to RARBG Torrent

Here are the Best Free RARBG Torrent Alternatives to satisfy your desire for Torrent Files.

1. The Pirate Bay

When it comes to torrent search engine alternatives, the world-famous Pirate Bay is always at the top of the list. This torrent behemoth serves millions of users across a variety of genres, including movies, TV shows, games, registered software, e-books, and much more. Among its many strengths are its massive torrent file library and regularly updated index. The speed is adequate.

2. 1337x

1337x is one of the most rapidly growing torrent search engines in recent history. 1337x is the most versatile torrent provider due to its beautiful UI, massive library, and availability of adult content on the platform. The speed is incredible. Many users consider this to be their primary source of torrent links for their favourite movies and television shows. Furthermore, there are numerous torrent links for cartoons, games, software, and other items.

3. LimeTorrents

Nothing beats Lime torrents as a trustworthy and verified torrent provider. It is the most trusted source of torrent files, serving millions of people worldwide. Its main highlights are an extensive collection of torrent files on various genres such as movies, anime, games, and software. Except for one major disadvantage (for many), there are no links to adult content on this platform.

4. Yify Torrents

The most recommended torrent search engine for movies and TV shows is YTS or Yify (both are the same). The platform has the largest collection of torrent files related to movies and television shows. The content on this page is constantly updated and is available in 3D and high-definition quality. As an added bonus, many new releases take place here. So, if you enjoy Hollywood blockbusters and spicy American TV shows, Yify is worth a look.

5. Torrents.io

Torrents.io is a conglomeration of popular torrent websites. This platform gathers torrent files from a variety of torrent sites, such as The Pirate Bay, 1337x, LimeTorrents, and many others. The user interface is visually appealing. The tempo is quick. The torrent service provider also provides a wide range of genres, including movies, cartoons, games, and Porn. In a nutshell, everything is centralised.

6. Extra torrent

Extra torrent includes features such as a user interface and a library index for the user. This platform is one of the internet's most well-known independent torrent providers. It has a large collection of torrent files and allows users to upload their own without any technical difficulties. Regrettably, the website has been removed from the internet by legal authorities.

7. Zooqle.com

Zooqle.com, which sounds similar to Google, is a non-profit internet indexing service used by millions of people around the world. The website includes both torrent files and magnetic links to please users. It also employs the BitTorrent protocol, which enables seamless peer-to-peer file sharing. The only disadvantage is the user interface. It falls short of expectations and occasionally annoys users with intrusive advertisements.

8. Library Origins

LibGen (Library Genesis) is the only dedicated ebook torrent provider available online. It has a massive library that includes thousands of articles, ebooks, and limited edition releases. Readers can look through any ebook they want here. The user interface is fantastic, and the speed is adequate. The website was also embroiled in a controversy over a database that still contained paywalled articles and some academic content. But it went through it flawlessly and is now serving millions of people worldwide.

9. Kat.to

Kat.to, also known as KickassTorrent, is the world's most popular and controversial torrent search engine that is still in operation. It has a massive library of torrent files in a variety of genres, including movies, TV shows, software, games, and e-books.

10. TorrentReactor

Torrent Reactor ranks tenth on the list, thanks to its massive torrent file library. It is also one of the most trusted torrent providers. The website provides a massive collection of torrent files in categories such as movies, TV shows, cartoons, games, software, and much more. The search engine falls under the category of latest torrent providers, with a regularly updated index and the option of popular and latest torrents. To your surprise, authorities have taken down the website.

11. ISOHunt

The first legal torrent provider on this list is ISOHunt. It enables the user to legally download torrent files. The website has a large collection of torrents from various genres such as movies, TV shows, cartoons, new releases, and much more. However, the user interface is a shambles. However, speed is advantageous. Everything else is the same as it is with other torrent providers.

12. BitSnoop

BitSnoop, a new and distinct name in the category of torrent search engines, estimates serving 24 million torrent files to its users. The website is proud to have one of the internet's largest torrent file databases. The user interface is adequate. The speed is also acceptable. Without a doubt, BitSnoop will soon be among the most popular torrent providers.

So those are some of the best RARBG torrent alternatives. Please let us know in the comments section if you found this useful. That would be fantastic to hear.

[cartographers-office]

Pikmin 4: The Cannon Beetle Mix-Up

As the person who made an entire phylogenetic tree of Pikmin creatures (soon to be updated!), it should come as no surprise that I have a lot of love for this series. With Pikmin 4 introducing a whole new group of critters, while also bringing back many classic ones, I would like to shine a light on one of my favorite enemies: The mighty Horned Cannon Beetle. While this enemy might seem like it caused some confusion regarding its relation to previous enemies, it actually cleared up a few mistakes and inconsistencies from almost two decades ago!

Between Japanese and English languages, each Pikmin enemy gets four different names. This might sound complicated, but I'll try my best to juggle them all and explain their confusing history.

Pikmin 1 introduced the enemy then known as the Armored Cannon Beetle, or Granitus chukkulinae. According to the Enemy Reel:

This migratory lithopod has developed a stronger carapace than its relatives.

Hold on to that information, it will be relevant later. Pikmin 2 then introduced the Armored Cannon Larva, which shares both its name and scientific name with the Armored Cannon Beetle. This is because both enemies share a Japanese nickname (that being (フタクチドックリ, Two-Mouth Tokkuri). However, their Japanese technical name (the equivalent to their English scientific name) makes it clear they are different species.

It's unclear why both enemies share the same Japanese nickname (maybe due to similar designs/mechanics), but it probably led to the mistranslation of the Armored Cannon Larva's scientific name. Their Piklopedia entry states:

This expedition was unable to confirm the existence of any mature lithopods, leading to concerns that the species was extinct on this planet, but the discovery of the creature in larval form eased such concerns.

And for almost two decades, both enemies were generally considered being the same species, which seemed logical at the time, without analyzing their Japanese technical name. Once Pikmin 4 rolled around, it "introduced" the Horned Cannon Beetle. This creature's JP technical name is the exact same as the original Armored Cannon Beetle (Black Iron Giant Stone Wrapper), meaning they are supposed to be one and the same. Their Piklopedia entry states:

[...] this species is actually a naturalized non-native species that migrated here from another continent. [...] Furthermore, it exhibits aggressive territorial behavior, sometimes launching boulders at young Armored Cannon Beetles, which has driven the latter species to the verge of extinction.

This corroborates perfectly with the Armored Cannon Beetle's and Armored Cannon Larva's entries shown previously! So why the name change?

Well I suspect that, when the localizers realized that two separate species had the same name and scientific name, they opted to retcon the older one instead of the most used one. They even added a tongue-in-cheek reference to this retcon by mentioning they were "once mistaken for adult Armored Cannon Beetles".

And that's why the original Pikmin 1 enemy then-known as the Armored Cannon Beetle (Granitus chukkulinae) has been retconned into being a Horned Cannon Beetle (Granitus ferrous).

One image speaks more than a thousand words, so I will end this post with a neat graphic detailing all four different names each creature has. I added the other two mainline Cannon Beetle species for completion's sake. See you guys next time!

[fatehbaz]

How is it that a small wedge of the South American continent, long claimed by a major European power and still administered by it, could present a profile of wilderness at the end of the twentieth century? How might this same location on the globe have proved useful for such an unlikely combination of purposes as the resettlement of convicted criminals and the launching of rockets?

French Guiana remains a remarkably insignificant artifact of the political landscape -- rarely noticed by most of France, let alone anyone else -- as well as one of the least settled regions of the world. It has also hosted two exceptional experiments of the French state: the historical penal colony known in English as “Devil's Island,” which operated between 1852 and 1946, and the contemporary space center that launches the European consortium rocket Ariane, responsible for transporting a good half of the commercial satellites orbiting our globe. [...] Its base, the Guiana Space Center (CSG), indeed lived up to its slogan, becoming “Europe's Spaceport,” a center of high technology near the equator. [...]

---

After a number of earlier trials, the penal colony begins operation in the middle of the nineteenth century, partly as a substitute for a system of plantation slavery. It conceives of French Guiana as open land for agricultural settlement, fertile ground for a tropical -- and French -- Australia, where the action of moral reform can translate into a scheme of colonization. Following a quest for the proper site within the colony, these early hopes are belied by the high mortality of the convicts [...]. Despite periodic calls for reform and increasing international discomfort, the bagne lasts through World War II. It leaves a deep mark on French Guiana, in both symbolic and material terms. As the movement of seventy thousand exiles progresses, the surrounding landscape shifts from a luxuriant field of dreams into a tableau of terror. At the same time, the colony as a whole grows accustomed to the presence of this artificial prison world within it [...].

---

The space center begins operation in the second half of the twentieth century, in the midst of the Space Race and in the aftermath of the Algerian War. It conceives of French Guiana as open land for technical experiments and a gateway into equatorial orbit, an even more tropical -- and French -- Cape Canaveral. [...] [A] regular stream of technicians and engineers arrives to assemble and guide it into space. The initial mandate to provide France with a launch site expands into a focus on commercial satellites, and although local opposition to the project continues, the effects of the enterprise on French Guiana in both symbolic and material terms only deepen. As the Ariane rocket gains importance, the surrounding landscape transforms from an orphan of history into a handmaiden of the future. At the same time, the department grows accustomed to an increased infusion of consumer goods, technical personnel, and [...] a new island with an artificial environment and a powerfully altered social profile.

---

At slightly closer range a number of striking structural similarities emerge. Not only do both projects found towns (St. Laurent on the one hand and the new Kourou on the other), but both operate as rival poles of influence and authority relative to the civil administration of French Guiana. Each involves [...] its own hierarchies, its own links to bureaucratic networks in Paris, and its own claims to significant national French interests. Each [...] exerts considerable influence over the surrounding economy. Most crucially, each controls and orders a separate territory within the larger political entity; each has a spatial presence, a direct impact on the landscape. And tied to this spatial strategy, each comes to serve as a symbolic nexus in collective Metropolitan imagination. [...] One employs leftover forces of law and order, whereas the other employs highly trained technical personnel; thus [...] both [...] have ties to the military [...]. The penal colony imports the unwanted of France, whereas the space center imports the selected few. [...]

And the bagne reflects visions of an ancient underworld, whereas Ariane reflects visions of a new overworld. [...]

Each operation is predicated on a related but distinct spatial logic: the penal colony seeks open land to isolate and moralize convicts through labor, whereas the space center seeks open land to test rockets and maneuver satellites into orbit. Many of the specific additional attributes of a desirable site for penal colonization (distance from the Metropole, possibility of confinement and surveillance, and prevention of local disturbance) find echoes in the specific additional attributes of a desirable site for launching rockets (distance from the Metropole, adequate security, adequate possibility of transport, and political stability).[...]

---

The penal colony takes shape at a crucial moment in European colonial understandings of place and labor. Slavery had just been abolished in the French Empire, and an accompanying understanding of work in terms of race had far from expended its interpretive force. [...] Work represented the route to a better future, to the growth of new, valuable lands. Who, then, would lend backs and hands to the enterprise? If slavery were at an end, then the crucial question facing the colony was that of finding an alternative source of labor. During the period of the early penal colony we see this search for new slaves, not only in French Guiana, but also throughout colonies built on the plantation model. Thousands of Asian Indians and Chinese found their way to new homes in different corners of the British Empire, serving as contract laborers on plantations. [...]

Kourou [the space center] is a neutralized, controlled corner of the tropics, with much of its cultural fabric simply imported. Amid the restricted space of artificially cooled buildings and automobiles, in zones free of carrier mosquitoes and amply supplied with wine and cheese airlifted from France, the distance between Paris and Cayenne shortens; the effects of translation between them grow less clear. If the island mimics the mainland successfully, if Crusoe builds a little England -- or France -- is his task done? [...] To answer this question, let us return to a crucial turning point of Guyane's history: the aftermath of World War II and the period of formal empire. It was during this era that the natural, political, and moral space of French Guiana was neutralized through a combination of DDT spraying, departmentalization, and the final closing of the penal colony. In 1949, a former teacher [...] in Martinique published an overview of the new overseas departments and territories. His description of French Guiana includes a call to arms for its development, a development still conceived in terms of a need for [...] agriculture, and industry [...]. Gold mines aside, it seems that the method of painstaking labor is the only one really applicable at present. Incontestably, there is magnificent work to accomplish there, such as should tempt young men fond of broad horizons and adventure. The appeal is for an army of Crusoes, advancing ashore to improve their collective island. The questions of race and level of expertise filter through patterns of history and perceived practicality. But the call remains, the call of a wilderness inviting domestication.

---

Text by: Peter Redfield. Space in the Tropics: From Convicts to Rockets in French Guiana. 2000. [Bold emphasis and some paragraph breaks/contractions added by me.]

[ohbother2]

Hi!!

I just wanna say first off that I completely get if you don't respond to this cos it's quite a random question and I hope you're doing well :)

but I wanted to ask! Do you have an oc for Hazbin Hotel?? I'd personally love to know what you're mind's come up with because you write all the characters with so much detail! Ik this I random but a lot of other big creators in the Hazbin Hotel fandom have pitched their own oc's and I was just wondering if you had the same!!

Would love it if you shared, but completely get if not :)) hope you're doing well, can't wait for the alastor fic!!! <3

Hi!!

Can't lie when I saw this ask in my inbox I was really surprised, I didn't think people really cared for oc's tbh

But yes I do! They don't have a name yet though but a very thorough backstory 😅

I guess I could give you some of the brief details? I don't want to swamp my followers with things they're not interested in, so if you guys want to hear any more just lmk :)

Details under the cut to make this easier to scroll past if you're not interested!

Disclaimer - I've had this oc since way back in 2019 when the pilot dropped so she has some similarities to other characters in the series that I wasn't aware of at the time. Also, dark themes ahead watch out.

So, my oc is a woman who died in 1948 at 24 years old.

I head canon that exterminators are a class of people who did 'sinful' deeds but for the right reasons - they go to Heaven but on the condition that they perform this one 'sinful' killing act once a year.

My oc had to kill her brother in self-defence after he suffered from PTSD after WW2 and mistook her as an 'enemy' during a particularly bad flashback. That was the only 'real' sin she committed, so when she went to heaven she was recruited as an exterminator.

She was murdered by her father (strangulation), who could not forgive her for killing her brother. Because of this, she has horrendous trust issues.

She's the oldest of three siblings: two brothers and a sister. Only her youngest brother outlived her.

In heaven, she never sought out her mother or sister, too scared to admit to them what she did, or what happened to their family.

She is technically a 'fallen' angel, but never had her wings removed. She fought with another exterminator over having to kill a child (embarrassingly close to Vaggie's origin story, I was unaware at the time, and may change this to be more original), managed to kill them, but was wounded and unable to make it back to the portal and was left stranded in Hell. She still retains some of her 'angelic' power and attributes because of this. After the portal closed, she was severed from Heaven and took on a 'demon' form. Her wings are tattoos along her back and arms, which can transform into wings if she wants - she rarely does.

She originally tried to persuade exterminators that she was one of them to go back. They just thought she was a sinner trying to lie to them. She's long since given up her hopes of returning to Heaven, and has slowly grown to hate Heaven and the exterminators over her many decades of seeing the effects of the exterminations in Hell.

As a final 'fuck you' to Heaven, she joined the Hazbin Hotel in hopes of screwing up Heaven's preconceptions. She may have the wrong motives, but she's trying her best.

Her love interest is Alastor, but they begin as enemies. It takes a long time for both of them to come around to one another. They bond over their similar time periods, and an odd relationship forms. She has an equally morbid sense of humour after growing up during a particularly bad part of history. Alastor is determined not to let some random sinner be his biggest weakness, she is appalled that such a heinous man could worm his way into her heart. A reluctant love story for both parties.

She's never sought out her father or oldest brother, who are in Hell. She doesn't know what she'd do if she found them - what do you say to the man you killed, and the man who killed you in revenge for that act? She won't admit it, but she's absolutely terrified they'll find her.

She has a lot of demons, and drinks heavily to distract herself from them. She was a 'good soul' on earth, and now that she has free rein she indulges herself as often as she can. She'll never get back to Heaven (she believes) so what does it matter? Men, booze, drugs, does what she wants with it all.

She has a good relationship with Angel Dust, Husk and Sir Pentious. She often hangs out at the bar with them. Despite him being 'The Bartender', even Husk doesn't know her full backstory or how she died, he does notice she hates being touched on the neck, and grows defensive when Alastor constantly pushes this boundary in the first months of knowing her.

She once punched Alastor square in the face in the middle of the hotel lobby for pushing this boundary on the anniversary of her death. He would've killed her on the spot if it weren't for Charlie running in between them. It's this moment that I head canon as the day Alastor realises he actually cares for her more than he thought - he is genuinely upset (and furious for other reasons) that she would push him away so forcefully. He can't allow that.

She gets along well with Niffty, but her childlike antics remind her too much of her younger siblings and she can struggle to be around her for too long. She tries to keep her distance, for her own peace of mind.

Charlie also reminds her of her younger sister, but in a far more 'manageable' way. She does her best to support her with her hopes with the hotel. Vaggie makes sure to keep Charlie 'away' from my oc, she doesn't trust her at all. Vaggie can sense something is off with the hotel's newest resident, but can't quite figure out what. Lucifer is the same.

[vbsvartalf]

Audio Drama Sunday, 12/4/22

Yesterday was a long, big, busy Sunday, filled with some amazing audio dramas that I must share with all of you.

Dead Air, by Realm Media (created by Gwenda Bond) - If you like the true crime genre of podcasts, then a fictional version might just be up your alley. It's suspenseful, emotional, and filled with dark, dry humor. I've been devouring it recently, stopping just short of binging the entire thing in a single setting. I'm not a true crime fan, but I'm still hooked. If you liked Arden, I think you'll like this show.

Greater Boston, by Alexander Danner and Jeff Van Dreason - Humor, surrealism, quiet drama are all at the heart of Greater Boston. I know it's been around for a while and has a huge fandom but I'm excited that I get to experience this show for the first time six years after it started. Once I finish, I have a feeling I'll start the series over again without missing a beat.

A Ninth World Journal, by David S. Dear - The ultimate actual play turned audio drama, A Ninth World Journal episodes might be short but they are packed to the gills with content and keep you guessing as to what is going to happen next. David S. Dear is a fantastic narrator I've heard on several other shows at this point and it's wonderful to see him shine as the star.

Exoplanetary, by C. Christopher Heart - Managing to weave half a dozen sci-fi stories together in a nonlinear fashion without getting things too confusing is no easy task, but Exoplanetary as not only done just that, but thrived at it and keeps me coming back for new stories and new angles. It's filled with heart and emotion that stay with you long after the episodes is finished. From robotic love to colonialism to time travel, this show has it all.

Among the Stars and Bones, by Ungodly Hour Productions - Technically this will be my third listen but each time I get something more out of it, I feel more for the characters and understand their motivations. Telling a story from 8 or 9 limited viewpoints is a great way to employ the unreliable narrator, or as it happens, 8 or 9 unreliable narrators. I've seen recently that they are casting for season 2 and I cannot contain my excitement!

Old Gods of Appalachia, by DeepNerd Media - Folk horror, when done right, is better than any subgenre of any genre of literature, bar none. I will live and die on this hill. Old Gods does folk horror the right way. There's mood and atmosphere, a sense of place and a sense of dread. The show will have you jumping at shadows and creepy noises down by the creek at the witching hour.

The Town Whispers, by Cole Weavers - While similar to Old Gods of Appalachia, The Town Whispers takes cosmic horror and turns it up to 11 alongside all the folk horror that creeps around the edges of the Fort. The story telling is sharp and a sense of doom and dread purvey every word Mr. Weavers speaks. It's beautiful and chilling and leaves me needing more.

Malevolent, by Harlan Guthrie - It's a simple premise, guy wakes up unable to see with a creepy voice in his head that is not his own. Oh also there's a dead body, also there are monsters running around, oh also lots of creepy books, oh also it's set in the heart of Lovecraft Country. What could go wrong? I'm late to the party on the fandom for this show but as I work through the episodes I see why the fandom has exploded Hannibal style all over Tumblr.

Hi Nay, by Motzi Dapul - What if the Magnus Archives were less focused on Eurocentric monsters and fears and entities? What if there was a less organized group of people going after them? What if all of it was recorded lo-fi and given a health dose of Filipino folklore? Well, you'd have Hi Nay and you'd sweep the internets with a new, obsession worthy podcast that teaches as much as it entertains. Also they are working on getting 1000 subs on Youtube so get on that people!

The Kingmaker Histories, by Meg Molloy Tuten - Made by the same geniuses that brought us Less is Morgue, this audio drama gives us a glimpse at a steampunk world filled with magic. I enjoyed the first episode immensely. The acting, the script, the sound design are all top notch. Have to say I love this Ariadne character, she seems nice.

Moonbase Theta, Out, by D.J. Sylvis - Dystopian futures, corrupt governments, sinister warnings about the moon. Sounds like a typical day in 2022, right? Moonbase Theta, Out was and is ahead of its time in terms of storytelling, narratives, and characters. It's really a who's who in the world of audio drama with "famous" voices popping in and out to voice characters that will make you do the Leo pointing meme at least twice and episode.

WOE.BEGONE, by Dylan Griggs - Part surrealist sci-fi, part existential horror, WOE.BEGONE is a show that makes me want to run away screaming whilst at the same time binging more and more episodes. How deep does this creepy, deadly game go? What is the point of it all? Will Mike just be able to relax and have a nice time? I need to know!!!

And 195, by Guendalina Cilli - I just found out about this audio drama yesterday and I'm already a fan. I'm a runner with a bad sense of direction myself so the basis of the show is very, very familiar to me (aside from getting lost in other dimensions, that's not familiar but you never know in these days).

We Fix Space Junk, by Battle Bird Productions - Dystopian space dramas are a trope for a reason, but We Fix Space Junk manages to avoid the pitfalls and enjoy all the benefits of said trope. It's fresh, fun, and exciting. I've decided it was time for a re-listen to see what things I missed out on in the beginning that are integral parts of the show by the end. I'm already having a blast!

Care & Feeding of Werewolves, by Brenna Anderson-Dowd - What if True Blood were a sitcom, but far better than the sum of those two parts? What if it were funny and informative, silly and meaningful? You'd have Care & Feeding of Werewolves and you'd enjoy every single episode of this weird little show, and I do mean that endearingly. If it weren't weird, it wouldn't be nearly as fun.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

How are dorms different? Pupils take the same lessons, so why is it so important? Maybe it was stated in the beginning but…

Oooh, thank you for the super interesting topic of discussion! 👀

To begin with, there are superficial differences such as valuing a certain trait or looking up to a specific figure in the Great Seven over the others. (For example, students of Scarabia revere the Sorcerer of the Sands, who was known for his mindfulness it seems that the students try to uphold that mindful spirit.) Let's also keep in mind that each dorm itself is a unique setting with its own vibes and history! Additionally, we know of a few traits that dorm members generally share or talents that students of a particular dorm have:

Heartslabyul has nothing of note that I can recall 😅

Savanaclaw tends to have athletic students. Because of this, they dominate in sporting events and competitions.

Octavinelle and Scarabia are said to have very intelligent students; they are often competing with each other for the top marks. Scarabia's students tend to excel in astrology.

Pomefiore produces students that are skilled in curses and potion-making; one of the requirements to become Pomefiore's dorm leader is brewing a potent poison. Generally, Pomefiore students put forth considerable effort to maintain their looks and their manners.

Ignihyde's students tend to be introverted and geeky; they also work well with technology.

Diasomnia usually receives the magical all-rounders or those particularly gifted with magic. However, their students also tend to be extremely arrogant and think of themselves as better than students of the other dorms.

Beyond the details I just listed, I don't think the dorms are honestly that different (based on the information we have right now). The short and simple (and meta) answer to your question would be that the dorms exist because "it makes the game easier to market". Breaking a large cast into smaller groups with easily identifiable traits and color coding makes the characters stick in the mind better. (The almost immediate cultural association with a certain popular magic school with dorms that are heavily centered around certain traits is also sure to draw comparisons, and thus make TWST blow up by that association and word of mouth.)

Buuut that’s not a very exciting response, now is it? 🤔 Well, here’s my take (I’m basing this on my understanding of how public and private high schools, as well as some colleges/institutions of higher learning operate):

It’s not unusual for a boarding school like Night Raven College to have several different dormitories to house their students. Dorms are usually overseen by an RA (Resident Assistants), someone who also lives in said dorm and manages issues contained within it. The purpose of a dormitory is just to house students while they study, so technically it’s just... a glorified living space. Dorms in real life often aren’t often as segmented and defined by traits as NRC’s are; they’re usually named after some rich person that offered a sizable donation to the school or some important alumnus (though there ARE some dorms specifically for students of a similar major or broad organization to live together). In NRC’s case, the dorms are based on important figures: the Great Seven. It just so happens that the Great Seven are associated with certain traits, and so those trickled down into each dorm, as each was modelled after one member of the Seven. And, of course, the RA equivalent at NRC is the title of dorm leader.

From what I understand of NRC’s history, Pomefiore is considered the oldest dorm; this would imply that NRC did not start with seven dorms, because otherwise they would all be roughly the same in age. The logical sequence of events (to me) is that NRC was originally just a single dorm (Pomefiore), but as it grew over the years and gained prestige for itself, it had to expand to new dorms just to deal with the growing student population--and since Pomefiore honored the Beautiful Queen, why not look to the other six of the Seven for the other dorms? ... Then NRC probably capped off its enrollment so it could focus on educating the students their staff could handle.

Then we need to consider that the dorms may have formed over time just because... well, have you SEEN how NRC students behave? They’ll throw fists at a moment’s notice. Grouping them up by similar traits may help to alleviate the fights that break out on campus; when you’re part of a group and living with like-minded individuals, it can minimize conflicts (but unfortunately, it has the potential side effect of isolating students from those with different views than them, which is probably why they continue to have mixed classes to up the exposure).

With the practicality of dorms sorted out, let’s now look to how the dorms may impact the students’ academic and professional lives.

I noticed that the Anon mentioned, “Pupils take the same lessons, so why [are dorms] so important?” That’s an interesting question to pose because we actually don’t know a ton about NRC’s curriculum or their tracks of study 🤔 I’m guessing that this conclusion was reached because the gameplay of TWST (Alchemy, Flying, Magic History) has mixed classes, but I believe that the gameplay is not reflective of the classes the characters actually take because it would contradict the lore given to us elsewhere. For example, in the ongoing Glorious Masquerade event, it is said that second years taking Magic History learn about the Just Judge (which explains why the first years are not familiar with him yet). It is also said (this time in the main story) that first year classes focus on theory rather than doing actual magic, which is reserved for later years. I’m sure there are a lot more examples I could think of, but these two alone effectively illustrate why it wouldn’t make sense to toss students of different grade levels into most of the same classes.

It hasn’t been confirmed whether all pupils take the exact same coursework; in fact, I’d actually argue the opposite is true. I believe that there is a set of “base” or foundational coursework (like Magic History, Alchemy, and Flying) that every student is required to take to graduate; these subjects would be like the equivalent of math, English, history, and science in the real world. These would be “on level” (ie everyone in the same year takes the same class). However, just like in the real world, I think that every student has the opportunity to customize their track via electives so they can pursue their specific interests after high school. These are the classes that would be mixed, as there are instances (irl) of accelerated younger students having already met the prerequisites for more advanced classes. A notable example of a NRC elective is Poison Making, which appears to be an upper level Potionology course; in Cater’s Lab Wear vignettes, it is revealed that Cater, Vil, and Lilia are enrolled in it. Master Chef/Culinary Crucibles is another major example, as it seems to be an elective that students can take to prepare them for making their own meals and taking care of their nutritional needs after graduation.

Typically, the way you choose electives is broken down into different priorities. Older students and students in honors programs tend to get first pick over younger students (who still need to complete prerequisite courses) and non-honors students (who usually have less rigorous coursework). Additionally (in the case of colleges and universities), priority for certain classes may be given to students of a particular major. As an example, life science courses like biology and anatomy and physiology may have more slots for premed majors and other majors directly related to the life sciences before like... a journalism major may have a chance for the same courses. This is because it’s more important for students of certain majors to get their requires coursework done other students interested in taking a course due to individual interest.

“... Okay, that’s all fine and dandy, but what does this have to do with the importance of the dorms?”

Weeell... If we consider all of the previously discussed information as a whole, isn’t it possible that the dorms could actually factor into the students’ future prospects??

Like... think about it.

Each dorm is already designed from the get-go to focus on specific traits and skills, such that is it easy to immediately identify what the strengths of a person may be based SOLELY on glancing at the armband color they have. Then add in how electives are chosen. If you’re already sorting the students into dorms that define what their strengths may be, wouldn’t it make sense to give those students... priority for classes which will further improve those strengths (ie give a Pomefiore student, already presumed to be skilled in potions-making, priority for the Poisons Making elective course)?

And what about their mandatory fourth year internships? I’m assuming the hiring companies will want the best people for the jobs, but it may be difficult for them to parse through so many resumes. They could very well use dorms to help filter through applications, as some dorms are more well-versed in some subjects over others. (I realize that this disregards individual differences and sounds unfair on paper, but this is, unfortunately, sometimes the reality of the job hunt process.) Alternatively, NRC could use the specific traits each dorm boasts to help “sell” their students to employers for internship opportunities (ie NRC to a potion making company: “Pomefiore’s students are skilled at making potions, just like the Beautiful Queen!”).

Finally, let’s talk connections. If dormitories really do play a role in future prospects as I just described, then it means each dorm has a whole network of alumni in fields of specialization which can perpetuate the cycle. Picture a Pomefiore NRC graduate that goes on to start their own Magic Pharmaceuticals company, then their alma mater contacts them to ask about sending some interns their way. The graduate is more likely to say yes, and even more so to students of their same old dorm because the Pomefiore graduate already has established loyalty to said dorm.

Anyway...! I know that was a lot to take in, but I hope I was able to explain my thoughts well enough 😅 I kind of got excited when I saw this ask, so my fingers were struggling to properly type out all the speculation and ideas I had running around in my brain.

[canmom]

How aren't mediums fungible? Any art history class would teach you they very much are.

what, has 'the medium is the message' gone out of fashion now or something?

but to explain what I'm trying to get at, since there's a good chance I misused the word >< - each medium brings its own set of affordances and emphases. if I see a CG animation I pay attention to different things than if I see traditional animation or stop motion or what have you.

for example, we could have a look at the animation of Hiroyuki Okiura - say, the introduction to the Cowboy Bebop movie, or his work in Magnetic Rose. Okiura is one of the most renowned realist animators, someone whose drawing style, camerawork etc. hews very close to live action film. his exceptional sense of perspective and space is remarkable in traditional animation. by contrast, you 'get it for free' in CG and stop motion - you will always have perfect linear perspective unless you go out of your way to break it. however, CG rarely captures the exact qualities of Okiura's animation, which come from the sense of drawing principles - how to simplify shapes, 2D spacing etc. and by making it something constructed, the way characters move through space, the way a drawing can suddenly feel 3D, becomes foregrounded - it's no longer incidental but now a core part of what Okiura's animation is expressing.

so, 'live action into anime' is kinda what the AI style transfer tools are going for. in the technique from the recent paper, you start with a static drawing of a character and some animation data (likely mocap), and the program will generate an animation. that's similar what Corridor Digital attempted a few months ago, using a neural network finetuned on Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, and applying 'style transfer' to live action footage they shot. the results were, viewed as rotoscoping, kind of hideous, with shapes constantly flickering and turning into mush. the new paper I linked offers some techniques to improve the temporal consistency of this type of AI rotoscoping which should make it look a lot less bad, though it remains to be seen whether it works in situations other than 'well-lit fullbody shot'.

still, even if Corridor's video was a lot more technically solid (and give AI development a few years to iron out the kinks, I'm sure it will look downright quaint), it doesn't provoke the same response in me as Okiura's animation. the process of drawing something involves a lot of artistic decisions about what to capture, simplify, emphasise; for all that it is 'realist', Okiura's animation likewise has a particular feeling to the way characters move, the way they interact with light, the use of line, etc. which in some large part arises from how it is produced. so much of that is all but impossible to capture in words.

but also - knowing a bit about how it's made, and having my own experiences of animation, gives me an angle to appreciate what Okiura is doing. a drawing of something is a way of drawing attention to the specific details of the subject. two people drawing the same subject will never draw it the exact same way. one of the joys of going to life drawing is seeing how many different ways people can approach the same subject in the same ten minutes - inflected by different media like charcoal or watercolour pencils. one of the great things about anime is the space it gives key animators to bring their own sensibility to a particular shot.

I certainly accept that is inevitable that mediums will evolve with time. anime looks very different today than it did 30 years ago. part of of that is evolving sensibilities, partly the slow-motion collapse of an overstrained industry, but also a lot has do with the fact that every studio has switched to digital compositing and digital background painting. it's possible through painstaking effort to fairly closely imitate the look of cel animation on a computer, but you really have to go out of your way, and it's rare to do that.

and I do feel like something has been lost with the death of cels - qualities of line and colour, the difference between digital bloom and backlight animation. but something has been gained at the same time: maybe we've gradually lost the traditional skills for drawing layouts because the conditions of production made it so that skills weren't passed on to the current generation of animators, which sucks, but we have simultaneously gained the ability to merge 2D and 3D animation with tools like Grease Pencil, to use the camera-like digital compositing effects of directors like Naoko Yamada and Makoto Shinkai. it's not better, just different.

this isn't to make the boring argument that AI art is soulless, or lacks the magic human touch, or whathaveyou. it's just a different medium. nor would it be right to say that there are no connections between media - literally right now I'm modelling an arm, and my experience of drawing arms is directly influencing how I break down the forms and all of that. AI generated images derive in obvious ways from traditional animation and CG and photography and all that, AI engineers study these media in great detail as they develop their programs; our knowledge of those media can inform how we respond to AI.

honestly, CG that aims to replicate the look of traditional animation, such as in the games of ArcSystem Works, or the works of Orange like their Houseki no Kuni, is something I actually find very interesting. not because I think it could or should replace traditional animation; it just reveals fascinating things about both media. the same can be true of AI, I think. like what do you learn from what a neural network is able to capture, and what it isn't? and what does studying neural networks tell us about human brains?

if the development of AI and the accessibility of new tools leads to a flourishing of interesting new animation, I'll be happy. I just don't see it as a replacement for traditional animation and 3DCG. if anything the future of animation will probably look like a hybrid process taking advantage of the best features of all the different media we've invented - insert the usual spiel about Arcane and Spiderverse here. AI is currently very immature, we're still figuring out what it's good for and the hype drowns out everything, but I'm sure it will find a comfortable place, and I'll be interested to see how it all shakes out.

but what I meant with 'not fungible' is that, if you try to replace one medium with another, you will inevitably change the qualities of what you make. nowt wrong with that. like, just because you can adapt books into films (and vice versa) doesn't mean books are obsolete. some things are easier to express in prose, others in film. you can have prose that's informed by film, and film that's informed by prose. everything's talking to everything else, it's great! but the tools you choose are meaningful, and interesting. not just an irrelevant detail to be swapped out when "superior" technology comes along.

[vicmillen]

Nooooo... I want my wip done dammit. But anyway my mind got hijacked by a sci-fi au, so. Here we go again I guess, have some sci-fi settings for the LU boys🫠🫠

Feel free to use any or all of this setting for yourself, if anyone is interested. Credits appreciated tho not needed.

General background

The Links came from different time period due to the unavoidable time delay and time wrap in intergalactic travel (think Ender's Game and how all the ships arrived at the same time despite spanning decades in departure). Up to recent times where instant wrap becomes a thing, at least.

The Links, and maybe the Zeldas too, may or may not have came from a common clone source (think Dances On The Snow style cloning, gee I love that novel)

There's a war involving a certain holder of the force of power, at some point.

I actually have no idea what the Links gathered for, something something evil shadows, I guess?

Is time travel a thing? I don't know. Depends on if they fucked with the spacetime continuum hard enough (they have). Though I refuse to melt my brain again for any inevitable paradox situations so for now let's pretend they haven't.

The Links

Sky was a well decorated pilot for the Hylian air force, back when air force is still it's own division. He is the furthest back in terms of time period, being one of the test pilot on board project Skyloft, the very first large scale long distance warp jump in Hylian history. Very skilled pilot, despite the outdated training. Fi is helping a lot with his retraining. His jet is simply named Crimson.

Four is a engineer from the Picori system. At one point got himself into a freak accident involving a cloning station and a lunatic scientist. Extremely quick learner and good at solve technical problems (it's like working fourth times the normal speed, you know:)

Time is humble ranch hand, or so he claims. He's not entirely wrong, but before he become said ranch hand, he has a complicated history with the Hylian council and the intelligence community. Specialized in mech suits, heavy hitter.

Twilight is the actual rancher, being Time's adopted son. However he got himself involved in a series of abduction and trafficking cases, and somehow ended up in some human experiment. Straight up not having a good time tbh. Though he broke himself out and took down the rig before Time got invited to the carnage, which is good because there's at least something left of the offenders. Good at mech suits and piloting jets, but specialized in hand to hand. Hand to claw? Hand to fang?

Warriors was an army captain on board of Artemis' flagship. Though he specialized more on the strategic planning than the daily management, hence why Wind is the unofficial captain of the ship now. Comes across as snobby at first because damn non of this gang have any training or discipline? Mech fighter, heavy hitter. Good with jet piloting too, just don't comes with his own jet. Copilot with Sky if needed.

Wind ran with Tetra's crew before whatever leads to him joining the chain, so a privateer. Though he prefers pirate, just sounds that much cooler. He comes with his own jet, the Red Lion. Talented pilot, very good at scouting. Surprisingly the most experienced in managing the staff on board since it's similar scale as Tetra's.

Legend is, well he'll say he's a merchant. Hauling and selling perfectly legal merchandise. The Federals disagree, but they're mistaken. His private jet, Sir Raven, is not technically armed, but the 'merchandise' on board is varied and certainly useful in hostile situations. Very skilled at navigating and bullshitting the feds and fighting with his custom weaponry. Kind of a weapons expert too.

Hyrule may or may not have been one of the perfectly legal merchandise that required Legend's shipping service at some point. And may or may not have led to Legend gaining yet another wanted poster somewhere, somehow. Works miracles with the med unit, and like Legend is great with the unusual weapons that they rig up.

Wild is a cyborg, multi talented but especially appreciated for working miracles with the food assembly thingie. Despite being the only one on board that don't need edible material to survive. Technically the owner of the ship, and technically is part of the ship too. Take care of the daily management with Wind.

The ships

The ship they're currently aboard is the Master Ship Zero very original I know, Fi is the ship's Ai. Though the three jets in the hull each have their own system. The master ship is not really meant for a crew of only 9, but between the Fours and some creative problem solving, they managed pretty well. (Or maybe the Links didn't came alone, so there are more crew, like Malon Ravio and idk, somebody else.)

Wind's Red Lion is the smallest and lightest jet. Single pilot, speedy and stealthy, but very little fire power.

Sky's Crimson is a antique very traditional fighter jet, though it's is under heavy modification to suit the need of the current situation. For a fighter is on the small side, but comes with heavy fire power.

Legend's Sir Raven is a modified commercial jet, packs a surprising punch. But overall focused on camouflage shielding and speed. The largest jet among the three, actually. At least the largest hull. Can fit the whole chain inside if need must, but cannot provide sustainable life support for more than three people.

[whitecatlegend]

Chapter 153 (Highs and lows of life are inseparable)

First | Previous || Chapter 153 || Next Master post

Apologies for the wait! This chapter was unexpectedly hard - poetry often is, but this time it was poetry that hasn't been translated into English fully, and quite a complicated one at that. I admittedly did not expect that when I promised to try and post two chapters at once a month ago...

The song in the second half of the chapter is an excerpt from Luo Binwang's The Imperial Capital, a somewhat well-known example of the genre of capital poems.

Luo Binwang and Wu Zetian had... a history. He used to hold an official position in Chang'an, but criticized Wu Zetian quite a bit and was eventually demoted and sent away from the capital (that was in 684, before Wu Zetian was crowned Emperor and moved the capital to Luoyang). After that, he wrote a particularly scathing declaration against her as part of a resistance against her rule (It starts with "The wrongfully ruling Lady Wu has a disagreeable temper and a dishonorable ancestry," and kind of goes downhill from there; it's quite an interesting piece the translation to which you can find in Luo Binwang's wikipedia article).

Luo Binwang was killed in the resistance, but Wu Zetian was both rather amused by the aforementioned declaration and impressed by his other work, so she was the one who ordered for his writings to be published.

After making the translation, I still had to cut it down to fit into the speech bubbles, but here is a rough full version of these lines with an equally rough commentary (take it with a slight grain of salt - I'm hardly an expert):

In summer mornings, the wine gourds fill the air with hundreds of smells, In autumn nights, exquisite lanterns are dimly lit.

(The commentaries seem to agree that these lines refers to singing, dancing and indulging in the illusion of pleasure-seeking; I'll take their word for it)

Emerald green curtains do not shine alone, The voice and the zither depend on one another.

Zither here is actually a se - a 25- or 16-stringed instrument similar to a zither. The curtains need lanterns to bring out the color, same as music is most pleasant when there is both a voice and a musical instrument.

Remembering thirty-six thousand days of being right, Rather than knowing the mistakes of the past forty-nine years.

This one's trickier. 36000 days is roughly 100 years, a human lifetime; 49 years of mistakes is a reference to Zang Boyu - a Wei state minister, who is famous for saying how at 50 years old he remembered the mistakes of the past 49 years. I can't quite figure out if it's meant to be praise or admonishment; it looks like this poem in general somewhat struggles with conveying clearly if it's praising or condemning the kind of things it's describing. For some more information, I will have to send you to The Poetry of the Early Tang by Stephen Owen - it's an old book, but it seems to still be held in high regard by modern researchers.

Since ancient times glory and fame were like floating clouds, You cannot split off the highs and lows of human life.

And that's the passage I can't take credit for! Kept Owen's translation here since he provided it in his book, these lines seem self-explanatory.

"I established the dynasty" - while Wu Zetian's official rule is generally viewed in the context of the Tang dynasty, reminder that she technically established her own Zhou dynasty of which she is the only ruler.