#100% Non detectable

[intellitechdataservices]

Which is 100% Non Detectable for Pixcel Notepad, Notepad Plus or RTX Notepads? A: Autotyper B: Buk Text Encryptor

[melonthesprigatito]

I don't know what rock these people are living under but Pokémon spinoffs definitely haven't gone anywhere

This post is an appreciation post for all the good recent spinoff games that don't get attention <3

[mademoiselle-cookie]

Nerd!Edwin x joke!Charles AU gives me life

[wayfinderships]

Oh...He made a pun..👉👈 Maybe things can work out between us

[kittychicha]

[sigmaleph]

your job is to catch frauds, but frauds universally pretend to be non-frauds, and non-frauds are much more common. so you look for various telltale details in every potential fraud, and every once in a while you put together some observations that made you suspicious, and you flag something as a fraud, and add it to your records.

at the end of the year, you want to check how good your system is, so you check, what percentage of the frauds did you catch? well, here you have your handy list of frauds you caught, so all you need is to divide it by the total number of frauds. you don't have that, the frauds aren't courteous enough to tell you how many of them there are, but you figure can make an estimate. you use your pre-existing list of detected frauds as a proxy for the total number of frauds, divide one by the other, and you get 100%! this is an approximation, of course, but how suggestive. your fraud-detection system is superb.

[bidotorg]

"It’s hard to score a non-miniseries on only eight episodes. Simply as a show, it was entertaining, engrossing, atmospheric, and fun. Even as someone who isn’t a fan of the YA/teen genre, I enjoyed it. And, the show’s bi shortcoming is one that I believe would, with almost 100% certainty, have been resolved in a second season. It feels a little like assessing the life of someone who died too young, before realizing their full potential. Kind of like Edwin and Charles. Except, the boys weren’t ready to pass on, and neither were their fans. Hopefully, the Dead Boy Detectives can be brought back to life. Otherwise, we’ll all be left wondering what might have been."

[lucrezianoin]

Rating all the romances in Veilguard

For no reason that I watched them (here)/played them all. (I played Taash, Emmrich both paths, Davrin, and all the romances up till the commitment scene)

All the romances (with few exceptions) seem to follow the same pattern of: about three or four flirting moments, a missed kiss scene where you non-commit to the romance, a commitment to the romance scene and a dinner/date. All these scenes are also friendship ones and the romance extends them (with various levels of extension). Then the romance has three unique scenes: a pre-Ghilan'nain chat, the post-Fade sex scene, a final chat before the end and that is it.

I am gonna put some of these scenes in preference order! What I look for in a scene is:

If it is a friendship scene: how much the romance scene adds;

The scene tells me something new about the characters;

How well the scene sets up the tone of the romance (especially starting scenes);

Just how much I liked the scene! the tone, the movements, other added things

Every link is the scene from the same youtube channel I linked before, at the correct timestamp.

EDIT: changed the rating for Neve, she is now my second fav (I am replaying it and realized I missed something from her commitment scene)

TL TR: My favorite romances in order:

Davrin: his romance ties very well with his character development and quest. Weisshaupt and his relationship with death being confronted with losing his home, trying to stay casual and then getting attached against his own will, and then choosing a new path (a road less travelled, as he says) which also ties with the relationship with him and his Dalish clan. It is also the only romance that allows the player to decide what comes after for Rook.

Neve: I felt like her romance had its own sub-plot that I did not feel was 100% reflected in her quests (given she shows attachment to other characters and things), but there is a lot of content and like for Emmrich it all fits well in the tone of Neve's character and quests at least: it really makes you feel like you are in a detective story, romancing that one character who has a tons of protective walls around her heart. The banter and flirting was my favorite, with a lot of small back-and-forth, that I think do the heavy lifting.

Emmrich: this romance is a bit less involved with the main plot, but I thought it felt very cohesive. It is a more classical romance which sees Emmrich surprised to be the subject of Rook's flirting, to then taking them both in a very classic path of dating and breakfasts in bed. It also has a lot more content given it has technically two paths, and fits well with the whimsical sometimes humorous tone of Emmrich but also his relationship with death (fear).

Taash: Their romance is probably the easiest and fastest to get. I think the content is a bit less compared to other romances, but their inability to fully express their attachment (especially in the context of their mom's death) was a nice touch. I wish the story had integrated their personal quest (what happened to their mother) a bit more at the end, given we have a parallel of Taash not being able to save her vs being able to get Rook back.

Harding: I think her romance actually makes her character much more compelling to me. We see her dealing with her powers a bit more, and in the final scene it is all pulled together with this dialogue about how she wished the world could stay simple, but closing your eyes against the change does not mean the change is not happening. Still, I feel like she has the least amount of scenes (but my favorite romance commitment scene) especially if she dies then her romance feels absolutely incomplete. In the case of Davrin, his death makes his previous scenes much more tragic instead.

Bellara: I actually really like Bellara's romance, I just feel like if I try to look at it objectively it seems a bit all over the place. It starts very sweet and awkward, but it mainly relegates Rook in the role of someone who needs to reassure Bellara a lot, especially about not being liked. I am also very annoyed by the two mentions of "Rook makes Bellara calmer". As far as I know Bellara is supposed to have adhd, and as someone who has adhd... no, love does not "cure" you. Or make you feel calmer.

Lucanis: I am so sorry for all the Lucanis fans. I have no idea what happened here. I loved the final scene, but the rest of his romance feels strangely directionless. I admit I did not believe it could be so much short in content compared to the other romances but after playing half of it and watching the rest - it kind does. It has some nice extra banter and comments (ex. a lot of supporting Lucanis in battle), but I am also unsure what this romance is even about. His personal quest is about starting to live again and accepting Spite, but his romance seems a mix of guilt for his failure and deflections. The only thing I can come up with is that the writers were trying to convey a Lucanis who was not ready for a romance but still wanted it nonetheless?

The almost kiss:

Bellara: This one has no almost kiss, but I loved the scene nonetheless. The friendship scene is adorable (I love characters who write stories!), and the romance part is quite extended with Bellara giving us new information about her: she never really has been in a long relationship, about her ex from the Veil Jumper, and we also see her trying to act all suave and smooth and almost falling from the desk, which was adorable and sets up the awkwardness and inexperience of the romance.

Davrin: The almost kiss is interrupted by Assan, which makes perfect sense giving the previous interruptions. It also reinfornces the fact that Davrin is direct, and it tell us that there is a correlation with him chasing his romance/being direct and how close to death Grey Wardens are. It sets up an almost casual/overly-flirting and seducing tone to the romance instead of the more romantic one found in others. The scene also makes the friendship version 100% better and make it much more sense.

Neve: The friendship scene is quite cute, but after seeing the romance one I feel like the whole scene is a setup for the romance. Most of it is in the romance version, with a lot of characters moving through the room (checking the wisp, sitting on the desk, almost kissing). It also tells us a bit about Neve: she is attracted to Rook, but very hesitant to start a relationship, almost scared, and that the theme of the romance is this almost magnetic attraction that she cannot resist to. Hilarious also because of Rook looking at the ceiling in frustration when the kiss doesn't happen.

Taash: I am not a fan of the growls, but the movement, the hilarity of Taash standing up saying "yes so..." and pushing Rook against the mirror - perfect. The friendship scene also tells us something on its own and the two takes a different paths. We also find out that Taash is extremely direct, they are very open about sex, and take initiative very quickly when needed. Plus their sense of smell is very developed and connected with the breathing-fire thing. The interruption is probably my favorite here, with Taash and Rook sharing an amused glance, it builds comraderie!

Harding: The scene sets up Harding's main plot (her new powers) in the romance, which will then continue in the actual commitment scene. The scene overall tells us that Harding sometimes loses control of her lyrium while touching people, and that she is a bit awkward but also not too easily embarassed (like Bellara is). In general it is quite sweet.

Emmrich: I usually love Emmrich scenes and this is probably my list favorite in his romance. The dialogue is beautiful and elegant as always, and we find out that Emmrich romance will follow more traditional and romantic paths. We do not learn much about Emmrich himself, a part from the fact that he is interested in the romance. I also am a bit confused by the show of magic, I suppose it is seduction but what does it mean... it escapes me. I guess, another thing we learn is that Emmrich likes to take the seduction into his hands, which sets the tone for the romance.

Lucanis: the first part of this scene is Spite trying to run away. Then the scene feels like it goes from zero to one hundred very quickly, with Lucanis and Rook almost kissing, then bam, Lucanis needs to clear his head - I know it is Spite but it felt a bit strange. I am unsure what the scene is trying to tell me, we already knew Spite is a problem and often takes over/stops Lucanis from doing things (ex. starting scene by the fireplace).

Romance confirmation/commitment:

Harding: the scene expands a lot on the friendship version, so much that I almost forgot I even played the friendship version of it. We also have the continuation of Harding's touching problem, and not only it is hilarious (Harding backing away and being shocked Rook would still kiss her), but also tells us something about Rook themselves (that they are a bit of a reckless fool). The scene happening in public with all the other npcs being like "wtf", hilarious.

Davrin: The scene adds a little bit from the friendship one, with the most schoolgirl kiss in the game (which is adorable), the return of the "hunting" metaphor, and Davrin looking at Rook when he talks about Assan having "the heart of a halla". It all ties in the fact that the scene is a way to draw a parallel between Davrin and Assan - it works well given it is a romance scene and one of the parallels is about both of them finding a new path and having "the heart of a Halla". There is also a small additional banter when you go back to Eldrin, where Rook can tell Davrin "you have me too now".

Neve: So I love this scene (skipping rocks, thinking about her case), it feels very detective-like in a dark foggy city, chasing leads. EDIT: I previously put this down at n5 but I am replaying Neve romance and realized there is so much more. Not only Neve throws herself at you (for a kiss), plus a fumbled kiss, but you also get a very cute banter about "kissing a girl/kissing neve gallus" while you chase for leads. Overall, while the majority of the scene is the friendship version, the romance version changes it quite a bit.

Taash: the scene was great before the romance one, I loved seeing Taash getting to the realization and decision about using they/them. But it also felt a bit like zero to one hundred, with only a few flirtings before (pretty sure only two? or three?). But the kiss? that was the best kiss in the game for me, with Taash being like "okay bye". It follows the general theme of Taash being a bit uncomfortable to face their own feelings, and very direct.

Emmrich: one of my favorite scenes in the friendship version. To see an older than usual character remembering their parents, talking with them and introducing them their new partner is pretty rare. The rest of the scene was quite classical seduction from Emmrich, he really feels like the character who is doing the courting and the scene in general looks quite beautiful. Beautiful kiss too. The addition from the friendship version is the extra seduction with magic.

Lucanis: Zero points for payeya. The rest of the scene is very sweet, I loved that Lucanis remembers Rook's drink and that a previous choice returns in play, but the scene is so short and it seems to mainly revolve around Lucanis apologizing. It tells us that Lucanis remembers, and that probably his romantic side is more acts of service than words, but it also feels a bit like Rook is romancing themselves and jumping to conclusions because Lucanis is giving very little.

Bellara: the commitment scene was so small, and so Cyrian focused I should probably not even put it here.

Dates/dinners:

Emmrich: This is a full on date that follows the Emmrich's path of "classically romancing Rook". We have the dinner, special Mourn Watcher dialogue about the skeletons raised to cook, a kiss, and you can also exchange questions - you can tell Emmrich you are a virgin too haha - plus, Emmrich expresses worry for Rook and how much work he is taking on, which is always nice to see given sometimes Rook feels excluded in the game. The dialogue also remembers previous choices, with different options if you expressed distaste for necromancy.

Neve (scene 1) (scene 2): She has technically two, one where you can meet with Rana or Elek, and then the initial one where she takes you to eat fried fish, so before the start of the romance. Both scenes? Amazing. I absolutely love them, especially the tour of Dock Town and eating fried fish with her while looking at the sea. They felt perfectly in tone of a noir-detective romance. In the first scene we get Neve's main romance theme (the tables always turn) and feels (banter, back and forth) and in the playing cards scene we return to the back and forth banter that is characteristic of the Neve romance.

Davrin: This was mainly about Davrin being asked to take a break and him worrying about Rook working too much, which is always nice to hear! I was a bit disappointed that so much of the date ended up being about Assan and Rook not being able to do mushrooms without tripping, but the small bits of Davrin being disappointed he could not take Rook's mind off work for an afternoon felt strangely in line with Davrin's more seduction-like romance (which seems to be mainly on the casual side of things) and his attempt to make this work.

Taash: I loved Taash's mother immediately zeroing in on Rook being their partner, but sadly there is not really a romance scene. The scene is very similar to the friendship one, and it doesn't tell us anything more about the romance itself or Taash.

Lucanis: I am confused by this scene. It seems much more about Lucanis and Spite than Lucanis and Rook and Lucanis. The part taht is about Rook and Lucanis is very very short, and mainly a lovingly gazing Lucanis and Rook with not a lot of dialogue.

Bellara and Harding seems to have no date/dinner scene. Harding has a longer post Ghilan'nain scene, and Bellara has a lot of small scenes around here and there.

The fight before the fight

Davrin: similar to Taash but softer. This is also when you find out a lot about Davrin here - mainly how he made sure to never get attached - and more about his relationship with death that turns into him wanting to finally think about a future without death. I thought this scene added a lot to his character, and pulled together his whole plot arc too (the non romance one, so his attachment to Assan, his relationship with death, Weisshaupt and his new home). It also felt realistic and hopeful bre-battle, and it is even more devastating in the light of the Harding vs Davrin death choice.

Neve: the voice acting in this one is just stellar. It is also very detective-feels like a noir old movie with forbbiden romance. It shows how important it is for Neve to keep everything under control. Her voice breaking out at the end - amazing, one of my favorite lines by Neve. This does not fully connect with her arc, like Davrin's did, but it is the breaking of her walls scene.

Emmrich (Lich) (link to my twitter): As much as I love saving Manfred, I prefer this scene with Lich Emmrich and how much you can play a Rook that is absolutely extra in love and refuses to listen to what Emmrich is saying. And it is nice to have a scene where a companion actually suggests for the protagonist to not go into battle. It ties with Emmrich's fear of death, and accepting that people around him will always die now that he is a Lich. I was just a bit sad that he clearly did not fully make peace with that before his transformation, given that was one of the requirements.

Taash: classic angst and tsundere, loved that Taash refuses to admit their feelings to avoid getting hurt. This is similar to Neve and Davrin's scene, but I think it tells us less about Taash than Davrin's, and the scene is much shorter than Neve's. It feels also a bit more in line with Taash's character here given what happened to Taash's mother, but I wonder if you can still get this scene if you do not complete Taash's quests... I suspect you might, which makes the scene in that case a bit out of place in my opinion.

Emmrich (non Lich): Look, I LOVE this scene, and I love seeing Emmrich talk about their age difference, but I thought it felt a bit random placed as a pre-battle fight. I know this is about Emmrich confronting his own mortality again, and this is the main theme, Emmrich realizing he is fully in love and not ready at the idea of leaving Rook alone. I love Rook's answers, but I would have loved to expand on this way before (especially given that one of the option is Emmrich implying that Rook does not know what they want because they are too young "I know what I am getting into" / "at your age?").

Lucanis: I really enjoyed this more than I thought I would, but mainly the first part. Lucanis feeling the responsibility of the strike to protect Rook after he failed once. It ties well into his arc, being responsible of this big job, and Rook tried to show him that they are in this together. Except that then the scene kind of derailed, in my opinion with extra Lucanis' deflection. Maybe I do not fully understand Lucanis' romance and character, but the scene goes from: Lucanis' guilt and fear, "I only know death", I am not alone I have Spite, I will kill to protect you, don't promise you will survive. I am unusure what is Lucanis romance here trying to tell me, I wish they had focused on his guilt/weight of protecting Rook more.

Bellara: too sweet for my taste. The scene does not have a fight, but we get Bellara being honest with her feelings, and saying she feels calmer with Rook (which I hate, given she is supposed to have adhd if I understand correctly, and as someone with adhd no amount of romance is gonna make me feel calmer, medicate me). It also re-iterates that Bellara feels bad about who she is, and Rook makes her feel better. The scene does not seem to tell me anything new about Bellara or the romance itself.

Harding: This feels very generic. It is a "what if things go wrong", which makes sense for a scene before the big fight. It is so short, and a missed opportunity to give us a bit more given that Harding can literally die in the next mission. The point of the scene is "I am worried", Rook "It's okay we have us", Harding: "Alright".

Final romance scene:

Davrin: Look, the start makes me a bit embarassed, the shirts vanishing? the fact that Rook in the fade is barely mentioned, how Rook's size does not seem to matter at all, the Rook's breathless moaning - some of the dialogue is a bit strange, if you don't play the joke-y Rook/direct Rook. But it is also the only scene where the characters talk about their future and that to me feels like a conclusion to the romance. I was actually surprised when I got to all the other romances and I did not see the final choice of "what will you do with your LI" like in Davrin's scene. We have a Davrin who is finally living without thinking of death, we have a new choice that is then reflected in the final chat later, Rook and Davrin organize their future together (the road less travelled being one of them, which Davrin says "it is how I found you" and really summarizes Davrin's whole story with the team, Rook and Assan, but also his past with his Dalish clan).

Lucanis: I really liked this scene, both the start of it with Lucanis feeling relieved and the whole "are you falling asleep", and Lucanis asking for Rook to talk to him. It was very sweet without being too mushy, even if it felt pretty short. The scene pulls together Lucanis' attachment, showing how much he learnt to care for Rook. I am still unsure how this pulls together his whole romance (or his fight scene pre battle) more than "Lucanis trusts Rook and now Rook is part of his new life", but it is still worth it for the tenderness. And the whole kneeling part was nice, giving the whole "Dellamorte never kneel".

Taash: picking up Rook is an A+, I admit I was not a fan of the growls, but the whole discussion of their romance? lovely, even if it was pretty short. This is mainly about Taash and Rook defining their relationship, after Taash's fear of losing Rook. They are ready to be honest about their feelings, which is a nice conclusion, but I wish it had tied a bit more into what happened with Taash's quest (their mother's death mainly, especially given that their fight scene was about the risk of losing someone they love).

Neve: this is another direct continuation of the pre-Ghilan'nain scene, where Neve actually cries and we see how relieved she is. Her pushing Rook on the couch and closing the door with magic? Great, stellar. The rest of the scene is mainly about Neve finding the courage to say I love you and living day by day. It is the conclusion of her arc within the romance (tearing down her walls until she can finally admit she fell for Rook). Neve "I won't life like we are not getting one (an after)" is very sweet.

Emmrich: Lich and non-Lich are pretty similar, they are both mainly focused on Emmrich making sure there is no enchantment on Rook, then a kiss and a very humorous cute scene after they bang in a coffin. It did not add any new information to the romance, but it was still sweet, and different (given they are not in Rook's room). I just wished it had tied a bit more into their pre battle fight, or had talked a bit about their future.

Harding: I think she might have the longer scene, mainly because she does not have a lot of scenes before? I found it pretty interesting because she actually suspects for a bit that Rook is a spirit and she remembers Cole. The rest of the scene was a bit too mushy and sweet for me, and more about Harding herself than the romance. It helps define her character as someone who has gone through some really world-shattering revelations, which I think makes her a bit more compelling vs her without the romance.

Blighted Bellara coming back: I think this works a bit better than Neve's version, because Bellara and Rook generally have a more open romance. They already kind of accepted each other's feelings before, even if Bellara never said "i love you". In this scene she is trying to finally say it. It also adds a bit more about Bellara's ordeal with the blight ("you found me and saved me").

Bellara: I feel so bad for putting most of Bellara scenes at the end of each list. The final scene was very cute, very humorous for the first part. Unfortunately it felt a bit repetitive. It was clear Bellara wanted to say "I love you", through a lot of moments in the scenes and she could not say it. The whole scene seems to be about Bellara being open with her feelings and wanting to take a moment for her and Rook vs worrying about everything, unfortunately I cannot help but be annoyed at the whole "Rook makes Bellara calmer" feels I got from it. On the other hand, she is the only one who wonders if she was a regret in the fade regret prison, which I really enjoyed.

Blighted Neve coming back: The scene is the shorter version of Neve's scene, and the reverse of it (Rook is the one worried and waiting for Neve to come back). It feels a bit empty given the ordeal, and given that this happens after the game actually ends. I did not play this, but from what I see it has no "I love you" after and it ends with neve closing the door and it 100% (at least for me) makes Neve's romance feels strangely unfinished because so much of the previous scenes in it were about Neve not being able to not feel fear about losing Rook.

[credus99-blog]

Atterran Terrestrial Catfish (also known as whisker fish) are a lineage of non-teleost fish that have successfully transitioned to terrestrial life, like the ancestors of tetrapods on Earth and Atterra.

Like Earth, the oldest currently known catfish fossils date back to the late cretaceous period of Atterra, which, according to Old World archives, was found in the western continent. While the original fossil was lost during The Fall, the surviving data indicates that the fossil was from a species of armored catfish with similar morphological adaptations to modern-day armored catfish. Atterran biologists theorize catfish evolved between 100-110mya at the beginning of the late Cretaceous period or near the end of the middle Cretaceous period. Unlike the terrestrial teleost fish lineages, the ancestors of the terrestrial catfish did not develop within the hollows of Atterra but instead on the evolved deserts of the surface. These basal catfish would move between bodies of water across the desert sands, like the armored catfish of Brazil, to find food and reproduce. Whenever these fish could not find a suitable body of water, they would hunker down in the mud and hibernate until the wet season arrived, bringing more pools for the fish to inhabit.

Over time, during the late cretaceous, as the desert slowly began to become drier and the catfish had to traverse farther and farther to find suitable pools of water, the catfish's branchial tissue behind their gills slowly became more robust. Taking up larger portions of the body behind the head as the gills began to become smaller from less time spent in water. At the same time, the skin of the ancestral terrestrial catfish became thicker and more resistant to water loss, allowing the catfish to spend more time traversing the dunes in search of water or cool places to hide. Eventually, the armor plating of the ancestor's body became less rigid and sparser, allowing the catfish more flexibility as it raffled across the desert, leading the fish to incorporate its tail into its locomotion and utilize it as a powerful springboard to hop forward. As the catfish's gait and locomotion improved, the brachial tissue moved down into the fish's chest cavity to form primitive lungs. The gill arches began to ossify into the ear and hyoid bones to aid the fish in detecting predators and swallowing food. Alongside the new ear bones, the gill cover slowly became less ossified and flexible to turn into external ears.

Terrestrial catfish are believed to have survived the end cretaceous extinction event on Atterra by being generalists that would eat anything they could fit in their mouths and being just armored enough to ward off many potential would-be predators. Like their ancestors, terrestrial catfish still possess mobile venomous dorsal and pectoral spines to ward off predators should their armored hide prove not enough to deter would-be predators. The stings of terrestrial catfish are excruciating and often cause redness and severe swelling around the area of the sting. In some species, tissue necrosis may also occur, making them a dangerous prey item many predators approach with caution when hunting.

[rekino2114]

Let's see~ Valentines prompt 6 with Danganropa girl Junko enoshima with a male reader~, I think this would work well since it's just unexpected for Junko to go this route of just not being upfront. So with she's confessed to being the secret admirer and have to reassure her future boyfriend that this I not a joke, prank or dare, she is 100% in love with them

Junko being your secret admirer

Pairing:junko enoshima x male reader

(Non despair au)

"Thank you for agreeing to help me kyoko"

"It's nothing, I wouldn't deserve my ultimate if I didn't use it to help people, especially my friends"

"It's still a big help"

Kyoko nodded and entered your dorm as soon as you let her in

"So what mystery would you like me to solve?"

"This"

You pointed to the giant stack of letters on your desk

"........I........see"

"This admirer has been leaving these letters in front of my dorm for like a week. They're really sweet, but since I don't know who sent them I can't go talk to them"

"I understand, so you want me to find out who sent them"

"If you can"

"Can I see them?"

"Sure I guess they're mine now anyway"

The detective hummed and went to the desk to pick up one of the letters and open it

"It's OK if you can't It's probably just a prank anyw-"

"It's junko"

".............what?"

"It's junko, she's the one who's been sending you the letters"

".......how did you figure it out that fast?"

"Do you know any other girl in our class who would leave a very visible mark of seemingly very expensive lipstick on the letter?"

"I mean it-"

"Or who sprinkles it with glitter"

"............."

"Or who writes with an impressively good calligraphy but for some reason still dots her Is with hearts"

"........now you make me feel dumb"

"Don't, I'm the ultimate detective for a reason"

"But still......are you sure? Junko's so popular and I'm........well I'm me, those letters feel so passionate, does she really feel something for me"

"From what I'm reading, there's no doubt, she definitely does, you don't just write something like this for a dare"

"That's what I think so too but....."

"Does that bother you?"

"No, the opposite, I kinda like junko too"

"Then go talk to her, if she likes you you get a valentine and maybe even a girlfriend, if she doesn't then you can just move on"

".........yeah I'll go, thanks"

"No problem, if you need me again, I'm always here"

You went outside of your dorm, still a bit nervous, and found junko talking with mukuro in the hallway, as soon as the fashionista spotted you a very slight blush appeared on her cheeks and she sent her sister away before turning to you with a wide smile

"Hey y/n, what's up? You wanna hang out? Cause I'm always up for that"

"I'll just cut to the chase, are you....my secret admirer?"

".....w-what?"

"Like the person who has been sending me the love letters"

"*sighs* I knew you'd figure it out eventually, yep its me, junko enoshima! Hope you liked the letters I used some of my best lipstick to mark them"

"Y-yeah I loved them, but did you really mean all that?"

"Duh! I wouldn't have written them otherwise"

"So it's not a prank or some sorr of dare-"

"Listen y/n if someone ever asked me to prank you, I'd prank them back 10 times as much just for saying that, I love love you, whooooole lot, so much that I can't even put it into words so I tried to write it down, and then I saw a romance movie where the girl left secret notes for the guy she liked and thought it was like super extra adorable, so I decided to do the same since we're even in the perfect period"

"W-wow so you really like me?"

"No I love you, I already said that"

"Sorry it's just a bit hard to believe"

"Why? You're super awesome and the most handsome guy ever in my opinion, so it's only right that the hottest girl ever should get to ask you out"

"W-wait you wanna ask me out?"

"Obviously, or like to be my valentine, but I always thought those things were pretty much the same"

"......w-wow thank you so much"

"It's nothing cutie~ so wanna be junko's super amazing valentine?"

"Yeah of course"

"Yaaas!!! Being valentines is like step one to becoming a couple, I gotta post about this, can we go somewhere tonight, I know a really cute place that's perfect for first dates and I also have this dress I've been waiting for a right moment to wear and I think this is it"

"Yeah definitely, see you tonight junko I can't wait, this is amazing, thank you so much"

"No thank you for accepting the letters my valentine and most definitely future boyfriend"

You giggled and went to your dorm again both to prepare and to look at the letters that your now valentine and most definitely future girlfriend gave you

[razztazzel]

Thought it would but cute to revisit this old au of mines and give it some lore!

I’m really passionate about this au specifically because I LOVE sci-fi like ALOT… so I might make a lot of content of it… OFC Helios planet will still be going on trust

Non filtered version + lore ⬇️⬇️⬇️

LORE!!!

All the toons are aliens!!! On a completely different planet (exoplanet) about 4.2 Light years away from earth. The company, C.V. inc. aka Cosmic View Incorporated labeled it “Proxima Centauri b” (Its a Genuine exoplanet that’s the closest known to earth it’s so cool) Let’s just say In this au, Earth is extremely Sci-FI like, reaching advances where it wouldn’t be really…. Possible as earth is now…

And so they developed travel though hyperspace (just to clarify, Hyperspace is a fictional concept and not based on current scientific understanding; it's often portrayed as a different dimension where normal space-time rules don't apply - google or something) and managed to land on Proxima Centauri b! The people traveling were highly advanced scientists and they were like, woahhh look at these little whimsical creatures!!! But only like 4 “handlers” went Cause it was still in development!!! So it was kind of a suicide mission to put it frankly

They didn’t die.. Thankfully!!! And they successfully made it back probably old and decrepit, just with a few aliens that totally weren’t kidnapped or anything (They done took the mains, Besides Zee(Vee) she didn’t exist on their planet since she’s a robot made by C.V. Inc.) Vee was made by the soon to be handlers in an attempt to collect direct data from the totally not kidnapped toons! Her emotions are 100% programmed but ran through an advanced ai that study’s the emotion of literally everything living that’s around her so her emotions can be pretty accurate to a certain degree before the robot part generally makes way, Her ai detects any subtle or visible emotion and collects data of it to train itself on how to process and express emotion, but she’ll never have TRUE emotion

Unlike original Vee they’re smart and makes her entirely water proof and very much heat resistant, Zee just cannot be Submerged in water. Anyway a group of.. more like.. scientists in like…training became handlers as a little hands on experiment for them since the owner of the entire thing was really really interested in the toons and wanted to be involved with data processing so she assigned newbies (ish) to be the handlers.. She herself handles Andy (Dandy)!

The toons are all kept in separate rooms similar to those of like experiments just less cruel, like SCP type shit but cooler and not evil… looking… trust trust… so they can be observed and have data recorded…Besides confinement they’re actually treated really well! Sprout learns to bake through his handler and generally enjoys it so he’s allowed to bake every now and then, Shelby (Shelly) gets loads of attention for being an alien bro does NOT wanna leave, Genesis Rock (Pebble) is treated like a legitimate dog gets walked and has play time even though since he’s a rock he probably doesn’t need it, but data is data, Andy hates it there they tried to feed him plant fertilizer once cause he resembles a flower..

Anyway Vee is the only one who’s not in confinement and is generally like a little bot helper for the company, YES!!! THE TOONS ARE ALLOWED TO ROAM!!! Those lovely creatures are not locked away… forever…

TOON TRIVIA

Andy(Dandy) Now has 4 arms!

Astro becomes spiderman ( Ok not really he just gets 6 arms and is constantly floating, Studies show that he cannot seem to stop..)

Shelby (Shelly) Is a mixture of an alienized fossil with a freaky chameleon, with more feral-ish aspects like protruding fangs and sharper hands compared to the others

Genesis (Pebble) can literally walk on air

sprouts hair is ALIVE do NOT cut it he will scream and he has awful fashion sense because refuses to take the scarf off because it was a gift from cosmo before being taken by weird tall things he didn’t know hashtag last thing he has from cosmo hashtag fruitcake angst hashtag NO MORE FRUITCAKE/j

Zee (Vee)is specifically meant to look similar to the alien toons, She doesn’t have a handler though the handlers like to let her wear a coat, they think it looks cute on her small frame…🫶🫶

Sprouts handler encourages sprout to wear the cute aprons they give him, he always refuses… one day.. one day..

Astro generally cannot stop floating, luckily for some reason gravity won’t allow him to float too high so he’s just chilling fr

I think I’ll call this au Cosmic Veiw incorporation /inc or to put it simply, Alien or space au for easy tagging

[mesapies]

Canon lgbtq+ avatar characters

Korra and asami - bisexual

Kya - lesbian

Kyoshi - bisexual

rangi - lesbian

Zeisan (sozins sister) and her lover Rioshon - sapphic (I think zeisan is a lesbian but I'm not 100% sure)

Mingxia and her gf Melin - sapphic

Zenko (left) and his named husband - gay

Katara saved zenko and their daughter chio from a fire nation attack

Akuudan and tayagum - gay

Akuudan and his husband tayagum were water tribe warriors that helped avatar yangchen

Hua and Rose - sapphic

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - core book. Rose was a wealthy girl who purse was attempted to be stolen by Hua a firebending criminal but they later fell in love

Dalja Rose - trans(I think)

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - core book. Attended fire academy fir girls when they realized they didn't truly feel like a girl.

Jiang - gay

From adventure booklet: the burning fuse. He's a detective from republic city who gained airbending through the harmonic convergence

Junyi - gay

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - core book. He was a earth nation Outlaw during the time of roku. Hes was swordsmith who fell in love with one of his clients. The two men were set to run away together, but his lover's wife, the mayor of the town, discovered their affair. She had her husband killed and pinned the crime on Junyi. (Messy as hell)

Makittuq - trans woman

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - core book. She's northern water tribe girl from the tims of roku who knew she assigned the wrong gender since birth. When her family didn't accept her she connected with sports who did

Massak and nyn chei - sapphic ex lovers

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - core book. During the time of roku, Massak was a swt boatwright and inventor and he ex lover nyn chei was a fire nation inventor and engineer who'd inventions helped create the new fire navy coal fuled fleet.

Mayu - trans man

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - republic city. From republic city him and his friends Yuka and Saya ran away together after mayu came out to his traditional fire nation family who didn't accept him.(im think Yuka is non binary as well)

Mosi and his husband sayako - gay

From adventure booklet: pirate of crimson sails. From a fire nation colony as a earth nation guy. Mosi as an adult became a pirate working to go against azulon. He later fell in love with a firebender, sayako. They married and had a daughter, lily

Sunlin - non binary

from the avatar legends the roleplaying game - quicksart. They were a joyful and idealistic orphan from Harbor City, and a former member of the Fire Finches during the late stages of the Hundred Year War

Wen - non binary

From avatar generations. Wen was an Earth Kingdom archaeologist broadly interested in relics. They explored the four nations in pursuit of their studies.

Netxflix Oma and shu - sapphics

Aiwei (left) - said to be gay but I couldn't find anything confirming

Jargala (right) - her artist said that she's pansexual but there's nothing confirming it

Unnamed gay air nomads and fire nation sapphics(getting arrested) from when kya was explaining to Korrasami the different views on gay ppl in the different nations

[bleedingcoffee42]

Held off on this because it's becoming disheartening to see a lot of the BoB Tumblr research reposted or remastered with dubious credit, but at the end of the day I really want people to know about Norma Jean Darland Grant, Chuck Grant's wife.

Norma, I don't even know where to start with you. As I dive into the records to find people and make their stories known, nobody has had so much tragedy and absolutely bizarre circumstances revolving around their lives as you. I've never wanted to reach back in time and give someone a hug so badly as I do with this lady. I hope Chuck was your sunshine, I hope you found happiness, I wish you were not the victim of circumstances beyond your control.

Norma was born in Mahaska. Co, Iowa on February 11, 1923. Her father George was a farmer. Her mother Mable Moody Darland , was the daughter of a farmer. She had an older brother Donald. In 1925 they moved to Newton, Iowa, then ended up in Detroit.

Full stop, because George Darland...holy shit did this guy get into everything. And I do mean unbelievable non-stop news. In 1920 George was tearing down a cow barn with his father in law, barn collapses, father in law gets scalped. They have to take William Moody to town on a stretcher, George has a broken shoulder and helps carry him, Moody ends up with 21 stitches and no broken bones. In 1921 George , recently recovered from pneumonia, pulls some Oregon Trail shit and tries to get to his corn farming island in the river when the ferry rope broke, wagon fell off the barge, his team drowns and he almost drowns under one of them. Even the paper is like "damn, this is the unluckiest guy in Iowa." Oh...it's only 1921. Just wait.

He also got into a fight with some guy in town and got busted up earlier that summer, something about a cheese knife and billiard cue and- no- the article does not explain that. Oh, and don't forget the spreading viper he decided to catch in September. Throw in a modest sprained ankle in 1922. There are a few years without news, and I am sure it's just because it's not available to us a 100 years later, yet.

Mable Moody Darland dies in Detroit in 1929, of diffuse peritonitis, after what appears to have been a two year stint in the city to work at Braggs Mfg. After Mable dies, George goes home and the kids are at his parents in Barnes City while he heads to Des Moines to work for his brother. In 1930 Norma Jean writes to Santa and breaks my heart.

However, earlier that year in 1930 George gets involved in the B.O. Darland Grocery Store bullshit and gets shot. Here's the story.: There is a cop, William J. Aiken, who lives a few houses down from George's brother Bert and his family. George's brother Bert has a grocery store on the corner. George is working for him even though the census says he's a mechanic. Mrs. Aiken might be getting more than groceries from Darland's Grocery store. Husband goes to drag her out of the store, punches Bert, draws a gun, gun goes off and George is shot in the leg, then Aiken kicks the shit out of his wife all while Aiken's partner sits in the car and doesn't watch. Trial ensues, Aiken says he used the gun as a club to defend himself and doesn't know who's finger pulled the trigger. Front page Des Moines news, complete with maps! The Judge dismissed the case against Aiken, but Aiken loses his job as detective, and is also later arrested for bootlegging. Wild Norma has not one, but two, men in her life who get shot for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. This poor girl.

It seems George rebounded and found a new Mabel to marry, Mabel Kerr in 1931. Mabel #2's husband Jack, a coal miner who had been working the mines since he was orphaned at 9, was arrested for bootlegging. That left her and their 6 children out of luck as Jack was sentenced to 3 months in jail and a fine of $300. Well, along came the unluckiest guy in Iowa and they were married at her sister's house in Raritan, Illinois in 1931. (If you think Raritan sounds familiar it's because Raritan, NJ was home of Basilone. The Raritan River was where the Nixon Nitration Works was located on. People from this area in NJ left in the 1850s to go start a town with NJ names in Illinois just to fuck with me.)

In 1932 in Tracey, Iowa the schoolhouse George and family are living in, burns down. How much family? Unclear.

1933 rolls around. In Des Moines, Darland's Grocery-- Bert specifically--gets robbed at gunpoint March 16, for $15, milk, sugar, butter and eggs. The same day Jack Kerr visits his family in Albia. George dies March 30, 1933 in Oskaloosa?(maybe?) and I have no idea how. Mabel #2 moves on an remarries in 1938, and her Kerr kids go with her and the Darland kids eventually go west with the Darland family to LA. Norma lives with her aunt Mrytle Darland Morrow and goes to school in Santa Monica. Bert Darland moves west too, restarts the grocery business out there and sells it a few times. He avoids being shot, but a poodle did bite him at one point and couldn't be found so Bert probably got a lot of painful Rabies shots.

George is buried in Bellefontaine Cemetery where Mable #1 is, along with loads of Mable #2 family. There is a death notice in the paper, no obit. 'What Killed George Darland' haunts me because this man survived so much and there is no news about what finally got him.

Back to Norma . She goes to Santa Monica High School. Joins the World Friendship Club and Riding Club. In 1938 is at a party celebrating the engagement of her cousin Thelma. She joins the marines in 1943 and by war's end is a corporal. She is stationed at Miramar in San Diego, muster roll says she is with the aviation women's reserve squadron. In 1945 is maid of honor for a fellow marine friend. On her marriage certificate in Nov 1946 she lists her residence as Santa Monica.

How does she meet Chuck Grant who at this point has been out of the hospital a year and is dealing with paralysis and speech issues? Another burning question. However in November 1946 they go to Vegas with Chuck's friend Keith Morgan and his wife and get married. They move to San Diego where she becomes a cashier at the Naval Training Station. 40 hours a week as a payroll clerk. Chuck is used as an example of Navy efforts to assist wounded veterans in a newspaper article, possibly because Norma is working there. They have their first son Dan in 1947 and Charles Jr in 1951.

Then in September 8, 1954, Norma ODs. 7am Chuck goes to the bedroom and finds her, takes the kids to a friends house in Clairemont, and returns to call the cops at 9:15 am and answer questions. He told the detective he wanted to spare the kids the details of their mother's death and didn't want them present from the inquiry. It is ultimately ruled a suicide by the coroner, overdose by barbiturates.

Norma Jean Darland Grant was cremated and is buried in Rosecrans military cemetery in San Diego under her maiden name. I don't know if Chuck just signed off on paperwork and didn't correct it or what. The burial form stipulates there are interment rights in her grave but he ends up buried in Forest Lawn in LA instead.

Norma was 31 years old. From what we can tell, Chuck never remarried.

Thank you to @noneedtoamputate for caring about Chuck and his family and going on this journey of research into the Darlands. For every fact we unearth, we still gain no insight into Chuck's personality. But we've earned those Oregon Trail T-Shirts for learning about George. Thank you for listening to my screaming in the inbox because every. damned. person in Chuck Grant's orbit has some truly messed up shit in their lives. This post is a summary of months of research that has been interesting for sure.

[phoenixtsukino]

Rotten Tomatoes told us the 100 best shows on @netflix to watch.

Guess what @netflix original placed at #50:

Guess what @netflix originals it beat:

#54 - Stranger Things 91% *renewed for 5th and final season*

#60 - The Fall of the House of Usher 90% *limited series*

#64 - All of Us Are Dead 89% *renewed for 2 more seasons*

#65 - The Sandman 88% *renewed for a 2nd season*

#68 - The Haunting of Bly Manor 88% *limited series*

#70 - Midnight Mass 87% *limited series*

#76 - The Midnight Club 86% *canceled after 1 season*

#79 - One Piece 85% *renewed for a 2nd season*

#81 - Bridgerton 84% *renewed for 4th season*

#88 - Black Mirror 83% *renewed for 7th season*

#93 - Bodies 82% *limited series*

#95 - The Crown 81% *complete*

#99 - The Witcher 80% *getting 2 more seasons than ending*

Some non-original shows it beat: House, The Flash, How to Get Away With Murder, Monk, A Discovery of Witches, Grey's Anatomy, and Into the Badlands.

You know what shows aren't even on the list but were renewed for another season: Emily in Paris and Wednesday(and I love Wednesday).

Emily in Paris has 3 seasons and is getting a 4th but it got 62% from critics and 48% from audiences.

@netflix Dead Boy Detectives deserves to be renewed!

I want to make it clear that I am in no way shitting on any of these shows or saying that none of them deserved to be renewed. What I am saying is that Netflix are being hypocrites.

[tea-cat-arts]

tbhx omegaverse headcanon (master list for this au)

Ground rule/ what brand of omegaverse are we working with: 

Omega

experiences heats (effects of which vary depending on circumstances and the individual)

has scent glands and can detect/respond to other scents

builds nests (comfy pile with stuff that smells good + has stuff with their packs scents in them. They're a designated safe spot and important in maintaining an omega’s mental health)

Can form both pack and mating bonds. 

On average, omegas smell sweeter. 

All omegas self lubricate and can take knots relatively easily

Stereotyped as agreeable

Alphas

Experiences ruts (effects of which vary depending on circumstances and the individual)

Has scent glands and can detect/respond to other scents

Territorial/ tends to guard anyone or anything they scent mark as theirs 

Can form mating and pack bonds 

On average, tend to have more intense smells

All alphas can knot 

Public tends to view them as either the cool guy orientation or a rabid animal 

Tend to be stereotyped as aggressive (and how that's perceived really depends on whether or not the alpha can stay calm while being aggressive)

Beta

Doesn't experience heats or ruts

Scents glands are small if they have any at all 

Can detect scents if its something they actively work on, but they won't have any sort of instinctual reaction to them 

Can't form mating bonds, can form pack bonds

Tend to be (unfairly) viewed as untrustworthy 

Despite the bad rep, they're vital in fields where you have to heavily interact with people (especially in the medical field since their muted scents make them less likely to trigger others) 

Secondary sex is more of a behavioral thing and can change over time

Ngl, I haven't decided how genitalia works in this au

Trust value/ public perception can change someone's secondary sex

By default, 80% of the population would be betas. However, trust values skewed those numbers and caused most people who would be betas naturally to develop another secondary sex (leaving more like 10-20% of the population as betas)

Despite how much value society puts on scents, most people have to wear scent patches/mufflers (or in more extreme circumstances, blockers) for society to function. Like, you can’t have 100 alphas accidentally marking the same lamp post as their spot

Scent blockers can be necessary (ex: in medical settings where a doctor's scent could trigger a patient) but should only be used over short periods as they seal off the pores in the scent glands and overuse can cause oils to build up and lead to infection 

Scent glands are on the wrists and neck. The wrist ones are considered a casual spot but the neck ones are considered incredibly intimate 

Scent deprivation is a thing and it's basically like if you don't have access to safe scents, your brain feels like its in solitary confinement (with all the side effects that come from that) regardless of whether or not you're actually alone. hierarchy of who's most likely to suffer from it: Omegas who live alone > mated omegas > mated alphas > non-mated alphas > omegas with a pack > betas

Heat and rut blockers also exist, however, it's a really idea to use them over extended periods of time since heats/ruts are needed to produce certain hormones in alphas/omegas. Long term usage can lead to hospitalization

Mate bonding- it's like marriage but not legally binding and involves biting and a psychic link with partners where they can kinda sense each other's emotions (even from a distance)

Pack bonding is just people living in the same space and sharing scents (the latter part is more important. Like, a bunch of people placed in the same college dorm wouldn’t inherently be a pack but friends living together and sharing clothes or blankets or chilling on a couch together regularly probably would be a pack)

Nice:

Omega mostly because I like the angst potential

Doesn't let the public know his secondary gender at all, but his fans want him to be an alpha. All of this is fucking with his hormones 

Has a nest in Wreck's apartment, but stopped nesting after moving to hero tower. The combination of not having any scents but his own around + general stress and anxiety + OCD making him feel like his nest is never perfect enough kinda just made it impossible for him

On heavy scent blockers and heat suppressants 

He used to only wear scent patches in public but he started wearing them in private when Moon moved in 

In general he makes sure he and his space smell like absolutely nothing. He's gotten both scent gland infections and scent deprivation sickness because of this

Bonded mates with Wreck and terrified that the public thinking he's dating Moon will lead to his mark fading

When he's not actively destroying his body he smells like apricots, cinnamon, and honey 

Gets partially exposed as an omega after an incident where his body kinda just quit on him (and Wreck may or may not have made a pretty big public scene trying to get to him), then just confirmed it himself after he got out of the hospital to prevent any more speculation. 

Wreck:

Alpha but people probably assume he's a Beta most of the time (except when he's pretending to be a villain) 

Public assumes he and Nice are two alphas fighting over an omega. The public is wrong

Incredibly picky about what scents end up in his apartment and gets pretty upset if anyone but Nice's or his own ends up in there

The fact that he can't smell Nice at all but Moon's scent is always kinda around stresses him the fuck out

Smells like plum, nutmeg, and cinnamon 

Also nervous about the whole “the public might make the mating mark disappear” thing

Cuz of the mate bond, he'd probably realize Nice was in trouble before things got to the point of no return

Like, in canon, he threatened to kill Moon when no one would tell him where Nice was… he'd probably do worse if he was getting a psychic sos from Nice and wasn't allowed to see him 

Post Nice hospitalization incident, he proves to the public that the villain thing was an act (except the part where he caused a bunch of damage trying to get to Nice). He ends up in a weird place with the public cuz they’re glad he exposed Treemans shady activities but nervous cuz now he’s being hostile towards the public for real

Moon

Alpha and pissed the public thinks she's an omega 

Her scent keeps changing and she can't mark out any sort of territory in the apartment since Nice keeps cleaning everything and she's gonna flip a table

She smells like coffee, dark chocolate, and chilis. The treeman group makes her wear some honey scented perfume so that she smells more “omega-like” and she hates it

The public's perception kinda caused her to develop some omega habits like nesting (and not being able to nest in Nice's apartment is yet another cause of stress)

Pre-girlfriendification, she had the reputation of being like the cheerful, safe alpha (a fact that she was pretty proud of) 

A lot of her old fans are confused on why people think she’s an omega (and she's incredibly thankful for them since they're what let her stay an alpha)

Probably wanted to strangle Miss J after learning all the details on wrice because why the hell did she think separating a mated pair and forcing a stranger alpha into the omega's nest area would end well

Moon gets a happy ending in this au and gets to go back to travel blogging/ small crime fighting after everyone decides to come clean (but this time, she has her and Lin Ling's apartment to go back to)

Lin Ling

Assumed to be a Beta since he doesn't experience heats or ruts, but he does have his own scent

He just smells like mint 

Pretty good at detecting others scents 

Has a sorta pseudo nest that he's not that serious about

He's never really bothered to question his secondary gender but boy does the public

In this au, I think he'd get picked up for heroism as a body double for Nice while the real one is in the hospital. 

He was mostly there to be a placeholder until Nice was in a position to make a decision about how he wanted to proceed with hero work, but (much to Miss J’s annoyance) all four of them just decide to come clean about everything. Nice takes a major hit to his reputation but stays a hero, Wreck gets to be a hero on a technicality (public knows he’ll save them because he’s helping Nice + people who live in the same neighborhood as him/ interact with him regularly like him), Moon gets to go do her thing, and Lin Ling gets to be #10 hero.

The public doesn’t believe Lin Ling is a beta, but the online discourse never came to a conclusion on “what he actually is,” so it doesn’t really affect him. 

He’s mostly just vibing but he’d probably be down to become an omega if it meant Moon could mate-bite him

Miss J

Beta

Can pick up on smells but is good at gaslighting people into thinking she can’t 

Smells like antibacterial soap. People assume she's doing it on purpose but no, she's not. She just smells like that

Enlighter

Alpha but the public is praying on his downfall/ wants him to be a Beta

Started his investigation on Nice because he thought it was weird the guy had no scent at all

Probably doesn’t bother with scent mufflers, leading to a pretty bad first impression with most people. 

Smells aggressively like old spice

Firm Man

Beta, but forced to become an alpha after becoming a hero and he hates it

Finds all the smells overstimulating 

Gets to go back to being a beta after retiring 

I’d like to think he gets to be in a pack with Wolf Girl post retirement 

Smells like spearmint and eucalyptus 

Wolf Girl

Omega 

The fact that she wasn’t conforming with the whole “omegas are agreeable” thing was part of why bullies targeted her

Smells like peach green tea

Yang Cheng

Idk what he’ll be later but he sure as hell is starting as a beta

[hopeymchope]

The selfish assholery of The Hundred Line cast is becoming too much.

I've been too forgiving. Waiting for the other shoe to drop, trying to look past various incidents as I churn my way through the plot of The Hundred Line. But it's been scratching at the edges of my brain... the way four new characters entered the plot and then immediately betrayed Takumi, stemming from a series of incidents that I managed to mostly blame on Kurara's extreme selfishness and abuse.

Finally, last night? I reached a point where I couldn't deny it anymore: I hate most of these people. And as a result? This game is losing me during my very first 100 days.

Frankly, I'm starting to have doubts I can even complete the first 100 days. Because why would I choose to spend that much time with these people... ?

Actually? Kind of thinking about letting you all die.

I don't WANT to give up on the game. Obviously, I've adored Kazutaka Kodaka's work up until now. I've clearly DEEPLY loved all of Kodaka's work within Danganronpa. Even when he didn't script most of it himself and just provided the plot/characters (Danganronpa 3), I loved it. Stuff like Akudama Drive, which, where Kodaka's involvement uh... existed but was poorly defined? Still really liked it! Death Come True? Yup, I was into it! And I also loved Master Detective Archives: Rain Code.

But The Hundred Line cast has a unique-to-them problem that is constantly recurring: The cast of The Hundred Line people are largely willing to fight and die to protect a building for incredibly dubious reasons, but they are utterly UNwilling to ever stand up to their peers no matter how horrific their behavior. They are brave in physical combat, but utter cowards in their daily lives. Torturing some of the cast by starving them for DAYS? Literally abusing your own sister? You can count on this crew to sit by and let it all happen—and maybe even actively enable it! Because they suck.

Remember when Shuichi told off Kokichi at the end of V3's fourth trial? Or when a few members of the DR2 cast jumped and tied up Komaeda in Chapter 2 after he attempted to commit a murder in Chapter 1? The Hundred Line crew would never do any of that. They would let Kokichi walk all over them, would let Komaeda attempt murder DAILY if he wanted to, and would sit there the entire time going "But that's not—" before cutting themselves off and refusing to argue farther because it seems kind of haaaaaard.

I'm going to have to spoil the first 54 days or so of The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy to really outline multiple examples, but... yeah. Let's get into how much these people suck ass.

Example 1: Hiruko Shizuhara — Near the story's start, Hiruko doesn't like that some of the group aren't aren't actively choosing to engage in combat (that they don't understand, to defend something they don't understand, for reasons they don't understand). We'll eventually learn that she has more intel on why this fight needs to happen and what's at stake, but she's been refusing to share it because... because... well, because she's an asshole. And that's fine! Every Danganronpa game has at least one blatant asshole among the cast who serves as a major antagonist despite not being THE main villain. A snotty asshole like Hiruko can serve valuable story purposes. But when she decides she's going to try to force the others to fight by starving them — literally denying them any food whatsoever — do we see Takumi or Yakemaru or Darumi stand up to Hiruko at all? NO! Do we see them try to sneak food to the starving classmates? NO—not until DAYS later, when they think they can use food as a form of leverage, that is. And that comes after Hiruko announces she's going to kick out all the non-combatants so they can fucking die to the invaders. At least Yakemaru gets really pissed about this, though all he does about it is... punch himself in the face to deal with his own anger. But does our main protagonist, Takumi, confront Hiruko and argue against her about this planned act of murder? FUCK NO!

Ultimately, I think we're supposed to forgive this becuse we later learn in a private conversation that Hiruko didn't REALLY mean it, despite the fact that everyone completely believed her without question. Because she sure as shit comes off as serious and dead-set on it with no room for any interpretation before that. (This seems like the latest in a misguided trend over the last decade of fiction where a military leader sometimes will withhold extremely need-to-know information from their troops for no reason, and we the audience are supposed to believe this is a good idea; ask any fucking ACTUAL military leader about that, and they will tell you that an informed squad = motivation and morale. Lack of communication = killing your motivation and morale. Happy to share tons of editorials to this effect. Or just Google it.) Anyone in the cast would be 100% justified in imprisoning and/or killing her to stop her at this point, but not even our main "hero" can bring himself to so much as ARGUE with her. Everyone is just too weak-willed to stand up against the starvation torture of the others. Because that's DEFINITELY the best way to get people invested in your war instead of just telling them the truth, right... ?

Example 2: The Second-to-Last Defense Academy members (and Kurura Oosuzuki specifically) — Takumi meets the four remaining members of the Second-to-Last Defense Academy while alone. He soon opts to join them in combat as they defend their school... but in the end, they must flee to the primary Last Defense Academy and meet up with the others. Once there, the four members of the Second-to-Last Defense Academy are disappointed to learn that the "main campus" crew is not nearly as dedicated to this fight as THEY are. This is pretty quickly revealed to be the cast because the Second-to-Last Defense Academy students have more context and intel on why this war is happening and why the fight is necessary. However, Kurura soon sets about insulting everyone she sees, especially trashing Gaku for daring to grow up poor and then starting to physically beat him for arguing against her rich ass.

This shutdown comes quickly on the heels of Tsubasa being like "Can you blame us for having questions after we got dragged into this war?"a and Takemaru asking the Second-to-Lasters if they're going to keep throwing around the term "World Death" or are they going to explain explain what that is. Both of which were entirely reasonble questions/reactions.

This culminates with her deciding that... (a) nah, she's NOT going to share why the world is in danger from the invaders with the main campus squad. Because the Second-to-Last Defense Academy students are SO FUCKING DEDICATED to the war, you see, that they... would rather make sure that nobody else has ANY reason to join the fight, actively hindering the fucking war effort they claim to be devoted to out of... I guess, purely out of classist spite??? You can and should blame ALL of them for this because the other three students from the Second-to-Last Defense Academy all decide they MUST obey Kurura (who is not even their leader in ANY sense) and agree to NOT share the information about the war. In fact, Nozomi goes so far as to privately arrange for the groups to use the cafeteria separately so they will never interact. And during this time, with Kurura nowhere around? She still refuses to give any information about the war or why anyone should be fighting, because she is Part Of The Problem. Oh, and (b) soon enough, an incident with her homemade curry being eaten results in Kurura challenging a (non-combatant!!!!) member of the "main campus" squad to a one-on-one fight. At which point she declares everyone from the main campus must do ANYTHING SHE FUCKING ORDERS THEM TO DO as punishment. And again: EVERYONE FROM HER TEAM AGREES WITH THIS AND DOES NOT ARGUE HER DOWN. They are either too cowardly and/or utterly complicit in her bullshit. And her threats are far from idle ones, either: In the coming days, we can repeatedly encounter these characters in the halls where they can tease us with all the horrific punishments they have in store for us. The only person who doesn't treat us with hatred and mockery is Nozomi—she just treats us with fear and disgust instead. And THAT'S because Kurura caps all this off by (c) convincing Nozomi and Kyoshika — the two other female members of her team — that the main protag, Takumi, wishes to drug and rape Nozomi. Despite the fact that Takumi has literally fought and bled alongside them on the battlefield AND now brought them back to his own campus to protec them Nozomi and Kyoshika COMPLETELY BUY INTO THIS and now are filled with nothing but disdain towards Takumi.

(....oh, and along the way, Shouma tries to reveal some more info about how they got there, more background on the mystery of how they were recruited. This enrages Kurura even more because she says it "DOES! NOT! MATTER! You've been given a mission, why can't you just do it?!" In case you had any doubt that she is 100% devoted to being enslaved without logic or reason.)

Any one of these acts alone would be justification for the main campus crew to say "You're not fucking welcome here anymore unless you stop this shit." But of course, no one stands up to them and tells them to fuck off... they're all just too damned cowardly for that. But again, I think they want us to shrug this off simply because it works out retroactively. But it must be noted that the fact that this DOES work out is a complete fucking MIRACLE, and I will never forgive Kurura for (a), (b), OR (c). The fact that she is apparently "not really like that" when she takes off the mask is not remotely an excuse. She's acting this way by choice; ergo, she is ABSOLUTELY "like that." I will also not be forgiving Kyoshika, Yugamu, and Nozomi for being complicit in Kurura's bullshit.

But I'll give them this much: It makes some sense that Takumi is unwilling to stand up against the group because Nozomi bears strong-but-vague connections to his beloved Karua. From a characterization POV, it makes sense that he'd be hesitant to do any further damage to his relationship with the Second-to-Lasters just because he wants to close that distance so very badly.

Example 3: Ima and Kako (a.k.a. the last straw) - It's been obvious from pretty early on that Kako isn't really very keen on how her brother treats her. He acts like he has some incestuous sister complex, and she's clearly extremely uncomfortable with it. And as the story progresses, it also becomes evident that she wants to join the others in defending the school. By Day 53? Kako finally stands up to Ima as best she can. She finally speaks up.

....holy SHIT. The abject fear on Kako's face speaks volumes.

At this point, Ima grabs Kako and literally starts to DRAG her out of the room. Only Takemaru steps forward to block their exit, telling Ima "If you really love your sister, shouldn't you respect her opinion more?!" Which is... an awfully calm way to confront him. But Ima's response is...

...to stab Takemaru for daring to interfere. Holy. Fuck.

Major props to Takemaru for being the ONLY person to try and stop sibling abuse. I also won't hold it against Shouma — I know he wouldn't have it in him to stand in the way of this conflict. I get that. But everybody else in the room? You're ALL on thin ice right now.

This happens at breakfast. Afterwards, Takumi, Eito, Gaku, and Yugamu help patch Takemaru up and take him back to his room, putting him to bed to let him heal. After this, it's suddenly "too late" to do anything else, according to Takumi. He just goes to bed. Ima escapes the cafeteria after the stabbing and drags Kako back to his room. Takumi just says to "worry about them later." YEAH, never mind that Kako is undoubtedly being abused as we speak. Never mind that you decided it's more important to get your beauty sleep than to stop her brother from mentally and almost-definitely-physically tormenting her.

The next morning, Ima comes by Takumi's room. He wants Takumi to convince Kako to stop trying to fight and do what her brother says — and in return, Ima will fight in her place against the invaders. Wow, what an utterly shit deal you've offered me! I get the promise of help from the guy who just STABBED someone for daring to try to stop your abuse! And in return, all I have to do is crush the spirit of your abuse victim!

Sadly, this is a false choice. It's a But Thou Must. No matter how many times I clicked "No" (because "HELL FUCKING NO" was not given as an option), the game simply refuses to move forward until you agree.

I almost quit the game permanently right here. I had to pause and gather myself. I don't like being railroaded into being a horrible human being. When I played the demo for the OG release of Ninja Gaiden 3 on the PS3, and I got to that part where the unarmed guy is pleading for his life and telling you about his family and the game only lets you progress if you brutally kill him? Yeah, I just shut the demo off. And as far as I'm concerned? I beat the game with the only good ending. I won.

In the aftermath of this sequence in The Hundred Line, the good news is that Takumi utterly fails to convince Kako to back down. The bad news is that Takumi winds up convincing her that her brother's "protection" is a beautiful love that she should be grateful for. So now she wants to fight to protect HIM because of how much she APPRECIATES her brother. Wow, Takumi! What masterful work at enabling and abetting years of abuse! You absolute fucking prick.

And making the player character this dispicable really BROKE something in me. You see the issue here. Example #3 is certainly the greatest sin, but all of this has been building.

Kodaka has spoken about how excitedly he wrote the script for this game. It seems like Kodaka was so rapidly writing conflict, so excited to add all this drama, that he didn't stop to think how it reflected on the characters or whether it made logical sense. The answer is that it doesn't make sense—at least not for any decent human beings to act like this. The only logical conclusion is that the characters? Are some MAJOR assholes.