#Anyway for the fan creators this is excellent news I see a lot of people writing really cool stuff we can add to

[liesmyth]

anon! I see you! same for the other anon I got 3 weeks ago and left on read — I was trying to decide how to phrase this.

I'm not publishing these in full because I'd rather talk about cool fandom theories I like instead of singling out specific takes I don't agree with.

The one thing I really feel like saying publicly re: TLT fandom discourse is that I think we could all benefit from, like, taking a step back from invoking Tamsyn when it comes to discussing theories or interpretations. I think the tone of the discourse and the fandom as a whole would be a lot healthier if we just agreed that we're getting a lil' bit silly with it, which is 100% what Tamsyn wanted when she started writing, anyway.

There are many fandom posts that EYE would find very compelling if they were presented as "This is a cool idea I had and the lenses through which I choose to engage with this story and these characters..." but often take the tone of "This is CLEARLY what the author means to do, listen up..." — with the implications that people who see things differently are getting a bad grade in lockedtomb reading, and then it stops being fun and it starts getting pretty hostile pretty quick.

I think a lot about Tamsyn's quote "I am writing for my younger self and it would be disgusting of me to try to teach her anything." That's the spirit in which I think it's most fun to engage with her writing. She's an excellent author and her books have a lot going on and many angles you can look at... but they aren't flawless, and she can't have accounted for all the theories the fandom is coming up with. I think we should stop trying to look at these books as though they are That Serious, and give ourselves more credit that maybe we're coming up with stuff the creator never considered, and that doesn't mean your stuff is less valid, but it does mean you shouldn't flex on other fans because you see it and they don't. From everything we know about Tamsyn, she'd probably be the first to say "It's not that deep, unless you want it to be."

For comparison, I've been in ASOIAF fandom for 15 years and we haven't had new material for almost as long and silly theories and renewed interpretations are flourishing every month, and nobody gives a fig about what GRRM was really trying to say because maybe the author's intention isn't the ultimate value of a work, and the author is dead anyway.

IDK. I think we should all get a little sillier with it. I've been guilty of some Not Silly in the past, though hopefully not much, but ultimately I'm here to have fun and so are most people. Especially since TLT is still ongoing, and many interpretations WILL get debunked, we're probably just better off now putting less stock on authorial backing to avoid disappointment later on, and to have more fun as a fandom during the #alectopause.

ANYWAY my askbox is always open specifically to get silly with it. I haven't hornyposted about lyctor sex in a while

[startrekexplained]

The potential Spock two parter we could have gotten on Enterprise

Star Trek: Enterprise (or just Enterprise, as it was originally called) is an interesting series. A prequel set 100 years before TOS and 200 years before the TNG era of series, it had a very mixed at best reception when it first aired, and of course was cancelled due to low ratings during its fourth season, making it the first series since TOS to not end voluntarily. But it's been re-evaluated by a lot of fans in recent years and while it usually doesn't rank near the top of peoples lists, there's a general consensus now that the series wasn't "that bad" and even had some pretty good episodes, at least near the end. I'm personally a fan of the series, warts and all. But as good as I think the fourth season is, when it finally embraced the prequel concept it ran away from in its three previous seasons, it could have been even better if certain episode ideas had come to fruition, and I'm going to talk about one such episode(s).

A lot of fans know there was a shakeup in the fourth season, with co-creators Rick Berman and Brannon Braga effectively standing aside for a new showrunner, Manny Coto, who turned the direction of the show around from its weird half prequel/half sequel premise into a genuine prequel to all the series that came before it, but particularly TOS. While this did change reception somewhat with fans and critics at the time of its airing, it wasn't enough to change its ratings decline, so we never got even one more season with this new direction, which is a real shame.

There was an attempt to grab ratings though, by getting William Shatner himself to guest star in a two parter about Mirror Kirk and the creation of the Mirror Universe. Shatner pitched the story himself (written by Judith and Garfield Reeves Stevens, who worked with him on the Shatnerverse novels) and it was well received by Coto, Braga and Berman but apparently Paramount was not willing to pay the modest fee Shatner was asking for the appearance and thus the plans were cancelled. The story pitch, IMO, was quite good so it's a real shame we didn't get to see this two parter but I actually don't want to talk about that today, I'll leave that for another post. Instead I want to talk about another two parter suggestion, that almost no one talks about but would have made for, potentially anyway, an excellent two parter and perhaps even a far superior series finale than what we actually ended up getting.

Mike Sussman, one of the lead writers of ENT, pitched a possible two parter in the event Shatner couldn't be convinced to guest star on ENT involving Leonard Nimoy guest starring instead as Spock. The pitch was inspired by an episode (Mystery of the Blues) from The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles where Harrison Ford guest starred in a framing story about adventures in his youth. Leonard Nimoy would guest star in a similar capacity.

In this episode, Spock would be a distinguished and retired ambassador in the 24th Century, and he would be visited by a young Human/Vulcan hybrid in Starfleet who's seeking guidance for balancing his two alien halves. Spock would then retell a story about how, in the early 23rd Century he met T'Pol, who's a legend by the 24th Century and how he assisted her on a vitally important mission involving the retired NX-01 crew stealing the old NX Enterprise from the fleet museum for one last mission. During this mission, Spock would learn important lessons with the audience learning a lot of new information on Spock. Most importantly, Spock would learn during the course of the episodes to reconcile his desire to be a diplomat like his father and his desire for a career in Starfleet. Overall it would be something of a passing of the torch from ENT to TOS.

I don't know about you, but while this pitch isn't that detailed, and the story would have obviously needed a lot of ironing out from pitch to script, the idea is very strong and it could have potentially been one of the best Spock stories and definitely one of the best ENT episodes. It really is a missed opportunity, and what comes to mind is the Spock two parter in TNG "Unification" which served as a tie-in to Star Trek VI, which is one of my personal favorite TNG episodes and Spock stories. This potentially could have been ENT's version of that. While not pitched as a series finale, it also would have easily been far more suitable as that than "These Are The Voyages".

So what happened to this pitch? Obviously it was rejected, but I couldn't find any reason why. Presumably Leonard Nimoy either wasn't interested or wasn't even approached about it after Paramount rejected Shatner's modest pay demands to appear on ENT, and the only reason we even know about this is because Mike Sussman posted the memo pitching this to his twitter in 2016. I couldn't even find mentions of this pitch outside Memory Alpha. One wonders how many other great ideas were pitched and haven't been revealed.

[popculturebuffet]

OK KO Let's Be Heroes Halloween Review: Parents Day and Monster Party (Patreon Review by Emma Fici)

Happy halloween all you happy people! It's finally the crux of spooky season as we finish things off with a spooktacular at one of the many, many, manny, mannny, MANNNY, Mannnny, mannnnnyY, mAnNnNnNnNnY, man hey nony nony and a fuck you zaslov shows removed from HBO Max this year, courtesy of my pal Emma Fici. Is WBD and the regime before it being awful to this show the reason she commissioned this? No, I simply suggested it since she had me cover Ghoul School earlier this month and the timing couldn't be more perfect and threw in a surprise bonus episode entirley of my own volition. Is it a nice bonus that I both get to spotlight a show I genuinely love with a lot of my heart that got a raw deal and get to throw more shade at a company i've gone from genuinely loving and respecting to hoping badly gets taken out asap.

So let's watch the show under the cut shall we and see what spooky fun we can have as we both meet Enid's parents.. and in the sequel to that ep some old Ghoulfriends Drop by.

I"ve covered OK KO here before, but since this review is aimed at fans of the show, fans of Ghoul School who might not have seen it, and Emma who definitely hasn't seen it, a small intro is in order. Those of you who are familiar can go wait patiently in the pup tent. I have sent a concierge ahead for you

So in short: OK KO Let's Be Heroes! Was a late 2010's Cartoon Network show by Ian Jones Quarterly. Ian is a modern staple in the industry, having worked on venture bros for several years before moving on to Steven Universe, being one of the main creative forces behind the show alongside the show's creator, his friend, creative partner and eventually romantic partner Rebecca Sugar. He also voice acts both in his own show and in Bravest Warriors, another show on the ever escalating pile of shows I need to talk about.

While his other work is excellent, again the guy was the story editor for steven unvierse that should say enough on it's own, OK KO is really his magnum opus. It's a clear labor of love that naturally got shit on by cartoon network for the crime of having to premire earlier because HBO Max hadn't happened yet and being an action show on a network trying to stamp those out at the time, though given what we've seen with the reign of he who sucks dirty ass in thunderstorms, that woudl've been MARGINALLY better at best. My point is the show had a lot of love put into it, a passionate fanbase, vibrant animation and a wonderful premise we'll get to in a moment.. and got shat on for it. I try to be a forgiving person, but this is one thing I haven't quite let go for damn good reason.

So what's this show about anyway? Well it's simple and it's not: the world of OK KO is a world of heroes and villians, of any and all kinds, with most trying to be the best like no one ever does.. and many running buisnesses out of a strip mall, Lakewood Plaza Turbo. It's here we enter our title character: K.O., a small child of 6-10, which is how this show does ages, and it's every bit as hilarious and stupid as it sounds. He's the son of Carol, formerly Silver Spark of, the local Avengers/JLA/ JSA/Justice Pals/New Justice Team Equilvent, P.O.I.N.T. who now runs a ladies fitness dojo.

Wanting to be the best like no one ever was, KO seeks a job at Gars Bodega, ran by Carols old friend who still nurses an embarassing crush on her Mr. Gar, basically if Mike Haggar had cool shades and used to be a luchador instead of a WWF style wrassler. After some trials, trivales and Carol asking nicely, KO joins the Bodegamen becoming friends with the other far less motivated workers: Egotistical, buff, hannah barbera style alien with teleknesis that makes the old sound effect rad and Naruto style emo ninja enid.

In addition to the normal stuff: running the counter, mopping the deck which is navy for floor, and stocking boxes, they also reguarly have to fight the evil Lord Boxman, played by my dad and yours Jim Cummings who sadly isn't in these episodes, who regularly sends his stupid robot children to fight our heroes and wants to destroy the plaza because it's there. No really he can't stand the fact there's a hero place next door and has an entire episode going into withdrawls becaues he can't attack them for a day lest his investors drop him. Yes he has investors. Yes this show is wonderful

So now you know the plot there's plenty inbetween there and plenty of depth that really makes the show shine: Sure there's silly shenanigans from taking a genie in a soda bottle to court, to KO impersonating Rad for an episode simply by putting on alien antenna and Rad's nametag.. and Rad forgetting he asked for this leading to a Rad off, to a health week with tons of psas and the bots nursing KO back to health before he punches them while they all smile> This show can be utterly goofy and I love it… but there's also a deep backstory involving why Mr. Gar left point , a mysterious shadowy villian in the background and ongoing arcs.

The characters also undergo noticable and engaging character development: KO starts off fairly naive and while he remains optimstic learns from his mistake and slowly grows as a hero while grappling with his inner darkness.. aka an evil emo tweenager split personality what lives in his head, Rad grows from an obnoxious bro to the genuinelyc arring and kind person he is underneath and Enid slowly thaws her icy heart and lets others in. IT's a show with lots of warmth, character, and worldbuilding and I highly recommend it.

So with all that out of the way we can get to the actual episodes.. which are mostly self contained but I can't help ranting about what I love. They still contribute to Enid's character though, both focusing on who she is and her past and helping shade her in a bit. This first one wasn't requested, but I feel since their the only two episodes set at Enid's house and featuring her spooky family, they belong together. This also has a high possibility of being my last singular episode. Possibly. I might do the other crossovers, more on those later, at some point, but as a whole this series deserves it's own full on review which I intend to do I just have to finish venture bros and take care of a few patreon unlocked retrospectives first. But with how little time I have this may come before the amphibia review. Anyways onto the episodes!

Family Day

It's Family Day at the Plaza and Ko is so excited he had to be put in his car seat

Like even for 6 that's a lot.. though that's also the joke so touche Ian. Touche. Basically everyone in the Plaza Brings their parents to visit. The subtle joke that we see Drupe and Ms Mummy's mom, a sentient strawberry and a sentient mummy whose mom's somehow human because this universe found some way to make Tanis parentage even more confusing, despite neither working here at this point. Drupe just loiters outside for now and Ms Mummy lives in the back rooms. And of course as Carol points out she's here every day.

Still K.O.'s excited to meet his best friends parents and we do indeed quickly meet Rad's awkward parents, Ofrang and Theodosia. As I found out looking into Ian, Theodosia is named after his grandmother, Theodosia Okoh, who to my shock lived quite the life. She was a ghanian school teacher who designed the Ghana flag, became the first chair of the Ghana Hockey association and had a stadium named after her, and if I rmemeber right was the basis for Nana Fua, with both the Pizzas and Rad's family being based on Ian's experience as a first generation son of immigrants. As such Ofrang and Theodosia use blorp a lot and frequently embarass their son (and only rad everyone else knows their dope) with their talk of ray guys…

NO really they refrence this joke exactly. .. why did this show only run three seasons? This is a nice moment for Rad though. While he is frequently embarassed by his parents and grumbles with introducing them…. he still told them Parents day was happening, brought them and introduces them to KO. Keep in mind Rad at this point is in the politiest term possible "a fuckboy" who hangs out with a giant teenage baby and a walking armpit, which both sums up wht they are and their personalites. While KO's shown he has a heart beneath the air of obnoxious douche he puts on, it usually has to be dragged out of him. But here he brings his dorky awkard parents without any reservation, at most is exasperated in that sterotypical teen boy way. For him that's a lot. There's no ego or boasting, no Recess style attempt to replace his parents with cooler parents. Bringing his parents to the event is a low bar, sure, but the fact he cleared it without needing an entire episode to says a LOT.

No the one who didn't bring her parents is Enid, which does make sense: Enid is intensely private, with her pasts with Elodie (her best friend/possible giflriend who abandoned her for a shot at the big times and insulted her) and Rad himself (Who she had a crush on.. and who totally fucked it up by being an obnoxious cloud of axe bodyspray on the advice of aformentiond armpit and genetically modified baby), only coming out thanks to Elodie visting (Enid kicked her ass all over the plaza, though tthe two later properly reconcile next season. More on that when I get there some day), and Cupid forcing the issue respectively. Cupid in this universe is buff and dope as fuck by the way. I didn't NEED to mention that.. but I wanted to so here we are.

Enid claims their on a mission, nopes out of her shift (with Rad hilariously going "We have shifts?", as the show is not afraid of poking fun at itself), and thus KO and Rad decide to do the responsible thing.. and stalk their friend to her house to find out what she's hiding.

That would be unsettling.. if it wasn't so hilariously done with KO casually telling his mom "We're gonna go spy on enid" with a simple Kay from carol and Rad's dad giving him a ray gun.

Our heroes tail her in Rad's sweet van. Dendy, KO's stoic best friend his age and presumed future wife isn't in it this time which is weird. Maybe she had a piano recital. What they find shocks them as Enid's house is a mad monster mansion, enid dresses as a witch, and in his EXACT words, Rad tells us her parents are "A Hot Vampire and a Hot Werewolf". Which tells us Rad is bi.. as did the intensely homerotic dance battle that the crew entirely knew what they were doing with earlier in the season. This show is gay as fuck and I love it for that and about 100 other reasons

Naturally the trained ninja catches them spying on her.. but so do Enid's parents, so they get inside and Rad, being rad, naturally asks a bunch of questions about general spooky stuff such as skeletons in the closest to Wil ("We do but we don't like to talk about them") and bats in the belfry ("I do hang up there sometimes" ). Rad is back to being the shitlord we know and love and Enid can't stand it for understandable reasons. The boys even get invited to dinner, but not before meeting Enid's brothers boris and Icky, a frankenstien and a pumpkinhead respectively. Now you may be asking how the hell any of this works given Bernard's a Wolf, Wil's a Vampire, and their children are none of those things. And that's kind of the point. Sometimes the show has iron tight canon.. and other times it's world runs entirley on nonsense with little to no explination. It's part of it's charm: it knows when to properly explain shit and when to just have things be delightful cartoon nonsense, like the sun being a sentient being with sunglasses you can surivive being thrown into.

So the dinner is naturally our adorable monster couple showing off Enid's baby pictures.. and her dancing in a pizza for no reason while she prays for death btu death won't come. Meanwhile some ghosts hide bellow and decide they aren't getting enough attention so they plot to attack.

Naturally KO being a baby boy baby lets slip Enid's a ninja and her parents are again it, as "Ninjas aren't scary". And it's.. honestly hard to watch despite you know… it being two monsters complaning about their daughter being an anime ninja. While this is more hiding your career than say a sexuality or something, it comes off that way, with Enid being utterly terrified her parents know. Granted the most the two do is not be happy with it, but it's still sad to see two people who were perfectly happy turn on their daughter in an instant.. not too harshly but just enough.

Thankfully the ghosts posses her friends.. which usually isn't a godo thing but having to fight these two idiots not only shows off JUST how powerful B and Wil are… but allows Enid to say screw it, go into ninja mode and summon jutsu a giant shadow monster that whollops their asses in the most terrifying way possible, while Wil finishes the job by swallowing their souls.. and spitting them out. I mean the ghosts are their guests. Can't kill them and the most they did was run arround and do shenanigans. Their fine. They know not to fuck with Wil now.

What's nice though is that while , naturally Enid's parents now see Ninjas can be scary, the real nice line is them bemonaing how they coudl've been so "ignorant". I often forget tha tline but it's the thing that makes this episode work. Without it it just comes off as "oh well your talent is like us we like it now" and more them realizing they were wrong to not only not see it could be.. but to not let their daughter live their life. Totally cool with her being bi though. I mean it's been on her bike for ages, they know. Also she brought her girlfriend home so it's kind of a big sign. They hug, Enid decides to invite them and we ge ta suprisingly nice moment from Rad, who admits he was laughing sure, as he puts it "you know I express myself in the most obnoxious way possible" but he related, also being embarassed by his parents. It was in good fun. And Enid invites the two to visit some time.. you know when their invited and not following her home. That's creepy. Stop it. Happy end for all.

Monster Party

So we've come to the series halloween episode , one of two but the other I may save for th efuture, the full series review or just whenever. And with this we need to talk about the shows crossovers.

See crossovers don't happen a ton these days and when they do their with shows that are both on at the time or are in the same universe, like Steven Unvierse's classic crossover with uncle grandpa that should not have worked but is one of the series funniest episodes, or Milo Murphy's Law season 2 opening crossover with Phenias and Ferb… which hopefully will get it's own with hamster and gretel. Please.. I fucking need this please.

So it makes OK KO's crossovers stand out: Ian didn't entirely avoid contemperary crossovers, as Rad showed up on the shortly lived and underated Mighty Magiswords (ANOTHER victim of the Zaslav curse) for what ended up being it's finale, and Season 2 had the epic and worth it's own review Crossover Nexus, with KO teaming up with Garnet, Reboot!Ben Tennyson and GO!Raven to stop a generic villian and save CN City.. yes from those old promos.

But that last bit is what really defines Ian's crossovers: Ian goes for what he WANTS to crossover with no matter how weird it is often going back to the very begingings of cartoon network. As such KO met captain planet and WOULD have met Space Ghost had it not been for the tragic passing of George Lowe and Martin C Crocker, and later met Sonic the Hedgehog, a crossover that took until season 3 to get through Sega but thankfully happened. Maybe sonic MOnth next yeah hmmm? He even provided a finale to his early webcomic RPG World despite now resenting the thing, finding a healthy way to end it and give his main character Hero closure.

So while this crossover was a nice suprise, in the context of the show it's not. The real shock is that he pulled this off: that despite being in an era of Scooby Doo where they constantly tried to act like real monsters didn't exist, they let Ian do a whole episode on characters who surely did. Granted part of it was likely that Scooby, Shaggy and Scrappy are absent. The former two get mentioned offhand, and the latter is naturally persona non grata, but at least gets a spirtual mention as Rad does his own version of the scrappy rap. It's still amazing though as unlike the other crossovers which are just "our heroes happen to end up in a crossover and it's fun and stuff", this one, while having some small elements of that, weaves the girls into Enid's backstory. Had the show continued they could've shown up AGAIN based on this ep alone. It's one thing to have a crossover it's another to weld them to your universe but Ian got away with it and made it look flawless. Well almost. The episode has issues but makign the Grimwood Girls a part of Enid's backstory and old friends of hers isn't remotely one of them.

As for how our old friends get in here, it's fairly simple: Enid's enjoying a day off when her parents announce her old Ghoul School friends are visiting. They told her but well.. she was on her phone which i'd call a stupid teen sterotype.. but as a grown ass man I also often miss important stuff being on my phone or tablet, so fair play.

Enid is actually happy about it, only put out because she's in her day off clothes, and talks to Rad about it as she was already facetiming him. KO is also there hiding in Enid's pot, although given he's with Boris and Icky I theorize he was hanging out iwth them as he's everyone's friend, and just so happened to hear about Enid's old friends.

The show also does a good job explaning why despite being a friend of the girls Enid wasn't in the movie without her feeling forced into the backstory.. by simply using Enid's own backstory: Enid was at Grimwood before the film, but not being happy bein ga witch, she transfered to Lakewood where she could be her ninja self, and as Ashly Burch so brilliantly delivers it "Met the people who ruined my life, including your stinky butt". A mixed bag.

Rad HAS evolved to the poitn he's not fucking shit up intentionally.. but he still fucks shit up, bringing up how it'll be a shock Enid isn't a witch and get sin her head so we naturally get a "character pretends to be what their not episode".. which is EASILY the weakest part of this whole thing. Like even if they call her their witch, anyone whose seen Ghoul Schools knows these girls: Their acceptable, loving and kind. They'd be fine if she was a Ninja as it ends up bearing out. They accepted a 20 something jughead clone, a great dane and a smaller great dane who raps. They can accept a Naruto Ninja. So there's no real supsense or anything. Not only that as KO says

Enid has grown past needing to hide from people or being open with people, so this plot really dosen't work and feels like it was plotted out a season ago before the POINT Prep arc crystalized how far she came as a character.

Yet the episode works for the same reason the film did despite it's own flaws: The Girls. The Grimmwood Girls are every bit as kind, lovely and welcoming as they were int heir own movie and we get the same amount of spooky fun. Their older now which fits and also gives us ages for the older girls: mid-middle school, probably 7th or 8th grades as their slightly taller than enid in a flashback, which is done in the style of ghoul school, so likely when Enid was in 6th grade since most of her drama happened in 8th, so Enid either transfered mid-year or during 6th and as we saw the school takes most ages, though given the girls have left it they've either graduated or went on to ghoul high school. Either way I think it's neat. It's still vauge, the show loves vauge ages as we've established, but in a way that's easy to figure out. The Girls designs aren't touched much though, still looking like their iconic outfits just teenage versions, except for Tanis and Winnie who are still childrens since they were only 4 or 5 in the original. Elsa gets the biggest change having a longer flowier dress and more normal sandals instead of the platform ones from the movie, but their all great and they adapt to the OK KO art style easily.

One thing that's also barely changed.. is the voice actresses. Incredibly all but TWO Va's returned for this. This is shocking both because only one of them was all that active these days, and because Cartoon Network gladly paid the money for all of them. Not only that the only two that don't return are due to circumstances beyond th eteam's control: Marilyn Scheffler sadly died, so Natalie Palimedes steps up as winnie while Patty Maloney was retired due to injuries discussed last time, and thus Kristin Li stepped in as Tanis. BOth do a great, job and I could only SLIGHTLY tell with Tanis and still had to look up who was replaced. Susan Blu, Pat Musick and Russi Taylor all return, all stepping back into their old rolls like the 80's were yesterday. Russi in paticular was INCREDIBLY lucky as she sadly passed on the year after this episode aired. It shows her talent that much like Teen Donald that same year, you coudln't tell how bad her health was and her delivery was as good as ever. I truly miss her and i'm greatful she got to play Phanty one last time.

The five characters feel like they never left us, being just as joyful, full of puns and happy. The episode works so well because while Enid was rectonnced into the group, she serves as as stand in for us: someone who hasn't seen these girls for a very long time and are utterly happy to see their old friends again, vibrant as ever with all their old quirks, sibella's hair cape and winnie using all fours in tact

We also get to see the girls be badass, as clearly like many of us Ian wasn't really happy with how the whole last act went down, and shows just what the girls are capable of after years of extra honing of their powers with the episodes best scene: the monster showcase, with the girls deciding to show off all their powers. Their funny, charming and entirely badass: Winnie makes a replica of Michealangelos david in seconds with her claws tazzmanian devil style, Tanis casually reads while lifting up Enid's Parents Doom buggy WITH Ko and Iggy inside with ONE strand of her hair, phanty posses Ko for a sec and makes him do a jig, and Elsa shocks herself with a kite

Sibella easily wins the show though, revealing that in addition to her old bat form she can now create a SWARM of bats, usese them to create a stage mid air and dances with a gentleman also madeo ut of bats.. before going all red eyed and fangy and eating his head whole

Like she was always the strongest of the group, but god damn. Also Phanty is just.. so fucking enamored the whole time. I didn't think i'd be shipping these two but here we are.

While KO chastises Rad for hecking up… though he's in Jail so he's thankfully been punished for his hubris, it's a whole runner, Enid tries doing a spell but it's been so long since she tried magic, she can't remember them and brings a tree to life.. that eats the children.

Enid is forced to admit her shame.. and while against his plot dosen't work for me the resolution is as obvious.. as it is Grimwood. The girls are not only utterly HAPPY for enid being a nInja.. but always knew, her having dropped her manga in said flashback which we go back to and all it getting out of Phanty is a "oh that makes sense" before they all smiled. THey love enid for Enid not being a witch just as they love scrappy for scrappy and not being a dope ass rapper. They all hug.. then kick a tree's ass as a team. Seriously give these girls a spinoff I beg of you. i get Warner isn't making good decisions but come the fuck on. Phanty posseses it, elsa pries the kids out, and enid uses her shadow possesion jutsu to stop the tree while Sibella rescues the girls and swallows the tree's soul, all cuimlating in rad arriving from the moon in time to lay out rhymes. All in all a fantgastic episode> is it perfect. No but can it entirely coast on reuniting all these amazing characters and having a ton of heart and charm just like the original film? Hell yeah. Consider joining my patreon, follow for more reviews, thanks for reading.. and Happy Halloween!

[mofffun]

Hi! I have a difficult time reaching out to people and, when I do, I feel the urge to disappear and then just delete my account. I don't know why I can't handle talking to people but I thought I would just send this anonymously since that is the case

You always seem so lovely and kind and it's really fun seeing someone so involved in toku! I don't enjoy twitter very much... so I don't see people going to the live shows or anything like that. Reading through your days when you went to see the Kingohgera was so amazing, I felt like I was there!! I won't ever be able to travel there, so it's wonderful reading other people's experiences.

I really, really appreciate your translations and I enjoy reading your theories/general opinions! I wish I could be as open with my thoughts as you are here. I hope that you are having a good day, and I wish you all the best in life! Moffun hugs! 🤗

[This ended up a bit long😅]

Your message is so warm 🥺 thank you for taking the time to write this! I can understand the uneasiness of expressing oneself so thank you and good job for taking the step to reach out! It's okay, just do what you're comfortable with.

I'm glad you enjoy my babblings :D I love toku and I LOVE the Kingohgers. I love the familiarity of toku (sentai in particular) and you can just always count on it to feel like a child again. The sense of community. The creators paying homage but always aiming to refresh this genre with a long history. I just want more people to know how wonderful this show and the cast is! After 3 years of Ups, there may not be a sentai for me to be this invested in ever again. Besides, there's only NOW we have them with us! 😭

I can't believe my words have that power🥹 just know that i went partly wishing to be a "reporter" for my buds here. I wish I had written down more but I was way too tired and only had some voice notes and more photos to organise. I really should dust off those drafts. Or at least make a group chat/discord (next time 😏)

One day, one day you'll get there! I never imagined myself being there on my first toku trip either. It was surreal to visit the locations from TV and watch the locals just go by what we fans consider holy ground. and I only get to go from being in the right place at the right time. very spur of the moment but grateful 🙏

I'm too tumblr-old for twitter too so I'm staying in my comfort zone 😅. I also feel a duty because the english fanbase seem to be on the short end with bonus content or cast news that I thought was standard for a fandom this size or necessary context/fun bts (for example Racules *cough cough*) It's great practice to do translation too.

I had my doubts sharing my toku thoughts here at first, so I made this sideblog to balance things out. And it was SO freeing that I got to choose how much I'm comfortable to share.

Above all, I'm really happy toku tumblr is so tight-knit and I've made a lot of first steps because of kingoh this year. It was there for me during a rough time as well. I'm not leaving regrets in order to spend an excellent year with it.

So take your time, if you're being earnest with your passion, I think you'll be gladly accepted! As the great Carrie Fisher said, Stay afraid but do it anyway. Take a page from Himeno and shape the future the way you want! This is what Erica wished to convey with Himeno and the experience made her more assertive too. The power of Heroes™ 🥹

Have a good day! 🫶 Moffun hugs ⊂(・人・)⊃🤗

[justali-anne]

Undertale: Post Pacifist Headcanons PART 2, BABY!!!

Undyne:

Becomes a police officer on the surface. She's a lively one, that's for sure!

She's a crucial advocate for the rights of monsters on the surface. She protests for many things, such as equal rights and the right to vote.

Marries Alphys at some point! They move in together.

She enjoys hikes and extreme sports, and WILL NOT hesitate to drag her friends into it too! Papyrus is almost always eager to join. Sans and Alphys, not so much.

Even though she did learn that amine wasn't real, she still likes to go to conventions and meet fellow anime-lovers. And she still believes in the power of friendship.

She's an excellent swimmer for obvious reasons. She can also breathe underwater! Again, for obvious reasons.

Still likes to cook from time to time and she often starts fires. Good thing Alphys always comes prepared.

Alphys:

Therapy. She needs therapy, guys!

It takes her a long time to learn to love herself, but she gets there eventually.

Still feels a sense of guilt every time she sees an amalgam in the street.

She tried to go for science again, but she felt like she couldn't handle that sort of pressure again. She settles for becoming a science teacher instead for Toriel.

Tutors from time to time. She still wants to make up for what she did.

She was the one who proposed to Undyne, unexpectedly!

She really wants kids but she hasn't discussed it with Undyne yet.

Hangs out with Flowey a lot more. You know, creator to creation?

Still tinkers with Sans from time to time. Their friendship blossoms once more.

Mettaton:

Becomes a star, of course!

He goes on a lot of tours with Napstablook, Shyren, and Burgerpants.

He becomes friends with Papyrus due to him being Alphys' girlfriend's best friend. Also, because they lived together at some point during the transition.

Sometimes he can slip back into being self-centred, but it's obvious that he loves his group and his fans.

He likes learning about humans so he can understand his new audience better.

I think he might either have NPD, or the fame really got to his head. Maybe NPD, but that's not inherently a bad thing.

Alphys added a lot of new features to him. He gets sick of being Alphys' lab rat, but he's good at holding down his frustration.

When he's stressed, he takes extra precautions NOT to snap at people. But his battery life drains quicker.

He's not in his EX form all the time. He prefers to be, but it has a shorter battery life, so he has to switch back in order to save power. He worked out a compromise, though. His favourite part of his new body is his legs, so sometimes, while he's in his box form, he still has his legs activated so he can dance. See the credits.

Asgore:

Has a lot of meetings with the government. It takes AGES for him to secure monster rights. Undyne was a big help for him, though.

He sees Frisk a lot, but only when they're with someone else. Toriel does not trust him around Frisk after what happened last time.

Speaking of Toriel, they're at least on speaking terms again. He was actually consulted by Toriel to trim the bushes outside her school. Make art out of it. He made one in the shape of Papyrus' smile! From an... anonymous request.

He doesn't want to be considered the king anymore, but he holds that title anyway.

He sees Undyne as his substitute daughter. Does that mean he would be Alphys' father in law? Alphys would die.

As for the Skelebros, he feels a sort of... connection to them. He can't quite figure out why. ✋︎❄︎ ✋︎💧︎ ❄︎☼︎🕆︎☹︎✡︎ ✌︎

💣︎✡︎💧︎❄︎☜︎☼︎✡︎📬︎

Well, that's all for now!

[hamphobicbasil]

Could u elaborate about the dsmp story being bad? Not a rabid/brain dead fan, just genuinely curious and I enjoy reading people's rants lolol

oh you dont know the floodgates you just opened

a few things:

1. despite not liking the creators of the dsmp anymore, I don't actually hate most of them. [the ones that are particularly unsavory fall outside of this of course] so all that I'm saying i truly mean in a critical sense towards the story, its also just all purely my opinion as someone who enjoys fictional and fantasy stories and who like criticizing works to see what it does well and what it doesn't do well

2. for clarification I'm going to use the c![name] to indicate when I'm talking about the characters. Don't get me wrong, I think its annoying too but its the only way I'm gonna be able to write this thing without getting something across the wrong way yknow?

3. I stopped watching the streams after November 16th, [save for one Techno one but I closed out after a particularly bad story beat lol] and so all information coming afterward is all second hand from either me seeing people on twt talk abt it or people dming me. All i really know is up to dream's imprisonment and some stuff past that.

4. This is mostly aimed towards the "main" story, so stuff abt the badlands, eggpire, and whatnot are briefly mentioned.

anyways uh, i'll try to be brief but also include enough information to get why i feel the way i do on some stuff across

A. Performances Alright obviously these people are all streamers, so obviously they might not be the best actors, and hell no one is even asking that of them. However, when you're telling a story that's based on the audio with the visuals kinda coming to a second, it's gotta be pretty strong. I will say, some of the best actors in my opinion are Wilbur, Tommy, and Tubbo. I would include Ranboo but I never watched any of his story bits or story streams so I can't say much. Wilbur and Tommy are excellent in selling their character's emotions and feelings, when I watch the stream I don't feel like I'm watching an rp but an actual thought-out story yknow? And one of my favorite Tubbo examples was in the Hog Hunt video whenever Techno attacked him, he sounded genuinely afraid and I believed everything his character was feeling.

However, unfortunately, not everyone is gonna be that good. And I'm gonna say it; Dream and Techno have to be the worst out of the entire cast. I understand Techno's whole character is this monotoned badass, however, when really emotional moments hit I feel like he never lets that fall, and a lot of intense moments just ring hollow. And I'm sorry but Dream's attempts at being intimidating leave me laughing whenever I watch them. It feels like he watched that one scene from The Marriage with Adam Driver and Scarlett Johannson and said "Oh this is what good acting looks like! Just yelling." His whole "I don't give a FUCK about Spirit!" speech isn't as great as people keep making it out to be. And whenever he tries to act coy when being a villain it feels like a guy reading the script for the first time, a bit like he's trying too hard. I have more problems with his character but his portrayal certainly doesn't help.

Everyone else is fine, and I don't feel strongly either way about a lot of them.

B. The "Lore" Okay first off, I can't be the only one who thinks it's silly that people are calling the dsmp's story "lore" when it's not, it's the fucking story. Lore indicates backstory to either the world or the characters, which a lot of the streams don't really pertain to. This is a really petty section but god it's a weird pet peeve of mine.

Other than the misusage of "lore" vs "story", the actual lore and world-building of the world are so lackluster that new elements can be introduced whenever and it often feels cluttered or not well thought out at all. And here's the thing, I feel like if the writers sat down just for a few minutes to establish world rules and general history, a lot of this could be solved! but so much is made up on the spot that it starts to feel like they're grabbing at straws to keep people invested, trying to reach that next high and intense story beat without actually earning it.

C. The Egg / Eggpire This is a pretty minor note since I was only invested in the Egg storyline for a little bit, but god it's so underused that it's almost embarrassing. Bad has provided this super interesting antagonistic force that's infecting the SMP, can control people, and who one of our main character is immune to, and it's just never used or even talked about again? Now I understand if he wanted to keep it to a side storyline only, however, to introduce this borderline eldritch creature and force within the world and then never have it dealt with is so weird.

D. The Writing Oh boy this is. kinda a big one. Now I'm not gonna lie, it's pretty obvious I have a bias for the Wilbur writing over the current team [that consisting of Dream, Quackity, and Tommy mostly]. I don't this his writing is perfect by any means, the characters constantly bringing up traitors got obnoxious after a while, and writing Hamilton but in Minecraft really isn't the modern Shakespeare or anything. However, I think his exploration of characters and plot progression was a lot more thought out and well planned, like he actually had two brain cells behind the story yknow? The current team I think fails to be as emotional or even impactful, things happened too fast and my god was everything drowned in angst for so long.

Don't get me wrong, you gotta have your characters face hardships to make them reach their goal believable, but some of the shit they put the characters through just felt like too much. From c!Tubbo's constant comparison to c!Schlatt [who btw, fucking ordered his death and kept him from his friends in a nation he felt trapped in] and on a side note, i kinda really fucking dislike the "c!Schlatt dad!!" au's or the au's where c!Tubbo inherits some of Schlatt's features, it would be like c!Tommy getting a c!Dream mask after his exile, it's feels so weird yet people eat that shit up for some reason.

But god, did c!Tommy get the brunt of it all and in retrospect after his final death, it kinda feels really fucking gross. Now obviously, I'm not trusting any of these people to write decent mental health representation, but c!Tommy's PTSD and how it was explored was just degrading. [Specifically the scene in that one Techno stream where he saw the final control room from the first war, and had a flashback / panic attack where he started calling out for c!Dream. I understand this is an actual thing people with PTSD will experience, but it felt so fucking stereotypical it got on my nerves. I actually had to close out of the stream because it made me feel sick, fiction shouldn't leave you feeling that way.] And don't get me started on how they basically reused the formula from the previous arc. [Problem introduced -> Tensions rise as things start to fall apart -> Big confrontation -> Exile -> Return from Exile -> Blowing up L'Manberg, again.]

And speaking of characters-

E. Character Arcs, or the lack of them In my genuine opinion, some of these characters' arcs are so disappointing. Especially c!Tommy's. I'm not one to believe that he was a "selfish" character or anything, however, his goals were simply set on his discs and maybe c!Tubbo, he didn't have much outside that. However, L'Manberg gave him something to care about, he gave up his discs for it and he fought for it tooth and nail, I think it taught him to open up to others and trust more. It was a great character arc for him to have, seeing him still fight even after his first exile alongside c!Wilbur, to return safely to the nation that he and his found family had built.

But then his second exile happened, and I feel like all of that was undone.

c!Tommy's exile genuinely pisses me off for so many reasons. It's not that characters can't have their low points after reaching a major change or feeling like they've "completed" their arcs or anything, but it's more of the fact that it seems like he's never going to heal that feels like a spit in the face, especially to people who might have had setbacks like that before. Progress isn't linear, sometimes things happen and you get knocked back down, it can take a while to get back up, but I don't think c!Tommy's character is ever going to be allowed to get back up. From c!Dream, who pretty much was a constant abuser in his life, killing him then reviving him, and his still fractured relationship with c!Tubbo, which by the way I have a had time believing they would still be friends after all that happened, it feels like he can never get a win and it's generally kinda a shit way to treat your characters who have been abused. Of course, not all abused characters are going to get happy endings, I'm not trying to dictate that they all should, but c!Tommy deserves one and the fact that it's so obscure feels shitty.

Side note: we still don't have a canon reason to give a shit abt the discs. Like I'm sorry but without some sorta connection to the MacGuffin why should we give a shit about him getting them other than "he wants them lol". Like hell, I would even accept the classic "they were the last gifts from his parents" or something, but we still don't have a reason.

c!Tubbo also lacks a fulfilling arc as well, from someone who started out as a yes man, he has progressed a bit into having his own interests first, but besides that sometimes his character makes me so. depressed. He's easily one of the most pushed around and hated characters within the story, all for being a kid who didn't know what to do and he's in the same vein as c!Tommy; these kids can't get a break. Also, his anti-violence beliefs morphing into the "lets kill c!Techno lol!" bit was so out of place and without proper build-up it was like. what. And now he's building nukes?? god c!Tubbo makes me so sad because he's kicked around constantly and never given a chance to grow.

Another small note, I also don't really enjoy c!Techno at all. Besides the previously stated reasons of lack of emotions when they're really needed, I find his character to be weirdly pretentious. He talks as if he's constantly been betrayed and hurt but I personally, don't see it? Like, I think one of the main examples was the Pogtopia vs. Manberg war, yknow he wanted to end the government but they just reinstated it after they won = c!Techno upset. But this doesn't make sense to me because why did he think otherwise? The entire time c!Tommy had talked about taking back their nation and starting again, so the fact that c!Techno suddenly thought there would be a sudden change is, to put it bluntly, kinda fucking stupid. I don't want to say that he "plays the victim" or anything because that feels a bit harsh, but his character feels so far up his own ass that I can't enjoy him.

I have a major grip with c!Dream as well, but that's getting it's own fucking section.

F. L'Manberg This is a quick note before we get into the, forgive me for this, endgame, of this entire rant, since the next two sections are tied together. But god, L'Manberg makes me upset because it feels like they gave up on it.

Don't get me wrong, I understand that it is supposed to be c!Wilbur's "unfinished symphony", the thing that destroyed a once charismatic and widely loved man, his attempt at power that utterly ruined him. But the fact that it just got blown up in the end after everything and left to rot felt like such a waste of time. From the first war, to Pogtopia, to even c!Tommy's exile, it all felt fucking worthless in the end, and the story is actively closer to how it was when it started now more than ever. I wished it was actually allowed to exist and continue to be a peaceful place in what is a chaotic world, but no it was just snuffed out because why dedicate to this concept of finding others you can band together with and feel safe. fuck that noise apparently?

G. The Villains Now villain-wise, I'm only talking about c!Dream [during the first war], c!Schlatt, and c!Wilbur. And believe it or not, this is actually mostly positive.

Now I'm not gonna lie, c!Dream as a staring antagonist wasn't bad actually, he posed a genuine and threatening opposition to L'Manberg, even if we didn't know his real intentions or motivations as to why he was against it. He's lucky in this sense because he didn't have to be good, he had to be passable. If anything, he felt more like an anti-hero than a tyrant or traditional villain, and my god do I wish he kept this theme going forward.

Now quick disclaimer, I don't like JSchlatt as much as the next guy, he's an adult man who should know better than to joke about some sensitive topics and act the way that he does. But the one thing I'll ever give him is that damn, was he a good actor for his character.

Now here's the thing, c!Schlatt wasn't particularly deep at all. He had no real motivations behind his exile of c!Wilbur and c!Tommy other than getting competition out of the way, had no reason to act the way that he did and yknow? that's fine. The reason why he worked was from his performance alone, he was actually intimidating. When he came onto the stream and was doing his typical bad guy stuff, it was actually intense to see what he would do. Whenever he would almost catch c!Tommy back in Manberg, whenever he would begin to pressure c!Tubbo, it put you on the edge of your seat and it felt like everything would change at the drop of a pen. He's a villain to be a villain, and this works out because he's just charismatic and well put together enough to make it interesting, even without the backstory or motives.

c!Wilbur however, is much more tragic, and the best villain of the story. He essentially was the "mentor turned evil" trope and it felt terrible watching him descend into madness, unable to trust barely anyone except for c!Techno and c!Tommy. Hell, in the end I think he still cared about them both, despite losing everything. Sure, he blew up L'Manberg, but there was still a smidge of the old c!Wilbur in there made everything he did feel melancholic. His death at the hands of his father after achieving his final wish was chilling, and something I still think about.

Until yknow, Ghostbur came back way too soon to let people feel his loss as a character within that world. And then he got revived, pretty much-undoing everything that moment meant for his character lol.

And then there's the worst one:

H. Dream. I'm going to be completely honest, c!Dream is one of the main reasons why I dislike the current dsmp stuff so much. Outside of his actions as a person, the way Dream decided to write his character as this overpowered madman of the dsmp really just. destroyed any intrigue that he could've had. Perhaps this is from my growing dislike towards him, manifesting into a bias towards his character, but god I cannot fathom why people try to insist he's interesting when he has as much depth as a fucking puddle.

And here's the thing, I'm not even entirely against c!Dream being a villain, hell I think he would've been great as an anti-hero if anything. Make him sympathetic but not through c!George to get your precious "DNF" points or anything, but show him actually caring about the people within the dsmp, including c!Tommy and c!Tubbo. This would make his rival status with them just a bit more complicated, sure they're enemies, however, he doesn't want to hurt or kill them, and there's still a level of friendship there that keeps them bonded when things get super bad. This could've been super interesting to see, the first villain of the story receiving a sorta redemption arc then descending into madness as he started to fixate on being a god. This is all how I feel personally, but god do I feel like it would've been better than his current character, and hell would've worked with how he was during the Pogtopia arc, before the war that is. I'm not trying to tell Dream how to write his own character, but there are so many other ways he could've done the madman seeking to become god rather then. whatever the hell we got.

Because instead, we got this power-mad asshole who does things... because he can? And that's one of my major issues: he tries to surround his character in mystery to make him "intriguing" but it's kinda like c!Techno, it comes off as pretentious. Not only that, but you cannot keep waving around this mystery of a backstory without ever actually revealing it. I know the story isn't over, but c!Dream is effectively at his lowest point, now would be the time to reveal his backstory. But no just keep it in the dark and keep everyone guessing, that's totally fun and not at all tiring and annoying. (sarcasm, if anyone needs it)

And back to his performance, he doesn't sell this aloof, cynical and strategic warrior that has perfected the blade or some shit, he comes off as some angry guy yelling on reddit. which i don't need to tell you, isn't intimidating. It feels like he's trying to have c!Schlatt's intimidation combined with c!Wilbur's depth, but instead he's like a little brother who's trying to hard to mimic his older brother and is kinda embarrassing himself.

but other then that i dont feel too strongly abt the dsmp lol

but seriously, these are the main complaints I have abt the story tbh, I could probably talk about more but I wont because man. this is probably gonna get me in trouble if any of the hyper-dsmp fans actually read it.

[shijiujun]

ooh okay to my SHL content creators, especially the gif-ers and artists:

so i’ve had to like basically tell a THIRD hourly-(whoever) account today to stop stealing gifs on twitter? again? haha i think most people @/leonzhng @/zhouszishu @/qiweishang already know, but if you see a new hourly-gj/wkx/zzh/zzs account on Twitter, please think twice before reposting anything from em because it’s likely it was stolen from elsewhere. 

and in general i think it’s good habit not to support accounts that don’t have the decency to put credits on their posts to even like edited photos that I’m pretty sure are edited by talented/dedicated fans on Weibo like just cuz they’re photos don’t mean you can just pick em off just saying. you can tell. you can freaking tell when an account is full of HQ photos or videos or whatever but they don’t look consistent in colouring or style etc., and there is no reference to original source. seriously, as also ppl consuming content it’s a good habit to be a bit suspicious when an account posts for example a lot of nice art but they’re all differently styled and NO links or disclaimers? 

the weibo account watermark doesn’t count. we’re talking about permission here?! don’t just blindly reblog shit (i recently did once by accident and it was @/heukheuk who like knocked some sense into me) - so anyway! don’t just frickin pluck shit off accounts just because it’s convenient for you, in any setting. it’s not a “oh i referenced from this other twitter or tumblr account” - you’re an accomplice to the distribution of the theft lmao 

the only exception of which i think is acceptable are original material from official brands - i mean no one will mistake that you stole em from idk, giorgio armani or you know elizabeth arden even if you don’t dump a credit lols

there are some good ones, i think @/HourlyZhangZH has gotten a good hang of it and @/gongjun_ is excellent at finding their own source material and also crediting or placing links - since talking to @/hourlywkx they’ve also started to at least put link credits 

in any case, there are somehow a lot of these hourly accounts sprouting out and some of em obviously have the “steal until i’m caught” attitude or “outright steal i don’t care” viewpoint. there are only so many people like gif-ing regularly for SHL rn on Tumblr, and they’re all recognizable by colouring, quality and also preferred font type :D i can spot any of my moots’ gifs from a mile away

SO just look out for the hourly accounts on Twitter (and others yes, it’s just these hourly accounts. seriously like wtf, stealing so you can make up a posting quota YOU FORCED ONTO YOURSELF lmao if that’s not irony idk what is), don’t support em and if you do happen to spot one of anyone’s stolen gifs it’ll be nice for the ops to know, and for those gif-ers who don’t usually put watermarks? pls do ;-;

[galactichoneybee92]

Thoughts on BakuDeku

I’ve been lurking in the MHA fandom for a while now, just kind of silently watching, and I have a few observations that I would like to make. Just perspectives that I would like to put out into the universe. I am on the older side of this website, much less this fandom and so I am no stranger to fandom culture. And when I say old? I mean like I was an active participant on ff.net circa 2005 so like, I’m sure some of you are older but I’m getting up there. My point? I’ve seen things.

As far as fandoms go in general, the MHA is far from the most toxic that I’ve seen but there does seem to be a few points of contention and per usual it comes back to shipping. This is nothing new but lets speak a little on BakuDeku as a ship. I warn you now, it’s not always going to be things you want to hear, but I encourage you to read to the end anyway. 

Horikoshi has fully admitted to having been a huge Naruto fan and it’s pretty easy to see the influence in his work. On that note, it’s pretty safe to say that the Midoriya/Bakugo relationship can be compared to the Naruto/Sasuke relationship. You can see other parallels (All Might = Iruka, Aizawa =  Kakashi, etc...) but for the sake of argument let’s focus solely on Midoriya/Bakugo. Personally, I tend to prefer MHA to Naruto overall, as I just like the characters better and as such I like Bakugo a lot more than Sasuke. Horikoshi has taken more time to humanize Bakugo, and while he started off being a total dick, he’s also a dumb fuck teenage boy and he’s had a lot of character growth over the last 29 volumes. 

In the Naruto fandom, much like in the MHA fandom, there were loads of fans who shipped Naruto and Sasuke romantically. If we are judging the probability of Midoriya and Bakugo becoming a cannon couple, it stands to reason that we can examine the author’s influences and infer that, no, they probably won’t. For one thing, homosexuality is still considered a controversial topic in Japan like in America, and even if the author wanted to make it romantic he would probably receive a good amount of push-back from publishers. 

Now I don’t want you to read this and think that I am at all against it. I’m not. And forever ago when I was reading Naruto I occasionally wondered what would happen if an author published a Shounen manga, got millions invested, and then SURPRISE it was a M/M romance all along. I think it would be fun but I can’t say that I am realistically convinced that it will happen. But that isn’t really the point of this post.

My point, is that this fandom, like many others (And this website in general???) needs to learn the difference between actual queer baiting and a ship that just...doesn’t happen? And I’ve seen all the arguments, about how they clearly love each other and how their bond is so deep and how if either of the characters had this kind of relationship with a female character it would ABSOLUTELY be romantic. And I hear your points, but if I may provide a few of my own: 

1. There are many different ways to love in the world and they don’t all have to involve romance and kissing and sex. Do you love your family? Do you have friends that you would die for? These are relationships that people have and their just as valid in fiction as in real life.

2. Yes, if they were opposite genders than it probably would be the central romance of the mange, but that isn’t proof of queer baiting so much as a general failure to accurately represent opposite gender friendships in media. There should be male and female friendships that are just as strong while remaining platonic so this is a failure but not the failure you thing it is.  (If anyone likes Kdramas, Suspicious Partner is an excellent one that has not only a great romantic subplot but also some WONDERFUL platonic M/F friendships and it’s just beautiful) (That being said I also recommend the Taiwanese drama HIStory 3: Trapped for a wonderful M/M romance since if you’re reading this post that’s probably something you’re into) 

I think that a lot of the problems come from the fact that good romantic relationships do build similarly to friendships. You get a lot of bonding moments, the characters getting to know each other better and coming to care for one another and since media tends to focus predominantly on romantic relationships it’s easy to just get into the mindset that like, all bonding moments are leading somewhere. And in a way they are: to friendship. And then sometimes that friendship leads to romance and sometimes it doesn’t but what I’m saying is that the two look very similar. You SHOULD be friends with your romantic partner, and I think that that is why it’s so easy to ship these sort of couples. Especially when they do have an especially deep bond like these two have.

As far as BakuDeku as a couple in general, yeah, I ship it. I’ve read my fair share of fanfiction and if it did happen I would be psyched. I didn’t always like Bakugo (He’s just doing THE MOST at all times) but I grew to love him and if he continues to grow in the direction that he has been I wouldn’t personally have any problems with it. They have an interesting dynamic that incorporates some of my favorite tropes and I think it would be cool if the manga went there. But if they don’t? That’s also fine. 

There have been several ACTUAL examples of queer baiting in media that I can point to such as the Japanese ads for Sherlock (I didn’t necessarily find the show itself to be queerbaiting but the Japanese ads for the new seasons hardcore did) and while I tried hard to defend Supernatural (WAY too much of the fandom shipped actual brothers together for me to believe that they understood the value of any sort of platonic relationship) they kind of blew that out of the water with whatever the fuck happened in that last season. 

I don’t see that happening here and while I know a lot of you are set for your ship to become cannon I just want you to maybe manage your expectations. Because in my experience, when it gets built up this big, if it DOESN’T happen the next thing fans do is start ranting about queer-baiting and insulting the series and the team and I don’t want to see that because it isn’t fair to any of them. I’ve seen it happen in other fandoms and it gets real ugly real fast. 

Alternatively, if anyone has watched the reboot of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power you will know that the creators played their cards super close to their chest, doing their best to properly develop the homosexual relationships they wanted while keeping it subtle enough that they could prevent themselves from being cancelled before the last season aired. Then they went all in and made their homosexual ships cannon in the final season because at that point the whole show was out wtf was going to happen? They’d get cancelled? It was already over. So if you would like a serving of hope to cling to, that is a thing that happened. I just wouldn’t necessarily bet on it. 

That being said, I fully support your right to ship anything you want. And if by some chance it does become cannon? More power to you. I’d be psyched. Horikoshis assistants ship the hell out of it and he clearly doesn’t mind so there is a point in your favor. But if it doesn’t? A lack of romance doesn’t invalidate the depth of their feelings for one another. Platonic love is still love and it’s still a powerful driving force in the story. Their relationship is still compelling even if there isn’t ever a kiss, or a confession. And hey, that’s what fanfiction is for. 

Remember kids: Please ship responsibly. 

[loreweaver-universe]

And that’s...the show.

Man.  What a show.  That kept me guessing all the way through.  The core mystery of is-it-magic-is-it-not really kept me going for a while there.  A compelling cast of characters, too--even the one I utterly fucking despised.

Tsukiko and Ikari’s parallel stories converging as each of them hits the breaking point and finds it within themselves to accept the way things truly are was masterfully done.  And that’s all it took, in the end--looking within oneself and no longer denying the truth defeated both of their inner demons and in the process saved countless lives.  We could all do with a bit more introspection from time to time.

“My place disappeared from this world a long time ago. The reality is that there is no place for me anymore. But that’s the reality I have to face!”

The world changes, the world moves on.  It’s up to us to decide if we want to join the new world or whether we want to wallow in our self-pity over being left behind.  That is definitely a lesson a lot of people in the modern day need to learn, and the source of no small amount of societal ills befalling us.  Words of wisdom.

As for the individual victims of Li’l Slugger...I wish we got resolutions for some of them.  Taeko in particular being amnesiac and back in the grip of her pedophile father seems a rather horrific end.  Harumi also makes me wish we’d gotten a resolution to her issues; I’ll forever wonder if she got treatment, if she resolved her DID or if it consumed her and destroyed her marriage.

Hopefully Maniwa’s getting the help he needs.  He’s in the care of a mental hospital, at least, though I don’t know how well he’s being treated.  What would you call his deal, anyways?  A psychotic break?  Paranoid schizophrenia where the paranoia part happens to be about something that actually happened?  Or is it just “Mental IllnessTM” and leaving it at that?

And...Tsukiko.  Tsukiko, who appears to have moved on with her life to some degree.  (How she managed that swim back home is beyond me.)  It’s not like anyone would...actually, hrm.  The destruction happened after all the Maromi merch in the country spontaneously vanished.  I’ll bet at the very minimum Tsukiko is the subject of some very dedicated conspiracy theory communities, even if the larger society doesn’t have enough information to put together her involvement.  Still, she’s moved on, past the disaster she was responsible for; I’m not sure what sort of consequences she should have actually seen, in a Watsonian sense, but approaching it with Doylist intent, the message of finding peace and moving on after accepting the truth trumps that.

This is the first of Satoshi Kon’s works I’ve seen, though I’d seen a copy of Tokyo Godfathers on my local library’s shelves years ago--I meant to borrow it, but never did.  Maybe I should change that; this was certainly an excellent work, one I’d happily seek out more of.

Rest in peace, Satoshi Kon.  You’ve touched the world, by all accounts, and you especially touched the patron who chose this show.

Thank you, by the way.  This was an excellent show, and your support over the past two years has helped me immensely.  I’m glad we’re friends.

Well!  That’s Paranoia Agent.  That’s the end of this particular Patron Pick; the patron opened up their spot and another took their place immediately, so in the next cycle of liveblogs you’ll be seeing something new!  It’ll be a surprise, though, since I’m sure a bunch of you are excited to see me do it.  That’ll be it for tonight; up next is going to be Baccano, which we’ll continue Wednesday.  Also, tomorrow, I’ll be completing my playthrough of Resident Evil Village on the hardest difficulty, so tune in at my Twitch channel or catch old streams on my Youtube if you’d like!

As always, thank you for tuning in, and thank you to my 62 patrons who make it so I can do this for a living!  And especially thank you to the people who have been so kind as to donate over the past few months of mental health issues I’ve been having, you’ve been lifesavers.  I’ll see you guys next time!

IN OTHER NEWS:

I recently completed my blind playthrough of Resident Evil Village!  You can see the full playlist of those streams by clicking here!

If you’d like to help me pay my rent, buy me some food, or help with my bills and medicine, please use my direct donation link!  If you’d like to support me per liveblog completed every month, please pledge to my Patreon! Becoming a patron not only allows you to vote on what shows I do whenever I choose a new one, but also grants access to the community Minecraft server to $5 patrons or higher!

You should also go pledge to Gio’s Patreon, or his Sponsus–our Discord server maintenance tech, creator of Rubybot, and community Minecraft server overlord deserves far more than I can afford to pledge to him by myself.

If you’d like more of me and my content:

My Episode Lists master page, where you can find every show and liveblog I’ve done!

My Discord server, where you can come hang out with me and other fans, check out member liveblogs, and join community gaming guilds!

My Twitch channel, where I stream variety games every so often!

My Youtube channel, where you can check out past streams!

My ask blog, where you can send me questions and comments!

My Twitter, where I make announcements about liveblogs and streams!

It’s your kindness and support that lets me do this stuff, and I wouldn’t be where I am without all of you to do it for.  Thank you all so much for your support, and for tuning in every episode!

OTHER PEOPLE YOU MAY ENJOY:

I may have been one of the earlier Steven Universe liveblogs, but a whole community of livebloggers has sprung up over the last five years!   I linked to a bunch individually for a few wrap-ups, but honestly, this end-slate is already eight billion miles long, so I’m just gonna link to my links page.  Click here if you want recommendations of other livebloggers, or other neat people, or webcomics and podcasts that I recommend.

[mediabasedlife]

A Look Back At...The Last Generation (2013-2020)

I’d like to start this off by thanking those who encouraged me to write this article, my friends and family who encouraged me to rekindle this project despite my own trepidation. I hope its quality lives up to those lofty expectations.

     Say what you will about the hobby, gaming is in many ways the gift that keeps on giving. Every year there are hundreds, if not thousands of new offerings for every brand of player out there. And wouldn't you know it, there's a fairly significant portion of that library that are actually pretty good. Now, people will argue ad infinitum about what games are the best, or what consoles, or even which generation trumps the rest. This diversity of opinion is what has allowed gaming discussion to thrive just as potently as the medium which it encapsulates. Like any opinion, all of this is especially subjective; great games have been coming out pretty much every year since gaming began, a trend that seems like it will continue as long as gaming itself continues to thrive. While some may argue, I would say the latest generation thrived especially well. Ignoring the Wii-U, since I never owned one, and skirting around handhelds, the latest generation spanned the life of the Xbox One, the PlayStation 4, and technically, the Nintendo Switch. And through their seven-year life [switch notwithstanding], we saw the release of some truly excellent games - from top budget AAA titles to humble indie offerings. Now, in 2020, while we as a community are taking our first steps into the new generation of gaming, I think it fair to take pause, gaze back, and remember some of the games that made the latest generation so memorable for so many.

2013

    2013 marked the start of the last-gen, with the release of both the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4. Both consoles were built to shepherd out their predecessors, marking leaps in visual fidelity and infrastructure that would empower them to become the monoliths of gaming that they hoped to be. I won't say that both consoles had an equally vibrant launch, but they both tried to put their best foot forward. While the Xbox was busy desperately trying to become the multimedia center for your living room, Sony kicked off the next generation in style, releasing a whole seven days earlier than its competitor. With the Xbox not far behind, both consoles brought a suite of new, shiny games to play. Well, in theory, anyway. I'm not here to speak of the quality of the launch lineups of either console, but what I can do is list off the game that stood out, and why it made it onto my list.

-Assassin's Creed Black Flag      Black Flag actually saw its initial release on the PS3 and Xbox 360 almost a month prior to the soon to be current generation, but with both new consoles came a second release, one that came equipped with all the bells and whistles you'd expect from what was then a next-gen game. It doesn't look good for my list to start things off on a technicality, but this game is worth it. Black Flag remains one of my top three Assassin's Creed Games, which is saying a lot considering the sheer scale of the franchise. Fresh off the love it or hate it Assassin's Creed III, Black Flag looked to take a revitalized approach to the franchise formula, playing off of fan feedback, expanding upon what fans loved from AC3, and adding in new activities and a broader, fresher open world to explore. In it, you play as Edward Kenway, a charming rogue of a pirate who kicks the game off by stealing the identity of a defected Assassin. Expecting nothing more than riches and glory, his masquerade instead goes quickly sour, thrusting Edward into the conspiracy filled, secretive world of the Assassin and Templar conflict. What makes this story stand out is how different Edward was as a protagonist, seeing him acting largely indifferent to the traditional formula the assassin's creed games had followed thus far. The game's setting also helped it immensely; the game plays more like a pirate simulator, seeing players sail the Caribbean searching out treasures and fame, gathering a sturdy ship and a hearty crew, engaging in thrilling naval battles, and basking in the warm glow of the sun-drenched sands that define the game's many islands. Along the way, you interact with a bevy of historical or mythical figures, such as Blackbeard, Captain Kidd, Calico Jack, and many more. All of this came together to create an immensely satisfying game, a standout amidst its peers and predecessors, and an experience that still stands the test of time despite the numerous sequels it has received.

2014

    2014 was the year the new generation really started to pick up. The consoles had begun to get their footing, truly ushering in the next wave of quality games and proving their value to the players. Several critically acclaimed games got their start here or saw revitalized releases on the current generation of consoles. However, there were a few strays, games that elected to release on the prior consoles first and foremost, games that wouldn't see new-gen ports for some time, and others that never did, but still merited recognition and praise. But how many will make it onto my list? Well, you'll just have to read on.

-Titanfall     Titanfall was, for me, the first game on the Xbox One that truly cemented it as a worthy purchase. It was a melting pot of ideas and innovation that I immediately fell in love with. Built with an always-online principle, Titanfall sees players engaging in a pseudo-campaign of multiple, looping competitive matches. On the surface, you could easily glance Titanfall's way and see nothing remarkable. Another first-person shooter in a sea of competitors, all of whom had far more clout at the time. But what set Titanfall apart from the start was its dedication to movement, satisfying and fast-paced gunplay, and especially, robots. See, Titanfall's whole gimmick is this; players take on the role of Pilots, better than average soldiers of the far future who are deployed in times of conflict as superior ground troops, but more importantly, heavy artillery. As pilots perform well on the battlefield, they can call in the titular Titanfall, summoning their respective Titan to the fray. Titans are large, deadly mechs that can be piloted by the player to give them a distinct advantage in battle. What this translates to in gameplay is simple; as players make their way through matches, they build up a meter which when filled allows them to call down a massive robot to wreak havoc. Every player can do this, usually multiple times a match if they're good enough. Titans are fast, tough, and lethal, and fun as hell to control. But what kept the game balanced was the fact that titans weren't invincible. All players came equipped with anti-titan weaponry, alongside their usual loadout of rifles or handguns. This meant that anyone could take a titan down if they were savvy. The titans, coupled with the frantic movement and satisfying shooting, made Titanfall a one of a kind game. It's fitting, then, that the inevitable sequel would go on to improve on it in virtually every way, but that'll have to wait for later.

-Diablo 3     I will admit to not having played this in its initial release window, in fact, some years would pass before I finally picked it up on console during a sale. And though my time with it was quite belated, I would still consider it to be a genuinely fun game, one worthy of being on this list. In Diablo 3, players choose between seven classes; Wizard, Monk, Necromancer, Witch Doctor, Demon Hunter, Barbarian, or Crusader. From there, they are thrust into the demon-plagued land of Sanctuary, beginning their adventure in the town of New Tristram. Each class has a different backstory and a slightly different narrative throughout, but the core throughline is thus; you are sent to the village to investigate reports of a falling star, only to be swept up in a fight against hell and heaven itself for the fate of the world. In terms of game difficulty, the game sports an impressive twenty difficulty tiers; easy, normal, hard, master, and then sixteen levels of torment. Should players want an even greater challenge, there's also hardcore mode, which starts you off with permadeath: you get one life, no exceptions. Die, and the character is gone for good. Overall, I would say that Diablo's biggest strength is in its gameplay loop; Diablo plays like a top-down, hack and slash role-playing game, with players exploring the various levels in search of loot all the while battling hordes of enemies and leveling up, earning new abilities and skills that players can swap out to create their ideal builds. The core gameplay loop, while simple, is wildly addictive, with a massive loot pool to chase in an effort to grow ever stronger. Each class plays differently, but all of them are easy to learn. Diablo also supports local and online multiplayer, making it a great game to play with friends or family.

-Sunset Overdrive     Sunset Overdrive is a game I've previously covered on this blog before. In fact, I'd say I did such a good job that if you want to read about it, go read that article. But if you'd rather not click away, let me give you the TL;DR. Sunset overdrive is a satirical open world game made by Insomniac in which you play as a cocky and comedic hero out to save their city from a bogus energy drink that caused a pseudo-zombie outbreak. It's built around movement, with the player grinding on rails and running on walls and doing everything they can to stay mobile while gunning down the mutated enemies and exploring the environment. It's funny and feels great to play while being hampered by an underwhelming character creator and suite of customization options, but still manages to come out on top as an immensely satisfying game.

-Destiny     Destiny is the brainchild of one Bungie studios, the original creators of Halo, the next game on this list. Fresh off their amicable split from Microsoft, Bungie did what they did best; develop a truly great FPS. But this time, they added a twist; Destiny is equal parts Shooter, Looter, and MMO. It took these three core ingredients and mixed them together with gusto, delivering an immensely entertaining game that felt incredible to play both alone or with your friends. The story of destiny is a long one, but can be summarized simply; Some years in the future, Humanity met and allied with an alien being known as the Traveller, an alliance that heralded massive technological and social leaps, ushering in the new Golden Age of humanity. Unfortunately, the Traveller's natural enemies, The Darkness, attacked the solar system, destroying much, and whittling down the last survivors to a single safe city. In response, the Traveller created Guardians, reanimated protectors infused with the Traveller's power, tasked with defending the earth and all its colonies from the encroaching forces of evil that threaten this dwindling peace. Resurrected by a ghost, an emissary of the Traveller, you play as one of these Guardians; taking on the role of either the agile Hunter, the cosmically magical Warlock, or the strong and stalwart Titan. From there, you could either progress alone or join up with friends to take on the challenges of the solar system, pushing back the forces of darkness. Although lacking in longevity in its first outing, destiny was quickly expanded and iterated upon, turning it from an already impressive game to a true powerhouse and pillar of its genre.

-Halo: The Master Chief Collection     I won't pretend this started off as a flawless, perfect compilation of prior Halo games. But I love Halo, and I loved playing these games again, so it makes the list. Especially after all of the improvements and subsequent additions 343 made to the collection post-launch. On release, it featured Halo CE, Halo 2, Halo 3, and Halo 4, but has since gone on to include Halo 3: ODST and Halo Reach as well. If you're unfamiliar, Halo is a staple franchise in the Xbox lineup, and the master chief collection sought to unify all of the prior releases under one umbrella for the newest console. Halo is a sci-fi FPS franchise, largely following the saga of the titular Master Chief Petty Officer, John-117. John, or Master Chief as he is more commonly called, is a Spartan; a supersoldier of the future, who fights to protect humanity from an alien collective dubbed The Covenant. In the first game, Master Chief crash lands on an alien ringworld known as Halo, which later turns out to be an ancient superweapon created to exterminate all sentient life in the galaxy. Subsequent games only build the stakes from there, seeing John stave off one intergalactic threat after another in a franchise that continues to satisfy time and again. What the Master Chief Collection does is bundle everything up in one convenient package, while simultaneously offering tweaks and improvements to complement the technological advancements of the new consoles. It offers local and online multiplayer, both for its story and its competitive modes. Overall, even with the flawed beginnings, I would consider The master chief collection a must-have for Xbox players.

-Grand Theft Auto V     Ah yes, GTAV, the game that refuses to die. Technically, this game released on the Xbox 360 and ps3, but it's been put on the PS4/XBO and now even the PS5 and the latest Xboxes too. I won't be surprised if this game gets ported to the consoles that come after that, too, in seven or so years. This game just won't quit. But that's also a testament to the dedication of its player base and the overall quality of the game itself. GTAV is an irreverent, biting joy of a game, replete with humor and charisma. It was, and remains, the latest in Rockstar's open-world crime franchise, in which players take on the role of not one, but three separate characters trying to make their way through life in Los Santos California; Michael, a retired crook stuck in the witness protection system, Michael's former, quite deranged partner Trevor, and rounding out the cast is Franklin, a street-savvy up and comer. Together they go about committing numerous heists, shady deals, and more than a few moments of mayhem in their quest for glory. Its secondary selling point was a robust and open-ended online mode, where players could create their own character and participate in myriad activities with and against their friends and strangers for fame, money, and clout. This is the mode that has kept GTA going in the years since its release, and it is the mode that has seen the most improvements and updates as well. I spent a not inconsiderable amount of time in it myself, but it was always the story of Michael, Trevor, and Franklin that drew me in overall.

-Tales from the Borderlands     Tales from the Borderlands is the only Telltale game I'm putting in this whole list. Not for lack of quality on the other games' parts, but simply because this one has to be my favorite. For those unfamiliar, Borderlands is a series of FPS games that take place far in the future on the fringes of space; the titular Borderlands. It follows a revolving door of ragtag Vault Hunters, people who go in search of mythical, alien "vaults" that are rumored to contain vast amounts of treasure. They are incredibly popular, addicting looter shooters that match satisfying gunplay with beautiful cell-shaded graphics, topped off with charming and funny characters and not too shabby storytelling. Telltale games, on the other hand, are traditional point and click adventure games, released in episodic formats and usually broken down into seasons. They focus on storytelling first and foremost, showcasing incredibly compelling narratives influenced by player choice. You'd think, then, that these two dichotomous formats wouldn't pair well together at all, but Tales from the Borderlands proves that sentiment is wildly false. Tales from the borderlands took what was great about previous telltale games, and matched it perfectly to an original tale set in the Borderlands universe. It weaves an incredibly compelling narrative, filled with equal parts humor and feeling, and manages to tell one of the best Borderlands stories to date.

2015

    I don't have a lot to say about 2015. The new generation was still going strong and saw some truly excellent games grace its shelves, many of whom are going to appear below.

-Bloodborne    2015 kicked off incredibly strong with Bloodborne, the latest instant classic from the studio behind the equally popular Dark Souls franchise. Bloodborne melds the skill-oriented, punishing combat and exploration heavy maps of the Souls games with an eldritch, psychological atmosphere, a match so perfect it went together like peanut butter and chocolate. To espouse the story of Bloodborne would be an effort in itself, but  I shall do my best to summarize it; Shirking the more medieval settings of the Souls games before it, Bloodborne sees players navigating the victorian gothic town of Yarnham, a city plagued by beasts and monsters. It is these monsters you are tasked with dispatching, taking on the role of a Hunter of Beasts, sent to cleanse the town of that which ails it. But not is all as it seems, and the beasts may not be the only monsters Yarnham has to offer. Outside of its interpretive yet incredibly strong narrative, Bloodborne offered equally polished gameplay, iterating on the previously mentioned combat from prior dark souls games to create a punishing yet wildly satisfying gameplay loop that was easy to learn yet hard to master. Bloodborne forced players to always be on their guard but gave them no shield or barrier with which to do so, believing that offense was the greatest defense, making success hinge on your willingness to fight and your skill in surviving the nightmares that Yarnham had to offer. A melding of horror, action, and exploration, Bloodborne was a true success, cementing itself for years to come as a top tier action-RPG, and saw countless fans that remain dedicated to it to this day.

-The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt     I'm going to be blunt; This is one of my favorite games of the last generation. It is a top tier RPG, made up of an incredibly charming cast of characters, a beautiful open world, and a thrilling, fantastical narrative that all come together to make one of the best games to release in the last seven years. Though a sequel to not only two prior games, but also a long line of books, The Witcher 3 was surprisingly friendly to newcomers, of which I was one at the time. Despite its pedigree, I felt right at home in the world of the Witcher, quickly picking up on what I had missed in its long and storied life. The Witcher 3 puts players in the role of Geralt of Rivia, the titular Witcher, a magically enhanced human tasked with routing out monsters that threaten the world of man. This time around, Geralt is searching for his ward, Ciri, as he navigates a world fraught with monsters and men in equal measure. what starts as a simple search for a missing friend quickly blossoms into an adventure for the fate of the world itself. Though a fantasy RPG at its heart, the witcher manages to tell some particularly grounded and human stories, and this game is no exception. One moment will see you stalking a beast out in the wild, the next will see you navigating political intrigue in the courts of royalty. But it all flows together to create one of the best RPGs I've ever played, and one that earned a not inconsiderable amount of well-deserved praise when it first debuted back in 2015.

-Assassin's Creed Syndicate     Hot off the heels of the muddied AC Unity, Syndicate was the last proper Assassin's Creed game before the franchise would experience a massive genre and gameplay shift in its next entry. Where Unity saw too much focus on graphics and not enough care anywhere else, Syndicate finely balances all of its parts to create an impressive experience overall. This time around, players get to visit London, at the tail end of its industrial revolution. Out goes flintlocks and swords, in came steam and steel. This entry sees players in the role of both Evie and Jacob Frye, siblings fresh off their induction into the Assassin Brotherhood, tasked with dispatching justice on their Templar foes across London. The setting isn't the only big change for this game, as Syndicate saw an overhaul in both visual quality, scale, and gameplay. London feels lived large and lived in, with plenty of ground to explore and streets filled with people going about their day-to-day. Missions are split between Jacob and Evie both, with some allowing you to pick and choose and others forcing you into the shoes of one or the other as they work together to clean up the city. It innovated on the traditional gameplay loop, with this game having you going from borough to borough, toppling its templar leaders and expanding your sphere of influence with the aid of historical figures like Charles Darwin, Karl Marx, and Nikola Tesla. These famous faces are not the only people lending the Fryes their helping hand, as Syndicate also put the Fryes in charge of their own street gang, a ragtag group of brawlers and scouts that would come to their aid at the press of a button. Most times, conquering a borough involved you and your gang scrapping it out with those of the templar order, dusting knuckles to see who got the final say in the control of the area. This may seem at odds with the traditionally stealth-oriented approach prior games focused on, but that side of the game was not neglected either. Assassination missions saw fine-tuning and innovation as well, with players able to plan out and partake in uniquely tailored kills that matched the locale and personality of their target, from disguising yourself as a scientific cadaver to kill a corrupt doctor to allying with a guard and feigning capture to infiltrate and kill a target in the Tower of London. The game saw improvements out of combat as well, with Syndicate receiving a large overhaul in its parkour movement and general navigation. The Frye twins come equipped with a grappling hook that allows for speedy travel across London's many rooftops, while ground travel was made all the more expedient with the inclusion of horse-drawn carriages. The general parkour itself was also tuned, allowing for freer player movement and tighter directional control. All of this to say, Syndicate saw some truly welcomed improvements, iterating on the legacy and creating a lasting impression that stands up as one of the better games of the franchise.

-Star Wars Battlefront     While I've spoken of a Battlefront on this blog before, this is not that same game. Rather, this is Battlefront 2015, a soft reboot to the previous Battlefront line of games for the new generation of consoles. This Star Wars Battlefront was helmed and developed by Dice, famed for the Battlefield franchise, a line of competent and entertaining military-focused first-person shooters. They were known for solid campaigns, but more importantly, massive scale competitive multiplayer modes. This pedigree is shown heavily in Battlefront, with the game sporting 64 players competitive multiplayer, with teams taking on the roles of either the empire or the rebellion as they fight their way through maps taken straight from the star wars universe, from the snowy plains of Hoth to the immense forests of Endor and everywhere in between. The game was replete with game modes and had the ability to be played in either first or third person. Players were given access to a modest selection of in-universe weaponry, and could even take the role of recognizable star wars heroes on occasion. Visually, the game was stunning, with incredibly faithful and detailed recreations from everything to weapons to the maps themselves. It felt like a genuine passion project, built from the ground up by competent developers and made for fans and first-timers alike. Battlefront, much like many games on this list, has since been usurped by a sequel but remains an incredibly competent shooter and a genuinely fun game to play.

2016

    While 2015 saw the release of some truly impressive games, 2016 was a genuine powerhouse of a year. It saw the rise to prominence of Virtual Reality, through the oculus rift and the PlayStation VR. 2016 also saw the first re-released console of the current generation, in the form of the Playstation 4 Pro, a trend that Xbox would follow as well, seeing the release of 2016's Xbox One S, and in 2017, the Xbox One X. These were touted as faster, better performing, better-looking consoles than their base model predecessors, offering several enhancements to graphical fidelity and console performance, running games even better than they already did. And with these new consoles came an all-star suite of excellent games, a multitude of instant classics from big-name studios and fresh indie developers alike. Many of the games that released this year are ones I've individually covered before, but they still deserve their spot in this article. So without further ado, here are some of the most noteworthy games of 2016.

-Oxenfree     Where Bloodborne was the standout hit that kicked off 2015, Oxenfree did the exact same thing for 2016. Developed by the California based indie team at Night School Studios, Oxenfree is a supernaturally infused, slice of life adventure game that follows Alex, a witty, rebellious, soon to be high school graduate as she makes her way to the fictional Edwards Island, accompanied by her best friend Ren and new stepbrother Jonah. This small group of friends is meeting up with what they assume will be a large group to have a weekend bash, But what was supposed to be a boisterous weekend party turns out to just be two extra guests; Clarissa, a fellow student who has ties to Alex, and Nona, a mild-mannered girl who just so happens to be Ren's current crush. Their modest get together quickly goes south when Alex uses a small handheld radio to tune into a weird signal emanating from the island, unleashing the spirits of a sunken military submarine, long since lost at sea. These wayward souls possess one of the kids and scatter the rest across the island, forcing Alex to uncover the mystery of their death and find a way to save her friends and escape the island. The game wears its inspirations on its sleeve, taking queues from classic ghost stories as much as it does retro coming of age stories, but it adapts these ideas masterfully. As for how it plays, Oxenfree is a side scrolling point and click adventure game, built around exploration and dialogue rather than complex game mechanics. It explores the interpersonal relationships between all the characters as much as it explores the haunted nature of the island itself. It easily shifts between these disparate tones, with a story filled with as many supernatural spooks as sarcastic teenage banter, seamlessly integrating player choice into the mix to create a truly excellent narrative. Oxenfree also features a high amount of replayability, with player choice going on to influence which of the game's many endings, as well as touting a new game plus mode that adds an extra smattering of content for your subsequent playthroughs. Oxenfree was a gift that kept on giving, more than earning its spot on this list.

-Firewatch     Firewatch is the first of several 2016 games I've previously written about, and while my opinion of it may have not been the highest initially, ruminating on it since has led me to a new appreciation of the time I spent with it. I would recommend reading my original review, but the short summary is thus; you play as Henry, a man on the run from his troubles who takes a job in the Shoshone national forest, keeping an eye on the wildlife and ensuring nothing is amiss. Your companion through the game is Delilah, a voice through your walkie talkie, somebody else who has taken the same job as you over in one of the adjacent watchtowers. Throughout the game you explore the forest, keeping the area safe while exploring the mysteries of the area you now inhabit, all the while developing a friendly relationship with Delilah as you go. It's a simple, but satisfying first-person adventure game, with an emotionally charged but comedic narrative about one man's journey to get lost and find himself.

-Stardew Valley     Stardew Valley is a retro-inspired simulator game about a down and out office worker who inherits their grandfather's farm in the titular Stardew Valley. They leave their mundane life behind and embark on a new journey in rural life, building up the farm from a rundown, untamed field into a bustling agricultural powerhouse, all the while making friends and forming bonds with the locals that you meet along the way. Stardew plays like a dream and features a stunning pixellated art style that complements its easygoing nature. Stardew is a game you can get lost in with ease, featuring an incredibly satisfying gameplay loop; It's a charmingly simple sim, one that encourages players to make their own way and their own choices, with a multitude of different ways to spend each in-game day. You're encouraged to play the game at your own pace, experiencing its range of content as it comes, rather than being railroaded into any one path for progression. It's a game that encourages exploration, diversity, and freedom, one that never really ends. Stardew made waves when it first came out for being such an open-ended, friendly experience, and it has since gone on to be heavily expanded upon by its developer, seeing releases on even more platforms and accruing even more fans along the way. It's a game that's easy to love and hard to put down, a comfort food game that makes you want to revisit it time and again.

-Titanfall 2     Where the original Titanfall was an excellent Xbox exclusive, Titanfall 2 bloomed the franchise into a multiplatform powerhouse. While it kept the excellent multiplayer modes, Titanfall 2's biggest change was the inclusion of a proper single-player story, and it's this inclusion that sees Titanfall 2 earn a place on my list. Titanfall 2's campaign is short, but sweet, seeing players take on the role of Jack Cooper, a pilot in training under the mentorship of an experienced soldier named Lastimosa. Unfortunately, on their first field mission, Lastimosa is killed, forcing Jack to embrace his future role as Pilot in an effort to survive and keep Lastimosa's experimental Titan out of enemy hands. This Titan, given the codename BT, is unique among Titans in that it can freely equip the various titan weapons and abilities, while simultaneously having an expanded AI that allows it to perform better in combat than its contemporaries. Together, Jack and BT make their way through the Frontier, coming into conflict with the varied enemy forces that they were originally sent in to stop. The campaign is brief, but what it lacks in lengths it makes up for in entertainment; the banter between Jack and BT makes for some great dialogue, and the campaign is perfectly built around the shooting and movement tech that made the first Titanfall so distinct, creating a series of levels that are just as built around gunfights as they are around precise first-person platforming. The game's environments are also beautiful to look at, varying from gritty industrial complexes to lush jungle environments that are as nice to look at as they are to maneuver through. Accompanying the stellar story mode is the recurring suite of multiplayer offerings, all of which have been upgraded and improved upon to complement the innovations of the sequel. Where Titanfall was good, Titanfall 2 is great, and it's a continual shame the series hasn't been given more time to shine.

-The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Special Edition     This is another game that I've previously covered on my blog, and it's also another technicality. See, Skyrim technically released back in 2011 but saw so many re-releases in the years afterward that at this point the only device that doesn't natively play it are phones. With this particular re-release, Bethesda sought to give console players the same quality of life changes that PC players had been seeing for years, namely graphical improvements, stability patches, and most importantly, player-created content. Skyrim had developed a bustling and dedicated community of creators in its years since release, all of whom had made countless mods for the game that ranged anywhere from simple tweaks to full-on expansion sized stories, and the special edition release marked the first time Xbox and Playstation fans could get their hands on this library of unique content. It created a situation where the already hefty game could be made all the more robust with fan contributions. Don't like the music? Download one of the unique music packs somebody put together. Want any number of pop culture-inspired items? Looking for some new quests to spice up this five-year-old game? It's all there and more.

-Watch Dogs 2     You might be wondering why I've put Watch Dogs 2 on this list while its predecessor is nowhere to be found. While the first Watch Dogs was a middling revenge story that happened to incorporate some neat hacking based features, Watch Dogs 2 is where the franchise really found itself. It follows the story of one Marcus Holloway, a bright and witty young man who's been framed for a crime he didn't commit by a faulty surveillance network that monitors the city of Los Angeles in a pseudo-dystopic future not so removed from our own. So Marcus does what he does best, hacks into the network and removes himself from it entirely, embarking on a campaign to take the whole system down with the help of white hat hacker collective Deadsec. What sets this game apart from its predecessor is the charisma of its cast and the far more varied ways in which you can use the game's technology to your advantage. Hijack cameras, remote control vehicles, manipulate streetlights, the world of Watch Dogs 2 is yours to manipulate all at the press of a button. And if hacking doesn't get you where you need to be, Marcus has some skills of his own; he's particularly skilled at parkour and quite handy at non-lethally dispatching foes with a weapon of his own design, a billiard ball attached to a bungee cord. And if playing non-lethally isn't your thing, you can also accumulate quite the arsenal of homemade weaponry, all 3D printed from the base of your hacker collective. Watch Dogs 2 is a game about a group of people trying to take down a corrupt system using whatever means they can. It's a witty, satirical, but surprisingly grounded story told across a beautiful open-world recreation of Los Angeles, one that drew me in far more than its predecessor ever managed to do.

2017

    2017 might not have had the same pedigree of games as its predecessor, but it did see the belated release of the latest current-gen console; The Nintendo Switch. A revolutionary step up from the Wii and Wii U, The Switch took the gaming world by storm thanks to its ability to seamlessly transition from a home console playing on your TV to a handheld console able to go with you anywhere. The Switch remains a staple of the console market to this day, easily standing tall next to the Playstation and Xbox consoles both new and old. Aside from the Switch, there was still a healthy collection of games for people to enjoy, some of which will be highlighted below.

-Night in the Woods     Night in the Woods marks yet another game I've personally reviewed, and also stands proud as one of my absolute favorites of this generation. A humble offering from indie studio Infinite Fall, it was a gorgeously animated sidescroller of an adventure game that followed college dropout Mae Borowski as she returns to her small home town of Possum Springs to rekindle old friendships and reconnect with her family. Despite its anthropomorphic cast, it tells a genuinely human story, one that perfectly reflected what it feels like to revisit old haunts; how things can be so familiar yet change so much, seamlessly blending an emotionally charged narrative with a dark, suspenseful hometown mystery. Night in the Woods remains an absolutely incredible game to experience, showcasing themes like mental illness, sexuality, and identity through the lens of youthful wit and clever, dry sarcasm. I haven't played many truly perfect games, but Night in the Woods came damned close to being one.

-Kingdom Hearts 1.5/2.5     Ah yes, another collection of re-releases. Kingdom Hearts technically started back on the PS2, with the release of Kingdom Hearts 1. From there it blossomed into an incredibly diverse and lengthy franchise that saw releases on consoles and handhelds alike, from the PS2 to the Gameboy Advance. What these re-releases did was bundle all of the Kingdom Hearts games into one complete package, and tossed them all onto the PlayStation 4. It created a cohesive collection for this storied saga and presented it all in an easy to follow order that anyone could pick up and work through. Both games also offered the previously exclusive Final Mix content to the west for the first time, expanding on the already hefty games with more difficulty options, more enemies, more story content, and more challenges to keep the fun going and going. But what is Kingdom Hearts, I hear some people ask. Kingdom hearts is a series of action RPGs that follow the adventures of heroes known as Keyblade Wielders as they fight against the forces of darkness that threaten the worlds beyond. They play great, feature an especially enjoyable cast of characters, and tells a heartwarming story of good and evil. A joint project between Square Enix and Disney, Kingdom Hearts features an abundance of Disney characters and worlds, crossing over with various Square Enix properties in this epic struggle against light and dark. That's the easiest summary of the story by far, as delving any deeper would almost certainly confuse the casual reader, but let me say this; The Kingdom Hearts games are fantastic, well worth the time, and with these remastered collections, more approachable than ever.

-Nier Automata     Nier Automata is a tough game to talk about in-depth, on account of just how easy it is to spoil for people who haven't experienced it. But it was also one of my favorite games of 2017, so I'll do my best to give it its due. Nier Automata is somewhat of a hybrid game; it blends so many genres together but somehow manages to do each one of them justice. Equal parts open world, action RPG, Bullet Hell, and more, Nier Automata takes place in the far, far future, in the ruins of earth. Humanity has long since abandoned the planet and sought shelter on the moon, entrusting a group of humanoid androids to defend the planet from an encroaching alien threat. The story follows several of these androids; 2B, 9S, and A2, as they wander the ruins of humanity and fight back against the robot foes that the aliens use as soldiers. It tells an amazing story that all but demands subsequent replays to get the full breadth of its narrative weight across, with each subsequent playthrough seen through the eyes of one of the other characters. Equal parts sci-fi story and humanist breakdown, Nier Automata is a deconstructive, philosophical pondering wrapped in the guise of an anime action game. That's not to say it doesn't wear the disguise well; Nier Automata plays like a dream, with stylish combat and an accompanying score that makes for easy listening both in and out of the game. It's another must-play, especially with the remake/remaster of its predecessor soon to release in 2021.

-Persona 5/Persona 5 Royal     Persona 5 is an absolute joy of an RPG. It's slick, stylish, has a superb soundtrack, and tells a top tier story to boot. You take the role of a down-and-out high school kid who's been forced to transfer from his hometown in the countryside to Tokyo, thanks to a bogus police incident. Labeled a criminal and looked down on by the adults of his new school, the protagonist goes about bettering himself, raising his grades, and making the most of his new life in a new city. He forms bonds and relationships with the people around him, making fast friends with many of his classmates and even some chill adults along the way. Oh, he can also use a supernatural phone app to dive into the corrupted hearts of society, utilizing a special power to battle the evils that lie within and force them to change their ways and confess their deeds. Herein lies the dichotomy of the Persona 5; Much like the other Persona games that preceded it, the story it tells is a hybrid of supernatural mystery and coming of age drama, blending mundane highschool life with a fantasy adventure. It is equal parts life simulator and stylish role-playing game, as you and your friends do their best to repair a broken system using the fantastical powers they've been imbued with. These powers are the titular Persona, powerful creatures that embody the sides of ourselves we keep hidden behind the masks of society. These personas allow one to do battle with the shadows that lurk within these corrupted hearts, creatures that take on myriad forms inspired by religion and myth. Wielding this power, they embark on a journey of social reform, fighting a revolving door of less than scrupulous individuals that all culminating in a battle to change society itself. In spite of its overtly fantastical elements, the story it tells is decidedly grounded and surprisingly relatable; at its core, Persona 5 is about a collective of disenfranchised individuals trying their best to make it through life and change things for the better, a story that was and remains especially poignant and a welcomed escapist fantasy to fall into time and again.

-Slime Rancher     Slime Rancher is an adorable simulator game and one I've praised before on my blog. It blends first-person shooter elements with the farming simulator genre, tasking players to manage and explore a planet on the fringes of space that's almost entirely populated by a race of creatures known as Slime. Slimes come in a varied selection of types and sizes, but all of them have one universal similarity; they all produce a resource known as a Plort that you can trade to an intergalactic trade center for currency, which in turn allows you to upgrade your slime farm and expand into new territories. The gameplay loop is nothing but fun, with each new expansion bringing in new species of slime that you can wrangle and combine to make hybrids that in turn create more valuable plorts. As you make your way through the planet, you start uncovering logs left behind by your farm's prior owner, that weave a narrative of love and loss, a story that drives you forward in your quest if only to see how it concludes. You're not alone in this quest, though, as you have your slimes for company as well as several long-distance conversations via the computer in your home between friends and fellow farmers alike. Subsequent game updates have only expanded upon the experience, seeing new opportunities for trade, daily activities, and more, making an already invigorating and enjoyable game all the more so.

-Destiny 2     It's no secret that Destiny 2 had a complicated launch window. Many fans felt that Destiny 2 left too much of what made its predecessor great on the cutting room floor, electing instead to reset the player base back to zero and tell a brand new story. While I missed some of what Destiny 2 left behind, I was still somebody who found a lot of joy in Destiny 2, as evidenced by the thousand-plus hour count it tells me I've poured into it since its 2017 release. The game has also seen countless improvements and additions in the years since its release, adopting a new seasonal model and even going free to play after a point. Most recently, Destiny 2 saw the release of Beyond Light, the first in a new trilogy of expansions that hopes to continue the game forward over the next few years. So, while it might have had a rough start, it still remains destiny at its core, making it one of the best shooters on the market, coupled with a satisfying loot hunt and a rewarding structure that continues to keep its fans coming back for more. That alone lands it in my list of games for 2017, and the generation as a whole.

-The Sims 4    Though this game technically saw the light of day back in 2014, I didn't end up playing it until its console release here in 2017. Thus, I place it here. There isn't a lot of complication with Sims 4. If you're at all familiar with its predecessors, you know exactly what to expect. An engaging simulator game, in which you craft an individual or family and set them on the path of life, influencing them as they go or leaving them to their own fates so as to see what happens. You tailor their looks, personality, aesthetic...it's a premier example of micromanagement as entertainment. This installment shirked some of the advancements made by its predecessor but still manages to be a robust and enjoyable game all on its own, made all the better by continued additional content releases in the years since its premiere. It's a game that keeps on giving and seems primed to continue doing so for some time yet.

2018

    2018 saw the release of some genuinely top-shelf games, with the Switch continuing to establish itself against its contemporaries, while the Playstation continued to add excellent exclusives to its lineup.

-Far Cry 5     The Far Cry games have always been known for being competent shooters with large open worlds, and this one is no exception. Shirking the usual foreign locales, Far Cry 5 takes place a lot closer to home, seeing players cleaning up the rural backwoods of Montana, taking place in the fictional Hope County. In it, you play as a rookie cop sent in to apprehend an evangelical doomsday cultist; John Seed, The Father. This arrest quickly goes south, leaving you as the last lawman willing to stand up to the Seed family and free Hope County from their grasp. To do so, you systematically break the hold of his lieutenants, dismantling their bases of operations and taking down his associates in a slow climb to face him once more. Along the way you make friends and allies out of the locals, people with a similar drive to rise up and clean up their county. As far as the gameplay, Far Cry 5 is a mix of FPS and RPG elements, with a rudimentary character customization system and plenty of powerful guns to acquire. You level up and earn skills that augment your preferred style of play, be it stealthy or over the top, all in your pursuit of justice. Augmenting this quest is the world it takes place in, with players exploring lush forests, vibrant fields, and the general detritus of rural America. Hope county feels real, with looks to match, despite its farcical tone and over the top gameplay. All of this came together to make a Far Cry that felt fresh and fun, a genuine step forward for the franchise.

-God of War     Prior games in the God of War series were not known for subtlety, nuance, or humanity. Rather, they were violent hack and slash games that featured the titular God of War, Kratos, seeking and exacting bloody revenge on the greek pantheon for their slights against him and his family. They were by no means bad games, but they weren't what I would consider masterpieces either. Then, we were given God of War (2017). This soft reboot/Sequel for the franchise saw Kratos embarking on a distinctly more grounded story than its predecessors, navigating the perils of fatherhood while on a journey to deliver his late wife's ashes in the world of the Norse Pantheon. He is joined by his son, Atreus, a bright but rebellious young boy who seeks only to prove his worth to the gruff and distant Kratos. This more human story is accompanied by a more grounded approach to combat and gameplay; while it retains the emphasis on action, it feels more deliberate than prior entries, shifting the combat style from the hack and slash nature to a more measured approach, with players needing to conserve stamina and plan their attacks lest they get easily overwhelmed. The game also incorporates a more open world structure than its predecessors, seeing Kratos and his son freely traversing their environment, unlocking shortcuts, and finding means to double back on past areas in a level progression that feels more like a Souls game than the God of Wars of old. All of this came together to make a game that felt genuinely innovative, a fresh new direction for a pre-established franchise that was as welcoming to newcomers as it was to prior fans.

-Donut County     Donut County is a silly, short indie puzzle game in which you play as a mischievous raccoon delivering "donuts" to the unsuspecting populous around him. These donuts are, in fact, large sinkholes that expand as they eat different objects, eventually growing to swallow the entirety of the lot they were sent to. The core gameplay lies in this concept, with you controlling the various sinkholes from level to level, figuring out the order in which to consume the various objects on each map in order to grow in size. As the game progresses you unlock various upgrades to these sinkholes, like the ability to spit things out of them, adding new layers to the simple puzzles the game encapsulates. It isn't a terribly long game, as already said, only taking an hour or two to finish, but it cemented itself as a charming indie game amidst a sea of big-name titles.

-Marvel's Spider-Man     Developed by Insomniac, previously mentioned in the Sunset Overdrive excerpt, Marvel's Spider-Man is a rare example of a genuinely amazing superhero game. In it, players take on the role of Peter Parker, a Spider-Man who has already established himself as the hero we know and love, but one that still has room to grow and learn. What starts off as a triumphant takedown of one Wilson Fisk, the Kingpin, soon blossoms into a complicated web that involves a shady group known as the Demons that Spider-Man must stop from wreaking havoc on the city. But the game isn't just about the Heroics of Spider-Man; The Game showcases the best aspects of Peter's character, splitting the game equally between his time as Spider-Man and his normal life as Peter Parker, a scientist working under the apprenticeship of one Otto Octavius, while simultaneously working with his Aunt May at the local Homeless Shelter and trying to rekindle his forlorn relationship with Mary Jane. All of this unfurls simultaneously, weaving a web that melds incredible movement with fast and stylish combat, stellar characters, and a heartwarming tale, cementing itself not only as a great game but also as one of the best Spider-Man stories out there.

-The Missing: JJ Macfield and the Island of Memories     The Missing is a heartfelt, down to earth story told through the lens of a grisly but goofy premise. In it, you play as the titular JJ Macfield, a young girl who goes on a trip with her close friend Emily to a remote island off the coast of Maine. What is supposed to be a fun excursion takes a turn for the worse, as Emily goes missing, leaving JJ to track her down. Unfortunately, this quest quickly leads JJ to her death...but not for long. Resurrected by a bolt of lightning, JJ gains the ability to remove various parts of her body, as the island quickly goes from an idyllic wonderland to a psychedelic nightmare. Undeterred, JJ uses her newfound ability to traverse the island, ever searching for her lost friend. The Missing might sound like a horror game on paper, but it uses these macabre themes to tell a distinctly grounded story about dealing with personal identity and navigating a hostile and unfamiliar world, culminating in a heartbreakingly bittersweet twist that I won't spoil here. This is all to say; the Missing is an excellent game. It's a joy to play, despite its harrowing content, and it manages to convey its themes in a way that feels genuine and meaningful, telling a story that's still relevant to this day.

-Super Smash Brothers Ultimate     Smash games have always been good, and Ultimate more than earns its moniker. This is the Ultimate Smash game; iterating on its predecessors without changing anything for the worst, Ultimate is an unabashed love letter to the series as a whole, incorporating every character and every map from every prior game all in one upgraded package. If you don't know what Smash is, let me explain; Nintendo is known for a lot of fantastic first-party titles, from Mario to Kirby to Metroid, and countless others. Smash takes all of these well-loved characters, throws them in an arena, and has them fight for supremacy. Debuting on the Nintendo 64, Smash has seen one major game release for every Nintendo console since, culminating in Smash Ultimate on the Nintendo Switch. As earlier stated, it features an absolutely enormous roster of playable characters, featuring every fighter from the previous games and several new additions for good measure. This roster was only further expanded with the release of the fighter passes, seeing an additional eleven fighters across the two that have thus far been released, ranging from surprise hits like Persona 5's Joker to fan favorites like Banjo and Kazooie. While not featuring a traditional story mode, Ultimate makes good use of its characters in a suite of different game modes that can be played both alone or with friends, online or locally. It's a fantastic party game and an equally praiseworthy fighter, rewarding skilled play but catering to casual players and newcomers alike.

2019

    2019 marked the slowdown for the current generation, shadowed by the whispers of a new age of consoles. This made for a simple year for games, but one no less stacked with noteworthy games and worthwhile experiences.

-Kingdom Hearts 3     After years of waiting, 2019 finally saw the release of Kingdom Hearts 3. The wait might have been long, but the game delivered on the hype, simultaneously closing out the narrative arc that had begun so long ago with Kingdom Hearts 1 and beginning a new chapter for fans to look forward to. In service of this goal, Kingdom Hearts 3 wrapped up the majority of dangling storylines from all the previous games, while still leaving a handful of mysteries to chase into the future of the franchise. It featured a new suite of Disney worlds to explore, and incorporated Pixar properties for the first time in franchise history. The new content accompanied refined and polished gameplay mechanics and a complete visual overhaul, while still retaining the heart and soul that defined the games thus far. It all came together well enough but was later expanded upon through the release of Re: Mind, the game's beefy expansion that rebalanced gameplay and added in hours of new story content to better cap off the story. All told, Kingdom Hearts 3 was another great game, building on a legacy that seems like it will continue well into the future.

-Devil May Cry 5     For those not in the know, Devil May Cry is a series of games that follow the life of Dante, a half-demon sword for hire as he does his best to kill monsters and eat pizza. It's a franchise known for skillful, precise, stylish combat mixed with goofy, over the top stories, usually involving Dante and his associates contending with the fallout of his family, the demon king Sparda and his brother Vergil. While not a flawless franchise, it saw several excellent releases over the years, but then went depressingly dormant. Devil May Cry 5 was the perpetual waiting game, but 2019 saw it finally come out, accompanied by mass acclaim and praise. it really seemed like all the years of waiting were well rewarded. DMCV features three playable characters; Nero, a fellow demon hunter first introduced in Devil May Cry 4, Dante, the series' staple protagonist, and lastly the mysterious V, a newly introduced character for this game. Together the three were tasked with working together to take down the demonic Qliphoth and its master, Urizen, an immensely powerful demon lord. The game looks gorgeous, marking the first time the games have looked truly next-gen. Accompanying this boost in visual fidelity is the franchise's staple; combat was finely tuned to be more stylish than ever, with each character having a variety of tricks at their disposal to dispatch the demon hoard that stood between them and Urizen. Devil May Cry was back, and it was better than ever.

-Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night     Bloodstained is the spiritual successor to the Castlevania series, helmed by its most prominent contributor Koji Igarashi. Starting its life as nothing more than a simple Kickstarter, it blew through its funding goal and a few years later saw its release on the current generation of consoles.  It's not a particularly complicated game, but it is particularly fun, with it adapting many of the staples that made Castlevania so great. As a spiritual successor to Castlevania, the games play very similarly; both are side scrolling hack and slash games that take place in fantastical gothic castles, and both see protagonists with varied combat and magical aptitude on their quest to take down the castle's owner. In the case of Castlevania, that owner is Dracula, but in the case of Bloodstained, players are tasked with defeating Gebel, an alchemically modified human known as a Shardbinder. You play as another one of these Shardbinders, Miriam. Miriam and Gebel are the lone survivors of an alchemical experiment that gave them the ability to wield a power called shards, crystalline embodiments of demonic essence. The narrative is simple, but the gameplay is where it shines; as players progress through Gebel's castle, you can accumulate more and more shards, all of which give Miriam access to new abilities, abilities that go on to aid her in her continued exploration. This creates a very satisfying loop; explore the castle, collect shards, unlock more of the castle to explore. Augmenting her shards are a suite of craftable and upgradeable weaponry, a selection of melee and firearms that allows players to diversify their preferred playstyle and experiment with what works best in any given situation. Subsequent content additions have added even more to the game, in the form of new modes, difficulties, and playable characters, adding to the replayability and longevity of what was already an excellent experience. Despite starting from simple roots, Bloodstained rose up and became something all on its own, paying homage to its inspirations while cementing a name for itself as a new staple of the genre.

-Catherine Full Body     While originally releasing in 2011, 2019 saw an expanded re-release complete with new characters, new stages, and hours of extra story content. At its core, Catherine and its Full Body re-release are unique gems in the gaming world. One part puzzle game, one part dating simulator, it blends the complicated world of relationships with macabre block puzzles, all the while weaving a beautiful tapestry about one man's quest for love. In it, you take the role of Vincent Brooks, an unambitious 30-something simply going through the motions of life. He has a steady relationship and a stable job, a group of colorful and enthusiastic friends, but it's clear from the start just how much he's stagnated. His current girlfriend, Katherine, is starting to ask the big questions; marriage, children, their future. Unable to parse these ideas, he loses himself in his time at the local bar with his pals, shooting the shit and getting sloshed. That is, until, a new flame suddenly appears; the seductive temptress Catherine. One thing leads to another, and it comes to pass that they spend the night together...maybe. This is where the game's narrative really kicks off, with Vincent having to navigate the day to day, attempting to reconcile his long-time love with his possible new fling. This story is juxtaposed against the game's core gameplay loop, which sees Vincent forced to climb the deadly tower of babel each night in his dreams. To do this, players must stack blocks and avoid the perils and traps that each stage presents, making a mad dash to the top of the tower before the bottom collapses in on itself and Vincent plummets to his doom. For you see, this isn't an ordinary dream; if you die on the tower, you die in real life, making this desperate ascent a race for his very life. Each stage of the tower represents the game's various core themes, and each gets more and more complicated as the game progresses. In the interim of these climbs, players are set about answering multiple-choice inquiries that influence the direction of Vincent's relationships, with each answer adjusting a conspicuous morality meter that eventually comes to determine which of the 8 endings you could attain. With Full Body, this number was increased to 13, to adjust for the inclusion of a new paramour; Rin, a mysterious piano player that sets up shop in Vincent's favorite bar. Both Catherine and its Full Body re-release are excellent games, but I was especially smitten with the layers of extra content and story that Full Body brought to the table, additions that made Full Body one of my favorite games of 2019.

-Untitled Goose Game     Untitled goose game is a simple premise on paper; players take on the role of an ornery, mischievous goose as it wreaks havoc through a small English town. Equal parts puzzle and stealth game, the goose has a laundry list of tasks it seeks to complete, from stealing hats off people's heads to infiltrating the local pub. It's not a long game by any means, but it has a ton of replayability in the form of additional tasks and challenges that only present themselves after your first playthrough. These range from time-based completions to additional bouts of mischief and all of them are incredibly satisfying to chase down. Untitled Goose Game has a quaint, painterly art style that compliments the charming simplicity of the game's premise, accompanied by a dynamic, classically-toned score that rises and falls in prominence as you go about your goosely business. All said Untitled Goose Game is a genuine treat, a brief but whimsical game that's just about having fun and goofing around.

2020

    It's no secret that 2020 has been a rough year for a lot of folks. Between a pandemic, political controversy, and general drudgery, it's a year that feels like it can't end soon enough. But in spite of it all, 2020 was also a fantastic year for games. Serving as the last hurrah for the Xbox One and Playstation 4, we saw the release of some truly excellent stories that kept players going through the long months of an otherwise mediocre year.

-Animal Crossing: New Horizons     Releasing right at the start of widespread quarantine, New Horizons supplied people with something they couldn't easily do in their own lives; escape. Animal Crossing New Horizons is the perfect escapist fantasy for the year it released in, seeing players partaking in an island getaway in the hopes of colonizing and forming an idyllic town on an untamed paradise.  At their core, the animal crossing games are simple simulators. You create your character by selecting a few presets; hair, eyes, skin color, and then you're let free to explore your new locale. With this latest release, that locale is the aforementioned island, a small paradise in the sea dotted by trees and rivers, accented by flowers and weeds. You start your life on this new Island with a handful of other residents; the Nook Family, the proprietors of this island venture, and two random villagers who are looking to make a life on this island the same as you. Things start small, with everyone working together to set up tents and create a bonfire and find some food for a welcome party. Afterward, the game synchronizes itself to your console's date and time and sets you off on your way. Unlike other simulators on this list, Animal Crossing is a unique breed, running concurrently to the real world, continuously progressing in real-time. Flowers grow, trees produce fruit, and each day is a new adventure. It follows the general turn of the seasons for your respective hemisphere, celebrating holidays and alternating available activities with each passing day. As for what you can do yourself, the opportunities are legion; you can catch bugs, go fishing, search for fossils, chat up your villagers, visit other islands, and much more. As you progress, more ventures open their doors to you; catch enough bugs and fish, and you can elect to have a museum built to showcase your finds. Collect enough resources, and you can build new furniture and create plots of land that encourage more villagers to come and move to your island. Everything you do is in service of continued growth, but also serves just as simple fun, a charming, easygoing distraction from the concerns of the day-to-day.

-Final Fantasy VII Remake     The Final Fantasy franchise is a long and storied one, replete with highs and lows. One such high was 1997's Final Fantasy 7, a game that quickly cemented itself as a fan favorite and an absolute classic. Now, in 2020, FF7 is back...sort of. See, FF7 Remake is the first in a line of games that will eventually go on to tell the entirety of the original FF7's story, which means that this release is only the first portion of a much larger narrative. Adapting what was originally the first few hours of the original game, FF7 Remake expands upon the opening section of its predecessor, simultaneously remaking the old content for modern audiences and adding in new aspects for old fans. FF7 Remake improves upon the original in practically every way, serving as a genuine remake that still manages to retain what made that original game so memorable and important to fans. The game might be new, but the heart is the same; FF7 Remake follows the story of Cloud Strife, an ex SOLDIER turned mercenary hired by an eclectic group known as Avalanche to dismantle a local power plant that's poisoning the planet. What starts as a well-intentioned but extreme case of eco-terrorism quickly explodes (pun intended) into a much larger story that sees Cloud and Avalanche bringing the fight straight to the corrupt Shinra Corporation and beyond, culminating in a battle against fate itself. Because this remake only covers a portion of what will go on to be a much larger narrative, it only scratches the surface of what makes the original FF7 so great, but it does so with gusto; the game plays and looks better than ever, bringing with it a heartfelt and compelling narrative that keeps you hooked the whole way through.

-Minecraft Dungeons     Minecraft Dungeons takes the charming, voxel visuals and world of Minecraft and melds them seamlessly with a charming, easygoing dungeon crawler that's approachable for casual and experienced gamers alike. Where Minecraft is an open-ended sandbox game about building and exploring a blocky world, Minecraft Dungeons sees a collective of heroes on a quest to defeat the evil Illager, a powerful sorcerer whose armies have been sweeping the land leaving destruction in their wake. It's not a very complicated story about good and evil, but it doesn't have to be; Minecraft Dungeons prioritizes it's simple and easy to master gameplay first and foremost. You collect loot, battle recognizable Minecraft enemies, and progress through a litany of stages on your way to fight the big bad. It's not very long but encourages you to play it time and again, collecting better gear and trying your hand at the many difficulty levels for additional challenges. It's not the best looking or the best playing game that released this year, but it had heart and made for a short and entertaining way to pass the time.

-Ghost of Tsushima    Ghost of Tsushima isn't a game to scoff at. One of the best looking games of the generation, this PS4 exclusive is one part historical timepiece, one part action-adventure, and one part stealth game. It follows the story of Jin Sakai, a samurai and one of the last survivors of the Mongol invasion of his home island of Tsushima, Japan. Left to die, he is found and nursed back to health by a wayward thief who teaches Jin the art of stealth and subterfuge, seeing him off on his quest for bloody revenge on the Mongol invaders that have encroached upon his homeland. To do this, he must first build up a fighting force of equal minded, skilled warriors, all while dismantling the various camps and operations the Mongols have set up in the absence of the defeated Samurai army. Jin can approach this in one of two ways; relying on his prowess as a formidable Samurai, Jin can challenge the many enemies in the game to flashy yet precise sword combat, or he can utilize the recently learned skills of stealth, infiltrating their encampments and silently picking the Mongols off one by one. There's no wrong answer to how you choose to play, although it takes some time for Jin to accept his new roles as both Samurai and assassin. Both methods of play feel equally as stellar, too; Combat in this game is incredibly polished, finely tuned swordplay that focuses on timing and well-planned strikes to dispatch your foes with ease, while the stealth feels tense and requires a distinctly tactical approach, planning your routes and cleverly dispatching foes so as to not raise suspicion. But the game isn't just about taking out your enemies. Ghost of Tsushima boasts one of the most beautiful open worlds I've ever experienced, a vibrant and gorgeous landscape dotted with myriad activities and side quests for you to explore and enjoy. One moment, you could be doing battle with a wayward group of Mongols or bandits, while the next could see you tracking a friendly fox to a shrine, composing a haiku in the shadow of a large tree, or recuperating your strength at a small hot spring while you ruminate on your adventures thus far. Ghost of Tsushima is an incredibly varied game, alternating between intense highs and calming lows, all coming together to become one of the best games of the last generation.

-Spiritfarer     While I have not finished this game, it more than deserves recognition on this list. In it, you play as Stella, a young girl who takes over as the ferryman for the River Styx once Charon retires to the afterlife, tasked with providing for the wayward souls who live on the river as you ferry them to their final rest. To do this, Stella must collect various resources and build up her ship, outfitting it with living spaces and various commodities tailored to her current passengers. These aforementioned passengers will, in turn, begin to open up to Stella, tasking her with making certain foods or visiting different locales, all in an effort to give these wayward souls a proper farewell on their trip to the afterlife. Spiritfarer is a simple simulator game about resource management and exploration that showcases a lovely, genuinely heartfelt story about love and loss, one that will put a smile on your face as easily as it brings a tear to your eye.

     And with that, I close out this hefty list, closing out the last generation. This compendium hardly scratches the surface of the last seven years' library, but hopefully, I did a good enough job remembering some of the games that made this last generation so great. There are a lot of games that I've still yet to play, resting in wait in my backlog for the time they get pulled out and given their due, but for now, this concludes my walk down memory lane. The last generation saw some excellent additions to the vast and ever-expanding library of video game history. Here's hoping the next several years can say the same. The start of the new consoles is off to a very promising start; in the last month or so alone we've seen excellent releases from both indie and big-name developers, fresh takes on old franchises, and new IPs alike. So, here's to the Last Generation, here's to the Next Generation, and here's to gaming overall; may it continue to thrive for years to come.

[narcissasdaffodil]

I’ve been tagged in a lot of these, I don’t usually write them due to fear of missing people. I do have a tendency to ramble, but if you’re following me, you probably know that already. This is going to get long, warning in advance here. These paragraphs will definitely vary in length, it depends on how much I have to say about people. Side note: I’m working on leaving more comments on people’s work in general and getting over my comment anxiety. I try to spread love via asks to people, everyone in this fandom has so many things which makes them individual and a wonderful part of this fandom. In addition, these might get super lovey dovey, but that’s just me in a nutshell here.

In no particular order, without further ado:

@kiki-the-creator is a very talented writer. I especially love their Marisol related fic, headcanon related posts, both their Lottie fics and their Priya fic. They are a very kind person, and have showed love and appreciation for my fics in general. I was inspired to write by multiple people and KC was definitely one of those people. Marisol is my favourite character and LI, and they definitely do her justice in their fics. I regularly reread their Marisol oneshots in particular along with a lot of their fics, I don’t reread much fic in general. I love the way they write, they’re one of my favourite writers.

@lucas-koh is really talented. Whiskey on Your Lips is one of my favourite fics, (I have a lot of favourites) and she’s really kind. She’s an amazing beta reader and really great with giving me honest opinions on my content in general. I definitely see her as a friend. Stitches is also pretty awesome, I still need to catch up when I get the chance!

@ariendiel is amazing. Her Noah fics were part of the reason I ended up converted to a Noah stan, and both Rosehill House and The Triumph of Time are amazing,and some of my favourite Noah fics. Also she writes amazing short stories. Her content in general is wonderful, the analysis she did with @garyandhisnan about Noah stands out in particular. Being able to explore possible reasons for Noah’s behaviour in LITG was definitely interesting to me, especially as someone who relates to Noah. Also she’s been very supportive in terms of my fics and oneshots.

@codename-mango is a really talented artist, and I love their art. I also regularly see them in my notifications and they’re really active in general. Their LITG characters as Pokémon series was so original and definitely interested me, being a Pokémon fan myself.

@nerdferatum is another talented artist and I really love her art. She’s also very supportive and has an amazing blog. I love her LITG related drawings and her art in general.

@bellarxse is an amazing writer. The Motion of Heavenly Bodies is my favourite S3 related fic and I really love her writing. She writes a lot of Marisol related content and I love the stuff she writes for Marisol and Maeve. She’s also really supportive too, she’s been really helpful in terms of fic help.

@voile-de-lune has made some wonderful moodboards recently, which I really love. They’re pretty new, but super talented.

@garyandhisnan has a lot of headcanons and memes which are amazing. I love to see their opinions on things, I love their blog.

@cloveroctobers writes detailed headcanon lists with gorgeous moodboards to go with them. They’re really interesting to read and are super in depth.

@ravenadottir is a really talented writer. Their Priya and Lottie fics are some of my favourites for f/f. They also have excellent headcanons and their fics are so great. They’re also really kind, and their fics are part of the reason I was inspired to start writing. They were one of the first people I talked to about LCBC, and one of my first friends in the fandom.

@mrsgaryrennell is an amazing writer and part of the Blue and Hazel duo. Blue and Hazel is my favourite Gary related fic. It’s also nice to see some Gary love, she has really great opinions.

@kingkassam has amazing moodboards and social media AUs and is super original. They were one of the first people I showed LCBC to. We don’t talk as much anymore, but I love the content they create. They’re an iconic part of the fandom and really amazing.

@americangrunge is really amazing. Nothing Gold Can Stay is amazing, I regularly reread it. It’s one of my favourite oneshots and it’s so cathartic to see Bobby actually getting some of the blame for Operation Nope. Things Like Chemistry is also amazing, I love Marzipan! I love AU fics, and that one is also one of my faves. She’s also super cool in general.

@daisybarks is so kind. I love her fic Coming Home so much, it literally makes my Sundays great. She’s really amazing and has written wonderful headcanons for Marisol and Priya.

@another-lottie-simp is amazing and super supportive and creates a lot of Lottie content. As a fellow Lottie fan, it’s great to see her getting some love. Love the islanders in different seasons series.

@crvsh-culture the headcanons and oneshots are really great. I love the Lucas and Marisol content in particular.

@bubblybabynailpolish is super funny and really supportive. Her blog is amazing and one of my favourites. I love her edits, headcanons and her writing. Her Marisol fics are awesome, and she’s part of the reason I’ve been converted into a Noah stan. I love her writing in general, it really draws my attention. She’s also amazing for putting up with my ramblings and super weird questions. She’s also been so helpful regarding fic and edit opinions.

@venueska has amazing edits and fic. One of my favourites of hers is her Hannah/Lottie oneshot and her Blake oneshot, but it’s so difficult to pick favourites. I’ve reread her oneshots multiple times, I adore her writing style, and she’s really great in general.

@deuchess is an amazing artist who has a lot of gorgeous art. She also has a lot of amazing headcanons and is really great.

@ajs-wife has been super supportive regarding LCBC and my writing in general. They’re awesome and give me really detailed and helpful feedback. They’re also super supportive and really great to talk to. They’re an amazing friend and super kind.

@lilithlibrxa has amazing icons and I love her blog. I was always interested in astrology but her blog has helped me learn more. She’s super supportive and always reblogs my content.

@bobbyboops is amazing and super kind. She isn’t that active anymore but is someone I see as a friend. Her fic Cheers Darlin’ is amazing and I love her writing.

@amelia-w is really supportive and I love her moodboards.

@noahssidechick is super supportive and I love her Noah related content, along with headcanons and original content.

@mountainmanxoxo I love the Henrik content so much, you might’ve even converted me to a Henrik stan too, and I love a lot of characters. I love Powder Days so much. The chaoticness of the writers Discord in general always keeps me entertained for sure.

@longbobmckenzie I love Whiskey and Scotch so much! Yet another fic I’m yet to comment on, but I’ve been reading for quite a while. I love Josie as a MC.

@loveislandff As a fellow Slytherin myself, that’s super cool. Anyway, I love her art and My Everything. The originality of her fic in general is awesome, and I also love Face the Music, her musical AU. I’m a serious sucker for AUs, it’s interesting to see how people change things up.

@thenshe--appeared is really supportive and has a Marisol oneshot I’ve reread multiple times which is pretty great.

@mchamster has amazing memes and I love the TV/film match content, it’s super original and so cool.

@chichiguitarist123 is really supportive and has a really pretty blog. In particular, I love the Lottie/Hannah oneshot.

-Phew. Fingers crossed I haven’t forgotten anyone, that took a while to type out, but any excuse to send out my personal sunshiny energy to people I’ll definitely take, I love making people happy in general. There’s never such thing as too much kindness,anyway. If you somehow read all that, wow! I’m so impressed.

[popculturebuffet]

Carl Barks: Back to the Klondike Review: Blinkus of the Thinkus

Welcome one and all! If your a longtime reader of this blog, you know I love a good birthday celebration, having started with my first year reviewing animation last year with Donald’s and deciding to do Mickey and Scrooge’s later that year. But since I misseda  LOT of disney birthdays, and found several Non-disney birthdays and anniversaries I just gotta celebrate, this year i’m making it up and style and have a whole calender set up to tack these big milestones to the wall. So over the year expect tributes to the greats of disney, looney tunes, and mgm both behind and in front of the scenes, as well as to various shows I like. It’s gonna be a good time. 

So to start us off, it’s only fitting my first duck birthday since Scrooge, is for the love of his life and the stealer of his wallet, Glittering Goldie O Gilt! And I felt the best way to celebrate this storied day was to go back to her very FIRST apperance, one of earliest Scrooge headlined comics and a forever fan faviorite, Back to the Klondike!

But before we get into that, a little history on our gal in gold. Goldie was created for this story by comics god, the late great Carl Barks. Barks ended up just using her once, which is a shame but understandable as he probably only thought of her for that one adventure. While some characters like Gyro ended up being used again and again he probably just didn’t have any more stories in mind for her and figured Scrooge would return to her one day or he wouldn’t, but it wasn’t up to him.  Fans however loved the character, her feisty dynamic with scrooge, and the fact she brought out his good side, so naturally other writers would bring her back. In paticular Barks Superfan Don Rosa cemented her as the love of his life and wrote several more stories with her, fleshing out their backstory and saying that at least in his personal canon, Scrooge retired to spend his final years with her. And while his fanboy was clearly showing, and that can end nasitly just ask Dan “Hates Wally West because he’s not barry allen” DiDio, glad he’s gone.. Rosa’s work with goldie is an example of what happens when it’s done right. Less DiDio or Bendis and more Al Ewing. Using the continuity and what’s there to build on a character who deserved better.. to me that’s one of the BEST things you can do in comics and Rosa’s work is proof of that, ironing out the.. questionable elements we’ll get to and leaving the gold in.  So Rosa’s work combined with Ducktales not only adapting this story but bringing Goldie back a few times after that has elevated the character to a storied and permenat part of the duck canon, with her excellent heavily revamped Reboot counterpart currently carrying the torch with the help of the wonderful Allison Janey, perfect casting there. So with a legacy of gold behind her, let’s take a look at where it’s started and see if it still glitters after all these years under the cut. 

We begin our story at the Money Bin. Scrooge has been counting his money.. but has already forgotten, and forgot where he put the slip he wrote the number on and even forgets who Donald is when he shows up until Donald, while having some fun with him as Scrooge is trying to phone him while he’s right there. As for how he got into the most secure place in the bin.. the story actually answers that both worringly and hilariously: Scrooge left the door unlocked.  Naturally he’s not happy about this and Donald states the simple solution: Go see a doctor something’s CLEARLY very wrong, and the fact this could possibly be something like Demntia is VERY bad for someone who runs a zillion dollar company. Scrooge of course scoffs at “wasting his precious money” But Donald not only points out the obvious, that two bucks now saves him from having someone rob EVERYTHING, but Scrooge’s attempt to tie a string around his finger.. instead triggers a trap. And this entire sequence is decent with some good gags.. it’s just hampered a bit by making light of something that’s kinda bad. Not old people forgetting things.. but an old person with a disease as we find out forgetting things. Not helping is I laughed at first at the gags.. till I remembered a kind, old, friend of the family who had it and forgot me entirely by the end. So yeah, not the worst gags and the boxing glove and donald bits aren’t terrible, but it hurts now my brain’s made that connection. 

Our heroes head to the doctor’s office where Scrooge is diagnosed with... 

That.. might be the best name for a fictional illness i’ve ever heard in my life.. just inching out “Brain Cloud” and “Whale Cancer”. Still not the most SENSITIVE gag.. but it was the 50′s and mental issues weren’t given a lot of respect. IT’s why the above sequence and this whole part of the plot dosen’t scuttle things: It’s not the most repsectful.. but it wasn’t a time where these things were givne proper respect, treatment or knowledge, so barks wasn’t being an insentive douche on purpose, he just didn’t know. It dosen’t make it 100% okay btu it dosen’t wreck the story like say his blatant racist caractures in Voodoo Hoodoo. Seriously that’s.. not okay, and given he’s the kind of guy who researched locations he used, unlike with mental illness i expect BETTER of him than most men at the time. Still respect the guy, but it dosen’t mean i’ll overlook the fact he made some pretty bad mistakes. Same way while I love and miss Stan Lee I won’t ignore his blatant sexisim or racisim towards Chinese and Vitamise people. You CAN like a creator even if their work has some questionable and unjustifable elements, times do change and people do mamke mistakes when their young. It just depends on exactly WHAT they did or wrote that makes that distinctoin.  So on that bombshell, Scrooge is given medication after a needle gag. He needs to take his pills every 12 hours. It’s then he starts to remember something, mubling abotu skagway, goldie and dawson and telling Donald to get the boys, their going to Alaska! Once they get on the boat Scrooge explains: he remembered thanks to the medcince he left a stash of gold nuggets there from his prospecting days.. and part of why this story ended up being one of the single most important to Scrooge’s character. While it establishes some character traits, something I dind’t realize till wikipedia pointed it out, it also establishes Scrooge’s days as a prospector. While other things made him what he was and got him to that point as Don Rosa would later flesh out, it was his days in the yukon that, for better or worse defined who he is now and shaped him into the man he is today: Tough, fair, badass as all hell, mean as the devil and richer than god.  This time would be used a lot to set up stories, which made sense as it was the cleast and most agreed upon part of his past by all writers, and him at his abosltuely peak physically and mentally and the gold rush motif of the time perfectly fits someone defined by being rich. It’s also honestly nice that the Yukon is used, as Canada sometimes gets lost in the shuffle wise and hell until reading life and times I gneuinely had no idea what the Yukon was or where Calvin was headed when he and hobbes ran away from home. 

Scrooge also first mentions Goldie and while clearly remembering her fondly.. goes into a rant about her howing him a thousand dollars which has compounded to a billion the second the boys catch on he was sweet on her with Donald assuming he’s just not a good person. But this is really just setting up another vital part of his character and the other thing: his heart. Before he’d been show as a pretty heartless, greedy asshole. While the previous story, Only a Poor Old Man, had softened him up a bit, this is the first to show that beneath the pile of greed and mean lurks a decent human being. Just don’t tell anyone or he’ll throw his money at you.. then tell you to bring it back to him. It’s what makes the character who he is: he’s cruel, onrey and selfish.. but he CAN care when the chips are down and can do the right thing.. as we’ll see later. 

God I love the little poems Bill Watterson would put in the books. I didn’t as much as a kid, but god I do now. Anyways before our heroes can get going Yukon Ho, they stop in Skagway for suplies before heading out, Scrooge softing at taking a plane as “Soft” and him and the nephews hiking a week.. before running into the same flying service again, and finding out Scrooge OWNS it and forgot, because being scrooge he forgot to take his meds. Something I can relate to and i’m not proud of as staying on them is important to my well being. Seriously always take your meds. Unless their not working for you then talk with your doctor to get new ones. 

So we arrive in Dawson, as our heroes will have to walk rest of the day Scrooge takes the boys to the Black Jack Ballroom, which used to be a hot spot and was where he met Goldie for the first time. After another covering for his reminscing with greedy bollocks, he tells the boys the story.. one that was cut from the original printing despite introducing goldie and something the editors dind’t bother to tell carl till they berated him over trying to sneak a blackjack saloon and a kidnapping in there... and to them, or their long dead skeletons probably, I say. 

Yeah not wanting that in a kids story, while bollocks, tha’ts their perogative.. not having him send in replacement pages to keep story flow.. is dickish and underestimates kids intellegence as Don Rosa, while loving the story felt something was off till he saw the missing pages years later thanks to a fellow fan. So yeah kids, and adults, into the work noticed. Nice job. Again I can’t BLAME them for not wanting Scrooge to be a kidnapper as we’ll see and Don Rosa had to massage the hell out of that, but I can blame them for not caring enough to fix the obvious hole int he story. Though it’s now complete and unabriged and has been since the 80′s so there's that. 

So in a nutshell Scrooge came to town for a coffee, and while the bartender ignored him he didn’t once he plunked down his goose egg nugget, what made his fortune and one of Scrooge’s most treasured possessions. It’s here we meet Goldie. 

Yup.. just in case you thought her being a thief and greedy as hell was a new thing, and I kinda forgot how much, she dirves for the nugget, has Coffee with scrooge.. and drugs it, but makes the mistake of NOT clearing town, so Scrooge fights his way through the ballroom to her, gets the nugget back, forces her to sign the money for the iou he spent.. and then uh.. kindaps her to force her to work on his claim for 50 cents to try and teach her how to work honestly. 

Yeahhhh as I said Don Rosa tried his best to fix this , and did so in his final story, which we’ll get to some day, revealing Goldie had a shot gun on her the whole time and was going along entirely to find out where Scrooge’s claim was. That.. actually makes more sense with the character and is far less horrifying and Scrooge finds this out fairly quick, so them forming an attraction out of this becomes 100% more plausable. So yeah good on Don Rosa for fixing the implications here. I may give out on him from time to time.. but he is a genuinely talented writer and did what a good comic book writer in an established continuity should do: update elements so they aren’t so... eugguuhhh after they become horrifingly outdated. And look YES she did do horrible shit to him.. but you still can’t kidnap someone over that. just put her in jail. What was any of that. 

Anyways Scrooge HAS been taking his medicine, and proves it by showing the boys his pills and the next day they head to Scrooge’s old claim.. only someone’s living there and using it, and his old cabin.. and a shot gun. Yeah so they aren’t getting through in the day what about the night.. well they get attacked by Blackjack, who turns out to be owned by the claim jumper.. and is also you know a bear> And Donald left his back in new quackmore so their outmatched. 

So outgunned and outplanned, if not outnumbered or outmanned, our heroes make a camp fire and whiel Donald again suggests the obvious, call the police.. Scrooge can’t. He didn’t pay taxes on the claim so he’s technically jumping his own claim and techincally she has a right to it. So techncially.. Scrooge is the bad guy here as he left the money here, didn’t pay his taxes and didn’t ever come back for it. Still beats trying to terrify your nephews or deny orphans a train because your an asshole buffet. 

So the next morning Scrooge dosen’t want to rush her because “We Daren’t Get Rough with an old woman”. Two things.. 1... think before you put images in my head scrooge.. brrrrrrrrr. I mean Goldie. is not in the best shape in thie story as you’ll see and neither are you. In the reboot sure you two kept up a lot better but here.

And it’s not even an old people thing. Ann Margret was still fine so fine by the time of Grumpy Old Men, not to get creepy jut to prove i’m not being ageist. For a still alive example Keith David is also still a smokeshow at the tender age of 64. So yeah, not an age thing just not these paticular old people. 

But they need a plan so the boy suggest luring the bear into a trap with honey. Donald and Scrooge build the cage while the boys.. find the jar of honey. 

Regardless since the boys won’t do it for what Scrooge pays and neither will donald Scrooge goes to lure the bear with the honey. Once that’s done, and Scrooge is being covered with honey and licked by a bear...

So while he washes that off, the boys come up with another plan: they run around back while Donald makes noise to draw Goldie’s fire, with that being Dewey’s plan to meet her since he’s figured this out already. But Goldie has a backup plan and when she figures out they disabled Blackjack unleashes mosquitos... ugh. Having been stung like hornets about 50 times in animal crossing I feel you boys. So while Scrooge and Donald run off naked... troy if you will. 

Thank you Troy, the boys confront Goldie who reveals her identity... and that she’s broke, her dance hall having failed with the rush and this claim being all she has.. and her suspecting scrooge woudl gladly take it. The boys vow not to tell scrooge.. but he’s on his way so they kinda have to and he primps to go visit and Donald starts to see through his BS about collecting the debt. Sure enough despite being taken aback by her putting on her old dress , he takes her for all she has and is.. genuinely suprised as she thought she’d have more and she’d actually changed since the old days, donating her profits to orphans from mining disasters. Scrooge.. is clearly rattled by this. Whiel it turns out to my shock he was clealry after the money, though givne who we’re dealing with I shoudln’t of been really, he still cares and still realizes he’s being kind of a dick. So he challengers her to a gold digging race, and if she wins the claim is hers and any gold she finds.. and naturally, while he seemingly puts her soemwhere where there isn’t she finds the claim and Scrooge bemoans not taking his pill.. but while the boys boo him for it, Goldie who fondly waves them off and Donald know better: Donald points out he counted the pills this morning.. and recently. SCrooge DID take one today... he’s just has his cane shoved firmly up his ass with pride so he coudln’t ADMIT he was wrong and instead simply staged that whole thing with the full knowledge Goldie would win. It, again, sets up one of his defniing traits; how he keeps people at arms length. How he’s just so proud and full of himself he can’t bear to admit anything resembling weakness.. but WILl find a way to do the right thing without that or forgoe it as a last resort. He may project being a stingy cretionus old man.. because he is.. but he’s got a heart as big as that nugget.. it’s just locked tight in it’s own bin... his body is complicated and weird that way Final Thoughts:

This story is a classic with a decent setup, great backstory for scrooge, and a great guest character and unquestionable impact on the character. However.. it does have it’s problem; As Don Rosa, who as i’ll remind you is both a huge barks fanboy and huge scoldie shipper, himself pointed out he wrote his final story, and had planned to for years ENTIRELY because this one never quite explains how Scrooge and Goldie went from old enmies to lovers.It did lead to one of his best stories and one of the first I read post life and times so, props to that. And of course as I pointed out some things have just.. not aged well, especially the kidnapping so their relationship kinda comes off like stockholm syndrom as a result of both of these. 

That being said.. warts and all.. it’s still a really damn good story and a good one to try if your intrested in barks work or where Goldie came from: it has adventure, some really good jokes and if you can get past the dated bits the plot is solid. And while it goes without saying i’ll say it anyway Barks art is goregous as always ESPECIALLY in the flashback sequence. Overall not the best AGED Scrooge story, though not the worst either see Voodoo Hoodoo, good god, but defintely a classic for a reason.  If you liked this review, follow me for more, and for more duck content as I still have more of the three cablleros to work through, another chapter of life and times coming up this week befor ewe break again for feburary, and some other fun stuff. Until the next rainbow, it’s been a pleasure. 

[dualdaospirits]

Do you think if they ever reboot ATLA they would make Zutara canon? Reboots have changed quite a few things(the new She-Ra is vastly different from the original) especially with all the support Zutara got post-series

Hmmm, an interesting question. It depends on many things I think, not the least of which being who the showrunners are and the tone they want to set. We may get to see our reboot soon, actually, since there’s a live action Netflix series in the works (they haven’t started production yet though, so don’t get too excited). As far as I know, Bryke is at the forefront, and while that’s great news since it means another abomination hopefully won't happen, it does mean that a Zutara relationship probably isn’t likely since they’re big fans of the Katara/Aang relationship.

That being said, I think it would be a missed opportunity if they didn’t, and I’ll explain why. (Disclaimer for any non-Zutara fans reading this, being a Zutara shipper is not my main motivation for thinking or wanting it to be canon). First things first, the audience. I don’t know if post-series Zutara support would have much of an effect on Bryke, but it’s possible that the producers or Netflix would notice and try to factor it in. However, I don’t think pandering should be the reason they include Zutara--far from it. The original audience that watched Avatar has grown up at this point. Many of us are in our twenties, give or take. We’ve matured, and it would be foolish of the showrunners for ignoring this fact. If there’s a reboot of Avatar, live action or animation, the majority of the audience will be those that grew up with the show, not kids the same age as the audience of the animation. I think that’s evident enough with the release of Avatar on Netflix (notice how many people are rewatching and falling back into their love for the show?) and the comics. Ah, the comics. Some things they did well, others...not. What they did do well is writing the storytelling more maturely than the show. I don’t mean to bash the original show as it obviously had no problems including the dark effects of a war story in bite size, easy-to-swallow chunks for kids (a good thing). However, they treat the audience more seriously, knowing that not everything needs to be spelled out. You see the same in Korra. And to me, that’s part of what makes the Zutara relationship so captivating and intriguing--it’s mature. It’s not easy, and it has faults. It’s not “hero gets the girl after saving the world”. It’s complex. 

I’ll say this now: there’s a difference between a relationship being canon and being endgame, and it’s an important difference. I definitely think Zutara should be canon, if not endgame, in any reboot they do.

Personally, I’m excited for a live action version if they ever get around to it. It brings many new factors to the table, and the majority of them have to do with adaptation. (I’ll mainly be talking about a live action version for a little bit, excuse the art student that shows). Adaptation, especially between mediums, is tricky to execute. You see many book-movie adaptations that succeed, and some that miserably fail, and others in between. This goes for other forms as well, ex: book to comic, book to animation, animation to film, etc. With any medium adaptation, the story will inherently change. You can't hear a character's inner dialogue or prose written in a book in a film, so changes have to be made or the filmmaker must write or use film language to substitute for it. With adaptation, changes must happen, that's a fact. To me, more often than not those adaptations succeed when the creator embraces that fact and uses the medium to their advantage. Sometimes this changes the story, and sometimes that change enhances it for the better. Take Game of Thrones or Harry Potter. The former deals with many characters and worldbuilding that is extremely complex, and they did an excellent job in getting you attached to those characters. However, they did have to change some things from the books, and while some weren’t as successful, others did remarkably. (Before anyone starts raging, I’m specifically talking about the seasons where they still had books to go off of). For Harry Potter, we have eight movies to analyze, which I will not be doing, but I will say that the weakest films storywise were the fifth and seventh, simply because they tried to do both too much and too little, if that makes sense.

How would this apply to a live action ATLA? Well, it wouldn’t be like the animation, most likely. It’s a medium adaptation, meaning that the approach they had in the animation won’t work the same in live action. Think about it--you don’t watch animation, especially 2d, the same way you watch live action, psychologically and subconsciously. There’s a separation there between their world and ours. It lessens with 3d animation, but it’s much much smaller when it’s live action since it looks like our world, more or less. Would GOT beheading and other violence (you know what I mean) have had the same effect if it were 2d animation? No, probably not. Yes, I know that anime has its fair share of gore that can be extremely realistic and gross, but it still doesn’t have the same impact it would if it appeared on your screen with quality vfx. Now, these are extreme examples. I really doubt that they’ll make the violence that intense or realistic in the show, as they’ll more than likely want to keep it family friendly (there’s still kids that watch the original). Another disclaimer (ik there’s a lot of them, but people can misunderstand this kind of critique as bashing, which it’s not): I am not saying that the original animation of ATLA is not impactful, absolutely not. I have no trouble getting attached to animated characters, laughing or crying with them, etc, especially if the writing is good. However, it was a kids show, and it was written with that in mind. This is apparent to me as I’m rewatching the show now. There’s some dark stuff that happens, as is the nature of a war story, and the animation handles it excellently. But think of how different it will be seeing the ruins of the Southern Air Temple, practically a garden of bones, Gyatso’s included, in live action. Show us all the nitty-gritty of the lower rings of Ba Sing Se, and the corruption up top. Let this affect the characters. Bring this moral ambiguity into light, as it was done in the show. I think that if they’re going to tackle a show in this way, not a movie or series of movies, it would be smart of them to lean into these darker themes, not shy away from them. Like I said earlier, the audience has matured, and there’s so much more to explore with these stories and themes. I’ll say with confidence that they’ll definitely do this, and possibly add a story or two. Otherwise, it will just be a rehashing of the original, word for word dialogue. Not that the original is bad (obv not), but I don’t think we should want that. There’s a lot of potential in a live action series, and I think they’ve learned lessons from the abomination that already tripped over itself. It was an example of adaptation done badly. However, you can change a story without destroying it, but it’s a delicate operation. That’s why having the original showrunners on gives me a bit more confidence. To be clear, I don’t think they’ll go full PG-13 or higher. It’s still possible to have family/kid friendly media without shying away from the darker parts. ATLA is a great example of that. If you want a live action example of a show that balances humor, heartache, and violence beautifully, look at Merlin (bbc). 

I think you bring up an interesting point with She-Ra and it’s divergence from the original. I haven’t seen the original animation, but I can say that the new one was successful in telling a new and fresh story in the same universe. The act almost as parallel stories in that universe. How To Train Your Dragon is the same way--the book and movie have very very little in common story wise, but it’s a beautiful trilogy nonetheless. Would this work with ATLA? Possibly, though I doubt they’d want to stray away from the original’s core themes. Though, you can fight me on this, Zutara does align with those themes, but that’s another post (this one is long enough). However, it’s such a complicated question because it inherently considers countless possibilities, so there’s no definite answer. It’s a beloved show that’s already been butchered once, so how much would they be willing to change?

Now, how does Zutara factor in? (getting to the point now). For many of the reasons above, I think it should be canon. Their dynamic, their rocky relationship, the journey of trust and acceptance, the connection they have, all of it is ripe for exploration, especially in a revamped, inherently more mature story. Instead of a predictable relationship where there was never any real conflict (Katara was always loyal to Aang, and their fights were never truly consequential), you have a relationship coming from a difficult, seemingly impossible place, one that requires time to establish. Like I said, it’s not an easy relationship. Part of it is strengthened by Zuko’s wonderful redemption arc. He needs to build a foundation of trust before almost any of the Gaang trust him (Aang, the angel, is willing to give him a chance almost immediately in Book 1, and though she didn’t care one way or the other at first, he did accidentally burn Toph’s feet). What would a Book 4 have brought us? Despite what Bryke say about it being a false rumor, Ehasz, a co-producer, said that it was at least discussed, plus Book 3 definitely had more to give, so I take it with several grains of salt. Anyways, even wondering about it hypothetically produces interesting theories. We see at the end of Book 2 in the cave that Katara, once she overcomes her immediate, and warrented, repulsion of Zuko, she’s able to connect and see a bit of his heart underneath the layers and layers of angst and anguish obscuring it. This scene is popular in the Zutara fandom for a reason. However, I think that making changes to characters, especially in Zuko’s case should be done extremely selectively and purposefully. His arc is one of the most fantastic accomplishments of the show, and I think very little should be changed. For example, he should still make that doomed, yet inevitable choice in that cave to join Azula, but perhaps they’ll include his mother as a more forefront character, especially when he goes back to the Fire Nation. By all means, give Ty Lee and Mai more than just a conversation to supply their backstory. Thoroughly explore the swampbenders and the Freedom Fighters. Show more of the original airbenders in Aang’s memories! There’s room for exploration without dismantling the world or characters like the M. Night film did. For Zutara, I think that expanding Book 3 and giving the characters more time with each other would be invaluable. Think of how quickly Katara and Zuko grew close, from Katara threatening to off him first time he even hinted at being a threat, to becoming one of the most instinctual and formidable teams in the Gaang, to saving each other’s lives in the final battle. That’s not even mentioning the Southern Raiders.  The conflict over the entire show as the backdrop for a relationship like that, romantic or platonic, is incredibly suitable for a reboot. If it was explored, the outcome would be so powerful. 

I said before that there’s a difference between canon and endgame relationships. This just means that a relationship can be confirmed and explored without being the outcome. If Bryke include Zutara at all, that’s most likely how they’ll do it: adding a love triangle that ends up with Katara and Aang getting together. Honestly, it would be a method of making K/A a more interesting relationship and a way to have the characters grow a bit. However, this has the awful potential of just shitting on Zutara and turning it into a toxic relationship, which I’d rather not see.

But if it wasn’t Bryke running it? Absolutely, I think Zutara would, and should, be canon. Adaptation should take risks and be willing to explore, and I think Zutara is the type of dynamic we should see.  

[estrellaphantom]

Hey Holis how are you ?! I hope it's ok.

Today I come to share with you a HC of Marco in the Universe of my fic Miguel and I: our story and Morir de Amor. So we started xd.

❗❗ WARNING: POSSIBLY A LOT OF XDDD TEXT❗❗

Marco de la Cruz is a descendant of Ernesto de la Cruz. His entire family after Ernesto, dedicated themselves to the world of entertainment and entertainment and others. But not many were dedicated to music, Marco's grandfather was one of the only ones who dedicated themselves to that.

Marco's father tried to dedicate himself to music but in the end he did not succeed and he became a soap opera producer and his wife was an actress. And they had Marco.

He had a practically normal and solitary life; his parents worked and went to events almost always and Marco was in the care of a nanny. That never bothered him.

His relationship with his parents was almost little, with his mother he got along very well, she tried to put aside her work a bit and spend time with Marco. And that always made Marco very happy. He loved his mother.

But with his father it was another story, he could not leave his job a little aside to spend time with his family and his relationship with Marco was quite bad. The man was very strict with Marco and wanted him to do just what he wanted. That annoyed Marco a lot. But he didn't care much about that.

Marco had a practically excellent economic life; money was not lacking thanks to his parents, he had a good education and friends were plenty. With all this it could be said that Marco was happy but he did not consider it that way.

And nothing really got better in his teens; Always in the entertainment world there are fake news and scandals that cause problems for people and their families. The same happened with him and his family.

A journalist gave an article in a magazine exposing Marco's mother to being unfaithful to her husband. That caused many problems for the couple and therefore they ended up divorcing. That also brought many problems for Marco who had to accept what happened. Some days he spent time with his mother and on other days with his father. With his mother it was a little different than before; His mother seemed calmer and spent more time with him, she had even talked to him about a possible partner that Marco did not like at first, but his mother had the right to recover from the hell and coldness that happened with his father for several years, so He also accepted it, the guy he was dating was very good and was very kind to him (very different from his dad).

And when he spent time with his dad it was pretty much the same as before they split; He went to work and left Marco in the care of someone else. But there were occasions where she took him to work, to the recording sets of the novels that his father works on. Marco watched the stars rehearse their lines and be preparing for the scenes that would come out. But something in particular caught his attention; one of the most popular actresses of the moment (who still has no name xd) was chased by some journalists and she ran to get away from us until the security came to help her. There she understood that the world where her father works was garbage.

I mean, I didn't understand how there were people who couldn't have a little privacy because there were people like the paparazzi who didn't care about that to screw your life. He had already lived it, a reporter screwed up his life in a certain way and now his parents were separated. He didn't want that in his life, he didn't want people hanging around and bothering him all the time.

But something he liked about this whole world of garbage, was that people kept the people of the country aware of many things through the news and transmitted messages in the movies and in the novels, whatever it was, there were always messages to try to help people realize that society changes. And that was what Marco loved; He wanted to give his grain of sand and help people with messages of encouragement and improvement. So he decided and wanted to dedicate himself to voice over. That was almost the same but it was something more Anonymous.

Until again everything went down a pipe.

Marco loved music thanks to his grandfather and Ernesto de la Cruz. When he listened to it he liked to sing but he did not like to be heard. His dad heard him at one point and decided that his son would be a singer. And that to Marco did not like and that caused even more problems between them. His mother always defended him from his father and his mother's partner also wanted Marco to choose what he considers best for his future. And so it was for a long time fights between those adults to help Marco.

But again everything had gone to hell in a matter of seconds. Marco's mother and her partner had died in a car accident. That left Marco very hurt and he had to stay with his dad and he had to do everything his dad told him. And so it was that his career began to grow; his father took him to castings and to programs to sing. He already had a fan club, but he was very indifferent to all of them. He didn't really care about his fans that much he just pretended.

But all that changed when he met who would become his best friend, Miguel Rivera.

He had gone to Santa Cecilia to visit his grandfather and came across a boy named Miguel Rivera. By then Ernesto's farce had already been discovered and when I spoke to him for the first time, I thought it would be uncomfortable, but Miguel did not. He was always friendly with him and showed Marco a tender smile and that brought a lot of confidence to the boy. And so every time he went to Santa Cecilia he played with him and his friend Leo and the three of them became great friends. But Marco told Miguel more things than Leo. There was something about Miguel that attracted Marco too much. He felt great affection for Miguel, and perhaps something more than affection.

And Miguel also loved Marco very much and had great admiration for him. Marco taught her new singing techniques and taught her to play new instruments. He saw him as "his teacher".

As the years went by, Marco became convinced that he felt something more for Miguel, and he was willing to tell him but he didn't count on Miguel already having a girlfriend. That left him quite hurt and he walked away from him for a while. During those months his father fell ill and died later, but he managed to start a very pleasant conversation with him and they had finally forgiven each other for everything. Miguel showed up at the funeral to see his friend. He told her that he had broken up with his girlfriend.

Marco thought he had a new opportunity to tell Miguel what he felt, but again their work separated them and he couldn't tell him anything.

Until they met again and Miguel told him that he felt something for a young man he met in San Fransokyo. A young Asian man who stole his heart. Marco felt bad again but understood that his best friend was never going to reciprocate. So I leave it at that.

He continued his life and met a girl who happened to be a friend of Miguel's boyfriend and the truth was she was beautiful and he started dating her. So I forget how I felt for Miguel. Or so I thought.

When Miguel dies, Marco feels too bad, he was his best friend and was always by his side to support him, he felt a huge pain in his heart. His best friend whom he always chatted with and whom he loved was gone and he couldn't help himself. And doubts arise in him. Maybe I never stop loving him.

Too much text I warned jsjsj. But I appreciate you if you read it all. Uwu.

I want to do more of Marco, and I was thinking of doing a special chapter of him in one of the writings, although now I don't know why it might be a better idea to write a totally directed writing for Marco.

Another thing that I still doubt is that in the writings both would be karco (karmi x Marco) but now I don't know why a part of me wants there to be karkyel (kylexkarmixmarco).

I'm thinking of starting to stream and tell you more about this and other ideas that I have in mind so as not to leave you reading a shit and screw your jsjsjs view.

Anyway you tell me what you think of these ideas and what you would like to know.

Come out bye ~ uwu I love you take care of yourself.

⭐The characters are not mine, they belong to their respective creators.

⭐The characters are +18.

[lonestarbabe]

do you have any lone star or 911 blog suggestions? i just ditched me 911 side blog and started tumblr life fresh with a whole new main blog, so i'm looking for new people to follow, also do you have any suggestions for just getting involved in the fandom altogether?

Hello! I do have some suggestions, but I will warn you, my list is pretty limited because it’s very hard to find good 911 Lone Star blogs because many are multifandom and harder to discover. Anyway, all the more reason to share what I have.

It’s exciting that you’ve broken from your side blog. I will be stuck here as a side blog forever, which can be limiting, so I’m glad you’ve made the switch. 

I tried to focus on blogs that have recent and consistent 911 Lone Star content, at least during the season, and many of them happen to multifandom so keep that in mind. Many of them also love 911 OG! I’m sure I missed important people I follow because it’s hard to weed through my follow list, so I’m sorry if I do. I’ve also provided some reasons why I love these people, mostly to give these wonderful humans some much-deserved love. (in no particular order just thrown out however my jumble mind sees fit)

First of all, @mybaby-tk, I love your blog and am always glad to see your posts, so you’d definitely make my list of blog suggestions. Lots of good takes. Lots of 911 Lone Star content. I cannot wait for more of your stuff.

@buckleystrand is a must. Some of the prettiest gifs, cute fics that make my heart leap, and just an overall really cool person. I think we’re blessed to have someone so talented in this fandom. 

@evaneddie is the #1 Marjeo fan (and I’m glad about that). They are a great contributor of gifs and also 911 OG content. I’m so glad to see them on my dash and to have someone providing good writing as well as gifs.

@bluestar22x a real fandom hero who always engages with posts. I love seeing this blog and their comments pop up because you always have interesting things to see. Such a great person and has a great tagging system for those who like that kind of thing (would be amazing if Tumblr liked to make tags fully functional haha).

@eveningspirit is also excellent. A wonderful writer (one of my faves) and I think we tend to like the same kind of stories, so TASTE! Seems really sweet and she just has 10/10 vibes. Is great at enunciating thoughts. A real fandom gem.

@bucktks Loves Ronen very much. Makes pretty gifs that I could spend hours looking at. Seems like a very cool human. Aesthetically pleasing blog.

@tylerkennedystrand is one of the first people I found who posted Lone Star content. Lots of multifandom content but still and excellent person in the Lone Star fandom.

@itsnotamarriageproposal TARLOOOSSSSSS I mean that’s pretty much all I have to say and you can feel my passion for this blog.

@lovelessmotel not fully Lone Star, but enjoyable all-around content that seems to fit well with things I like. Very pretty theme. Seems like a cool person.

@reyesstrand this is a Lone Star side blog so you can expect pretty much all lone star content. Wonderful posts. A writer. Just a great blog overall that I enjoy looking at.  

@homeinda-blue has a lot of great thoughts. Multifandom. Mostly text posts sharing these thoughts. Has some good insight that never occurred to me before. A really wonderful person!

@daybreak96  Multi-fandom. Shares lots of cool Rafa content. I just really like this blog. I found this blog looking through the tag, and I’m so glad that I did because I really enjoy it.

@adrianintown Lots of great ideas that I love seeing. A blog that has a good mix of different kinds of posts. Seems like a super smart and fun person. Also likes Animal Kingdom. Writes good stuff.

@soclosebutyetsofar is a blog that mostly focuses on Tarlos but also is in other fandoms such as the 100 and Roswell NM. Great content. I haven’t been following long, but I’m really glad I did.

@911lonestarweek For all the fun of 911 Lone Star Week to keep us entertained during the hiatus. 

@mattcasey AMAZING GIFS. Reblogs  A LOT of Lone Star content. A real friend to content creators and I’m glad to see it. Excellent taste in content. You’ll see 911 mixed in as well as some other fandoms.

@harvestleaves LOTS of 911 Lone Star content. Super supportive of content creators and REBLOGS. Lots of cute writing that I love seeing. I’m so glad that I found this blog.

@bellakitse is one of my favorite writers in this family. Creates excellent content. is multifandom, but I really love this blog a lot and I’m appreciative of all the amazing writing we are given.  

@ronenrubinstein a variety of content, but lots of Lone Star love, and Ronen love, and Ronen as a Harry Styles stan love. Really, I saw Harry and 911 Lone Star in one blog and thought it had to be good. I was right.

@spookycass A nice bright theme that is very sunny. Really great content. Seems like a nice person and I’m glad I follow this blog.

@tkandbuck A variety of content, but the 911 Lone Star stuff is really excellent, and I mean, TK and Buck… how could I not love this wonderful blog?

@tarloses A must follow for all the Tarlos lovers out there. A good balance of content that I enjoy very much.

@marjanmarwanis is allergic to poor leadership ;). I enjoy all the icons that she makes of the characters and cast. Also posts 911 OG icons. 

@a-gay-fish More 911 OG but also just a great blog that has excellent vibes and amuses me. I’m glad to have finally found this blog (better late than never). 

@onceuponatarlos A blog dedicated to Tarlos prompts, so does amazing work. 

@thompsonconnors Multifandom but a lot that I like, so it works for me. Makes nice gifs that I appreciate very much (excellent Grace gifs woooo)

@tylerkennedysstrand  lots of interests, but a fun blog to follow. Not to be confused with @tylerkennedystrand which I did for a while, but I have seen the light now and have realized that this excellent blog is a blog all of its own and worth checking out.

@pikku-myy Probably more of a 911 blog, but also posts Lone Star content and I enjoy the energy of this blog. 

@meneatyoghurt I read this url as me neat yoghurt for far longer than is acceptable, but I understand now and am enlightened. I also just love this blog. Lots of interesting thoughts. I love seeing this person pop up.

@embersinashes Another OG fan who I’ve seen write some really good thoughts on the show, and I love seeing on my dash. 10/10 content. 

@paul-strickland Might’ve been the first 9-1-1 Lone Star blog I followed, so clearly top-notch content and lots of it. Very cool edits. Also likes 911 OG and writes. She is a great addition to the fandom.

@tarlosgifs It is what it says on the tin, which is why all Tarlos lovers should give this blog a look.

@xtarlosx 911 and lone star (and some other fandoms). Lots of Tarlos love. Just accidentally pressed unfollow as I was writing this, but I followed again so we’re good lol. In general, just a great addition to my dash and posts just the right amount. 

@hearteyesemergency 911 but also lone star. This blog has a really good flow. Nice to look at with excellent content. 

@probiechavez  Also OG 911 fan. But is a 911 Lone Star side blog. Great content. Love seeing it on my dash. Probie Chavez, as in Mateo, and this blog deserve so much love.

@guesswhofern before starting this I said to myself DO NOT forget @guesswhofern because in my follow list this one is tucked between a bunch of other non Lone Star follows. Anyways, all the Lone Star content on this blog makes me happy, and this blog supports creators a lot, which is amazing.

@mtngirlforever a multi-fandom blog, but one you have to follow because of all the Lone Star talk that goes on there and a bunch of excellent content. One of my faves. Also, some Tarlos RP is that’s your thing. If it’s not, it’s tagged so fear not. Can’t say enough about this blog.

@actuallytkstrand multifandom.  Mostly 911 and Lone Star. A good balance of text and non-text posts. Just the right amount of content. Some good lone star memes (we don’t see enough) and good takes.

@thegayfleet a blog dedicated to gay things. Provides pics from lots of Ronen’s photoshoots. Also has a lot of other gay content and gifs from Lone Star and other shows with gay characters.

[werezmastarbucks]

Whitmore guy - the boy in a shirt with a bat

Part One

Part Two

Kai Parker x fem!Reader slowburn

whatever gifs I’m going to use on this one, I hope the creators are okay with that

The Mystic Falls team decide they want to get rid of Kai Parker for good - and in a way that would ensure he won’t be able to come back. Death is not secure enough this time, so they go with Malivore. Who knows what the poor bastard is doing down there, but six months later, a new guy comes to work at the college - and meets the reader seemingly for the first time.

word count: 2987 ish

warnings: none

music: blink-182 - down, blink-182 - always, green day - the last of the american girls; Y/N quotes don’t leave me by - you guessed it - blink-182

MAY

Y/N was almost done. Almost-almost done, and the clock was only showing half past seven. It’s still half an hour until full sunset, and she has every chance to wrap it up and go rush to the football field in the town, perch herself on the seats and watch.

It’s just that all the troubles of all the Whitmore students were hanging like dead weight on her, and realistically, if she worked all day, every day, with a five hour sleep, and a twenty minutes lunch break, Christmas included, she would finish reading and delegating all student complaints and applications by the year 2098.

She threw herself back in the chair and pressed her palms against her eyes, letting the green specks poke the darkness. Then she realized that the music she’s been hearing for the last hour wasn’t playing in her head – the sound has been coming from the outside world.

Y/N opened her eyes and listened. Yup, she was sure it was her own brain because nobody’s listened to that reeeally old stuff in years. There’s just nobody left in the whole state of Virginia who’s openly a blink-182 fan.

She jumped up from her chair excitedly, happiness striking in her head like a flare gun; somebody was listening to their song! At the college! Somewhere on the floor! And it wasn’t her!

Y/N left her office and walked down the quiet corridor, following the sound like a thread. What a song it was, too.

Tidal waves they rip right through me

Tears from eyes worn cold and sad

Pick me up now…

The epic teenage angst made you want to go get all the bad tattoos you could possibly spend your money on.

Y/N knew she loved that song some time ago, but couldn’t remember why. It pulled on a surprisingly sturdy thread in her heart and made it bleed in a second; like she was a teenager again, like she was on the verge of a breakdown, and the whole world was full of amazement and bursting, vivid sensations.

Y/N almost ran to the sound, holding her lip between her teeth and never noticing it. Her face was lit with anticipation as she paused in front of the door. Somebody was playing music in the gatherings hall, where the acoustics were crazy, and all the space all but welcomed all kinds of dancing, prancing and hopping. The song ended, and another started to play; and yet she knew it again.

It went like this:

I’ve been here before a few times,

And I’m quite aware we’re dying…

 Y/N pushed the door and it gave. She saw the hall, lit by all the lamps, although she was quite sure that the maintenance had already turned everything off except her office.

A guy was crouching on the floor next to the window, and a big sports bag was lying at his feet. Weird, he looked like a schoolboy, and the next second he stood up and she saw he was a young man. The guy didn’t seem to notice her at first, so Y/N had a couple of seconds to stare at the stranger. He was all jumpy, tall, boyish in a way; his dark hair was a little messed up, as he probably ruffled it with his hands; she’s never seen him here before. Being the welfare office worker, Y/N knew pretty much everyone in this huge place, - which was scary, by the way, - but this one was probably new. She couldn’t really place him neither with students nor with the staff. So she just placed him with the good music lovers. She already liked this dude. He was wearing a grey shirt with a stupid drawing of a cartoonish bat, green blood spilling out of its mouth. And Converses. Again, who still wears Converses in Whitmore or Mystic Falls?

He looked up, watching her for a second, and then waved his hand. They couldn’t really hear each other over the music, but the guy still said something. Y/N motioned towards his portable speaker which was spitting out the fast chords and energetic drumming. That was the best. That was the best song in the world, and she was almost sorry when the bat guy ran towards the speaker and turned the volume down.

“Hey- woah, I didn’t realize there was somebody alive here!” he exclaimed.

“Are you having a party?” she asked instead of a hello. They stared at each other for a mere second before letting out the air from their lungs.

“Does that bother you?”

“No way. I was drawn here like a rat by a flute. Man, I haven’t heard Blink on speakers or even on the radio, for ages”.

He smiled, and Y/N melted. The guy was approaching her slowly, walking like he owned the place. His smile was white, and his eyes, in contrast, seemed completely black, but, as he came closer, she saw they were dark blue. It’s just his pupils - so enlarged they covered almost everything, trying to devour his eye. He sure looked like he was high.

Something hit her, and backed off immediately. There was something about him, something weird, outlandish, not Mystic Falls at all, neither Whitmore, but hey. Everything in the closest vicinity of Mystic Falls is completely consumed by its spores. Everything was Mystic Falls color, the people, the nature, and the college; people spoke, walked and loved in such a way that you could tell they all come from the same place, full of scandals and vampires.

This dude, though. He looked a bit mad, Y/N reckoned, his wide smile never touched his dark eyes, and they shone with something that made her look just a little too long. He smelled like trouble. After all these years she’s been rubbing elbows with all kinds of bad, Y/N could tell who’s what. She could tell a beast when she met one. Vampires looked different to her, call it intuition or habit.

But this dude… he just looked different. He was like ink, like milk, like blood. His face looked perfect all-American beautiful, with lean triangle chin and strong jaw line. And yet, it was crooked somehow. He looked youthful, but the look about him said old. The fact that he was keeping silent a second too long, was standing an inch too close, looking at her too closely, all said trouble. It was blinding how quick she felt all that, in a flash, and against all odds, she smiled.

She didn’t know what he was.

“Ha, you’re staring”, he said, amused.

“Dude, I’m trying to remember if I’d seen you before”.

His sharp eyebrows, like two eagle wings, were drawn together in mocking concentration.

“Well. Have you?” There was an inviting smirk on his lips, showcasing two things: he had a very nice mouth. And. There was a reason enough to keep distance.

“No. I have excellent memory for faces”.

He shrugged like nothing in his easy, carefree life, mattered.

“Yeah, me neither. This is the first time my eyes are on you”.

“Wow”, she nodded, “you’re weird enough”.

“I’ve been said that”.

“How dangerous are you?”

“Uhm…” he pretended to ponder, poking his chin with his right index finger. Y/N saw a large steel ring on it, with a pretty, strange scattering of tiny dark dots. A very unusual marking, too, but she said nothing. He had a face of a TV star. She could very well picture him in a sitcom with a lame title like “My crazy family”, in which he would be the geeky, but sexy, smart oldest son of a little bit absent-minded parents.

“Like… eight out of fourteen. I’ve been to a camp once… it was a type of… you know, like a summer camp?”

Y/N found she had to actually focus to follow his thought. She looked straight at him attentively, feeling bright magenta giggle rising inside of her.

“Uh-huh. The Crystal Lake type? Or the Sleepaway Camp?”

“Get out!” he exclaimed, stretching his vowels. They laughed exactly at the moment for Billie Joe to yell about the Last of the American Girls.

“No, more like a concentration camp”, he offered, “but like, you’re alone there, so you have to do all the torturing yourself”.

“God’s sake, what kind of camp was it?”

“I literally just told you”, he replied with a pause, and his articulate face went blank. Y/N couldn’t hold off a sniff. She felt like she was a bit drunk, but that was more of overworking, late evening, lots of coffee and that everlasting feeling of despair one gets upon realizing that work will never end.

“Anyway, I learnt a lot of useful stuff there”, the boy said, “how to start a fire, how to make a knot, you know, the type you’re not getting out of, ever. A-and, like, how to make stakes out of sticks”.

Alert reddened Y/N skull from the inside. She tilted her head. Reading him was in vain. This dude was misty, he was shut off like a persona that’s uncrackable simply because it never really existed.

“What for?”

“Oh, you know, grilled sausages and stuff”.

She reprimanded herself silently for being a basket case. Yeah, sure. Grilled sausages, and only then – killing vampires; that’s how it works in the normal world.

“What about you?” he asked suddenly.

“Huh?”

“How dangerous are you?”

“Ow, extremely. I mean, look at me”.

She stretched out her arms, displaying herself (like a complete sellout, she thought. There goes the very first male who listens to Green Day and blink-182 and you’re already opening your ribcage for him, what a piece of work).

Diligently, the guy took a step back to get a better view. It was all very comical, with a very characteristic soundtrack.

“I am really looking, and I have thoughts. What exactly do you mean?”

“Small. Disproportional limbs. Frail muscles. Do you see? Very angry as a result. Very angry all my life. So, very dangerous”.

He smiled joyfully, wide, bright sparkles exploding in the dark of his eyes.

“I got it. Not gonna piss you off. Actually, I guess, since I’m new here, I should bond with the strong ones, right? I’ll be working as your computer guy. You need something fixed, so that you owe me a favor and don’t kill me when you get mad?”

Y/N scratched her temple, thinking if she needed anything in her laptop fixed. Ridiculously, there was something.

“Funny you should ask. I have the stupidest problem… I… what’s your name again?”

“Oh, my manners”, the guy sighed gravely, and outstretched his hand, “Mal. And you..?”

She considered his palm for a second before shaking it. A light buzz stung her which she barely noticed. Mal’s shirt was probably all synthetic fabric. She told him her name, and he gave a nod.

“Are you really an IT guy?”

“Why would I lie?” he asked, puzzled. He pointed behind his back, turning a little:

“You see that wall? I’m tearing out the old wiring right now. That’s why I’m here so late. Tomorrow you’re gonna have new wi-fi, with the dopest name and the password you’ll never guess”.

Y/N could instantly think of a thousand passwords that were puns for punk rock songs’ names. She abstained from vocalizing them all immediately.

“Alright then”.

“What stupid problem are you having? Have you tried to…” his eyebrows moved suggestively, like he was about to say something R-rated. “…you know?”

“Nah, it’s with the browser. The default search engine is Yahoo for some reason, and I hate Yahoo with burning passion… I’ve no idea how to make it Google again”.

“Are you for real?”

“Yeah. I’m the college sociologist, not a bloody programmer”.

Mal couldn’t help laughing. He headed for the doors, hopping a little in the rhythm of the song.

“Perhaps I made a mistake in detecting you as one of the leaders of this pride”, he mumbled, “where’s your office? You’re the sociologist here?”

Y/N followed him into the corridor.

“Yup”.

“What exactly does it mean?”

“If they need somebody to listen to how they’re closeted gays, I listen. If they need me to fill out the forms for their loans, I fill them out. If teachers had a party the night before and can’t come in now because they’re hungover, I come in instead and take their classes. If…”

“Gee, how much do they pay you for that?”

Y/N felt her face move, all parts of it separately. Just thinking about it was unnerving. But that’s the job she asked for. That’s the responsibility she’d grown into. She’d been a teacher herself for some time, and then got tired of the creative pressure of coming up with the new ways of explaining one thing every day; she thought this position would bring some diversity in her everyday thinking style. She was being silly. However, when she realized she was worked up, it also brought a strange taste of satisfaction in a way that she was giving all of her, and her conscience was clear. She explained all that to Mal. Then she pushed her door and they found themselves in her darkened office. The first pink flames of raspberry sunset were trying the sky.

“Damn it”, she swore, “I’m late for sunset again”. How the fuck long did she spend in the gatherings hall?!

“You like watching it?”

“Sure. It’s like the doorframe syndrome, have you heard about it?”

Mal smiled, sprinting to her laptop that’s been waiting for her on the desk, abandoned.

“Oh yeah”, he sneered, “I was just thinking about it, but then I entered this room and forgot”.

Y/N sat in the armchair on the opposite side of her desk, thinking to herself, he’s probably gonna die really soon. Like Brandon, the last interesting dude she’d met in Mystic Falls back when she was on the haul, working at the Grill. Brandon was the best bartender the place had ever seen in its prolonged history, and he was also very clearly interested in Y/N, too. They worked together a lot, and drank at night even more. They got to know each other pretty well, which made it even worse when someone came in, in the broad daylight, and broke his neck. Just when Y/N thought that the Mystic Falls curse has been lifted and normal people could feel safe. It’s been two years, or even more, since then, and now she sat there, cynical and certain, that such a cool dude like Mal wouldn’t last here long. The place consumes people like him – those who wake up her desire to live again.

“Oh-kay, I’ll just close all this porn here”, Mal looked at the screen. Y/N has been writing a report when she heard the music, and left the document open. “You wanna Google by default?”

“Yes”.

“Come here and learn while I’m alive”, Mal said solemnly, not noticing the look she gave him, stunned at the sinister coincidence of thinking.

She circled the desk and stood at his shoulder. Mal smelled of candy (literally this time), so sweet it was almost suffocating. Did he fucking rub it in his hair?! Y/N thought of tricksters casually, the Scandinavians like Loki, whose only downfall was in that extra sweet smell of all kinds of sugar poison that gave them away. Could Mal be a malevolent spirit, luring her into a trap? What’s he gonna do? Eat her insides?

“Are you looking?”

“Yes”.

“It’s two seconds. See?”

“Oh”.

Mal turned to her in her own armchair like he owned it and looked up without a shade of awkwardness.

“You seriously didn’t know how to do that? I don’t even need to be an IT specialist to be able to fix that”.

“What are you getting at?” Y/N barked defensively. She prided herself in not understanding anything about computers, like it made her old in a wise way.

“I gotta tell you before we kick it off – I have a girlfriend”.

Y/N digested it for a second.

“Oh, you smug face”, she spat out, “you think I’m hitting on you?”

“I mean…” his innocent-wild eyes acted very well.

“I don’t know shit about this computer crap, I thank God every day I manage to even turn it on…”

“You’re cool and very nice, but…”

“I don’t hit on people”, Y/N banged herself in the chest, “people hit on me”.

Mal puffed with laughter, still looking up.

“Okay, sorry. I’ve never met anyone like you. Quiet so… helpless”.

“There. Don’t you ever assume…”

“We’re gonna be friends though, right?”

Y/N shrugged.

“Sure. Emos gotta stick together, or else we commit unspeakable things. Now, get out of my office”.

“I prefer to think of myself as a broke-free treasure hunter, thank you very much”.

Mal was smiling like a cunning happy brat as he walked out of the door. He stopped half way, catching himself on the handle. Having crossed the line of the doorframe, he must have recalled something.

“What did you say about the sunsets? And the syndrome?”

“Oh, yeah”, Y/N uttered, propping herself back at the computer. She could feel evening migraine coming, together with the song blasting and echoing from the hall down the corridor. “When I see that, you know, the bloody pink when it’s just ending, I feel like I’m remembering something I’d forgotten. It’s a weird feeling. Kind of like a déjà vu backwards. You ever had that?”

Mal blinked, thinking. Seriously, this time. Looking at him, Y/N decided, that yes, they were going to be friends. He was making her feel something. Something good about all this job, and all that was in her past. All that she thought she outgrew. He was clear, black and white, sturdy, holding on to her door like he was keeping it in place.

“You have to have your head checked, Y/N. It might be terminal…”

“Get out, Mal. Don’t let my door hit your ass”.

“Jesus, you’re really obsessed with blink-182, aren’t you?”

Y/N felt no shame.