#I just think this game is a lesson in setting and world building

[linkspooky]

The Supreme King Judai vs. Dark Deku: How To Do a Dark Deconstruction of your Shonen Hero!

Think of this as less me complaining about My Hero Academia, and more me taking a closer look at the writing of the Dark Deku arc and why it failed to achieve what it set out to achieve.

I like to look at writing on a deeper level than Thing Bad, and Thing Good. Imagine a story is a car engine that won't start, in order to find the problem you've got to disassemble all the pieces and look at them one by one to see what pieces aren't working. That's the kind of criticism I'm talking about, break storytelling down into different tools like parts of an engine, plot, world, characterization, ideas, actions and consequences and then look if the author is using those tools effectively to sell a story.

In other words we're talking about the difference in ideas and execution. All works of fiction have ideas, even bad anime can have good ideas inside of it. The idea in question is Judai's case is can exploring the dark side of a hero. Can a hero's positive qualities also lead them down a dark path? Yu-Gi-Oh Gx answers this in a satisfying way, and My Hero Academia I'm going to argue does not.

IDEAS VS EXECUTION

One piece of writing advice I heard from Brandon Sanderson of all people that always stuck with me is "Ideas are cheap. You can always come up with more ideas."

All works of fiction have ideas and themes no matter what the Game of Thrones guy say, but some works are better at communicating their ideas than others. I want to quote a Homestuck Ending analysis of all things to explain what I'm talking about.

When you are a writer you can write anything you want. But if you want to write a story that people want to read you have to follow the rules of good storytelling. There are reasons why storytelling rules exist. A story is a bond between author and reader, readers to other readers. It is a communication between humans and humans work in a certain way. Storytelling rules are rules of communication. Rules for handling expectations and saying what you intend to say without it being misheard. Rules for tugging at emotions and pulling heartstrings in a good way rather than a bad way. Storytelling rules are lessons learned by authors of the past that failed to communicate what they needed to. They are not that subjective.

Chief among these rules is buildup and payoff. In fact one of the most basic techniques of storytelling is foreshadowing, in screenplays you usually foreshadow one important twist, then add a reminder so the audience doesn't forget, before finally paying it off.

To simplify build up and pay off I like to refer to it as question and answer. Usually a story will ask its audience a question, and usually by the end that question is answered, unless the point is to leave that question unanswered / ambiguous.

Character arcs are examples of buildup and payoff too, a lot of characters, especially in serialized media are sold on their potential future development. Here's an example, how may people got invested in Dabi years in advance because of the Dabi is a Todoroki Theory? That's an example of good buildup and payoff, because the author sewed just enough hints to build up an audience expectation and then paid it off. People became invested in the story, because they thought their investment and theories would pay off eventually and it did - so hooray!

Both MHA and YGOGX dedicate an entire arc to trying to deconstruct their main protagonist. They also seek to deconstruct the "Hero Complex" or "Saving People Complex" that each protagonist has, and ask the question if those traits are really a good thing.

This post puts it better than me so I'm going to quote tumblr user rhodanum.

‘Hero complex’ or 'saving people complex’ — an obsession with rescuing people in the face of danger, often to the exclusion of all higher thought processes. All too prevalent among shounen main leads, especially hot-blooded shounen main leads. Yuki Judai is certainly no exception. What is interesting in his case is that the writers follow the consequences of his rash, reckless, often thoughtless actions all the way to their heartbreaking logical conclusion. For those not fully in the know, it involves spiky black armor, an army of sycophants and a fall from grace that caused as much damage as a thermonuclear bomb. Don’t make perky, happy shounen protagonists snap, people. First rule.

I'm going to quote another video too, to add onto the above quote. It's from this video, starting at around 39:52

"GX is kind of famous among fans for taking its happy protagonist and stripping him down to all of his worst qualities. And that's fun. So Judai is a character who's really interesting. He's definitely open to a lot of interpretation, and you know we're gonna be leaning on my interpretation of him. Sorry. It's my video. I think he's commonly referred to a "very typical shonen protag" probably one of the most shonen protag of the yu gi oh protagonists. He is headstrong and loud, and (makes punching noises while air boxing), he is a type of character who's like I'm gonna be the best and brings everyone along on the ride. He's the kind of protagonist that everybody loves him they're all fighting over him, and Yu Gi Oh Gx really puts him up on the pedestal, of like THIS GUY. THIS GUY DOES IT ALL. Then season 3 rolls around and dares to ask: but what if that's selfish behavior?"

That's the question both MHA and YGOGX are asking in Dark Deku arc and Season 3 respectively, what if all of those behaviors that make them the typical hot blooded shonen protagonist are actually selfish? Is their hero complex really a good thing?

Each arc is tasked with exploiting the main character's flaws, until they reach their emotional breaking point and lowest point in the story. Let's see how each story treats their main character and from comparing that I want to make a point about what makes effective storytelling.

The Supreme King Haou Arc

Instead of recapping the entire arc to you, I'm going to touch upon what ideas the story setup in regards to Judai's character and how it paid off those ideas. What are the questions the story asks and what answers does it give us?

I'm going to focus on the two questions I outlined above. Is their hero complex a good thing? and What if this is selfish behavior?

Yu-Gi-Oh GX is an anime where instead of using super powers, the main characters fight each other with a magical trading card game. Besides that fact there's a lot of similarities between GX and MHA. They both take place in an academy setting where the main characters learn about using their quirks, and playing the card game better respectively. It is a shonen battle anime where almost everything is solved with a shonen fight, they just use cards instead of flashy superpowers. The main characters are all students who have to grow up and enter the adult world.

Judai and Deku are both characters that deconstruct the "hero complex" of shonen main characters. Judai is themed entirely around heroes, he has an elemental hero deck where every hero is based off a hero that appears in popular culture, he is the best duelist in the school and the one everyone calls on to save the day over and over again. As stated above he is the most Shonen Protag to ever Shonen Protag, he's a warrior therapist who makes friends and saves the day because he's really good at the card game, and will always show up to fight for his friends.

For the first two seasons Judai is built up on this pedestal of the ideal Shonen Protagonist, and praised by basically every single character for being "childish" and "pure of heart" however when Season 3 comes around the narrative stops heaping endless praise on him and starts to challenge him. However, this doesn't come from nowhere there are signs of these personality flaws of Judai, they just get swept under the rug the first two seasons.

There are several moments such as the climaxes to season 1 and season 2 where Judai fails to grasp the stakes of the situation, saying things like "Oh, this card game is really fun" when he's dueling with lives on the line. Judai in fact has a pattern of "only wanting to duel for fun", he fights because it's fun to him not because it's the right thing to do. However, he's continually forced into high stakes situation where he has to fight for others just because he's the strongest character - and constantly having to carry that on his shoulders starts to weigh on him after awhile. Judai will show up to fight and save his friends every single time they need him, and that's the source of his hero complex because after a certain point his friends start relying on him too much.

In general he also doesn't have deep thoughts of what heroes are, he admires heroes but it basically boils down do "Heroes are cool." He's kind of like Goku where he doesn't really fight for any idea of justice or to save others, just for the thrill of fighting itself. He also has a tendency to be insensitive to other people's feelings and take things for granted. For example, in Season 2 like three of his friends get possessed and Judai doesn't even do anything about it for half a season because he's too busy participating in the dueling tournament.

In general though it's a pattern of Judai only wanting to "duel for fun" and him being forced to duel to save others instead, and be responsible for other people. Judai will show up to fight for his friends, but even then he falls back on just "dueling for fun" because always having to fight for others is too much responsibility to put on his shoulders.

There's a lot of hints of Judai's flaws, but they also tend to get brushed off because shonen protagonists are just like that. Like, Judai can say some insensitive things to his friends sometimes and be oblivious to their feelings, well he's just a book dumb shonen protagonist. Judai should be taking this fight seriously, well he's just being a happy go lucky shonen protagonist, etc. etc. A lot of these things are also just swept under the rug as him just being a child, a boy-at-heart like most shonen protagonists are supposed to be.

However, season 3 starts looking at Judai not as a shonen protagonist but as a person, and it all starts with the suggestion that maybe Judai remaining a child at heart is a bad thing, especially when his friends around him are all growing up. It all starts with the introduction of this guy right here - Johan Anderson.

Johan shares many things in common with Judai, he can see spirits, he's a duelist who loves to duel, he has a strong connection with his cards. However, the more you compare them the more you notice that Johan has a lot of things that Judai lacks. They are so similiar that they become almost instant best friends, but even then Johan himself notices there are a few things off about Judai's behavior.

Sho: Bro... I thought you would have something to say to me. Johan: He seems lost. I think he just wanted you to give him some advice. Judai: SHo will be fine. Johan: Judai, you're colder than I thought.

It takes someone completely new to the dynamic between Judai and his friends, who likes Judai but hasn't spent the past two seasons idolizing him to realize that some of his behaviors are kind of off. That Judai isn't really the most empathic, or even that good at understanding other's feelings.

Johan is the one to point this out because he has the emotional intelligence that Judai lacks. We've been told Judai is our shonen protagonist for two seasons, only for the real shonen protag Johan to step up out of nowhere and show them how it's done. Johan is good at seeing other people's emotions, and he becomes a near instant pillar of emotional support for Judai. More than that, he also is the first person to treat Judai like an equal, he never asks Judai to save him like all of Judai's friends do, if anything they both save each other.

Johan also exists to show what Judai is lacking, mainly a reason behind why he fights.

Judai: I do it because it's fun. Or because of the surprise and delight, I guess. Well, I guess that comes down to "because it's fun", huh? Sorry, I guess that's an awkward question to ask out of nowhere. Johan: What's wrong, Juadi? Judai: Nothing, really. Johan: I have a proper goal. Judai: Don't tell anyone. Even if people don't have the power to see spirits, they can still commune with them. That's why, for those people as well... (I want to be a bridge between humans and spirits).

Judai is someone who will always show up to save his friends when he is asked, but he doesn't really have a concept of what being a hero is or the repsonsibilities it entails, he just admires heroes in a pure hearted way. Johan on the other hand has a reason to fight and that's to help humans and card spirits get along, and Judai expresses admiration for Johan because he has a goal.

At the same time this is happening, Judai gets picked apart by two villains for his lack of reason for fighting. Judai has been praised to death for two seasons for being pure of heart, but now the villains are challenging him by saying he has no "darkness of the heart". That without it the reasons that Judai fights are superficial and frivolous.

We have something that you lack. Judai: That I lack? Yes the darkness of the heart that slumbers deep within a duelist. The burden that a duelist bears in his heart. Judai, you have none of that. Judai: A burden in my heart. I have nver, not even once, dueled for myself. I doubt someone like you, who only thinks of himself could udnerstand that. Judai: What would be fun about a duel like that? It isn't fun at all! You must bear other's expectations while remaining strong. That is what it means.

Judai is a bit of a blood knight, he will be dueling with his friends lives on the lines and stop to go "Wow, this duel is really fun" and it's usually just dismissed a shim being a shonen protagonist until suddenly it isn't.

I'm gonna draw a deliberate parallel between Deku and Judai here that I'll reference later on, they both don't understand "darkness of the heart" and they need to understand it in order to grow as people.

There's also the underlying notion that being a hero is not all it's chalked up to be, to be a hero, to fight for other people's sake means also taking on their suffering. As noble as that may seem suffering is suffering.

Cobra: Fortune would never smile on a fool like you who fights while prattling on about enjoying duels. Cobra: You are certainly a talented duelist. But you have one fatal flaw. Judai: A fatal flaw? Cobra: Yes, your duels are superficial. Someone who fights with nothing on his shoulders, cannot recover once he loses his enjoyment. What a duelist carries on his shoulders will become the power that supports him when he's up against the wall! Cobra: But you have nothing like that! Those who go through life without anything like that cannot possibly seize victory. Cobra: But I know that nothing I say will resonate with you... because you have nothing to lose but the match. Judai: I... Cobra: Afraid aren't you? Right now, you have nothing to support you.

In the context of this scene, Cobra has told everyone that he's currently enacting his evil plan out of the vain hope that he can somehow revive his son from the dead.

As insane as "I think I can revive the dead" is as a motivation, fighting for the sake of your dead son is a much stronger motivation than "I think duels are fun."

Judai doesn't have an appropriate answer as to why he fights when he's questioned by the villains, and instead of coming up with his own answer he relies on the answer Johan provided for him.

Johan: You idiot. Why are you so shaken Judai? You think you have nothing on your shoulders? Give me a break! You always bear other's expectations on your shoulders. When you have other people's expectations riding on you, it means they've trusted you with their hopes! Don't you always carry those? If you lose what will happen to us here?

Johan's words snap him out of it, but this isn't Judai coming up with an answer himself it's just taking the one that's provided for him.

This is also the point where we get start to develop an answer to our question. Is Judai selfish?

In action he's not. His actions are selfless. Judai is always fighting for others, even when he only wants to duel for fun. He will show up and fight if you ask him too.

However, in motivation he is selfish. His motivations are selfish. Judai isn't fighting out of some selflessness, but because fighting for the sake of other people gives him a purpose. He keeps fighting for his friends, because he's built all of his friendships around being the one to solve their problems. It's why he Johan's answer suits Judai so well, because he thinks that's how friendship works that he has to keep carrying everyone's burden for them.

Not only does it lead to unhealthy friendships (he sees his friends as burdens) but also it's unhealthy for Judai himself (he can't keep carrying other people's burdens without getting weighed down).

Judai's hero complex, this pressure he feels to save everyone around him arises from two things, it gives him friends when he'd been a lonely child before that, and it gives him purpose. Playing the hero is how he made all of his friends, and now it's how he keeps them.

However, in spite of doing all this to keep his friends, Judai's relationship with his friends is so all give and no take that he's practically fighting alone until Johan shows up. Judai doesn't form a healthy and stable relationship with Johan however, Johan just becomes a crutch.

In Summary:

Judai's actions are selfless.

His motivations are selfish.

Judai's purpose is to carry everyone's burdens on his shoulders.

Judai's friends exist to be saved by him.

The following arc is roughly divided into four sections. Everything I've covered above happens in the first section the Cobra Arc.

Cobra Arc

Zombie Survival Arc

Dark World / Supreme King Arc

Oh Shit, Yubel's Back

The cobra arc is the introduction and it sets up the basic ideas of Judai's character that I listed above, in addition it focuses on the question of if Judai is selfish, and the idea that being a hero is a burden. There's also the third question where Judai is called to understand darkness of the heart, something Deku will also be called to do.

The Zombie Survival arc is an arc where the school is teleported to another dimension and they have to survive for several days with a limited food supply, everyone fighting, and an outbreak of zombies.

The main setup of this arc is to show how everyone is working well together as a team, even in a high stress situation. Alexis, Judai, Misawa, Kenzan, all pull together with the help of new students Johan, Austin O'Brien and Jim Crocodile Cook.

However, I'm brushing over this arc because Judai doesn't actually do much this arc. If you analyze who does what, it's mainly Johan and Austin O'Brien who are in charge of the entire school. Johan demonstrates leadership skills, calls on everyone to pull together in a time of crisis, and most importantly emotionally supports Judai all throughout.

Even when Judai is confronting the main villain of this scenario Yubel, it's Johan who shows up to support Judai, and it's Johan who wins the duel at the sacrifice of his own life. Everyone gets through the zombie arc unscathed, but it's because Johan is the hero of this part of the arc, not because of anything Judai really did.

Judai who having gone on so long carrying other people's burdens to the point where he's made saving others his purpose, has for the first time experienced someone helping him carry those burdens only to disappear and Judai does not react well to it.

This is when the story has finished setting up all the dominoes that are about to fall. We have one mini-arc drawing attention to the dark side of Judai's personality and how he doesn't understand his own darkness, and one mini-arc showing Johan being a much more effective hero and leader than Judai, demonstrating everything Judai lacks.

You Either Die a Hero, or You Live Long Enough...

Yadda yadda you know the rest. A character being undone by the same traits that made them a hero, is classic tragedy 101. It's called the Hamartia or the fatal flaw. A character's greatest strength in some situations can be their greatest weakness in others. The Supreme King Arc is a masterclass in showing how the traits Judai had that led to his success in the first season, can lead to his total ruin, and even to him becoming the villain of his own story.

Hero and Villain are much closer than you'd realize, and this becomes especially true in the relationship between Judai and Yubel. Judai shares an extremely close relationship to his antagonist foil, just like Deku does with Shigaraki.

However, in Judai's case he's the reason that Yubel turned evil. While it's not entirely his fault, Judai's decision to abandon Yubel when he was a child, made Yubel go through ten years of painful torture all alone, which is the reason behind their current madness.

To summarize Yubel and Judai's story briefly. Yubel is a card spirit, the thing that Johan wants to serve as a bridge between card spirits and humans. Judai had an incredibly close relationship with Yubel as a child, but Yubel was overprotective and used their powers to harm anyone who came near Judai. Judai launched Yubel into space hoping the righteous space rays of justice would calm Yubel down (I know that sounds stupid just go with it) but instead Yubel was hit with the light of destruction a corrupting force that made them endure years of torture. They called out for Judai's help in their dreams only for Judai to eventually forget about them with a psychologist's intervention. Eventually the satellite they were trapped in made it's way back to earth, and they almost died burning up on re-entry. When they finally crawled their way back to Judai, they found Judai had been living the past ten years happy and surrounded by friends, while they had been tortured in space and nearly died all alone.

At which point Yubel snaps, hard.

While it's not Judai's fault entirely because he was a child and he didn't know what was going to happen, he still made the decision to abandon Yubel and stuck them in that situation. Judai's actions creaeted Yubel, and now Yubel is here broken and hurt and determined to hurt all of Judai's friends.

Judai doesn't know how to cope with the guilt or responsibility for either of these things. Both for creating Yubel, and for the fact that because of Yubel Johan might now be dead.

I'm the one who made her what she is!

This is where the show starts demonstrating that understand in darkness of the heart is necessary, because Judai can't understand two things, number one the fact he might have hurt Yubel, and two how to deal with the sense of responsibility he feels towards Yubel becoming what they are, and for Johan's apparent death.

He just feels a lot of guilt, and as someone who's only been the carefree hero up until this point he doesn't know how to deal with that guilt.

Judai makes a very similiar decision to Deku. He decides to go out and hunt for Johan by himself, leaving his friends behind so he won't risk their safety. Unlike Deku however, his friends immediately follow and insist on coming along.

This is when the problems start appearing, because the second everyone enters the Dark World to look for Johan, the show starts demonstrating clearly how different Judai's leadership is from Johan.

All of Judai's flaws start popping up, he's tactless, self-centered, and doesn't consider others feelings, and most importantly of all he doesn't look before he leaps. These behaviors that could earlier be swept under the rug, just become aggravated in a high stakes situation where everyone's lives are on the line. Judai came together with everyone to look for Johan, but he keeps acting like he's alone.

Another user's meta post here summarizes Judai's actions in the Different Dimmension, more succinctly so I'm going to quote them.

Shit Judai’s friends signed up for when they went into the Different Dimension with him:

searching for Johan

working as a team

deciding as a group what risks they’re willing to take

risking their lives together, on an even playing field

Shit Judai’s friends didn’t sign up for when they went into the Different Dimension with him:

having their input thoroughly ignored

being left behind while their friend recklessly charged ahead

having essential information kept from them (Judai didn’t tell them about the fatal consequences of dueling in Dark World)

being kept from dueling without their opinion on the matter ever being taken into account

having their physical, mental and emotional well-being be completely ignored by the de-facto group-leader

being relegated to secondary importance in comparison to Johan, in Judai’s eyes

having their group leader outright break the promises he made to them

To name a few things Judai does while in the different dimmension. Almost immediately after entering the dimension he runs away from the rest of the group, forcing Austin O'Brien to follow before anyone has even gotten their bearings or investigated where they are. Make an agreement with everyone to rest and wait for Dawn to search for Johan, only to run off into the middle of the night without telling anyone. Run off ahead of the group leaving several of their members behind, and when O'Brien tells Judai that members of their group are missing and that he should go back and search for them, Judai asks O'Brien to just do it instead.

Judai doesn't see the flaws in this behavior because it's how he's been acting all along, he always runs off into danger head first and he always fights on his own. Judai's never been good at considering the feelings of others though because he's a tad socially impaired, so he just doesn't seem to notice everyone's growing concerns with how he's acting.

Once again we are asked the question, is Judai's behavior selfish?

Judai deliberately abandons his friends three times, and the third time everyone stops to discuss his behavior.

Kenzan: True, we did come to this world to save Johan, saurus... Fubuki: He did find some minor clues as to Johan's whereabouts, so I suppose it's only natural, but... Asuka: But right now, I feel something is different about Judai. Menajoume: That's right. He got us all riled up about this, and now he's totally forgotten the comrades who came along with him. Kenzan: That's really irresponsible, Saurus. Fubuki: I don't mean to be a wet blanket, but I wish he'd realize the anguish he's putting us through. Asuka: Judai isn't doing this for Johan or us now. It's for himself. He just seems to be rushing forward, headlong, to forget the responsibility he bears on his shoulders.

The answer now is yes, his motivation is selfish because it's no longer about saving Johan, but just to stop himself from feeling guilty.

The stress of the situation is aggravating Judai's worst qualities yes, but Judai's always thought about himself first before others, he's always viewed his friends more as burdens / people to be saved rather than equals.

This all leads to a situation where Judai messes up big time. The same way he abandoned Yubel, he abandons the rest of his friends to run ahead and search for Johan.

They are all kidnapped - and it's Austin who notices they are missing Judai isn't even paying attention. Austin says they should head back and look for the others, but Judai asks Austin and Jim to handle that alone so he can keep searching for Johan.

Jim: The others haven't arrived yet. Something might have happned to them on the way. Judai: I see. Sorry, but could you go back and fetch them? Jim: What? You mean you don't care what happens to them? Austin: Don't forget these are the friends that are in this with you. To fulfill our objective in this dimmension we need everyone working together. You wait here until we return. Judai: Okay, I will.

Austin and Jim agree to go back and search for the others, if Judai promises to wait for them here instead of going on ahead. A promise which Judai immediately breaks.

Which is how Judai walks right into a trap.

Judai abandons his friend so they get kidnapped. He doesn't go back to look for them, so he misses out on a chance to save them. He doesn't wait for Austin and Jim to come back, and because of that he wanders all alone into a trap.

That trap is a sacrifice ritual where the leader Brron challenges him to a duel, and every time Judai attacks one of his friends are sacrificed. Judai is forced to attack and each friend dies one by one.

Judai didn't want to attack, he didn't choose to sacrifice his friends, but he did make every decision leading up to that. The trap was easily avoidable if he 1) didn't leave his friends behind 2) went looking for his friends after they were left behind or 3) waited for Jim and Austin to come back.

Judai didn't mean to sacrifice his friends, but it's a result of his own bad decisions. It's the culmination of an arc where he's been selfishly taking his friends for granted. It's a consequence for Judai just choosing to recklessly barrel forward because he can't cope with his guilt.

Judai's lack of darkness of the heart really dooms him here, because he was blind to his own flaws until it was too late. This isn't even the part where Judai does the bad thing, Judai's careless actions lead to four of his friends dying but he doesn't learn from his mistakes. He snaps, hard.

Judai: But at least I avenged them. Sho I'm really glad you're alive. Sho: Those words... they're just lip service. Bro... bro, you're selfish. Before now, I thought of you as the sun. Someone who gave others energy and made the impossible possible. But, I was wrong. All you care about is getting your way. You don't care who you sacrifice. You'll do anything in the name of your goal. Avenging them won't bring back the people you sacrificed. You're just dueling to satisfy yourself. Judai: O'brien! Austin: I thought I told you to wait. Judai: Are you saying what I did was wrong? Austin: Think it over for yourself. Judai: Why? What did I do that was so wrong? I... I did the right thing! And yet... everyone keeps leaving me! What... What is wrong with me? Supreme King: Yuki Judai. To be willing to be evil to defeat evil. This world exemplfiies survival of the fittest. It must be ruled with power. Judai: Power? I don't have that much power... Supreme King: You hold the Super Polymerization card in your hand. Defeat the spirits that stand against you. Breathe their lives into it and complete that card.

After this point Judai decides to sacrifice everything else for power, and to complete the Super Polymerization card he's already sacrificed four friends four.

It's the culmination of an arc where Judai's only been praised for his strength and his ability to win duels. Where he constantly has been called to win duels to solve problems, until that stops working. When everyone is gone, all that's left is his strength. He had to keep winning to keep people safe, but even that wasn't enough, he was still missing something.

He knew he was missing something, that there was something wrong with him and he didn't know where to look.

Conclusion?

He needed power. If he had power, then he wouldn't have lost. If he had power then everything would have turned out alright. He didn't have the strength to carry everyone's burdens for them, that's why he lost, so what he needs is more power. He's been demanded to win, win, and win again so now winning is all that matters.

Now we have our second question: Is Judai's hero complex a good thing?

That's a definite no, because the pressure to always win, to always save everyone and carry their responsibilities has now completely broken Judai. To the point where he now believes that the only thing good about himself is that he's powerful, but he now is willing to sacrifice others to gain more power.

My name is the Supreme King.

Now here's the best part about Judai actively having a villain arc.

He does bad thngs. He does a lot of bad things.

It turns out when you're abandoned and left alone to suffer you do bad things, crazy that, I'm sure Yubel would have a lot to say about that.

Judai is also not being possessed in this scenario. They state it several times. You could say he's Shadow possessed in a Jungian sense. The supreme King is the symbolic embodiment of all of Judai's flaws that he's been ignoring until now. You could say Haou is representative of Judai's subconscious that has been repressed for so long until all those flaws finally surfaced, and that the Judai we see on a day to day basis is his ego, that the relationship between the two is a metaphor for conscious and subconscious.

Jim does a deep dive into Judai's mind, where we're shown a symbolic sequence of what the inside of his head looks like. Judai witnesses his friends appear in mirrors before they shatter one by one, all while he mumbles about how he needs to get stronger.

These are all storytelling devices to show Judai's fractured psyche, but Judai is still in control of his actions. Judai talks and responds to questions when he's addressed. Judai's friends confirm that it's still Judai, he's not a puppet or possessed.

Misawa says later to Judai's face that he and the supreme king are the same person. Judai later is able to use the Supreme King's powers and maintain complete control, because the Supreme King isn't a split personality. Judai even says when Amon is sacrificing someone he loved for power, that he was doing the same thing as the Supreme King, sacrificing everything for power.

We later learn that the ritual that sacrificed four of Judai's friends was a part of Yubel's schemes, but that's the only thing Yubel set up. Judai made every bad irresponsible decision that led to his friends being captured. Judai was the one who snapped and decided to complete Super Polyermization after it was completed. Learning Yubel was behind the sacrifice ritual doesn't take away any agency from Judai at all, because Judai is responsible for his own decisions.

What it does do is create another parallel between them, because we learn the reason Yubel set up the sacrifice was to make Judai walk the same path that they did.

Judai is hurt, abandoned and isolated and in that situation he ends up lashing out at everyone around him in a similiar manner to Yubel. When Judai is put through similiar trauma, he doesn't overcome it in some heroic way because he's an innately good person, no he succumbs and behaves in ways that are incredibly similiar to Yubel.

Even when Judai's friends selflessly try to help Judai, he resists them every step of the way. He ignores their constant calls to him, their comfort, and he even fights them. Judai is eventually reached by the efforts of Jim and Austin combined, but they both die in the effort. Judai is saved because Jim and Austin were way better friends to him than he was to them.

Judai is effectively snapped out of his destructive spiral, but he's left alone with the sobering realization of everything he's done and the blood of two more friends on his hand.

When it's time for our hero to finally face Yubel, he no longer has the moral highground. Now when he faces Yubel it's not as hero and villain, they're just two sides of the same coin. Two people who when they were abandoned, lashed out and hurt everyone around them.

The question is no longer can Judai save Johan. The question now is whether Judai can live with the guilt he's carrying within him, and for that matter can Yubel live with the guilt of what they've done now too?

By this point Judai's been completely deconstructed. He's no longer the hero of the story, he's just a flawed person who needs to fix his flaws. He has the choice to live with his mistakes, and the biggest conflict now is whether he's going to save his villain foil Yubel, or strike them down in order to save the rest of his friends (the three that are left).

This also creates a much more compelling reason for Judai to save Yubel. Not just because Judai is responsible for Yubel's creation, but because they've both made the same mistakes, they have the same traumas and the same scars. Jim and Austin were willing to risk everything to save Judai even when he didn't deserve it, and didn't want it. Now is Judai capable of doing the same thing, of reaching Yubel the way he was reached, not for the sake of saving the world but for helping a friend?

I just want to save my friend. That's all.

This is to me a very compelling setup for the challenge of whether or not Yubel can be saved. Judai's not really saving a helpless victim, he's not acting out of a sense of duty to sacrifice himself for the world, he's being challenged to save someone who suffers from all the same flaws that he does. Judai and Yubel are so similiar at this point it's really just Judai saving himself.

The Dark Deku Arc - Setup

This is the part where I'm actually going to praise MHA. Shocking I know. Season 1 and 2 of Yu-Gi-Oh GX are about 105 episodes in total. The Dark Deku arc begins at about episode 131 with Deku's decision to leave the hospital by himself to hunt down Shigaraki and AFO alone and try to understand villains better.

The 130 episodes up until that point are much better build up, than the first 105 episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh GX. To put it frankly GX is paced like ass. There's far too much filler, and because of that the plot points the anime is trying to make are delivered less efectively. In fact 105 is a good example of what I said above, that ideas are one thing and execution are another.

Season 2 especially is a season filled with good ideas and weak execution due to pacing. Here's one I use as a go-to example. There's a character named Edo Phoenix who's on a quest to find who killed his father. The ending of his plotline is he discovers that in a twist, the man who adopted him is the one who killed his father, and he's been encouraging Edo to investigate because it lets him spy on the police investigation and keep it off his tail.

That's a good twist - however that twist happens in the same episode that Edo's adoptive father is introduced. The audience is given literally no time to even get to know Edo's adoptive father, or get invested in their relationship so the twist doesn't hit at all. A better paced story would show Edo's relationship to his adoptive father early on, get you invested in them, only to pull the rug out from under you so you would feel the shock of that betrayal alongside Edo.

GX establishes its character cast, and yes the filler does give the cast time to breathe and they're all well characterized but because the plot around them is so poorly structured, none of the plot points really hit. Okay, Edo's adoptive dad is evil. Next! You can have good characters, but if you don't put them in a strong narrative framework that challenges them then those characters are just gonna kinda sit there.

The first 105 episodes of Yu Gi Oh GX does succesfully characterize most of the main cast, but it also feels like everyone's just goofing around. In comparison the first 135 episodes of MHA much more successfully builds an escalating conflict. Each new arc either introduces you to a new facet of the world, makes the amin characters more complex, or adds to the conflict.

We basically go from arc 1 "The hero high school is fun" to Arc 2 "The villains are a serious threat" to the Camp Arc "Oh shit, Shigaraki is learning and the villains are getting stronger."

When Bakugo is kidnapped at the end of the camp arc, the tension is ramped way up with the appearance of AFO, and All Might's retirement.

After that point we're introduced to the Overhaul arc, which not only again makes the League of Villains more complex and sympathetic, but also introduces the audience to All Might's more flawed side - the fact that All Might literally worked himself to death saving others and it still didn't work.

Then My Villain Academia -> The Villains are now a threat and they have an army.

Each arc builds on a previous arc, the characters and the world grow more complex, and it feels like you're learning about these complex issues alongside the characters. It just makes Yu Gi Oh Gx look like the silly card games show by comparison, by setting up this very layered world, and conflict, and heroes that challenge the protagonists on what it means to be a hero and what it means to be a victim.

Then all of that great setup.

We are side by side with the proagonist. We, like Deku now want to see if someone like Shigaraki can be saved. We, alongisde Deku want to better understand the villains and learn to see them as people. We want to know if the corrupt hero system can be salvaged.

However, these are too many questions so let's boil it down to two once more, because this is looking at Deku's character.

Deku and Judai are in some ways different as night and day. Deku is an introverted nerd and the victim of bullying, and he starts out with no quirk at all. Judai is a self-confident, charismatic prodigy who instantly seems to charm and befriend everyone around him. Deku desperately wants to be the hero and works his way up there, whereas Judai is just kind of thrown into the school hero because he's the best at dueling.

Judai is kind of a mix of Bakugo and Deku's traits, he's a self confident prodigy who always wins, but he's also someone obsessed with heroes and who has a hero-complex where he's continually forced to save others.

The Dark Deku arc, like the Supreme King Arc looks to take a darker, more introspective look at Deku's character, while also exposing Deku who is a sheltered kid to the a very grey on grey world. It also seeks to deconstruct Deku's suposed "hero complex". Despite the many differences between Deku and Judai I believe the two questions an be boiled down to the same thing.

Is Deku Selfish?

Is Deku's hero complex a bad thing?

These are the questions the series itself is asking in the deconstruction of Deku's character. Deku himself is asking if there's a better way to save villains tha just beating them down or outright killing them, but we'll discuss that later.

Just like Judai there is some setup before this to give a previously very one-note Shonen protagonist mor depth. Deku and Judai are both people who fit the determined, punchy, solve everything fist fight shonen protagonist to a T, on top of being the one to always show up to fight for their friends. Just like in the beginning of season 3, we do have some hints before this that there's something wrong with this attitude. That there's something about Deku that's not entirely there.

There's a flashback of All Might talking with Bakugo where Bakugo discusses that the fact that Deku never takes cares of himself or factors himself into the equation when he always puts others first deeply bothers him and there's "something wrong with it" that's made him always push Deku away.

This flashback also leads into a scene where Bakugo pushes Deku out of the way of one of AFO's attacks, telling him to "stop trying to win this on his own." In an attempt to make Deku see that he's not fighting alone this time.

Deku has also been warned repeatedly about the way his power destroys his own body when he uses it, warnings he's repeatedly chosen to ignore. Saving others isn't just a goal for Deku, you could arguably say it's a method of self-harm and that's what unnerves Bakugo. Bakugo even gave a similiar speech in the past, about how someone like Deku shouldn't take all of the bullying that Bakugo has given him over the years and still try to be his friend afterwards. At this point it's not really like Bakugo's done anything other than tone down the constant insults a little bit, he hasn't apologized or anything but even this early in the manga Deku has a tendency to just let Bakugo's treatment of him go. It's not like they were super best friends forever before the bullying started either despite what the shippers might tell you. Bakugo is saying it's weird that this kid just takes it, and takes it, and takes it without fighting back like he doesn't care about how people treat him and Bakugo is right... that is weird!

Deku either has such low standards for how he's treated that he just lets Bakugo get away with it, or he just doesn't hold a grudge when he is mistreated because his pain and his suffering just always matters less. Either way it's not healthy, and it could be indicative of a deeper problem hiding behind the surface.

Either way there's setup here, because on one hand you have everyone and their grandma praising Deku for his "drive to save others that eclipses all common understanding."

While at the same time he's criticized by Bakugo for having no regard for others. This could be the setup for the character trait that led to his earlier success leading to his downfall later. In Judai's case, everyone praises his purity of heart, but then that purity is later criticized as childishness, naivete and a refusal to grow up.

As for Deku...

How can you protect others if you can't even bother to protect yourself? How can you save others if you can't save yourself? That's the question Touka asked of Kaneki in Tokyo Ghoul when she rightly called out his desire to protect everyone at the Anteiku Cafe as just a roundabout way of getting himself hurt by acting recklessly.

In Kaneki's case he's not trying to protect anybody, he's just picking battles against the doves and getting himself hurt. He's acting out a hero complex in the sense that if he feels like he didn't fight his friends battles for them like Judai then he wouldn't have any friends to begin with. That's why Touka also says "Besides that, everyone doesn't belong to you. You have no business protecting us."

Is Deku fighting for the same reason? Does he harm himself to protect others because he views himself to be worthless and the only way to demonstrate his worth is try and fight to save others?

We don't get an answer for that question. Judai thinks duels are fun, and he's really good at them, and because he's good at dueling he's made friends. He think to keep those friends he has to keep dueling for the sake of others.

Deku's not motivated by the idea of protecting or keeping his friends, that's a secondary motivation. All we have on Deku is that he feels a strong desire to save others, and that he worshipped heroes like All Might growing up but has a naive idea of what a hero is supposed to be. However, his lack of motivation could be the "something that's missing" just like Judai has.

The GX writers did some hardcore digging into Judai's character by focusing on how shallow he was in motivation compared to everyone else, and showing that to be a symptom of his childish naivete.

There's also the potential parallel between All Might and Nighteye's breakup, and Deku's decision to leave all his friends behind to hunt for Shigaraki himself.

Even if Deku doesn't have a deeper motivation than just "an unnatural drive to save others" then you could show the effects of Deku walking down the same path that All Might did, the belief that he has to be the one to save everyone singlehandedly and if he rests for a single moment than someone might die, leads to him not only destroying his body, but also doing permanent damage to all of his social relationships.

Even if Deku's motivation isn't too deep, you could still have the traits that led him to earlier success now driving him to ruin as the story punishes Deku for his excessive selfishness.

This is also where we finally get back to Deku's goal of understanding Shigaraki, and contemplating whether or not it's possible to save villains without killing them.

I draw a parallel between this and Judai's enemies calling him out on lacking "darkness of the heart" and that without understanding that darkness he can't win.

Judai's lack of darkness of the heart means two things, he's not mature enough to understand the reason why his enemies are fighting, and he's also not mature enough to se the darkness in his own heart which is why he ends up blind to his own flaws and making pretty severe mistakes later on.

For Deku, it's mainly a lack of understanding of the motivations of the villains he's fighting again, villains he's only ever really beat down with his fists until now.

However, for Deku lacking darkness of the heart you could also re-contextualize that as meaning because of his idealization of heroes he's never once looked at the darker sides of hero society that might have driven people into becoming villains.

Deku's lack of inner darkness may just come from the fact that compared to the villains he's fighting against, he's gotten to live a pampered life. Without understanding that darkness, he can't be a full person because he'll still be a naive sheltered child, and not an adult wise to the way the world works and the moral greys he inhibits. Either way, it's just as necessary for Deku to gain an understanding of "Darkness of the Heart' as it is Judai.

So here's all the setup for the start of Deku's Dark deconstruction arc. As different as these characters and scenarios you can still boil it down to those three narrative questions about Deku / Judai, is there behavior selfish? Are there hero compelexes a good thing? Do they need to understand darkness of the heart?

Before moving on I'm going to summarize Deku's setup as thus:

Deku's actions are selfless.

Deku's motivations are also selfless (a desire to save others).

Deku does not benefit from saving others in any way, if anything he actively harms himself in order to do so.

Bakugo finds this behavior incredibly disturbing.

All Might destroyed his body and burned all bridges because of similiar flaws to Deku.

So the answer to the first question is Deku selflish? No. Is his hero-complex a bad thing? Potentially.

While Deku himself decides that he needs to understand darkness of the heart in order to better understand villains. Deku is actually more set up to contemplate darkness of the heart than Judai is, because Judai charges into the dark world blindly with only the motivation of saving Johan not even caring for Yubel, while Deku has the explicit motivation of trying to understand the little boy inside Shigaraki.

DEKU LEFT THE HERO ACADEMY

Deku begins the arc by leaving alone to go searching for Shigaraki, with hand-written letters addressed to all of his friends that tell the truth about One for All and also say Goodbye. He makes the deliberate decision to leave them behind so they don't get targeted alongside of him. It's a pretty classical superhero motivation, I need to cut myself out of my loved ones life in order to protect them. Of course this sort of ignores that everyone in his class has super-powers too, but you know heroes they're all such drama queens.

Is this selfish behavior?

This is going to be the only time I'm going to solidly answer yes. Deku clearly did not take his friends feelings into account. His desire to protect them, is more important than their own agency. They also might want to fight alongside him, they'd be upset if they saw him die or get hurt trying to protect them. Deku thinks of his own feelings of wanting to keep them safe and not being able to handle the emotional burden of protecting him, more than he does their own personal feelings.

This is also something that All Might did they permanently burned all of his bridges with his sidekick and friends, and deeply hurt his sidekick who was just asking him to take a break so he did not get himself killed and quit because he didn't want to watch All Might slowly kill himself by inches.

Deku is being selfish here, and later on when he does face his friends he even acts pretty condescending belittling them and insisting they can't fight on their own or keep up with him.

However, I need to ask a secondary question.

Is there any lasting consequences for this selfish behavior?

Besides the fact that it hurt his friends feelings for a little bit, no. I spent a much longer time covering this in Judai's sections because Judai's selfish behavior led to character conflicts. Judai disregarding his friends led to everyone starting to resent him in the Dark World, and their once tight-knit friend group further falling apart.

Judai on three seperate occasions makes impulsive decisions to run ahead without consulting with the group. The second time he outright lies to the group and sneaks ahead without them. THe second time all of his friends are captured when they go after him and try to follow him to give their support because they're worried about him. The third time he makes the decision to run ahead, he knows about the danger they're in and the risk of getting captured and he just blatantly ignores them. When Austin notices they're missing Judai doesn't even go looking for them because they're not a priority at this point - saving Johan is.

This is something that has very real and lasting consequences in the story, they're captured because of his recklessness, and sacrificed in front of his eyes. Even though they technically come back in season 4, the trust between Judai and his friends is all but gone and he's alone for a lot of Season 4.

Judai's decision to abandon his friends has direct and lasting consequences. He is being punished for his hero complex. Running ahead, and fighting alone against the bad guys is what Judai has always done and what's worked before, but now in a more complicated world it's not cutting it and Judai is being challenged for his flaws.

Deku hurts his friends feelings a little bit, but even in that case the focus is on how sad it is for Deku, how hard it must be to be a noble hero fighting alone.

Deku's Mary Jane and Spiderman bullshit never impacts his friends directly, other than the fact that they find it slightly condescending. His "I need to keep secrets from my loved ones attitude" is challenged because his friends want to fight alongside him, but there's never any narrative punishment delivered to him. It's just solved with one fight scene and a character holding out their hands. Whereas, the consequences for Judai's rash actions last two seasons.

I call it "Mary Jane and Spiderman" Bullshit, because Spiderman keeping his identity a secret from all his loved ones is a big conflict in the comics. Something that got Gwen Stacy killed, because Peter Parker never told her his identity in order to protect her, and then that just ended up with Norman Osborne finding out about her anyway and kidnapping and killing her.

You might have heard of the "Death of Gwen Stacy" it's a pretty famous moment in comics. It's also a case where it shows that the Hero's failure to communicate honestly with their loved ones in the name of "Protecting Them" can actually get them killed.

There's even consequences in MHA itself for heroes choosing to sacrifice their personal lives to help complete strangers. Shigaraki literally made a whole speech about it. Kotaro Shimura is traumatized for life over his mother's decision to abandon him instead of giving up on being a hero. Nana Shimura believed she was doing something selfless in sending her child into foster care to keep him out of AFO's clutches, but that was shown to be wrong as AFO just found Kotaro's household and then destroyed him later on in adulthood anyway.

So in the story we are shown scenarios where choosing to abandon your loved ones in the name of "protecting them" can have disastrous and lasting consequences, but as for Deku himself, the decision to leave the school has basically no consequences whatsoever.

Well, Deku making the decision to fight alone is something that might lead to some consequences. After all, Judai's breakdown came about because he always felt the pressure to fight alone and carry everyone's weight on his shoulders until he couldn't.

Perhaps, with Deku fighting alone to protect everyone we'll reach a similiar breaking point. Just as Judai couldn't handle carrying everyone's burdens, looking for Johan, and leading his friends into the Dark World all that the same time and eventually broke down maybe we'll see Deku break down because he just like All Might can't carry the burdens of an entire nation - oh wait nevermind he's working with the Top 3 Heroes.

Even the premise that this is Deku leaving the school, to become something like a vigilante wandering the countryside trying to fight AFO on his own is just incorrect because Deku is receiving government assistance right now.

In the Dark World it was really just Judai and his friends, so every single bad decision Judai made had consequences because they were well and truly alone. Deku has backup so he's not even really "alone" in the arc that's supposed to be about him fighting AFO and trying to understand Shigaraki alone.

ALL YOU'LL FIND IS BLOOD AND VIOLENCE

Let's briefly focus on questions two and three, is Deku's hero complex bad, and does Deku need to understand darkness of the heart?

Judai's hero complex was based on the idea that if he wanted to have friends he needed to fight for them and solve their problems for them.

Judai got in such an unhealthy negative feedback loop, that he had to carry his friends burdens in order to maintain his friendships with them, but at the same time he couldn't receive any help from them because he made their friendship all about him carrying their burdens. He was operating underneath an amazing pressure to always win until he lost. The very thing he did to try to maintain his friendships, keeping his friends at arm's length and fighting alone is exactly what ends up driving them away and leaving him alone.

But, still...! They're all... They're all gone. There really was something missing in me. But what is it? What was missing? What should a duelist burden themselves with?

Judai paradoxically fights alone in order to keep his friend group together, which only ends up with him losing four friends and being abandoned by the rest when they're disappointed for him in his selfish behavior. Judai screams out why, realizing he did something wrong here, that something went wrong because he's been winning duels, he's been fighting the same way he did before only to end up with the worst option possible. The realization that he is truly alone breaks him down entirely.

Judai's hero complex unwravels when simply charging ahead to fight doesn't work for him anymore, because the situation becomes more complicated than that. Darkness of the heart can mean many things. Judai not understanding his own personal flaws. Judai not seeing how his flaws are affecting others. Judai not looking at other people's emotions, he doesn't hear or respond to criticism when his friends start trying to tell him how is selfish decisions making is making them feel.

I can't just stay and wait. All this time I've run on instinct, never second-guessing myself. If I just stand still now... I'm sure I won't be able to start running again. And I won't be able to get to Johan.

Judai's hero complex has a clear source - he believes he has to keep running ahead and fighting for his friends the same way he always has in order to keep those friends and if he stops he'll lose everything / succumb to the guilt he now feels about being uanble to save Johan. His Hero Complex also has clear consequences, him running ahead without thinking gets all of his friends kidnapped and used in a sacrifice ritual that could have been avoided if he had made different choices.

Spiderman kills Gwen Stacy because Peter Parker deciding to not tell her about his secret identity to protect her backfired and made her an easy target to the Green Goblin.

Heck, Spiderman's entire character is about how the burden of being Spiderman and his Hero Complex constantly sabotages any attempt he makes at having a personal life. Miguel O'Hara's catchphrase in the incredibly popular Spiderman movie is that "Being Spiderman is a sacrifice" and he's not wrong either.

SO, is the narrative punishing Deku's hero complex in any way?

Well, the one warning he did receive that if he kept fighting he'd lose permanent loss of his arms turns out to not matter anymore because his body is just stronger now.

So, even the phyiscal toll of fighting alone that's a consequence for Deku doesn't actually apply here.

I keep talking about consequences but what do I actually mean? Am I talking about strictly punishment? Do bad things need to happen to characters in order to get their lessons?

Not necessarily.

When I say "consequences" I mean in terms of actions always having consequences in a story. The best stories are succinct, that means you basically cut down in as many frivolous details in a story as much as possible so everything that happens onscreen is something that matters and contributes to the whole. Therefore, every action should have a consequence directly seen onscreen in story. Stories are all actions and consequences, the choices the characters make should have direct impact on the plots and the other characters because it makes those choices seem like they matter.

If the story constantly draws attention to the fact that Deku is afraid of ducks, but the story takes place on the moon and there are no ducks living on the moon then that's a wasted plot thread because there are no consequences. If a character does something bad, other characters should discuss it, or it should negatively impact them in some way.

When Judai decides to run ahead without all of his friends for the first time after they all agreed on a plan, the result is the next episode they all start talking about their shared doubts with Judai when he's not around. If they all just swept Judai abandoning them under the rug, then Judai running ahead and leaving the others alone doesn't feel like an impactful character flaw.

There's no lasting consequence for Deku's hero complex. It doesn't drive him to any kind of breaking point like it does Judai.

I think the reason why is because there's no real moment of failure for Deku. When he tries to ask Muscular why he fights, and Muscular rejects him and says that he was just born evil and has no deeper motivations, Deku's not frustrated at all.

Deku who feels a "unnatural desire to save others" isn't really bothered by the fact that Muscular insists that he can't be saved and that they can only fight. Despite this technically being a failure, Deku has failed to talk a villain down, failed to find a way other than fighting and also failed to understand the darkness in someone's heart it's of little consequence because it's not framed as a failure.

Deku just punches Muscular, back to the drawing board.

There's another manga called Choujin X running right now, where the main character is on a similiar quest trying to see if there's a way they can save the big bad Sora Shihouhin, and when he is forced to fight against a villain who won't back down, de-escalate, or listen to reason he has a complete emotional breakdown.

This is the reaction of someone who's genuinly invested in the idea of saving the villain, and frustrated with the reality that he might not be able to save her, that he can't talk to the villains or convince them to back down. Tokio's not even characterized by an unnatural desire to save others like Deku is, so why is he the one breaking down and not Deku someone apparently so selfless that he wants to save the mass murderer that's trying to destroy society?

If Deku's desire to save others is so strong why doesn't he show frustration at being unable to talk down, or understand Muscular?

Judai is stuck in a negative feedback loop where he's forced to fight for others, because he believes he has no worth to his friends otherwise. All we're told of why Deku feels the need to save everyone around him is that he's just like that, he just feels like saving everyone no matter who they are the moment they come into view.

If we're choosing to characterize Deku that way, then number one he should be attempting to save everyone, and number two the stress of having to save everyone is something that should get to him. His "Hero Complex" should be what's breaking him down at the moment. The unnatural desire to save everyone around him that led him to so much success should be what's punishing him this arc.

Judai felt pressure from two aspects, first the pressure to carry everyone's burdens, and second the lack of understanding of darkness of the heart. Unlike Judai who doesn't want to understand darkness and who avoids it as long as possible, Deku goes into this arc actively seeking to understand how his villains think.

Deku and Judai also suffer from a lack of darkess in their own hearts. This leads to them having empty motivations. Judai has a childish desire to enjoy fun duels. Deku has a childish desire to save everyone. Neither of them have tried to grow or change or even question those motivations in any way and because of that they're stunted people.

Judai doesn't know why he fights. He doesn't question why he fights. He just takes on the burdens of others to give him something to fight for. This all together leaves Judai blind to his own personal darkness, and also because of that blindness he can't grow in any way because he never evaluates himself, he never looks at himself and tries to change.

When he's on his knees and at his breaking point he screams at the top of his lungs, "WHY? WHAT AM I MISSING? WHAT DID I DO WRONG?" simply because Judai's never thought about these things.

Deku's asked these same questions both in the Dark Deku arc, and hundreds of chapters later he's asked what he's planning on doing as a hero in order to make things better and Deku never materializes an answer.

Pre-Dark Deku Arc, during Dark-Deku Arc and Post Dark Deku arc, Deku always solves his problems by recklessly jumping in and saving others. There's never any point where he's punished or criticized for this behavior in any significant lasting way. He never has to self reflect and develop a reason on why he wants to save others, or eve think about how he's going to save others, he can just keep acting as the rash, impulsive hero.

Judai and Deku are both characters who are empty, and lacking in motivation but Judai is ruthlessly criticized for that until he reaches his breaking point and is forced to look at his motives.

This once again comes from a lack of failure on Deku's part. Deku never fails the way that Judai does. There's a scene where you could have easily had Deku fail. The entire Nagant vs. Deku fight where Deku fails to give her any substantive answers to his questions.

Imagine if Deku's simple philosophy of always extending a helping hand failed here. Imagine if Deku actually got deeply ivnested in the idea of saving Lady Nagant, and did his beset to talk and reach out to her but his answers weren't enough and because of that she just chooses something like suicide. Imagine he has her by the hand, and she's dangling off of the roof and he thinks that his impressive move to save her should have been enough - he's reached out a hand like always. He thinks this should have won her heart over, by showing her that someone still cares in all of her despair.

Then, Nagant in one final spiteful move lets go. The person he heard her entire backstory, the person maybe he once was a huge fan of her when she wasa hero, the person he wants to save the same way he wants to save Shigaraki chooses to let go and fall to her death because dying would be better than living in whatever kind of corrupt world that Deku is trying to build.

This could be Deku's Gwen Stacy moment. Spiderman carelessly webs Gwen Stacy whe she's falling to catch her and for a moment he thinks he's saved her because he's overconfident and has caught people falling like this a thousand times, only to find out he's snapped her spine. His overconfidence, his hero complex making him believe everything magically would work out led Gwen Stacy to her death. This could show the simple act of just offering a hand out to someone in need isn't enough, without empathy and understanding.

Instead, AFO just blows Nagant up in Deku's face.

Except, that isn't even a failure bcause Nagant turns out to be just fine! There's no point in blowing up Nagant except for the spectacle of it, because she turns out to be fine five minutes later and even shows up to fight in the next arc.

There's no consequencs to anything that happens in this scene. Deku doesn't suffer any consequences for being blind to the faults of society. (He's working right alongisde a killer cop just like Nagant and he doesn't even care.) Deku isn't forced to reflect on what saving people or making society better would even mean. He also isn't punished for his lack of understanding the way that Judai is.

Afterwards, Deku denies help to a very mentally-ill Overhaul, who is apparently not one of the villains that Deku wanted to save. There's a whole buch of asterisks on that "Deku wants to save everyone***" goal. This also isn't framed or used to paint Deku in a bad light because Overhaul is unworthy of salvation in Deku's eyes for hurting Eri.

Is this action part of an arc? Is Deku reaching his limit with trying to sympathize with villains only to see people like Overhaul and Muscular fighting him every step of the way and telling him they don't want to change?

Nope, this scene is never brought up again.

Deku never fails, and he never does anything wrong. Even when there are situations where you could argue he does do soemthing wrong, like denying the armless, mentally ill Overhaul help - he's not painted as being in the wrong.

The entire arc is supposed to be about criticizing the protagonist for their hero complex, and their lack of understanding of the darkness of the world but for Deku there's no criticism to be had here.

Compare this to the sacrifice ritual in the Supreme King Arc, where not only does Judai fail to save his friends, but the friends that survive ruthlessly tear into him aftewards for his selfish behavior. THe actions of one protagonist matter, have consequences in the story and are criticized. The actions of another protagonist have no real consequences and are never criticized.

The whole mansion blows up and... nothing happens. No one's injured in the explosion. It may as well have not happened in the story because there are no consequences for Deku just continually choosing to blindly run ahead like his hero complex tells him to.

There's evena moment where Deku winds up in a similiar situation to the dark ritual. After receiving information from Nagant, he blindly wanders into a mansion in Haibori woods believing it to be AFO's base, only to find out it was a trap and AFO was waiting for him to blindly charge in all along.

THAT'S WHAT MAKES US HEROES AND VILLAINS

This is where I'm going to talk about another big similarity between Deku and Judai, and also the biggest point of divergence in the Dark Deku and Supreme King Haou arcs.

Deku and Judai are both character foils with Shigaraki and Yubel respectively. This is where I'm going to praise MHA again, surprising everyone.

The foiling between Shigaraki and Deku is masterful. They both started out in relatively the same place, as boys with dreams to become heroes who were softly told no by their parents. Tragedy struck Shigaraki and he killed his family on accident and wound up alone wandering the street for days until he was found by AFO.

They're both the students of the greatest hero and villain of the last generation. They both end up being surrounded by a group of close Nakama that they want to protect. They're both continually challenged to grow up, and show how they're going to be better than their predecessor for the hero and villain sides respectively. They both have to prove they are worthy successors. Shigaraki has all the heroic spunk and determination that Deku has but on the villain's side, and while Deku loves heroes, Shigaraki is hero society's critic wants to bring down the hero system that didn't save him.

You get the feeling that Shigaraki really is Deku just in a different situation, a same person on the opposite sides of the conflict kind of character foiling.

As the biggest Yubel stan here, in some ways the foiling for Shigaraki works better than the foiling for Yubel because Shigaraki isn't just Deku's foil, he's the foil for all of society. Yu-Gi-Oh Gx takes place in a society run where everything centers around card games, it's not really that deep. In My Hero Academia you have that 100 episodes of great setup where Deku is not only learning to look at the darkness within himself, but also the darkness within hero society around him.

Judai's narrative as much as I love it, is entirety about Judai.

Not only could Dark Deku arc develop Deku's character, it could also say something deeper about the world it's taking place it, because Deku has all these connections to Shigaraki, who also kind of represents the orphaned boy failed on all levels by the society around him.

Shigaraki is the shadow of -> Deku, but also Shigaraki is the shadow of -> all of society.

Yubel is the shadow of -> Judai, and only relates to Judai's personal growth.

Yubel is Judai's personal villain, and was created by his actions as a child. His decision to abandon Yubel into space, led to Yubel being tortured and their later madness.

Yubel is also Judai's shadow. They carry all the same flaws, but those flaws are obvious in Yubel and repressed in Judai. Yubel's belief is that Judai is someone who purposefully enjoys hurting their friends, and that's how he shows his love. While that's twisted it's not hard to see how Yubel came to that conclusion. After all, Yubel loved Judai so much only for Judai to abandon them and turn a blind eye to their suffering. In the Dark World, Judai abandons his other friends continually in order to search for Johan, and they wind up suffering too.

While Judai doesn't sadistically enjoy hurting others as Yubel put it, there's an element of truth to Yubel's criticism. Judai does abandon people, Judai isn't as empathic as he seems to be. When Judai is subjected to the same kind of isolation and abandonment that Yubel has endured for the past ten years, Judai loses his mind a whole lot quicker and starts lashing out at everything around him the same way Yubel has. Judai without the love of his friends starts to hurt everyone around him in his lashing out, the same way that Yubel desperate for love starts to inflict pain on the people she loves. Even before the ritual happened, Judai was unwittingly hurting his friends with his own selfish behavior.

Yubel's stated criticism is "of Judai is "Anguish and sorrow born from loneliness. That is the nature of love as you taught it to me" and further beyond that "When you forgot about me, I suffered. It's hot. It hurts. I am in pain. Why? You know how much I love you? Why did you do this to me, Judai? In that moment I realized that was how you showed love. Because you loved me, you hurt me and made me suffer."

That sounds crazy, but hasn't Judai been hurting the people he loved for his own selfish reasons this entire arc? Is it that crazy then to conclude that neglect and abandonment must be how Judai treats everyone he loves, so surely he loves me.

One of the biggest criticisms of this arc is how Judai's behaviors impact his relationships, so of course his most personal villain and foil is his jilted ex nonbinary dragon lover. On a less joking note, when Yubel was displaying troubling behavior as a child, Judai's first response was to abandon them. Which is ironic for someone like Judai so paralyzingly afraid of being abandoned that he became everyone's workhorse and worked himself to death solving their problems for them. Who when abandoned by those friends finally, snaps just as hard as Yubel did when they were abandoned.

Do you see the parallel I'm drawing here? Judai is slotted into the spot of the protagonist who's friends with everyone he meets, who loves and fights for his Nakama. Yet under closer scrutiny he's shown that he doesn't really understand what love or friendship is or how to give and receive love from others in a healthy way. His antagonist is his former childhood best friend, who is obsessed with love and demands that Judai love them back. Judai's lack of understanding of relationships and love takes a dark twist with Yubel, their shadow, foil and antagonist.

These are once again very personal challenges to Judai, society doesn't really factor into this equation. Though, Judai is somewhat challenged as a hero because there's an irony to Judai plunging into the world to save his best friend Johan who he's known for like three weeks, but not really lifting a finger to save the antagonist of the arc Yubel who he's known since childhood and is personal responsible for putting through torture.

That hypocrisy there too, is a personal challenge to Judai that paints him in a less heroic light. He wants to save Johan and ignore Yubel because it's easier, because saving Johan relieves him of his guilt. He doesn't even know what to do about Yubel, so he doesn't try and falls back on his previously established behavior of playing the hero.

The hero is really just a mask for Judai at this point, something the story has ripped right off of his face by the time it comes to face Yubel.

There are two ways in which Yubel serves as an ultimate foil to Judai.

Yubel acts like a callout post to all of Judai's flaws

Yubel represents a dark path Judai could have taken.

This second one is what Shigaraki and Deku have in Common with Judai + Yubel. There's something deeply tragic about the idea that while Deku was making friends, getting taught by a loving teacher like All Might, Shigaraki was all alone being pushed by a ruthless manipulator like AFO into becoming the worst villain.

Judai and Yubel's lives follow the same tragic parallel path. They began in the same place as childhood friends, but after abandoning Yubel, Judai spent the next ten years growing up, making friends in a healthy and safe envirnoment while Yubel the one who was abandoned was alone in space desperately crying for Judai to come save them only to be ignored because Judai has long forgotten them.

However, there's a striking difference there too. Yubel is created directly by Judai's neglect and actions. Whereas Shigaraki is created by the neglect of all of society, it's not Deku's fault directly.

#1 Shigaraki acting as a callout post to Deku's Flaws

However, this is where Shigaraki's callout post comes in. Shigaraki gives a long speech on how the existence of heroes itself, creates villains like him.

"You heroes pretend to be society's guardians. For generations you pretended not to see those you couldn't protect and swept their pain under the rug. It's tainted everything you've built. That means your system's all rotten from the inside with maggots crawling out. It builds up little by little, over time, you've got the common trash all too dependent on being protected. And the brave guardians who created the trash that need coddling. It's a corrupt, vicious, cycle. Everything I've witnessed. This whole system you've built has always rejected me. Now I'm ready to reject it. That's why I destroy. That's why I take power for myself. Simple enough, yeah? You don't understand because you can't understand, that's what makes us heroes and villains."

To break it down simply, heroes look away from the faults in their society, they intentionally ignore the people they cannot save, and when those people turn into villains the heroes beat them down hard. The villain attacks then convince the common people of the need for heroes, and the cycle perpetuates itself. This is all powered by the people's blind, uncritical faith in heroes.

Deku is a person who has that same blind, uncritical faith in hereoes, and until this point has never thought of Shigaraki as anything more than a villain to be punched until he stops. Which is why this is still a callout post that applies to Deku, because Deku's blind admiration for the Hero System is part of the problem that enables the very flawed hero system.

Deku does not understand darkness of the heart, therefore Deku does not understand that heroes could possibly be bad, and he could possibly be supporting a bad system until he's slapped in the face with it.

However, is there a lasting consequence for Deku's blind support of the hero system?

Nope.

I just described up above what could have been a consequence, if Lady Nagant refused to have faith in Deku since he didn't back his words up with action.

Deku also clearly does not want to break away from the corrupt hero system that created Shigaraki, because the heroes that he brought along to fight with him are Endeavor, Hawks and Jeanist, a child abuser, a state sponsored murderer, and a guy who makes bad puns. He doesn't change any of his bahavior that enables the corrupt system to stay in power.

Not teaming up with the Top 3 heroes, and deciding to go full vigilante would have at least have been breaking away from that system.

This circles around to a big underlying problem in this whole arc in that Deku isn't really doing anything different from what he was doing before, and he's not punished for his character stagnancy either.

So we're left with.

#2 Shigaraki represents a dark path that Deku could have Taken

This is where Judai / Yubel succeeds and Shigaraki / Deku falls flat on its face.

When pushed to his absolute limit after failing repeatedly, Judai snaps. With no friends left he decides that all that matters is power. This path seems natural for him because we've already seen what being abandoned and left alone can do to a person and how it twisted Yubel. The story hints again and again at Judai's blood knight tendencies, and that he thinks the only thing he has of value to offer others is strength by fighting for them.

He loses his friends and the fighting is all he has left.

At the point of despair he decides to just embrace power. If he cares about nothing more than strength, at least that will give him some sense of control over his life after the out of control tragedy that happened to him.

"Yuki Judai. In order to defeat evil, one must become evil. In a world with the law of the jungle at work, one must rule with power." "Power? I don't have that kind of power." "In your hand lies the super polymerization card. Defeat any spirits who may oppose you, and combine their lives into it to perfect the card."

Supreme King is just a villain persona that Judai adopts to as a protetive blanket for all the hurt and pain they've gone through, just like ding, ding, ding, the villain persona Shigaraki Tomura is for Shimura Tenko.

Judai snapping under such intense pressure shows us that if even the faultless hero can snap, then how much can we blame the villain for snapping under similar circumstances? Maybe the reason both the hero and the villain fell is because they're both equally human and to fall down is human.

Deku never falls down as hard as Judai does. He doesn't even fall down and scrape his knee. There's no instance where he fails to save anyone. There's no instance where his actions hurt anyone. There's no instance where he takes things too far and hurts a villain. I kow it's unlikely for Deku to turn into a villain, but he could have at least gotten so frustrated he turned into a punisher style vigilante! Is that too much to ask?

There's not even a single moment where Deku goes too hard in a fight and injures or even kills a villain. They could have pulled an "I thought you were stronger" moment like in Invincible.

I don't know why this is called the Dark Deku arc because there's no darkness in Deku's heart for him to exploit, nor is he actually called to better his understanding of the darkness in others hearts. Judai understands Yubel's darkness because by the end of his personal arc he's been there, he's not the hero he's the atoner. He can either punish Yubel, or hold a hand out to help Yubel atone.

Deku's arc might as well be called the "My Little Pony Friendship is Magic Arc" because he never does or confronts anything dark. His worst crime is not showering. All that isolation and his repeatd failures in hunting AFO down should have worn Deku down, but it didn't because he's just that special of a boy!

Deku's hero complex also is completely uncriticized from beginning to finish. Judai's hero complex is an unhealthy behavior that utterly destroys him. Deku's hero complex is a job interview flaw.

FRIENDSHIP IS MAGIC

Just to hammer my point in I'd like to compare these two scenes. One is in the middle of the Supreme King Arc, the sacrifice ritual scene where all of Judai's friends are blaming him for the fact that they're about to be sacrificed while he's still trying to save them.

The second is the climax of the Dark Deku arc, where all of Deku's friends are showing up to fight him and convincing him to accept their help.

Just look at how vastly different these two shows treat their shonen protagonists when it comes to his flaws.

For the ritual sacrifice scene. This is immediately after Manjoume wakes up to find that he has been chained and kidnapped with Judai standing right there.

Judai: Sit tight! I'll save you soon! Manjoume: Wait, is he dueling? JUdai you damned idiot! Weren't you going to save Johan with us!? Getting yourself all flared up. You didn't even stop to think about us at all, did you? Judai: That's not it. Manjoume: That's just how you are! You were the only one in your kingdom from the get-go. We were the idiots for getting all motivated with you and feeling some sense of friendship with you being like that!

Then Judai watches helplessly as Manjoume dies. His other friends don't fare much better.

Kenzan: Big Bro? Why'd you want to save Freed's comrades when it meant sacrificing us-don!? Judai: You're wrong. That's not it. Fubuki: It's painful. This pain isn't just physical. It's the pain of a friends' betrayal that I have tearing my soul. apart. Asuka: I'm being betrayed and sent away by you. To think that I'll have to bear a sadness like this.

All of Judai's friends die spitting on him and telling him what a terrible friend he is and that this is all his fault. Which it is, because his decision to abandon them got them captured and led up to the sacrifice ritual.

Now, what scathing criticisms do our heroes have to give Deku after he left them all behind to fight Shigaraki alone?

Denki: Midoriya! We get that all for one is really importnat but you got something even more important in your life! Me and you we aint'g otta ton in common, but you're still a friend! Even if we gotta force this friendship down your throat. TodorokI: What a look you have on your face. Is this resposnibility so much that you can't let yourself cry? Seems like a burden you should share with the rest of us. Uraraka: The thing is Deku, we don't want to be protected by you and reject who you are and what you're doing, we just want to be with you (this part is narration).

Deku is told that none of his friends are mad, they want to be by his side no matter what, and that it's okay for him to cry.

I should also mention how underdeveloped this supposed nakama group is in the manga itself. The entirety of Season 3 of GX is tha the bond between Judai and his friends are more shallow then it appears, but he's also spent two whole seasons bonding with a group that consists of: Asuka, Sho, Kenzan, Fubuki, Manjoume. That's six people total including Judai who serve as is primary friend group. Their friendship is more unhealthy than it appears, but Judai has spent the past two seasons hanging out with one small friendgroup.

Meanwhile the entirety of Class 1-A shows up to tell Deku how much they love him and how much he means to them, and Deku's hung out with maybe like... four of them?

You have one bond shown to be how shallow it is, and one shallow bond treated like it's the deepest, most loving friend group in all of fiction. Deku doesn't even receive some lgiht criticism for how inftantalizing it was for him to abandon them for their own protection, because no one resents Deku or is capable of holding any negative or critical emotions towards him whatsoever. He's just told how much everyone loves him and wants him to come home.

And yes, Judai also does get two characters sacrificing themselves to try to reach him when he's the Supreme King.

However, as I stated above Jim sacrifices himself to help Judai because that's who JIm is as a person. Austin does it after Jim fails, both to honor his friendship with Jim, and also because of someone who got scared and ran he feels like he has to confront the darkness of the heart.

Jim and Austin O'brien's sacrifice is also a sacrifice. They died trying to save Judai, and Judai has to wake up with the knowledge that not only did he kill a bunch of people in his quest for power, he killed two more friends who were only trying to help him.

At the end of the arc, Judai has woken up with the knowledge that he has done bad things that can't be taken back and he's barely better than Yubel at this point.

At the end of the Dark Deku arc, Deku gets a speech from Uraraka about how amazing and selfless he is, and how he never gives up and how he always pushes forward, and how everyone at the UA shelter should appreciate him more.

The Supreme King arc exists to criticize Judai. The Dark Deku arc does nothing but flatter Deku from beginning to end.

Judai's hero mask is ripped off and he's forced to be a person. Deku's hero mask stays on, his hero complex is unchallenged, and he's praised for being teh greatest hero evarz.

I often get accused of not liking MHA simply because I expect it to be a different story than what it is. That I want it to be darker, when it's a more optimistic shonen manga.

However, here's my secret. I hate edgy superheroes. I don't like watching stuff like The Boys because it gets too dark for me. The oly reason I read invincible is because my friend told me that Omni-Man got a redemption arc. My favorite DC Superhero is Superman. My favorite Superhero of ALL TIME is Spiderman.

The thing about Spiderman though, is that it is hard to be Spiderman. The entire point of Peter Parker's character is that he has a terrible work/life balance and constantly loses people around him because being Spiderman is a sacrifice. The story doesn't bend over backwards to praise Spiderman as being a selfless hero, in fact it points out what a loser he is constantly. Peter Parker's friends are always frustrated with him and he's a wreck of a person.

Yet, the fact that being Spiderman is such a sacrifice and he keeps choosing to make it, shows what kind of person Peter Parker is, and that's just a person who does whatever he can to help out.

Even Peter Parker, the nicest, most well-intentioned boy ever has the Symbiote arc. One of the most famous arcs in comics dealing with Peter is when he lets Venom graft onto his suit, and even though the symbiote makes him violent, and makes his behavior change he spends the longest time not wanting to peel it off because the power boost the symbiote suit gave him made his life that much easier.

Dark Deku is an obvious reference to the Venom Suit, but a completely shallow reference because Dark Deku acts exactly the same as regular Deku the only reason he looks like that is he forgot to take a shower.

Superhero stories don't need to be Dark Deconstrutions, but they do need to be SOMETHING. They need to say something about the character. The problem with the Dark Deku arc isn't that Deku didn't experience a villain arc.

It's that nothing of consequence happened in the entire arc. Nothing changed. The story asked us if Deku's hero complex was a bad thing, and then it didn't deliver any answer. The story asked us if Deku needs to understand darkness better and then didn't answer that.

These are ideas that the audience promised were going to get answered. We were told Deku was going to get his development this arc that he was going to be pushed to the edge. The entire premise of this arc was that it was supposed to better help Deku understand Shigaraki and Hero Society only for Deku to not learn about either of those things.

Deku's learned nothing. We've learned nothing. Nothing has changed in the story itself. The only thing we've accomplished was wasting a lot of time that we could have been using watching Yu-Gi-Oh GX!

[writingwithfolklore]

Sequels and Series

              On one hand, a sequel can be easy because you already did the worldbuilding, character creation, etc. in the first book.

              On the other hand, expectations are high—both that the sequel be as good and consistent as the first book, while offering something new. There’s generally two kinds of sequels, ones that continue the world and characters but within a new journey (think Frozen 2 or the Percy Jackson books), and ones that continue the same journey set up in the first book (Hunger Games, or Divergent). Either way, your sequel is about your MC’s arc, so let’s get into it:

1. Leave room for greater change in the first book

              The first thing to consider when writing a sequel comes in writing the first book—obviously the world should leave room for more story in either style of sequel, but so should your character arcs. The first book needs to follow an arc that’s satisfying and fulfilled by the end, but still has room to grow and change in subsequent books.

              It’s important not to go backwards in the sequel and make your character forget what they learned just to learn it again.

              So, if in the first book your MC learns to be confident in themselves and trust their instincts, maybe in the sequel they are too overconfident, and need to learn to trust others’ ideas and suggestions. Or maybe a new situation means adjusting their old instincts that no longer apply. They shouldn’t start as unconfident again and have to relearn their lesson—they’re a changed, grown person continuing to change and grow.

              Otherwise, they may not fully complete their arc in the first book if you’re continuing the same journey in the second—this means you’ll have to plan out a lengthy and difficult arc that has the ability to hold up across several books.

2. But they’re still the same character

The arcs between books should be somewhat related—it would be odd if in the first book a character gets confident, and in the second, they learn something completely new and unrelated to their backstory or personality. If you feel like you’re creating a new character when working on the sequel, you’re probably adding too much.

This goes the same for continuing the same journey. Characters need to be relatively consistent across books, and their gradual change throughout the series should feel consistent, with none of the development happening off page.

3. Sequels/Series are harder to get published (as a first time author)

If you’re looking to get traditionally published for the first time, unfortunately your novel likely won’t/can’t be part of a series or made to have a sequel. It makes sense that an editor is putting a lot of trust and hope into your story to get it published—they aren’t going to sign on to a longer series (or even duology) that they don’t know will be successful. This means that you’re probably unable to do the second type of sequel (by ending on a major cliffhanger).

What you can do is have an ending that wraps up the story satisfyingly, but leaves a little bit of room to continue onto a sequel. If the first book is successful and your editor wants to sign you on for a sequel, you have room to write it. Or, in a lot of cases, you have to publish a few standalones before you build the reputation and trust to write your sequel.

Anything else I missed?

[vyl3tpwny]

wauitb what the fuck i have 5000 followers

this is insane hi guys

to celebrate 5000 followers on tublr here are some facts about myself: - my favourite food is fried chicken

- my favourite food is spicy fried chicken

most of my hyperfixations fluctuate in and out, but some that don't ever seem to let me go are my little pony, half life, skrillex, undertale/deltarune

recently i have developed an unfathomable obsession with bees i have a huge bee hyperfixation i play bee swarm simulator on roblox every day and i watch bee videos and i also just designed a beesona on pony town its name is beetrice the dragon bee:

my favourite movie is probably wolf children or mr. bean's holiday or elf

im basically lucario for girls

i am like a dragon and i collect things that i like.. you can see some here:

i play a lot of instruments, mostly piano, drums, singing, and guitar/bass/ukulele. my first instrument was the drums tho which i started playing when i was 2 or something. i no longer play drums because our house is too small for a drum set right now and i dont like electronic drum kits. one day!!!!

i have had zero music lessons which is why you should also make music bc you dont need to spend life savings on music education to make chunes

non-musicians who have influenced me the most are @sterfler and @astroeden who have changed my brain chemistry forever artistically (this is not an exaggeration)

i am not allergic to anything at all somehow

im the motherfucker who will drink an entire gallon of whole milk with nothing else yeah im just kind of awesome like that

i do not drink alcohol (anymore) or smoke or do drugs or anything like that just a personal pref

i am filipino but i am also chinese and scottish and italian and polish and maybe other things

i have been openly queer since 2011

i have been a furry since 2007 or something?

i have been making music since 2007 or something....?

my first true love as a musician was queen, which (because of their older albums) was my rabbit hole into the world of progressive rock. my passion for creating music was nurtured entirely by my discovery of genesis and the album 'the lamb lies down on broadway'. the next thing that shaped me as an artist? skrillex - 'scary monsters and nice sprites'

i have really bad verbal processing issues so you can probably speak directly to me and i will have no idea what youre saying sometimes

my feelings on art change a lot but i update my topster lists every now and again

i am mostly right [hoofed] but i'm technically ambidextrous

my first concert was bruce springsteen i think it was in 2009. i still love the the boss to this day.

i'm a kitty cat

i am also a dragon

i am also a possum

i am a formless void

my first song i wrote when i was 8 was titled after a jimmy neutron reference

the second song i wrote was a fan song about the flying dutchman

i played the original dota warcraft 3 mods long before dota 2 and league of legends existed because i've been a blizzard fangirl since like 2005 and now i hate blizzard so fuck you blizzard you're evil as shit but anyway i used to try and do map development for warcraft iii games but really my favourite thing to do was build maps where i could build the biggest possible army to fight npcs for fun. one of the first videos on my thecobalion channel is a warcraft iii map someone else made. i've just now turned it off private so you can see it if you want.

my favourite kind of humour is recursive

ok thanks what i can remember about myself right now. thanks for following me!!!!

[ninefuckingoneone-ssideblog]

Brooooo I can't stop thinkin bout yandere prince Sakusa Kiyoomi

But but with a twist yn is also a princess anddddd they're siblings. Well half siblings, the king likes to mess around as always. Up until now you were the only heir to the throne but Sakusa's presence, as another royal with claims to the throne has raised an uproar.

Sakusa is sceptical, his origins weren't clear to you; though proved to be the king's son, but the way you behaved wasn't something he could put a finger on. His predictions of your reaction to his appearance had gone wrong and his curiosity was peaked. For his own sake more than not, you're all but the biggest threat to his position.

That is until Sakusa spends more time in the palace observing you, he starts doing this to assess you and figure out your weaknesses. But it almost feels like your delighted by his presence? Or not? It's like you're playin a game with him. He couldn't truly pinpoint what is was you're thinking. Or maybe he's just thinking too much about you...

Anyways fastforward to yn happily handing over the throne to him. And that is when he comes to the realization that you've always hated the idea of being bound to this place. That all those times you've happily put up the competitive streaks against him to establish power whether in academics or other sectors, were more to make him a better king for the throne than to take the control back from him.

You've long before accepted him and made a point to tease him about being your adorable little brother giving you a run for your money. And believe it or not you've both came to care for eachother in an unspoken manner of sort. Only that Sakusa's care ran deeper, darker more sinister than something your "lovely brother" should be harbouring for you.

But it's okay though, he has all the time in the world now that he's king. That was until you decide to announce your resignation from state affairs and royalty, he's not sure if that's even possible but he's not letting it be anytime soon either.

You weren't oblivious, being a princess could hardly allow for that. Though very subtle, the signs that Kiyoomi's affections were growing beyond what a brotherly love should extend to, you were quick to deduct the message behind it.

Your leasurely library sessions with him slowly turned to his chest pressed against your back, a firm hand on your hip as a guise of helping you reach the very book you set yesterday on an entirely different shelf. Dark curls brushing against your neck as he leans down unnecessarily close to place the book in your hands

And comfortable meals you used to share with him turned intense. His obsidian eyes drank in your form as if it wasn't only the food he wished to devour.

Sparring lessons were the worst. Considering how it used to be your favourite. Back when you used to playfully smack and poke around him to get a raise out of his normally well kept attitude. He used to be the same size as you and constantly trying his hardest to overpower your sneaky tricks, Huffing to keep up. Sakusa clearly was only trained to show not fight, and when you did successfully pin his sword down, dagger held to his neck. You told him how he can't ever expect people to play fair, so he should learn to do the same.

And you did come to regret it, eventually. Because now your spars have turned way too physical; as if he's actively trying to keep you pinned against his relatively much larger frame. As if he's making it way more apparent how much he's grown in ways more than one. The fact that you're smaller frame fits almost too well against him as he flips your dagger back against your own neck and pins you roughly to the tree.

Chests pressed together and his thighs forcefully make way between your legs, his weight holds you in place rendering you immobile. And even after your attempts at easying away from his hold, the intense gaze he locks you with, tells you he's not playin fair anymore. The dark lust building in his eyes is far from letting you leave. Ever.

And it was that you need to leave.

[dinoburger]

Amazing Digital Circus is kinda like something between DHMIS and Wreck It Ralph... but it kinda doesn't quite have the charm or the pacing to me?

like... what both DHMIS and WIR do is establish patterns to break first - WIR is about a game's rules being broken, but it escalates even further to the fabric of the game itself being tampered with, DHMIS is even more clever with how it plays with the meta.

DHMIS is very much a "kids' show gone wrong" with the jarring gross-out gore, but the "off-ness" of it penetrates the fibre of the concept: having lessons on "creativity" become admonishments into conformity, the "love" episode about religious cults and the "information" episode about nonsense.

But it becomes even more jarring when the characters completely break the meta and leave the set to traverse the dark, quiet void of the studio.... or leave the building entirely. Even the weird gross out horror stops being a certainty, instead leaving a more uneasy, existential feeling that puts you right in the characters' shoes.

Each of those cryptic moments feels significant, like reality creeping into a dream, something more lucid and real but ominous and foreboding just on the periphery.

TADC's "breaks" seem to be part of the pattern, it feels weird to have massive game breaks then essentially return to status quo... like it just breaks a lot of whatever atmosphere is being built up in a predictable way, there's not much suspense in something you're expecting will happen to progress the story if it's the premise of the thing itself instead of an escalation.

It might be kind of a harsh judgement considering there's only two episodes out but... I think the way it lingers on the existential dread stuff and has to tell us that breaking the game is scary all the time makes me think it really really wants this feeling to land, but the fact that it has to keep explaining that premise over and over takes out the punch it might have otherwise.

N the characters just. Feel like the worst of both worlds sometimes. They're "self aware" enough to continuously bring you out of any investment you might have in the story, but still really one dimensional otherwise. None of them charm me.

[sekritjay]

Bit of buzz from the Warhammer corner of the internet. I'm not a fan myself - in fact I find the whole fandom's lunatic brigade exceptionally repellent and their abject refusal to accept critique both internal and external makes even being on the periphery a chore

However everytime I hear the Warhammer fandom get excited about something I immediately think of that Raycevick video entitled "I'm Jealous of Warhammer", particularly the part in the beginning where he immediately admits that it's actually a Mass Effect video

Long story short he's envious of Warhammer's constant churning out of canon media, and the degree to which the Warhammer fandom has access to any and all manner of things they might come to enjoy in different genres and perspectives, from studios who benefit from generous licensing and a permissive IP owner

In the meantime, like the rest of the Mass Effect fandom, he's starved for any kind of content for a world he is enamoured with from a company whose sole strategy is an all-or-nothing, once in a generation, multimliion dollar crapshoot one bad day away from completely killing its creators and indeed almost did. And we're essentially dreading that the next will be that killing blow

Sure Warhammer has the advantage of being Warhammer with its four decade long business model making the IP a low risk option of video game developers but otherwise I agree that it pains me to be gasping for content. It's why I'm in the fandom in the first place, hell it's why I'm on tumblr. I wouldn't come on tumblr just for the asylum vibes* alone

I was nostalgia-tripping on one of my people's most famous gaming exports, the Wipeout series of anti-gravity racing. Yeah, I thought, that would be so cool to transplant a similar concept into the Mass Effect universe. It'd be easy to justify in lore - aristocratic scions, playboy dilletantes and nouveau-riche magnates compete in eezo-powered, gravity-defying, piloting on vertigo-inducing racetracks of staggering size and cost, with all the egotism and risk-taking that that implies. How cool would having a racing game set in the Mass Effect universe with that universe's world-building

Indeed we could even have one that would appeal to their investors. How about Mass Effect: Battlefield? Applying the lessons learnt from ME3MP and put them in a mainline Battlefield game with the scale and spectacle. Imagine this - the post-war galaxy gives rise to mercenaries and adventurers, tyrants and freedom fighters, battling to hoard power for themselves, or profit off the chaos to line their own pockets

And those are just high-level concepts. The Mass Effect series was deliberately designed to be a world, not just a video game, and it was always the intention to tell numerous stories within it. It's a testament to its worldbuilding that fanfiction writers of all shapes and sizes still continue to write in that universe despite how long it's been since our last outing there

Yet here we are. Still starved for more official media. Because the Powers That Be want a gigahit, when it was never intended to be all or nothing. Meanwhile the Inquisitor Cryptofash'es of the Warhammer fandom can freely gorge themselves on the thing they love. Makes my blood boil

*No, I STAY here for that

[driedpeanuts69]

GENIUS , PETER PARKER

pairing: peter parker x reader

summary: spidey has been struggling to get into certain buildings when on the hunt for criminals, so you cook something up for him

(inspired by the spider-man games!)

warnings: fluff, cute, sweet, i imagine it as andrew garfield but you can imagine it as any spiderman you want, also set in the mcu world (you work in a lab with stark and banner)

“What’chu up to?”

You looked over your shoulder with a small smile. You dealt with authority fine, but when the authority is a man with 7 PhD’s and another who is a world renowned billionaire, authority gets a bit overwhelming.

“I’m making something.”

Tony puffed out his cheeks with a roll of his eyes. “Yeah, what?”

You spun in your chair to show off your workbench, a small bundle of red and black with eight metal legs. “Is that a spider?” Bruce asked. His glasses were pushed onto his head with a pen levelled on his ear.

“Mhm. It’s- It’s a prototype that you control through a mask, oh! Like Iron Man’s mask—“

“Thanks, kid.” He smirked.

You rolled your eyes and carried on. “Automated by electroactive polymer and equipped with plasma deconstruction and reconstruction tools.” You grinned like a madman. “There’s four eyes with infrared lasers designed to create 3D scans of the environment, which will be super helpful detecting heat signals from people—“

“Y’know, this sounds perfect for a certain friendly neighbourhood Spider-man.”

You chuckled and nodded along with Tony’s word. You thought it would be a nice surprise for Peter since you knew it was hard for him sometimes. The worry and panic of not being able to save someone in time, or even find them — it was heartbreaking.

“Why do you think it’s a spider?”

“I don’t know,” Bruce said. “Wouldn’t it be better as a… uh…”

“Mini Iron Man figurine floating about?”

You snorted as a half-assed laugh and went back to tinkering with the Spider-Bot. “No. It has jets on the belly so it can hover certain heights, and it has legs… so it sticks. Like a spider.”

“It’s very innovative,” Bruce admitted while he lingered around you. His eyes were stuck on the small spider — fully electronic and metal.

“Mhm, it’s great. Can you do Iron Man next?” Tony crossed his arms with a teasing grin on his face. “Pep would love one of these.”

“No, you’d love to have it to annoy her.” You chuckled. “I’m not putting her through that.”

“Fine, I’ll just steal the blueprints when you’re sleeping.”

“Woah, you’re gonna rob a high school student?” You faked a frown. “I can’t believe Mr. Multi-Billionaire would do that to an innocent child!”

“Oh, save it.”

Bruce was just laughing through it all as his finger dragged along the bony metal exterior. “How strong are the plasma shots?”

“Strong enough to knock someone unconscious, not strong enough to severely maim or kill. Just like Spidey’s motto.”

“Pretty sure that’s not his motto—“

“Do you ever stop?”

Bruce huffed dramatically before checking the intricate designs along the back. “Is it to match his suit?”

You shrugged. At first, you tried to, until you realised bright red spiders aren’t exactly a norm. “I’ve made it mostly black and then red… maybe it’ll pass as a black widow.”

“Don’t tell Nat about that—“

“I obviously meant the spider!” You groaned. “God, you’re infuriating.”

“You love me really.” Tony said with a grin.

“Yeah, only ‘cause you’re paying me.”

“I love you too, kid.”

You blinked hard and prayed maybe that would get him to shut up, but then the best thing ever happened and Pepper called him through FRIDAY. He rambled something about how his lady wants him, and left with a stupid goodbye (he flicked your forehead and took Bruce’s pen).

“When is Pete coming?” Bruce asked. “Don’t you guys go to the same school? You finish together—“

“He’s on the maths team, remember? You came in on us doing flashcards in here.”

“Right, when he was using his webs to cover his own eyes—“

“And then you had to make the serum to melt it. Yup, he sure learnt his lesson from that.”

Bruce chuckled before stretching his back, a low groan spilling from his lips before he pressed a hand to your shoulder. “He’ll love it, kiddo.”

“You think?”

He hummed. “Definitely. I’m sure he’ll be jealous.”

“Oh, Peters not really the jealous kind—“

“God, you two…” He drawled on before leaving the lab, the doors closing automatically once he was gone.

With Bruce and Tony leaving the lab to yourself (which was only allowed to happen after Tony removed the temporary ban after you and Peter created a cocktail molotov because you ‘didn’t believe it actually worked’) you spun back around to focus on your workbench.

You’ve only created one Spider-Bot, a carved initial on its stomach that belonged to you. It was perfect. You tested out previous prototypes and they all had one missing factor — the shape. A smaller spider that had a high boiling and melting point metal was amazing.

“Hi.”

You jumped a mile, eyes bulging in your skull as you lifted your head to stare at the new figure. Stupid Peter. “Pete!” You groaned. “You scared the shit out of me!”

His eyes widened and he dropped his skateboard on the floor before rushing over. “I’m sorry- really sorry—“ You just blinked, and he sheepishly smiled. “Sorry…”

You brushed him off with a short sweet smile and stood up from your chair. He rushed over and took your spot before placing his long fingers on your hips. He gave a slight squeeze and you sat down on his lap.

“I got you a present,” you said as you brushed away any remaining parts or tools so it at least looked nice. “Y’know how you’ve always said there’s certain places you can’t get into?”

He hummed and rested his chin on your shoulder, eyes closed as he swayed to himself. You just chuckled and took his hand into yours before laying it over your stomach.

“Well, Ive found a solution.”

He opened his eyes. “You have?” He quickly looked down at your workbench and although you couldn’t see him, you could feel his jaw stretch and a smile to take place on his lips. “Holy shit.”

“Do you like it?”

“It’s a spider.”

You rolled your eyes playfully and twisted your torso to look at him. “It’s not just a spider, Pete. Did you bring your suit?” Before he could answer, you pulled down the neckline of his shirt and saw the familiar red hue. “You wear it to maths club?”

“I’m Spider-Man.”

You giggle. “Tell me something I don’t know.”

“You’re pretty?”

“I don’t think my boyfriend will appreciate that,” You teased.

“Yeah, but I’m Spider-Man.”

You laughed and pressed a quick kiss to his lips before pulling back with excitement. “Okay, okay, back on track. Inspect it.”

“Inspect it? Like- like I’m a doctor?”

“Sure. Just have a look please!”

He chuckled at your impatience before moving his hands from your hips to hold the spider in his palms. It stretched alive, the metal legs strangely silent as it moved in circles around his hands.

“Is that electroactive polymer?”

You hummed excitedly.

“And are those— are those jets?”

“It can fly!”

“It has its own webshooters—and plasma! Holy… wow.” The spider stopped moving as its head twisted up to look at Peter. “What can it do?”

“Get into vents, or cracks in the walls, or even doors. Stuff like that. Basically anything a Spider-Man can’t get through.” You say. “It sends location alerts to the EMT’s, destroy walls, and scans the environment to help you find people. Or find entryways.”

“This is… you’re so cool.” He mumbled sweetly, starstruck and probably a bit excited. “How long did this take?”

“I’m not telling you, but now I have the blueprints for it, if one ever gets destroyed then give me a call and I’ll fix you up a new one in seconds.”

Peter dragged the tip of his finger along the spine of the spider before looking into your eyes. He was blushing violently, maybe because you knew him so well or maybe because you was just so fucking smart, before his large hands took you captive.

“I love you,” He mumbled before smashing his lips to yours, a sweet yet passionate kiss where his hold on your jaw tightened and his other rolled down to the side of your neck. “You’re so hot.”

“‘cause I created a Spider-Bot?”

“Because you’re so smart.” He answered back truthfully, pressing another kiss to your lips. “I would’ve just suffered… but you-“

“I didn’t want you to suffer.”

“Exactly!” He pressed one more kiss to your lips before pulling back. “I love you.”

Relishing in his happiness, you raked your fingers through his hair and smiled. “I love you too.”

[bainofjustice]

Kitty's Notes On Episode 2 Of The Payday Web Series

It is really funny to me that they made a “previously on” part for a web show and to recap a episode that clocks in at 6 minutes 

It's funny that Dallas & Houston have time for a very small argument. Also helps set up the insane amount of tension the web show portrays them having

The editing/camrea is so choppy like this isn't a review but omg I had to write that down

Okay it looks like Wolf keeps zip ties on his belt, makes sense both for the game stuff of tying up civis and also is probably helpful for his mechines

Chains and Houston demask INSIDE A FUCKING VAULT post running out of ammo and while they do tell the civis present to not look this is just such a bad idea especially because the vault is basically surrounded by cops 

But also the bromance between Houston & Chains is real, like they're in a bad situation and they plan it out

Also it seems like Dallas and Wolf are the main movers of goods within this heist, I'm not sure they're the best picks but with the limits the gang had at the time I suppose they aren't the worst, it just feels like in general the plan doesn't cater to the real talents of the gang. Which tbh is probably because the web show is meant to be a ad, so they wanted more action which required mostly gun fights and they didn't do fight scenes in a intelligental way 

Also I just realized for some reason Chains is using a damn hand gun meanwhile it's Houston with a assault rifle, which really doesn't seem catered to their skills

I just remembered a little later after writing the above that Chains mentioned being out of ammo for his own assault rifle so not as bad as I thought, still wonder why they didn't switch at any point, like it worked out but yeah

One thing I do like about the action scenes is that the gang uses more than juet guns and use melee attacks as well

Houston is able to flat out flip a guy over and steal his gun, I feel pretty confident in saying Houston has probably taken some hand to hand combat lessons.

Also it appears that both Dallas and Wolf are using assault rifles which makes sense given their roles in the heist.

WE GOT A WILHELM SCREAM!!!

In better lighting it seems Wolf actually has a shotgun which is even better for him actually 

We see the escape driver when Dallas and Wolf are ambushed at the escape van, he appears to be at most middle age, white, brown hair, slightly fatter build and wears a black hoodie with a band or event tee-shirt under the hoodie, grabbing a pic to see if I can locate the shirt later.

We see several of Vlad's men during the ambush including who we later learn seems to be his right hand / personal bodyguard

Vlad's intro is so funny to me, like he holds the gang at gunpoint and stalls their escape and this actually manages to end with him getting the gang to work with him, like I am sure that Bain or Vlad carefully planned this part but it could have easily gone wrong if for example Wolf shoot someone without thinking it through, or if a officer managed to follow them to the van, especially since everyone unmasks!

Houston Vc: Do you know these guys?.    Dallas, who is being held at gunpoint vc: does it look like I know these guys?

1. Vlad decides to shout “Bain” while explaining he is a ally, 2. He calls Bain in this instance “Mr Bain” which I find to be a fun detail of characterization and also to how at the time the only people sorta comfortable enough around Bain to be confident when saying his name and such is the core members of the Payday gan

Ah and then Dallas has to go back uncover which requires faking a injury, which he lets Houston do the honors of punching him, only adding to the family feud they seem to have in the web series. Also this one punch is enough to knock Dallas to the ground.

Also funnily Dallas or should I say, “Nathen Steele” is the one to call in the first world bank heist

Bain vapes! We see him vape, we also hear him in game talk about smoking cigars, so either he does both or in my opinion more likely he lies about the details of his smoking habits even to the gang.

We can see that Bain wears a leather jacket with a design on the back & front when in his lair, the design most looks like fire to me but it's very dark, I would love to someday see some behind the scenes footage or something with the costume.

[mysticqueer]

no thoughts just, the rfa creating a community outreach center

rfa is a charity organization, so it makes sense that they create a community outreach center, right?

(funded by jumin obv)

a safe place for people in need that provides completely free resources

everybody contributes a little in their own way

teens and young adults who need to build their resume can often be offered a job/internship at C&R or perhaps jaehee’s cafe

saeyoung provides free classes on coding and other computer skills so that kids can enter the world with a set of skills to get a job (just like he had to do all by himself once)

sometimes teens take the class not for the skills but for saeyoung’s chaotic energy

casually tells the most batshit-insane stories. nobody (including the rfa) know whether they’re true or not

kidnapped elly to show the kids at some point

saeran could do the same, but i could also see him upkeeping a small library in the center. i think he’d like the peace and quiet

or he maintains a community garden!

is somehow able to make even the most traumatized or quiet kids open up. he’s a good listener

yoosung helps organize a tutoring system for all ages

despite his gaming addiction, yoosung is actually super smart and really good at explaining difficult concepts

sometimes he worries about the kids a little too much, but that’s ok, most of them need that

i could see zen creating a drama club. but also i think he’d really want to head an effort to help runaway and at-risk kids

he tries really hard to foster each kids ambitions, even if they aren’t strictly realistic

i like to hc my personal mc as teaching self-defense lessons

all of them have a specific group of kids from their classes that they’re fiercely protective of

overall just them providing direct and unconditional support to those in need

they provide mental health resources and do their best to help kids in unsafe situations find sanctuary

RFA always seemed like a huge, distant, and mysterious organization. not anymore. 

they’re well-known and loved in the community

the trust that the community has in the members does more than any other resource could

[cursedhaglette]

Ooooh fun!!

Hm, #7 Raphael X Mix (he/him ranger elf, can read more on my Tumblr or just improvise) 🤭 or reader! If you wanna do some Raphael of course 🤭

i'm gonna do raphael x reader just so it's a little more approachable, hope that's okay! writing for raphael was actually so refreshing, i'm actually so curious about writing for other characters after this exercise. thank you for requesting him!!

raphael x g/n reader; 1100 words content: blowjob (lol)

You don’t know how long you’ve been on your knees, but an ache has set in before you see him again. The devil, dressed in finery and backlit by the glowing sunset of Avernus like he’d been wrapped in a cape of red and orange light. 

He warned you, the last time he caught you snooping through his personal effects, that if he caught you again, there’d be hell to pay. You’d snorted a laugh at the flimsy joke and ran for the portal, magic you’ve grown proficient with since saving the world. What else did you have to do, between rebuilding a city and accepting praises for heroics you had no choice but to partake in? 

And the hells offered something the mortal plane didn’t - Raphael. 

Raphael in all his glory, horns and wings and talons. Red skinned, enormous, and perpetually smirking. Theatrical and wrathful. 

You were desperate for him now, so much so that you let yourself get caught this time, just to see how this might play out. What his punishments might include, how long he might hold you captive in this house of debauchery and pain and pleasure. 

The devil doesn’t speak as he approaches you, stopping a breath away and dragging one clawed finger under your chin, tilting your face until your eyes meet his. The smirk on his face is different, but still exquisite, and your breath catches in your throat as you await his punishment. 

Arousal builds in your core as you wait in silence, his expression unmoving. The wait is tantalizing, the kind of drama you know Raphael delights in and has subsequently left you aching for more. You want to see his wicked grins and hear the purr of his voice as he scolds you. 

“How, little mouse, should I punish you this time? It seems you haven’t yet learned the valuable lesson of leaving me alone,” he tuts once, clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth,  before continuing, “so I can only assume you’ve become rather fond of our games.”

You swallow but stay quiet, aware he can sense the beat of your heart racing with anticipation, and don’t look away. 

“I can smell the arousal in your blood, the need coursing through your veins each time you set foot in my house,” the devil continues, “and I have to admit, I am quite curious to see if you can live up to the might expectations that come with being the Hero of Baldur’s Gate.”

He says “hero” with a scoff, though you know he respects your victory more than he’d ever let on. Hells, without it, he wouldn’t have been crowned King of the Hells. He aided you along your journey, watching every step you made with your companions. How deep does his curiosity actually go?

“Please,” you whisper, the scrape of the talon still holding your chin sending a jolt of delicious pain straight to your core. You don’t say anything else, frankly you’re a bit unsure what else to say without begging him to rake those talons down your spine as he takes you from behind, thrust after punishing thrust. 

“You forget, hero, that should I allow you that which you desire, I very well may decide to bind you as mine,” Raphael finally smiles, but it’s the kind of grin you’ve seen too many times to count - one that spells trouble and ought to evoke a feeling of mistrust. Instead, it stokes the fires in you, and you can’t help but squirm at the sight, desperate for some relief of the aching need you’re quickly losing control of. “I am not fond of letting go of those I enjoy.”

“Why else do you think I’ve been coming here?” You ask. “You know what I want, devil, so let me have it or let me go.”

“Let you have it,” he repeats, musing at the demand you dared utter in his home. But his hand falls from you, reaching to the button of his trousers. You finally look away from his face and notice a hardness there, caged behind the finest fabric in all the realms, that he releases with a single, deft hand. 

Your mouth waters at the sight, the red, ridged length and the beautiful head that already has a bead of wetness, gathering at the tip. Absentmindedly, you run your hands up the length of his thighs, and bite your lip as you look up.

“Go on then, let’s see how well you do and perhaps that will earn you a less devastating punishment, hmm?”

He slaps his cock against your cheek before you take it between your lips, licking at the bead of the devil’s arousal and moaning at the taste. You’ve longed for this moment, waited for months, and you intend to take your time now. You intend to impress. 

Your head bobs along his length, and you run your tongue along the infernal ridges, desperate to know how it might feel inside you. How each might feel as he pummels into you, and you moan at the image your conjure, the sound muffled by your desperate licking and sucking. 

“I must admit, my dear hero,” Raphael grunts from above you, one hand moving to tangle in your hair, "You are so pretty with my cock in your mouth."

His talons dig into your scalp, just enough to send a jolt of pain through you, mixing with the pleasure building within you. You ignore the tears that spring at the corners of your eyes as he hits the back of your throat - it’s worth it for the sound of his moan. 

You can’t help reaching between your legs now, your body begging to be touched by him but you know for now, your own hand will do the trick. He grinds into your mouth with increasing speed and the taste of him, the sound, floods your senses. You moan again, bucking your hips into your hand in tandem with Raphael’s, and you feel him tense briefly before a deep, drawn out moan escapes him. 

He floods your mouth, salty-sweet cum hitting the back of your eager throat in thick spurts, and he continues to buck his hips as he rides out his orgasm. You swallow once, then again, as he finishes, and then bob your head up and down his length one last time before moving to lick him clean. 

“Well, little mouse, it seems you have a talented mouth in more ways than I realized,” Raphael pants softly, the hand at the top of your head moving to caress your cheek for a brief moment. “Now, go to the bed and undress. The real punishments begin in the bedroom.”

[farolero-posting]

What the Solstice ending brings to the themes of OneShot

(A.K.A: Why I think Solstice is kinda cool but instead of giving a normal answer I just type like 2k words)

While I think that a reasonable amount of people value the additional content you can uncover by playing again, I'm also aware that other people have their reservation or even dislike it. Despite that, I think there is a lot of value on what it brings to the story, how it gives a new view to some elements from the base game, and the way it is a response to your "abilities" as a player, and your motivation to do those things in a way that speaks to the way people approach stories. With that in mind, I wanna present to you why I think Solstice adds to the overall story, and how in fact "changing" the base themes is coherent for this story, too.

Needless to say, I WILL discuss OneShot spoilers in depth, so give the game a try on your own to get the most out of the experience, but otherwise, keep reading! Now let's get into the real thing.

When you think about what OneShot’s main theme is, the most likely answer is that there is only one opportunity in life. This means that your actions have consequences, and that some actions cannot be undone. From the beginning, the game sets a stage where you, as a player, are responsible for keeping Niko, this child given the role of savior, safe. Going into the game without prior knowledge means that you’re likely to be cautious about your actions, the choices you make, even if small, and your efforts are focused on being successful with the one chance you get.

You soon find out that the world Niko is in is slowly, but relentlessly, decaying, which has made many of the people in this world give up their hope of salvation, and are hanging on by a thread that is getting thinner as time goes by. The quest begins to shift from “doing what you have to do and creating optimal conditions” to “trying to do your best, knowing that some things are out of your control”. Because it turns out that Niko and you are late. The environment has been affected in irreversible ways, some areas are abandoned and others are unreachable by normal means (even Niko themself cannot backtrack), and even if one could place the Sun at the top, the other problems will not be solved, even if the presence of the Sun is helpful. It’s even possible that you have lost your chances to complete certain missions, such as getting the necessary supplies to replant the sacred kernel. 

These are all factors that impact the way this chance you’re given plays out. And, in the end, the manifestation of these externally imposed limitations becomes clear, as Niko and you reach the tower, and are presented with the final choice. Whatever you choose ends up being a failure, either for Niko’s quest in this world, or your quest of making sure Niko leaves safely. Your one shot means that you will only get one of these outcomes. and will have to give up the other. It is the biggest exhibit of consequences, and many people can attest to their own difficulties making this choice.

OneShot in the end, becomes a lesson on sacrifices, moral choices, and the limitations of what a person has the chance to do, knowing the consequences of their actions. It’s a heavy theme, and one the story builds up along the journey with the different characters Niko and you meet. Some of them believe letting a natural death occur is the most merciful option, others believe the Sun will make the world a better place, and some believe it is worth returning the sun, even if it’s not a permanent fix. There is no certain truth, no solution that doesn’t come with its drawbacks, and no margin for error.

And then Solstice arrives… shaking the initial themes. 

Well, it doesn’t come out of nowhere. That would not be true. OneShot is most often known and praised for its 4th wall breaking features, and the puzzles that go outside of the game window itself. The player of the game is an active part, known as the god of the world they take Niko through. This is a story device that connects you to Niko and to the world itself, and places the responsibility to care for both of them on your shoulders. It makes the experience more immersive and seeks to convince you, for a moment, that you’re not just an invisible hand controlling things, but someone that actually interacts with a world that responds to you.

In a way, one could look at the reset mechanic from a purely practical lens: if you pay for a game, you deserve a chance to replay it, since it is your property. It won’t hurt to relive the same experience again because you will know you’re just looking at what was already coded into the story, and you would just be looking at it again out of personal interest. You could take the original message at heart and never pick up the game again, leaving questions unanswered and some decisions never made, but… if you do want to relive the story again, or maybe see if you can try the other ending, the option needs to exist.

And you have not stopped being an active part of how the game works, even after the ending. So, when you look for a way to reset it, what you find is a letter instead, written by someone who seems to be the very creator of the game. And he begs you to consider the option, if it is within your possibilities, like a brand new puzzle for you to solve and… maybe this world the creator crafted for you. It makes sense that the game places an in-universe message like this, it keeps the immersive theme.

But… one could argue that allowing resets breaks the feeling that some experiences can only be done once. Niko realizes they know a few things that they don’t remember learning. The Entity can tell that activating NG+ is not something that was supposed to happen according to its own protocol, and the restriction it imposed. Which means that this experience is never the same. But it also means that the game is responding to your actions, in a way that indicates that the original suspension of disbelief that you’re a god making choices for a living world can still be made. It also means that the game acknowledges its nature as a program that you’re in control of, and Solstice definitely makes this aspect more blatant, if you choose to take that path.

When OneShot presents itself, it seems that everything within it is equally real, and that you’re roleplaying as some kind of actual deity… but something looms in the shadows. The way decay is presented as squares, the way the paths seem lined up perfectly for a story, the way there seems to be a protocol to follow, that only the Entity acknowledges, shows that this game may be aware of how You are actually viewing it, from a screen in your computer. The game isn’t a real world, it’s just a program you can turn on and off at will.

And this makes even more sense once we have the added context that the Solstice route provides, since it outright confirms this suspicion. Prototype makes Niko aware of the way we have been looking at their world since the beginning, destabilizing the perception they had of their current mission, and the role you play in it, while also making you aware as a player that Niko is not part of this simulation at all. Later on, Cedric explains that the place Niko is trapped in was made to be a facsimile of their dying world, in hopes that there could be proof of their existence after the destruction of said world, and that he and his siblings are the only ones aware of the previous world existing. This part is important, because it gives us an in-universe reason for this world to exist… that brings new concepts into the main theme of the game, “one chance”.

Why would… why would you create a world like… this? [...] Why would you make a world that's doomed from the beginning? …why do you keep bringing me back to it? Niko, talking to the player during the Solstice run

Niko presents an interesting question, not just about their current situation, but also the intent that is implied in the kind of story that OneShot is. It is one thing to be presented with a scenario where people try their best to respond to their circumstances, and be presented with choices that require sacrifice. It is a different one to think that someone willed this to happen, and that Niko has been put in this scenario… that is within your control. Because you’re the one that started the program, and you’re the one that brought them back. And then the events of Solstice create an even more dangerous situation, as the protocol is broken and, most importantly, as the Entity representing the game itself reacts to Niko’s distress.

Here is where the context of the old/real world becomes crucial, because it shows how a scenario like this could be created, not by the will of a detached writer, but different parties with their own motivations and struggles. Because it turns out that the second chance that the people from the old world were looking for didn’t go as planned, of course, we know this. The original choice in the end of OneShot wasn’t intended by the in-universe creators, and yet in a way it still resonates with the way people were divided after the old Sun died. This world, made with the memories of people who lived in a world that would certainly end within their time, is also manifesting that same thing.

What is the point of making a story like OneShot, where this world can be saved, if not to give it a second chance? And what are you as a player doing, by going out of your way to do everything again? As I said, it has the plus side that the game responds to your actions outside of it, but now it adds another layer of it: your motivations to be proactive, may have something in common with the motivation that led to the creation of the game in the first place, at least from the perspective of the characters that are affected by this.

As we can see Solstice recontextualizes the story and provides an explanation for how the game itself comes to be aware of how we see it. But the point of Solstice is that it is alive, in a way. It was created with an intent to share a story, as a means for people to be remembered beyond their time. It’s meant to cause an impression on the person receiving this story. And, as we have established before, the way it is set up treats the player as an active participant in the story, someone who has an influence that is distinct from that of everyone else. The story impacts us, and in a similar way we impact it with our attachment to it, with our actions to do more than what it limited itself to present you with.

Something else funny and interesting happens too… you may realize that the base game doesn’t offer that much in the realm of consequential choices, besides the ending. Your biggest impact is how you treat Niko, and the connection you make with them. They’ll ask about your life beyond the game, look for comfort, and react to both your good and bad ideas. It doesn’t change how much you save the world, but it shapes who you are to Niko, and changes their experience too. You treat them like a good friend, listen to them… you tame them. 

Which is the other big theme of OneShot. Taming, in the original Little Prince, is a concept to explain the way people get attached to someone else, and how the bond formed with someone else changes people fundamentally, and makes the tamed individual distinct from everyone else. In OneShot, it refers to the way in which robots gain sentience after forming bonds with people, after being treated as people with their own thoughts and will, allowing them to act beyond their programming. And in the context of a story, it is equivalent to the way the audience takes the story as real, and sees the characters within as people whose actions are motivated by personal motivations and goals, rather than commanded by the writer, even when we know that their nature is fictional.

We develop this sort of relationship with Niko, and through their experiences, we also begin to develop this relationship with the other residents of this world, who begin to make new decisions that make sense for them as characters, in a context that wasn’t predicted by the story itself. 

And we, in turn, are the ones constantly interacting with this Entity, the game itself. We get to see the puzzles in which it tries to make it clear that it can do a lot outside of the window itself. We can see the way it attempts to keep us from making decisions that go against parts of its programming, despite the contradictions these actions create. OneShot is a story that didn’t want to put Niko through all of this, that didn’t want to repeat the suffering that brought it into existence, but who doomed itself when it tried to manifest its sentience. The World Machine tries to break the immersion, tries to show you its flaws, and we instead recognize personhood within.

Without Solstice, this sort of relationship never becomes clear, and it never gets the chance to evolve. Hell, one could even say that challenging the initial theme of “one chance”, by proposing that we can do something better this time IS the perfect way to establish a conversation that leads to change, that sets the story apart from others. And in the end, once the run is completed, the efforts done by you as a player, Niko, and everyone else pays off, giving you a more satisfying ending. The message that this sends is that, while some situations are out of our control and we must be careful with the consequences of our actions, we will never achieve change if we don’t act outside of the margins, and that, when we do this, we can provide a second chance.

Final words:

In conclusion… while I can understand that Solstice doesn’t hit everyone the same way, and that it has its limitations in execution (especially if spoiled), it’s a solid continuation. It takes some of the themes present in the initial game, and then proceeds to converse with them, using its resources as a game to create an immersive experience, and reward the player for being proactive. I believe that’s worth valuing, and serves to reflect on the way people interact with stories in personal ways, making them gain a place in their hearts.

[fights4users]

Just you? | The page, Alan and clu

Someone said this ages before me but the page was meant to get Alan at the arcade, Alan inside the grid. Clu wanted him but settled for Sam. I want to dive a bit deeper into that, especially after reading betrayal (really the novel does wonder for his character and providing additional context for legacy).

Backup plan—

Contacting Alan was the last desperate attempt to find a normal way out. I can imagine Kevin would have talked about him quite frequently, about how good he was and maybe even admitting to clu he was the one to originally write tron. So, clu figures out a way to contact this “great user” and make him fix everything. Maybe he could finally give the grid a purpose from the outside or do some work on the inside to stabilize everything. I don’t even think clu knows what all needs to be done to fix everything- he’s been lost and a bit power hunger for a while now I’d imagine he’d be forceful with Alan but have good reason to be.

I think having Alan rewrite and fix the grid from the outside (or in if possible) would make the most sense. What the hell use would alan have otherwise? He wouldn’t have a disk! Sam only got one once he was put into the games, additionally alan wouldn’t have the knowledge of the grid to use his disk as a key after receiving one. So getting Alan in the first place had nothing to do with “out there” or “world domination”.

Last resort—

I saw a theory a while ago which I wholeheartedly believe that said, Clu only did all of this (the army, the world domination plans) to give the grid a purpose. It really makes his authoritarian decent into madness all the more tragic, as stated before he never had a chance to be good. He can’t create new programs he can only rewrite what’s there— he’s slipping and out of ideas because endlessly building in a overheating system is a absolute nightmare. A mindless army works great as it takes up as little energy as possible, you can conserve what remains and give your citizens something to actually do… now mind you it’s not a good something to be a mindless drone. After Alan falls through he goes on with the first plan. I also believe the world domination thing also comes about because he’s a reflection of Flynn’s  arrogance back when he made the grid— this is so his speech can almost identically match Flynn’s “in their is our destiny!” -> “out there is our destiny!”. More that for a character motivation that makes sense.

Clu is a dangerous line. As the more you read into things the more sympathetic he becomes the more you understand his motivations and what lead him down this path. You almost forget how horrible his actions are from how badly a hand he has been dealt. He is fascinating and so unbelievably sad that he saw this (Dictatorship, mind control, genocide ,etc.) as the only way out. He is the antagonist but not the villain.

Sam—

No one was expecting Sam to be the one to arrive at the arcade. Clu didn’t take Into account Alan’s care for him,  probably because clu had his own issues with Sam since he was a baby. It’s interesting as Sam is basically the crux that sets off the film. Plan B didn’t work so we’re going for the crazy world domination plan, let’s use you to lure your dad out of hiding. To me it sort of comes through as the backup plans of backup plans to him- if Alan had come would he have concerned himself with Flynn at all? This god is helpful, this god sticks to his words and thinks things through…oh god the absolute angst potential in that. (Again keep in mind that Clus hatred is for a Flynn who didn’t go through 20 years of  philosophy lessons).

This is all me just theorizing anyway, my own way at picking through legacy trying to understand it. 🤷‍♀️ Clu is such a fascinating character that you really have to feel bad for, and again it’s a little concerning? Because you forget how much bad stuff he really did just because they fumbled Flynn SO hard. The Kevin Flynn who made the grid does not feel like the same Kevin Flynn who broke into ENCOM with his buddies one night and I don’t know how to explain it.

[dungeonmalcontent]

Can you please explain like. Why you think Pathfinder kinda sucks? Because I've only ever seen improvements reading Pathfinder 2e and I think it's worldbuilding and cosmology is WAY more interesting and fleshed out than anything in 5e. Like literally I don't understand where the idea that it's kinda worse could be coming from??

To be clear, I don't hate anything a out the world building in Pathfinder. They've done some pretty good world building and their settings are fun.

The problem is that there are deliberate bad ways to play. The game intentionally punishes you for playing in a "fun" way. If you think you e figured out a fun build that uses some niche or interesting features and mechanics, the game will steamroll you. There are "good" builds and there are "bad" builds, and Pathfinder doesn't indicate which is which until you're in the game (or your GM gives you a heads up and says "you're gonna have a bad time if you keep investing into that feature tree").

More than that, there are just... Way too many features. Most of them are totally useless. Lore skills, for example, suck. I want lore skills to be useful so bad, but they are just insanely useless and they clutter up the game rules like a mountain of empty books.

And that wouldn't be that bad, if those bad options hadn't been put there on purpose to be the "harsh lesson" for new players.

This is, of course, mostly my opinion. There are other problems with it as well, such as the greater strain of GMing I've heard people complain about and the same tribalism issues in the settings that 5e has. But some people enjoy these things, and I'm not gonna judge them for it. I still it sucks; the game itself, not the storytelling or the company. This is, basically the reverse problem I have with 5e (excepts the game itself kinda sucks too).

[viscountessevie]

Unladylike Rules of Attraction [ARC Review]

Release Date: 23rd May 2024

Overall Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐️

Spice Level: 🌶🌶🌶

Content Warning: Attempted Sexual Assault, Racism/Xenaphobia, Minor Misogyny

Unladylike Rules of Attraction is the highly anticipated sequel to Amita Murray's debut Historical Romance series, The Marleigh Sisters. This second novel centres upon the dazzling sitar player and royal court singer, Miss Anya Marleigh.

She meets her match in Lord Damian Ashton at a family game of Pall Mall at the Budleigh Estate. Anya and Damian find themselves linked together when Damian is named as the executor of an inheritance left to Anya.

***

As someone who read the first novel of the series exactly a year ago, I knew exactly what I was coming into with an Amita Murray novel. Ms Murray loves her murder mystery plots. From what I gleaned from Unladylike Lessons in Love, the romance comes secondary. I was well prepared for that and I think maybe some new readers were not. As a blanket disclaimer to new readers and the publishing marketing team, I would like everyone to know that this series is not quite like Bridgerton. In fact, it feels like an antidote to Bridgerton.

While Bridgerton has been heralded as the baseline of diversity in the HR genre, Amita Murray actually takes the care and consideration to write actual people of colour into her books grounded in realism. I especially love and relate to the fact that all the Marleigh sisters are Indian just like me. While some aspects of the books are unflinchingly harsh (see trigger warnings above), that was the reality for people of colour in Georgian/Regency/Victorian England back in the day.

With Unladylike Rules of Attraction, it feels like Amita Murray has finally found a good balance between her thrilling plots and the romance. I definitely enjoyed the chemistry and sex scenes between Anya and Damian in this book more than the previous installment. That being said, I do wish the scenes themselves had lasted longer than most men do 😂. The ideas and acts for the various scenes were inspired but felt as though they were not tapped into their full sexy potential.

On the flip side, I really did like the romantic progression of the two. I think some of the most beautiful lines came from both Anya and Damian when they were being introspective about their lives and each other. Amita perfectly laid out their flaws and where those traits came into conflict. I do love a great grovelling montage from anyone in HR and this book definitely delivered in that respect. I also loved how seamlessly the romantic arc of this book intertwined with the main plot. I really appreciated that it was given focus once most of the loose ends of the book was tied up!

Speaking of the main plot, I loved this particular one very much. Just like Unladylike Lessons, Amita knows how to write a great mystery plot with an inciting event to rival any HR Act 3, high stakes, and a high speed plan that will take place over a week.

The plot was not only well written but the writing of this book was extremely compact - the book was very well structured. It also took me for a joyride. With twists and turns I did not expect them to go the way they did. Yet in true Amita Murray fashion, she did lay some hints early enough for sharp eyed readers to catch. I think this is one of the few books I've read where the inciting incident AND the HR Act 3 both were stressful. They both had me gasping loudly in the best way. While the resolution of the plot may seem controversial to some, I think it was very rooted in realism which honoured the characters and world building.

Of course, it wouldn't be an excellent book without a wonderful set of secondary characters! I admire how she knows how to write a supporting cast that props up their leads well. I adored how Trixie and Jeremy supported their respective leads and how some characters connected back to the first book! I loved how the really lovely callbacks stood well on their own if you hadn't read the first book.

As always, not only are the supportive characters written great, her villains are written all too well in the most horrifying ways. I think what makes them so terrible is that they feel real. We have all met people like this in person. Our very existence of being different threatens them so they do everything in their power to make you feel small. I will always appreciate how Amita holds up a mirror not just to society back then but how people like these villains still exist in this day and age.

The parallels at times really catch me off guard and have me very emotional. It is a very real part of our lives as readers of colour and I like how Amita has all her readers confront with the fact. Some of us don’t get to close the book and move on with our lives from the conflicts present in the book.

Last and certainly not least, I sang all the praises for the last book as well: I absolutely adore that their fractured sisterhood is the thread of this series. It’s such a compelling part of the books. In this novel, the sister scenes really shone on their own alongside the already intriguing story. The mystery of their origins keeps unravelling in the best way and I cannot to read more!

My only complaint for this book would be the fact that I wanted it to be longer overall! Just so the romance could have been explored even more in depth. A few extra scenes here and there to fully illustrate their connection. I could sense and feel it by Act 2, more specific scenes of connections would have made this book stellar! And of course, I would never complain about more descriptive sex scenes 😂.

Overall, this is the best book of the series to date (and I love Lila dearly!). It is for anyone looking for a more realistic look into the historical side of historical romance novels! If you’re into that, murder mysteries and compelling characters and themes, this book is for us. Happy Reading everyone and I can’t wait for this book to be in everyone’s hands!

Thank you to HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. 

[daidonzo]

Chapter 26 - Famous last words [Chishiya x Reader]

"What happened?"

"The minotaur… He hit her head against the floor many times." A whimpering voice said. It sounded like a child in their early teens.

"How much time has she been unconscious?"

"I don't know…"

"Less than three minutes." Another voice declared, low and manly.

"That's good." Was that Chishiya's voice?

You opened your eyes. Everything was blurry. Your head hurt so much. It felt as if it had been split open. You also felt dizzy, to the point of wanting to throw up, but you didn't think you could actually stood up to do it.

Two heads with a beautiful set of blonde hair and an even more perfect-looking face appeared in your line of view. Actually, no, they started to merge together and became just one. What was happening?

"Chishiya?" You asked, squinting your eyes. There was a light somewhere. It made everything worse.

"I'm here." You felt someone's hand on your own.

"My head is killing me."

"I know."

"Did you beat the King of Diamonds?"

A laugh, but kind of strained. Was he worried about something?

"Yes."

And then you remembered, you were supposed to be playing as well.

"Did I beat the King of Hearts?"

"You did."

-------------------------------------------------------------- SEVEN HOURS AGO

"I'm not going to let you go play the King of Diamonds on your own." You declared, once more, just in case Chishiya had any doubts about it still.

"Yes, you will." He answered, simply. "We need to beat all of the games. And you said it yourself, if someone can beat diamonds, that is me."

"Now you are just boasting." But you had said that. You hated yourself and your stupid mouth that liked to form words without your brain's input.

"I will be fine. There is nothing in this world that could keep me from returning to you."

It felt good to hear that. You were about to smile, but had to remind yourself that thirty seconds ago you wanted to kill him. And the murdering instincts had the winning hand, no matter how many beautiful things he would say.

"Stop being cute." You demanded, hoping he hadn't noticed how his words had made you feel. But he knew he had you eating out of the palm of his hand.

"I promise you. I will be back."

He leaned, and was about to kiss you, his lips brushing against yours already, when you heard yourself say five words you had never imagined.

"Then I will play too." Famous last words.

He separated, so that he could have a better look at your face.

"Are you sure?"

"No. But the King of Hearts is near and we have to beat all the games." You imitated his voice during the last part of the sentence.

To be honest, you didn't want to play. You didn't know why you were doing this, to teach him a lesson? Give him a taste of his own medicine? Because you knew you couldn't just sit there and stare at a wall while he was risking his life? Because it was fair that all of you would do your part?

"You can wait for me and then we can beat the King of Hearts together."

"Same logic applies: what if it is a game where only one person can survive?"

That was the main reason why he didn't want you going with him to the King of Diamonds. He had said that the higher difficulty diamond games usually were non-cooperative, which resulted in only one winner.

And none of you wanted to think much more about that situation.

He pondered your words. He wouldn't stop you, and you knew it.

"I don't want anything to happen to you."

"Well, that makes two of us."

He finally pressed your lips with his in a short, but intense and breath-taking kiss.

"Don't die."

"Yeah, well. That's the intention - not dying." You thought to yourself, four hours later, while you were waiting in a huge receiving hall of a palace-like building, phone in your hand.

There were other thirteen people with you. None of them particularly attention-catching, except for a guy who must have been at least two meters tall and was built like a tank.

He, however, was pretty nice. "What do you think the game is going to be?" He asked you, trying to make small talk.

"I really have no idea…"

The door opened and a fifteenth person entered, a girl, no more than twelve or thirteen if you had to guess. She looked around her, terrified. She was dirty, and her clothes torn.

REGISTRATION CLOSED.

You all looked at your phones' screens when you heard that voice.

Maybe the game would be easy. Maybe it was one of those games in which you could all survive. Maybe you should have waited for Chishiya. Thinking about him hurt, so you tried not to. Same way you tried not to think about Kuina, Arisu, Usagi, Tatta or Ann.

Now, you had to focus on the task at hand.

"Game: The Minotaur's Labyrinth. Difficulty: King of Hearts. Rules: You have to escape the labyrinth before the time runs out. You will have three hours."

Okay, a labyrinth. Sure, that wouldn't be that hard. You knew the trick, you were supposed to keep one of your hands, left or right, touching the wall at all times as you went through it. It may take longer this way, but you were guaranteed to find the exit. Why was it called the Minotaur's Labyrinth, then?

"A beast will roam around the venue." Shit.

"You can also clear the game by killing the beast or by feeding at least fourteen players to it. Game starts now."

A huge door opened. It led, just as they had said, to a labyrinth.

Or so you thought, because you couldn't really see anything other than a room made of dirty concrete leading to three extremely tight corridors of the same material, with walls so high that not even the tallest looking person in the group could see above them.

"What should we do? Maybe it will be better if we keep together?" The teenage girl asked. But she was ignored. Most had already disappeared, running out of desperation and fear. You didn't know what they were scared of: was it the beast or the possibility of someone else sacrificing them so that they would win?

"Let's do that." You said, also looking at the big guy, who had remained by your side as well. "What are your names?" You were extremely frightened, but wanted them to keep composure, even if you were not that sure you could keep it yourself.

"I'm Suzuki." Said the little girl. God, she was so small. What was she doing here?

"My name's Aoki." The strong man answered.

"Nice to meet you! My name's…" You didn't get to tell them, because you heard the beast roar. And then screams. The sound of bones breaking and… Of something eating? "We have to run."

And so you did, the three of you. You forgot about your strategy of keeping a hand on the wall and just kept running for your lives. The roars of the beast were still getting closer, no matter how hard you tried.

"What is it? Is it a tiger, is it a bear!?" Suzuki asked. She was crying.

"I don't know!" You also didn't know where the roars were coming from. Nowhere? Everywhere? How was it possible? One second you were sure the roars were behind you, another they originated to your right.

It also didn't help the labyrinth was extremely dark, the only sources of light being in the wider rooms, and not in the corridors connecting them.

You kept running until you reached one of those rooms, but just as you were about to enter, a blood-curling scream paralyzed you.

You extended your arm so that Suzuki and Aoki would stop as well.

"There's something in front of us."

You couldn't see very well but were thankful for the lack of light, because that meant whatever, or whoever was in front you, wouldn't see you either. So you waited, but took a few steps forward.

You finally saw the reason for the scream no more than a couple of minutes later.

And it made your blood freeze.

There was an actual minotaur. Well, no, not really, but there was a huge man (much bigger than Aoki, and that was saying something) wearing only a pair of ragged trousers in front of you. Technically, not only, as he also had a bull's head where his should have been.

A literal bull's head, the mouth and horns of the animal full of blood. As well as the hands of the man.

He was dragging a woman's corpse by her leg. She was completely disfigured, face distorted.

You turned around, screaming "RUN!!!!!" at the top of your lungs. You looked back for a second, and saw that the minotaur had stopped following you, right before entering the tight corridor. You stopped.

"He doesn't fit… The corridors are too tight for him with that grotesque thing on…"

Your companions looked at you, as if you had become crazy. But you knew you were right. Otherwise, why wasn't he following you? He would die if you cleared the game.

Aoki was the first one to nod in understanding. "It's true. And if you notice… The growls of the beast can still be heard everywhere around us."

"It's a recording." They were playing you. They wanted you to be as scared as possible.

"So… are we safe?" The young girl asked, drying her tears with the sleeve of her jumper.

"As long as we keep to the corridors."

And so you did. You moved through corridors, only going through the wider rooms as fast as you possibly could and when strictly necessary.

What you had said couldn't be exactly right. There had to be hidden doors, or something, some way to connect the bigger rooms with one another, because if not it would mean that he would be stuck in the same room for the entire duration of the game.

And it clearly was not the case, as suddenly, the minotaur was in the room you were about enter.

Another possibility was that you were stuck in a looped route, or that all the roads ended up leading to this place. Actually, that sounded a lot more plausible.

You looked at the phone you had been given. There were only twenty minutes left.

You were exhausted, and losing hope.

You had studied the Greek myth of the minotaur in school when you were a kid. It was a monster with the head of a bull and the body of man, who lived in a labyrinth constructed specifically for it, so that he couldn't leave and nobody could find their way out. They fed it with human flesh once a year, fourteen young men and women, which you assumed was the reason why you could clear the game making fourteen sacrifices.

That was until Theseus murdered him. Some said with his bare hands, some said with a club. Others said with one of his own horns.

You felt the pockets of the jacket you were wearing. You still had Chishiya's home-made bomb in them. You took it out.

"I have a plan. It's not a great plan." You warned Suzuki and Aoki, who, thankfully, looked desperate enough to try whatever had occurred to you. They also couldn't stand this anymore.

The three of you set the plan into motion.

First, the three of you would enter the room, keeping to the shadows so that the minotaur could not see you. Secondly, Suzuki would lure the minotaur towards one of the corridors, so that his back would be exposed. Then, Aoki would immobilize him, since he was the strongest one of the group and the only one with an actual possibility of keeping him restrained long enough. Then, you would place the bomb on the bull's head. You didn't think it would be strong enough to kill the man wearing it, but maybe it could break it into pieces.

You would use the bull's horn to then kill him.

You didn't think you could actually kill a person, but you still had to try.

The plan went well in the beginning, and worked up until the point in which Aoki had to prevent the humongous man from moving, because you had clearly underestimated how strong he would be. He threw the player to the ground using one arm only.

And then, the closest thing to him, was you.

You tried to run, but he jumped on top of you, making you lose your balance and fall, the self-fabricated bomb leaving your hand, falling out of reach. He grabbed your head and hit the floor with it, one, two, three, four times.

And then you lost consciousness.

And woke up to Chishiya, Suzuki and Aoki.

"You're telling me…" You had difficulty thinking. It was like trying to swim in jelly. "Suzuki picked up the bomb while the minotaur was beating me and… made his head explode?"

"The bull's head." Clarified Aoki. "I picked the chunk that had the horns in it and pierced his heart with it."

And you thought he was the typical strong, big, but harmless kind of guy who wouldn't even hurt a fly.

"Woah." Was all that you could say.

Chishiya's arms were around you, hearing the tale as if it was a weather report.

It was then time to say your goodbyes. You were happy to see Suzuki and Aoki left together. Maybe they could help each other.

"I'm never letting you play another game on your own." The blonde man said. His arms were still around you. His body had relaxed now that you were finally awake, but you could tell he was still not back to his normal self.

"Lucky for you, there's only few left." You tried to joke. Your headache probably was not going away any time soon, but you were still alive. And back with Chishiya.

"I'm serious."

"Okay, okay. But then, I am not letting you go on your own either. Or are you going to tell me the King of Diamonds was a walk in the park?"

"It wasn't."

Hearing him admit that shocked you.

You wanted to know more, but Chishiya insisted you needed to rest.

That night, when you fell asleep, he stayed awake.

Because he needed to check your vitals to make sure there were no more problems other than sensitivity to light and sound and a massive headache after being beaten up so hard.

And because the fear of losing you hadn't left him yet, and seeing you alive, breathing and sleeping soundly was the only thing that could calm him down.

[ruckis--rookie]

Ruckis, can you help me out by talking about OOTS real quick? 🥺👉👈

Okay so the thing is... I have a bunch of OCs lying around, and I'd love to write a nice story for them! The only problem is, that I never wrote a story from scratch before 🤨

Soooo... How did OOTS come into existence? How did you get the idea for the main plot and themes? How did you manage to tie the characters into the story? How did you make the rules for the world as a whole?

Please tell me I'm desperate and really like OOTS rip

Oooh that IS a really... complicated thing to answer, but an interesting ask nonetheless. One that I'm going to enjoy answering >:3c

You see, the reason it's difficult to explain is because I simultaneously have no idea what I'm doing and at the same time I have exactly every idea of what I'm doing, if that makes sense. I partially blame/thank my unmedicated severe adhd for my hyperactive imagination, I can pull a lot of stuff out of my ass on a whim just by sitting and thinking for 5 minutes. At the same time I used to love reading as a kid, I loved writing all throughout Jr. High and Highschool, and even now I love dissecting the plots of cartoons, movies, and games, guessing things before they happen. If I had to describe a fantasy story, furthermore making one, it's like.... building a structure, but that structure is made up of absolute bs.

It's easy if you start out with asking yourself a few questions. What do you want this story to be about? Who are the characters and their drives, goals, and aspirations? How do *they* play into the themes of the story? What *are* the themes of your story? Do you want to convey a lesson? Once you have those little details you can start branching out. A looot of it is world building and connecting the dots. Don't be afraid to take inspiration from other things as well! Whether that be from real life or fiction... I'll use OotS as an example.

Order of the Stars started as a theoretical question. I was going through a hard time in my life. I still am, but I'm working hard to get to a point where things can get better but that's besides the point. I mention this because I wanted to make something special. Something of my own that I could use as an escape. So I presented myself with a question... what if someone in the same position as me took an absolute nosedive for the worst? What would they do in response?

That's why in first chapter of the missing chapters version of OotS you can get easily drawn to the main characters presented currently. Her struggles are inspired from real life. They're taken from mine, albeit with some drastic liberties. Side note, That's actually why that, despite being a what if version of me I can't connect with her. She will never be a Sona, because she's someone I don't want to (and strive not to) become.

Anyways I presented more world building questions that would give me more opportunities to make the story more interesting. What if in this world magic and dieties, while obscure, did exist? All these questions combined were my starting point. From there I built out. Both backwards to explain more and solidify more of the story and the why's, and forward. Spoilers, it eventually lead to nuclear warfare that caused the near destruction of humans and the hastened evolution in animals. That may seem like it makes NO sense without context, but you just have to wait to read a little deeper. Everything is connected.

I gave myself a setting, several story themes, both overarching and some that you have to read deeper into. Order of the Stars literally reflects one of those themes. It has a double meaning. One of the themes is hammering down on the abusal of power from people higher up on the authority chain. Basically building this hierarchy, an "Order" if you will, that poses as one of the overarching antagonistic threats. It's also a nice little hint towards the involvement of dieties made from celestial and astral bodies. Kitsuneoctua is a god made out of a constellation, and what is a constellation but the order in which stars align?

Another theme touches on racist/xenophobic behaviors. I've never gotten how people can be like that. We're all people, it's honestly upsetting to see how people will fight each other just because of something like skin color and ethnicity. So I made not just an entire culture to reflect that, but the main characters from the heroic version of OotS reflect that too. You have Aleron, a human who grew up around an entire city of people who are xenophobic and racist towards what are called "Modern Animals" (the anthro animals that can walk and talk). Despite that he adores them. He sees them as equal. He's kind hearted and almost sickeningly sweet, if not a little inexperienced. And then you have the other hero, Roxie, who acts as a character foil. She grew up being taught that humans can't be trusted, only to have a human try and nurse her back to health and risk his life for her. The two vow to work together and embark on a journey, leaving everything they knew behind. They have to learn how to work through their differences and get along, all the while striving to make the world a better place. Hopefully the take away that people get from that is we can all get along and fight for better despite our differences. There's no need to fight each other.

Overall a lot of my story writing is cause and effect. Thinking about how people or objects will react a certain way. A butterfly effect, almost. And how I can connect the lines. It's like a tree. You plant a seed and when you supply it with things to grow it starts sprouting branches, and blossoming, all the while growing hardened roots underneath. It sprawls every which way until finally, you've made something beautiful.

As for rules... the rules are what you make them, really. It's your world. You're practically God, if you said that for whatever reason platypus have duck wings and can fly than goshdarnit they have wings and they can fly. I personally just like to provide explanations that seem like they would make sense to wrap it up in a nice little bow :> outside of that, the only other tip I can offer is simply a nitpick of mine in terms of story writing. Refrain from retconning too much. For me consistency is the best policy. I hope this provides some good insight, I tried 😅