#I was also really excited for the potential of such an hyped crossover that I feel the game failed to deliver on

[mizukagami-takamagahara]

I 100% agree with your tags about what could have made EE look a little better. I really didn't mind RR as much as EE probably because it at least retained the Blazblue aesthetic and style. RR felt like a weird knockoff Blazblue game, BBDW was an actual Blazblue VN dressed up as a gatcha game (my possibly unpopular opinion is that if BBTAG can be considered a legitimate part of the series so can BBDW), EE doesn't even feel like a knockoff it just feels like Blazblue characters in a completely unrelated game. And from what has been revealed about EE's story this may literally be the case as in that is the whole plot. That I feel is what specifically gives off the "parading around the corpse of the Blazblue franchise" feel to me.

A quick salt warning; I aim to fall somewhere in the range of neutrality on this blog, particularly when dealing with Entropy Effect. I want people to be able to enjoy the game fairly and to feel safe sharing that excitement here! I'm willing to try to meet the game on fair, even ground. That said, when it comes down to my own biased feelings, I would've married BBDW if I could've, and I already have some pretty strongly negative feelings about the studio behind Entropy Effect. So I have a bad taste in my mouth about this upcoming game. I don't plan on being particularly harsh in this post, but I will be sharing my uncensored opinions here. No disrespect meant.

Now. Carl. Oh my god, Carl. I'm dying, Carl.

I played Revolution Reburning while waiting for BBDW to launch, trying to scratch the "upcoming game hype" itch, and the gameplay was super fun! But damn did it leave me with a serious hatred for the game itself and the studio behind it. The game has a story mode that is poorly translated, horribly bastardized/watered down, and just... just really bad. I'd respect it as a fan game, but the fact that it's a legitimate thing just pushes my buttons too damn much. Call it a pet peeve.

Again, the game is fun! It's cool! I really enjoyed playing it! There is not an ounce of doubt in my mind that Entropy Effect will be fun as hell, because this studio knows how to make a fun game.

But I really, really wish they weren't involved in BlazBlue. As I mentioned elsewhere, a lot of my rage comes from this sense that what I personally love about the BlazBlue series [the story, the setting, the world Mori has crafted since his youth] has been placed in a zero-sum game against another totally enjoyable aspect of the series [gameplay, and if I'm feeling bitter, the whims of ArcSys's marketing team.] It's not like these two facets actually need to be opposed to one another. Hell, they should be flourishing in tandem. But after everything that happened with BBDW and Mori leaving the studio, I can't let go of the idea that projects that focus more on gameplay and consumer appeal [such as EE] are being pursued "instead of" or "at the cost of" the parts of the series I love the most. So. I get salty. I do, genuinely, hope that time proves me wrong on this.

You, Carl, mentioned EE's story. Like you said, everything we've seen of it so far suggests this isn't even a real "spinoff" title for BlazBlue, in the sense that spinoffs like RR and CrossTag told their stories using the same building blocks as BlazBlue's setting. I personally don't interpret them as existing within the same canon, but they're undoubtedly using the same material.

Entropy Effect's story and setting seem to be entirely original. They look interesting, but I'm stuck with this feeling of "why the hell did they make this a BlazBlue title, and not just an original one?" Maybe when the game releases it will surprise me and I'll understand, but at the moment, with my current levels of saltiness, it feels like a heartless cash grab.

We know there's some level of turbulence behind the scenes at ArcSys around the BlazBlue IP, since BBDW's failure and Mori's suspicious departure. We also know that in the current media landscape, a lot of executive heads are rampantly refusing original projects and insisting on pumping out installments of franchises that already have a name and a following. I don't have any information on whether or not ArcSys is struggling with this, but it's been a growing problem in the gaming industry for years now.

The worst case of this in my memory is the Dead Rising franchise, another one of my all-time favorite games. Differing visions for the franchise and an unwillingness to support new properties let to an absolute mess on the development side of things, and ultimately the death of the series.

Note; If you're interested in what happened to Dead Rising, Did You Know Gaming has a wonderful video on it.

With that experience in my memory, I'm worried about the future of BlazBlue. I wonder if it was always the plan to make Entropy Effect a BlazBlue title, or if it was originally pitched as its own IP, but rejected unless it could be tied in to an established franchise.

[cosmonaughtt]

I think, part of the reason I’m quite ecstatic about the Hermitcraft & Empires crossover (The Great Crossover Event) is that... 

It was planned and followed through.

Also this ramble got long so there is a readmore LOL (￣ ‘i ￣;)

And this little ramble here isn’t a slight against any creator at all, but I first got re-involved with MCYT content with the DreamSMP. I think that using Minecraft as a medium for storytelling is super unique and underrated; there’s a bit of a juvenile energy to it as it’s a kids game, but also as a game with infinite possibilities and worlds it really has no bounds.

What DSMP did in 2020-2021 was amazing. I think that they had such great potential with storytelling and used it without even realizing what they were doing, especially in the early days. One of the reasons I fell out of it (as I’m sure everyone has) is that, for the most part, they aren’t really that organized as they maybe used to be.

And I get it. Life happens, and you lose inspiration for stories, and with COVID-19 NOT ENDING BUT EVERYONE THINKING IT IS OVER ENOUGH TO MOVE ONTO OTHER VENTURES, I’ve been there before. Well, maybe not the last part. I still wear mask everywhere I go. 

I can’t help but say that the disappointment of ccs losing interest in the DSMP storyline doesn’t hurt in a way. Call me parasocial for it all you want; but if your favorite book series or movie trilogy never had that final movie come out, or your favorite TV show never had that last season to tie up all the loose ends, you’d be dissapointed too, right? Again, this isn’t a slight against the individual ccs, just at circumstances around it.

But in come Hermitcraft and Empires; Hermitcraft was a series on my radar for years but I’ve always been intimidated by the long episode counts (except for season 8 now lmao) to ever get invested into it, but when Empires S1 came out i was hooked. People using Minecraft to tell stories! And it’s good!!!! 

There’s a sort of similar energy from early Empires episodes to early DSMP lore; none of it feels completely planned out. I can’t speak for creators of course, but it feels like both SMPs didn’t intend to get as story-based or lore-heavy as they ended up getting, but they got, eh, lost in ze sauce, as one of my friends would say. They embraced it, and it just so happened that Empires, because it was strictly MINECRAFT creators and not a mix of different types of streamers who also play Minecraft, it was able to keep that storyline to the end. And with Hermitcraft, while some people joke it’s got lore-phobic people on the server who just wanna play minecraft, after the ending of Season 8? Yeah, right, buddy.

When there started to be little pieces & foreshadowing in episodes, I got really excited, but kept my expectations low. Maybe as a response to DSMP CCs, maybe as a I get too overexcited over little things and I don’t wanna over-hype myself, if it doesn’t happen I’ll just make fanfic for it lmao type of thought. 

But they didn’t!

They actually went through with it! It’ll be a little mini-arc! They’d been planning it for more than four months, according to fWhip’s video. It’s one of the biggest crossover events in Minecraft history, and it is so cool to see these (grown-ass adults /affectionate) MCYT creators invest so heavily into storylines and “roleplay”. I think for a lot of popular storytellers, like directors or writers of different shows/movies/novels/etc, have become dissatisfied with how late capitalistic society has made “storytelling” synonymous with the dreaded word “content”; its so rare to find a unique work out there nowadays that isn’t just a remake of something else or relies on “meta” storytelling to be funny and original that it just oversells itself and becomes dull in the process (ahem Velma ahem). 

But as silly as it is, these MCYTs are putting their all into roleplaying as lil’ block people in a fantasy world. Even less roleplay-heavy creators are finding their places in the storytelling, and idk I can’t help but be appreciative and awed at the fact that they planned something and it actually went through for once.

[zu-is-here]

Zuuuuu!!!!! How are you!!!

Gayfish!! (*ﾟ∀ﾟ*) Amazing, thanks! <3 Hoo boi it's been a while— what about you?? How's it going? ☆

P. S. I saw your update and I'm so hyped about the upcoming comic— take your time╰(*´︶`*)╯♡

UPD:

Rainbow witches and myths?? *0* These sound intriguing! ☆ Will be there a chance to see them?? (*'▽'*)

YOOO the rainbow witch looks so interesting! *0* Was it a task to come up with the design??

Omg— "now what" got me XD Is a hell hound our best boi Henry?? (*ﾟ∀ﾟ*)

OH that's even better *^* Pff— how is he going now?? ówò

AWWW here's the boyo on a walk! <33

Awww it's them bois!! <3 And Killer finally— screaming?? >:D Oh such a tease! ☆

Omg,,, this tiny dinosaur looks really intimidating heheh,,, (〃ω〃) (Sooo cute! <3)

Oh god— are you alright now?? (ó3ò) Please take care... and have more chill time ♡

Ah this game is really tricky! *w* I watched a walkthrough instead >:D

A new crossover?? \(//∇//)\ Boi am I excited! ☆ Your Dream weaver is something indeed, so potential... ♪

Thank you so much for your support and such a great analysis! (๑˃̵ᴗ˂̵) It was a pleasure to read *^*

I finally decorated my home (and a Christmas tree with my family too <3) and started preparing presents (๑>◡<๑)☆

We're also gonna have a costume party at work but I have no idea what movie character to dress up as! :'D

Ouch— get better soon! (ówò) And stay safe ♡

No idea at all but most likely I'll pick up something from my wardrobe to see what character it reminds me of xd

[wyxan]

Fandom Resolution: identify my likes and dislikes

Being a full person with likes and dislikes that I know and share is something I have to work at. So I’m keep a list (and checking it often 😊). It’s time to move from being what I think people want me to be to trusting them with my actual human self 💜

Likes:

Fandom friends - the hype for posts/ideas and encouragement for WIPs and mutual unapologetic excitement and insight and advice and community. Yeah, love you, you talented bunch!

DC / Marvel crossovers - why choose??

Rare pairs - or basically writing any dynamic based on how interesting it has the potential to be.

Comedy / banter - I’ve really enjoyed creating back-and-forth moments and leaning in to characters that I think are funny and like to tease.

Developing head-canons, building out characters, and self-indulgence - I’m really enjoying my MJ in the Sunrise series. My idea is that she’s on the ace spectrum (like she feels the way she does about Peter because she knows him thoroughly), devoted to Peter (as he is to her), and completely non-judgemental about his desires (even if she will take longer time to consider her own role and might never move from where she is now at all). If she can see Peter wants something that he isn’t sure he can have, and she can ease that, she’s going to do it.

Taking part in events - reading everyone’s fics and commenting and sharing ideas, argh. It was my first time experiencing that in fandom and it was just such a joy.

Charcoal portraiture - I’ve never done anything like that baby Jason piece before and it was SO enjoyable. It’s probably 10 hours of work over 2 days and I literally loved them all. I didn’t know I could do that, it was fab. Also engaging with a character and their story to decide how to draw them: he’s hungry, he’s tired, he’s scared, he’s angry, he’s ready to fight, he’s only about 12 - I love him even more.

Dislikes:

Smut?? - Not sure if I dislike it, but smut was harder than I thought it would be to write, and I felt very self conscious about the lack of feedback. It’s hard to know if that’s because it was bad and people politely moved on or if there was less of an audience for it / public audience. I don’t think I enjoyed how I went about trying to write it, I think maybe in future I’ll try a) PWP to take the pressure of a storyline off (like these characters are already in universe together, let’s just move on), or b) a multi chapter fic where I mostly focus on the storyline and if smut feels like it adds something I’ll include it or write a side fic for it.

Not having a beta reader - the first fic I posted was so kindly beta’d by noxnthea and she made the whole process genuinely exciting and definitely improved the final output. I wrote the next one very late for the deadline and then the E rated fic I got weirdly shy about so I just posted them. It lets all the nerves creep in and puts a lot of pressure on AO3 stats! And on that vein…

AO3 stats page (/tumblr notes) - I’m not judging myself for wanting engagement because it’s very human to want connection. I do think I got a bit too keen on repeatedly checking my engagement stats when I wasn’t getting comments or kudos, and second-guessing everything. I can’t mind-read how people use AO3/tumblr and I need to try not to set myself arbitrary targets or to assume that low engagement means those seeing it aren’t enjoying it. However I have been pleased that I haven’t forgotten how much I enjoyed the creation process even after posting.

[miraculouswolf99]

Breaking Into The Watchtower Part 1

Miraculous Ladybug-DC Universe crossovers are some of my favorite fanfictions. They are just a good match. I especially love ones where the Justice League either ignores the Paris situation or one of the League members gets the messages for help and doesn’t believe them. Mostly, it’s the Flash, Guy Gardner, Green Lantern, or Booster Gold.

In this story, some of the miraculous have changed hands for my story. There will be new holders and different holders for old miraculous. All of my OC characters will also be included. Nathaniel has the fox, Marc has the turtle, Rose has the horse, Juleka has the tiger, and Alix will have the bunny.

*****

“This is most definitely not something that I would ever have thought that I would ever do,” White Wolf says.

“We are magical teenagers that use the power of mini gods and mystical jewelry,” Beautifly says. “Your statement pretty much sums up every day of our lives.”

“Trust me, I never thought that I would be doing anything like this before I met Plagg,” Cat Noir said.

“At least I can cross this off my bucket list,” Ladybug giggled.

“Why is the name of the Olympian gods would this be on your bucket list,” White Wolf looked at the teen hero weirdly.

“I put it on after they started to ignore our cries for help,” Ladybug crossed her arms. “Or, when it was made obvious that they were ignoring us, at least.”

“How much sleep have you gotten lately,” Beautifly asks. “You only get this sassy when you haven’t slept in about two days.”

“I remember going to sleep on Wednesday,” Ladybug put her hand on her chin as she started thinking.

“Uh… It’s Saturday,” White Wolf deadpanned.

“Oh,” was all Ladybug could say.

“If you don’t go right to sleep after we get back, I am sending Plagg over to destroy every device you have to make sure you are not distracted and can finally sleep,” Cat Noir threatened.

“But what if there is an akuma,” Ladybug protested.

“Then we will have to make sure that Cat Noir saves his power so that he can Cataclysm the moth when it comes out of the akumatized object,” White Wolf says.

“And the damage,” Ladybug continued to protest.

“We will get to that when we get there,” White Wolf said.

“You are sometimes too selfless for your own good,” Beautifly shook her head.

“Yeah, she tends to be like that,” Cat Noir chuckled. “Why do you think I force myself between her and the villains we face when she tries to protect me because she will take the hit for me. But she needs to be the one that the attack does not hit because she is the one that purifies the akuma.”

“We are a very colorful crew,” Beautifly giggled.

“Says the butterfly girl whose hero outfit is almost entirely black,” White Wolf said.

“Not my fault that Flutter is a monarch butterfly kwami,” Beautifly shrugged.

“I certainly wish that I had some color on my suit,” Cat Noir says. “While the black makes my eyes pop, the color doesn’t match my personality at all. Why couldn’t Plagg be a tabby cat or a white cat?”

“Because he is the literal god of bad luck and nobody thinks of either of those two other kinds of cats when bad luck comes to mind,” Ladybug stated. “Deal with it, Chaton.”

“Yeah, you really need some sleep before you become permanently sassy,” Beautifly says.

“I blame Hawkmoth and his never-ending late-night akumas,” White Wolf stated. “My ears are still ringing from that banshee akuma he created last week.”

“And talk about unoriginal,” Cat Noir rolled his eyes. “Scream Queen was probably the most obvious choice of name in the history of villain names.”

“Even more so than that Poison Ivy woman in Gotham,” Beautifly asked.

“Well, she could have called herself Mother Nature,” Cat Noir shrugged.

“Point made,” Beautifly said.

The four then looked at the rest of their teams preparing themselves for what was going to be done. The Greek hero team had stayed the same throughout the three years of fighting, but the French team had changed. Their current members were Vulpix, Emerald Turtle, Queen Bee, Viperion, Lady Unicorn, King Monkey, Ryuko, Shadow Cat, and Bunnix. The last two being the newest members of the hero team. The Greek team was Gladiator with the grizzly bear miraculous, Tigress with the leopard miraculous, and Ocean Mage with the mermaid miraculous. The last one being the only person to be currently using a magical creature miraculous on the planet.

All of the heroes were getting ready in their own ways. Ryuko, Ocean Mage, and Viperion were meditating. King Monkey, Bunnix, Tigress, and Gladiator were all getting themselves hyped up for the mission. Queen Bee was trying to find a way to take off her gloves to file her nails. Vulpix and Emerald Shell were cuddling, comforting each other, and probably trying really hard not to start making out. The same could be said about Shadow Cat and Lady Unicorn. Those four were always the more timid ones of the group, even though all of them were amazing heroes.

“Alright, does everyone remember their parts of the plan,” Ladybug asked them, snapping them out of their trances.

“I will make sure that everything goes smoothly and no one truly gets hurt,” Viperion says.

“White Wolf, Lady Unicorn, and I take out our biggest worries to being discovered before we are ready,” Bunnix added.

“The rest of us force them into a position where they have to listen to us,” Gladiator said.

The rest of the team nodded in agreement. Some of them were still looking nervous about what they were about to do.

“Are you sure doing this is the right thing to do,” Lady Unicorn asked. “We could get into serious trouble for this.”

“We wouldn’t be doing this at all if they stopped ignoring us,” Tigress crossed her arms. “Even with all these miraculous being active, Hawmoth’s akumas are getting more and more dangerous.”

“He is also akumatizing more dangerous people like con artists, martial artists, and policemen,” Ocean Mage says. “What’s to stop him from going all Scarlet Moth and sending his moths to a prison if he gets desperate enough?”

“That is why we need their help,” Ladybug said. “If contacting them through official means does not help, then we must do what we have to.”

“I just hope that we don’t get labeled as criminals for this,” Beautifly said.

-----------------------------

If there was one thing that Robin currently was, it was bored. He had to stop himself from yawning as he sat in another long and boring meeting of the Justice League.

One would think that a young hero like him would not be a part of one of these meetings. But this was less of a war room and more of a meeting between all heroes to discuss general things involving heroes in general and not entirely league business. It was always the same things being discussed in these meetings. Egotistical politicians trying to control the league, villains breaking out of prison again, as well as discussing potential new members of the League and the Young Justice team.

Other than Robin, the rest of the Bat-family was there as well. Batman, Nightwing, Red Hood, Red Robin, Oracle, Spoiler, Orphan, Batwing, and even Batwoman. The Super family was also there. Superman, Supergirl, Superboy, and the former Superboy that now called himself Krypton. Robin smirked at how Conner had finally broken the trend of having “Super” in his hero name. He may be a clone, he knew that both Kara and Jon both adored him. The other young heroes that were there were Red Arrow, Artemis, Aqualad, Tempest, Miss. Martian, Beast Boy, Starfire, Zatanna, Kid Flash, and Impulse.

And other than Batman and Superman, there were also the mentors of the other young heroes as well. Green Arrow, Aquaman, Martian Manhunter, Dr.Fate, and the Flash. The other adult heroes in the room were Hawkman, Hawkwoman, Wonder Woman, Sparton, Black Canary, Red Tornado, all three Green Lanterns, Black Lightning, Captain Marvel, Captain Atom, the Atom, and Katanna.

As Robin looked around, he noticed that he was not the only bored-looking young hero. The entire Bat-family looked to be wanting to be anywhere else, especially since they lived in a city where a crime was committed every five seconds. But the other heroes that looked bored were Superboy, Krypton, Red Arrow, Aqualad, and Beast Boy. They were all probably like him. They were excited to be part of league meetings until it was discovered that there was a lot more politics involved than actual hero work.

“Does anyone have anything else that they would like to add,” Superman asked the room.

“How about we talk about actually saving people instead of dealing with politicians,” Nightwing muttered, making the Bat-family hide their snickers.

“Especially that psycho Lex Luthor,” Krypton muttered from his place next to Nightwing.

“Well, if that is all…” Superman was about to wrap up the meeting.

“Wait,” Zatanna shot up from her seat, her hands on her head. “I sense something.”

All the younger heroes were all now thinking how something interesting was finally going to happen during one of these meetings. But the heroes were also all reaching for their weapons if they had them.

“What is it,” Wonder Woman asked the magician, her hand on her sword.

“There is an incoming magical…” Zatanna was cut off.

A bright blue portal opened up right under her feet. She fell in before she could finish her warning. The portal closed right after she fell into it.

“What in the world,” Flash gasped.

“ZATANNA,” the members of Young Justice yelled their former team member’s name.

“Oracle,” Batman did not even have to say the entire order.

“I’m on it,” the wheelchair-bound hero immediately started typing on her holographic computer. “She’s… I can’t find her.”

“What do you mean you can’t find her,” Captain Atom demanded to know.

“It’s like she vanished into thin air,” Oracle continued typing. “She’s nowhere in the Watchtower, or on Earth, not even on my planet in our galaxy. There is no sign of Zatanna anywhere.”

“She managed to say that it was something magical that was approaching,” Wonder Woman says.

“Dr. Fate, can you do something,” Superman requested of the lord of order.

The master sorcerer stood up from his seat. While he, personally, did not care for Zatanna other than a fellow user of the mystic arts, his current host body was that of her father. So finding her will hopefully silence all the yelling that Zatara is currently doing inside of the helmet.

But before the lord of order could do anything, another portal opened up behind him. But unlike the bright blue of the first one, this portal was a ring of blue surrounding a white portal. Something had quickly reached through and Dr.Fate was instantly turned into an ice statue. An invisible figure sneaked through the portal before it closed.

This caused all the other league members and Young Justice members to all jump and, drawing their weapons or preparing their powers. They all looked around and were on guard just in case another portal opened up.

“Oracle,” Batman ordered her again.

She was typing as quickly as humanly possible.

“I can’t find anyone else in the Watchtower,” she said, still typing. “I’ve run heat scans, x-ray scans, even the program to search for invisible opponents. I still can not find anyone else in the Watchtower.”

A soft tune suddenly played throughout the room. It was like a theme song for a peaceful day in the Fall played on a flute. A ball of light soon soared to the end of the room and brightly flashed. When the flash died down, the heroes were all shocked to see a message had been written in light in the air.

“We Just Want To Talk.”

It floated there for about a minute before Superman and Maritan Manhunter flew over to the message to examine it. But the moment that one of them touched it, it vanished in a burst of orange smoke-like light.

“It was an illusion,” Nightwing was the first to realize it.

“Maybe that is how they are hiding,” Red Robin opened up his own holographic screen over his glove and started typing. “Under an illusion.”

“And if they are magical like Zatanna said, it would not be possible to detect them since the technology that can detect magic has not been invented yet,” Oracle added.

“There is no such thing as magic,” yelled out Kid Flash.

Young Justice rolled their eyes, used to the constant rants that the speedster goes on about his disbelief in magic. It certainly annoyed those like Aqualad and Tempest, who both were born in Atlantis and attended the conservatory of sorcery there. Few other magical heroes tolerated the loud-mouth. Which was why heroes like Phantom and his brother Gold Siren wanted nothing to do with the team. (Reference to my fanfictions on Wattpad, Phantom Music and Home.)

“Try to find out where the illusion came from,” Superman ordered.

“You could try looking right in front of you,” a female voice was suddenly heard.

The heroes all turned and saw three masked teenagers standing there. Two boys and a girl. 

The first boy was a redhead with his bangs covering his right eye. He had on a fox-themed skin-tight orange and white outfit with red boots, gloves, and a red jacket. He also had real fox ears and a real fox tail as well. A flute was strapped to his back.

The boy next to him had black hair with green tips, which matched his turtle-themed outfit. The outfit also had a dark green leather jacket and boots with a green shield on his back, going with the goggle-like mask over his eyes.

The girl was blond with a single black streak in her ponytail. Her outfit was definitely themed by bumblebees. But unlike the shoes of the two next to her, her shoes had a slight heal to them. Like a two-inch-high wedge heel. Around her waist was a spinning top on a string.

“What have you done to our allies,” Captain Atom demanded of them.

“They are perfectly fine,” the turtle boy informed them.

“Why should we believe you,” Robin held his katana in his hand.

“Because we need your help and harming your fellow heroes would not help our situation,” the fox boy crossed his arms.

“What could you possibly need from us,” Black Lightning’s hands sparked with his powers.

“How about for you to stop ignoring us while we have been fighting a terrorist for three years,” the bee girl yelled at them.

“We also are not lying,” the fox boy said. “We have no reason to lie when surrounded by most of the world’s heroes.”

Before they could say anything else, all three were surrounded by separate green spheres that floated them up into the air. The Green Lanterns all had their rings pointed at one of the masked teens.

“This is ridiculous, utterly ridiculous,” the bee girl complained as she crossed her arms.

“I got captured by the original Green Lantern,” the fox boy looked to be almost fanboying inside of his sphere.

“Lucky, I got that class clown Guy Gardner,” the turtle boy almost seemed to pout.

“Hey,” Guy Gardner protested, offended.

“Why are you here, where is Zatanna, and what did you do to Dr. Fate,” Superman demanded of the three as he flew close to them.

“You know, you are a lot less threatening than you think you are,” the bee girl stated with a smirk. “By the way, whoever told you that underwear on the outside of your pants was a good choice needs to be thrown into fashion jail.”

Most of the Young Justice team had to stop themselves from laughing. Even Superboy, Supergirl, and Krypton were trying not to laugh. They had no idea who this girl was, but she was certainly sassy.

“How did you get into the Watchtower undetected,” Superman continued to demand answers from them.

“That is for us to know,” the fox boy started.

“And you to find out,” the turtle boy finished.

The smirks the three had told the league something, alright. Batman was the first to realize what it meant.

“There are more of them,” he said.

As if him saying that was their cue to come in, three more masked teens almost seemed to materialize into the room. A guy in a monkey-themed outfit hit his Ruyi Jingu Bang against the ground and then threw it into the air.

“Uproar,” he yelled.

He threw his now glowing staff into the air, the staff letting out a flash as it spun in the air. With a swift flick of her lasso, Wonder Woman grabbed the weapon before it could fall back into the monkey boy’s hand. But something else fell into his hands that they did not see.

But then came the second masked teen, who looked like he had been born of the ocean. He took out what seemed to be a hilt made out of sapphire. Water came out of the hilt as the masked boy flicked his wrist, the water forming into a whip. Before they could move, the teen whipped all of the Green Lantern’s hands at once. Pulling his whip, the masked teen caused their hands to collide together.

That was when the monkey boy threw the object that he had caught out of the air. Katana was close enough to try and slice through it with her sword, but she was intercepted by a second masked girl, this one appearing out of nowhere and seemed to have a tiger theme to her. Even if she was purple and black and not orange and black. Katana’s sword was met with a metal tiger-claw gauntlet. While they fought, a bunny-themed girl showed up and intercepted Green and Red Arrow, fighting both archers at once. Then, to the shock of the Green Lantern trio, a stuffed octopus child’s toy landed on their connected hands.

For a moment, nothing happened and they wondered why a stuffed animal had been thrown at them. But then their rings all started to malfunction at once. The rings stopped glowing and all three trapped teens were released from their bubbles. And since the rings were no longer working, the Lanterns all fell to the ground without their ability to fly.

“We’re teenagers, not stupid,” the bee girl smirked.

No longer wanting to underestimate the masked teens, the big hitters of the league all started to move toward them. Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Red Tornado, and Captain Atom.

“Venom,” the bee girl shouted.

The top in her hand seemed to grow a bit in size and start glowing. As Superman flew at her, she dodged him and managed to touch him with her top. He fell to the ground and did not move from his punching pose. He was paralyzed.

“Confusion,” a female voice shouted.

Wonder Woman turned around to almost immediately be scratched on her arm by a girl in a leopard-themed outfit. The scratch on her arm glowed purple and the hero suddenly became very dizzy and could not seem to focus. She had never been drunk before, but she was sure this was probably how it felt.

Captain Atom’s hands lit up as he aimed one of his energy blasts at the masked teens. As he was just about to blast, another masked teen appeared. This one was themed by a brown-furred bear. Probably a grizzly bear.

“Roar,” a male voice yelled just as Captain Atom blasted.

The bear boy’s fist lit up gold and he punched right into the energy beam. To the surprise of the league, he was able to keep the beam at bay with a single punch.

Red Tornado was about to throw one of his twisters when he was hit on his robot head by a thrown horseshoe. It bounced and flew around like a boomerang-gone-wild until it landed back in the hand of a horse-themed girl.

All of the heroes and masked teens in the room were either fighting or dodging the attacks of another from one of the other groups.

“Enough,” a male and female voice shouted at once.

Even the Justice League froze as the voices boomed throughout the room. Standing on the other side of the room were six more masked teens. Three boys and three girls. The two that had shouted were a ladybug-themed girl and a boy with an icy wolf outfit. The boy standing next to the ladybug girl looked to be related to Catwoman while the girl next to the wolf boy was like a butterfly turned human. The last two were a snake boy and a girl that looked to be dragon-themed.

“All of you, front and center, now,” the ladybug girl ordered.

All of the animal-themed teens stopped what they were doing immediately. They put their weapons away and walked over to join the others at her sides.

Wonder Woman looked at the group for a few moments. The drunk feeling had been lifted from her and she could focus. There was something about them that was making an old memory of her’s rise to the surface. An old story that her mother used to tell her about when she had been friends with, who she had called, an adorable and wise little creature known as a kwami. A creature that she also remembered was bound to a magical object called a miraculous.

“The ladybug and black cat are active once more,” she gasped.

The league looked at the Amazon princess in shock. She actually had an idea who these teens were.

“We thought that you would be the one to recognize our magic, Wonder Woman,” the ladybug girl softly smiles.

Wonder Woman approached the group, putting her sword away as she did. And surprising the league again, she bowed to the ladybug girl and cat boy. The two of them and the wolf boy and butterfly girl bow back.

“It is an honor to meet the wielder of the ladybug miraculous,” Wonder Woman said.

“The honor is all ours, daughter of Hippolyta,” the ladybug girl says. “Tikki says to tell your mother ‘hi’ for her.”

Wonder Woman smiled at that.

“Would you care to explain exactly what is going on,” Batman ordered them, crossing his arms. “Starting with where Zatanna is and what you did to Dr. Fate and Superman.”

The bunny girl got out a pocket watch from her pocket. She checks the time.

“We can answer the first question now,” she smirked. “We’re right on time.”

She put her watch away and then threw her hands forward yelling “Burrow.” Out popped the same type of portal that Zatanna had disappeared through. And seconds after the portal was opened, out fell the magician.

“What just happened,” Zatanna immediately asked.

“The rest of your comrades will be fine somewhere between five to ten minutes,” the butterfly girl says.

“Before we go into the full explanation, do you guys have a bathroom in this place by any chance,” the leopard girl asked.

[neonponders]

Fic Writer Questions

Thank you so much @lazybakerart for tagging me! 💋

This is long so I’ll put it under a cut haha

I’ll tag @peachypunk22 , @withoneheadlight , @hoegrove , @passivenovember , @lovebillyhargrove (if you want to 💗 )​

How many works do you have on AO3?

*sweats nervously* 54 haha

What’s your total AO3 wordcount?

1,378,705

How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

Stranger Things / Harringrove

Shingeki no Kyojin (Attack on Titan) / Eruri

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them / Crewt

Merlin (BBC) / Merthur

Captive Prince / Lamen

Haikyuu! / several ships

Ancient Greek Mythology / Zeus x Ganymede

Starfighter (HamletMachine comic) / Cain x Abel

Deadpool & Spider-Man / Spideypool

Pride and Prejudice / genderbent Elizabeth so it’s ~ * gay * ~

Uncharted (video game)

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Anonymous (eruri), How it Works (kuroken), Something Else (eruri), Broken Chemistry (merthur), Right Time, Right Place (spideypool).

These are my oldest fics, so it makes sense that they’d have higher numbers.

Do you respond to comments, why or why not?

I respond about 50% of the time. Sometimes I just don’t have much to say back, or I’m not in a decent mindset to reply. If the commenter is hyped and has a lot to say, I’ll probably get excited and respond back.

What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

It’s not done yet, but my Harringrove fic, Kiss, Consume. It’s part 1 of a bigger two-part fic, and therefore part 1 ends really sadly. Part 2 will be a happy ending, though haha

Do you write crossovers? If so what is the craziest one you’ve ever written?

I’ve written SpideyPool. Right Time, Right Place. It’s also not done LOL but whenever I finally write my Harringrove / The Mummy_au, that will probably be a crossover because I can’t really see all the ST characters working in place of the Mummy’s characters.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Yes. It’s awful. Let it be known that it doesn’t matter how old a fic is, if you leave a kind comment on something, you’re sparing that fic from deletion. I’ve nearly deleted Broken Chemistry so many times, but every now and then someone comes along who thanks me for writing it and sharing it. So I let it stay.

Do you write smut? If so what kind?

I do! I write rather fluffy smut lol I’m a fragile bean. The spiciest I get is lingerie and extremely mild bondage.

(Mind you, my writing prior to Harringrove was VERY different. I was neck deep in Game of Thrones and it shows. I thought good writing had to have sexual shock factors. Thankfully I’ve left that behind, and my writing has gotten much softer haha)

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

......not that I know of. Don’t jinx me, please haha I’ll have a conniption.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope, not yet ~

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Nope haha

What’s your all time favorite ship?

Harringrove, easily. These messy boys have endless potential and the community is unreal.

What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

Starlight (merthur)

What are your writing strengths?

I write quickly haha it’s kind of absurd how fast and loose I go about things. Everyone else uses Professional™ writing outlines and stuff. I’m just like *keyboard smash* alskdfjslkdfjlsdfjsdkfj

*uploads 3 chapters in a week*

~ Ta-dah ~~~~

That doesn’t mean any of it is good lol

What are your writing weaknesses?

I often feel like I’m using the same 4 sentence structures over and over again. And I once saw “writing advice” that said, “pay attention to how often you use the word ‘was’.”

That fucked me up lol now I feel like I’m a monotonous criminal every time I use was and were.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

If it’s not my native language, I don’t really have any right to a strong opinion. I once had a native French speaker come to me to correct all of my French mistakes in a fic and I was very grateful for it lol the last thing I want to do is insult someone just because I’m trying to be ~immersive~

What was the first fandom you ever wrote for?

Eragon LOL that was when I was, like, 8 or 9. Obviously I didn’t even know what fanfiction was and therefore thought I was doing something totally original lol

Fast forward a decade and I wrote Something Else for eruri ~

What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

Dracula Has a Mullet. It’s far from done but it’s my first Harringrove fic and very very special to me.

[1llusionmachine]

I've been tagged by @elorianna to do the writing tag game! Thank you very much 💖💖 For those of you who don't know, I actually write Fanfic!

How many works do you have on Ao3?

I've written a mere 6 fics 😳 I still have to grow my collection! I also write for a couple of fandoms aside from Milex - Finn and Poe from Star Wars, and I have one Gorillaz 2Doc fanfic.

What’s your total Ao3 word count?

10,634 - not many at all! I mostly post oneshots. Maybe one day I'll post a work that's that amount alone. The only public document I've written that was that long was my dissertation😂

What’re your top 5 fics by kudos?

1. All We Are

2. Into Place

3. Why Not?

4. Of the Morning

5. The Element of Surprise

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I don't get many comments so I try to reply to them all as they mean a lot to me! Thank you commenters! 🥰

What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

Oh definitely 'All We Are' - it's my only Gorillaz fanfic so far and I think the nature of Gorillaz as a franchise demands that it has darker undertones, especially the themes of the history of how Murdoc has treated 2D in the past. Spoiler alert but I kind of like that Murdoc doesn't pursue his feelings and cuts it off - it feels very in character.

What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?

Literally all of my others tend to have happier conclusions - I just like to see my ships get together haha! I would say 'The Element of Surprise' has the happiest ending - I just wanted Al to have his death ramps ring back so it was purely self-indulgent😂

Do you write crossovers? If so, what is the craziest one you’ve written?

None yet! I did have an idea to pair Finn and Poe with Inside Llewyn Davis, although it's probably more of an AU than a crossover - perhaps Poe (in the starving artist role of Llewyn) meets Finn at one of the Gorfiend's dinner parties and it continues from there? Who knows bro🤷🏻‍♀️

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Not really, everyone's been very kind!

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

I do write smut but I've only ever published one piece, 'Not Safe For Comms' - it took a lot of courage to post that one because even though writing's writing at the end of the day, smut does have a reputation per-se and, lets be honest, no one wants to read bad smut, so I had to make sure it was just right - it takes a lot to really build it up and make a reader feel excited about it and believe it. Maybe more is to come (har har) if I get any more ideas 👀

Tbh I just prefer to read it (who said that?)

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I don't think so?

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Not to my knowledge!

What’s your all time favourite ship?

That is a huge question!

I LOVE Milex but I'm currently only really reading it and not writing it - no particular reason aside from a general lack of content and inspiration atm but this could change with Miles' new album and potential AM7? 👀

Can't lie, I'm really digging FinnPoe/Stormpilot the most atm. I have so many thoughts and feelings about them but I'm just upset that disney didn't go for it and put them together - it's literally tangible: their whirlwind meeting where they saved each others' lives and Poe gave Finn his NAME, the lip bite™ at the end of Force Awakens, the dynamic of the dashing flyboy pilot falling HARD for a rebel stormtrooper he just met, the way they bicker like a married couple, god I love it. It's also no secret that I'm currently on an Oscar Isaac hype and the fact that both he AND John Boyega were actively rooting for them to get together (even saying they played the roles romantic) just makes me love them even more. We were ROBBED!

I also ship the Tenth Doctor and Rose Tyler(my TRUE otp since 2006) Cassian and Jyn from Rogue One(why they gotta die like that) and The Eleventh Doctor and Clara (they're just cute alright!) as well as many more!

What’s a WIP you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

I also tend to also scrap things that just aren't working. I had a Milex one where the lads played a flirty game of pool set in 2005 but I was wrestling with it for so long that I just let it go. I also wrote around 10k of a fic where Alex was undercover and Miles was a crime boss😂 but I felt icky about it cause even though I made Alex an independent detective in a noir style it still felt a bit copaganda-esque and I didn't like that. The only WIP I currently have is a very basic FinnPoe one(inspired by Oscar dancing in Ex Machina cause I am what? Basic x) but I think I only like it for how I've written the ending so I need to find a way to get that to work 'cause I really like it!

What are your writing strengths?

I'm not the best out there - I mostly write for myself haha but I think I'm pretty good at description and scene setting, as well as some exposition.

What are your writing weaknesses?

A lot of things tbh, even though I did creative writing at A Level 🙃 I struggle with plot a lot(hence the oneshots), and sometimes dialogue stumps me. It's all a learning process!

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I've never had a reason to, but I'd have to get it translated accurately if I did. I think it's also important not to alienate a reader as sometimes I read stuff and it's a bit jarring if you're not sure on the meaning.

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Milex is my first published fic, but I think I wrote for maybe Doctor Who back in the day? I've been reading fanfic for years, though.

What’s your favourite fic you’ve written?

I have so few that I like them all! I do like my Gorillaz one which is surprising as that one took me the least time to write and I didn't even expect to write it at all - it's somehow my most popular fic(maybe the gorillaz fandom is just super active?) and I think the more angsty ending gave me a lot more to play with.

[howtosingit]

Hey ro said on twitter that the comfort scene we saw in this ep isnt one of The Two Scenes he keeps hyping up, do you have any ideas what you think they could be ? i love hearing your thoughts 🥰

You know, after what happened in the first episode, I told myself I wasn’t going to speculate about future episodes based on promos or other teases because nothing’s guaranteed and the loss of it is just too exhausting to deal with...

(BUT I AM AN IDIOT AND I DO HAVE THOUGHTS BECAUSE I HATE MYSELF)

Anyway, here we are... thoughts under the cut.

So, every single thing that we’ve been teased about this season so far happens in the first 5 episodes because that’s all that had been filmed until last week. And now that we’ve seen 2 of them, we only have 3 left to explore...

Personally, I don’t think we will be seeing Carlos in next week’s crossover episode, and I’m going to continue to think that to keep my expectations as low as they possibly can be. Like, maybe he could be in a scene at the beginning before the wildfire starts, or a scene at the end when it’s all over - but I think they would be small moments, and not necessarily these bigger moments that Ronen has mentioned. I could be wrong, but that’s the game I’m choosing to play for my own sanity.

Ronen has compared these moments to the dinner scene (1x02) and the police station scene (1x03). Both of those moments are very emotionally charged but also incredibly revealing about both characters and their relationship. AND THEY GET TO TALK. So, I think we can expect all of that to be true of these upcoming scenes as well.

Now, following Carlos’s redirect last night, I think at least one of these scenes is going to be about his parents - or more specifically, why he doesn’t want TK to meet them. And, of course, while that is what they will be talking about, what they will really be discussing is their relationship and their investment in it. Will TK think Carlos is ashamed of him or doesn’t want to be with him? Or doesn’t want his parents to know about him? Will Carlos struggle to explain his rationale or why he’s avoiding the topic? And, more important: will this conversation happen before they run into Carlos’s parents at the farmer’s market (I’m not budging on that at the moment, I’m convince that that’s who they are), or will it happen afterwards and will it be based on Carlos’s behavior when they’re together? 

I think that scene has the potential to be pretty intense and deep and beautifully acted by both Ronen and Rafa. I am looking forward to it more than I will ever be able to describe. 

As for the other scene, I’m not really sure. I think, much like the dinner scene and the police station scene, they could be connected. One could be the fallout, the other could be the repair. One could be in episode 4, the other could be in episode 5. 

Also, in one of these episodes, we have the roller derby hang and the “his boyfriend’s a cop” moment, so that’s exciting to think about as well.  Now, I’m just shooting a theory about how this all could play out, based entirely on the structure of episodes 1x02 and 1x03, and it’s tenuous at best but also... not impossible. (UPDATE: it now is impossible because we have more info 😂)

In episode 2x04, Carlos and TK are at the market, super cute and casual, and they run into Carlos’s parents. While his parents seem totally normal and happy to meet TK, Carlos is acting a little on edge and TK notices.

Later scene, same episode, TK confronts him about it, this is their big talk, it’s... very dinner-scene like. Maybe it doesn’t end well (though I would hate that, and also, they’ve done that before).

Next episode is the derby hangout. Maybe Carlos’s “his boyfriend is a cop” line is him literally arriving, and TK didn’t know he was going to be there. Maybe this is an apology scene at the bar? They seem to end it in good spirits, according to the promo.

I would still want another scene with them after, in private, where they get to have a talk about what they want and where they see this relationship going and how much they are both committed to getting there. This would, in my mind, be the second scene that Ronen’s talking about.

That’s also when they should drop the “I love yous” - because they made it through their first big fight as a couple and it was hard but they did it and they know that they’re in this and that it’s what they want. Also, by episode 5 they’ll probably have been dating for at least 6 months - it’s time for the ILY. I want the ILY.

I’m not saying that will happen, and again it’s a similar structure to their season 1 fight, but my brain is obsessed with trying to connect all of these crumbs even though I keep telling it to STOP. 

[therine-watches]

a Review - Spider-Man: No Way Home

*Spoilers ahead*

Here are a few lessons for myself for the future or the past-me or whatever me in whatever other universe: don't watch all the trailers/exclusive clip beforehand, don't read up the Reddit theories or spoilers, don't re-binge all the past five Spider-Man movies the night prior, and don't walk into the theatre so goddamn excited. 

Spider-Man No Way Home continues the events after Far From Home and opens up to a world where Spider-Man's true identity is revealed. 

No Way Home is, without a doubt, perhaps the most ambitious crossover since Infinity War and relies on five previous Spider-Man movies to complete the story. And here's the thing: I loved it. But the shift in tone in Marvel movies with excessive CGI fights, cheap jokes slipped in every single dialogue, and the numerous plot holes and plot conveniences really make me wonder how this is considered such a praised cinematic project. MJ and Ned were weak supporting characters and very much reminded me of Awkwafina's awkward role in Shang-Chi; they mostly stood there to impact the climax scene. The movie also underuses the villains and only focus on the emotional dept of two fan-favourites while the other just hang out with lame jokes and motivations and go along with the rest of the crew. Toby Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s presence are vital to the story but fails for Tom Holland to push his character forward to shine properly. No Way Home is the epitome of what Marvel Studios does best and what the audience always fall for: Fan. Fucking. Service. 

The movie really did have so much potential to what it was leading to; after all, the ending of this movie was the most dark of all previous Spider-Man movies. This was the first movie that Peter faced a consequence for his mistake instead of an unfortunate event. With that in mind, No Way Home did feel a lot like a placeholder to future MCU projects and Spider-Man movies disguised in the ultimate fan service scenes and sub-plots. 

The shots and edits were surprisingly good, and next to Spider-Man 2 (2004), this movie felt most close to a superhero classic film. It successfully detached itself from relying on the Post-Blip excitement and focused soley on Peter Parker’s development, which, I think, many Marvel Studio projects failed to do this year. 

The movie's biggest accomplishment is not the crossovers, but the way it balanced fan service and an ending to two decade long franchises. It successfully - and emotionally - closes off the story with a bittersweet arc, especially for Andrew Garfield's Spider-Man. The story additionally builds on to an arc and ending to famous villains, and, as part of every other Spider-Man's story of loss, No Way Home shuts the door for high-school Peter and shifts off to adulthood as he deal with significant loss and loneliness. 

That said, I did personally feel No Way Home was a bit underwhelming and if you have not watched the previous Spider-Man movies or even the recent MCU projects of this year, the movie doesn't stand strong by itself and it's easy to miss a lot of relevant references. It’s mainly built up by the audience hype, and I do think that, with time, and with Doctor Strange 2's release, Marvel Studios will definitely start having a difficult time in receiving mass audience like No Way Home or Endgame did. Currently, the Marvel Studios relies heavily on nostalgia and the familiarity of previous characters and I'm not complaining, but it won't be far until they start staggering from the mainstream media.

I did think that No Way Home was a good watch. It was fun to see all the previous villains back and it was nice to see Toby Maguire and Andrew Garfield's Spider-Man join. No Way Home is a bit overhyped, but it stands entertaining in its promising genre and reminds us that what we are experiencing with Marvel is a cinematic point in history and if anything, I’m thankful enough for to be part of that. 

• Most memorables scenes go to: (1) Andrew-Spider-Man saving MJ, (2) Doc Ock and Green Goblin’s entrance, (3) Aunt May’s death, (4) Toby Maguire, (5) the ending. 

[tammyhybrid21]

Sara Deserves Better

It's six in the morning, and I am mad!

Mad because of a small thing admittedly, but you want a sum up?

I'm mad because I hyped myself up to write a MSA/Tadeo Jones crossover oneshot that would basically be Vivi being excited to meet an actual living Mummy, with other things, but the majority... and then started thinking beyond that small scope of fun and just-- got frustrated.

Because here's the thing... I made a post about Vivi and her glasses, and then started thinking about the crew in Tadeo Jones and--

Like here's the deal, my brain... just... completely forgot Sara has glasses. I remembered Tiffany's glasses. I remembered the PHOTO with glasses-- but the first ten minutes of Sara's screen time being spent with her in glasses? NAH--

Sooo that's not actually what this post is about. Just a small annoyance with myself. So what is this post about-- well the obvious is look at the title, Sara Deserves Better.

Also, not just shipping wise... but mainly shipping wise, because GOD DAMN IT. Let Sara break free of the Love Interest box PLEASE. Because for crying out loud, it's been two movies and this is one of the most painful flaws I can see. Also-- just as an aside, I really, really want to like Sara but right now... she's stuck in that box so much she's honestly kind of... bland and boring to watch.

Also just--

In general. I want to say something that's just, my BIG gripe and the reason I come bearing this rant but...

Vivi.

VIVI is why I'm making this RANT!

And you want to know why? It's because in the approximately 16 odd minutes of the Mystery Skulls Animated vidoes we get-- SO MUCH information about who she is and what she stands for as a character. WE HAVE SO MUCH TO WORK WITH. Hell even in the brief flashback sequence, there's a lot to analyse and unpack-- she's not just reduced to-- Lewis' former girlfriend despite how easily that could have been the case. Which-- I mean, I have... a number of rants for Vivi in the works... beyond just my MBTI analysis that's already up...

BUT conversely... and maddeningly-- I can't say the same for Sara. Between the two movies if there is one character who feels kind of... empty aside overtures, or rather underdeveloped... it's Sara.

Which is a crying shame. But there's two movies of content and I still only have the vaguest idea of WHO she really is as a person. Oh I know who she is. But... I don't really know Who she is.

Like, seriously... the closest we get to some glimpses is this opening of movie 2, some scenes in movie one, and her moment with Mummy.

Which... I have other things to talk about regarding this... a more proper analysis regarding her verses Tadeo on these events... BUT THAT'S ANOTHER ANALYSIS.

Also what moments from Movie 1?

How's about priorities?

"But first tell me if ANYTHING you told me was true!"

ALSO, I have some things to say about Tadeo's response to this... but that's ALSO deserving of it's whole own analysis and it really wouldn't be fair... And aside this... well again... moments.

Which... I still don't actually have much, but these are sort of... the moments with the most character from Sara. OH, aside from when she's with Tiffany, and arguably-- when alone and kidnapped with Rackham... which, huh-- That would bring me to another point honestly... but this isn't actually my "Making your Villain Memorable" rant. ALTHOUGH-- The Rackham stuff and Tiffany will need to be addressed.

I want to talk about the moments I currently have first. Which aren't... precisely in order, but I think they're in order of the impact for me.

Which first moment is when Tad's sacrificing his father's cufflink, his greatest treasure. Giving it to Mummy, and again-- I have many words... but what's telling is Sara's reaction and how that kind of ties into the significance there. Because overall it just says-- well, it says how deeply she's affected seeing it as well-- Which isn't something you see much in these movies unfortunately.

The next moment I would like to call the "I sense bullshit radar". Considering how she finds Tad's story initially a bit flawed, also laying out the law, starting to plan. Sara has a head on her shoulders and is NO FOOL.

UNTIL SHE IS.

And I think only HALF of this final highlight moment can be blamed on the situation because heyyyy--

Let's circle around to the Rackham stuff. And... other movie 2 stuff.

Which, I know this miiiight be arbitrary or not really something that can be linked. BUT there's a difference in how she handles these moments... And hell, I would also add the opening to movie 2-- but Sara has... levelled her head A LOT more when it comes to handling potentially life threatening danger between movies. In what information she grabs(opening) and then in the above scene, what she actually lets the villain learn.

Which also, anyone else get a short circuit feeling from that?

And hell, even as much as I have issues with the whole sequence of events and a SPOILER filled rant about it...

Even here, again. Pretty chill, pretty level. At best/worst it's really stunned silence. But this scene has a number of issues and I have a rant that will go up after a fic(if I can just keep myself long enough to WRITE that fic...). And just... well--

Then the last thing is-- well Tiffany.

Also... just generally on this second screencap here, I like to just-- talk about the moment before as well-- since there's something just... Really wild in what leads to it.

Like... why does she look SO CONFUSED?! Like-- I don't know if I'm the only one who sees this, but when Rackham first shows up... she looks so confused, like how could he get there so quickly?! And then Tiffany steps out and there's that shocked expression and it gives off this sense that just-- When Tiffany stormed off Sara knew but she didn't know. Like you ever have those moments-- where you know someone's going to make a bad decisions... and yet-- you're still SHOCKED by how bad a decision they make?

Yeah, that's Sara here... and she's... been trying with Tiffany.

But still... yeah.

And what does all this ultimately add up to?

Sara still being too broad in the long of it.

BECAUSE IT TOOK ME A GOOD HOUR, OR TWO, Of ranting and discussing this with some friends for me to dig out these moments and I STILL don't have a solid, solid character for Sara. And do you know why?

Because of the one FATAL FLAW...

Forced

Romance

...And when I say forced romance, I really, really mean it. Do you know what one of my BIGGEST COMPLAINTS of movie 2 is. It's that when Sara gets mad, or feels like she should be mad, it's not allowed to hold. It's just glossed over. And then of course, complaint two is the other obvious thing. Sara feels... as if she's just there to dispense the plot and then to be kidnapped.

She spends the first two and a half quarters of the movie kidnapped, and even after only gets the barest amount of screen time. Hell she had MORE to do in movie 1, and that's probably because the plot was broader and gave them all time to shine with action, even if she still felt-- hard.

Like seriously, does-- any of these moments stand out on their own? Without a number of rewatches and forcing my focus to actually be on Sara to analyse... not really. It all blends and blurs because of one big thing that EATS up her character and forces it into that kind of bland box.

She's forced and pushed to fit the lens of the love interest. With Tad's chasing-- and how that impacts the story.

And I'd also like to complain about ANOTHER thing in this similar vein but...

In movie one there's a sequence I... haven't really brought up in this rant, along with in general how Sara is there-- because here's the thing. Aside the glimpses... she... really feels like a PROP a lot of the time. In both movies. But-- in movie 1 there are a few moments specific.

And the first is actually the train moment with Kopponen. Sara was definitely NOT going to hand the tablet over...

But of course, Tad had to SCREW UP trying to be a hero... and for the rest of the sequence it feels a lot like Sara's only purpose is to more or less be grabbed and damselled again... And even later on, it feels like Wasted Potential--

Like, she's used to motivate other characters--

Which okay... I'm not going to say that Vivi is excused from, since that's who I'm comparing her with... BUT there's a DRASTIC difference of character agency in HOW and why they are used as motivation between them.

Might not on the surface seem like much of a difference--

Especially in the immediate context that's offered here with how Lewis is using the picture in his locket and the implied additional angle to his attempted revenge against Arthur-- which, mind you-- there's a HELL of a lot more going on there... BUT-- When it comes to the ACTION... not just that moment up higher... but when there's actual ACTIVE danger...

Come Hellbent... And Shiromori...

Meanwhile with Sara the best we have across both movies... is moments. She handles herself in the opening of the sequel and-- well we actually have the climbing sequence to the final temple... which... I have-- words about as well, but the big ones right now is actually in the choice of lyrics playing over what--

But...

Sara actually only gets the "Now I'm Invincible" stuff-- or the Majority of it. There might be the more romance stuff, but for the most part-- she's pretty much being defined as "Invincible on her own" which also... yeah. It's true. The strongest moments for Sara are those moments when she's on her own, and away from the Tadeo drama... or even when she was used to motivate her Dad's actions in the first movie.

Which... actually makes me circle back to something that just... doesn't fit.

"It's been the most amazing adventure. All these days with you. I wouldn't trade that for the world. I... I love..."

WHICH LOOK

Isn't Sara supposed to be the expert on the whole of what this movie is about? King Midas' Collar and Golden Touch, this was her long term project. So why is it that in this scene she's forgotten all that she's supposedly studied and why they're even here? Like does anyone else get death confession vibes from this, which... considering Sara should know this is supposed to be reversible?!

Because forced romance plot.

I mean, I have more to say, but honestly... at this point I'm running out of ways to properly articulate my points. But in the end... what can I say about Sara now that I'm at the end of my rant? You know, beyond FREE HER FROM THE ROMANCE PLOT....

Well, actually a lot more than I expected or thought at the start... And that's because now I've been through and watched with focus on her. Although some of it still had to be informed and given to me.

Which yeah--

Sara is an expert in her own field, supposedly anyway. Which, let's be fair, that's not her fault, that's plot mandated information failures.

She's Peruvian, which, I think is established in the first movie, that's her home. And where she's grown up, but it's really not made clear in either movie. Or at the least, not as clear as it should be. PLEASE GIVE HER MORE PERUVIAN PRIDE I SWEAR--

She is clearly much, much more impressed by Tadeo when he's being humble and honest. Like just damn. Those are the traits she respects and what's to see.

Sara actually respects and listens to other people, she's patient with them and hears out what they have to say. And this... isn't just with Mummy in that scene, but also she's patient with Tiffany and-- I do have more to say on that... but again, another post.

She is definitely in this for knowledge and awareness than necessarily results. She's not chasing fame.

Honestly, she shines so, so much better when there's NO ROMANCE, and really is a strong women on her own. Doesn't need anyone.

Has chased after her father's recognition, in the same field, to having the same issue of leaving behind those she cares for... Time is limited you know.

Which yeah... okay. Sara, definitely deserves better!

[fairy-writes]

FairyTailWzard’s New Annual tradition!

2020’s Top 10 List Part One!

So here’s a list that no one asked for of the top 10 anime series I watched this year. I wanted to put this in no particular order but I figured I might as well.  I’ll also be doing my top 10 fanfics from this year and my top 10 books I read this year so stay tuned for parts 2 and 3!

10.) RWBY

Uuuggghhh I really didn’t wanna put this on here… but I really didn’t watch much this year so I had to I guess :(((

I’m really not liking this right now… if my blog wasn’t sort of popular because of my rwby oneshots I’d consider just dropping the anime all together….

(I’m seriously debating on whether to watch the new season or not)

Honestly, the only thing bringing me back is my unhealthy love for Ozpin, Torchwick, and Ironwood.

Honestly, I’d give this show about a 3 or 4/10…

I used to love it so much but I think the quality of writing is going down and the show is trying to be too many things at once that I’m just losing interest.

9.) My Hero Academia

Why is this so low you may ask? Well, cause I think my main hype coming from this is the manga.

Yes I love the show, the animation studio is freaking amazing and the quality of animation never ceases to amaze me. But I love the manga a bit more.

This will probably jump up in rating around season 5 or 6 but for right now I’ll leave it in the 9th spot :)

8.) Sirius the Jaeger

Oh my GOSH, I want a second season so bad. One of my favorite OC’s I’ve ever made was for this anime (it’s Idris Tana btw) and I actually commissioned artwork for her recently and it’s SO PRETTY.

Anyway getting off-topic, the animation of this show and again with the dark and grittiness of it is what drew me in.

Actually, my late grandma and also my great aunt tagged me in a Facebook post with the trailer when it first came out cause they saw vampires and thought I would like it and that's what got me into this show in the first place.

So thank you grandma and auntie!

But I absolutely adore the soundtrack, the mix of orchestral pieces mixed with the more electro-kinda-vibes is my life (seriously go listen to “The Beginning of the Hunting” it changed my life, as an orchestra and cello geek it made my heart so happy)

7.) Tokyo Ghoul season 1-3

Ok, I’m currently reading the manga after I’ve seen the anime and lemme tell you I wish they didn’t censor the anime so much.

I can’t even find an uncensored version anymore and it makes me so upset.

The darkness and goriness of the manga is what appealed to me in the first place (yes I get weird looks for it, no I will not change my mind)

Kaneki is my CHILD and he CANNOT do any wrong. I don’t care who you are I love him

6.) Ajin: Demi-Human

Uuuggghhh to be honest the anime is kinda meh but my love for the manga is so great I am legally obligated to put this here.

Don’t get me wrong, the animation and soundtrack for this show is phenomenal and I think they got Satou down pat.

But they did dumb down and cut out a lot of interesting scenes. Scenes like how Satou takes down some of his opponents (which I can see why... many American viewers would most likely get offended by it… you manga readers know what scene i mean)

Nagai Kei turns into a bit of a whiny character instead of the smart but exasperated teenager I know and love in the manga is the anime version of Kei going to bite off his own fingers in order to climb a wall into a military base?? Definitely not. Would manga-Kei do that? Well, he already did… so... yes..,

Nakano Kou is still kind of funny but he is so much more fascinating in the manga (his backstory breaks my heart).

5.) Bungou Stray Dogs

Another new one that I was actually recommended by my friend @bright-like-the-sun-00 :) I ended up watching it originally in dub but then went back and rewatched it in sub because I love my children so much.

Chuuya is my bean and I love my OC that I created Charlie Dickens :)

(if you guys could go read her story I’d be eternally grateful).

Anyway!

This show has a fantastic cast in both Japanese and English and the music score is one of my favorites. The characters are so wonderfully hilarious and interesting and fhajxbqbaka I love this show okay??

4.) Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba

I actually put this off for YEARS because my oldest step-brother kept saying I should watch it. At this point, I was refusing out of spite cause I’m petty like that. But I finally started watching and-

HOLY-

GUYS

I have never gotten so attached to a character (cough cough Giyuu) so quickly.

I have been listening to Gurenge and Kamado Tanjiro no Uta on repeat for literal weeks now and I still grin like an idiot when listening to them. I also have a potential OC/crossover coming out soon sooooo…. stay tuned??

I also broke my sister cause I showed her a post that said national donut day and had a picture of Rengoku on it… I didn’t understand it until she explained it to me and now I cackle every time I think about it.

3.) Jujutsu Kaisen

@plusultranerd​ got me into this blame her for the future spamming of your dashboards

GUYS GOJO SATORU IS MY LIFE NO QUESTIONS ASKED

He could literally murder me and I’d thank him. He is the prettiest anime character I have EVER SEEN and I love him so much.

Anyway anime. The show got my attention from the get-go. Itadori is such a fun main character and Megumi is me cause you know dogs.

I think I saw an ad for it and since I have Crunchyroll I figured why not and fell in love with it

AND THE ENDING SONG

BEST ENDING EVER YOU CANNOT CHANGE MY MIND

I put it on sometimes so me and my sister just start jamming out to it and we get the stupidest looks and it is amazing

2.) Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

Another anime that I will rewatch over and over again until literally the end of time. Also, another series that I’ve already read/or am reading the manga.

Alphonse Eric is my cinnamon roll you can pry him from my cold dead hands.

I have cold hands and no heart by holy heck my BOY

I actually am buying the special edition hardback manga covers that are coming out and I LOVE THEM

THEY ARE SO PRETTY

Am I talking about the characters or the manga?

My answer is yes

Anyway, all of the characters in this are so wonderfully complex and have motivations and i fall in love with 99% of the characters (except for Shou Tucker, I even like Father actually)

1.)  Death Parade

This has got to be one of my top favorite anime of ALL TIME.

I rewatched it early this year and this is one of the very few anime that will get me to cry and this makes me cry every freaking time.

The music is stunning, the animation is magnificent.

For being based on an animated short film, this has such potential for a second season and such a complex storyline was packed into 12 episodes.

I will forever recommend this anime to literally anyone who is looking for something new to watch.

I’m also noticing I have a thing for white-haired male anime characters with really pretty eyes….. Kaneki… Gojo… Decim...

Honorable mentions!

Darker than Black

I didn’t rewatch the whole thing this year but this anime is literally my life. Hei is such a bean and I love him.

Hunter x Hunter

Another anime i didn't rewatch completely but still adore :) I heard they’re continuing it and I’m excited for the dark continent arc!

Dororo

Technically i watched this late 2019 but whatever; I do what I want. The animation was absolutely gorgeous and I loved the gritty darkness of it. Mio will forever be my favorite character; you cannot change my mind. Some parts I did find a bit boring but overall I’d rate this a solid 6/10!

The Devil is a Part-Timer!

I rewatched parts of it and not the whole thing, I also have the first two volumes of the light novels and I forget how funny it is until I actually watch it. It has me laughing every time and never fails to put a smile on my face :)

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 254: Who the Hell Is Bucky

Previously on BnHA: All Might welcomed 1-A back after the new year with a pun he’s probably been working on for the entire winter break, the poor man. Aizawa received a call :’) and drove down to Tartarus with Mic to meet up with Naomasa and Gran Torino. Nao and Gran were all “so you’ll NEVER GUESS, but we found out that Kurogiri’s quirk is apparently a FAKE QUIRK which was created from a bunch of other quirks -- AND GUESS WHICH ONE WAS THE ORIGINAL QUIRK?” and Aizawa was all (ಠ ∩ಠ), and Mic put a hand on his shoulder, and Nao was all “YEAH YOU DID GUESS, IT’S YOUR OLD DEAD PAL SHIRAKUMO, FROM CHAPTERS 59 THROUGH 65 OF VIGILANTES!” And okay, so (1) OH MY GOD, and (2) I originally thought this meant that Kurogiri is straight up a zombie!Shirakumo, but others pointed out that he might be some random other dude who just has Kumo’s quirk, among others. And like, okay. SO WHAT IS THE TRUTH.

Today on BnHA: Y’ALL HE REALLY IS A ZOMBIE!KUMO, AND NAOMASA AND GRAN BROUGHT AIZAWA AND MIC TO TALK TO HIM AND TRY TO RESTORE HIS MEMORIES SOMEHOW. Aizawa is all “this isn’t some fantasy world with happy endings, this is THE REAL WORLD WHERE MIRACLES DON’T HAPPEN!” but Gran is all “sometimes they do!” and Aizawa is like “!!” and so they sit down to chat with Kumo. Aizawa launches into a passionate speech about how great Kumo was and how he pulled him along and inspired him, and how he (Aizawa) is strict with his students now and -- get this -- FAKE-EXPELS THEM IN ORDER TO PUT THE FEAR OF GOD INTO THEM JUST ONCE LMAO, BUT IT’S BECAUSE HE CARES, and because he wants them to be great heroes and not hapless redshirts who get killed offscreen. And by the end of it he’s crying and imploring Shirakumo -- “if you’re still in there somewhere” -- to become heroes with him and Mic just like they always wanted. All of it is exactly as emotionally devastating as you would figure, btw.

you guys I have been playing hopscotch on my dash since yesterday trying to avoid spoilers about the popularity poll until I actually had time to write down my reactions! all I know is that of course Bakugou is #1 again, because this fandom always comes through lol. my other predictions are that the rest of the trio will receive lots of love again as well, and Hawks will once again be high on the list, and Aizawa too because of the Vigilantes flashbacks (at least HE BETTER), and probably the villains will get a big boost as well after their arc, Tomura in particular. and Endeavor might break the top 10 again too with the newest arc, although I can’t quite remember whether or not the poll was still going on by the time that started (ETA: actually I don’t think it was). but yeah. anyway so there’s a real possibility that most of the kids will actually be shut out of the top ranks because of these GROWN-UPS and VILLAINS stealing all their glory, smh. your time will come, kids

“more than anyone, you were a hero” oh is this chapter going to play with my feelings yet again. is this just going to happen every fucking week now. okay

HELL YEAH MY BOYS ON THE COVER

@unboundednamelessfuture, to answer your ask about whether I’m planning on watching Heroes Rising, the answer is a resounding YES, POSSIBLY EVEN MULTIPLE TIMES IN THEATERS IF I CAN SWING IT, because I’m pretty sure it’s actually just going to be All My Dreams Come True: The Movie. and yes I have seen some spoilers for it, although I’m not clear on whether or not they’re actual spoilers or just rumors. so because of that I won’t post my thoughts just yet, except to say that if it is true, see above re: All My Dreams Come True: The Movie, and also add a bunch more exclamation points at the end of the title omfg

anyway so my sons are famous now. they’re in Hollywood. good for them

AND NOW THE POLLLLLLLL YES

oh shit, I heard about “Deku & Bakugou Rising”, but is that out this week?? shit I’ll have to do a separate post if that’s the case. I’m assuming it’s more of a bonus chapter than an actual spinoff, kind of like the All Might chapter we got for the last movie. either way, to say I’m hyped would be a massive understatement, needless to say

(ETA: okay so I’ve seen Korean scanlations of this -- which I didn’t look at closely because spoilers -- but no English scans yet. so stay tuned!)

so I was wrong about the kids being shooed out of the top 10! I have never been so pleased to be wrong! so we have Kacchan at #1 (I love his face so much. ghlkhf), Deku at #2 (he beat Shouto this year! good for you!!), Shouto at #3 (wouldn’t be surprised if he and Deku were neck and neck again though), Kirishima at #4 (we stan one bright ray of sunshine), Iida at #5 (YOU DESERVE IT SO MUCH SWEETHEART. I’M SO GLAD FANDOM ISN’T SLEEPING ON THE ACTUAL BEST CHARACTER IN THE SERIES), Tomura at #6 (DID YOU NOT GET THE MEMO ABOUT WEARING A NUMBER ON YOUR OUTFIT? MAKING ME FIGURE IT OUT FROM THE PROCESS OF ELIMINATION IS A REAL BASTARD MOVE. THEY SHOULD HAVE PUT YOU AT #8 TO MATCH YOUR CURRENT NUMBER OF FINGERS YOU STUPID SEXY JERK), Aizawa at #7 (THANK YOU FANDOM, YOU’VE REDEEMED YOURSELVES FROM LAST YEAR), Ochako at #8 (I LOVE YOUUUU), Toga at #9 (LADIES!!!!!!), and Momo at #10 (YES GIRRRRRL)

I think this is the strongest showing of ladies yet in the top ten (ETA: actually no, the second poll was slightly better) and I’m all about it. also can they all please keep these costume upgrades because YES. I don’t care if Horikoshi would get sick of drawing them. THAT’S WHAT ASSISTANTS ARE FOR. KATSUKI HAS A FUCKING BULLET BANDOLIER, COME ON, YOU CAN’T MAKE THIS JUST A ONE TIME THING YOU ASSCLOWNS, THIS IS FOR THE PEOPLE

lol here’s the abridged version of the Shirakumo flashbacks, I guess. everyone was saying last week how Vigilantes was now required reading, and like, I get that everyone’s excited about the crossover, but they still have to make this comprehensible for people who only read the main series. I’m guessing we’ll get the short version here, but Vigilantes gets to provide the more in-depth story for people who want to know more about everything, which is more or less what Vigilantes’s role has been in general

anyway so here’s Kumo doing his usual Naruto impression and cheerfully dooming himself by being ceaselessly optimistic and tempting fate’s sense of irony

you sure can! just so long as that crisis doesn’t involve big, heavy rocks, or gravity. I’m sorry kiddo

“‘let’s all form an agency together.’ it happened just after he said those words.” well there you have it, the BnHA equivalent of “one week left till my retirement.” hero training should really include a mandatory course titled Death Flags: The Silent Killers. there are children’s lives at stake here

lol yeah this really is abridged

“once upon a time we all wanted to be heroes and then Shirakumo got crushed by some rocks the end.” yeah, so maybe not quite the full emotional impact of the original lol

OH SHIT SON

so it is his reanimated corpse, then! which means the potential for him somehow dramatically regaining his memories is very high. since this is a shounen manga, I’m gonna go ahead and put it at... 100%. is that too low

guys I don’t know what to do when Present Mic is making faces like this

when even the Comic Relief Guy is getting all traumatized and serious, you know it’s bad. sob who will I turn to now for comfort. Horikoshi’s really just gonna go full dark no stars here and leave me just stumbling around lost

OH IF IT ISN’T THE ORIGINAL PIECE OF SHIT HIMSELF!!

yeah it makes perfect sense actually, you bastard. you steal the bodies from the crematorium and then give the families fake ashes or something. holy shit you really will not stop until you find the lowest possible level to stoop to, and then grab a fucking shovel and start digging so as to GO DOWN EVEN LOWER. just. god everything about this is just so wrong

oh btw, now seems like a good time to bring up this ask I got last week!

anon you blew my mind, just so you know. you’re absolutely right. so that’s one mystery down! though the way that this is going, I’m not so sure I’m gonna like any of the other answers that the Noumu arc is gonna provide us sob

holy shit look at this fucking simile

dead children = leftovers. sure why not. just in case we all forgot how evil he is

and also, YEAH BUDDY THAT’S WHAT I JUST FUCKING SAID, PLEASE KEEP UP. and who even knows how many other times AFO has done this. I hope they’ve started investigating crematoriums, then. I’m just waiting for them to make some connection that leads to them finally finding out about Ujiko, but that might take a while still

(ETA: although if they actually can get Kumo to talk...)

and did he really just solemnly call Mic “DJ” because omfg. Gran, are you the comic relief. do you even know. are you even aware

oh hey look another dagger to my heart

ouch. that was cold. and... not necessarily true, though, is it? because he was kind enough to Tomura. idk, I know my villain mom has done some horrible things, but you’ll be hard pressed to get me to think of him as all bad, even so. he was the one keeping Tomura from going FULLASS MURDER MODE!! for a long time

HEY WHAT THE FUCK KIND OF COP-OUT IS THIS

well then WHY DID YOU EVEN BRING THEM IN HERE! DID THEY NOT SEEM TRAUMATIZED ENOUGH TO YOU?? “well idk they seem pretty shaken up already, but just to make sure they grasp the full repugnant horror of the situation why don’t we make them visit him face to face.” OKAY THEN YOU SADISTS

son of a bitch and speaking of twisting the knife, Horikoshi keeps showing us these increasingly wrecked glimpses of Aizawa lowkey falling apart and I can’t

at this point the shadows under his eyes have their own shadows. and god dude, I know you’re rational, but it’s really hard to watch you just outright dismiss any and all possibilities of hope just like that :(

what the fuck Gran

so you really are the one in this scene who’s trying to lift everyone’s spirits now. well all right then, just what are you alluding to

OH SNAP

LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD NOUMU BACKSTORY AT LAST! jesus christ, do Nao and Gran just know everything already, and they’ve just been keeping it all to themselves for the hell of it?? how long before they casually swing by U.A. and are all “oh and by the way, the traitor is...”

ANOTHER AIZAWA FACE BUT THIS ONE IS SOFT OH GOD!!

HEY WHAT’S UP I’M GONNA CRY. SOMEONE TURN ON SOME SAD MUSIC. AND I WON’T GO, AND I WON’T SLEEP, AND I CAN’T BREATHE, UNTIL YOU’RE RESTING HERE WITH ME

AND I WON’T LEAVE, I CAN’T HIDE, I CANNOT BEEEEEEEE

hey Nao. you know what really would have helped with getting him to talk. NOT KNOCKING HIM UNCONSCIOUS. ??? move over do you need someone else to do your job for you or

-- OH THEY’RE TALKING TO HIM NOW LMAO OKAY

“go ahead and do your thing guys. don’t be afraid to make it real gay”

this would be even more dramatic if Kurogiri actually had a face. but even so... OH I AM WHAT I AM. I’LL DO WHAT I WANT. BUT IIIIIIII CAN’T HIIIIDE

oh my fucking god Aizawa is all “but what about his family?” and Naomasa is literally “if you two are unsuccessful, then...” like straight up acknowledging that the three of them were so fucking gay in high school that their odds of getting through to Kumogiri are stronger than that of his OWN FUCKING FAMILY. wow

chin up my sexy man. you got this

OH SHIT AHHHHHHH

LDSKFHL EASY THERE CHAMP, THAT’S TOO MUCH SEX TO BE CONTAINED IN A SINGLE PANEL, PLEASE TRY AND DO ME A FAVOR AND FUCKING HOLD IT TOGETHER HERE FOR THE KIDS WHO ARE READING THIS!! [frantically googles ‘can a shounen manga get you pregnant’]

so Aizawa is all “I’ll be damned if I let his family hear this sickening story” and like, I’m sure he means that in a “they don’t deserve that pain” kind of noble and principled way, but if it were my child I sure would want to know regardless. and aren’t they going to find out either way?? either you do get through to him, in which case obviously you would want the family to know “HEY, GOOD NEWS!”, or you don’t manage it and Nao has to call them anyway as we just established. but you go ahead and get all fired up then, Shouta

now there’s a panel of him staring at Kumo and Kumo is just a big shapeless blob of black smoke just sitting there lol. don’t tell me he’s still unconscious?!

oh

thank you

anyway so Aizawa, did you know that while you were off being an underground hero, Kumo was studying at Oxford to get his medical degree while bartending on nights and weekends to make ends meet. the two of you have so much to catch up about

Mic’s thinking that even with Aizawa using his quirk, the fog isn’t dissipating, so it means Kumo’s body is now made up of fog. well but then what about the metal neck thingy! huh??

and Mic’s opening his big mouth to complain that Kurogiri is far too polite and classically educated to really be their old pal, but before he can finish, Kumo is interrupting to ask about his son!!

he’s. uh. I guess you could call it “well”? maybe a little too well [marge simpson noises]

well Mic is clearly back to being the comic relief here. but Aizawa is keenly spotting those mom instincts that have remained in Kumo to this day!

yes Aizawa the core of your friend is still in there deep down!

OH MY GOD

LMAOOOO. “EMO PUNK... WHERE HAVE I HEARD THAT BEFORE -- !!” [AUDIBLY GASPS AND LOOKS DIRECTLY AT AIZAWA]

oh my lord. like, I don’t think this is actually meant to be funny, but just the fact that he immediately associates “emo” with AIZAWA FUCKING SHOUTA so strongly that it makes him go (•̪ o •̪) all knowingly has me fucking deceased right now good grief

so Kumo says he doesn’t resent his mission at all. some people like looking after emo punks, Mic. you should know

AND NOW MY FEELINGS ARE BEING TOYED WITH AGAIN!! JUST STRAIGHT UP OUT IN THE OPEN!! THIS ISN’T FAIR

heh. don’t mind me I’m just looking for some sort of emotional support to cling to here for my breakdown that’s about to happen about 0.2 seconds after Aizawa starts crying, if he indeed starts to cry. which it looks like he might. oh god I’m not ready for this at all. my hatches are not even remotely battened; my shutters are just gonna go flying right the fuck off

by the way what the fuck is up with the chairs at Tartarus. why do they look like swiss cheese

hmm, Nao and Torino are all “no reaction”, but to me it looks like there clearly is a reaction, though? he can’t even look Aizawa in the eye all of a sudden. it’s clearly getting to him. Nao seriously, do you need someone else to do your job

oh Aizawa

(ETA: Kumo really first-named Aizawa two seconds after meeting him. this man knows how to adopt his introverts.)

okay but Present Mic in a summer uniform is the most punchable version yet, SORRY I JUST HAD TO SAY IT I’M SORRY MIC I LOVE YOU. it was just gonna come bursting up out of me if I didn’t

anyway so Aizawa is gaying it up just as promised

him using his quirk is definitely making the scene more intense, but I’m not really sure why he actually is using it, since we’ve established it’s not having any effect. unless he’s trying to possibly undo some of the brainwashing somehow??

(ETA: so it occurred to me that just because his quirk isn’t dissolving Kumo’s mist body doesn’t mean that it’s not having an effect on his warp abilities. this way they can interrogate him without fear of him trying to use it and them having to knock him out again.)

so Kumo’s continuing to try and play it off all smooth while Aizawa unleashes the full force of fifteen years of pent up grief and trauma!

starting to think Aizawa never did go to therapy after that whole thing. typical U.A. “so you saw your best friend die suddenly and violently right before your eyes and subsequently suppressed it and hallucinated his voice talking to you to avoid facing that reality, huh? eh, you’ll be fine”

oh no a close-up of Aizawa that doesn’t show his face completely. this kind of thing never ends well

BECAUSE HE DOESN’T WANT THEM TO END UP LIKE YOU [sobs forever]

wait are we really going to talk about this?? omg

wait what. so do you mean to tell me he expelled them but then continued to guide them afterwards so they would have long, happy and healthy careers but more importantly would be safe omfg I’m not fucking ready for this shit

we’re cutting to U.A.’s class 2-A! Aizawa’s former class? does that mean he literally expelled EVERY SINGLE ONE of his students last year omg

so then. does every single standout characteristic of the Aizawa we know and love stem from his tragic past and his relationship with this boy then, or what? meanwhile the feelings continue to torrentially lash against my house while I huddle in the basement

I can’t fucking believe we’re actually getting a legit reveal about the “Aizawa expels all his students” gag holy shit

re-enroll!? what?? and “expel” in quotation marks?!?

ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS -- HE DID IT JUST TO SCARE THEM!? AND THEN WHAT, WERE THEY PICKED UP AFTERWARD BY THE OTHER HERO CLASSES INSTEAD? SO HE TEACHES THEM A POTENTIALLY LIFE-SAVING LESSON AND THEN GETS TO LAZE AROUND THE REST OF THE YEAR, LOL WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK. THIS MAN IS A GENIUS

(ETA: and by this logic, Deku really ought to have been expelled half a dozen times by now. don’t ever try and tell me that this man doesn’t play favorites.)

so Aizawa is taking his goggles off and saying that he’s strict with his students because he wants them to live long, fulfilling lives

OH NO

SOMEHOW HORIKOSHI MADE KURO’S FACE LOOK SOFT?! I DON’T EVEN KNOW HOW, IS THERE ANYTHING HE CAN’T DO

AHHHHH

OH NO HE DID IT AHHHH THE TEARS, FUCK. WELL MY HOUSE IS FUCKING DESTROYED, I’M CLIMBING UP TO THE ROOF TO AWAIT RESCUE

wow. anyways that really did get gay as fuck at the end, didn’t it. given the meaning that those goggles have to Aizawa, can this be taken as a form of marriage proposal? no? well I’m taking it that way anyway, so. congratulations you two. I’m off to go sob into a pillow now

[chaosstar290]

Reasons try out Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore.

Nintendo's been pretty casual with porting Wii U games over to the Switch, and for good reasons. Normally, I'm not all into porting games that I've already played, but my personal favorite games on the system that lack good marketing and advertising are now getting the attention and love they deserve.

Take Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze for example, one of my favorite 2D platfomers. The game originally sold 1.72 million copies worldwide on the Wii U. Not very good numbers, huh? However, the Switch port managed to beat those sales numbers with 2.25 million units sold worldwide by the end of March 2019.

So while this could be seen as a way for Big N to earn more $$$, this is also a way for those who never owned a Wii U and missed out on some of the system's best titles to give these games a shot. Now we just need a port of Xenoblade Chronicles X and The Wonderful 101...and Star Fox Zero, I guess.

But that's a topic for another time. This post is specifically for my favorite JRPG on the Wii U only to be tied with Xenoblade Chronicles X....Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE.

This'll be a long one, so here's hoping you'll stick with it until the end.

Development

Before I get into the reasons, lemme educate you guys a bit. Back in January 2013, both Atlus and Intelligent Systems made a teaser trailer for a potential Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem crossover for the Wii U.

The trailer was mostly just a slideshow with various character artwork. Despite this, there was a decent amount of hype surrounding it. But development around the game was pretty silent. That is, until we fast forward to the Nintendo Direct in April 1, 2015. We got a trailer of the ambitious SMT x FE crossover that fans were waiting for...but this was the final product.

Needless to say...neither SMT nor FE fans were happy about this. The fandoms were incredibly salty and foaming at the mouths, basically calling it a Person 4 Lite with a hint of FE. Heck, they're probably still posts on this site from 5 years ago that'll show that.

Fast forward to the games initial release, and you'll see quite a few positive reviews and thoughts about TMS. Unfortunately, the sale numbers were not all that great for the game. Obvious reasons being that it was a Wii U game, and many fans of both SMT x FE were not happy with how it turned out.

And to be honest, I wasn't feeling the game myself at first. It seemed too lighthearted and upbeat, and the J-Pop, anime-ish aesthetics were very off-putting. However, the more I saw about the game, the more I was drawn into it. Somehow all that disappointment I had about TMS originally just washed away. And considering it was a new IP, I decided to give it a chance. And hoo boy...I was generally pleased.

With that outta the way, let's get into why I'm excited for the Switch port of game, and hoping people will give it a fairer chance.

The Setting

The plot of Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE is mostly simple. You start out as high schooler Itsuki Aoi, the main character of the game encountering his childhood friend Tsubasa Oribe at an audition event to become a idol. It isn't until moments later in the game that the area gets overruned by shadowy creatures known as Mirages that suck out the creative energy known as Perso-- ah I mean Performa from the other idols and audience.

Poor girl doesn't know what's gonna happen next.

Despite our main characters seeming unharmed by the effect, the Mirages drag Tsubasa into their world known as the Idolsphere. And of course, courageous Itsuki takes action to follow and rescue her.

After trying to make a daring rescue, Itsuki gets bombarded by a Mirage, but somehow manages to awaken it. Taking the form of Fire Emblem Awakening's protagonist Chrom. Itsuki does the same with the Mirage that captured Tsubasa that takes the form of Cedea from Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon. The two awakaned Mirages, however, suffer from a bit of amnesia and can't quite remember who and what they are.

From there on, Itsuki and Tsubasa form a partnership with Chrom and Cedea, encountering various characters trying to reach their way to stardom while trying to draw back the opposing forces from taking over Tokyo and the world. Typical RPG stuff, am I right?

It's a fairly standard and slightly cliche plot with some common anime tropes, but for this game...it works. It's a plot that's incredibly silly, upbeat, and over-the-top, but again...it works for this game. And I love it. It may not be original, deep, or complex, but the story does its best to not take itself too seriously, and it doesn't fail to keep a smile in my face.

Aside from the vanilla cookie-cutter MC Itsuki, the various casts that you meet are incredibly charming, and go through their own personal growth as celebrities. Though you mileage may vary on this.

The Gameplay

The combat is the real star of Tokyo Mirage Sessions. Basically, it's your standard turn-based combat system...but with a few twists. If you've ever played a SMT or Persona game, then don't be surprised that elemental weaknesses make an appearance here. Along with that, the Triangle Weapon system from Fire Emblem also makes an appearance in the game.

But if you're not familiar with either franchise then give you a basic example how this works. Say that you've encountered an armored Mirage wielding an axe. The weaknesses on that enemy are both lightning and swords, and Itsuki just so happens to have both the necessary element and weapon equipped.

In case you're wondering...how the Triangle Weapon mechanic works in FE is that Swords beat Axes, Axes beat Lances, and Lances beat Swords.

The interesting thing about this is that once you exploit an enemy's weakness, other characters will jump in and combo extra attacks. These are called Sessions, and their not only powerful...but also flashy as all hell and it's glorious. Not only that, but there's also Duo Arts where two certain characters will sometimes perform a song that unleashes a powerful attack...which also strings up more Sessions. As broken as this sounds, it actually is pretty strategic for taking down harder enemies, and they can also form Sessions...so be careful.

There's more to the gameplay like roaming Tokyo, exploring dungeons, and upgrading your characters and Mirages by Tiki from Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon as well.

There's mixed opinions on the dungeon aspects of Tokyo Mirage Sessions, but...I personally enjoyed them. Aside from the first one. Once you get past the first dungeon, they get better as the game progresses. From exploring a darker version of Shibuya where you have to avoid giant cameras from sending you back to the entrance of the of the room you currently entered, to venturing through a maze-like TV studio.

There's also side-missions that you can do with your main cast that'll help them grow and develop even further. You'll be rewarded with either a special cutscene or a special attack. Or maybe both.

The Visuals

Go go...Persona Rangers?

If it wasn't obvious from the amount of images I'm posting, Tokyo Mirage Sessions is a very colorful game. Fitting with it's lighthearted theme, the amount of colors the game throws at you makes visuals aesthetically pleasing. Heck, you could make these your personal wallpaper on your phone or something.

Sure, Tokyo Mirage Sessions isn't nearly as strong as Persona 5 graphically or even artistically, but like most Nintendo games...what their games lack in terms of detailed ultra-hyper graphics, they make up for it with giving their games gorgeous artstyles.

Also, this game has some reeeeeally good artwork.

The Music

J-Pop plays a pretty big role in Tokyo Mirage Sessions, so expect a lot of vocal tracks. If you're not into this kind of genre of music, then you might wanna stray away from this game. If you are (or if it doesn't bother you), then you're in for a treat. As someone who really isn't into J-Pop myself, the songs in this game are incredible and catchy followed by some beautiful cutscenes. Reincarnation from Kiria Kurono and Feel from Tsubasa Oribe are some of my personal favorites.

The music from outside the vocal tracks are pretty good too. The normal battle theme and the Illusion Shibuya dungeon theme are just to name a couple.

What's New?

Like I said before, Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore is a port of the Wii U version, but with added content. Any DLC that was added in the original game will part of the base game in the Switch version. But let's talk about the new stuff.

EX Story and Songs

The EX Story is basically a dungeon that you explore in short bursts. Here you'll find new costumes such as a Joker outfit from Persona 5 for Itsuki, or an Annette outfit from Fire Emblem Three Houses for Mamori Minamoto. Or you can have a much easier time grinding for EXP. Also, much like the side-stories, this dungeon will also explore the main casts' issues and help them grow.

New songs will also be added in this port. A duo song called "She is..." sung by Tsubasa and Kiria is one of them.

Sessions

By making Sessions even more powerful and ridiculous, unplayable characters like Tiki, Maiko Shimazaki, and Barry Goodman will also join in Sessions.

In addition, a Quick Session option will be added. Which is a major upgrade in my book. One of the big issues the Wii U version had was while the Sessions were fun to watch, they took forever to get through with the more characters that joined your party. There are also smaller improvements like the Switch version having faster loading times.

Conclusion

Hopefully, this long as hell post will spark some interest into those who'll give the game a shot. I know there's small nitpicks like the lack of English voice acting and censorship, but the latter is a topic I'd rather not delve deep into.

Regardless, these small cons are greatly outweighed by the large pros this charming game has. If you're an Atlus fan, a lover of JRPGs, or wanting to play something that'll ease the wait for Persona 5 Royal, I highly recommend you give Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE encore a shot.

If you're also waiting for Persona 5 to actually come to the Switch like me, this game is next best thing we've got for the time being.

This is one of the most stylish menu screens ever.

[stonerbughead]

maria watches friday night lights (#4)

season 2, pt 2!! (2x08-2x15)

ugh Matt is really having his Being A Stupid Teenage Boy season huh?

-lol love a good naked dude being chased scene — in this case, Smash on his recruiting trip being chased around by a potential future teammate. Classic.

(it’s kinda cute that Matt came to pick him up tho)

- the latest in season 2 being off the fucking rails: really? Riggins’ new digs include a meth lab on wheels??

-Landry confessing to murdering someone and then having his sheriff dad drag him out of the station to go home is the whitest shit EVER. Like, Landry is literally *trying* to be punished and they just won’t punish his white, cop-kid ass. ‘Murica. (I mean don’t get me wrong: it WAS self defense against someone literally stalking and trying to rape Tyra, but the point still stands that if Landry was a black kid he’d have been tried as an adult and convicted no doubt)

-YESSSSS a MySpace shoutout! we love to see it

“I hate you” - Santiago (and also me) @ Buddy Garrity

-omg Coach Taylor noticing that things aren’t good at home for Riggins and taking him in, my heart!

-Wow in just one scene Riggins charmed baby Grace, warned Tami’s sister not to shame women for eating a lot (“it can lead to anorexia, especially in girls”) and then offered to go out to the store to get baby formula in the pouring rain. What a man.

-and yes, Shelly, you fully grown woman, it IS a bad idea to lust after a TEENAGE BOY

-wow Riggins protecting Julie from the SUPER DRAMATIC TORNADO that made me laugh. Do we get to have a Riggins-Julie friendship??? bc I’d be down. We need more friendships.

-Thank you, Tami, saying “EW” to her sister watching Riggins work out! Someone has sense to know a fully grown woman shouldn’t be lusting after a teenager! Julie can lust if she wants tho, that’s age appropriate.

-DYING at Landry being aghast that Tyra’s never heard of West Side Story.

-oh god, Lyla — it is totally fair to assume your mom would tell your dad she’s getting remarried, especially if she knew you’d be seeing him — so I’m sorry you’re the one who accidentally set off whatever nonsense Buddy is gonna pull now that he knows his ex wife is “marrying that treehugger.”

“Who’s that?” “Some douchebag named Chip. who names their kid Chip anyway?” Same, Tyra, same.

-Landry, one of my biggest pet peeves is asking someone out while they’re on the clock. Like, come on! let Tyra work, boy.

-Jesus Christ it’s like everywhere Julie looks, she has to see Matt making out with someone. That’s rough.

-and oop Matt you busted bc Julie actually knows who Carlotta is!

-once a cheater, always a cheater, Buddy. And yes to Pam for being like “nah bye I’m happy now, it is over.” You treated her like garbage so here we are, sir!

-hilarious that Landry is the one who ends up throwing the first punch that gets the post-tornado, school-crossover tensions to finally boil over

-I like that they show both the fall formal and the party where everyone who didn’t go to the formal is. Nice.

-Aw poor Julie got drunk af to deal with all her feelings. This really is the season where they have Julie and Matt being sixteen year olds in the most painful ways. So maybe it’s good they’re not together during this tho I’m still looking forward to when the tide turns their way again.

-anyway, Tim is a good friend for getting the creep who thought he was “one beer away from getting laid” off of Julie.

-And....in true Texas dad fashion, Eric Taylor misinterprets everything! Noooo. We can’t have nice things.

-This Noelle-Smash partnership is definitely an interesting pairing. Two very ambitious football people courting all these recruiters while Smash’s mom side eyes them in the corner? Hilarious.

-omg not this Oklahoma tech recruiter harassing smash’s mom in the grocery store! GTFO here! Give her some fucking personal space. They really do such a good job of showing as much of the toxic shit about football culture as the inspiring, big moments.

-Aw and I love that Tami tried to help Mama Smash get the guy to go away. It’s such a familiar scene, women helping each other get a dude harassing them away. And then they have a heart to heart in the parking lot? Love that.

-omg what a throwback that Shelly TAPED OVER Eric’s football game to tape a NEW EPISODE of The Office! Love it. “Y’all should get a TiVo.”

-omg watching Tami and Eric work out arguments is so beautiful, they communicate very well! We stan a good marriage.

-wow seeing the other coach from tornado school lose his shit publicly after he knocked down Riggins was uh....wild???? This is the second time he put his hands on Riggins!

-awww Eric actually coming to apologize to riggins for overreacting about Julie when he hears the real story??? Love it.

-Weevil from Veronica Mars shows up as a friend of Santiago’s? Of course.

-WOW and Logan from Gilmore girls as a Christian radio host...tracks.

“Is that your way of telling her you like her?” Jason making a surprisingly astute observation about Tim. (And Lyla.)

-yo why would you invite your daughter’s boyfriend’s family over for dinner just to say they shouldn’t date? (And bc it’s an interracial relationship.) Southern culture is wild to me lol

-wow the racist coach from last season is now off spouting his mouth about how “no wife of mine would be working with a kid at home.” I love that Eric calls him out as sounding stupid and ignorant — you better!

-hearing that Lyla burned her cheerleading uniform is one of the most badass things she’s done so far tbh along with that dealership destruction

-off the rails update: 2x12 was toooo much!! Like, Jesus between Smash’s sister getting harassed at the movie theater by the racists who hate on smash and Noelle...and this plotline with Santiago and his old friends trashing Buddy’s place...it’s like, can we breathe.

-I could not be more excited for Carlotta to leave and another teenage boy with adult woman relationship to end.

-wow can’t believe the plotline where Riggins stole $3000 from a drug dealer isn’t ending well for him. And now Smash is getting arrested bc of those racist guys from the movie theater episode? One recap I read said that too many of this season’s plots feel contrived and I think that sums it up.

-is there any character who HASN’T worked at Buddy Garrity’s dealership at this point?!

-and yikes at all the other salespeople being mad that a salesperson in a wheelchair was hired...y’all mad ugly and ableist for that

-Tyra and Landry are....confusing

-Wait Logan from GG is an actual preacher and not just a Christian radio host? CREEPY. And he kissed Lyla? A lot to unpack there.

-lol Tim trying to woo Lyla is kinda funny to watch simply bc Tim is clearly so confounded by rejection

-I love how much space they give for Smash’s sister’s pain in the Noelle-Smash theater incident. A lesser show wouldn’t have centered her as much.

-is it mean of me to say Jason is boring AF most of the time

-yeah this dreads girl is seemingly way more compatible with Landry than Tyra yikes! Like she made him a power metal mix cd???

-wow this Smash storyline where mouthing off to the press is what gets him suspended....really checks out bc teenage boys are dumb

-I love Tami as a volleyball coach and getting to see another sport! Also as someone who’s been on a losing team I know that feeling of finally winning a game!!! Go Dillon volleyball!!! (Am I maybe currently writing a Bughead fic based on my underdog field hockey experiences? ;) yes yes I am)

-Oh shit now Saracen’s at the nihilistic Nothing Matters phase of teenage angst. Right on schedule!

-lol these two short haired blondes (white dreads Jean and Tyra) being in a love triangle with Landry is wild

-Omg jean just said, “are you a friend or are you competition?” She is not playing!

-I love Riggins dragging Saracen to practice

“I don’t want you to become at an at-risk youth” -Landry teasing Saracen while also sincerely caring about him is some of the best friendship banter on this show. The accuracy 😂

-It seems like Julie gets a lot of hate? But I think I have such a soft spot for Julie bc I was a bitchy teenager with undiagnosed mental health disorders and I just wish so much #growth for her! Also I really do miss her and Saracen’s relationship, I’m so excited I’m almost at S3 where it seems like it’s happening again?

-LOL this guy at the dmv is the first person in Dillon to be like, “no I hate football.” That tracks.

-wow Saracen is getting driven to the hospital to make sure his grandma is okay by the sex worker who was just giving him a lap dance. Amazing.

-also I hope grandma is okay!

-okay Tyra throwing her hat in the ring for Landry at the last minute? Idk I think Jean deserves the win but there’s no way it’ll happen bc she’s a guest actor?!

-awww Saracen’s abandonment issues coming out whiles he in the tub after being sobered up by Eric Taylor. “There’s nothing wrong with you.” 😭 and “your daughter left me for a better guy” - will take that crumb — first mention of Julie out of Saracen’s mouth in a minute

-hey, Landry, my friend: flirting with a girl (Jean) to get her outside then dumping her immediately is kind of a wild bait and switch. But I get it, he’s been in love with Tyra for a long time and Tyra IS right — they had a very fucked up start to their relationship so it makes sense she needed a minute to process her ~feelings~. however I definitely identified closer to a jean in my high school experience L O L (minus the unacceptable white dreads)

-these Julie and Tami driving scenes are painfully accurate, btw. Love them.

-wow the scene of Smash hyping everyone up, the adrenaline/energy of the team cheering with helmets and a classic “clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose” - then the whole team running out onto the field and leaving an empty locker room with just Smash breaking down into tears....#art

-alright y’all I’m gearing up for the last episode of S2! Thanks to @lockitin for reminding me this is the writers’ strike season — I was in eighth grade then and remember being pissedddd about the shortened fourth season of “the office” — so I’m fully prepared for the abruptness to come.

-I love when they parallel showing the white church and the black church

-and Tim going to church just to see Lyla makes me laugh

-ooooof Jason you cannot put on this waitress you had a one night stand with the fact that this could be your only chance to have a baby!!! Omg this poor woman who just pointed out she, too, is NINETEEN.

-wait so is Riggins doing a sports show on a Christian radio station? What?

“I think you’re really hot. Your long hair reminds me of Jesus” -Christian girls being horny for Riggins LOL

-awww Saracen being like “okay Landry you’re gonna impress Tyra right now” before that football play was a cute friendship moment for those two

-aww I love how this Smash storyline is turning out with Coach Deeks whose had his eye on him for six years my heart 😭

-also unclear to me whether Logan Huntzberger the Preacher is a fully grown adult dating a high school senior?? Biggest teen drama pet peeve once again! Stop this!

-Tami is my heroine for just leaving Eric at the restaurant fighting with her ex. “see you at home, honey!”

-I’m sorry, is Jason gonna like actually convince this girl to have a baby with her one night stand at 19??? Oh lol wait THAT ended up being the cliffhanger of the whole season? Fucking hilarious.

well I made it through season 2!!! Super psyched for Season 3, Jay has been hyping me up for it. See y’all next time! (I’ll try to post more for season 3 bc this accidentally got long af.)

[jokerxtreme36]

Thoughts on Zero One and Kiramager so far + extra (Spoilers)

Man it has been a while since I’ve done this. I was a bit uncertain to really come back and speak my mind on these since I feel what I say doesn’t really matter, I tend to fear what I say could be an unpopular opinion and get flack for it. I’m still hesitant on writing but I felt like wanting to write again after so long. I don’t know if I’ll bring this back but we’ll see. A lot has happened with Toku that’s surprising, I’m surprised how much Toku has been slowly getting itself up to be official over here thanks to various services like discotek and Shout Factory, in an age where you can officially watch the original Kamen Rider series and Kuuga online, If you told me that 5 years ago, I wouldn’t know what to believe.

Recap:

Been three years since I’ve done this iirc, but here’s My thoughts on the seasons I never wrote my full thoughts on.

Kyuranger: This was an up and down series for me. When I first started, I was hating it, due to awful pacing and was doing an awful job of establishing characters, especially Lucky who was hitting the marks of why I disliked Right and Takaharu, thankfully the series picked itself up around the second quarter with Scorpio’s arc and introducing Tsurugi. Would later go down and up with each arc but In my opinion, ended on a decent note. It does suck it never had a crossover with Zyuohger but I did enjoy the Space Squad crossover, which utilized the strengths of the characters really well and was ultimately satisfying.

Ex-Aid: Ex-Aid was a series I was a bit skeptical by but was one over by the end. I enjoyed Emu and his adventures and I give props for the show having two female Riders (Nico counts, fight me!). If there’s an issue, it’d be that I wish they’d just end with the crossover movie cause I feel the V-cinema’s felt like tacked on alternate endings, I do give them credit for trying to connect it to other films.

Lupinranger vs Patranger: A series I’ve seen that’s either enjoyed or disliked. I’m in the former and do like that they experimented with the concept of two different teams. I dig the idea that the Lupins are influenced by more modern Sentai that get the gimmick of the episode while the Pat’s are more akin to classic seasons where they just focus on the Monster, also doesn’t help that Japan has very low views on their justice system so the Lupins are more favorable. Plus I loved the way it ended on an open note, much like how Sanjo tends to do in his writing.

Amazons: Another divisive series and I’m leaning towards those that dislike it.On its own, it’s alright but as a series that uses elements from a classic series, it mostly is superficial in how it uses it cause the original series was remembered for how violent it could be, but there was more to it than just mindless violence. Also doesn’t help the producer’s comment on how “Recent Rider’s aren’t interesting, this series will give it it’s fangs back” saying the shows before it were not good when they were enjoyed by a lot fans. I do give the series credit for trying to write a gray moral type of setting but its flimsily written that it can come off as irritating,, especially around Season 2. Though I’ll give the movie credit for ending the series on a decent note.

Dino Force Brave: A miniseries that caught a lot of fans by surprise, since Korea commissioned a miniseries/continuation for Kyoryuger given how popular it was. It seemed promising, then I saw who was producing and writing it, instead of Sanjo returning. we got Ninninger’s writer. it retcons things like Torin’s not dead and Devius isn’t mentioned (the latter I don’t mind). The series is short which is both its strenght and weakness because for a miniseries, it isn’t given much time to flesh out the new characters, since they only have 12 minutes for each story, shows like the Ultra Fight series work since its serialized and can work as a movie, this not so much but unlike Amazons, I consider this harmless, its nothing too bad and there’s some merit to it (even if they tried saying it was canon in the last Taisen film)

Build: Now this was a series I was actually surprised by, this series is probably my third favorite post Decade Rider series. The series blends the right amount of silly and mature moments. It has a lot of memorable characters and one of my new favorite villlains in the franchise, Evolt was a great villain that really brought the stakes and made you think how this series was gonna deal with him. I remember the ending being divisive but I was ok with it since it does give an explanation for how Build could interact with the other Riders in future crossovers with how the previous seasons (minus Amazons) could connect. plus the V-cinema’s were well handled from an ok one like Cross-Z to a surprisingly Amazing one that is Grease’s V-cinema, now this is how you do a continuation.

Strongest Battle: Now this was a miniseries that caught me by surprise as well since they brought back returning actors to lead up to the next season. Seeing Arakawa still got it and made me hope to see him return writing someday (hint hint).The cast they got surprised me, some I was glad to see return and some I wasn’t too happy with like Takaharu and to an extent Kagura (but too be fair, she wasn’t as bad as Right), but I was intrigued to see what Arakawa would do with them and I was ok with how they were written here though still dislike Takaharu as a character.

Ryusoulger: Ryusoulger is a series that I’ve seen that is pretty loved from what I’ve seen but sadly I’m on the opposite side, I don’t think it was that terrible but more or less disappointing and somehow boring. Strongest Battle setup a lot of things for Ryusoul to follow up on that it felt like a downgrade, like Gaisorg being underutilized that you can tell they didn’t know what to do with him. The writing was all over the place that it was hard to be invested with the characters, who did their best with what they were given but their wasn’t much stakes. If there’s one thing I enjoyed, I really loved the ending arc for giving us not only a Female big bad but also blowing my expectations and breaking status quo, with Red not being the one to finish off the main villain. The ending arc was great yet at the same time was upsetting that the rest of the series wasn’t up to par with it. But now its gonna be the next adaptation after Beast Morphers. With Hasbro in charge, I’m intrigued to see what they do with it.

Zi-o: From the same minds behind Dino Force Brave and Amazons comes what is meant to be a big celebrate/closure of the Heisei era, but threw logic out the window for what is ultimately a fun kind of mess. I don’t mind continuity but I was iffy on how Zi-o retconned the previous seasons as not connected since that’s what they were trying to do until this series went (rip paper) whoops it broke. The series does have some merit with the idea of the Another Rider’s and showing the development of our protagonist and his attempt to defy fate. I also enjoyed when the series stopped time travelling but instead met the characters in the present day cause then the arcs were written better like in Blade and Agito’s tribute episodes. I haven’t watched Geiz’s V-cinema yet but also heard from the producer’s twitter that Woz’s V-cinema isn’t happening, which sucks cause there’s potential in it.

Now that those are done, here we go.

Kamen Rider Zero One:

Now with the start of the Reiwa era, I was hyped since we had Ex-Aid’s writer returning and we got not only a cool awesome secondary but a surprising Female Rider early on and is our third Rider. The first arc starts off strong with Aruto wanting to save the Humagears from Metsubojinrai. Things were looking good until things went downhill thanks to a certain Gold turd known as Thouser, before I get to my issues, I love his suit and how his finishers have a trademark, but that loses its charm when you see him everytime as he’s a very arrogant and obnoxious about his views on how “Humagears aren’t necessary” almost every time. There’s character’s that are meant to be hated, but then there’s characters that you just want to see go away. Once the arc ends the series thankfully pics up with Fuwa getting Rampage, Yua quitting and the return of Izakuchi and Naki. I’m interested to see where things go from here.

Mashin Sentai Kiramager:

Now this was a series I was cautiously optimistic by, since Arakawa returns to write a new series and after my disappointment with Ryusoul, I was nervous but thankfully this series is off to a good start, was surprised we started with episode 0, which does a good job setting up the main 4 before the red shows up. I was a bit skeptical on Juru since he screamed a lot of traits that they could’ve easily screwed up. Thankfully they’ve been doing a good job with Juru, he’s cheerful and imaginative but not a total idiot (what Right should’ve been) and the series has been doing a good job giving everyone their own center episode while not being afraid to take a few risks. I also enjoy the villains like Garza and his rivalry towards Juru due to having a similar ability to his brother that he despised, especially the fight in episode 4 being a highlight. I like that Juru wasn’t sure if he was qualified into being the leader but saw that his passion could help the team in his own unique way. Another thing I love is the Monsters with them going for a Showa aesthetic on mask based Kaijin but with an added twist of a Kaiju counterpart for them to fight, it’s a nice change of pace from just having them grow. The series has done a great job at bringing back an old style and breathing fresh life to it. Was scared hearing what happened to Juru’s actor but thankfully heard he’s doing ok and I’m excited to see what the series brings next.

[topweeklyupdate]

TØP Weekly Update #59: Taking a Bath (8/24/2018)

As predicted, after a pretty calm preceding week, stuff went totally bonkers. We didn’t quite get a new song, breaking the last few months’ pattern, but we did get plenty other new content to parse through and get excited about. So let’s get into it!

This Week’s TØPics:

Tyler Finishes His Bath (and Trench)

“A Complete Diversion” Pre-Release Concert Announced for London

“My Blood” Snippet Released 

And MORE!

Major News and Announcements:

To kick it off with something totally unexpected: Tyler Joseph tweeted. Twice.

In all seriousness, this would normally go in the “Other Shenanigans” section (though year-long payoff on the bath joke is undeniably epic), were it not for what it might mean for the story of dmaorg.info. Tyler’s desktop background in his image of the completed Trench masters was quickly identified as matching this image of the Nicolas Bourbaki Group, a mathematics society whose de facto leader, Andre Weil, popularized the use of “Ø” as a null sign and whose photo previously appeared on the website. Notably, the image on Tyler’s desktop appears to have had at least one additional figure photoshopped into the doorway, leading to wild speculation as to what the hell this cryptic boy is trying to tell us.

The Clique’s collective attention then shifted from Dema to the real world when the band quietly announced via an unlisted video linked to their UK site that they would be performing at least one pre-album release concert. Entitled “A Complete Diversion”, the show will be held at the O2 Academy Brixton in London on September 12, over a full month before the start of the proper Bandito Tour. The band last played this 5,000 capacity theater during the original Blurryface Tour, and anyone lucky enough to get tickets when they become available this Wednesday, August 29th, will be in for an intimate experience that will likely mark the first time many songs from Trench are played live.

London was one of the first sites where the band’s new logo began to appear on billboards, leading many to speculate that there may be other pre-release dates for smaller shows like this still to be announced. I’m not sure if I totally buy that, though; while London may not seem like the most obvious place for the band to make their return, the UK fanbase is extremely passionate and will have to wait much longer than Americans to see the band perform live. A one-off trip to the UK to play a show and do some interviews with British press to hype the album makes sense. Regardless, I’m just excited beyond words that we’ll be seeing Tyler and Josh onstage again in less than three weeks playing new music. And speaking of new music...

The VMAs, as usual, were a total mess not worth anyone’s time. HOWEVER, they did feature a trailer for Trench, one that featured a nine-second audio clip of "My Blood”. While there’s no sign that we’ll be hearing the rest this groovy track prior to the leaked release date on September 7, let alone get a music video or any other supplementary content, this snippet was enough to send the Clique into a real tizzy. 

Here’s what has me most excited: From the four songs we’ve heard, we know that Trench will feature:

The hardest-edged rock track TØP has ever produced

The most experimental rap-raggae concept track TØP has ever produced

The most committed hip-hop track TØP has ever produced

The funkiest track TØP has ever produced (with a stellar falsetto to boot)

I’m just gonna say it: unless the other ten songs on this project are all mediocre or worse, Trench is already set up to be the band’s most boundary-pushing album to date. Even if it can’t match Blurryface’s financial success, Trench could really have the potential to sneak up and get Twenty One Pilots the kind of critical praise that they’ve deserved for so long (I mean, even The Melon’s on-board). I cannot wait to see what happens.

Other Shenanigans:

I somehow missed this last week, but I should shout out Josh’s latest Instagram post, where he praises his boxing trainer Glenn Holmes for not only helping him improve his rhythm and power on the drums but also for helping him manage his mental health by staying in good physical shape. The band does a lot of great stuff to support those with mental health struggles, but this is one of the more pragmatic and immediately useful bits of advice that either Josh or Tyler have provided. I know from my own experience just how much exercise helps keep your head focused on where you want it to be. So thanks, Josh, that was really cool and you’re looking real good.

Almost immediately after I posted last week’s update, the Clique briefly became concerned that a warped audio clip posted anonymously on YouTube might actually be a real demo for “Pet Cheetah”. Thankfully, Mark hopped on Twitch to quash that real quick before anybody got any funny ideas. And thank God he did- I was actually seeing people say that this reminded them of No Phun Intended in a good way, and I was getting a little concerned. I’m so grateful that Mark is so pragmatic and cares about the fanbase enough to shoot down fake content even if I still haven’t forgiven him for that fake setlist.

Oh, and Jim remains the best boy.

Chart Performance:

Now with a full week of sales tracking, “Levitate” went up exactly one spot on the Rock Sales Chart and made no appearances anywhere else at Billboard- as predicted, it’s genre-bending inclinations are going to keep it from any real mainstream success. “Jumpsuit” still isn’t boasting major sales, but it is continuing to pick up at rock and alternative radio, keeping the dream alive that maybe, just maybe, it can make a comeback and crossover when the album comes out. And if it doesn’t, well, “Stressed Out” was not the lead single from Blurryface and “My Blood” is really out here sounding like a bop already. We’ll see

-

That’s all for this week! Will next week be a quiet one to keep the running pattern going, or is Twenty One Pilots going to make my life a constant state of chaos for the foreseeable future. Only one thing’s for sure: it’s a good time to be a Twenty One Pilots fan.

Power to the local dreamer.

|-/