#JP Management Apartments

[connoisseursdecomfort]

All the lies in Chapter 86, and the truth behind

Yes, I'm still screaming internally, and I don't think I will ever get over this chapter.

Endo have told us right from the beginning: this is a story about lies:

Everyone has a secret self they don't show to other people. Not even to family. Not to friends. Not to lovers. And thus the world. They hide who they are and what they want behind lies and painted smiles.

Twilight is a liar. He consciously tells so many lies in this chapter, but it's what he (and the people around him) unconsciously shows really count.

*Manga spoiler alert*

Endo masterfully blends lies and truths together in this chapter. They recognise the existence of all facades, but somehow still manage to show what reality lies beneath, i.e. the three scenes many people have discussed.

When he tries to use his infamous excuse, "for the mission", once again, even Nightfall could tell that it's not the whole truth.

What's more interesting is when the team is in the car, and the old agent asked Twilight to grab a drink with him once they got back. Twilight refused, and that's when the old agent said: クツ調子いい時だけ家庭面しやがつて in the jp version.

The slight difference is he's saying Twilight only puts on that mask of a family man when he sees fit. It of course still means that Twilight is using his family as an excuse to not grab a drink with him. Twilight then replied: その面をかぶるのが任務ですつてば. (It is my job to put on that mask.)

There is something poetic about the dialogues. There IS a pretence. There IS a mask to be put on for the mission. But Twilight's excuse has lost some of its validity because literally panels ago he's just got called out. And the old agent's tease is a common one against married men who'd avoid office gatherings "because he needs to go home and be the family man". It's a friendly banter.

They then chatted about his "fight" with Yor. There were four professional spies in the car, and none of them found it weird that he just called Yor his wife, and acted like a miserable married man worrying about his wife being angry at him. They were so normal about the situation it's as if Yor really is his wife.

It is the sense of normality that makes everything feel so real. He tried so hard to keep a distance with "his mission", but his actions and the word choices have exposed him.

He still doesn't call the Forger residence home, but he uses this word - 帰, to return. Mika made a thread about this. You only return to something or someone because at the very least part of you feel belong (I'm being ultra careful here but my soul is screaming it's because you feel at home). The place you "return" to must contain some sense of stability. He unwittingly reveals how the Forgers have become his safe place.

That's probably why once he stepped into the apartment and saw a smiling Yor, he fell to his knees. His body finally allowed himself to relax.

But that is also when his lies reappeared. He lied about his day. He lied about his wounds. And he lied about his feelings. It was Yor who opened up to him. He was lying.

While confessing to Yor in his mind.

This might be an unpopular opinion, but I don't think he's telling the truth in his mind. This doesn't mean he's consciously lying. He is trying to convince himself into "seeing the reality".

I'm going to gush so much about these two pages. Brace yourself.

I love these two pages so much, because it shows how lies can be more revealing than a spoken confession. Especially when Twilight is probably unaware of it.

Yor told him that he could rely on her. She uses the term 甘える.

甘える is to go to someone you trust when you feel scared or upset, to moan about your problems even if they sound trivial, and to ask for help for the tiniest things. It works both ways, you wanting to get attention and knowing that the person would still love you and baby you. You know you can be weak and the one you rely on would still find you to be adorable.

That's exactly what Yuri was doing. He ran to Yor crying after being beaten up. That's also what Anya did.

Yor told him that it's okay to be not perfect, and she's willing to share his burden.

He wanted to tell her so much more, but he only gave her a short answer. He just told her that she's made him feel better, but he wanted to talk to her about it. That's when he started to confess to her in his head.

On the surface, this confession shows that he's trying to deny her request. He is insisting that he has to be perfect.

Here's the tricky thing, by explaining to her why he had to be perfect, he had to admit that he's weak.

He wanted to tell her that he fucked up today and needed to be better. He wanted to show weakness. He wanted to 甘える. And his tone just further gives him away.

I will have to admit that I love how he talked to Yor in his head, especially "でもわヨルさん、オレは". He's using such a soft tone while trying to talk himself into toughening up. He went physically soft too. Fell down thrice even if he had prepped himself to get his guard up. He just couldn't do it when he's with Yor.

There are things he can't tell her, but there are more he can't admit to himself. He has wrapped himself in layers of lies, and they turned out to be more revealing than ever.

Twilight is still a huge liar in Chapter 86. I'm not sure if he's a cool liar, but he is the softest liar ever.

There are so many things I want to scream talk about. How he called Yuri "Yuri Briar" but Yor "Yor san". How he asked about Anya once he got home. How he's failed thrice trying to keep his guard up in front of Yor. How he called out to Yor when he thought Yuri had returned. But I guess it's for another day.

[macaronnya]

I realised again how A3! only lasted for like 2 years but it made such a huge impact on me like few other games. I don't really follow JP server except for looking at new cards and stuff bc it's too much work and it's not the same experience. It's like I'm still following a friendxs social media without reaching out bc we drifted apart. It's nice to see them enjoy their life and I DO wish to be part of it but it's simply not possible without a lot of work I can't manage without running myself haggard.

Still, it has such a special place in my heart and though I continue to mourn it at times, ultimately the pain of our farewells has faded into nostalgic times I cherish dearly and can finally remember fondly. It's somehow bittersweet how it doesn't evoke strong emotions anymore like it used to, whether positive or negative. But I guess it's just part of the passage of time. Some friends aren't meant for a lifetime and that's OK.

[temporarilyunstable]

it's a monster of a ppp essay

Finally writing about this film I’ve pretty much obsessed over for months! Hopefully I can put some order into this but in case I ramble you have been warned lol. Spoilers will be discussed. 

I first saw this film in Japan on opening day— prior to that I tried to gather as much information as I could via JP tweets and impressions, especially those of the pre-golden week screening on April 29, then adding more info as soon as spoilers were lifted to increase my understanding. And now a couple of months later, I finally have full context, but really happy that most of the information I got was accurate, and the only details that I had to clear up were related to the more complex elements of the plot, plus the ever-important talk-no-jutsus (tnj) in the film. 

If I were to give this film a score, it’s a 9/10. Prior to this, my fave iteration was case 3, being the ever-economic-just-over-an-hour-but-does-everything-right entry to the series. Maybe it’s my Akane bias but PPP just knocked that one right out of the park. The animation was great (I am not well-versed in this so you won’t hear me talk about it much), even if wonky Arata took me out despite the emotion in the scene. Voice acting, no one does it better than the JP actors, I will not be convinced otherwise. It’s my preference and frankly if you’ve never watched this in sub I do think you missed out. The music was TOP-TIER. I’ve not stopped listening to this OST ever since it came out, blessdt Ennio-Morricone-esque Is this your choice, Akane Tsunemori? track #27 CD2?!!?!??! *INHALE* 

I can’t actually use technical film critic jargon here so in short, I LOVE this film so much. 

A bit of background info from the recent interviews Director Shiotani participated during the roundtables/live stages in JP - the “switching” of the timelines were at the behest of the producers (Fuji TV), including the introduction of new characters, in order to continue the story indefinitely from a TV perspective (link). It was a ballsy move, and in hindsight it paid off, but not without its pitfalls which I will touch on later. PP3/FI was developed during PPSS, and PPP was developed during PP3/FI, so you can imagine the difficulty of making sure the creative team have crossed their t’s and dotted their i’s. That being said, apart from telling the story it wishes to tell, the purpose of this film was to tie the past to the present, and I think that they did it very well. 

My thoughts are still evolving, but interestingly enough, most of my impressions haven’t changed. So I’ll talk about some elements of the plot that interest me, then I’ll go to specific characters, and ofc I’ll talk about the ship (not the Grootslang 😉).

There’s a clear three-parts to this film: up to Saiga’s death, up to Atsushi’s death, and Akane’s career death (if it is to be said, so it is lol). Each part had their pros and cons, but it’s quite a feat managing to squeeze all the information in. There was no dull moment for me.

I think the deaths here (especially of the characters we were supposed to care about)— the manner and speed in which they perished, and at a certain point in the film, all for nothing— were part of the point.

Before I watched this with subs I actually thought that it would be more difficult to understand, but I have to say that the nolan-esque expositions were well executed and nicely placed, for example the talk about possession between Kogami and Shion was a good prep for the audience for when we actually get to hear about how it works from Akira. Also a great way to show both Kogami’s detective skills that have not dulled the slightest, and his and Shion’s closeness(?/familiarity? Call it what you want). Another example is the Mika-team essentially telling the audience what’s about to happen prior to us seeing Sugo get things done in the sky (also I forgot he was just flying a drone and was out of harm’s way ehehe). I would say that the hardest parts to piece together have to do with the elements related to PP3, including the involvement of Bifrost. I’ll touch on this later.  

I’ve talked about Saiga’s death to my friends way before the first trailer ever released. Him not being present in PP3 was the biggest clue, and not that I wanted it to happen, but it was necessary to raise the stakes and make it personal. As a fic writer, admittedly I’ve never been happier to be right 😅. His scenes with Akane and Kogami at the beginning of the film were standouts. I particularly love how Saiga and Akane are so at ease with having a simple conversation— they’re talking about work but he could so easily talk about his doubts regarding Atsushi, for example. I love how he’s the same with Kogami, how he clearly states his allegiance to Akane, and ofc reminding Kogami to apologize (and something else I picked up that I will discuss later). 

I can say that despite the initial ridiculousness of the Divider/possession, the way it was explained was quite convincing to me compared to how they brushed over how Arata’s mentalist skills worked in PP3. Also, there’s kind soul from the JP fandom who attempted to explain how it could probably work irl (link). It’s creepy, if you think about it, and well-documented too. Have a read if you’re interested. 

Action scenes, definitely a strong suit of this film - you just know they can’t help themselves sometimes LOL. Kogami v Akira is definitely the best one (RIP Kogami’s balls hihi), and I’ve said this before but they definitely have perfected Kogami’s animation when it comes to fighting, and he is always the most flawlessly animated, however I think they did Gino really well here too. There’s this other really wonky one where Sugo falls down the escalator and it just looks like he’s a solid object and not a human body asdlfkjaskldfj. Honestly I finally understood the critique that the Sugo drone scenes were definitely way too long (I didn’t notice this bec it was hella entertaining when you don’t have subs plus it was super fun if you watch it in 4dx/mx4d).

Really dropped the ball on the Stronskaya Papers imo. I think, for something that was meant to be so important, the exposition regarding its use was really a lazy excuse. “SEAUn essentially proved its value” ain’t gonna cut it. If this is something so important people choose to kill/die for, then the implications of it should have been shown to the audience, not told. 

I only noticed after the third subbed rewatch, but to me, everyone is being measured against Akane in this film. I will elaborate later.

Sibyl as an AI

Finally, the little complication about using the term "AI" when describing the Sibyl System. When the first impressions of this came out, there were a LOT of dissatisfied JP fans. Until it was described as such in the film, since the system constitutes actual human brains, then the interpretation is that it is human. I’m not sure if this was a general interpretation btw, but since this is the first time the term “AI” was used to describe Sibyl, ofc it rubbed people the wrong way, especially bec it feels like the whole concept of Sibyl was retconned. 

I somewhat agreed with this interpretation— I had always considered the Sibyl System as an independent character in this series, who was meant to be impartial but somehow acts/reacts as a human would— and it's not hard to think so, when you look at the way the system has acted and evolved throughout the show. At times, the system is shown to be curious, greedy, and even cruel. I am ofc talking about them as a whole and not their androids (Kasei, Misako, Chuan Han, Hosorogi, even the dude in Case 2, etc)— individual brains act as human with a CA constitution (so still slightly different from a normal human), that’s clearly shown in the series.

When I read about this through interviews of Director Shiotani, I didn’t quite get the full context as it was used in the film. My initial interpretation was that the system was human, but the mechanisms that make it work (the claws swapping brains supposedly without human intervention, the city/country-wide whole network/surveillance system, the immediate reaction to process a Dominator’s request, etc) were powered by AI. I thought that they used the term AI to update the terminology, since this technology is quickly becoming commonplace irl. Now I've seen PPP with subs and thought a bit more about it, I still somehow think this is the case but also, all things considered, the term AI also makes sense. 

Bear with me as I try to break it down. The Sibyl System is a system that is bound by its raison d'être: the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people (very important: not all). To achieve this, it has taken over control of the lives of its citizens via the Psycho- Pass, a quantified measure of mental states/psychological tendencies and aptitudes— a supposedly objective measure. This includes law enforcement, as the system is able to predict an individual’s tendency to commit crime. We also know that the Sibyl system has auxiliary functions, like planning citizens’ lives or recommending the best option for the individual’s happiness, matchmaking, art/cultural/historical/religious control. Its role is very simple: assign the best possible job that one is most capable of (essentially eliminating non-productivity as a society), and through psycho-pass measurements, maintain/execute (criminal) law and order under the PSB. It can be implied that other non-criminal laws can’t be divorced from Sibyl, since its functions make all these possible within the confines of what Sibyl constitutes as “right” (and is implied,) based on the rule of law. Sorta like a chicken and egg situation, but the law, being at the base of it all. Sibyl came into legal force - it is, first and foremost, lawful.

Applying that to the definition of AI, we could say that at its inception, the law would be Sibyl’s code/algorithm, prior research (be it criminal/non-criminal data/aptitude/psychology/physio etc etc) and eventually its actual application is its data set, and the use of human brains as its processing mechanism. If we review how the system has "acted" so far, it's all consistent with the fulfillment of their purpose, EVEN if exceptions, limitations and anomalies exist. 

A key concept that has been repeated in the show’s run is Sibyl’s “evolution”, which coincides with the same concept of AI “developing/learning automatically”. If I still have your attention, you will probably know that the main driver of Sibyl’s evolution has always been Akane, be it directly (S1, PP movie, PPP), or indirectly (PP2, PP3). This has been introduced from the start, with Sibyl itself acknowledging its imperfection, but insisting on the need to maintain its perceived perception in the interests of a peaceful society. 

What makes it a bit contentious is the fact that the individual brains ARE very obviously still human - so I think that the “the Sibyl System is an AI” really feels off somehow, or at least conceptually feels like it should have been carefully defined rather than left up for interpretation, given what we’ve seen in the series thus far. In any case, here are some references to help you think about it and make your own interpretation.

World Affairs (OffiPro)

Genesis 1-2

Genesis 3-4

Characters - I’m just gonna put this disclaimer, basically if I quote something from the film please just understand that it’s mostly paraphrased. 

Akira

Definitely one of my favorite additions to this massive cast. Not the first one to say it but what a shame (he’s so sexy UwU). He’s probably less complex of a character than Atsushi (oh we’ll get to him), since his motivations are not “heavy” enough for me to believe such a sacrifice. He volunteered to be a double agent, burned his face to prevent identification, took on the mental (physical, actually) load of the chips in his brain and for what? For the greater good? Where did we see that anywhere? It is implied that as an immigrant he’s had his fair share of exposure to wars/conflict - we all know this was the same case with characters like Kei and Maiko, for example, but if we’re simply relying on the context of this film, I got the impression that he was merely doing it for his brother. 

Things I love:

Dropping the machine gun post shootout with Kogami, signaling that he has no intention to go that far (gonna talk about the other side of this coin in a bit)

RECITING THE GREAT ASO on top of that holo cliff *chills* 

In the JP version, his very VERY noticeable voice change when he surrendered to Kogami and Gino

His “please take care of Kei” never fails to make my heart ache T-T AKIRAAAAAAAAAAA

Atsushi (& a bit of Yabuki)

One of the best characters in this film (who no one will invite in their wedding— oh the irony lol). I think that a good baseline from watching PP3/FI really helps appreciate him, though I didn’t actually care much if not for Niki making me notice in PP3 that there are conflicting accounts about him (a malicious one c/ o Obata in her testimony, vs Arata’s POV of him as a good and loving father), plus the more I learned about the complexities of Bifrost the more I got interested in him, too. Atsushi is clearly a morally grey character, and in this film it both comes out of his mouth (as a form of admittance in his speech), and shows in his actions. His speech: "The right choice can be wrong in a different time, that’s because righteousness is relative, but the truth is absolute. What we need is the truth, the means to accept that truth and choose the path where no one gets hurt." is clearly directed at only four people in that room. The speech also served as an admission of his guilt— and once again, the theme “he did what he had to/someone had to do it”.  

There’s a line during his interview with Akane where she says “you don’t make mistakes. Everything you do puts you a step further in your career, as if you’re following a path laid out before you.” When she seems to have hit the right line of questioning, he was clearly about to confess, but alas, it was not to be. I remember reading an interview where Director Shiotani said “he doesn’t get to have it easy” and you know what, ok fine. 

Atsushi and Yabuki’s approach is, in a nutshell, big picture thinking, the end justifies the means. They make difficult decisions, get things done and can’t avoid people from getting hurt. This is also driven home by Yabuki’s words to Frede “ideals are not enough to bring about change”. (He also said something good about needing that kind of power to exact justice and being prepared for the infamy that would result - help me if you remember this was my takeaway from it). To me, they both represent the kind of people who are about to become obsolete in Sibyl society IF it is heading towards the path people like Akane and eventually, Arata, are aiming for (put a pin on that). 

We know that he was a Bifrost Inspector, and interestingly enough, it seems that Yabuki is too since they’re communicating via the terminal we saw Kei use. As is on trend for anything related to Bifrost, you do not see the hands of these guys getting dirty despite all the dirty work they actually do. That said, Akira, Milcia and most likely Saiga, are probably foxes.

Things I love:

I think that he and Tonami, while they must have believed there was no other way at the time, acknowledged that there was no excuse, and as a result are inspired (or in Tonami’s case, persuaded though begrudgingly) to trust the newer generation to do it better than they could. I feel like Atsushi already knew his time was coming the moment the deaths of those he had personal ties with started piling at his door. 

His conversation with Kasei/Sibyl: “we’ve been watching you for a while”, implying Sibyl being complicit in all the dirty work he’s had to do. “Do you believe in the potential of humans?” and the response “of course. this is the reason why we exist” — really rubs the god/religious themes here, handing him the gun that will take his life as their parting gift, as if to say “this is your judgment”. I’m gonna touch on this again with Akane. 

I’m not the first person to say this but with the exception of Yabuki, who was killed, at the end, Milcia, Akira and Atsushi’s acts were extreme, and I’m just not gonna gloss over this, cowardly. Choosing to die instead of living. Choosing to be absent instead of being present (in his brother’s life, in her daughter’s life). Atsushi preached it to his son (“do not dive without a lifeline”) but not only failed to act on his teachings but continued his approach. You could say it was the only choice at the moment, but all their previous choices led them there, and it’s even worse that they got someone else involved and killed, even if that wasn’t their intention. 

HOWEVER, and this is going to be brought up again: someone has to do it, and therein lies the nuance in the other main character in PPP we’ll talk about later.

Saiga

I don’t really have much to add except they made him especially handsome in this film… 😳 And ofc I love that he picked up the lack of people in the building, he really said you can’t hide anything from my keen observation skillz. I loved that he was pretty chill about it too, maybe he was trying to cool down his favorite student 🤗

Things I love:

Akane visited him at 23:41 in the evening, I am assuming on that same day (it’s the time stamp on his laptop, also confirmed by Director Shiotani). I guess the concept of after office hours does not exist bec it looks like they left for Dejima immediately after. 

“People aspire for comfort and find themselves unable to escape it, like me” and Akane immediately saying that’s not the case 🥹

Coffee on the lips. Leaning back on the couch. The toast and the chuckle RIP

“She’s not a saint/bodhisattva”: I’ve understood this to mean that she WILL enforce Kogami if it comes down to, hence he better apologize to her while he can. 

His very meme-able criticism of Kogami before they got on the elevator 

“Well, that was crazy!”

HIM BEING PEAK HANDSOME WHEN HE HAD A KNIFE ON HIS THROAT LIKE?!?! 

The desperation and VERY obvious there is no other way here when Akane’s whole body is about to fall just trying to hang onto him

That they muted Akane’s scream when he fell

That she went straight down to him without so much as looking back at the fighting still happening

That she fixed his body 😭

I’m really gonna miss him. I always used to hc that Akane and Kogami would have a moment with him at some point in the future, calling back to their visit to his house in s1 but alas… we can’t have everything we want, huh? 

Tonami

AHHHH old man, old man. 

My favorite part about Tonami is that they clearly improved on making sure they don’t paint him as an evil guy. They tried to do this with Garcia, but frankly the novel did a better job at making him look more nuanced than the movie did— and that’s saying a lot since like I said, I love case 3. This is probably because they had the benefit of time, of course, and we’re gonna touch on this again later, they spend less time making Kogami look good (i mean, not physically) in this film. 

They were very economic with how they portrayed his character, too. With just that one scene of him and the kid, you immediately empathize and are forced to listen to what he’s actually saying. My favorite scenes of any iteration is the “reckoning”/tnj that Akane has towards the end, basically summarizing the thesis of the story, and the questions it poses to the audience. This film is probably the best at presenting the most nuanced argument of the series so far between two sides. Very simple, very straightforward, and the movie’s prior scenes have done the legwork for the viewer to connect the points each is trying to make, like neat little puzzle pieces that make you go oh.

Things I love:

“Don’t forget you were the ones who made me this way.” (mic drop).

Akio Otsuka’s voice acting, especially when Akane was crawling to grab the Dominator. THE FRUSTRATION IS REAL.

This was pretty much confirmed and I’ll touch on it again later: he was not going to kill Akane (link) . I thought this was up for debate at first, but actually after seeing the subbed version I am convinced this was actually not up for debate due to the following:

It was him talking to Kai when he killed Milcia, he asked “You killed her?” and said “You messed up, Kai” 

We do not actually see him kill unless there is a purpose. Killing the SAD guys to get to Milcia, killing the SAD guys to get to Saiga. He revived Bokamoso because he needed to get the papers (wasn’t convinced that Saiga really didn’t have it, as already established by Saiga a few scenes prior), and was biding their time when he engaged with Frede & Gino after Kai confirmed the papers were not there, probably waiting for Kai to finish with Kogami (“time is up”). Decided the ops team (Ko, Gino, Frede) needed to die after they were exposed and the safety of the General and Raphael were put in jeopardy. 

He shot Akane in the same place he shot Kogami a few scenes prior— this is also why I do not believe this is random, but rather just a means to incapacitate them while he needed to do what he needed to do: possess Kai bec he now knows where the General is and needed him out of there, (unclear whether he knew at the time that Kai had the papers but likely he did since he referred to the memory chip during his first meeting with Akane), and have Akane not bother him while he possesses the peacebreakers in battle).

Shooting Akane again, not fatally wounding her.  

Akane’s line “why don’t you just kill me?”. Like, really, why didn’t he? The link above sheds some light on the creator’s vision on this and it’s delicious, lol. IMO, if he had wanted her dead they’d not have even talked. Very simple.

This is not to justify his actions btw, in fact, Akane even called him out “the same wars you helped perpetrate”, and her lichrally saying “I promise to expose the truth about the peacebreakers, but this doesn’t excuse what you’ve done”. Madame Justice said YOU WILL BE JUDGED BY THE POWER VESTED IN ME AS AN INSPECTOR OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY BUREAU ETC ETC  

He cares about Kai/Akira (the line to Atsushi “so Kai is your pawn, too?” at the helipad, and his concern about the divider overloading and his reaction that Kai is choosing to die). He clearly cares about the peacebreakers, too. Nuance, man. Delicious. 

“You can’t stop what you started here” CHILLS. Definitely reminds me of Kamui’s tnj in S2.

Frede

I have a soft spot for her. She’s clearly more loyal to Yabuki & the MFA than to Saiga, and, judging by her character we’ve seen so far, she’s taking after Yabuki as well 😉

The reason why? #21 in Director Shiotani’s Q&A space last June 15 (link).

So pretty when she was conflicted about not telling Saiga/Kogami about le grand  ̶f̶a̶i̶l̶  plan

I like how she calls Yabuki “boss” 🥹

Fave scene when Kogami calls her out for lying to Saiga LOL, I just love that he can just do that and that she doesn’t even bat an eye, I like that about them. 

Gino

He’s not my fave, but I’ve grown a bit soft on him here I have to admit. Love that they gave his devotion to Akane more context, and that this whole system of trust between them (and the rest of Div 1) is shown. 

He is right, it’s his ego talking (the boat convo). Akane didn’t and isn’t staying/tied to the CID bec of them (Ko & Gino) jeez man. It’s not about YOU. LMFAOOoOOOOooo 

Little Ginomika moment, I loved that. Speaking of…

Mika

“This is no time to be playing politician” sis— did anyone ever tell you that you have an aptitude for it? The whole plan about selling them out if they all die so she could save their asses, then actually coming to their aid when it truly mattered? Does your fave ever?!?!?! 

While she’s probably the one who has one of the best charadevs in the show, I fear a little that she’s starting to become a gag character, ALTHOUGH i’m arguing that she’s clearly still a writer’s fave with the way they give her critical hero moments when it counts (the whole rock star raid at heaven’s leap in PP3, then this “I got it covered” in PPP). I think Mika best displays the balance required to stay (sane) in this job. She’s able to take on what she needs to, and accomplish the role she’s set out to play, and at the end of the day she probably goes home and has a boba, binges netflix and has a good night’s sleep. 

I dunno where I read this - but there are main characters, and there are main side characters. This is Gino and Mika’s fate in the grander story, with their arcs pretty much over since Case 1.  

Finally, the good stuff. If this ain’t much of an overly long essay already.

Kogami

Before I go off, my experience is as follows:

When the first trailer of PPP came out, his words “I have no regrets” were so jarring to me. I didn’t quite understand how that was supposed to add up to the Kogami in my head, the hopeful man who was ready to come home at the end of Case 3, and the guy who said sorry at the end of PPFI. This led me to find some answers by machine translating the PP3/FI novels, and the case 3 novel. 

In a nutshell, I had thought that the ending of case 3 meant that he was going to turn a new leaf and fight for the same justice Akane was (in short, no killing). Guess what? I forgot that he did kill Jackdaw in PPFI, and the novel pretty much confirmed his actions and thoughts around it (aka, he was really going to kill the guy— I mean, he came into the scene guns blazing, you know? AND I FORGOT ABOUT IT (I call this my akane-tinted glasses 😉).

Another line in Akane’s monologue that cemented my reinterpretation of Kogami, and I was immediately reminded of this passage when Akane sadly spoke to him right after he shot Tonami: 

“Believing in the meaning of the stars was something only she herself held, and it was as if she was being told that the stars were just stars by the others she believed to be her comrades. When she began to consider that perhaps it was not the incomprehensible others who were truly isolated, but rather herself, true loneliness arrived. The moment of being cast into the sea of true loneliness, without even the stars or the sound of waves.” (the stars here was implied to be either law, or justice)

It’s been confirmed by Ryo Yoshigami that Akane’s monologues in the PP3/FI novels were written with the plot of PPP in mind— so you all know, this was intentional. The novels really helped me take a step back and assess what I was really looking at as a character, and Kogami’s role in the overall story. I thought he was someone who was on his way to change, I was wrong. I thought that his values have aligned with Akane, again, wrong. Now I know what some of yall are gonna say, that you didn’t misinterpret him. Sure, this statement isn’t for you then. BUT don’t lie to me, those who DID. 🤪

As for the rest, go read and form your own opinion  (PP3 Novels)

Kogami’s sense of justice

As a main character of the series, Kogami’s journey has been up and down, but one thing that’s consistent about him, in the simplest terms: his justice is personal. Whether it’s one of revenge, which he had closed the door on post case 3, his inability to turn away from injustice, and in PPP, his acceptance and taking responsibility of what he stands for, and what he can do. 

In the beginning of Case 3, he was making an effort to avoid killing— even using it as a condition for cooperating with Kinrei on the raid in the train station. This was during a time when he was clearly at a loss of what to do, still swimming in his regrets and just letting himself go in whichever direction life takes him. Come the end of Case 3, we see his hopeful decision to return, and, in PPP, clearly stated during his convo on the boat, his reasons. He did not come back to die, but to help people. This is essentially an explanation of his choice and lack of regret that he failed to explain properly to Akane, but if it wasn’t clear yet, this is also where the lines have been drawn between the two protagonists, interestingly enough, since the beginning of the series. Akane’s sense of justice is directly tied to the law, whereas Kogami’s does not (and, I think a moot point to argue now, will never). 

He does what he does because it’s what he can do. The difference between Kogami S1 and Kogami PPP/PP3 is that he’s found a purpose/place that aligns with his sense of justice. He owns it, and takes full responsibility for it. It’s a facet of growth, though probably not in a direction that would bode well for him if he fails to look from above, as was Saiga's last words to Akane. I can take this apart in a few ways, firstly, and especially towards his “belief” in Akane, he’s a hypocrite (LOL). Says one thing, does another. Wanting to be judged after the fact is like, are you kidding me, man? Right in front of the blood of someone she just tnj’d “you will be judged according to the law”?!?!?!!

Let's take a break, I’ll throw him a bone.

He simply cannot turn away from injustice and would rather get his hands dirty than allow others to get away with their crimes

This is a great callback to his time with Garcia “you hesitated, and now someone’s dead.” See? Charadev. (I’m being sarcastic). It must suck for him that though he didn’t hesitate, Saiga is still dead. 

To me, he’s started walking forwards post case 3, and while he still regrets everything he did before that, he’s left that behind to fulfill a new purpose in his life

In this scene specifically, he would rather kill than have Akane be killed.

Very personal, very short-sighted, very impulsive, reactive sense of justice. That he agreed with what Tonami had said, for all that talk of his belief in Akane, he’s a funny  ̶l̶i̶t̶t̶l̶e̶ guy, isn’t he? 

I’ve always argued that if his aim was that good (and again, Tenzing commented on this, he CAN shoot to disarm someone), then why didn’t he? Kogami in PPP, in every scene, operates on a shoot to kill. I’m no longer here to apologize for the guy, even if he did, three years too late. I think that it helped me come to terms with their differences, and this is fundamental. Don’t get me wrong, I still like his character, maybe even more now that we’ve learned quite a few things about his… shortcomings (lol), but I’m not gonna make excuses for him in the same way he doesn’t make excuses for himself. He chose. He still chooses to. Cool motive, still murder. 

Where this will lead him, it’s been alluded to in the film. Tonami is what a misguided Kogami could become, and even Saiga clearly reminded him of it. That’s a matter for his future, but know that this movie is sowing seeds the creators may decide to reap someday.  

Things I love :

He got his balls kicked!!! Love that for him 🤣

Used to complain about how lousy his shirt looked is in pp3 and whoooaa he took the jacket off and I'm sweating

WET HAIR

TACTICAL GEAR

The PP OST and the dominator UI, before he takes his first shot *chills*

Despite all my beef about him, I still really do love the guy. Now I just dunk on him every chance I get, it's fun. And ofc, I still have a tiny bit of hope about his future, and I’ll be holding him to that standard, otherwise yeah, he can die in a ditch (or if we’re going there, he can die whilst leading an uprising to destroy Sibyl) 😉 

Akane

So when I said earlier that everyone is being measured against Akane, I really meant it. She had taken a back seat since the PPSS films, and in PP3/FI the whole mystery surrounding her imprisonment was an invisible hand driving many elements of the show. PPP is HER film, and as a character, her continued relevance to the series' thesis cannot be discounted.

“The law doesn’t protect people. People protect the law.”

If Kogami was consistent about his sense of justice, she is even more so. What makes her leagues above him is that she’s driving change, and change DOES happen in the manner that does not allow her to break her principles… that is, until the end of PPP 😉. I’m not going to elaborate on her sense of justice, it’s pretty straightforward even if the series likes to throw stones at it as if following it is the hardest thing in the world. What makes Akane stand out is that it's actually not hard. Look, ask yourself whether it’s easier to kill another human being or not— I’m not talking about exceptional circumstances, but even then, I think you know the answer— there’s a moral and ethical basis here that she shares with a great number of people. Killing is wrong, it’s against the law to take another life. To me, the point of each iteration is to keep stacking odds against her through characters, each with their own complexities and nuance that the audience is made to empathize with and contrasted to her sense of justice, resulting in making it look like her principles are ideal and impossible to achieve, when actually, they're not. 

One of my favorite lines of the film, when Tonami says to Akane, “these are the facts that lie in the shadow of the peace that you enjoy”. Let’s be real. Akane is privileged. She’s not had to fire a gun to defend herself in a war torn land— but the argument against this is the same argument for it— it’s because she doesn’t have to. Kogami is back in Japan, it stands to reason that he must adhere to its laws, because despite his experiences abroad, he is not and will never be above the law. 

I’m gonna touch on something I already discussed on twitter, because there’s a difference between the way Kogami has killed, versus the way Gino and Sugo have. 

As far as the series has shown, the following are Sibyl-sanctioned “killing”, the last one specifically relates to PPP:

As judged by the Dominator (LE/DD)

In cases of national defense/during the execution of duties as members of the NDF

In cases of self-defense in the course of an official operation

It stands to reason that just because they are sanctioned does not save the person from their hue deteriorating, because that part is directly related to a person’s view of guilt. Throughout the show, the audience is constantly reminded that the act of (indirectly) killing does not necessarily impact one's hue (e.g. the PP of the person who manufactured the gun is not the same as the person who fired it, the whole premise of the foxes in PP3, etc), hence the "guilt" associated with the act falls on the person who does it, which may result in a higher cc. A person is able to absolve themselves precisely bec they know they're doing it within the confines of the law, but this doesn’t always follow (e.g. Sugo’s hue deteriorating in Case 2). There's a good example of this in action during Akane's operation in PPP, when Tonami issues the order to kill, and the team, who had been disarming/arresting everyone a few minutes before, was left with no choice but to defend themselves, often resulting in a kill.

While the Peacebreakers were able to hand over this guilt to Tonami via the Divider, Gino and Sugo could not. At the start of the film, they only used the guns when the Dominator was not functioning. The difference with their actions in the last third of the film is they participated in an unsanctioned operation with Akane, have killed as a result and are now likely above regulation. Had no idea the words “once the hounds have thrown away their collars, public safety will never tame them again” also served as foreshadowing as this is probably why Sugo and Gino were requested for transfer to the SAD. And if you’ve been paying attention, you’ll notice that Gino actually gets the job done with fewer bullets than Kogami does. Kogami, from the start, comes into the scene, kills all his enemies on sight without hesitation. This is a huge difference, and this is what Akane is trying to keep him from defaulting to. Violence to fight violence was not the answer, but they clearly do not align on this. It’s a perspective thing. 😉 

So why did she do what she did? 

In principle, she made herself an anomaly, directly challenging the decision to repeal the law, by committing a crime in public while not having her PP deteriorate. In short, she pretty much broke the law to protect the law. So how did she objectively know that her plan would work? 

I had a few discussions on twitter surrounding this, and frankly the “she knows she’s doing the right thing, not for herself but for the greater good” doesn’t cut it for me, nor does the premise of “leap of faith”. To do this, she HAD to have known with certainty that her hue would not deteriorate because if the dominator suddenly activates for her, then it was a pointless act, and more importantly, she was fully aware (as stated in the PP3 novels) that she was committing a crime. 

There are cases to be made of course, the first being she knew that Kasei is merely an android and that Akane avoided shooting the brain (effectively keeping Kasei alive), but that still doesn’t establish the fact that Akane does not absolve herself of the act, and again, that she needed to objectively know this would work. This is theory time, but the only thing I can think about are two specific things, one in the film, one not. 

Defying Sibyl orders to enact her own operation in the Kuril Islands - this is directly disobeying Sibyl, using her Chief Inspector authority to assign temporary roles to Kogami and Frede so they could participate, loading the Stronskaya Docs to her Dominator and giving it to the General, all these, unsanctioned and should have at least raised her PP. My guess is, in the aftermath, she noticed that it had not, despite the scale and the effort and potential losses had things gone wrong, and decided that was enough to go ahead with the “answer” she found for herself.

She had to have procured a gun. This was not in the film - but procuring the gun establishes her intent/motive, and should have also raised her PP - my guess is it did not. This would have been sufficient, but you can imagine, until the point of carrying the gun to the venue (probably hidden inside her hat), the fact that she wasn’t flagged basically made it certain her plan would not fail.

In the June 25 roundtable (link) , Director Shiotani wished that if he had 3 more minutes to add, he would have added a scene right after Atsushi’s death where the men in the roundtable ultimately decided to proceed with the abolition of the law. In hindsight, I think adding this scene would have been better, because it takes away room for interpretation that Akane was actually in a desperate situation, and not just frustrated at the close of the case. In the movie, this was supplemented by Kogami’s line “what Tonami said is probably going to come true, the law will likely be abolished.” Not as desperate, if you ask me. 

Deviants

The difference between Akane and Atsushi is that, Atsushi, in his capacity as a double agent and methodology as a Bifrost inspector, is like a puppet master holding the strings, indirectly enabling change and leaving mere traces of his impact while others either take full credit (or fall) from it, whereas Akane pushes change by directly challenging Sibyl head-on. We have yet to clarify Atsushi’s motivations in rising the ranks of Bifrost (he was alluded to be on the way to being a congressman or that he had the talents for it), and the fact that he’s played double agent for so long with his methods steadily growing shady over time just goes to show that there was clearly a better way (and he ofc acknowledges it). 

In the same way a CA can only be recognized by Sibyl by committing crimes OR if a Dominator was wrongly pointed at them, Sibyl becomes aware of these deviants (I’m gonna call them that) the moment they start defying Sibyl while being able to keep their hues clear. Perhaps Atsushi would be an imperfect version of a deviant, Akane the better one, and Arata probably the ideal despite being CA, sort of like Genesis 3-4’s Makami Sou. It would be interesting if Akane becomes APA, let’s see (read the Genesis links above 🙂). 

“Do you believe in the potential of humans?”

Post-op Akane was forcibly promoted to Atsushi’s role (iirc, a Department Head of Statistics in the Ministry of Welfare c/ o Steohsama's translation). I think it can be read two ways: one, in the context of the recently closed case, to get her fully out of the way and busy with other, bigger stuff that she was already dipping her toes in prior to Atsushi’s death (referred to during their convo, about her not “making a fuss”). Two, that she really did have the aptitude to be someone like Atsushi— only that her methods would clearly be different. Now that she’s back in the CID, there’s obviously a question of Akane’s future as a statutory enforcer (fun fact, the creators pretty much confirmed that it’s just a name for someone judged according to the law but whose PP did not deteriorate / someone who was appointed as an enforcer whose PP is below regulation ( link / link ). If Hinakawa will be promoted to an Analyst, then there’s a spot open for her in Division 1, assuming she’ll be playing detective. While I think this is likely to happen, I think it’s a boring outcome for her. Like Atsushi, I want her to move up in the world, especially if the world is gearing towards Sibyl going public. It’s going to be interesting what role she’ll play in the future, especially because, as Niki had so nicely put, “she can’t do this alone”. 

Oh, Koaka. 

Objectively, I no longer think the ship is romantic in canon. I’m gonna copy-paste some thoughts I already shared at length in discord and edit parts of it, but if you’ve seen me the last few months, this isn’t new.  

This is nitpicking, because I'm a writer and facts like they don't know each other, not really (they spent not more than 100 days in s1, maybe a few days in PPP) are things that are at the back of my mind always. I have yet to see Kogami and Akane treat each other more than the pedestals they put each other on (arguable for Akane but I think this is also why she keeps getting disappointed that their sense of justice doesn't align).

This divide between their sense of justice is their biggest flaw as a potential couple, and one that is too fundamental. I do not see compromise here, especially after the events of PPP. If Kogami were to gear towards a positive change, then there’s hope, but I leave very little room for that now. I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing, either. I see it as a potential stance that the show is trying to make. “You murdered someone, you can’t go back.” If he had been heading towards change it should have been on the way for a while, not a “possibility” that he keeps failing to live up to. Getting over this hopeful assumption took me a while, but I think that it also helped me appreciate the wider story being told. 

That being said, I think that romance in stories is important and I would like to see the writing team go there, not just from a shipping perspective but from a storytelling/amping up stakes perspective. In PPP I felt how Gino was much, much closer to Akane, and I didn't see this previously. In the past he was more like a controlling dad esp in s2, undermining Akane's POV, improved a bit in the pp movie though he still felt a bit on the overprotective i know better than you side (nicely resolved in ppp where we see a piece of his mind btw)— there's a whole lot of trust there. With Kogami and Akane, while they cleared the air after the infirmary scene, once again I saw that trust shaken when he shot Tonami. 

These characters are depicted as human beings, and I think that entails grounding. While meaningful connections can be made through short moments (destiny, if you will), relationships built over time like literally and not let's have a nice moment in a film i'll see you next movie kind of thing, is something that, to me, means more. That said, Kogami was separated for a long time and it's lichrally impossible, but they're in the same place now. Where does that lead them? This is where part of my hope lies, small as it may be. Granted, this is not that kind of show and I'm fully aware of that, which is also why I'm happy to get what we get and that artists/fic writers are there to fill those gaps.

I still ship them but a lot less— I find it funny because even before PPP, I was always looking for more (I'm greedy haha!). I always saw the PPFI scene as just the beginning of their relationship— I wasn't convinced that scene was enough, despite the romantic undertones. And let me tell you the betrayal I felt when I found out the reason why they did the whole back to back thing in PP0308 was because... IT WAS AWKWARD FOR HIM TO CROUCH DOWN THE LITTLE WINDOW OF HER CELL and not the little romantic shit I had going on in my head— I just ( ╯°□°)╯ ┻━━┻

I went through the five stages of grief but at the same time it's not as bad since it's not like I didn't think that way from the start (it's just me being anal about it all, really. Because I would end up writing whatever I wanted anyway and canon didn't really matter in the grand scheme of things).

I do like their dynamic now given the recent developments, Kogami especially being particularly unskilled in the romance department just makes it all the more funny (I'm not capable of writing him that way though so I guess all my fics are ooc now 🤣). If they don't develop past the Arguably Platonic™️  way they treat each other then I won't be surprised if I stop creating for the ship, likely bec it will no longer satisfy my enjoyment of it.

Final Thoughts

I think it’s pretty much confirmed we’re getting more, it’s just a matter of when (can’t believe I’m staying here forever, huh?). Director Shiotani wishes that he will be making PP in the next 30 years, gotta love him for that. 

As the series progresses, there was a clear tonal shift and hopeful direction it seems to be heading towards. To me this is partially because in a practical sense, this benefits the prolonging of the show (which we already know is true), but in a thematic sense, destroying Sibyl means the end of the series overall. No Psycho Pass without the Psycho Pass. And to this I give credit where it’s due. This is not the kind of progress you’ll see if Urobuchi is still in the writer’s room, and frankly, the complexity and depth of the show ever since he left has pretty much taken off in great strides. I had wished they were heading towards a natural conclusion (Sibyl going public) and leave it alone for a decade before they pick it up again, but I guess the producers have other plans. After all, they don’t have any other IP that has withstood the test of time, is ahead of its time and continued to remain relevant as time went on. While not perfect, this is an amazing feat of a series, and this movie is a stellar addition to it. 

They’ve got a dilemma of course, because until now it seems they went with a serialized format (with a definite ending) versus an episodic one (criminal of the week). By choosing to expand the world and explore other facets of society, all the while connecting the threads in an overarching plot, they have to complete the “passing of the torch" before going back to an episodic format, which means they MUST give the new kids their time of day,̶ a̶n̶d̶ ̶e̶x̶c̶u̶s̶e̶ ̶m̶y̶ ̶a̶s̶s̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶a̶ ̶s̶e̶c̶,̶ ̶b̶u̶t̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶y̶ ̶h̶a̶v̶e̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶c̶o̶m̶p̶l̶e̶t̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶l̶i̶n̶k̶s̶ ̶b̶y̶ ̶e̶x̶p̶l̶a̶i̶n̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶w̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶h̶e̶l̶l̶ ̶i̶s̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶d̶e̶a̶l̶ ̶w̶i̶t̶h̶ ̶S̶h̶i̶z̶u̶k̶a̶. Shifting the timelines allowed them to usher in the new cast, but now they’re marketing the legacy cast and have to contend with their obvious popularity compared to the new, fully knowing that the legacy cast is returning to the back seat once we kick things off again. This is a problem that can be solved if a spinoff is decided for SAD, because at least a chunky (huehue) part of the cast will be cordoned off doing their business in Dejima, while the CID with its usual players can stay where they are. I think if you’ve been following Director Shiotani though, this is not happening without him in the driver’s seat, so it’s like… if they’re smart he will delegate this task to someone he trusts and we’ll get both a main and a spinoff, then a converging point somewhere in the form of a movie. 🎶Psycho-pass forever!🎶 (to the tune of Emilia Clarke "best season ever" GOT S8 interview, iykyk). 

Finally, I’m just gonna say that I love Akane so much, I’m glad she got the spotlight on her in this film. To be able to experience this film is unforgettable, I’m so grateful that it was possible for me. I’m training myself to expect she’ll take a step back next time I see her, but more than anything, I hope to see her happiness fulfilled, no matter what that entails. Once more, I just can’t thank these creators enough. They’ve made a series and a world I’m obsessed with, makes me think and makes me evaluate its implications in real life, makes me create!!!!! I’m so happy that they continue to believe in the stories they want to tell. I hope they are all healthy and resting now (until the next one, eheh!)

I’ve talked way too much and it’s really just because I want this out of my plate so I can start writing my fics now lololol. If you made it this far, thanks for reading! Always happy to discuss! 

[myrfing]

sorry to add to the #discourse about the werlyt stuff in ffxiv, and feel free to ignore this, but your posts just got me thinking about how the average western consumer of japanese media doesn't know how to spot signs of japanese nationalism in their fave game, movie, anime, etc. For example, I remember a couple of weeks ago on twitter someone said that Miyazaki's works feature prominent elements of japanese nationalism despite not necessarily being pro-war, and both the replies and QRTs were an absolute disaster. ffxiv is a liberal game, its politics are not exceptional; they just aren't (as) egregious

Considering the social locations of people who make a piece of media and how that location affects the way they write things, like politics, isn't an outlandish concept. But ffxiv fans always seem hyperdefensive about this and i cannot understand why

yeah for sure! imo people are getting better about it (don't think it even registered in most of the english-speaking side of the internet's heads that there was a pacific theater for a long time), with more eastern media being translated and gaining popularity that DOES legitimately have leftist authors, but you still have a ton of "how can this work have jp nationalist elements when they say War is Bad 🤨". feels like a lot of this is cause really anime/manga/games were so vaunted as the ultimate escape for americans (not exclusive) and now that people are gaining more of a political consciousness, there's this need for the things that are nostalgic and soothing for them to be "good" media without Problems. which is like. not the point man. though people have always studied and conversed about media trends and the influence of eras on the art created within them and there's always been a knee-jerk You're Being Crazy reaction to it (even though if it's a conversation they're not interested in right now, the people who have this reaction usually can always just...step out lol), I feel like it's just magnified by the way social media uhh does all that. and on top of it a lot of discourse is in bad faith, so sometimes not giving people the time of day DOES seem like the correct and safe option every time but it's like...some people apply it so broadly and blindly that it's basically anything that upsets me = wrong and bullshit.

And you're totally right about xiv LMFAOOO it feels like some people are compelled to do damage control for the game like it's personal. you'd assume that everyone is working off of the recognition that ffxiv is a mass market product and a feel-good fantasy and the writing may not even reflect the totality of a writer's beliefs, but rather what they believe is the median, liberal truth that they're willing to sell. sometimes in oddball places you can find hints of something more genuine but these are exceptions. & acting like it's proofed from this is suggesting that somehow final fantasy fourteen the mmo is interested in breaking any status quos and the whole of its creators have collectively managed to break apart from the time and history they exist in, when in truth it relies on it to guide its writing and business plan. i don't think this is a crazy controversial thing. it's a normal thing. & i cant really speak for how other people are talking about it, but i rarely suggest malevolence in my critiques of the shit I enjoy moreso than I'm saying Le Hegemony Has Arrived....something not even individual people can escape myself included much less a corporation....but the accusation is assumed anyway. What is the worst that can happen by acknowledging some stories and patterns in xiv's story have very liberal takes on topics in which liberalism understands and treats poorly? i dunno the answer to this one honestly I do not understand the fear

[mono-blogs-art]

I saw BABYMETAL live in concert in Milan last night!

It was SO awesome!!! It was definitely worth the 5 hour travel and organisation around it (& a great excuse to meet up with the bestie @transimailisa again <3) despite the cold and wet weather. Though we were a bit late to the queue (we arrived around 30min before doors opened?) we managed to get pretty good spots to stand, maybe around 10-15m away from the stage. When my view was not blocked by Every Tall Italian Man Ever, you could see the performers really clearly. I really had such a great time. I cannot overstate how good of a time I had.

I got into BM casually somewhere around 2020, obviously couldn't see them in concert because of the pandemic. So of course I immediately jumped from my seat when the EU tour was announced. I've been a jp idol fan for a while now and I've seen quite a few idol concerts, and I've also been to metal concerts now, so I wondered how their concert would be like (lmao) and if people would bring stuff like light blades etc. I saw one guy with a blade but apart from that it was just like any regular concert I've been to. The energy in the crowd was great, despite the language barrier so many people knew the songs and sang along, the call and response portions especially in Monochrome (beloved beloved beloved) were just... saur good. Mwah.

I think the most surprising thing to me (up til now pretty casual fan, have only seen a few live performances of some songs of theirs but never a full concert) was how... goofy they were? I always imagined them being this super serious trio with a hard exterior that never cracked, but my god those girls were having the time of their lives on that stage, it was really infectious. Especially Momo & Moa moved around the sides of the stage a lot, interacting with the audience, and they were laughing and headbanging along. Pris caught this (I was too busy going insane) but we think that somewhere in Megitsune Su fumbled a lyric or something, and the other two immediately bullied her for it and they were all laughing :D I guess that is a tradition that continues with other groups I follow lmao

In general it was such a great concert, great sound and a GREAT setlist with really high energy songs at the start (Gimme Chocolate, PA PA YA) and overall a fun mixture of old and new bangers. The only sad thing was that it was only just over an hour long, I would have loved 2 or 3 more songs and a proper Encore. Despite that, we all went home exhausted and happy from dancing and celebrating, and now that I'm back in my own cozy bed and thinking about the experience I can't wait to do it again!!

[hyenahunt]

Rouge & Ruby: February's Situation - 2

Writer: Umeda Chitose

Season: Winter

Characters: Hiyori, Jun, Nagisa, Ibara

Proofreading: royalquintet (JP) & Skyress (ENG)

Translation: Mirei (Adam) & hyenahunt (Eve)

Hiyori: I can't believe Jun and Ibara would leave us out of this, Nagisa-kun. This is a dire situation on our hands. How deeply upsetting it is for them to be hiding things from us...!

[Read on my blog for the best viewing experience with Oi~ssu ♪]

Hiyori: Ahh, wasn't that fun! Getting to talk and sing together as the four of us is truly the best!

I gain a sense of fulfilment from working as Eden that I just can't get anywhere else... ♫

Jun: I thought we got some pretty good shots too, but you're crazy hyped about it, Ohii-san.

Hiyori: Well, that's because working as the four of us is just so fun, no?

So I simply wanted to do as much as possible. After all, we've had way too much separate work as Adam and Eve since the new year began!

Jun: I agree with you there, Ohii-san. I mean, I'll be doing location shooting with you both tomorrow and the day after that...

Hiyori: What's that? Are you complaining about shooting with me?

Jun: No, dude, I was just going along with what you said about having too much work in separate units?

Don't take it out on me just 'cause you're getting stressed out lately, 'kay~?

Hiyori: Hmph, it's all on Ibara for filling up our schedules with nary a word of explanation!

I'm sure he's got something in mind, but he hasn't explained a thing to us, though? Terrible weather, the way things are going!

Nagisa: … Fufu. Hiyori-kun is saying the same thing I said.

Hiyori: Eh?

Nagisa: … On our way to the TV station, I also asked Ibara what plans he had.

Hiyori: Ooh, is that so? Heheh, no matter how far apart we are, Nagisa-kun, we truly have a telepathic connection... ♪

Nagisa: … Yes, it really is telepathy.

Hiyori & Nagisa: … ☆ (they high five)

Jun: (whispers) Hey, c'mon. Our seniors started having a lil' gigglefest on their own, so what're you doing staying all silent, huh?

Ibara: (whispers) Oh no, I was simply warmly watching their beautiful friendship blossom… ♪⁠

Jun: That's a lie if I've ever heard one... It's 'cause you'll get dragged in if you say the wrong thing, so that's why you're just watching on, aren'tcha?

Ibara: I felt that it would have been insensitive of me to interrupt a conversation between His Highness and Jun, or between His Highness and His Excellency…

Ibara: They also haven't directly demanded an explanation from me, I saw no reason to insert myself into the talk.

Hiyori: And I'll have you know that's absolutely unforgivable!

The only reason I haven't demanded anything yet is because I've held myself back while suspecting something is up. In fact, I've been bursting to ask for an explanation!

Ibara: … Even if you say that, it is quite distracting for you to say that whilst continuing to hold hands after that high five. But I suppose I appreciate the consideration.

Besides, I was waiting to explain after you demand it… or more like, I’m thinking of explaining it once I manage to create enough foundation for the plan.

If it were something that only I know, I would rather take my time and proceed at my own pace. It would be much more convenient for me to keep it to myself.

Nagisa: … But back in the car, you said you'd talk about it when Eden is gathered. We can't do it now?

Hiyori: You said that, did you? Well, out with it, then, now that you've got all four of us gathered here.

Ibara: Not that we cannot, just not here.

I can’t bring out confidential documents here, and we also can’t occupy the dressing room for too long. Not to mention, we haven’t even changed our clothes.

Nagisa: … That's fair. We should change our clothes first, Hiyori-kun.

Hiyori: Mmm, you're right. I certainly got carried away, but I can't stay in this outfit forever.

Jun: (In the middle of changing) ...Actually, I think I've got a pretty good guess of what Ibara's explanation gonna be.

Ibara: You do?

Jun: Yeah. It's probably related to Chocolat Fes, I think. Over the new year, he said he'd slowly share the details with us.

Hiyori: ?

Ibara: … Ah, is it when we met on New Year’s? Now that you mention it, I do believe I said that.

Nagisa: ?

Hiyori: What's that? I had no idea of this! Just when did the two of you start keeping secrets from us?

I can't believe Jun and Ibara would leave us out of this, Nagisa-kun. This is a dire situation on our hands. How deeply upsetting it is for them to be hiding things from us...!

Nagisa: … I don’t think they are trying to exclude us from it, but if Hiyori-kun feels sad, then so do I.

… Ibara, can you explain?

Ibara: (whispers) …This is your fault, Jun. I already tried to delay their curiosity so I can talk about it at a time that suits me.

Jun: (whispers) Hey, you didn't try to hide it either, y'know? Don't pin all the blame on me, alright~?

Ibara: … Even if I’m asked to explain now, as I’ve said before, this is not a good place to talk about it.

I'lll set up a proper opportunity for us, so let's meet at the agency at a later date.

Nagisa: … It's fine as long as Ibara informs us of the schedule later. However, what I wanted to ask was what happened on New Year's.

Jun: Honestly, nothing special happened.

I went for a run on New Year's, and noticed that the lights on the eighteenth floor of the ES building were on.

I wondered what was up, and when I went to check it out, it turned out Ibara was working there. We just had a little chat after that.

Hiyori: You went training on the day after SS, hm? Jun-kun, you truly never change. That goes for you, too, Ibara — to think you were working on New Year's Day!

Nagisa: … I understand that both of you are very strict with yourselves, but I would prefer it if you both take a break, too.

Ibara: There is no need for concern, Your Excellency. I also take efforts to get proper rest, after all.

Jun: Or so he says, but he's been hammering away on his keyboard since New Year's.

...Ah, was it 'cause—

Filming for COMP started right after New Year's, so you've been slaving away at preparations since then?

Hiyori: Ahh... It was a rather sudden shoot, and I did wonder just when you even made the preparations for it. So while the rest of the world was enjoying their New Year's break, you’ve been working behind the scenes, Ibara?

Jun: He did complain it was a pretty sloppy project, so it makes sense to me why he was so ready to give up his break for it.

Nagisa: … You were working on many things, Ibara. But there was also talk about "Chocolat Fes" right?

… Does it mean there is a connection between the preparations that are still underway and the state of my activities?

Ibara: Argh, enough, too many questions! Whatever you may think of me, you are free to interpret things as you like.

Besides, I already said that I'll explain it all another day, alright? No more questions! No more!

Come on now, get changed quickly and leave this place immediately! I’ve already arranged the return car ride, so don't be too slow!

[ ☆ ]

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[allys-diary]

stories i om-nom-nom'd :: march 2024 (week 4)

Welcome to a new thing I wanna try and do to keep some form of writing exercise while I'm lowkey kinda struggling to bang stories out (pun kinda intended). Here I'm just gonna talk abt what I've been reading and watching and playing for the past week and rambling on what I think about them. Summaries for the story either in full or the story so far will be included, and that's the only form of "spoiler warning" I'm gonna give.

Everything below the cut.

movies

Dual (2022)

Considering my interpretation of how the fight between Sarah and her Double went down, I'm in so much pain for her. She already escaped her grayscale dreary life and now she has to live in it again to keep up appearances? She deserves to live, dammit.

Full summary + rant/review here

books

Double Cross by Campbell Thompson

I'm only a chapter in and let me just say right now I love the introduction of Verity and how she really went by her own rules and swiped a watch from a handsy sleazy customer of Eighth Circle. And here we also have an introduction to Thomas Cross that's every bit intimidating as he found the pricey lil trinket she swiped and we end the chapter with him bringing her into his office. 🫢 Now see this is how I know there's smth wrong w me because that last scene got the butterflies going with a vengeance fully knowing that Thomas Cross looks like this:

games

Undercover: Blood Bonds

Undercover: Blood Bonds is a time-management game from GameHouse under their Original Stories line, and requires either a GHOS subscription (under $100/year for full access to all 60+ games) to play the full game, or full payment of the single game (about $10/game), or each level will be locked behind an unskippable ad that's at most 60secs long. I'm playing with the GHOS subscription.

The story I've unlocked so far is that we follow the journey of Vera, a journalist that's gone undercover as bar staff in a nightclub to find out what's happened to her sister Lilly. In a flashback, we get to see that what kicked off the events of the game was that Vera went home to her shared apartment with her sister, only to be greeted with everything turned upside down in an obvious struggle, and a pool of blood on the floor.

Delicious: True Love

Delicious: True Love is another story in the GHOS collection, and tells the story of Emily Napoli, going on adventures and crossing continents to reunite with her long lost love Jean-Paul. Right now she's on a train to Paris with her luggage having made it there before her so she's earning her keep there by helping out in the restaurant.

I've been playing the spin-off "alternate timeline" version of the story called "Delicious World" for a few years on and off, and I've enjoyed the hijinks she's gotten up to so far there with all the twists and turns and antics she's gotten up to with her eventual hubby Patrick. And considering I've got the time due to being in the job hunting phase, I figured 'why not?' and I'd play through the original story.

Delicious World

Speaking of the alternate timeline story, I'm also playing through this game this week, as I have been for the last few weeks. I'm currently in Season 2 Episode 3 where Emily's rekindled her romance with Jean-Paul and ngl they're being quite adorable with their constant kissies and sneaking off to his trailer. We also have a cute lil reveal that her bestie Frank's got a bit of a fling going on with her Rising Chef competitor Monet.

Top that off with Emily having some insecurities popping up because she saw JP's phone lighting up with the name of another celebrity chef Shivani Khurana, her competitor (and current rival) Sarah's older sister. And what's got her stomach in knots is that some time ago, there was a rumor that Shivani and JP had a thing for each other. 🫢☹️

Hello Kitty Island Adventure

I've played through all the quests available under "The Island Mystery" and so far all I got is that the Little TwinStars have this master plan going on that they don't wanna share with the class, and they're acutely aware of exactly how much more we have to do so that we can fully heal the Island Spirit that I have jokingly nicknamed Loki because she's stuck in the heart of a tree.

Ohh and there was a quip from Badtz-Maru about us all being locked in a time loop, so if Sanrio and Sunblink are trying to beat the "Loki crossover" allegations (that are literally just coming from me in the name of jokes and vibes), they're not doing the best job at it.

Disney Dreamlight Valley

Aaaaah, Dreamlight Valley…the game that inspired a whole new story universe (coming to you soon on the writing/main blog), I've also played through all the story quests for this one and I'm chomping at the bit waiting for the new releases for Spring and Summer.

There's definitely something to look out for with Skull Rock, considering that the final quest of Act 1 after facing off and reconciling with The Forgotten centers around the entrance way into said rock. And the friendship quests for The Forgotten mention it twice. And with the way they built it up, I'm hoping that it's gonna be more than just another home for another character. Like idk…maybe a portal? To Neverland? Or Pixie Hollow? Maybe if we get Hook he'll look and sound a bit more like…him?

Nothing left to do but pspspspspspsps, I guess

youtube channels that got my watch hours

Johnniibeanasmr

I don't vibe with a lot of male ASMR channels mostly bc they all have an overly gimicky feel to them, but I vibe w this one a lot. The videos have a cozy atmosphere to them and he's got a soft relaxing whisper that can lull me to sleep. The one that's made it to my "sleepies" playlist is this spider web one:

TheoryVerse

MatPat's theory channels have been with their new hosts for a few weeks now, and personally I think they're doing a great job with their own domains so far. Even though some snarky dude that'll hiss when their skin touches the sunlight and their 3 chest hairs is consistently in my comment replies tryna tell me otherwise (bitch touch grass, honestly).

Anyways, I've still got a good handful of new theories to binge but I'll give some bits that I picked up from the batch that I watched the week before.

Amy Marie validated that I'm already using a pretty good razor for my shaving shenanigans, but there's a potentially better one that I'll probs look into one of these days. She also showed that ultimately what makes the biggest difference is prep and aftercare of the skin, so that's gonna be something I gotta add to the routine.

Santi had me adding "Wendy's hot chicken sandwich" to my list of foods to try. Probs gonna do that to kick off my unplanned vacation of unemployment.

Lee pretty much validated my frustration over Oogway and his insistence of going "I'm not gonna tell you the secret la dee da" because apparently the secret to becoming the greatest warrior of all was inside you all along. And the blind following of Shifu and the ongoing cycle of shoddy mentorship goes on and on 🤦🏻‍♀️

As for Game Theory and its new host Tom, I've actually been able to watch 2 of his theories, and basically he validated my instinctual doubts on the 'helpful' Ollie, as well as walked me through the KinitoPet ARG. Don't trust those animated clipart assistants, kids. Especially this one because I'm not kidding, this game fucking doxxes you.

And just an extra bit of chortles, if you know you know…

lore keeker 🤣

stories to om-nom-nom next

Quiet on Set Ep5: Breaking the Silence

All cards on the table, I'm dreading this more than looking forward to it because watching the first four episodes broke me, and I'm still hurting for the people whose childhoods and innocence were taken from them in the name of money and power. But the creation of the first few episodes empowered another former Nickelodeon talent to come forward, and we're about to hear a whole new account of the physical, psychological, mental, and emotional horrors that went on in those studios.

Double Cross by Campbell Thompson

Diving back into this story and hopefully get through halfway (or maybe even the whole book).

That's all I got for this week. Let's see what this next week brings I guess 👀🫡

[sgtpeppers]

curious about "JP Angst :)"!! (and i love the smiley face loool)

hey alex, ty pal!!

soo this is a miserable thing i’m working on, set after john’s whole ‘I want a divorce’ announcement. paul manages to get him alone one night, they’re both upset and end up fighting which leads to them fucking for the first time in the heat of the moment, but it changes nothing and they both leave feeling worse than they did to start off with.

it plays a lot with that idea of their duality, the hello/goodbye type thing and specifically the kind of hate that only comes from being hurt by someone you love very much :) (smiley faces for me trying not to cry thinking about them lmao)

snippet below!

He wanted to peel off his skin so everything else was left raw and exposed, that might hurt less than whatever this was. He might stop thinking of Paul like that then. Love wasn’t even the right word anymore, it was too small, too meaningless, if he could peel off his skin he’d carve Paul’s name into his bones and hope someone found them in centuries to come and call him by Paul’s name, the word John lost to time. He wasn’t his own thing any way, at some point two broken boys had patched each other up and made each other out of themselves, not realising that if one of them stepped away, they’d both fall apart again.

[starwritesficsandstuff]

Hey, idk if you still do this, but after the Craig of Future episode, any headcanons for the main four? It'd be interesting to here!

Absolutely!

Craig

First of all, there was no falling out/drifting apart of the main four. Craig was the one who actually put the most effort into keeping the group together after they grew out of the creek. That's not to say the others didn't try, it's just that Craig is the best at time management.

Probably did have a thing for Wildernessa for a bit, but it quickly became clear to them that they were better off as just friends. The break-up was mutual and relatively painless.

After his commission for Bad Moves, his art got pretty popular among the local area and fans of bands around the same genres as Bad Moves. He ended up getting a lot more commissions!

Becomes a geography major in college with a minor in graphic design, with aspirations to be a cartographer.

Definitely passes those classes with flying colors.

Kelsey

Kelsey and Stacks stay together, naturally. Everyone who went to high school with them regards them as high school sweethearts who actually made it.

After Wildernessa breaks up with Craig, she ends up hanging out with them a lot.

Wildernessa probably ends up joining their relationship, and it works out really well!

Kelsey's wrestling career doesn't really go anywhere after she graduates high school, but she doesn't mind!

Stays besties with Maya forever pretty much.

In college, she was an English major.

Writes books with Stacks and Wildernessa. Stacks is the only full time author of the three, though.

Wildernessa becomes a veterinarian and is a wildlife activist basically he entire life.

Kelsey ends up working for a pet store. She works her way up to management, and works alongside Wildernessa to give the pet store a total overhaul that makes the animals' living conditions better.

JP

Still together with Maney because I'm a sucker for them.

Still in contact with an abnormal amount of people he used to go to the creek with. Obviously, Bobby comes into the smoothie store, but he also still has the contacts for Raj and Shawn, the champions somehow (he doesn't remember ever getting their numbers), Kit, Jason, Sparkle, Canonball, Handlebarb, Sewer Queen, and the Secret Kid (also doesn't know how he got this number).

It's basically common knowledge that if you need to get into contact with someone, JP is your man.

Still an insanely funny guy, but with more common sense now.

In college, he just did his general studies. He could never decide on a major.

He did get back into Hockey for a bit in college. He could have gone into sports with how he played, but he wasn't interested in playing professionally. He did get a scholarship out of it, though.

Ends up being a mechanic that works on cars.

Omar

Often can be seen hanging out with Maya and Kelsey, and whoever else Kelsey brings along with her.

If he's not with them, he's either at the smoothie shop with JP and David, or hanging out with Craig.

Always had a crush on Craig, but didn't want to interfere with Craig and Wildernessa when they were together, so he just kept it to himself.

It still took him a loooong time to muster up the courage to confess his feelings to Craig.

Obviously, they get together.

Still thinks JP is funnier than Craig. Craig is so mad about it.

Dresses so much better than he did in Craig to the Future.

Went to trade school instead of college. He went into the carpentry field.

He made his own bow and arrow using what he learned in school. He kind of fell out of archery during high school due to needing to focus more on his studies, but when he goes out with some friends who are super into archery to try it again, they're all impressed with how skilled he is with the bow.

[lowkeyclueless5137]

So, Idia makes an explanation video. Does he make an explanation video for anything. In any AU that allows him to have some semblance of technology?

:0c gud question.

And I assume this is mainly chapter 7 spoilers(jp side, since en also got a new piece) so imma put a smol read more. :'3

From what I gathered around, Idia did make an explanation video. Does that mean he made the STIX introductory video? Or maybe that was his father, who later taught Idia how to do it too. (kinda like sum papa-son bonding :3)

You may correct me, if I'm wrong, but I believe Idia made his dream a safe space from the blots, until Silver & Co. Came up. And by the rule of the thumb, Dreams have different time-lines. Maybe for our group it took days in Lilia's dream, maybe for Idia it was a few minutes while trying to make the video, maybe it was a few hours, as suggested by the reality plane, where Ortho tried to deck Malleus. :v

So, by definition, we don't really know HOW much time it took Idia to get this. Most likely our group stumbled in just after Idia finished the last touches.

Anyhow, with the aus, definitely Idia would make an explanation video is 2 conditions are met:

1. There's no secret identity/danger situation/hurry.

2. Idia has access to his tech.

The best example in here is the NRSSAB, where Idia makes content revolving around doll repaints. It is a staple of his that he's soft spoken in there and manages to explain pretty in depth. He also makes other kind of explanation videos, but that is smth that the avid visitors of this blog didn't yet find out. ;3

The Demon/Angel magical girl au and the genshin au are, probably, the only 2 exceptions and I'll get as to why:

In the first one (it's a oneshot, mainly revolving around Ace and Riddle), Idia is a reaper. A magical girl whose powers were coming from within, thus he's responsible to handle more delicate missions. Ortho, post his death, is an angel, who tries to get used to this. And while Idia had both the time and tools necessary to make videos abt this + experience from working with angels and their guardians, to help his little brother understand, he has a more practical approach to things. A more warm approach if you will, as a way to help his brother cope with all these drastic changes in nature.

As for the double Genshin Isekai au, in here it revolves around the movie event genshin hosted once. As Fontaine is revolving around steam-punk-ish tech, no doubt they would have vintage movies(Think of the Charlie Chaplin, or if you want sound & color, the ones after the 18th century). But the production is hefty and it takes a lot of time and effort. In here, Idia loves machines and likes to dissect those suckers as a past time. Because, when he was little, he dismembered a perfectly working guard robot, Neuvilette introduced him to the movie camera, per condition that Idia cannot dismember it. The camera opened on the side and it showed all the mechanisms, thus Idia didn't need to actively take it apart. So he took a liking to it and how movies are made. Hence why his burst attack is revolved around the movie setting. And since going to NRC for school(post the oneshot), Idia joined the board game club, too anxious about going in the film appreciation club, but sometimes Furina insists for he 'little brother' to film certain shots. Ortho, as a fellow movie club member, absolutely feeds into the fire. (your honor, they are besties U-Ub)

Basically he doesn't make simple videos in here, but helps in making full blown movies. :v

Yes, Furina absolutely is the main actress in Idia's movies. Big sister privileges, am I right? U-U9

[stargazer-sims]

Journal Entry #57 (part two)

Journal Entry #57 (part one) // STORY INDEX

Victor

Just in case anyone was getting the impression that mine and Yuri’s time apart has been completely consumed by thoughts of each other and of Yuri's therapy, let me fill you in on what else I've been doing since I've been back in Willow Creek.

To be fair, Yuri is on my mind a lot, and for the first few days I was here, I felt a little bit guilty whenever I was having fun with my friends or doing something new without him, but I'm feeling better about it now. I talked to Yuri and he said he felt the same way at first, but then he realized what a perfect opportunity he had to spend time bonding with his family.

Despite his initial misgivings about staying with his parents, he seems to be having a good time now, and he's obviously happy. I figured if it was okay for him to feel happy without me, it was also okay for me to feel happy without him. I missed him desperately though. No point in trying to hide that.

Anyway, once I got my head around my "temporary bachelor status", as my cousin Leo put it, I started to relax and really enjoy myself.

Speaking of bachelors, Uncle Stephen, Leo and I have been planning the most epic bachelor party of all time for Julian. We decided on an Italian theme because he and Mom are going to Tartosa for their honeymoon. There's going to be Italian food and music, and everyone's going to be encouraged to wear Italian beach club fashion. Uncle Stephen managed to reserve an event room at the Harbourside Haven with a view overlooking the water. It may be Newcrest, but we're gonna pretend it's a Tartosan beach scene.

At first, I thought it was kind of weird to have a theme, but Uncle Stephen said a lot of people have bachelor parties with themes. I deferred to him because what do I know? Nobody threw a bachelor party for Yuri and me, and this was my first time planning one for somebody else. Uncle Stephen has been involved in organizing at least three — his best friend Matthew's, Uncle JP’s, and my dad's — so that makes him an expert, as far as I'm concerned.

"By the time you get around to planning Leo's bachelor party, you'll be an expert too," he assured me.

Leo wants a superhero theme when his turn comes. Probably no surprise there.

Leo, Ellie and I have been spending as much time together as we can, which probably isn't going to be much of a surprise to anyone either. We've been getting up to our usual nonsense; playing soccer and racing bikes in the park, going to the pool and the arcade, and generally just hanging out, but we've been getting some productive stuff done as well.

I can't remember if I mentioned this before, but Julian moved in with Mom around the beginning of January, like maybe a week or two before my accident. He was originally planning to sell his house, but what ended up happening was that he transferred the title to Ellie instead. What that means is, Ellie gets to live in her childhood home and doesn't have to worry about paying a mortgage since Julian managed to fully pay it off a couple of years ago. At the end of April, Leo moved in there with her, and now they're wholly involved with renovating the place to make it exactly how they want.

They're actually not changing it significantly, but even cosmetic changes require a fair amount of work. They had to hire somebody to install their new kitchen cabinets and appliances, but Leo decided they could do the hardwood flooring in the living room themselves, as well as the painting and redecorating.

And that's where I came in. I might not be very good with electronics, but I definitely know my way around carpentry tools. My mom taught me a lot about home maintenance, so I can measure, saw and hammer with the best of them.

Almost as soon as I arrived, Leo enlisted both me and his sister Kiki to help with the flooring. Ellie and Kiki gleefully ripped out all the old carpet, and then they sanded and cleaned the subfloor. After that, Leo and I got down to business. We got the entire living room done over three days, and it looks fabulous, even if I say so myself.

We're all getting pretty good at painting too. Leo, Ellie, Kiki and I painted Ellie and Leo’s living room, kitchen and bedroom, and then I got them to come over to our new house and help me paint mine and Yuri's rooms, our living room and downstairs bathroom.

Robert and Kim did a bunch of renovations before they put the house on the market, so there’s really nothing much that needed to be changed except the colours of a few walls. The only thing I really want to do besides the painting is to install a jet tub in the upstairs bathroom. Yuri got used to having that at Uncle Kaz's place, and I think he should have one here. It’s very therapeutic for him.

You knew I'd inevitably come back to talking about Yuri, didn't you? Some of you are probably laughing over my inability to keep my mind off him. Go ahead. I don't mind. I'm hopelessly in love with him, and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

As a matter of fact, Yuri is the whole reason why I was motivated to record this entry tonight, after kinda forgetting about our journal for almost three months. Now that I’ve gotten all the life updates out of the way, I can get to the really good part. It's the part I maybe should’ve led with, but I guess you’ve all figured out by now that I sometimes like to leave the best stuff till the end.

So, here’s the story. It actually started yesterday evening, when Yuri missed our regular seven o'clock FaceTime chat. By seven-fifteen, I decided I'd better call him. He didn't answer, but I wasn’t overly concerned right away because I thought there might just be something wrong with his iPad, so I texted him instead. I started getting scared when I received no reply to that either, and when I phoned him, I got a robotic-sounding error message that said the customer I was trying to reach had the phone turned off.

At that point, I systematically called everyone I could think of who might know what was going on, but Takahiro, Fox and Sakura had no clue, and the most that Mr. Okamoto's personal assistant Koichi could tell me was that Mr. Okamoto was away on important business for the next several days, which didn’t really help. When I tried to call Yuri's parents, I got the same error message I'd gotten when I attempted to call him.

I tossed and turned in bed all night, and every time I woke up, I sent another text to my husband. By seven o'clock this morning, when I still couldn't reach him, I started scrolling frantically through my phone to see if I had his grandparents' numbers. Somebody had to know something.

I didn't have a number for his grandmother or grandfather, but I did have contact information for his boss, Mr. Tanaka. It was a long shot, but I called him, which may not have been the wisest thing to do. Mr. Tanaka didn't have any idea where Yuri was or what might be happening, and I think I might've caused him to worry with my asking him about it.

Around ten o'clock, I was seriously considering getting online and trying to arrange an earlier flight back to Japan. I'm not even joking.

That was when my phone buzzed in my pocket.

I pulled it out and glanced at the screen. It was a message from Yuri.

You ever hear that phrase 'weak with relief'? I literally was, and I sank down the kitchen floor, nearly crying, with my phone still clutched in my hand.

As if he'd been reading my mind, the message said, «I love you and I'm okay.»

«Where are you?» I texted back with trembling fingers.

He sent, «I’m outside. Are you at home?»

Perplexed and still shaking, I replied, «Yeah. Why?»

«Look out the front window.»

Feeling thoroughly confused, I got to my feet, put my phone back in my pocket and made my way from the kitchen to the dining room so I could peer outside. Parked at the curb was a vehicle I didn't recognize. I took off my glasses so things further away would come into sharper focus, and I think i may have let out a small gasp when I realized who was behind the wheel of the unknown blue minivan.

It was Kenji Okamoto.

I was still forcing my mind to process that when the van's side door slid open and first Yuki and then Yuri climbed out. Mr. Okamoto got out of the driver's side to open the front passenger door for his wife, who was holding baby Kinai.

To say I was shocked would be putting it lightly. During all our daily conversations, Yuri hadn't mentioned anything about him and his family travelling. I could only assume they were here for the wedding, which is coming up in four days, but if they were here for the wedding, that would mean Mom and Julian both knew they were coming as well, and yet nobody had breathed a word about any of it to me.

I should've been upset about that, but I was way too excited over being unexpectedly reunited with Yuri to worry about having been kept in the dark. I mean, real talk here, the sound I made when I saw my husband was a lot louder than a gasp. A second later, I was flinging open the front door and flying down the steps, and he was hurrying to close the distance between us too, arms outstretched for an embrace.

I caught him and spun us both around in a circle right there on the walkway. "Yuri! I missed you!"

"Me too," he said, clinging tight as we completed our big, joyful circle. "I couldn't wait to get here. The last couple of hours, I was getting so impatient I could barely cope with it any more."

"This is why I couldn't reach you, isn't it? You were in a plane."

He was laughing. "Ah... surprise?"

"I was freaking out!" I exclaimed. "Like, I was literally just about to change my flight and everything! You should've known I'd panic when I couldn't reach you. Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"

"I'm sorry," he said, as I carefully set him down. "Don't be angry. It was so hard to keep the secret, and I almost let it slip out, but we really wanted to surprise you."

"I'm not angry," I said. "I'm relieved you're okay, and I'm thrilled you're here, but..."

"But what?"

"I thought you couldn't travel," I said. "What about your therapy?"

"We'll only be here for a week," Yuri said. "I'll miss my psychologist appointment this week, and one in-person session with my nutritionist, and a food intelligence class.”

“Can you afford to miss that stuff?”

“I think so,” he said. “The nutritionist scheduled a fifteen-minute video call so I can check in and show her my food diary and talk about any concerns, but she said I’m doing so well that she thinks I’ll be all right even if I miss a full session.”

"So, uh... I guess you're here for Mom and Julian's wedding?"

"Of course," Yuri said. "I promised them I'd play, didn't I? And I've brought my accompanist with me."

Mr. Okamoto laughed at that. "The things I let myself get talked into," he said. "Grace called Yuri about a week ago to ask if he was able to come, or if they should make different arrangements for their wedding music. When he told her he could, she asked if we'd all like to come, and then Julian got on the phone with her and said that if I was coming, I ought to help with the music as well."

"Nothing like being drafted into a project last-minute," I said, amazed that Julian had felt comfortable enough with Mr. Okamoto to even make a request like that. They'd become fast friends when Mom and Julian were in Mt. Komorebi just after my accident, but I didn't think they'd gotten that well-acquainted. I mean, practising a whole set of wedding music with only a couple weeks' advance notice was a huge ask. I'm not sure I'd even ask my best friend in the world to do something like that.

"I don't mind," said Mr. Okamoto, much to my astonishment.

"You don't?"

"Yuri and I hadn't played together in a very long time, and we've been rediscovering how much we like our violin and piano duets. The music isn't that difficult, and we're already familiar with each other's playing style, so I think it'll work out quite well."

"That's...impressive," I said.

"It's an honour for us to play for your parents' wedding."

"I'm grateful to you for agreeing to it," I said, and I totally meant it. One of Yuri's favourite memories that he always talks about is of playing duets with his dad, and I'm glad they've started doing that again. I'm also super happy that Mom and Julian didn't end up having to hire random music students from the local college or something.

I pulled Yuri in for another hug. "And you too, sweet boy. I'm super happy that you... hang on."

"What?" Yuri said.

It'd taken a moment for my brain to register the observation, but it seemed that Yuri felt more solid in my arms than I remembered. "Excuse the change of subject, but have you gained weight?"

I know... not a very smooth question, right? In any other context, it would probably seem rude, but for us it had the complete opposite meaning.

Yuri drew back a little so he could look up at me. His face practically radiated happiness, and his beautiful smile accentuated the new fullness in his cheeks. "You noticed."

I slid my hands down his sides. "I can barely feel your ribs."

"I gained four kilos since you last saw me in person," he told me.

"In three weeks? Really? That's like, more than a whole kilogram per week." I glanced over his shoulder at his parents. "What have you been feeding him?"

From beside her father, Yuki piped up, "Milkshakes!"

"Not just milkshakes." Mr. Okamoto interjected hastily. He seemed to feel the need to be accountable to me, to prove they hadn't been so reckless as to let Yuri subsist on such a limited and arguably unhealthy diet. "He's been trying all sorts of new foods, haven't you, Yuri? But he does enjoy his strawberry milkshakes."

Of course I knew he'd been consuming more than milkshakes, but I acknowledged Mr. Okamoto's explanation with, "I'm glad you've been getting him to try new stuff." And then to Yuri, "Have you tried any other dairy products?"

"Real butter," he said. "And cream of broccoli soup. I didn't like that."

"Because of the broccoli, I guess. What about cheese?"

He made the most adorable face, scrunching up his cute button nose in distaste. "No. Cheese is disgusting."

"Unless it's in strawberry cheesecake," his father commented, looking entertained. "You should've seen him devouring that."

I raised an eyebrow. "Yuri, you ate cheesecake?"

"Mm-hmm, and cinnamon buns and dango. Oh, and ice cream!" Yuri said. "I can't believe I've been missing out on real ice cream this whole time."

“He’s been making up for it,” said Mr. Okamoto. "I've never seen anyone eat so many desserts."

"Well, I guess that explains the four kilos," I said.

Yuri offered up a grin that somehow managed to be simultaneously angelic and cheeky, "Aren't you proud of me, Victor?"

"Very," I said. "Four whole kilograms. That's awesome. You don't want to shoot past your goal, though. I hope you've been eating low-fibre vegetables and healthy proteins along with all your desserts."

"I don't like vegetables," he said.

"You like carrots and squash. I'll make you some carrot soup. That'll be the next thing for you to try, okay?"

"Okay." He leaned into me and nuzzled his cheek against my chest. "I'll eat it on one condition. You need to take me on a date to that ice cream place you're always talking about, with the forty flavours."

I laughed out loud and gave him an affectionate squeeze. I was beyond happy he'd discovered something new that he wanted to eat. "If you're not too tired from the trip, we can go this evening after dinner," I told him. "On one condition."

"Oh? What condition?"

"I know how much you love anything with strawberries, but The Frozen Cone has forty flavours. I really want you to try something other than strawberry."

"Peach?" he ventured.

"Good choice. They probably have that. They usually have orange-pineapple too, and cherry."

Yuri hummed softly, a little sound of satisfaction. "Let's try peach and cherry. I don't want to taste pineapple until we go to Sulani, okay? I want to save that experience for a really special occasion."

"Okay," I agreed.

"If we get a scoop of each kind in a bowl, we can share. Would that be all right?"

"That sounds perfect," I said.

"And you can feed me," he whispered, but evidently not quietly enough to prevent his father from overhearing.

Mr. Okamoto sounded torn between scolding and amusement. "Yuri—"

"One spoonful, because you're cute," I said. "But you'll be on your own for the rest of it. Rules are rules, you know."

"I tried," he said.

"Full marks for effort." I laughed, and kissed the top of his head. "Come on. Let's go inside. I can show you the paint job Leo and I did in your bedroom, and we can give your family the grand tour."

"Our family," he said.

"Our family," I repeated. I nodded to my in-laws. "Come on in."

Mr. and Mrs. Okamoto both thanked me and bowed respectfully, but I think Yuki forgot her manners in her excitement. She bounded forward and grabbed one of my hands. "Yuri said there's a ghost! Can I meet her?"

I smiled. "Well, that'll be up to Sachiko. I think if you call her Kobayashi-san and remember not to use her favourite mug, she'll come out and meet you. Don't be too surprised if she starts making small objects fly around the room, though."

Mrs. Okamoto frowned. "Are you saying the house really is haunted?"

"That's why the asking price was so low," I told her. "Don't worry, though. Sachiko isn't a bad ghost. She's just been here longer than we have, and she thinks it's her place, so her rules should apply."

"I... see," said my mother-in-law.

"What's this about the mug?" asked Mr. Okamoto.

"It's a red one," I said. "It's Sachiko's, and she's very possessive of it. No pun intended."

"Well," said my father-in-law. "A ghost with a mug, a wedding, and my son wanting to go to a forty-flavour ice cream shop. This should be an interesting week."

I couldn't resist a grin. "Family," I said. "Welcome to Willow Creek."

[redeemingvillains]

the soul's brand (vii) - draco malfoy

draco malfoy x half-blood fem!reader

summary: you and draco are forced apart by the darkness descending on the wizarding world.

word count: 1.1k

a/n: short and sweet very dark, a little build up for what's to come.

chapter six series masterlist

Surprising no one, Hogwarts abruptly ended the spring term early and you returned home in a fog.

Your parents were overjoyed to have you back with them, to have you safe, but the news of Dumbledore’s death had shaken the wizarding world and nothing was the same anymore. Fearing for your lives, you all went into hiding in a safehouse near the countryside among other half-blood witches, wizards and families. Several days later you awoke to feel your wrist thrumming. You sat up in panic, worried you were all in danger, but it felt different this time, further away. Regardless you couldn’t fall back asleep, wand in hand, eyes darting to every dark corner even hours after the feeling had faded.

The next afternoon you received a report that your old home had been scoured and burned to the ground by Death Eaters.

Your seventeenth year started in darkness. In hiding. In captivity to fear and to the unknown. Your soundtrack was a crackled radio broadcast sharing underground news updates, and reports of missing witches and wizards.

It had been two months since you had seen Draco, but somehow you knew he was okay, alive. Or rather, you knew that you would have felt something if he wasn’t. It was hard to explain. You had no idea where he was, so you had no way to write to him, to see him. Sometimes so many dark days past, hidden in the recesses of various safehouses that it felt like you had dreamt the whole thing. You would spend hours daydreaming about it; him in his suit, you in your dress. You would dance in the Great Hall without fear or abandon. He would kiss you gently and softly in front of a warm fireplace and you would make him laugh. He would tell that you he loved you. It was painful to think that that may never happen again. Every day felt more like you had hallucinated it all as his voice, the feeling of his warm hands on your body, and his lips against yours slipped further and further away.

Days turned to weeks. Weeks turned to months. Summer passed in a fit of rain and thunderstorms that had you lying awake all night, pulling your sheets over your head. To your surprise, you heard that some students were returning to Hogwarts. Obviously, there was no such choice for you.

Autumn was dim and dark and musty. The seasons were so similar in their somberness and every day in hiding was the same, so it felt like no time had passed and yet months had gone by now. You lost count of how many safehouses you had stayed in, how many afternoons and evenings you spent tuned to the radio, desperate for updates but in constant fear of what you might hear. Oftentimes it was coded gibberish and nicknames only meaningful to the people who understood them.

Winter came early and hard, pounding frozen sleet and thick snow and leaving a permanent chill in your bones. One such morning you watched the snow falling thickly outside, huddled in a blanket as you thumbed through a book, listening absentmindedly to the day's report, to the coded messages sent over the airwaves.

Goldilocks reports a cool breeze over London.

Goldilocks reports a cool breeze over London.

JP to ER all is well.

JP to ER all is well.

No dirigible plums on the horizon.

No dirigible plums on the horizon.

Light-haired boy to daisy girl, safe and missing you, always.

You sat up straight, fumbling the knob and raising the volume amidst a cloud of white noise.

Light-haired boy to daisy girl, safe and missing you, always.

It was him. It had to be him. You laughed through tears gripping the radio like it was Draco’s own voice coming across the waves. You had no idea how he had managed to get onto this station, how he knew you would be listening, but it was the first glimmer of hope, of contact you had had with him in months. You sank to the floor and cried, in relief, but also in pain at how very much you missed him. Hearing his message would carry you for weeks to come. You snuggled back into your blanket and looked down at your wrist. I hear you and I miss you too you thought.

The third time Draco saw Nagini tear someone limb from limb as he stepped over a pile of dead bodies and didn’t want to cry was the first time he felt a vague air of concern for himself. He had become desensitized, crawling deep into a pit void of emotions as a way to cope with everything going on around him. He had perfected the art of looking like he was participating without actually doing anything harmful, subbing stunning charms for unforgivable curses. Thankfully there were enough rabid psychopaths in Voldemort’s following that his meek efforts went unnoticed.

It was no surprise that there were no other Death Eaters his age, not that he would have wanted to spend time with them anyway. He was left with plenty of time alone, to sit with his thoughts, turning them over in his mind, torturing himself, wondering where you were and if you were safe.

He had found a radio in a safehouse that had been ambushed and had taken it for himself, hiding it in his room and pulling it out when he could to listen, not sure what he was listening for, praying only that his initials on your body would do something, would somehow come to mean something, to protect you; no way of knowing how they were already at work.

He was wracked with nightmares. Sometimes he would dream that he was back with you, at the age you were now, but in the field behind his house. You would run into his arms but only moments after you touched him, he’d hear you scream as if you were in pain and you’d disappear. He awoke in cold sweats, clawing at the pain in his chest. He would come to crave that one moment of peace, a mere breath of relief of having you in his arms before it would come tearing down. Sometimes he would dream of your face among the bodies of the victims he'd seen, of Voldemort ordering him to kill you. He avoided sleep until it was nearly impossible to stand, unwilling to live and relive the trauma so ingrained in his head, so real that he struggled every day to cling to the memory of you.

In an act of desperation after several sleepless nights, he gave a letter to a house elf to owl to another elf who lived near where it was rumored that the radio broadcast was sent from. It was foolish and dangerous but he hoped his code was vague enough to everyone but you. He heard the broadcast three weeks later and could only hope that you did too, wherever you might be, and that you had enough forgiveness in your heart that you hadn’t turned against him.

chapter eight series masterlist

taglist: @moiravim

[twilightmalachite]

Cruise - Epilogue

Author: Akira

Characters: Natsume, Tsumugi, Sora

Translator: Mika Enstars

Proofers: rui

"HuH? What tHE? You managed to turn everything uncool in a single breaTH."

Season: Summer

Location: Cruise Ship Lounge

⚠️ This chapter is not yet JP Proofread!

Sora: Zzz... Zzz...

Tsumugi: Natsume-kun, Sora-kun, sorry I made you wait.

…Hm, huh? Did Sora-kun fall asleep?

Natsume: MhM. Now that the performance is ovER, he’s probably speNT.

Tsumugi: Well, he was putting every ounce of effort into that surprise for you, Natsume-kun~.

Natsume: So, how was the Switch performance recievED? Did it satisfy the ownER?

Tsumugi: Yes! They seemed to be very satisfied. They even said they’d formally offer us a job if another opportunity to work with them comes about!

Natsume: It seems the magic of Switch enchants aLL, doesn’t IT?

At any raTE. I feel bad that this time around it was my own inflexibility that worried Sora so muCH… TheRE, theRE… ♪

Tsumugi: It’s true. It’s like you’re standing oceans apart from us sometimes, Natsume-kun~.[1]

Tsumugi: Why didn’t you tell me you couldn’t swim? Oh, like in an actual ocean, of course.

—Oof!?

Your best quality strikes again…

Natsume: Don’t say such undistinguished thinGS, thEN.

…WeLL, any reasonable person would think not being able to swim is laughabLE.

Tsumugi: That’s not true~!

What do you think humanity did when they first came upon water?

Natsume: HaH…? Where did this come frOM?

Tsumugi: There are those who approach with curiosity and plunge into the unknown without a thought, and those who approach with caution and fear.

Aren’t you the latter, Natsume-kun? To be careful isn’t a flaw, but a virtue.

Natsume: UmM… Is this supposed to be a complimeNT?

Tsumugi: It is, absolutely!

Because, when it comes to me, I don’t tend to heed either of those warning signs, and then there’s Sora-kun, a bundle of curiosity that’ll fly away the moment you take your eyes off of him, right?

That’s why someone as cautious as you is exactly who we need. ♪ It’s all about balance!

Natsume: ……

Tsumugi: Come on. The tripod is easiest to balance because of its three legs, right?

Natsume: HuH? What tHE? You managed to turn everything uncool in a single breaTH.

Tsumugi: Wha? I wasn’t even trying to be cool in the first place, though!

Natsume: SiGH~… Seems you’re the same as evER, to the bitter eND, Senpai.

Sora: N, nn…?

Natsume: Ah, looks like Sora’s waking uP.

Sora: Gasp…! Sorry! Did Sora fall asleep~?

Natsume: Don’t worRY. You used such a large-scale magic spell todAY, I’m sure you’re tirED.

Tsumugi: You worked very hard, didn’t you, Sora-kun?

Sora: So, did Sora’s magic work on Shisho~?

Natsume: Of course it dID. With such remarkable magicians by my siDE, I’m always brimming with so much happineSS.

← prev | story directory

Tsumugi calls Natsume aloof here using a word that essentially means “watery”.

[arimiaromage]

I'm back with more dgrayman doujin fangame updates! after last time where I found Kanda x Lavi fangame that got a physical edition, I decided to keep digging to find the other games the developer made while waiting for it to come in. well, I've found another!

(if these interest you, I'm going to tag all of these posts as "#dgm fangames")

I was able to find & order a disc for their first dgm fangame, Infinite Melody (also called unendliche Melodie). like before, this game was so old (from 2007!!!) and only in JP that I basically haven't been able to find anything on it. and when I got the disc in...

...it was a preorder bonus for the game that's just a strategy guide! a bit of a letdown haha, but still interesting nonetheless. (side note: the site I found it on had translated part of the kanji as "attack"- but if you add 本 to the end of it, it suddenly becomes... strategy guide!)

so I loaded it up and found a 16 page pdf by the creator that is a guide for how to play the game. and now I'll share it online for preservation/archival purposes.

A bit of a shoddy translation-

Hello, nice to meet you! My name is Rindo, the owner of moonlight cafe. Thank you very much for choosing the sound novel type adventure game "Infinite Melody" produced by our circle!!

They then go on to say that this is their first (?) work for dgm and that they've published several works before (other games?) so they're more familiar with that than making manga. From their experience this game isn't that hard but they wanted to make a strategy guide just incase for the people who didn't want to keep retrying. After that they talk a bit more about the game structure itself- it sounds like Kanda is the main love interest and there are 2 scenarios, one for Allen and one for Lavi. It also sounds like there's a CG gallery in the game.

So, a bit of explanations for those not used to visual novels- in Japan (especially in the 2000s) they were referred to as sound novels or adventure games rather than visual novels (nowadays you'll see them called adventure games). A love interest is a character that's romanceable for you, the player character. A route is a set of choices that leads you down a particular story, usually just meant to signify a specific character- so if you have a game with multiple love interests, then saying "the Kanda route" would mean you're talking about the storyline that happens when you romance Kanda (but "route" is not specific to just romance).

The next section is character bios! This game is set in modern times with Allen as some sort of apprentice working for a magazine company.

a brief translation summary-

Allen is a newbie reporter for the music magazine "Asian Music". He heard Kanda's songs over the radio years ago which got him interested, but this turned into disgust the more he learned about Kanda. That doesn't stop him from buying Kanda's new CDs, though. He lives alone in a very cheap apartment.

Lavi works for an entertainment production company (Rozenkuroitsu? Rosenkreuz?? (????)) and Kanda's manager & music arranger. He's supposed to only be his manager but Kanda insisted on him doing arrangements too. There's more here about Lenalee being the younger sister of the company's president and her and Kanda are childhood friends with Lavi.

(side note- the oval at the top of these says "character [number]" followed by their name, and Lavi's lastname is still listed as Bookman, even in modern times. just a funny little detail)

Kanda is a singer-songwriter who's very popular- his songs always reach the top of the ranking charts. Despite this, people fixate on his looks when mentioning him. He's currently under a lot of stress due to his increasing workload and his popularity. He's a bully who loves Perrier (the water??), quietness, and the sky.

top one- Bak Chan (yes, that's Bak!)

Bak is the editor-in-chief for "Asian Music" and Allen's boss. He's old friends with Komui Lee, the president of the studio Kanda and Lavi work at, but he refuses to ask for special interviews because pride (?).

bottom one- Lenalee Lee

Lenalee is the younger sister of Komui, the president of the studio Kanda and Lavi work at. She's also the one who writes the lyrics for Kanda's songs. Her, Lavi, and Kanda are all childhood friends.

next is a few screenshots of what the game looks like! lots of CGs, too bad we can't see any fully. (a CG is basically cutscene artwork)

the next section is a quick strategy on how to get the good ending for each route. it looks like this game has a different way of setting it up- usually a "route" is for a love interest, but in this game you're able to play as Allen or Lavi and date Kanda as either of them, so the "routes" are for Allen and Lavi (despite playing as them).

Allen route

the creator listed some of the important choices in the game and gives a small idea of how to answer them to get the best ending. for players this would be a helpful guide, but for us it'll help us get an idea of what the game covers.

the first choice is set in Kanda's office where you choose a drink. Allen hates alcohol so that's a no-go, but if you remember from Kanda's bio he love Perrier.

the next choice is when Kanda asks Allen out on a date. despite wanting to go, it might be better to decline him so both of you can focus on work.

the next choice is where to take Kanda on his day off. it should be somewhere where Kanda doesn't have to use a microphone (as that's his day job) and somewhere where people won't be staring at him (as he's basically a celebrity).

the last choice is a bit hard for me to understand- the author said they left some of these vague, and this one is basically "Kanda asked me directly!!". maybe it's a love confession? once you reach this part, the creator says you can rest easy (and maybe bully him a bit).

Lavi route

Lavi is Kanda's manager so several of his choices are related to, well, managing Kanda.

his first choice listed is whether or not he should interrupt Kanda and Allen arguing in a room together. even if you might be in the way, Kanda might appreciate you being by his side.

his next choice is about going to Los Angeles (a vacation?). Kanda is Kanda and will be grumpy, but lying to him will make things even worse. (I'm not sure if this is Lavi trying to convince Kanda to go to LA for a vacation or Lavi going alone to LA and Kanda ends up going)

the next choice is Kanda insisting on going back home to Japan. work is important, but Kanda's health is even more important (especially as you're his manager). after persuading him, indulge in what he wants for a bit.

the last choice is.... where should Kanda sit on the plane?? if you made it this far then the creator says you can relax. they say Kanda may be stubborn but he's not a child- you don't have to always take care of him.

you can play either route in whatever order you want, but if you get the true ending in either route, you'll get bonuses! the creator really encourages you to play both routes.

this is a mini skit between Lavi and Allen with Kanda interjecting. It's basically Allen and Lavi arguing who Kanda likes more.

last but not least is a final credits page for the doujin circle.

...and what's that? a new website link? let's check it out!

surprisingly.... the website is still active!!

on the website there's this description for the game, which we already kind of understand from the character bios:

見習い雑誌記者アレンは、メディア嫌いで有名なミュージシャン“神田ユウ”の取材をすることになった。同じく、神田のマネージャーのラビは多忙を極める神田の、心労を解消させる方法を模索していた。取材当日、生理的に嫌いだと思っていた神田を前にアレンはとんでもない失言をしてしまう……。 　みたいなノリです。詳しくは体験版をお試しください。 　最初の選択肢でアレンルート（神アレ）とラビルート（ラビュ）に分かれます。

basically- Allen works as an apprentice reporter who is assigned to interview Kanda, a popular singer who hates reporters. Lavi is Kanda's manager who is trying to find a way to relieve Kanda's stress. on the day of the interview, Allen said something (improper/embarrassing/a slip of the tongue) even though he thought he hated Kanda.

even more surprisingly, there's still a trial file on the website?! I'm not brave enough to download this lzh file right now, but maybe soon once I get an isolated environment... if you press the Trial page and then the first line under the image, there's a lzh file (a type of zip file) you can download. please only do this with virus protection on your computer or in a virtual machine, don't download strange files with no protection!!

yep, that's about it. I'll be on the lookout for this game's physical release (that's not the guide book haha) and the developer's other games, but I hope this was interesting!

I apologize for the shoddy translations, if you'd like to translate the parts here feel free to add it as a reblog/comment. I've posted every single page from the PDF so there's nothing additional I have. if you have any more info on the developer/doujin circle feel free to add those as well.

or, maybe.... you're brave enough to try the trial version for yourself? 👀

[animehouse-moe]

English-First Manga Re:Anima Begins Publication

Yeah, you read that right. Kodansha has been trying very hard to tap into the North American/English language market as a JP publisher. Some things have flopped like K-Manga, but surprisingly, their English-first series have been seeing impressive success. Blood Blade wowed fans, and now Re:Anima from Yoshinori Matsuoka is aiming to double down on that result.

So, who is Yoshirori Matsuoka? I think a lot of North American-slash-English-language readers don't really recognize the name, and it's not fault of their own. Matsuoka only has one real original manga to their name prior to this entrant. Out of the total 5 that they've worked on, they've only written for 2, and one of them is an RPG adaptation of Hiro Mashima's 'Gate of Nightmares'.

And that leaves just Kessen No Kuon, a two volume manga series from 2017. Even back then, however, Matsuoka had potential.

The environment art was incredibly full and detailed, the character designs packing an intense degree of punch and personality. It's art that could take an artist very far- which is why I'm surprised that it took up until now for Matsuoka to be given potential to make something of their name.

Though, Kessen No Kuon's quality is sorely outdated against Matsuoka's work on Re:Anima. Character models retain their sense of personality but bring a greater degree of refinement, the line art has gotten much more confident, and Matsuoka's layouts have improved a considerable amount.

Probably one of the best improvements is their willingness to break panels for effect and flow. It's something that in my flip through of Kessen No Kuon was sorely missing. That feeling of restriction really did limit Matsuoka's strong art, and I'm glad to see it differ here with Anima.

Similarly, I think their character designs remain strong, but have grown even more expressive. They don't need silly or simplified faces to express intent or emotion to the viewer, but Matsuoka keeps them in for comedic effect, which I can appreciate.

But that's enough about the art- it's strong and is certainly not the weakest link here. Story is more the concern as it's Matsuoka's 3rd (I'd argue 2nd) pass at writing the accompaniment to their art, so how does it fair?

Honestly, pretty damn good. It manages to make the most of Matsuoka's character designs and visual style, and presents itself as an incredibly strong science fiction story. Walking confidently into global warming territory to set the stage, it's tackling a lot of typical fare for a good sci-fi story- namely in the forms of the concept of freedom, and the idea of human connection.

Off the bat it establishes that everyone's basically just piloting a synthetic version of themselves so that they can "live" above ground, but that idea immediately gets picked apart by tradition, history, and the freedom that it affords people.

I think the easiest examples appear with the chapter's antagonist, as well as a young boy's questions of the world.

Both do incredibly well to frame the suffocating nature of existence in a world that's effectively uninhabitable, and express the natural desire to challenge or deny the system that has stripped the people of freedom and human connection.

Overall, I might even say that this is "quintessentially styled" manga. It presents a strong core with an intense desire to pose a question to viewers through its world and characters, but it's not afraid to joke around with itself. It's a delicate balance to strike, but Matsuoka shows a very confident degree of refinement within this first chapter, so more than anything I'm excited to see where it chooses to go.

[kordeliiius]

Gem and admirabilis culture overlapping would be fascinating. There's how they co-manage the winter. There might be a developing caste system in later snail generations because of the gems' culture to designate a purpose to each individual. There might be a conflict between the admirabilis over who gets the share of biomass on the island. Would the admirabilis still deify Phosphophyllite or would it be another To Your Eternity scenario? How would Aechmea deal with two, united parts of humanity? Would there be admirabilis who leave because they feel it's too risky because of the Lunarians? How much of this will be explored in the Moon Scholar Au? Do the admirabilis even know the ice floes are alive?

I honestly havent thought abt the Admirabilis' caste system, apart from the difference between royalty and commoners. Like irl human societies, it might have ranked different types of craftsmanship, which pops into my mind every now and then. But because their population is far bigger, the roles wouldn't be distributed the same way as the gems. In their community, there's only one swordsmith, one carpenter, a handful of researchers and doctors, etc. So the Admirabilis would've either prioritized teamwork OR each worker would "wear less hats" so to speak. If we're specifically talking about lunarified Admirabilis, I sense that they'd eventually assimilate into the same common rank that the gems did. I've seen some speculation on JP twitter that Ventricosus and her family likely don't have their old titles anymore, since they've once again lost much of their influence.

Assuming Phos kept playing a big hand in their relations, the "deification" phenomenon would probably fizzle out the more people got to know them. There is no 102-yr time skip in Moon Scholar for example, so any misconceptions about who they were and their relationship to the royal family wouldn't have time to procure. However their views on Aechmea would probably get worse (if you can imagine that) after bonding with the gems and finding out exactly what he condemned them to.

Another thing ive written before is that the two tribes would straight up not contact each other during winter. The slugs would easily die in that extreme cold, so they'd resume a migration cycle and remain completely oblivious to the changes while the gems keep up their tradition of hibernating. Is this just an excuse for me to plug a fic I wrote years ago about navigating tough feelings amidst the changing seasons? Yes and I think you should check it out if you haven't (and to answer your last question, the moons have gone completely empty this scenario)