#New manga series that I'm recently reading and super into right Now. :->

[formulaorange]

2023 Fall Anime

This is honestly a loaded season full of new shows based on relatively new manga. Lots to look forward to

Spy x Family - Season 2 One of the most fun SJ series that have come out in a while. Season 1 was killer, high hopes for season 2.

Goblin Slayer 2 I didn't realize they were even making a second season. This was such a killer series. I'm really hoping they don't fall into the many mid-tier fantasy tropes out there in anime right now. I thought the appeal of the show was really Goblin Slayer himself and less about the lackeys along the way. So we'll see how it goes.

Frieren: Beyond Journey's End This is definitely one of my highly anticipated series. It's about an elf who was part of the Hero's party and her life after he dies. (Since elves live longer) Definitely a darker take on fantasy but has some really solid fantasy and adventure vibes.

Rising of the Shield Hero - Season 3 Season 2 was pretty disappointing and slow. While this looks like it'll be more fast paced, it does look like a tournament arc of sorts. I know some aren't a fan of that kind of arc, but honestly I think it's exactly what this series needs to pick things up again. We'll see.

The Faraway Paladin - Season 2 This was legitimately one of my favourite fantasy series. I thought it was really well written and didn't rush things like other series. I'm looking forward to this season.

Sequels/Continuations: Eminence in Shadow - Season 2 killer series with an anti-hero main character. Definitely worth checking out. After-School Hanako-Kun Hanako-kun spin off Dr. Stone Season 3 - Part 2 One of the best novel concept series with nothing else in it's genre to compare to. Definitely didn't drop the ball on the recent seasons and still worth watching. Dead Mount Death Play - Part 2 One that I didn't particularly enjoy, but has a decent sized manga following. Tokyo Revengers - Tenjiku Arc The continuation of the series. Might be just me but it feels like the series fell off after the first season. The Saint's Magic Power is Omnipotent - Season 2 A more mature take on fantasy isekai that just started to get into romance at the end of last season. A solid combo of shoujo genres. The Ancient Magus' Bride - Season 2 Part 2 One that I haven't had a change to check out yet but have only heard good things about. Hypnosismic - Season 2 a weirdly addictive musical/rap series. Unique characters and honestly solid rap battles. One I'll be enjoying. -- Related - Paradox Live - Music battle with what looks to be the same style of animation and solid character design. Definitely worth looking at if you're a fan of Hypmic. The Seven Deadly Sins: Four Knights of the Apocalypse A sequel of SDS. Looks like it could be a fun watch for the fans of the series. New:

Shangri La Frontier A new manga fantasy series. This may be a horrible way to describe but it is what it is - a new age SAO- full dive fantasy game. A gamer who only plays shit games, gets into a new massively popular MMORPG and is op. One that I'm excited for because it ticks all the fantasy game boxes I like.

Undead Unluck A relatively new manga series that gained a lot of traction in the last year or two. A gory action comedy that's super chaotic and a lot of fun.

Shy Brand new hero manga series about a shy girl and her anxieties and struggles going into the hero world who grows and gains confidence as she becomes a better hero.

Ron Kamonohashi's Forbidden Deductions This is a manga series that I have kept forgetting the name of so never got a chance to read but all the covers for the manga look phenomenal. Likely the anime doesn't do him justice but it is what it is. Essentially sherlock in anime form. A PI with issues and the wholesome police detective work together to solve crime. Other New Series: Green - Fantasy Pink - Romance Red - Action Purple - Drama The Kingdoms of Ruins A world where witches were hunted down by humans as science surpassed magic. A kid who was raised by a witch swears revenge on mankind. This honestly looks solid. The animations are very cool looking and the mc seems to be an anti-hero. Will be looking at this one. Under Ninja A well known manga series about modern ninjas. Definitely a unique series for this season. The Apothecary Diaries A historical medical mystery show. I've heard the name before and I've also only heard good things. Will be worth a watch. A Girl & Her Guard Dog The granddaughter of a crime syndicate goes to highschool out of town and the current young boss lies his way into the same school. Would be cute romance if it weren't for the fact she's 15 and he's 26.. Butareba - The Story of a Man Turned into a Pig What the title says. A girl finds him and the story goes from there. I'm Giving the Disgraced Noble Lady I Rescued a Crash Course in Naughtiness The usual light novel title. Honestly, doesn't seem as yikes as I initially thought, might just be harmless breaking the rules kinda thing. Could be fun, also a Capybara that strikes fear into people's hearts. My Daughter Left the Nest and Returned an S-Rank Adventurer Looks like a wholesome series where an adventurer finds a baby, raises it and she becomes so strong she's busy working all the time. Just a cute father daughter relationship in a fantasy setting about her wanting to come take time to see him but being caught up in OP fantasy battles. Ragna Crimson Dragons vs Humanity - a human and a dragon team up to destroy all the dragons. Action fantasy series. Berserk of Gluttony I honestly added this because I thought it was hilarious. Looks like a combo of knock offs - the Gluttony skill from Tensura (reincarnated as a slime) and the mc being called Fate with the main girl who looks exactly like Sabre. I'll be skipping but its' here so you know.

[isaksbestpillow]

Hello Siiri! First off: I just yelled in delight that you're offering subs on Ossan's Love Returns -- thank you! I have not watched the previous series or OL movie, but I come to you after learning that EarthMix will cameo in this week's episode. I'm watching older Thai BLs to learn more about that nation's genre of BL, and I'm learning about the Thai genre's Japanese BL roots -- which makes the cameo extra sweet for me in my history project. In any case, I am wondering if you could offer a kind of overview of the importance of the Ossan's Love franchise in Japan. My very favorite BL of all time is Kinou Nani Tabeta? -- and I've been so thrilled over the years to get TWO seasons, a movie, and the New Year's special. Ossan's Love has even more content. Would you say it's a bigger BL than KNT? Is the audience for OL growing actively in Japan? I'd love to learn more about the context of its importance in the Japanese media landscape. I feel like I generally have a grip on these things in part due to the fame of the various actors that end up in BLs (like in Cherry Magic), but Ossan's Love has been around for so long, that I'm not sure how to quite contextualize its popularity against other JBLs. Thank you for considering my question!

Hello!

I don't want to make any claims on who's more popular without gathering actual data, but I can talk about the general context of the show.

OL actually precedes Nanitabe's live action, so they weren't in competition during their original airing. OL differs from most other bl live action outputs by being an original script. It's not based on a manga unlike pretty much all other Japanese bls out there, and as such, it pretty much single-handedly brought gay relationships to the mainstream when they had so far been mostly confined to the bookshop bl section: if you wanted to read a bl, you'd go to the bl section, but otherwise you wouldn't be exposed to it.

The first season of OL aired in 2018. There are all kinds of live action bls airing these days, at least one per season, but it wasn't like that back in 2018. Live action bl until recently was either typical age-gap uke/seme anime (Gravitation, Sekai ichi hatsukoi, Junjou romantica) or made-for-dvd movies with mostly unknown actors. My first bl movie was Ai no kotodama. I don't know who those actors were or where they are now. By comparison, the cast of OL is full of popular mainstream actors. Pretty sure at least one person fainted when Tanaka Kei was on the cover of An an's love & sex (was it me, you'll never know!).

Even now, at lot of the bl you'll find on Gaga or Viki actual airs in a specific bl slot or on a paid subscription service. You had to buy each episode of Old fashion cupcake on Rakuten to watch - meaning you need to already know what you're looking for. Nanitabe and Cherry Magic both aired in TV Tokyo's Friday midnight slot , but TV Tokyo is a local network. I had to watch both online because we don't get TV Tokyo in the prefectures. What we do get though is TV Asahi, the network producing OL. It's one of the major national networks and the second most viewed channel after Nippon TV (it's also the channel buying GMMTV shows for Japanese distribution).

What made OL such a phenomenon was the internet and social media. It was the most tweeted show in 2018 and Japanese people tweet a lot. It received the Popular Word of the Year Award. You read it right, Ossan's Love was the Popular Word of the Year 2018 with #MeToo and e-sports (for comparison: in 2022 one of the words was state funeral because of Abe's assassination, and one of last year's winners was boiling of the planet).

As for how OL Returns is doing - it's super successful! Last Friday even omutsu paatonaa/diaper partner was trending on the internet. Last time there was an update about viewership, the first two episodes had been viewed 4.5 million times. The Japanese fandom is super active, and people of all ages are watching. They're doing quite a bit of promo, too. Tanaka Kei & Hayashi Kento were on Geinoujin kakuzuke check, a popular new year's quiz show.

I know OL doesn't get a lot of love in western bl fandom. On one hand, I'm like huh okay fair enough. But on the other, much bigger, you could even say enormous, hand, I'm like you don't have all the facts! You don't even speak Japanese! Take a seat! But if you wanna trash the airline remake (was it really necessary???), I'll bring the snacks.

[thankssteveditko]

A brief introduction

Hi. My name's Bobby. (She/her.) You may know me for running my inexplicably widely known Archie Sonic blog Thanks Ken Penders, or for making the game Super Lesbian Animal RPG. Maybe you just know me as a furry artist. I wear a lot of hats!

While it's not one of the main interests I'm known for, I've been a fan of Spider-Man for most of my life, ever since the fateful weekend in 2002 when my dad decided to rent a certain Sam Raimi movie. He passed on his love of the character to me. Spider-Man remains my favorite superhero to this day, even in an age when MCU fatigue is really setting in. My tastes in fiction (and, by extension, my own writing) were surely influenced by the mix of fantastical and relatable elements found in Peter Parker's stories. The way he can go on these adventures swinging all around New York and then be like "shit, I forgot to pay my rent for my hellhole apartment." As my dad put it, unlike a lot of other superheroes, under the mask Spider-Man's just a normal guy from Queens.

I'm not the most hardcore fan, sure, but I've enjoyed plenty of takes on the character across different storytelling mediums. Movies, cartoons, video games, etc. That is, with one notable exception. The original comics. The Earth-616 Spider-Man comics that have been going for 60 years now. Even though I was the rare 21st century elementary schooler with a comic shop pull list, the mainline Marvel universe seemed completely impenetrable to me. I didn't know where to start, and every year I put it off, the backlog only grew larger and larger. I did read the first few volumes of Ultimate Spider-Man in middle school because my local library had them, but that was about it.

Recently, though, being in a Spidey mood thanks to the Insomniac games and Spider-Verse movies, I had a crazy idea. What if I just... read the main universe Spider-Man comics from the start?

I've read plenty of other long comics. Manga series that span hundreds of chapters. All sorts of Sonic and Transformers comics. I read all of Homestuck. I'm a One Piece fan, for Christ's sake. It can't be that hard, right?

Right?

...Okay, yeah, this is gonna take forever. Which is why I've made a whole blog for my little Spider-Man posts as I casually read these comics. Enjoy!

[djeterg19]

I just read the sequel to old fashioned cupcake and it’s so cute! I love stories about established relationships.

Also this is the same anon from before. And I can’t believe I forgot about Love in the air!!

I have rewatched it so many times. I also have a special place in my heart for Rain and Payu. And I never think of it as thin on plot because the plot is their relationship?? The plot is seeing these 2 people fall in love??? Like. Why are people surprised when a romance show is a romance show. Also I’m always up for any relationship that involves only bisexual people. We don’t see enough of it and I want more. Also like. Genuinely some of the best chemistry I’ve seen in any show in recent memory. Like. Not just sexual chemistry. Emotional chemistry. Comedic chemistry. Physical chemistry. They really struck gold with both pairings from this show.

Also you’ve unlocked my feelings about doomsday and now I feel like I need to rewatch it and cry.

Ps. Is the Cherry Magic manga worth reading? Cause I’ve been debating it. But now I think I might need to.

Ooooooh good to know about the Old Fashioned Cupcake sequel. I just started volume 9 of My Love Mix-up and the sequel is next on the tbr. I also love established relationships. It's one reason why I enjoy romance books that are trilogies or part of a series so much.

Yeah I remember getting pissed off a lot when LITA was airing because there were complaints that there wasn't a plot. Like the plot is finding your person and falling in love. And sometimes those are way harder to pull off than if there's something else going on because you can fill the space with whatever else is going on in the plot. Just accept it's not for you and move on. And I'm very excited that FortPeat and BossNoeul are getting new series together because you are absolutely right. They struck GOLD with those pairings. The chemistry between them was off the charts good in so many ways. I'm a little sad they won't be in the shows together but I will take what I can get.

And I'd say I'm sorry but I'm not because I have all the feels when it comes to Rose and the Doctor. I still vividly remember when that episode aired. Gah. The pain.

As for Cherry Magic manga...I would recommend it personally! It's very similar to the show and there are 8 volumes out currently. I bought a bunch when Barnes and Noble was having a bogo on manga so I did get a couple on sale but I definitely don't regret reading them. They are super cute. They just got engaged in volume 7.

[sweetwhitechoco]

Hello, hello!

Here are some mangas that I've read in terms of.. Shoujo (?) in which I wish they were adapted into good anime series. It got a little long so it's right under the cut. ^^

Last Game - Rich kid in school is having a crush on his "rival" new girl after she won against him in just about everything. Their relationship starts to develop from friendship at college years. Yes, it's that real slow burn, but it makes up for it by comedy and super dense female lead character who had nothing to care for other than her mother.

Unique art style, many cute moments and the main guy, Yanagi, is trying his best to convey his feelings to main girl Kujo someone help him.

Takane to Hana (Not to be mistaken, this is not Takane no Hana. I know several series with that name, and this not one of them.)

A ridiculous words war between a rich older guy (Takane) and a high school girl (Hana) who rejected him for being an asshole to her, during the marriage interview she took over for her older sister who ditched said meeting.

This series is one of my favorites for the aspect of head to head insults, honesty in talking things out (Not always but the effort is there), and then repeat the fighting part. It's your classic romcom with a pinch of salt. :p

It really should have been made into an anime and not the live action drama thingy, but read the first ten chapters and you'll see why. xD

Akatsuki no Yona - Don't mind me repeating things, but this anime needs a second season please. ;_;

I do want to see some Yona action, and the Four Dragons, and Hak teasing Yona in anime form again. We still didn't get to see Zeno showing his powers to the gang and the Water Tribe arc would be really neat to see happen.

Love So Life - A babysitter called Shiharu is offered a bonus to take care of the twins she met at the daycare she works in. She accepts the job to look after them during her free time, and learns a lot with them, from them that taking care of children requires lots and lots of effort. She grew to love and cherish them, and starts to fall in love with their uncle Seiji, the one who took the twins in when they had no one to care for them.

This manga has a bunch of clichés, some school girl drama, a bit of issues surrounding the abuse of some characters, and the age gap of the main leads. It makes up for it huge wholesome moments with the twins, their uncle and Shiharu falling for each other. It's not everyone's cup of tea, but this one is precious to me.

Azfareo no Sobayounin - A girl by the name Lukul is assigned the role of tending to a dragon named Julius. Said dragon is the king of the country, and only selected few knows about this curse of turning into a dragon in exchange for power to prosper the country. Lukul slowly falls for Julius after realizing his general rude behavior was to protect her, the only one who continued to look after him after seeing his form.

To be honest, I've only read the first four chapters, so I'm going to stick with that summary until I read more and understand the whole plot. Also a good dragon x human manga? Yeah, sign me up for that! xD

--

That's all for now. I was thinking about them recently and how wonderful it would be to see them in animation studios. Thanks for reading! ^^

[mikuni14]

I have a bit more time this week and decided to catch up on watching BL series, but whenever I watch 2 episodes, I feel like another 3 new ones jump in their place. Today, seeing the Korean version of Why R U just killed me lol 👀😭💀 I guess I'll never catch up 🤷‍♀️. Especially since very few series really interested me so I feel like I'm dragging. Most are engaging but like "ok, I'm watching, because maybe the next ep will be interesting" or to just see how it ends...

At the moment I am watching the following series (starting with the ones I like the most): Laws of Attraction this series has it all, a beloved couple, an interesting and engaging plot, romance presented at a high and satisfying level. It's perfect, it's what I want, I look forward with excitement to each new episode 💖 Jun & Jun the series started great, it also has a nice couple, unfortunately the last 2 episodes lost "steam" due to the appearance of as many as 2 (!) rivals and devoting LOTS of time to scenes with them, which made the romance fall into the background (you don't do that, as Chains of Heart has taught us). But I think the end of episode 6 got the series back on track 💖 My Personal Weatherman it's actually quite nice, very old school yaoi Hidden Agenda hm, I don't know what it is about this series, but I enjoy watching it, although it has many flaws. I guess I just like actors 😎 Love in Translation It's only the first episode, but it's looking good. I like the main couple (especially Offroad, I liked him a lot in Our Days). The trailer suggests a nice series, although the Step by Step trailer also suggested it will be good (it wasn't), so I'm optimistic, but cautious 😉 Kiseki: Dear To Me the series so far is trope after trope, cliché after cliche, and all the old school yaoi manga i've ever seen packed in one product. And we see so many familiar faces! It's fine. Love Class 2 it's fine. Be Mine Super Star I just don't feel Ashi's emotional commitment to the relationship, also the series itself is very silly. And I keep waiting for a good script for JaFirst. They were almost there in Remember Me. They just deserve something good, not another series "feeding" on their good chemistry Only Friends I've only watched the first ep so far, and I'm waiting for the right mood to watch the next ep. TBH I'm not really interested in this one, might drop it if the second ep feels the same as first 🤔 Wedding Plan I also only watched 1 or 2 episodes. I WANT to give it a shot, but the plot, which I understand is pretending to be getting married to hit on a wedding planner instead of just going out with him like a normal person, is so incredibly stupid and cringe to me that I had to take a break lol As I mentioned, I WANT to give this series a second chance, I like the couple, but it may take time, I have to be in a special mood for it 😄 Stay by my Side dropped Stay with Me dropped, but maybe I'll come back to it someday :) Why R U I honestly couldn't even get past the first episode

I plan to watch Dinosaur Love and maybe Dangerous Pleasure, although I'm not a fan of PerthChimon pairing.

I probably missed half of series being aired now lol

There are so many series, but in my opinion quantity does not translate into quality. There were times when there were fewer series, but actually more of them pulled at my heartstrings and I spent hours on tumblr reading awesome meta and experiencing, analyzing meaningful scenes, words, gestures. I don't have it now. Only LoA does that to me, a bit of Jun & Jun.. it breaks my heart, that one wonderful BL, Sing My Crush, aired all at once recently, making it easy to overlook and not getting the recognition it deserves. Idk... I just want to be emotionally (and a bit intellectually) invested 🥺 OR JUST HAVE FUN 🥳

[silvermoon424]

What other books/movies/shows are you into besides magical girl stuff? And what are your favorite lesser known (in your opinion) magical girl stories??

Lately (for like at least the past 2 years lol) I've been super into Youtube video essays and commentaries, including on media I haven't watched/read yet. I would say Youtube videos are most of what I consume in my free time instead of movies or tv shows (or even anime); I have ADHD so it's really hard for me to focus on things, whereas with Youtube videos I can just pause and resume them whenever I want.

In general though, I really love the horror genre; I'm always reading horror manga or horror stories, and I love short horror films and full-length horror movies. M3GAN was the most recent movie I saw in theaters, and I don't go to theaters very often (although it's not a very scary movie lmao). I also love true crime. So yeah, magical girls, horror, and true crime are my go-tos, lmao.

I do love reading, but I don't really read any series (again, ADHD and commitment issues). With books I tend to gravitate towards realistic fiction; I like sci-fi every now and then, but I'm really not into fantasy for some reason. Oh, and I play video games sometimes. Mostly Pokemon, I love Pokemon and have since I was little.

I love podcasts, too. The only one I follow religiously right now is Last Podcast on the Left (HIGHLY recommend, they're awesome), but I also frequently listen to Behind the Bastards, Some More News, Redhanded, Dark History, Swindled, and any of Michael Hobbe's podcasts.

Sorry I'm so boring and didn't give more specific answers, lol. I do have a long list of tv shows and movies (and anime) that I've watched and enjoyed, but I'm not really currently following or hyperfixating on anything. Like I said I mainly just watch Youtube and listen to podcasts nowadays because of my focus issues. I really want to make a spreadsheet of all the Youtubers I recommend but there's like 400 of them so the task is pretty daunting, lol.

EDIT: Just saw your other question. My go-to for lesser-known magical girl stories is always Mermaid Melody!

[randowwriter]

Hello! I used to be really into anime until I got exposed to some scandalizing stuff. I would like to give it another shot, though. I was wondering if you have some wholesome suggestions? :)

I have two favorites right now, so I guess I'll start there? (I thought I saw a lot of anime until I realized my friends have seen way more than I have.) Akagami No Shirayukihime/Snow White With The Red Hair: the anime is super good! It's a Shoujo that definitely focuses on romance, but the romance is pure and genuine, which is amazing! (I feel like few series ever capture that in romance, but this one does!) I haven't gotten that far into the manga yet, but I highly recommend the anime. (The manga, I hear, gets a little more into politics and stuff like that, which I imagine will be quite fun!) I think forgiveness would count as a strong theme in it, because of an arc in Season Two. (They are short seasons; twelve episodes a piece.) Akatsuki No Yona/Yona Of The Dawn: It is a fantasy, technically a Shoujo too. But though it has a different religion has its base, that I'm guessing as something to do with Shinto Buddhism, based off of the fact that some of the translations for the priests in it, call them Shinto Priests, but I say it can be interpreted pretty easily through a Catholic and Christian lens. :) Also, it has a strong emphasis on relying on God as well as a strong emphasis on forgiveness. It has really strong family and friendship themes, and strong romance too, though since that's a slowburn type, it takes a while. Honestly, I'm a sucker for fantasy, and somehow within the deep, very unique characters that feel real and the fantasy themes, it didn't take long to fall in love with it. It does have wars/politics/other themes, so it does have some harder to read/watch stuff. I'm actually all caught up on the manga, and right now, we just hit two hundred and twenty five chapters! The anime though is only twenty four episodes with three awesome OVAs! :) Also, as someone reminded me of and had me think through, this a strong theme of not judging people before you know them? Some characters are definitely bad right from the get go, but other characters, we have to think about more, like get to know basically. Some of this comes through when villagers make hasty judgements on people that the main characters know or when we have to take our time to get to know a character that's a little tough to want to know at first. My Roommate Is A Cat would be a great anime to start off with. It is a slice of life focusing on a mystery writer who ends up adopting a cat, basically. He's never had pets before, let alone a cat, and is a little at a loss as to how to care for said cat. But it happens at a time when he really needs companionship. It's focused on family and friendship, though warning before the series starts, there is some tragedy, so it has sad parts, but it mostly focuses on the happy things. I watched it, because there's a writer and there's a cat, and found that I really liked it! It's only twelve episodes long and is pretty new. 2020 or perhaps 2019 was when the anime came out. I haven't finished even the first chapter of the manga, which is supposedly ongoing. So, can't answer for that yet. I do recommend that you start with My Roommate Is A Cat since it is shorter and also doesn't touch on near as many heavy themes as the other series do. Ooh, FullMetal Alchemist is great, but it's longer and is a Shounen so there is lots of action and hardships. But I recently heard that Brotherhood (especially) was a prolife anime, and when I thought about it that's definitely true. The value and miracle of human life is a common theme within it. Hopefully, I'll start watching some of the recommendations that people have given me for series. (Thinking back on anime, I grew up with, you've probably seen them, and some I wouldn't recommend now.) But I'm still watching the Fruits Basket reboot, and sometimes it makes me want to go back and reread the manga to verify that some of what I'm seeing is from there? But I learned a lot from Fruits Basket when I was younger, primarily from a mom and her daughter in it. :) So, it's a lovely series to me.

(Come to think of it, I think most of the series, I like, involve forgiveness as a prominent theme. Fruits Basket, FullMetal Alchemist, Yona Of The Dawn, Snow White With The Red Hair, etc...) (An argument could be made about self-forgiveness in My Roommate Is A Cat though, so even that one kind of fits.)

Heads up, there can be pretty emotional stuff in these too. So, there are sad moments and stuff like that in either all of these or most of them.

[liaroflesbos]

Book ask game cribbed from @sixth-light

1) Last book I read:

Last thing I've finished was the collection Queer Little Monsters edited by David Ly and Daniel Zomparelli. It was definitely enjoyable, some good weird shit in there that I'm still mulling over. I particularly like Hiromi Goto's short story, "And The Moon Spun Round Like a Top"

2) A book I recommend:

Oh, probably The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Adison if you haven't read it. I have read it.... so much.

3) A book that I couldn’t put down:

Hmmmm I actually do this a couple times a year, where I keep reading until I finish. I'm pretty sure I did it mostly recently with Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez, a book I really super enjoyed.

4) A book I’ve read twice (or more)

I'm constantly rereading and relistening to things, especially because I have space for it while I work at my job. Right now I'm relistening to Seasparrow by Kristin Cashore, the most recent of her Seven Kingdoms books... which I think the series has a new name now that there are like 11/12 kingdoms lol

5) A book on my TBR

The Vanished Birds by Simon Jimenez. I heard he's an underated author and I'm psyched to check him out!

6) A book I’ve put down

Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dosteovesky. I'll finish it one day, it was just long and giving me a headache

7) A book on my wish list

What's the difference between a TBR and a wishlist? If it's something I wished I owned, I would like to buy Textual Poachers. I keep looking in used bookstores to find fan studies texts after I got Enterprising Women at one, but so far no luck.

8) A favourite book from childhood

Well, the first fic I wrote was for the Charlie Bone series, which I read A Lot. Oh, I also loved this book called True Talents by David Lubar? Both of them very much about kids how had some special talents but were still caught in the grindstone of hostile adult institutions.

9) A book you would give a friend

Also agree with sixth-light--all book gifts are heavily personalized for the person I'm giving it to, that's the joy of a book gift: an attempt to discern exactly what they might like and to find it. That being said, I might go with Howl's Moving Castle or maybe Swordheart

10) The most books you own by a single author

I would say I don't own very many books right now, but it's getting up there again. Not a lot by the same author though. Not counting comics (probably I have the most Chuck Dixon? I have a lot of 90s Batman stuff), it's probably manga from Jun Mochizuki, between Pandora Hearts and Vanitas.

11) A nonfiction book you own

Just yesterday I bought Black Superheroes, Milestone Comics, and their Fans by Jeffrey A Brown at the used bookstore. I'm excited to try it!

12) what are you currently reading

I switch between a couple formats of books at once depending on where I am and what I'm doing. Right now I'm reading on ebook Hearts of Atlantis by Stephen King, listening to Doppleganger by Naomi Klein on audiobook, and reading the collection Broken Stars translated and edited by Ken Liu on the trains and such. Oh, also trying to finish Bacchus Volume 1

13) what are you planning on reading next?

Oh, my book club book for next month is School for Good Mothers--the theme was Philly. I have Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino out on ebook right now, and next time I head to the library I want Akira Volume 2.

[miyamorana]

March Fic Recs

Here are the fics that I’ve really liked this past month. All of these are complete. Enjoy!

Fandoms: Animorphs/Julie and the Phantoms Crossover (1), Avatar the Last Airbender/Boku no Hero Academia Crossover (1), Boku no Hero Academia (5), Harry Potter (2), Julie and the Phantoms (1), The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (1), Sk8 the Infinity (1)

Find February Recs here or browse my fanfic recs tag.

Fandom: Animorphs/Julie and the Phantoms Crossover Title: The Lamented Author: breakaway71 Pairing: Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill/Marco Rating: Mature Word Count: 17,306 Summary: Before he ate a bad hot dog, Reggie spent the last four years of his life fighting a secret war against a race of body-stealing alien slugs.

He never quite got around to telling his two best friends.

Fandom: Avatar the Last Airbender/Boku no Hero Academia Crossover Title: In His Element(s) Author: WriterGreenReads Pairing: None Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Word Count: 115,066 Summary: "“So… one more time.” Shouta pinched the bridge of his nose, regretting both waking up this morning and possibly existence in general. “You’re the spiritual avatar of an entirely different world, and in the process of keeping the peace with said spirits, originating from your… dimension, you’ve come to our world to stop the actively malicious versions of your spirits, because our world told your world that something was wrong.” The child shrugged and grinned, looking much too cheery for someone currently in handcuffs. “Pretty much!” he chirped. “Your world spirit is really polite, too. Ours was super grumpy about all the spirits escaping, but then yours said it was ok, so long as I teach her more about them on the way back!”"

Aang chases some renegade spirits across worldly borders and possibly makes some new friends along the way.

Fandom: Boku no Hero Academia Title: That time I got reincarnated as a doomed side character Author: Gentrychild Pairing: Midoriya Izuku/Todoroki Shouto Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Word Count: 85,806 Summary: Izuku wakes up in the recent light novel he read called “ My Hero Academia.” Unfortunately, he’s in the body of Midoriya Izuku, a minor character killed off early in the manga to motivate the main character Katsuki Bakugo on his Hero’s Journey. Izuku decides he’s going to do whatever it takes to stay alive in this stupidly deadly Isekai.

Unfortunately, Izuku isn't aware that in the last novel of the series where the minor character who died is revealed as the main villain’s son.

All for One has relived his son’s death multiple times, unable to change the outcomes.

But something has changed this time.

Fandom: Boku no Hero Academia Title: like stained glass Author: SpiritusRex Pairing: None Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Word Count: 7,338 Summary: “It hurts,” Izuku whispers to no one, voice thin and choked. Letting the words out makes it all feel real, and the tears he’d been holding back finally break the dam and roll down his cheeks. Wrapping his own arms around himself as he trembles in the storm of his despair is as close as he’ll be able to get to comfort right now. “It hurts, it hurts.”

He doesn’t want to have to do this alone. He’s so tired of having to push through pain alone. It’s something he’s been doing all his life, but can’t he, just once, have someone to hold him up when he stumbles?

Just once. That’s all he’s asking for.

Fandom: Boku no Hero Academia Title: How Many CLIF Bars Will It Take? Author: Minette_SH Pairing: None Rating: Not Rated Word Count: 5,750 Summary: Izuku: I didn't kill these people! Aizawa: But you know who they are, how they die, when they die. Izuku: ... Listen, I know this looks bad... Aizawa, sliding CLIF bar across table to Izuku: I'm listening.

OR: Izuku has a Quirk which makes him see how people die two weeks before it happens. He's trained himself to draw the victim's portrait while he's having the dream and sends them to the police in the morning. Aizawa is working the case and doesn't suspect the moody teen barista is behind all the ominous portraits until he comes knocking on his door one early morning.

Fandom: Boku no Hero Academia Title: The Peculiarities of Fate Author: Nahiel Pairing: Aizawa Shouta/Midoriya Izuku Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Word Count: 21,923 Series: Part 1 of The Peculiarities of Fate (Words: 26,068 - Works: 3) Summary: It wasn't going to last, which was a shame, because it was awfully cute. It was a black cat with red eyes and a tiny capture scarf curled around its little neck. There was literally no one else it could be other than Aizawa-sensei, and there was no possibility that he'd be willing to even attempt to keep a bond with Izuku.

Even after everything their class had been through together, Izuku was pretty sure that he was only one bad day from being expelled. Having his teacher's soulmark? That would probably send him right over the edge.

~ or ~

Everyone has a fated soulmate, but soulbonds are fragile things, and Fate doesn't like leaving people unmatched. If one soulmate doesn't work out, another will present itself, though most people aren't unlucky enough to have to experience this.

Izuku goes through several matches, and several soulmarks, before Fate finally finds the right one for him. The newest person to bear his mark, his teacher, Aizawa Shouta, has also known the pain of broken bonds. Can they make a relationship work in spite of their age gap and the secrets that Izuku keeps?

Fandom: Boku no Hero Academia Title: five to midnight Author: the_crownless_queen Pairing: None Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Word Count: 3,655 Summary: Throat dry, Nana managed to croak out a, “I’m here!” before a coughing fit took her.

It made her eyes water too, and she almost missed out on her rescuers’ next words.

“Try not to move too much,” they said, and Nana tried to angle her head toward the steadily growing sliver of light, up above.

There was a figure there, cut out against the light. It was… smaller than she’d half-expected, with a head a fluffy hair around what appeared to be bunny ears.

She couldn’t tell, but she thought the stranger might be smiling.

Fandom: Harry Potter Title: the earth from a distance Author: spqr Pairing: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter Rating: Explicit Word Count: 15,601 Summary: “Well,” Harry said gamely, once they’d managed to find the Leaky Cauldron – still under construction but mercifully open for business – and he’d turned up a few knuts from his pockets, enough to get them a room for the night, “it could be worse.”

“Really,” Malfoy drawled. “We’re stuck in the 16th century, with no idea how we got here or how we might go about getting back – pray tell, Potter, how could this situation possibly be worse?”

Fandom: Harry Potter Title: setting sun don't weep Author: basketofnovas (slashmarks) Pairing: None Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Word Count: 4,074 Summary: Harry is fighting through the malaise of living through his life's purpose when Narcissa Malfoy requests an unusual - and distressing - favor. Inspired by, but noncompliant with, Cursed Child.

Fandom: Julie and the Phantoms Title: with every single beat of my heart Author: bananakarenina and breakaway71 Pairing: Julie Molina/Reggie Peters Rating: General Audiences Word Count: 4,089 Summary: After twenty-seven years as ghosts, they've been given a second chance. Reggie is determined not to take it for granted. But when Julie starts avoiding him, all he can think is that he must have done something wrong. He needs to find a way to fix it before it ruins everything.

Fandom: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess Title: Breaking A Broken Shackle Author: Moonalight Pairing: Link/Shad Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Word Count: 5,246 Summary: Something as simple as a 'peaceful day' doesn't come naturally to Link anymore. But whenever it happens? Faron Woods is a beacon of serenity, calling him home as though his soul was bonded to its ancient root-systems.

Of course, he didn't expect to find the sweet, ginger-haired scholar poking around in a forest grove.

Of course, he didn't expect to get caught in his wolfen form.

Of course...Shad just has to treat him so kindly, trusting a 'beast' to not tear his throat out.

Of course.

Fandom: Sk8 the Infinity Title: summer heat Author: museaway Pairing: Hasegawa Langa/Kyan Reki Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Word Count: 2,391 Summary: Langa experiences a curious problem while he and Reki are at the beach.

[mysticdragon3md3]

Just watched Jaiden Animations' most recent Japan trip video, and with my own Japan trip next month in mind, I'm so glad I'm not into a lot of popular series. I cannot afford to go feral at every Pokemon, One Piece, and Nintendo shop like she did.😅💸💸💸

Honestly, i haven't been regularly watching anime or reading manga in a long time. So i should be safe. .....Then i looked over to my Nyanko Sensei plushie beside me and remembered, I'm into Natsume Yuujinchou. Natsume Yuujinchou is VERY popular in Japan. They have pop up shops all the time. There is new Nyanko Sensei merch EVERYWHERE. (I keep track of new merch announcements thru the mangaka's Twitter.) Am i doomed? Is my wallet doomed?💸💸💸💸💸🤣

Also, I'll want any little Persona 5 gachapon. Any little Joker, Ryuji, or Morgana trinkets. Is Persona 5 still super popular in Japan?

Or any funny little gachapon i see when i have a moment. Earlier this week i found out there's a set of gachapon cats that look like shrimp! And a set of seals! SEALS!

Now that i think about it, I'll want to grab some random Rement miniatures too . Preferably, one of the Kirby tea time sets.

But I'm going on a guided tour, so i probably won't have much time for geeky shopping anyway.

I just want:

DateSana plushies or Sengoku Basara merch from one of the Capcom stores. (But I could take some historical merch with the Date or Sanada mon, as substitutes.)

Nyanko Sensei merch.

maybe that new Rumiko Takahashi artbook "COLORS 1978-2024" that releases at the end of March 2024. But i can always get artbooks at Kinokuniya Los Angeles, so i dont have to get it during my Japan trip.

Some spring/French barrette styled hairclips. Maybe with some pretty kimono fabric decor.

Rement miniatures, Kirby tea time. But again, I could likely get these at LA's Little Tokyo.

Maybe some random cute gachapon

Maybe some Persona 5 Joker, Ryuji, or Morgana merch

Maybe some Kamen Rider merch. Latter Heisei. I haven't been keeping up with a lot of seasons since then, but I love Kamen Rider 01's suit design.

Whatever Good Smile Company figures i run into. Maybe my first Hello Good Smile. Or some Nendoroid Doll parts, to custom some DMCL and Goldenheart Nendoroid Dolls.

Furyu's seated noodle stopper figure of Persona 5's Joker, but i doubt I'll see it. That released back in 2020.😞 I thought i didn't have to preorder it because "I'm going to Anime Expo by the time it releases; I'll just pick it up there"...then the quarantine lock downs happened.😩

Some nice figure photos---

Omg i forgot to choose a Nendoroid to bring with me on my trip!

I've been thinking of bringing a Nendoroid Swacchao, since i also have the original Nendoroids of all my current Swacchao. i wont have to worry about losing or breaking a Swacchao that is essentially a duplicate of a character already in my collection, safely at home. So i guess I'm bringing either Hinata Shoyo, Shokudaikiri Mitsutada, or Tsurumaru Kuninaga.

Or do i go rogue, and bring one of my original Nendoroid line characters instead?😈✨️ The thing is that big smiles and bishoujo characters make for better travelling figure photos. Hinata has the big smile, but not the super pretty outfit/character design. My Toudans have the super bishounen character designs, but only very slight smiles (unless i risk bringing one of their original Nendoroids' faceplates.) And i haven't been obsessed with Haikyuu or Touken Ranbu in a long time. I might have a better trip if i bring a character who means more to me right now. I wanna share my trip and have photos of whichever character is my favorite right now. ...But there are no FE3H Claude or Dimitri Nendoroids. No Nimona Goldenheart Nendoroids either. 😥

Who do i bring?

[servin-up-surveys]

survey #162

What’s the last app you downloaded? That woulda been the Eve period tracker, I had a crappy one for a long time and just wanted a new one. This one is a bit TOO big for me, like you can track an insane amount of stuff and I often forget how the hell just to log that my period's started or ended lol.

What’s the last outdoors concert you went to? Alice Cooper, the only concert I've ever been to.

Are you allergic to any plants? I'm allergic to pollen.

What’s the last fast food place you went to? Uhhh pretty sure McDonald's, we haven't really eaten out much, less than usual even.

Which of your friends do your parents get along best with? I mean the only real "friend" I have in my face-to-face world is my boyfriend, and both my parents love him very much.

Is there anyone in your friendship group that your parents don't like? Read above.

You see someone you dislike crying. Do you still feel bad/sorry for them? Yes, I just really hate to see people hurting, never mind to the point they're crying about it.

Any ways in which you're very different from the person you love/like? Yes, I'm very anxious and emotional, meanwhile he's great at remaining calm and is very logical.

Who was the last person to un-friend you on Facebook? I dunno, nobody important enough for me to realize they're no longer on my feed, so.

Do you know why he/she decided to unfriend you? Obviously no, but odds are it would've been sharing something anti-religious.

Do you like to have Facebook clear-ups every now and then? I'll browse through my friends rarely to remove people I no longer really desire to keep up with, but that's done rarely, I keep a small friend's list in comparison to most others I know.

Can you write in cursive? I write primarily in cursive, so yes.

Have you ever viewed the moon through a telescope? No, but that'd be super cool!

Do you normally finish one book before starting another? Yes, always.

Do you prefer reading books, comic books, manga/graphic novels, magazines, or the newspaper? Normal books.

Book series you enjoyed reading recently? I've been reading the Wings of Fire series by Tui T. Sutherland for the past couple years. Slowly, though; I still have a book and a half until I'm done with the second plot arc.

Is your sibling missing someone right now? I don't have the slightest clue.

When was the last time you saw your ex? The beginning of February 2017.

Whose birthday did you last celebrate? My dad's.

Do you think anyone likes you? Other than my boyfriend, no, no one else romantically.

Why are you best friends with your best friend(s)? Because he never, ever gives up on me, clearly genuinely likes me the way I am, is very supportive, funny as hell, has a heart bigger than he realizes, and is just an all-around damn good person that just cares.

Do you plan on taking your husband’s last name if you ever marry? Yes, even though I hate Girt's last name more than I do mine, lol. I just want to anyway.

What did you last dream about? I can't really remember, but I know it was something really weird.

Have you ever been in the “friend zone”? No. I guess you could argue that was the case for a while with Jason after we split, but I can tell you with great confidence that that man wanted nothing to do with me, even as friends.

Have you ever had an STD? No.

What do you think it feels like to die? This isn't something I like thinking about, but I'd say it definitely depends on what you're dying from, but I would definitely assume confusion would be happening across the board as you realize your body is giving out.

Is the area you live in more liberal or conservative? Conservative as all get-out and I fucking hate it.

Do you know anyone who’s bipolar? Yes, I've been diagnosed and so has my mom's oldest daughter Katie. I'm sure I know more, too.

Do you have a lot of emotional baggage? LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL OH BROTHER

Do you like apple soda? ... holy shit, have I ever HAD an apple soda??? I do know I've tried apple carbonated water, but I did hate that, which is odd because I generally love apple-flavored anything.

Are there any writing utensils close to you? Yes, a pencil with my drawing stuff as well as a pen I keep attached to my little monthly planner.

Do you watch football regularly? No, I watch no sports ever.

Do you have a bigger upper or lower lip? Lower, but the difference isn't major.

Are you currently doing any big projects? No, not really. I need to do something creative on a large scale again...

Do you have any screen names with spelling errors? Oh no, I'd never be able to keep that.

Would you rather be a ninja or a samurai? Samurai, probably. A female samurai would be dope. (I know they historically existed, but nowadays I think we generally associate the term with men, at least here in the USA.)

What’s your first language? American English.

What’s your sexuality? Pansexual I think, but I'm quite sure I sexually prefer traditionally male individuals, but I absolutely know I'm sexually attracted to feminine people too. Maybe I wouldn't have a preference if I actually had truly sexual experiences with non-cis male partners.

What’s your hobby? Art, photography and writing specifically.

What’s something you care desperately about? LGBTQ+ rights, it is SO difficult for me to wrap my head around people having a fucking problem with consensual, age-appropriate love.

If you could spend the rest of your life with only one person, who would it be? Girt.

Does anyone know your bank pin number other than you? Who? I don't even have a bank account because I have no income, so.

Have you ever had a boyfriend/girlfriend who was depressed? Yeah, Sara. I feel like Tyler may have been depressed too, he absolutely had something going on.

Would you be able to climb out your bedroom window to sneak out? Yes.

Are your parents gullible? My dad is, he's pretty clueless lol. Mom is more skeptical.

Do you still own a VCR? Definitely not anymore.

If you were in a car accident would the last person you kissed care? Uh yes, he'd freak the hell out, especially knowing how afraid I am of cars and driving as a whole.

Do you have a second home? Well in all technicality yeah, my dad's place. Girt and his family also put lots of emphasis on making myself at home there, but I'm still getting comfortable at his place because I go there so little.

Would you be surprised if you saw the last person you texted smoking? Yes, very; my mom smoked only very briefly in her youth and has never gone back, and she also does her best to take care of her body that was immensely weakened by cancer and the intense chemotherapy it demanded; she would not be willingly putting smoke into her body.

Does the smell of cigarettes, weed, and beer repulse you? All three of them, yes.

Was the last person you kissed younger or older than you? He's a couple years older.

Have you ever purchased Girl Scout cookies? Yeah, overpriced as shit though.

Do you like sitting on the inside or outside of a restaurant booth? Outside, I like having more space.

Have you ever worn fishnets? Only fishnet gloves. I DESPERATELY want to have fishnet stockings one day though, that shit is hot as FUCK.

Does your bathroom have a window? Neither one does.

Ever dated someone you were best friends with first? Yes.

How did you meet the last male you texted? We were both in band class in high school.

What underwater creature scares you the most? Giant squid.

Was there ever a bomb threat at the school you go/went to? Yes, we had multiple during my entire time in school.

Do you befriend others because of something you might gain from them? No, what the fuck. That's textbook using somebody.

What do you feel is the ugliest part of the human body? Genitals, and I'm talking any, sex does not matter to me when it comes to me just visually being grossed out by genitals.

Do you look like an idiot when you run? I'm still in a place where I'm certain I can't truly "run;" I have more strengthening of my legs to do before I'd feel safe even trying to.

Were you brought up with Nerf toys? I mean not "brought up" with them, but we had some.

Do you daydream? I mean I think everyone does, I do a lot though.

What’s your favorite kind of dog? I love Saint Bernards, akitas and shibas, Mexican hairless, chow chows, beagles, Samoyeds, and German shepherds, among soooo many others, dogs are just stunning with so much variety, it's incredible.

Do you chew gum? Not a lot or even regularly, but yeah, I will sometimes, but generally only if it's offered to me.

Do you like gummy candies? Yes, very much. I especially love sour gummies, and gummies in general are just a texture I really enjoy.

Do you lie? I know literally nobody who doesn't at some point, I'm no exception. I definitely try to avoid it though, and I don't really think I could stomach telling anything that exceeds being a harmless white lie.

Favorite zoo animal? Meerkats, when they're cared for properly and are a sub-species that handles captivity even remotely okay. It seems to be popular to overfeed them in captivity, and having too few individuals is very bad for their health, mental and physical. I'm definitely very critical of meerkat zoo habitats just with them being my favorite animal.

What was the last thing you watched on the TV? Some Naked and Afraid with Mom yesterday; that seems to be becoming our dinner thing, lol. I've been sitting out there with her longer at dinnertime and she seems to really enjoy me sitting out there with her so I wanna do that more, I need to. We live in the same house but I rarely do things with her or even in the same room.

Do you think pets can get annoying easily? Dogs can, at least for me. I very much prefer pets like cats with their heightened independence and stuff, clingy and needy dogs can quickly become overwhelming to me.

Have you ever been to the Grand Canyon? No, but I VERY much want to one day, I was actually talking about this lightly with Mom yesterday.

Have you ever flown somewhere alone? Yes, to Illinois twice. Navigating airports was extremely stressful, but I managed.

Do you know anyone who hates/dislikes chocolate? My maternal grandmother didn't like chocolate unless it was something like a Reese's.

Are there any movies out that you’d like to see? I'd like to see the new Little Mermaid, however not enough to ask Mom or Girt if they want to because I love not being able to pay for myself. I'm waiting for the Barbie movie to come out, THAT looks like so much fun.

Did your parents ever ground you? Yes, Mom did anyway. She seemed to be the one with authority over that.

What is one musical artist you wish wasn’t making music? That's mean, even if I don't enjoy an artist's music, I'm not gonna WISH they weren't, because I assure you there are people who would be really bummed if they stopped. All I have to do is not listen to an artist I don't like, they don't need to stop creating.

Were you/are you popular in high school? I wasn't, popularity was never something I wanted in school.

Anything interesting happen this past week? Exactly a week ago I got my first wisdom tooth extracted, Friday I got my tattoo finished, and Sunday me and Mom spent a great day with Girt's family.

What’s on your mind this very second? I'm hungry, didn't eat breakfast today so I'm probably gonna get something after this.

Do you correct other people’s grammar/spelling when talking to them online? No, that's such an asshole move imo, unless they're literally asking for correction. I'll generally correct grammar I find it surveys, but I'm not pointing it out or bitching about it, I'm JUST fixing it. I think it's also very important to recognize that the person you're talking to may not speak the same first language as you, and it's impressive that they can speak a non-native language AT ALL, so just keep your mouth shut about it, it is not a big deal.

Is bacon one of your favorite foods? I do enjoy bacon a lot, but it's very easy to make it too crispy and burnt-tasting for me.

Do you like things vampire-related? I think vampires are cool, yeah, but I'm not automatically interested in something just because it's vampire content.

When was the last time you saw snow? It's been a few years. :/

Have you ever felt stupid after saying something? Literally fucking always, like I'm not even exaggerating.

Are you more of a mommy’s person or a daddy’s person? I've always been more of a mama's girl.

[animepopheart]

Your blog is the absolute coolest (as well as your Beneath the Tangles blog)! If you have the time, would you mind sharing how you choose which anime you watch every season (or from the older ones that have been out for awhile) or suggestions on how to minimize a watch list to "essentials"? I know everyone's interests are different, so the titles/genres might be different, but just a way of how to choose which series would be best to spend time on? I've been an anime watcher for well over a decade now, and I'm a little bit better about not getting overwhelmed by all the available titles, but I was just curious if you have any further suggestions. Right now, the only things I use to "filter" the anime I watch would be that (as of right now) I only watch shows in English dub, try to take a look at super popular titles (unless it's One Piece which I'm sure is great but a scary longtime commitment for me to make to watch), and avoiding shows that might go against my personal convictions as a Christian and make me too uncomfortable to watch (I know everyone's convictions may vary or be completely different on this). Anyway, thanks for your time!

Aww, thank you sooo much! ;_;

I'll tell you how I approach each season further down, but just in general, I've lived by this dumb motto for the last decade: life's too short to waste on bad anime. With this in mind, I rarely invest in long-running shonen anymore because the payoff is for me never worth the effort. They're not bad (most are pretty good!), but even with a series that's great like One Piece, I could have instead invested so many other show (I could literally watch 90 other anime series during that time and find many that equivalent or better).

I also drop anime pretty quick. I give them a couple episodes and move on. Sometimes, I like a show enough to get 5, 6, 7 episodes in, but if I decide then that they're not keeping my interest, I don't complete them. My time is precious. If I hear great things about a show I dropped, then I might return later.

I also trashed my watch list. It was expanding and expanding, and I felt it was a weight on my shoulders. So I deleted it, and feel freer since then.

All this has helped me from under the feeling of being overwhelmed.

I would definitely also watch older shows more often—ones that friends those whose taste I like or trust from Twitter recommend, or I suddenly remember I once wanted to watch, or I want to watch again (often a better experience than streaming a mediocre new series)—except that I need to focus on new series as I develop content. So feel free to jump back into those based on your tastes, what others say, and maybe through filtering and searching (I like Anime Planet's filters).

Regarding new series—this is how I approach those:

When a season begins, I'm open to almost everything. I type up a list before the season with the shows I don't want to miss, based on the types I generally prefer or produced by staff that I'm a fan of, and then I pick up all sorts of series, watching a couple dozen opening episodes at the very least. If I have to be a little selective, I look at our writers' first impression posts to help me pick which ones to try.

And then I whittle away. I usually end up completing maybe 7-8 series a season, but there are some season, like this one, where I finish far fewer. In the time I would normally use for those shows, I might rewatch something (like I currently am for Re:Zero), go to one of those older series (I'm trying out Kurau: Phantom Memory), check out movies for review (an older one recently with ReLIFE and a screener copy of Jujutsu Kaisen 0), or read manga and light novels (a BUNCH right now, and also a memoir related to anime).

So, lots of details, but in summation—feel free to try lots of things out—perhaps shows that are new or which you hear about from trusted influencers, writers, etc., but develop that habit of dropping series. The FOMO becomes less and less the more and more you see the positive in not completing anime that doesn't affect you.

[amrita-gsk]

Okay, okay, so I watched Fade to Black the other day and I kept thinking "Wow, that one IchiRuki blog I followed recently was righter than rain. They're gott damn fools in love." And then I watched Hell Verse and I'm like, "He went back into Hell for her (and Renji n Uryuu, but the focus was on Rukia so like, whatever, right?). He's a gott damn fool in love." It's so obvious that's is nearly painful, lmao

Sorry for the super late reply but I hadn’t checked my asks, I’M REALLY SORRY!!! But never late than never, right? 

You are most certainly right, it’s physically painful to watch just how obvious their relationship is and even though the movies aren’t considered canon (although FtB is half canon due to how much Kubo invested himself on it) it does leave you thinking just why Pierrot always made so much emphasis on them. People like to argue and say it was because Rukia is the co-protagonist and that’s why she is shown to have so much importance to Ichigo, but in my opinion they could have highlighted Rukia‘s general relevance to the series without it holding such a sentimental value for him… however I can’t say they came up with it out of nowhere because they only took what already existed in the manga, deepened it and centered around it to make a whole movie out of it. Also, what was said by Kubo, Masakazu Morita and Fumiko Orikasa during the promotion campaign for the movie raised a lot the expectations regarding the nature of their relationship, I’ll quote some:

INCLUDED IN THE FADE TO BLACK MOVIE GUIDE

(Morita and Orikasa were interviewed regarding their experience while working in the movie. I shall refer to the interviewer as Q… for question, yes, I’m that simple. There were also some titles for some questions, which I will keep along the questions. )

Q: What were your thoughts when you first heard the third movie will be a story centering around Ichigo and Rukia?

Moritan: Compared to the first two movies, when I read the scenario I felt that it was a very strong story. I thought that it was a story that would revolutionize the “origin” of Bleach, with the meeting of Ichigo and Rukia as its main focus.

Oririn: I was surprised by the catchphrase “sayonara Rukia”. Director Abe told me that “something is going to happen to Rukia” so I felt insecure (laugh). But then I saw that the scene from the first episode was going to be in the movie and understood that because the TV animation of Bleach exists, this movie was able to exist as well. It is because of this that I think this movie may reach deep into the hearts of the people that has supported us up until now.

Q: To convey things that can’t be seen… Parting from this theme, what does this movie strongly aims to express? 

Oririn: The movie tries to show something that can’t simply be seen with your eyes. I think that if I were to put it in words, I’d call it “bond”, but even then something deep inside our hearts might disagree. I feel the movie theme is so delicate that it cannot be explained just by words.Moritan: Because we’re practically done with recording this third movie, I feel very strongly about the “bond” there is with Rukia and beyond that, the connection between their souls. We reenacted Ichigo and Rukia’s meeting in the first episode from four years ago. Since then, through all of our journey and until now, as Ichigo and as myself as well, there were a lot of times when we came to become used to our mutual relationship. Then, a shocking meeting was drawn again and Ichigo as well as myself, were reminded of how important Rukia’s existence is. We were able to question it again. I think this series is becoming like that.

Oririn: I know that Ichigo cared about Rukia but I never thought it was something this deep, so it was a bit unexpected. Right now it seems appropriate to call it “history” because thanks to the things of the past we are able to have today, which is connecting to the future. I feel very strongly that Ichigo and Rukia’s relationship isn’t something that was built in the blink of an eye but rather it’s something that’s still being built up.

Q: It’s quite complicated, isn’t it?

Moritan: For me, I feel that the theme this time, “bond”, shows that the connection between souls is thicker than blood, but if I were to say that’s everything there’s to it then it would feel wrong and that won’t do. The first movie theme was “protect”, the second was “believe” and I took those words inside and buried them deep within me while performing. But this time it wasn’t enough to just use the word “bond”. Even if you were to say “I really love you” to your loved one, you still wouldn’t be able to tell them how much you really love them. My feelings are exactly like that right now. But even if “bond” couldn’t describe it, saying “super bond” sounds weird (laugh).

Q: Let’s pick up on what Orikasa-san said.

Moritan: There are a lot of things packed inside that emotion. And inside of it, choosing just one won’t show you the way. I wish to leave it to everyone’s own impression to see and feel just how deep that feeling is.

Oririn: That’s right, we’ll leave it to every fan that watches the movie, to decide with their own thoughts and feelings if the story is really that deep or not.

Q: Is Ichigo and Rukia’s confrontation an important point?

Oririn: It’s their first confrontation, but this time Rukia isn’t herself and doesn’t have any memories so I just went along with it without giving it much thought.

Moritan: It was difficult for me. Ichigo could never attack Rukia, you know. So it was really hard to fight her. It was very hard for Ichigo to see Rukia’s altered form.

The Recording Process

Q: How was the recording?

Moritan: Back when we did the first movie it was also our first time so we got really worked up about it, but because this is the third time, the recording became stylish and refined without any meaningless acts. The whole recording was made so it could be observed from behind, so we could concentrate only in performing and it was very fun. I was able to perform Ichigo’s core essence without any distracting thoughts. However it was my first time having to shout “Rukia!” so much.

Oririn: I’m usually the one that keeps calling “Ichigo!”, right? (laugh)

Moritan: I actually discovered a new way to perform and wistfully cry out “Rukia”.

Q: Speaking of performance, we heard that Ichigo’s voice is being renewed?

Moritan: That’s right. I changed my voice this time. It’s the fifth year and the third movie after all (laugh).

Oririn: Is that so? (laugh)

Moritan: Actually, Ichigo’s voice has changed numerous times up until now. I think you’ll notice that his current voice is really different if you watch the first episode again. I’m leaving behind my turning point and letting Ichigo grow. The Ichigo of this moment is like going back to the first Ichigo as I performed raising my voice a bit. What’s more, I usually talk monotonously and as if I was uninterested but this time I attempted to more or less give more intonation to it so the words themselves would express on their own. Actually, and I’m not trying to show off, but when I was practicing at home this voice for Ichigo was naturally born. When I stopped to wonder why, I realized just how much Rukia’s existence is able to move your heart. So this voice came out naturally from myself and I felt that if I performed with it as it was, my own heart would also be easily touched. So then I was able to act with this voice during the recording.

Q: As a result, did the Sound Supervisor give you an OK?

Moritan: I did it secretly without asking permission. I got scolded and were given an NG (no good) so I was worried. However, because the voice intonation was congruent, Ichigo’s change in emotions was tangible in the story.

Q: Then, did Orikasa-san make any changes as well? 

Oririn: Even though the movie was special, I didn’t make any changes. I’ve been entrusted to perform Rukia in the TV anime version until now, so I’m always striving to express Rukia’s feelings one by one. It wasn’t any different for the movie. Only during her time in Inuzuri, the young Rukia who lived together with the twins had a different personality than the Rukia after her meeting with Ichigo. I think that she became cooler. During the flashback scenes, I performed while keeping in mind that she would express her emotions differently during those times.

Q: Did you make any good memories during the recording?

Oririn: During the scene when Rukia’s memories about Ichigo are returning I was asked to insert an improvisation of a warm word that symbolizes her, but because Rukia only used to say insults, I couldn’t come up with anything (laugh).

Moritan: Everyone tried very hard to think of something, but at the end all we could come up with was “tawake” (idiot). It was troublesome. I said, “I don’t remember ever being told warm words!” then everyone burst into laughter.

Oririn: The whole cast and staff were laughing hard, and come to think about it, even Kubo-sensei who had come by was laughing as well. Looking at his smiling face I could really feel his trust in us. It left a very good feeling.

Moritan: Even though he was busy, he kept looking after us for the whole two days of recording. His presence gave us strength and assured our hearts.

Message

Q: To finish, do you have a message for the fans?

Oririn: This time around the movie is about “a feeling that can’t be described by words” (laugh). What the characters hold inside their hearts couldn’t be expressed by a single word, it doesn’t have a shape and it can’t be seen but they’re connected at their very core… I strongly think that rather than watching, I wish everyone will be able to feel it.

Moritan: I hope for the fans to think about the importance of calling out someone’s name. This time, Ichigo is calling out Rukia, Renji, Byakuya and other people’s names but no one calls out his name. Even though he calls out no one answers him, so now I know how sad it is having no one to call your name. A name isn’t only something for you to call other people, but for other people to call you as well, that’s what I’m trying to say. I wish for everyone to watch the movie and understand how important it is. And after finishing watching the movie, I wish everyone will call out the name of the person they love.

…Those were Morita and Fumiko’s opinions on it (there’s more, but this is already long as it is) now, here’s what Kubo had to say about it:

INSIDE THE PAMPHLET GIVEN OUT DURING FTB’S PREMIERE

Kubo: The third movie is a special work for BLEACH. It’s different from the usual element of the other movies and it’s a story in which BLEACH’s origin is closely drawn. I’m hoping for this story to remain, even if just a little, inside the heart of a lot of people.

INSIDE THE MOVIE GUIDE

Q: Like in the previous work, we heard you were involved in this year’s movie since the early stage. 

K: I think it all started around March when Director Abe and the movie staff came to me. Back then, Director Abe wanted a “back to the beginning” theme and wished for the main characters, Ichigo and Rukia, to be the focus of the story. On top of that, he wanted to portray something that linked back to the first chapter of Bleach, it’s original appearance… I was very happy to know that the movie was heading in that direction and said “that’s good, let’s go with that!” And from then on I joined in the production and put together the story and the setting after discussing it with everyone. 

Q: We heard the scenario was completed after a lot of hardships?

K: The theme of the story was something I could agree with, but there were still some parts that made me worry up until the end. The speech in the last scene especially, I discussed it and decided it with the director at the recording studio (laugh). 

To tell you the truth there are still bits I wanted to develop but if I did that who knows how long the film would be (laughs).

(I’ll make a pause here because in case anyone is wondering, he’s referring to Ichigo’s speech at the end, the one that goes: 

“If death isn’t really the end, then that time we met might not have been the first. We might have been connected from long before that. I’m not really sure, but I think maybe once a bond is formed, it never disappears. If that’s the case, even if we forget everything, we’ll be connected again somewhere in the future.”

Soooo… yep, he personally worked on it.)

Q: Even the subtitle was given from you?

K: Ever since the second movie the subtitle was brought up by me. Since the moment I heard Rukia would lose her memory the image that her memories of Ichigo and the Gotei 13 would disappear came into my mind. After that, the meaning of “disappearing into black” became the subtitle “fade to black”.

Q: You even came up with the japanese subtitle “Calling Out Your Name”.

K: After coming up with the english subtitle “fade to black” they asked me to come up with a japanese one (laugh). So after carefully digesting the scenario I searched for some scenes that could hold the key words that I could use and found in the plot that someone calling someone else’s name was a strong expression that “even though no one else remembers you I do” and I found out it had an important meaning behind it, especially regarding this story where Ichigo keeps calling Rukia’s name. So that’s how I came up with the subtitle “calling out your name”.

Q: Please tell us, in your opinion, what’s the highlight of this movie?

K: Regarding the fights it’s not Ichigo vs. the Gotei 13, but Ichigo vs. Rukia. In the first scenario there wasn’t a “last boss” yet and someone raised the question about it. And we thought that since Ichigo forgot about Rukia, “we want to see Ichigo and Rukia!” We started planning after that. In this fight there’s actually a scene that links back to the first chapter of the manga and in my opinion I feel it’s the most important scene in the movie. It links with what the director said about going “back to the beginning”.

Q: As you were involved in this movie, were there any bits you drew thinking about going “back to the beginning”?

K: I didn’t come up with the idea of using the scene where Rukia gives her power to Ichigo like in the very first chapter, so going back to that scene in the movie made a strong impression in me and I felt that it was very interesting. On top of that, because of this story I was able to recognize once again that Ichigo and Rukia’s relationship is something special.

Q: What do you think about the bond those two have with each other?

K: It’s not friendship but it’s not an amorous feeling either. Regarding these two, I don’t think there is other relationship like theirs in other works where despite standing in a very close position with each other it is not romance (laughs). But in this year’s movie there is a scene where Ichigo says Rukia is his “precious nakama” and I think that explains their relationship well.

Q: You watched the movie at a private screening, but what sort of feelings did you have about it?

K: I had fun (laughs), because it’s my own work it feels completed but on the hand it means that you can’t create anything stronger than that. In some parts while I was drawing I would think “would this sort of situation really happen?”, but even so I was the one who thought and came up with the plot so even it amazes me it doesn’t feel ��new”. Even if I as the original author was involved, the drawings are done by other people and the voices are done by the voice actors, so when the movie is completed I always savor the feeling of surprise. “They should move like this”, “their voices are like that”, I always give feedback with a lot of emotion and excitement, and I’m always looking forward to that.

Q: What bits do you want everyone to focus on?

K: The relationship between Ichigo and Rukia. The change in their feelings.

And there you have it. I won’t add anything about Hellverse because they centered more around the action aspect of it during the promotion so that’s it. I did find curious the fact that Kokuto decided to use Rukia to bait Ichigo to attack him… although I could always just go with “she’s the only female of the group, Ichigo has a savior complex, yadda yadda yadda…” but they could have also just kept Yuzu longer in hell to motivate him. There’s also the fact that once he defeats him he basically forgets about Uryuu and Renji as he’s too occupied talking to Rukia… I WONDER WHY *shrugs*. The thing with Fade to Black is that Kubo was deeply involved in its production and as I quoted above from what he said back when it first got released he actually said that he came up with the plot himself and that it was his work, and I think it speaks tons about what actually is the nature of their relationship when you watch this movie and you get that speech at the end (besides everything that happens in between, including Ichigo’s built-in Rukia radar), and then the author of the original work comes and tells you he worked on it himself.

IchiRuki is painful in the sense that it’s so right, so harmonious, so obvious, so perfectly written and executed, but it got served wrong at the end. But yes, their relationship is the maximum expression of love there is on earth and I think I don’t speak only for myself when I say they’re the goal.

[artlessictoan]

Also, Smoke Into The Sand w/ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15! OoO As a side-note I haven't read this yet (SHAME ON ME BC I WANNA) and i'm SUPER interested in it!

asdfjskdjskdjfsk this is gonna get long fukc

What inspired you to write the fic this way?

my main goal with sits was to make it read like an old myth or storybook, an old tale that would be passed down for generations, the majority of the fic is written in that style exactly, but the overall story definitely is (and it does come through a bit more in how the backstory is told and some of the more important scenes)

that said, the main narrative is written much more slice-of-life-y, one of my biggest inspirations for this fic is the manga monogatari (bride’s story), it’s a really nice series that explores the daily life of people in various areas along the silk road, it has that simple, everyday life feel that i love and really wanted to write into sits! that’s where the random details about desert living and the tribe’s lifestyle come in (warning for anyone who might want to check out mono though: it does have an arranged marriage between a 20 yr old woman and a 12 yr old boy, it’s being played as a more platonic/familial relationship thus far but i can totally understand why it would put people off, so just a heads-up before anyone jumps in)

What scene did you first put down?

the first scene i actually started writing was the very first scene! but the very first scene, the one that spawned this entire fic i haven’t actually gotten to yet, it’s gonna be v near the end and i’m dying to finally reveal it because it’s gonna be Big.. but i shalln’t spoil it here, just something for my readers to look forwards to

What’s your favorite line of narration?

ok so like i said i’m shit at remembering any of what i write and it’s a bit more than just a line but fuck it:

Gaara froze, in fact, everything did. The soft whistling ofthe wind cut off into eerie silence, the constantly shifting sand stopped witha suddenness that was entirely unnatural, Naruto glanced away for a second andsaw that some grains were being held in the air, perfectly still. He turned hisgaze back to the spirit before him, his expression hadn’t changed at all, hewas still glaring, but his eyes were unfocussed, like they weren’t reallylooking at him.

Naruto was too scared to move, to speak; hecould only stare and pray that he hadn’t just sealed his own death warrant.

What’s your favorite line of dialogue?

again, not a line, but i really love this exchange between nart and ameno so effing much:

“So mature… You’re growing up too fast, how am I ever goingto keep up?” she asked, mostly to herself judging from the distant look on herface.

He slowly drew his hand back once her face wasdry and gave her a confused look. “You won’t have to; I’ll just carry you withme.

What part was hardest to write?

well i might just be saying this cause it’s the most recent struggle i faced (among many) but the chapter six reALLY killed me. trying to find the right way to describe the exhaustion and constant fear took many, many weeks and i’m still not sure i really nailed it (hopefully something i’ll be able to fix in the next chap)

What makes this fic special or different from all your other fics?

other than being the first multi-chap fic i’ve ever written, this is actually one of my oldest fic ideas ever, seriously it’s been kicking around in my head for a good five years or so now so there’s that

it also happens to contain basically All of my Special Interests; naruto, deserts, nomadic culture, boring minutia, swords.... honestly the only thing it’s missing is cats (though i’m sure i can find some way to work them in too..)

and, honestly, this is kinda my magnum opus? or at least that’s how i’ve always thought of it, i had actually planned to not start writing it until i’d already done a few other fics because i wanted to make sure my writing skill was at its best before starting such an ambitious fic.. yeah that didn’t happen, but i think that’s actually worked out alright, jumping in with a harder fic right at the start of my writing ‘career’ has been a bit of a crash-course and taught me a heck of a lot, i still think it’s gonna be one of the best things i ever write though. it just has a very special place in my heart

Where did the title come from?

well tbh i’m kinda shit at titles, so i usually just hunt through the first chap looking for any particularly poetic-sounding line that would work (though in this case it does have a nice little easter egg, since in arab folklore jinn are made of smoke!)

Did any real people or events inspire any part of it?

hmm not really? the whole thing is meant to be very fantastical and unreal (despite all the slice-of-life stuff), the only real-world insp comes from my research into bedouin lifestyle and such

What do you like best about this fic?

gaara! i mean ofc i like him in anything but this version of gaa - silent, detached, barely human, incredibly complex - is one of my faves and he’s really fun to write, we’ll be finding out more about him as the fic goes on and when we do it’ll make his actions before now both more understandable and less at the same time (he’s quite the paradox)

What do you like least about this fic?

the inconsistency. i feel like i must’ve gone through about ten different writing styles throughout the course of it and it bothers me that i haven’t quite got that storybook feel i was always aiming for, i’ll probably do a rewrite when i’ve got more experience under my belt and try to make the whole thing a bit more cohesive

What music did you listen to, if any, to get in the mood for writing this story? Or if you didn’t listen to anything, what do you think readers should listen to to accompany us while reading?

as with btc, i mostly listen to soundtracks, since songs with lyrics really distract me when writing, since i like to try and match the music i listen to to the setting/tone of what i’m writing i try to listen to classical middle-eastern music (though i’ve had a hard time finding many albums of just instrumental stuff, if anyone has any recs i’d love you forever!)

in addition to that there’s the soundtracks of Journey, Bastion, Dreamfall Chapters and the Prince of Persia games and for instrumental artists i really like Break of Reality and Tina Guo for sits insp!

Is there anything you wanted readers to learn from reading this fic?What did you learn from writing this fic?

hmm, well i’d love it if people learned a bit more about the cultures i’m writing about (and i’d like to learn more of that too tbh, i’m still finding out new things that i actually got wrong earlier on in the fic), maybe even get interested enough to go looking for more info themselves, because there’s a lot of stuff that i simply won’t be able to go into much detail about

as for myself, well ^that and also it’s just been a rEALLY good experience in so many small ways - writing longer fics, writing in general, character interaction, introspection, action, plotting, description, suspense, mystery..... i could go on but yeah, basically it’s helped me grow as an author in Every Single Way and i’m sure it’ll help ever more before it’s done!