#Trauma Center: The Manga series

[dreamstormdragon]

(Credit for the disembodied human lungs to: @theblueskyphoenix )

[thoughtspresso]

Kana’s strong ability to read people comes from her emotional honesty.

And this ability is related to her specific acting style.

In the infamous Ch. 124, Kana keenly points out that Ruby has a co-dependent relationship with Aqua. This is amazing because she points out something that she wasn’t even really aware of--that Sarina is projecting her co-dependent relationship with Gorou-sensei.

She’s the only one who keeps pointing out and admitting that it’s really weird and out of character for them otherwise to be that close.

I don’t think a lot of people recognize how accurately Kana points things out about people that we keep passing off as jokes. It seems most people poise Akane and Aqua as being the superior judges of character in the series. But there’s something about Kana’s readings of people that set her apart, and interestingly, it affects her acting.

First our main man Aqua is portrayed as this guy who reads others really well at the beginning of the show, manipulating others into doing what he needs them to do.

According to Kana, his acting style is mainly focused on copying. And it’s true!  He thinks of a character that is needed in the situation or by what the director needs, and based on that, he acts it out.

He even copied his mother’s killer on Sweet Today:

To the point when, in Tokyo Blade, he had to act out Touki being relieved that Saya is alive, he originally acted it out exactly how the manga portrayed it:

Then we have Akane, who can surmise the unspoken details of a person, and extrapolate information about them and make guesses about the decisions they will make.

Her acting style is almost like Method acting, where she enters the person’s mind and lives in it for a bit to gain information about them.

Her method is about intellectualizing the experiences of that person, rather than understanding herself. While this makes her a phenomenal detective with unmatched deduction skills, when there’s not enough information or the setting doesn’t suit her interpretation of the character, she could get stuck from time-to-time.

These two acting styles are largely about trying to make informed guesses and judgement about people and copying those decisions.

Kana’s acting style is Adaptive. It goes farther than simply matching the energy of other people on the scene with her. It also means she reads herself in relation to others and adapts herself to the situation.

In other words, Kana’s acting style is centered on a strong sense of empathy, and an honest understanding of her inner self and how she relates to others.

Her acting is about how she would feel from situation to situation. If she already knows in herself that situation A would yield feeling Y, then she knows the opposite situation B would yield feeling Z. And so on.

Because of how well she’s come to understand herself, she easily understands parts of others that they wouldn’t even admit to themselves.

i.e. Aqua’s actually pretty delusional and thinks himself to be more important than he is, and he has chuunibyou/eigth-grader syndrome:

It’s a trope about teenagers escaping from their trauma by pretending they have some superior ability. And while Aqua isn’t pretending he’s secretly a ninja as in the classic sense of this trope, he does tend to think and act like he’s in a much bigger plot. In a way, Aqua does have the ability to remember facts from his past life, making him a middle-aged obstetrician in the body of a teenage actor, kind of like a vampire on his second life if you think about it--but apart from that, his ideas of being some Light Yagami-esque character who “uses” other people or has some superior detective skills has been kind of a failure. He didn’t crack his mom’s passcode by figuring it out, as much as he just bruteforce attempted every single one, and he didn’t even figure out his father’s identity after all that DNA testing he spent on. Akane had to do it for him. And he didn’t lead Akane to find Amamiya Gorou’s corpse--The Crow did that for Ruby.

She uses her own personal experiences to understand how deeply someone else would also feel in that situation, even if they try to hide their emotions.

All this is simply to say that, there have been a lot of personality observations that Kana has spoken that has been passed off as a joke, when in fact she’s been accurately describing the reality of the situation out loud.

I think apart from the plot, the emotional beats of the story would likely involve Kana pointing it out (whether to the character or to the reader) that they have a problem they need to resolve--whether it’s Ruby’s co-dependence on Aqua, or Aqua’s inability to express real emotions as he suppresses his trauma, that will lead to them fulfilling the character development necessary to fully resolve their story arc.

I also think that it’s Kana’s emotional integrity and honesty--her ability to understand her true self and have the courage to vulnerably lay that out completely on-screen--that will set her acting apart from her contemporaries and will make her shine like none other.

I have no catchy ending line for you like my previous theories/analyses, except for this:

Arima Kana best girl.

[bibibbon]

please don't take this the wrong way, but what aspects or moments do you like about mha? i know your whole blog is centered abt being critical of it and i respect it 100% but it would be quite interesting to hear you about what you like of the series :))

No honestly this is a good question!!

To put it simply I like the wasted potential within MHA but if you want me to get specific I will.

The things I enjoy in the series are:

Tenya iida and his character development

The foiled/paralleled dynamic of izuku and Mirio

Izuku's dynamic with children

Tokoyami and dark shadow or just tokoyami's whole character in general

Tokoyami and hawks

Vigilante manga aizawa

The way Izuku's character is built so he has a lot of parallels with various characters

Natsou todoroki standing on business

The anime only scene of izuku having a nightmare (I liked it because it actually took time to highlight a tiny bit of the trauma izuku has and I wish the manga did more of that)

The theme of masks and the concept of pomegranates and cannibalism being a metaphor for love when it comes to toga himiko

The early build up of some of MHAs worldbuiling (I just wish hori continued with it and developed it even further)

Dabi being touya Todoroki

[gatoraid]

Anime recs for The Radiant Emperor enjoyers

I was watching the new Ooku anime on Netflix some weeks ago and I thought it hit that ”court drama dealing with gender roles and making me cry” spot that He Who Drowned the World has been occupying in my heart lately (even if it engages with some of these themes very differently).

Somehow that got me thinking about other anime that might align with the vibes and themes in The Radiant Emperor book series and eventually came up with this list.

Some of those themes include gender roles, queerness, disability, politics, oppression, rebellion, revenge, impossible and messy relationships and tragedy. Darker themes like war, violence, sexual assault etc are also often present. Please lmk if you agree or disagree with these choices and feel free to add more!

Dororo (2019)

Historical fantasy based on Osamu Tezuka’s manga classic from the 1960s.

An orphan who hides her gender in order to survive meets a young man who fights demons to claim back his body parts that his father traded away in a demonic pact. There’s tons of pain and tough moral questions and complicated family relationships, and the way Hyakkimaru deals with having lost and then slowly regaining parts of himself is super interesting.

24 episodes. Stream on Prime Video, Hidive

The Heike Story (2022)

Retelling of the historical epic Heike monogatari through the eyes of an orphan girl who gains the ability to see supernatural things after her father’s passing. Inevitability of fate, the impermanence of all existence, praying for your loved ones’ happiness in the next life, all of these things are beautifully woven in this visually stunning story. The story also hits different when you know that Heike monogatari was traditionally performed by blind musicians and singers.

11 episodes. Stream on Cruncyroll, Apple TV

Inu-oh (2022)

Historical fantasy. Two outcasts find each other and change the history with their music in this story that also pays respect to the Heike monogatari’s origin as a singing tradition. Focus on things like identity, disability, nonconformity, ghosts. Yes, the ghosts part is important. Also, the gender expressions and the bond between the two main characters is something I’ve seen a lot of queer/trans ppl relate to and Inu-oh is voiced by none other than the trans icon Avu-chan.

Movie. Stream on Hulu

Ōoku: The Inner Chambers (2023)

Alternate history where most men in Japan have been wiped out by a mysterious disease. Very much a court drama centered in the Tokugawa shogun’s residence where men serve the woman shogun as concubines (and sometimes have relationships with each other). Also, one of the main characters is a monk who ends up giving up his vows! Based on Fumi Yoshinaga’s acclaimed manga that has also been adapted to various live action movies and drama series.

10 episodes. Stream on Netflix

Toward the Terra (2007)

Scifi classic with two main characters who are at the opposing sides but feel inexplicably connected. There’s just so many insane relationships and emotions here, I still have not recovered from the ”I want to kill you but I will also protect you with my own life” thing…… Based on the 1970s manga by Keiko Takemiya. Not to be confused with the movie from 1980.

24 episodes. Available on DVD

Devilman Crybaby (2018)

Apocalyptic fantasy with demons and stuff. Based on the classic 1970s manga by Go Nagai.

I don’t even know how to describe the story, it’s just the tragedy, the queer yearning, the ”I killed the one I loved and then it was too late”, the ”things will get bad and then they will get worse” vibe that I think is very fitting. This one has the most extreme violent and sexual content out of the series on this list.

10 episodes. Stream on Netflix

Banana Fish (2018)

Gang wars, mystery drugs and complicated emotions set in New York. Based on the iconic 1980s manga by Akemi Yoshida. Deals heavily with trauma and CSA.

You guessed right, this one is also a tragedy. If you love Ouyang and/or Baoxiang, you’re probably going to love Lee Yut-Lung. That’s all I’m going to say.

24 episodes. Stream on Amazon Prime

[obsidianstrawberrymilk]

omg I never see anyone talking about fukuzawa and kunikidas background but I agree with you so much I think he met him as a teenager if not younger. I've always liked to think that kunikidas parents know fukuzawa somehow and he kinda grew up knowing him. kunikidas whole background and family is such a mystery it drives me crazy

DUDE SAME HOLY SHIT I'm so curious about Kunikida's background because!! We know!! So little!! Like the only reason we know he used to be a math teacher is because he was literally working as one when Dazai's entrance exam happened - what was he doing before?? How did he discover he has an Ability?? Considering it's basically canon Abilities come from trauma, what even happened to him so his own manifested?

People talk about how Dazai is so careful on what he tells the agency but ngl, the agency know jack fucking shit about each other lmao. It's not just Dazai - we still have no clue what the fuck is up with the Tanizaki siblings or how Kunikida joined the agency. No one knew about Yosano's backstory before she shared it with Tanizaki and Kenji sans Ranpo and Fukuzawa because they RESCUED HER. Its confirmed no one sans Ranpo and Fukuzawa (possibly Yosano) know how the agency was founded in Untold Origins; and so much around Kenji is a mystery as well. We know about Atsushi because of his trauma dumping (as he deserves) and Kyouka because her joining the agency was so dramatic - everyone else though is far from an open book. Especially Kunikida.

Also - Kunikida's so fucking WEIRD, right?? Like people talk about him like he's the 'sane' one of the agency, but that's just because he's next to Dazai fucking Osamu, who makes anyone look normal. Kunikida is way too down with violence - hell, the first appearance we get of him he pins a starving orphan to the floor, it's noted he's not allowed to ask questions to clients because he gets violent, and he's told to cool it by Dazai of all people. Like?? He's passively suicidal with a HUGE guilt complex, and like, that obsession with his ideals can't come from nowhere. Like Kunikida's commitment to his ideals to the point of self destruction is shown to be bad for him, the center of his character and his flaws, so where does something like that come from? People also skip over the specifics of his moral code - because that's not clear cut either lmao. He breaks into weather stations because they reported wrong, steals cars when people have insurance, is just kinda like -_- when Atsushi and Kyouka are in danger in the start of the manga, and really, he's just... his morals don't align with the law. Period. Nor do they seem simple, despite how people want to read him.

So how the FUCK did that happen?

Because like I said, we know so little about Kunikida!

I really like the idea you said, about Kunikida having grown up knowing Fukuzawa! That's definitely interesting, I don't think I've heard that. It would make sense if Fukuzawa started training Kunikida early - because he's way too good for someone who started training at say, 18. In Dazai's Entrance Exam he wipes the floor with an opponent who has a significant weight and size advantage over him, and I actually think he could match Chuuya in terms of pure martial arts (maybe not beat, but it would definitely be a close fight without Abilities). That's too good for someone who only started training hardcore when he hit adulthood.

Also - I think Fukuzawa was the one who gave Kunikida his Ideals notebook. I don't think he was there when his Ability manifested or anything, but I do think he was the one who gave Kunikida that direction, that sense of purpose. It makes sense to me - Kunikida's dislikes have authority listed (considering the author irl, that makes sense), and he's got one of the most vulgar speech patterns in the series and comparatively rarely uses honorifics... yet he respects Fukuzawa so much?? He defers to him so much?? He's his successor, outright stated? What caused that type of loyalty, that type of deference?

Was Kunikida the first person to take an entrance exam, considering the agency was started for Ranpo and Yosano definitely didn't? What was his even like?? WHY did they make him the first one to take it, if he did?

Idk, I REALLY hope we get more on Kunikida's backstory soon. There's so much that's implied, and at the least I hope we get more on his relationship with Fukuzawa.

[lurkingshan]

Hi....If you don't mind, can I ask, what are your top 10 (or top 7) favorite media (can be books/ manga/ anime/movies/tv series)? Why do you love them? Sorry if you've answered this question before......Thanks....

Thank you for the ask, I don't mind a bit! Though I will say that this particular question sent me into a minor existential crisis, because how on earth could I ever pick just 10 things that I love across all media. I don't know if y'all have picked this up about me yet, but I consume vast amounts of media, like...unbelievable amounts of media, it is my great joy in life. I consulted @bengiyo about how to approach this question, and he suggested a frame to help narrow it down: what are my favorites that someone else recommended to me, that I then felt compelled to recommend to others? Hope you don't mind the tweak! As always, keeping this in the realm of Asian media for this blog, here is what I got:

What Did You Eat Yesterday?

When I met @bengiyo and @waitmyturtles I learned very quickly that this was their all-time favorite, and if I didn't like it we were gonna have a problem (jk but not really). I hadn't watched it on my own because until recently (shoutout to our savior Gagaoolala) it was quite inaccessible and I hadn't yet stumbled onto @isaksbestpillow and found her amazing subs. Luckily, I have impeccable taste and WDYEY is in fact a masterpiece, so they watched me watch it, I lost my mind over how unique and brilliant and technically flawless it was, and we are now all bonded for life over our love for this show, which just returned for a second season and will hopefully continue forever. I love it so much I have even started reading the manga, and I am not a manga girlie by nature (I prefer reading prose), so you can be assured I absolutely will not be shutting up about it anytime soon.

Go Ahead

Credit for this one goes to @ginnymoonbeam for watching it first and then sending up a flare for me as a fellow cdrama enjoyer that this one was worth prioritizing immediately. I love big sprawling family stories that unfold over time, I love digging into intergenerational family trauma, I love good dad characters, I love found family dynamics, and I love a well done romance subplot embedded in a much bigger story, so this show hit so many of my sweet spots. It's #1 on my list of modern cdramas and I would recommend it to anyone.

Mo Dao Zu Shi/The Untamed

Speaking of cdramas, I must give a shoutout to @dangermousie who wrote this post summarizing their favorite danmei novels, which I found when I went looking for recommendations and was trying to figure out a way into this segment of Asian media. I admit I am a bit bougie about my reading material and modality, so I really can't deal with machine translations or reading on html pages, and thus I still have not read some of these as I am patiently waiting for official English translations to become available (me and 2HA are gonna have a party in 2024 I tell you what). I had already heard of The Untamed, of course, because I am a human person who lurks in online spaces, but reading the novel got me significantly more interested, and I quickly fell down a months long rabbit hole that included consuming the novel, the show, and copious amounts of fanfiction. This story is so complex and layered and full of fun mysteries and meaty moral quandaries and interesting family relationships and has an A+ second chance romance and one of my all time favorite characters to boot; it really took over my brain for a minute. And while it hardly needs me to recommend it given how popular it already is, I'm still gonna do it whenever I get the chance.

Mo Du/Silent Reading

And while we're on the subject of danmei, let me give a shoutout to my favorite modern danmei novel, which was recommended to me by an IRL friend who is not on tumblr. Mo Du is a sprawling mystery novel that spans five major interconnected cases, and it centers on an exceedingly competent police captain, Luo Wenzhou, and a young business heir/super genius, Fei Du, who start out with an adversarial relationship (but I bet you can guess what happens next!). The crime stories in this are almost shockingly intricate and every detail comes together in the end without a single loose end, which is impressive enough on its own, but somehow the author (Priest, who some of you will know as the writer of Faraway Wanderers aka Word of Honor) manages to also write a perfectly paced, incredibly compelling love story between the two leads that is layered with complex trauma and psychological hot buttons and secrets and lies that unfold organically alongside the mystery. I am in the middle of re-reading it right now and my love for it only grows stronger. The gif above is from a recent attempt to adapt this into a live-action drama that got quickly canceled, but honestly, the less said about that, the better (though Zhang Xin Cheng will absolutely remain the Fei Du of my heart). With China's censorship laws, there will be no faithful live action version of this story, so I highly recommend reading the novel.

Pachinko

While we're on the subject of novels, I must mention another IRL friend recommendation: Pachinko. This one is a sprawling multi-generational family historical fiction epic that tracks the lives of a Korean family that is forced to migrate to Japan during Japanese occupation in the early 20th Century. Y'all, this book is amazing, and it has now been turned into a television show airing on Hulu that is also quite good (though structured quite differently, but that's another post). I learned a ton of real history in the course of reading this, and I found the journey of Sunja and her family so compelling. The book has a real intersectional lens and digs deep into themes of oppression, racism, class disparity, and sexism, and is rooted in Korean values around filial piety, respect for hard work, religion, moral condemnation, and of course, the importance of food to communicate.

The Great Indian Kitchen

Switching gears, let me give a shoutout to this Indian film that my bestie @neuroticbookworm recently recommended to me and @waitmyturtles. This film is about a modern young woman who enters an arranged marriage with a family of high status (though maybe not of the kind you think) and explores her experience of oppression as a woman in a very patriarchal religious setting. The story is really compelling, I learned about a common experience for women in India, the narrative ended in an unexpected place (in a good way), and I really enjoyed the watch. And this film is on YouTube with good subs which I linked above, so it's quite accessible.

Be Melodramatic

Let's get back to dramas, shall we? I credit this one to @kdramaxoxo, who recommends Be Melodramatic constantly, and thank goodness because otherwise this under appreciated gem would have never landed on my radar. This is a beautiful story about a group of friends who move in together in the wake of personal tragedy and tracks their progress as they heal and move on from their hardships. The themes of grief and growth and change are quite poignant, the relationships, both platonic and romantic, are all very compelling, and the music is beautiful. If you haven't seen it yet, what are you waiting for (@nieves-de-sugui this is definitely a good one to add to your list).

Make it Right

Time for @bengiyo to get another shoutout. This is a Thai bl classic that doesn't get the love it deserves, and he is its number one promoter. I don't know when I would have gotten around to watching this if he hadn't recommended it so highly, and I'm so glad I did. I wrote about this one, why I loved it, and why I think it's under appreciated, and I highly encourage others to give it a try.

Coffee Prince

We will end on an OG kdrama classic, which I watched early on in my kdrama journey thanks to a recommendation from an IRL friend who said it was the best version of the well worn Asian drama genderbend trope that they had ever seen, and my god were they right. Not only was this my first Gong Yoo drama (a life changing experience in and of itself) but this one really took me by surprise for how sharp and progressive it was about gender fluidity, sexual identity, and the struggle toward self-acceptance way back when it aired in 2007. I recommend this one to everyone, and its a great entry point for people who prefer queer media and have (justified) suspicion of mainstream kdrama's treatment of queer narratives.

[sapphic-agent]

Ranking MHA Arcs

Vs. Hero Killer Stain: A 9/10 arc. It had great tension, character development, character interaction, and villain. The friendship between Iida, Izuku, and Todoroki felt 10x more genuine than it ever did with Bakugou. The only thing I would change is maybe make Tensei not so virtuous. Maybe he made mistakes in the past or contributed to toxic hero society in some way. Perfect way to develop both Iida and Izuku

Shie Hassaikai: Again, just a great arc. Great villain and tension and love how the LOV are involved but aren't the current enemy. I love Mirio and his sacrifice for Eri was done perfectly, and him rejecting OFA made me love him even more. One of the only arcs where anyone cared about how Izuku was doing (love Iida and Todo forever). The only reason I'm putting it at #2 is Nighteye being a pretentious prick who pissed me off the whole time.

Battle Trial: One of the only arcs where Bakugou's actions aren't depicted as okay. Also calls out his behavior by making him lose because of it. Izuku's actions are recognized wholly, both what he did wrong and what he did right. Back when Momo was analytical and sharp. Also, evil Iida kills me every time. Just a pretty solid arc overall, good balance of tension and humor. There's only one thing I hate and it's that Izuku felt so guilty that he told Bakugou that he inherited his quirk

Meta Liberation: The only saving grace of season 5. The LOV was so well-written and Shigaraki's progression into a leader was so well done. I would have made it top three if it wasn't for Shigaraki's autonomy immediately being taken away by him wanting AFO. Kind of ruined the whole point of the arc

Entrance Exam: I had to make it top 5. It perfectly captures what made early MHA so great. It's so inspirational to everyone whose dreams have ever been discouraged. Some things could have been handled better which is why it isn't higher, but in general I love it

Sports Festival: I've talked about what I do and don't like about the Sports Festival before. There were a lot of good and bad things about it. Uraraka and Todoroki had great development, Izuku's and Tokoyamk's were okay, and Momo's was terrible. But what really keeps it out of the top 5 is the Bakugou pandering. It's the first arc that really starts to do this and it really ruins what could have been a really good arc

Hideout Raid: Again, the only reason this isn't higher is because it's so centered around Bakugou. If it wasn't just an arc pandering to him and his "development," it'd be a lot better. But I'm putting it at 7 because of the awesome fight between All Might and AFO. Easily one of the best in the series. And how that saved Bakugou was pretty damn cool ngl

UA School Festival: Gentle Criminal is tied for my favorite MHA villain with Stain. Not only is he relatable as fuck, his quirk is so unique. He was just so enjoyable. The festival was cute, though I felt as though this arc could have focused more on Eri's trauma. It's great that the festival was something for her to look forward to, but there could have been more done here. Also, Aizawa blaming his students for the other students being resentful and making them take accountability. Also, Bakugou being good at the drums for no reason

Paranormal Liberation War: As far as major arcs this one is okay. I feel like some parts of it were too drawn out, but it wasn't terrible. I liked Dabi exposing Endeavor, and Mirko chasing down Garaki like a bat out of hell was funny. Hawks' fight with Twice was also very impactful. BUT it also felt like a lot of the pros were useless. Like, Mount Lady struggling so much with Gigantomachia felt odd. She should have been more effective imo. I also wasn't a fan of how Midnight died in the manga, that felt unnecessarily brutal

USJ: This arc does a great job of introducing Shigaraki... And not much else. Like, I don't think it's bad at all, but it was a little boring. It does get points though for Tsu casually drowning Mineta, little moments like this make it watchable

Quirk Apprehension Test: The only reason this arc isn't lower is because of Izuku proving that he belongs at UA as much as anyone else. That was a great moment for him. But the QAT is quirkist and honestly just mean-spirited. Why would you humiliate a student in front of their classmates like that? Not to mention that Aizawa was blatantly singling him out with it. Just the beginning of Aizawa being a bad teacher

Provisional Hero License Exam: I struggled where to put this arc. Because honestly? It was good for the most part. I liked seeing how the kids each handled their tasks and opponents. Bakugou failed (I know I've said that this is undercut by Todo failing too, but it's still satisfying) and it really got into the nuances of rescue work. I liked it... Until Deku vs Kacchan Part 2. This fight ruins the entire arc for me. Bakugou fails because he couldn't stop being a dick for 2 seconds and decides he's allowed to take it out on Izuku? Then he trauma dumps on him while playing victim. And then coerces him into a fight. And then is rewarded from throwing this temper tantrum by being given what he wants (knowing about OFA). This was the arc where my feelings towards the series really soured. I really debated putting it at the bottom, but I didn't want to dismiss the good things about it so easily

Forest Training Camp: Only good thing about this arc was Izuku's fight with Muscular and his relationship with Kota. But after that it's Bakugou making bad decisions and everyone else having to suffer for them. I do appreciate Kota slapping Mineta though

Dark Hero: Just... So much potential. But it feels like we never really go below the surface with Izuku. This is supposed to be his arc and it barely focused on who he is. He should have spoken with the vestiges more. Also, while I can understand where they were coming from, 1A ambushing and then antagonizing him was terrible and Bakugou's bum ass apology was even worse. The only reason it isn't lower is because of my unhinged love for Lady Nagant. She's one of the best written characters in the series and I adore her. Unfortunately, it feels like Hori doesn't allow her to influence the overall story

Pro Hero: So this one is just... Weird. I mean, I don't think I hate it? The fight was pretty cool. I love seeing Hawks' quirk in action because his use of it is so creative. I don't like him and Rei being used to prop Endeavor's development though. I just don't think this arc was that good

Joint Training: So I mentioned this in a reply somewhere, but Bakugou's flawless win felt so unearned. He hasn't put any work into getting along with others and working with a team (all the "progress" he made was others- Izuku- doing the work for him). The fact that he didn't so much as struggle like everyone else was just bad writing. Momo losing even though she did put in the work to learn to strategize better and cover her bases just felt like a slap in the face to her character. Every time it feels like Hori wants to do right by her character, he ends up making it worse but had no problem propping Bakugou up every five minutes. I liked Uraraka being the unsung star of this arc, Monoma's team underestimating her and then living to regret it was nice. It's one of the only times the progress she's made as a hero is ever acknowledged. This arc didn't do a good job of making me care about Shinsou though, no substance to his character. Monoma was pretty entertaining

Endeavor Agency: Boring ass arc. It wasn't funny or entertaining and had zero character development for our main characters. Natsuo is antagonized for calling out Endeavor and poor Fuyumi gets yelled at by Bakugou in her own home for sharing her feelings. And then Izuku's bs "i tHiNk YOurE geTtINg REaDy tO fOrGiVE hiM." Like I love him but wtf is that line? Hori trying to force Endeavor's redemption down our throats

Final Exams: This arc is all kinds of bullshit. Sero takes a hit for Mineta and is incapacitated and fails. Yet Bakugou is continuously uncooperative, attacks him teammate, and is also incapacitated and passes? Not to mention it's all on Izuku to be the one to teach him how to work with others when that's supposed to be Aizawa's job. Every other match was also useless. The only one that has real development and interaction was Tododoki and Momo. Todo gets humbled and learns to stop acting above his classmates (even if he didn't do this with the intent of being harmful, he still did it) and Momo gets more confidence and agency. But no one else really learned anything or improved. This arc just proves how bad a teacher Aizawa is tbh

Remedial Course: I feel like this arc is evidence that Bakugou would suck as the main character. I was bored to tears during the entire thing. It felt like forced Bakugou and Todoroki interaction first of all. And truth be told I didn't know that kid was supposed to be mini Bakugou, I thought he was representative of Monoma. He was nowhere as bad as Bakugou was as a kid and felt a lot more chill. Also looked more like Monoma. Idk if this is how Hori wants us to see kid Bakugou or what but we know this isn't how he was. And then Bakugou gives him this whole lecture only to turn around the next arc and still treat Izuku like shit. Fucking hypocrite. Camie telling him to shut up was the only good thing about this arc (stan Camie)

And that's the list! I'm only doing these arcs because they're the only ones I've read/watched completely. I don't want to make judgements about the next three arcs without fully knowing what I'm talking about. Though the leaks for the Final War don't bode well for its ranking.

So what do we think? Agree? Disagree? Let me know!

[x-neurotoxin-x]

Currently taking a short break from updating the paper bag series for at least a week or so (though I'm still brainstorming and outlining the next fic). I've got other projects I'm working on, including 2 collab works for an endabi minibang and a commission, so I'm gonna focus on those for a bit before going back to paper bag

That being said, if youre not caught up or haven't yet read my fucky spinarakidabi fic series yet, now would be a great time to catch up!

It's currently a 7 part fic series at 110k that centers around Dabi, Shigaraki, and Spinner spiraling into unhealthy dynamics while trying to navigate relationships issues and trauma. It's def problematic with some real heavy themes so mind the tags and content warnings k?

[robbierants]

Kuroshituji Trauma Represation In Ciel

Ever since the 6th grade, when my best friend introduced me to Attack On Titan, I have been a huge fan of anime. I delved into the stories, became attached to the characters, and invested a lot of my free time watching anime. Now, I have developed a different sort of appreciation for it.

Usually, anime are rich stories with well-developed characters who have many layers, and experience a number of issues that may seem difficult if not impossible to overcome. The stories are usually well thought out and meaningful, and many times they are stories that viewers can identify with. Anime is not just "cartoons," it's a form of art.

Black Butler (Kuroshitsuji), an anime based on Yana Toboso's manga of the same name, has all of these elements. Boasting at 3 seasons, 34 manga volumes (ATM) two additional short series, several Original Video Animations, and a huge amount of devoted fans, Black Butler is definitely a favorite. It was also the first anime from which I decided to plan cosplays for (I cosplay Danganronpa charcthers ATM)

The story takes place in Victorian England and centers around a thirteen year old boy, Ciel Phantomhive, and his butler, Sebastian Michaelis. Ciel Phantomhive is an English nobleman and sole survivor of the Phantomhive family. Upon his parents' deaths, he became the person in charge of managing the family company, as well as taking on the obligations that come with being the only survivor of a powerful noble family and having to uphold the family name. But the Phantomhives didn't become powerful by simply owning a successful company. For generations, they have been the "Queen's Watch Dogs," the keepers of the royal family's secrets. They exist in the underground world, as a phantom, handling situations that the royal family wants handled.

This includes containing and monitoring criminal organizations, and sometimes putting a stop to them when they get out of hand.

The young Ciel Phantomhive's butler, Sebastian Michaelis, is not just a good butler. He is literally a demon from hell.

How does this boy go about "hiring" a demon, and why am I ranting about this?

At the age of 10, Ciel Phantomhive witnessed his parents' assassination in their own home. He was captured and sold to a group of individuals who kept him a prisoner. It's inferred that he was physically, and possibly sexually, assaulted. When the moment arrived that his captors decided to sacrifice him as part of what seemed like a satanic ritual, a demon was summoned as part of the ritual. Rather than respond to the plea from its summoners, the demon heard the plea from the boy. The plea was to free him, and to help him avenge himself.

The demon's terms were that in exchange for helping Ciel avenge himself, the demon would eat Ciel's soul. Until the day would come that Ciel could achieve his goal of avenging himself, the demon would protect him and follow any order he might give. Ciel agreed and formed a contract with the demon, naming him Sebastian after a dog Ciel used to have. He then returns to his home and the extended family that he still has, but nothing is ever the same for him.

Through the trauma of losing his family and his childhood in such a terrible way, Ciel Phantomhive was stripped of the person that he was. Not only did he lose his parents, but he no longer had the opportunity to grow into whatever person he was supposed to become.

Physically, his development was stunted. It seems that he stopped growing, or at the very least he was growing at an extremely slow rate (short boi)

He showed multiple signs of posttraumatic stress. He was unable to sleep alone in his room, he experienced nightmares and woke up screaming, and he experienced flashbacks of his parents' deaths. Even as three years pass (where the story begins), Ciel is unable to trust anybody. He does not have friends, but business associates. He has obtained new "servants" who in actuality make up his own "private army." Even after three years, if a situation is bad enough he can be triggered into having flashbacks, which make him physically sick. His only childhood friend comments that he has not smiled since the day he returned.

The significance of the demon butler Sebastian is a crucial aspect of the story. Sebastian carries out his butler responsibilities to perfection. He follows Ciel's orders to the letter. He accompanies Ciel wherever he goes as a protector. Many fans have pointed out that physically, Sebastian sort of resembles Ciel's deceased father.

Why is Sebastian such an important character, and what does it say about trauma?

Like many children who experience severe trauma, Ciel carries a demon with him everywhere he goes. The demon is both a reminder of the pain he suffered, and a symbol of renewed strength and posttraumatic growth. The idea of posttraumatic growth is that after experiencing a trauma, a person can experience growth in one or more areas of life.

According to the Posttraumatic Growth Research Group at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, growth can occur in five areas: a sense of new opportunities, closer relationships with others or a heightened sense of connection with others who suffer, increased personal strength, a greater appreciation for life, and an increase/change in one's spirituality. Ciel seems to have achieved posttraumatic growth in at least two areas.

First, he has developed a sense of increased personal strength. He is able to carry on with his responsibilities as the sole remaining Phantomhive because of the strength and protection that Sebastian provides, but he doesn't depend on Sebastian for everything. Ciel is the one who makes all the decisions and gives the orders. When he is triggered to have a flashback of his time spent as a prisoner, and is experiencing an anxiety attack, it is his demon who helps ground him by reminding him that he is no longer in the cage.

Second, despite having difficulty trusting others, he develops a connection with his servants, each of whom has their own personal struggle that he/she has faced, each has his/her own trauma.

In one chapter, for example, the chef Bardroy recalls how different life was for them before working for Ciel, stating, "Back then, we couldn't do anything but kill." The servants also recall how they had "no home, no friends, no freedom," before working for Ciel. His servants develop an undying loyalty toward Ciel, and in a way they come to see him as representing hope, home, family, and perhaps redemption from their past. It is interesting that it would take someone with such a traumatic past as Ciel to offer this sense of belonging to a group of individuals with their own complicated pasts. In addition to his servants, Ciel seems to have a keen awareness of the gifts of others. Whether this is an innate trait or something he developed as a result of his trauma, he is better able to read people and assess them quite accurately.

To say that Ciel copes well with his trauma is not a good assessment of his mental health. He does not wish to overcome his trauma by experiencing the feelings it brings up in him, but by embracing the tragedy of it and allowing it to swallow him whole, as will literally happen eventually. He lives his life as though he were a much older person. Like many who suffer traumas, Ciel was forced to grow up too soon, to reach a level of maturity and understanding of the world and society that is incongruent with his chronological age.

He learned that the world is not a safe place, and that people are not dependable. He has learned that he must act only for himself, and to take advantage or be taken advantage of.

Despite counting on his demon to keep him safe (perhaps symbolic of how trauma can keep a person from being open to new experiences), he does not trust him.

To conclude, Ciel's story has many real life elements of what it is like to live with trauma, expressed through symbolic representation. Ciel has people who care about him, but he cannot ever truly trust anyone again. He has resigned himself to be defined by his tragedy. Though his way of coping may not be healthy, it teaches us about what it is like to carry the demons of our past wherever we go.

[mrmissmrsrandom]

Sumeragi Subaru

Ohhh excellent yes my boy.

send me a character and i’ll list:

favorite thing about them: Just how kind he is. Despite everything, even later under all his trauma and depression, he is still kind.

least favorite thing about them: THAT LACK OF SELF-PRESERVATION. BUDDY I KNOW ITS THE 90s THE STATE OF MENTAL HEALTH IS A PIT, BUT YOU'RE RICH GET A THERAPIST PLEASE.

favorite line: I don't have my darkhorse volumes with me (gathering the new Yen Press Release but only have the first 2 volumes, so this is from volume 2)-- "No one can change the past. No matter how hard we try, time won't reverse. But the future? Only you, Mitsuki-san, can change your future." The "Dream" chapter had a big impact on me when I read it, even if I don't 'agree' with all of the points Subaru makes in that discussion, having him try to center someone on the here and now and reassuring them that they have a choice is powerful. Most of my favorite lines from him are in Tokyo Babylon because I haven't read Tsubasa, and he is more quiet in X.

brOTP: Hokuto-chan. His twin, his sister. ;; Maybe catching up in a what if scenario with him catching up with Hashimoto (the girl who loses her eye, wow the theming!) post-series or even post-X if you imagine all of humanity doesn't die.

OTP: I think at this point its him and Kamui. I'm not saying in that its "better" than him with Seishirou, just that the concept of them interacting based on how they interact in X is more compelling now to me. We never get to see/fully imagine (unless you write fic, which yay! Love that!) Subaru and Seishirou interacting with the full knowledge of who the other is/on an even playing field without The End of Tokyo Babylon. I like everything that is built up and in the end, Subaru did not fall in love with the facade Seishirou put up, but him for him (and then Seishirou never QUITE gets there, so we get -points at X- bozo was too focused on winning The Bet he made with a fucking third grader). SO, back to him and Kamui: they just feel like they get each other in a way no one else seems to, and that adding into the sadness of their bond (understanding but being unable/deciding not to convince the other away from a destructive path). How Subaru tries to be there for Kamui once he officially joins the other Dragons, from speaking with him or helping with homework. Their relationship, if/when we ever get a finale to the manga X (or if you just think about it), feels like the most likely to grow and build into something by the end for me. And hey, both of them have Seishirou and Fuuma as foils/'twin stars', but guess which out of the four get reincarnated as VAMPIRE TWINS in Tsubasa? Subaru and Kamui! Something something soulmates getting reborn together/commentary on Hokuto escaping the wheel of fate but these two boys are still thoroughly In It: but imagining them together makes it feel hopeful. :)

nOTP: Uh, I do not necessarily see him ever being romantically interested in women. So I guess him in a romantic relationship with a woman.

random headcanon: Post-Tokyo Babylon Subaru ends up calling every number in Hokuto's phone book to give away her clothes to friends, but months down the line he gets an unlisted call from the friend she makes in "Smile." They meet up, and Subaru has to tell her what happened, and her trying to smile for him and comfort him, causing him to break down from it, but it also somewhat brings him out of the haze of vengeance he had been in and return to like, eating regularly. Though, after that meeting he also picks up his first pack of cigarettes.

unpopular opinion: Subaru does not naturally come by fashion. He's cute and let Hokuto dress him up. I don't think that's "unpopular," but also by X if the only thing he could wear was something "embarrassing" but not risque, like a mascot uniform or something along those lines--- he would wear it and think nothing of it. Also let my mans be a rope bunny and get to exist in subspace for a bit. Maybe Karen knows an escort from Soapland that can get him into contact with the local BDSM community so he can get out of his head.

song i associate with them: Moon by Rebecca IS from the character soundtrack, but it just works so well for him.

favorite picture of them: This one from Annex: Start, I think? It's just always filled me with so many different emotions despite how subdued it is.

[maxwell-grant]

Are the any superhero type characters from Brazil you wish got more attention internationally?

The ones I create, hopefully I don't really want specific characters to get more attention internationally, so much as I want more interesting characters to be developed, because most Brazilian superheroes (and that goes for a lot of other international superheroes) tend to be stuck on creative dead ends. I can elaborate more on that and the history of Brazilian superheroes if asked but if you want a specific answer, I'll give three, first one being, Tales of the Orishas by Hugo Canuto.

Tales of the Orishas fuses the pantheon of the African diasporic religion of Candomblé with the Silver Age comic aesthetics of Jack Kirby into a riveting tale of high adventure. The story centers around a celestial battle between the gods of Brazil, who are worshipped by the Bahia people, and a fearsome conquering force led by a dark and malevolent overlord. Only Shango, the god of fire and thunder, can lead his people into victory while the fate of creation hangs in the balance.

It is considerably popular already and even used for didactic purposes in classrooms overseas. but I can say very comfortably can say that this is a thing that should reach as large an audience as possible by any means. I mean, fucking look at it.

I haven't had a chance to read it yet, but I've seen enough pages of it that I can very comfortably call it the best Jack Kirby tribute I've ever seen, even though it's ambitions are way higher than just doing that, and It's been heavily recommended by everyone I follow within the Brazilian comics scene for very self-evident reasons. Gets my strongest recommendation out of all these as proof of concept for what can and should be done with Brazilian superheroes.

Danilo Beyruth is one of the biggest names amongs the local comics scene, and has done several works with superhero-esque characters like The Necronaut, which is about a Spectre-esque "lifeguard of the dead" who wanders the world helping spirits carry over and resolve their unfinished business, and Days of Horror, which is a showcase piece for 50 major names in Brazilian comics, in a story about a Dr Doom analogue named Doc Horror standing trial for his role in an alien invasion that murdered his world's Trinity as well as thousands of civilians. He's done five books on the Astronaut series, which are a space-opera superhero-esque revamp of Monica's Gang character Astronaut, more in line with their more adult-themed Graphic MSP line-up.

The power to change the world lies in his hands...but he only wants to play king.

Rei de Lata is set in a world ravaged by war that faced it's worst disaster: a biological weapon that practically drove an entire country extinct. Unexpectedly, however, all children born after the attack developed some kind of abnormality, some kind of power generated by a survival instinct, trauma or extreme situation. Due to their immunity to the toxic air, the surviving adults detest and fear them, and wish to hunt and study them, and so the super-kids must battle for their survival in a post-war country.

And I'm also gonna be including Rei de Lata (I think you can loosely translate it as The Can King but that is way too clunky and isn't quite right for what the name is supposed to mean and sound like), which is available on Webtoon. It's more along the lines of a shonen battle manga, but it is about distinct, superpowered characters, it's invited enough comparisons to MHA and the main character is a supervillain so I feel comfortable putting it here. It's been ongoing since 2017 and I think it got a physical release, it rules and rises above a lot of it's inspirations, the protagonist and side characters are all great opposite perfectly detestable villains. Very strongly recommend it, really excited to see where it's going.

[kabrumithrun]

New Fic: See no evil

https://ift.tt/voE4LyV by Animosa The high rafters of the halls eventually stooped to a low, vaulted ceiling in the next room that made their footsteps echo, multiplying the sound. Each step sounded like two people walking. Between the two of them; four. The ceiling above them was made of up little pointed cups held up by a forest of alabaster pillars. The floors, the lower walls, and the bases of the pillars were covered in limescale, marking lines of residue where water once stood.   Mithrun stops walking in the center of the cistern. In the distance, along one of the walls: an awkward junction where a hallway seemed to be cut out from the room. Cut from a different kind of stone, absent of the chalky lime. Uncaring of whether the placement made sense to the architecture, off-kilter from the masonry of its walls.   It did not look like it belonged to this place.   It was begging to be entered.  Kabru and Mithrun's fears materialize in the heart of the dungeon. Words: 5319, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Series: Part 1 of The Demiurge Fandoms: ダンジョン飯 | Dungeon Meshi | Delicious in Dungeon Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Categories: M/M Characters: Kabru (Dungeon Meshi), Mithrun of the House of Kerensil Relationships: Kabru/Mithrun of the House of Kerensil Additional Tags: Whump, Trauma, Blood and Injury, Blood and Gore, Body Horror, Eye Horror, Forced Proximity, Suicidal Ideation, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Cannibalistic Thoughts, Nightmares, Manga Spoilers, Chimera Kabru, Mithrun's toxic relationship with [redacted], Bonding by sharing a pillow and sharing trauma https://ift.tt/voE4LyV

[sunnidaydreamer]

God, I need someone to talk with about Drakengard.

We need a full-scale AAA remake, to get more people to know about this series!

Yeah, people found out about it through Nier, but it's a product of its time engine and gameplay-wise.

I love the series more than I can say, truly love the series, but the controls are AWFUL.

The movie cutscenes are beautifully done, but the graphics are otherwise bland at best.

But the story it tells!

A deconstruction of fanservice and tropes like the Antihero, the Sister in Love with her Older Brother.

Things like gratuitous violence, with some weapon unlocks requiring INSANE amounts of kills.

The characters! You can tell some of them are or want to be genuinely good people, but they're still people.

Inuart loves Furiae dearly, he thinks of Caim as his brother, but he's consumed by envy. Envy because he can see that the woman he loves may care for him, but she's in love with her own brother. Envy because Caim is strong and respected and everything he feels he isn't.

The Empire, the Watchers, use this to twist him and make him your enemy, purposefully setting him up in a pact with the very dragon that killed Caim and Furiae's parents.

Even when Inuart is able to get free of the brainwashing things aren't just magically better. He's fundamentally changed as a person, driven to madness from grief, willing to fight and kill Caim if it means reviving Furiae.

Drakengard also has interspecies romance! Yes my friends, while it is not in your face explicitly, Caim and the Red Dragon, aka Angelus, do end up falling in love. What can I say, Caim knows what he wants in a woman.

And what he wants is a giant red dragon. Follow your dreams, my man!

Manah is the result of an abused child desperately searching for even a crumb of love, taken over and manipulated by the Watchers, but as long as they tell her they love her she clings to them.

This carries over into Drakengard 2. Even though 2 is famously the black sheep of the series as it was not written by Yoko Taro, and some fans of the series won't even acknowledge it, and it is bowdlerized to hell and back it does have its moments.

Manah before the main story of 2 suffered a head injury that left her basically a blank slate. We see that she has grown into a kind person, who wants to help those who are suffering. She genuinely believes that destroying the Seals is the right course of action.

And when it turns out that destroying them triggered the end of the world? That this is the second time that she has brought this about?

It breaks her.

For a chunk of the later half of the game, Manah is full-on insane out of guilt. She's so broken that the Watchers are able to easily slide back into her mind and soul and possess her again.

The way her trauma and insanity are... handled for lack of better phrasing is, to be blunt, kind of terrible though.

Nowe somehow teleports into her mind and kills the manifestations of her trauma/the Watchers. The power of love?

Once they're dead she's magically better! No more guilt or trauma!

In the third ending she's so healed from her trauma that the Watchers have nothing to hold on to when trying to possess her again and she... absorbs them?

Yeah, there's a good reason 2 is.... controversial to say the least.

I love Eris though, you go my pyromaniac daughter, set a woman on fire with a big ass grin. Are Nowe and Manah an example of interspecies romance? Nowe is some kind of dragon-human hybrid called the New Breed, and Manah is human so.... I guess?

This is only the games by the way. There are several novels relating to all three of the Drakengard games, as well as 2 manga relating to 1, but one of the manga was never finished for some reason. 3 also has a manga centered on the other 5 Intoners after they were accidentally created by Zero.

1 also has novels that are like an alternate universe take as well, but I've never been able to read them and I don't know if they're still ongoing or what is happening there.

[saffronapplemanga]

Tenmaku no Jadoogar: A Witch’s Life in Mongol - 天幕のジャードゥーガル

HISTORICAL, DRAMA

Tenmaku no Jadoogar: A Witch’s Life in Mongol by Tomato Soup

(2 volumes, ongoing)

JP only. The first 5 chapters are up for free in JP here.

Links to my other manga posts here

Hi, Fatimah here to talk more about the story of Fatima >:)

Definitely check out my post for volume one because I worked really hard on that and there's lots of cool info there and I don't want to repeat myself here.

This post will be broken up into: Brief Volume Two Summary - My Thoughts - Let's Talk Religion (Again) - The "Middle East" Is Actually a Colonizer Term

Let's go!

Brief Volume Two Summary

***SPOILERS FOR VOLUME TWO***

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8 years have passed since Fatima was taken by the Mongols. She has been unable to retrieve the book that was stolen even though she's had it in her hands over and over. Ögedei has been crowned the new Khan after the death of Ghengis Khan. Sorghaghtani has asked Fatima to go spy on Chagatai. While trying to get her to infiltrate, she ends up at Töregene's tent instead where Fatima is accused of stealing her "Jada Stone".

We learn about Töregene's back story and her forced integration into the Mongol Empire, losing those she loved, and her marriage to Ögedei. Töregene and Fatima bond over their shared trauma and hate towards their captures. They start working together on upending the empire.

And work together they are! Looks like they're gonna raise hell in the empire.

Töregene attends a meeting she normally skips, and there Ögedei Khan proposes that the nomadic Mongols build a city. Everyone is against the idea as they were expecting to discuss the invasion of the eastern country, Kin (also known as the Jin State). Ögedei says that he wants to use this new city for manufacturing, to gather craftsmen from around the world, and as a center for trade. They then discuss their war plans for the siege on the Jin State.

Töregene shares all the information she's learned at the meeting with Fatima, and they discuss potential weaknesses in the Mongol Empire that could cause its downfall.

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***END OF SPOILERS FOR VOLUME TWO***

My Thoughts

I'm excited to see what Fatima and Töregene do and what their dynamic is going to be like.

I do wish that some info was incorporated a little more subtly. I'm not a fan of info being dumped for the sake of the reader. Author Tomato Soup clearly has put a lot of care into researching for this series, so I just wish they took that extra step to weave the information in more naturally.

They put a lot of care into the visual language, such as the shape of text bubbles (right pic), so seeing charts like this (left pic) feels visually inconsistent.

Let's Talk Religion (Again)

Once again, I want to put the disclaimer that I am NOT a scholar, this is just what I know and my understanding so please don’t quote me. I probably have to gloss over and simplify a lot because there’s… too much.

At the beginning of the volume, there is mention of Islamic meat slaughtering practices (halal meat) compared to the customs of the Mongols.

I think halal is a word a lot of people have heard, especially in recent years, but what does it even mean?

Halal is anything that is permissible in Islam. Haram is anything NOT permissible in Islam, or sins. There are also things that are makrooh (strongly discouraged but not a sin) and mustahab (recommended but not obligatory) and so on.

How does that translate to food?

Halal foods are foods that are permissible for Muslims to consume. Most things are okay for consumption, so it's easier to list what isn't allowed/haram. You might be familiar with the fact that Muslims do not drink alcohol or eat pork. There's a reason for all this, but I'll get to that later. Some other things that are haram to consume are the following:

Carnivorous/predatory animals (Pigs are omnivores, so they technically fall into this category as well. Only herbivores are permissible to consume.)

Animals that died from disease.

Incests, reptiles, and "pests" (such as mice/rats).

These next points are debated depending on what scholar you follow:

Some Muslims only eat fish that have scales, while some believe pretty much any seafood that doesn't fall into the previous categories is fair game (I call this The Great Muslim Seafood Debate loll).

Some Muslims believe you should not eat "beasts of burden" such as horses/mules.

Exceptions to these rules are if you are in a situation where you are left with no other choice but a haram food option, then you will not be guilty of sin for consuming. God never wants to place unreasonable burden on his creation. One of the most important things in Islam is intention, and God can see what's in your heart.

Okay, so you have something that clears these rules. But! That doesn't automatically make it halal. When it comes to consuming animals, the slaughtering of the animal has to be done in a specific way. Let's break it down:

Land animals -

When slaughtering a land animal, it must be done in a specific way so that it becomes halal meat:

The animal must be well-fed and given water before slaughter.

They must be soothed and calm. You cannot slaughter if the animal is fearful and agitated.

Other animals must not witness the slaughter as it can frighten them.

The slaughter must be performed using a very sharp knife to cut the throat. Doing this will cause the animal to immediately lose consciousness and thus will not feel pain. It must be done as quickly, painlessly, and humanly as possible.

Do not allow the animal to see the knife as it can frighten them.

The slaughter must be performed by a Muslim. They must recite a prayer before cutting the throat and do so while facing Mecca.

The blood must be drained from the animal's body after the neck is cut as disease/toxins/etc. can live in the blood. This makes the meat cleaner and more sanitary.

You cannot stun an animal before slaughter (such as hitting it on the head or zapping it with electricity).

In cases where you are hunting, you can use arrows, guns, or hunting birds when hunting an animal that cannot easily be caught for traditional methods of slaughter.

Hunting is only allowed with the intention of hunting for food, not sport.

You must say a prayer when shooting.

If the animal does not die immediately during the hunt, you should slaughter them as quickly and painlessly as possible and not unnecessarily prolong any suffering.

"There's a reason for cutting the neck and slaughtering this way, you know..."

I still don't like the way this info is visually presented. I feel like it could have been done more naturally instead of breaking the immersion to explain things to the reader. But the info is correct!

Animals of the sea -

The animal must die outside of the water (for example, using "blast fishing" or "fish bombing" is prohibited — it's horrible for the environment and does not discriminate on what fish are killed. Even animals like dolphins and turtles can get caught in the blast and die. Coral reefs and such can end up damaged as well. Also, according to Wikipedia "For every ten fish killed, only one or two float to the surface, due to damage caused to their otherwise buoyant internal air bladders. The rest sink to the bottom." This causes a lot of waste. Using this method, you also wouldn't know if a fish was dead from disease and already floating around or if it was from the blast.)

They should not be descaled/skinned while still alive (this is the same for land animals).

I know this might seem like a long and tedious list, but there is a reason for these halal food guidelines. The purpose is to not cause any unnecessary pain to animals, be as humane as possible, and not consume anything that would be bad for your health. Health is of the utmost importance in Islam. I think we can all agree that alcohol is not great for you. There are studies being done about the effects of consuming carnivorous animal meat, pork, and so on not being the greatest for you either, etc. Again I want to reiterate, I'm not judging anyone. You do you, I literally don't care. I'm not saying you're wrong and terrible for consuming these things.

But yeah, I think that's everything for relevant religious stuff that came up in this volume.

I'd like to use the setting of the series as a springboard to discuss something I never see anyone talk about — and I think we should.

The "Middle East" Is Actually a Colonizer Term

Before you roll your eyes at me, just hear me out.

A while back, Drew Mackie, the guy behind Thrilling Tales of Old Video Games where I work as a translator/consultant, sent me an email with some questions for a post he was working on. Long story short, he wasn't sure how to refer to these Nintendo characters who looked stereotypically "Middle Eastern".

Big sigh... I am TIRED of seeing character designs like this... Check out Drew's post here! He writes lots of cool articles that are super interesting!

Luckily for him, this was VERY MUCH my lane. Please entertain my oncoming rant about the term "Middle East" guys. I swear I have a point to make.

When Drew sent me the picture of these Nintendo characters, I groaned. When I sent my brother the picture, he got real ticked off.

I don't know where it started exactly, but everyone just decided that this is what the "Middle-Eastern-look" is. To me, it just looks like Disney's Aladdin — in which what I mean is that this is what Westerners decided the whole region between the far East and far West looks like and everyone was like, "Yeah sure, okay." This look that is so prevalent looks like some bizarre mash-up of West Asia, South Asia, and North Africa to me. That's quite a range of regions to group together...

I always found it weird that this was the "Middle-Eastern-look" since it looked nothing like Kuwaiti traditional wear to me (or any other traditional clothing I'm familiar with tbh). And yet, it's like everyone was telling me, "Yes, this is what you wear. This is what you look like."

Some actual Kuwaiti traditional clothing. You can see a lot of influence from other regions due to trade. The headdresses remind me of the ones you see in Tenmaku no Jadoogar! I believe Turkey has something similar as well! And idk about you guys, but it doesn't look like the aforementioned "Middle-Eastern-look". That is some unholy mishmash of "brown culture" from the perspective of those outside of said culture.

Bottom right pic is what ship builders and pearl divers wore. My grandpa was a pearl diver! The fabric tied around their waist that's different colors and patterns is called a wizar. Dishdasha (the men's robe) can come in various colors. White is worn in the summer and darker colors in the winter. The red qitra (the fabric on the head) is also for winter as it's thicker and warmer than the white one. You can mix and match, especially between seasons to suit you depending on the weather. The black and gold overcoat is a bisht and it's to dress up the dishdasha, usually for special occasions.

Honestly, I almost never use the term "Middle East" myself for a few reasons (and now that I think about it, most of my family and friends don't really either. Maybe that's just me and the people around me idk. I know some people from the region do use it but I'm talking about the people I personally know). Like, what does the term even mean? I mean, it's not a continent, but everyone seems to act like it's the eighth continent. I get that continents are usually further broken up into regions to help be more specific about similar groups since continents are, well, huge and cover a lot.

The problem is, the "Middle East" is wayyyy too big and broad, and it covers areas that often don't have as much in common as many would believe, and it spans multiple continents (Are there similarities? Yeah of course, but like...). It feels like they said, "All you guys talk Arabic so we'll group you. Oh, and throw Iran and Turkey in there because same thing, right?" But then what about Libya or Morroco, which are North African Arab countries? By some definitions, they're not considered to be in the Middle East even though they "fit" but Egypt, another North African Arab country is? I could go on, but idk it all seems very arbitrary.

Yes, these regions did have a lot of trade going on with the Silk Road so you'll see common things shared across various countries along this trade route, but many people have just mushed them together and decided it's all the same.

Which Middle East is the Middle East-est Middle East?

Where did the term come from? -

The term "Middle East" may have originated in the 1850s in the British India Office. However, it became more widely known when American naval strategist Alfred Thayer Mahan used the term in 1902 to "designate the area between Arabia and India".

Which reads to me like, because some colonizers said so.

There's also a term that's kinda worse I recently learned about called the "Greater Middle East" which Wikipedia describes as:

The Greater Middle East is a political term, introduced in March 2004 in a paper by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace as a part of the U.S. administration's preparatory work for the Group of Eight summit of June 2004, denoting a vaguely defined region called the "Arab world" together with Afghanistan, Iran, Israel, Turkey, and several other neighboring countries that have cultural ties.

I recommend reading the rest of the paragraph on Wikipedia for yourself. It comes off as incredibly nope. It's gross.

But even this description says, "denoting a vaguely defined region" which is what I mean when I say it's arbitrary. I feel like it's too often used as a blanket term with negative connotations.

Personally, if I'm talking about Arab countries, I say "Arab" but it also depends on what I'm talking about. If it's a shared Arab thing, then Arab is fine, but if it's a cultural thing that's unique to Sham Arabs for example, I don't use it as broadly. Arab countries vary A LOT. Many assume they're all the same, but truth be told, Arabs get culture shock from each other and have a lot that's different — including neighboring nations. Sometimes we don't even understand each other because of how different dialects can be across different regions.

Obviously, I don't expect everyone to know all this, but I think the way we divide up the region and how we refer to it could get a makeover.

The world seems to be okay with dividing up, for example, Europe into smaller sub-regions that make some kind of sense — like Northern Europe, Western Europe, etc. But we don't commonly do that for the "Middle East" —  nothing that makes any kind of sense. "Middle East" because it's halfway to East Asia in relation to the West? Because the colonizers said so?

Personally, I generally refer to myself as West Asian and I always check "Asian" on forms, even when they try to convince me Arabs are apparently white as if that makes sense (meanwhile my dad is perceived as being mixed race/black in America and he's not even close to being the darkest on his side of the family. While I am pale, no one would perceive me as white). Like I mentioned in my volume one post, I'm not only Kuwaiti Arab. I'm also Irani which is Persian and NOT Arab, plus some Turkish ancestry (also NOT Arab). Allllll of those countries are in West Asia. West Asia is already a term! Why don't we use it?????? We should all know why by now if you've gotten this far in the post.

Map of West Asia, which is already a thing. An actual geographical term. Wow. Too many people don't realize these countries are indeed in Asia. Crazy how Asia isn't just Japan, China, and Korea, huh.

I'm sure there are "Middle Easterners" who don't care, and I'm not here to tell those people how they should identify. That's up to them. DO NOT tell people how they should identify because that is deeply personal, and who the hell are you to tell them who they are?

But for the rest of you, consider adopting less colonizer vocabulary maybe? A lot of my family and friends find the term to have racist connotations since it's almost always used in a not-so-great context and it's from the view of the West. We HAVE other terms that we can use! Time to brush up on our geography and unlearn some nonsense kids.

I'm done. Thanks for coming to my TED talk❤️

✨And once again✨

I await your email publishers, my resume is ready… fatimahhajiasiri@gmail.com

🧿🪬🧿🪬🧿🪬🧿🪬🧿🪬🧿🪬🧿🪬🧿🪬🧿

—————————–

If there’s any Japanese-only manga you want me to check out, let me know! No promises, I’ll only read what I’m interested in, but I’ll take suggestions into consideration. Preferably, shorter manga or newer manga with a few volumes out since I like to take breaks from longer series I’m reading :)

[clearandmuddy]

A recommendation for fans of JWQS

The Legend of Basara is a Shoujo manga by Yumi Tamura that was serialized from 1990 - 1998. In total, the manga makes up 28 volumes.

It's an older series but definitely worth a read. I couldn't help but be reminded a lot of Basara while reading JWQS and I wanted to help bring some light to it as a series because of that.

The story of Basara is set in a post-apocalyptic future where Japan is ruled under the iron fist of a tyrannical king and his four sons. Hope is found in the birth of a young boy named Tatara who is anointed the "Child of Destiny".

Tatara is prophesied to lead the way to a bright future free of the cruel empire they live under and lead to a better life.

Yet, when the village of the "Child of Destiny" is conquered by the Red King, and life of the "Child of Destiny" is taken right in front of everyone's very eyes.

Now, Sarasa, the twin sister of Tatara, witnesses the horror of losing her family and ends up taking the name of her brother, Tatara, and the title of the "Child of Destiny" to avenge her family and fight for freedom and a bright future.

I will be very light on spoilers here because this is a recommendation post but the story only goes deeper and more complicated from there as Sarasa is forced to conceal her identity and gender to fight to avenge her family.

From the premise alone you can see the parallels between Basara and JWQS.

Sarasa much like Qi Yan assumes a male alter ego. Both heroines are survivors of a massacre and are fighting for the revenge of their families.

Qi Yan and Sarasa have very different personalities though.

Qi Yan is deceptive and scheming, mostly doing her work from the shadows while Sarasa is a soldier fighting a war from the front line. Sarasa is also far more delicate and naive than Qi Yan, whose trauma made her hardened and cold.

Another similarity is that both are romances centered around enemies to lovers. I will be vague for the sake of spoilers, but Sarasa ends up falling in love with a man who she is not meant to fall in love with. A man who is one of her enemies.

He is the second main character and just as complicated and nuanced as Sarasa. And his relationship with her is very cute and sweet despite the fact they are enemies.

Qi Yan is the same. Someone who fell in love with someone she shouldn't have. Someone who she's supposed to hate. Her enemy.

The dynamics of both couples are very different but both have an added tension because they are "Enemies to Lovers".

So both stories have:

A Strong Female Lead

Cross Dressing To Conceal One's Identity

Being a Sole Survivor

Revenge

Enemies to Lovers

Slow Burn

Angst With A Happy Ending (I swear)

The main differences between the series would be that Basara is a comic and a hetero-sexual pairing and generally is not as dark or as depressing as JWQS, though it does have its darker moments.

Due to its age, some aspects of representation have not aged well, so you should be mindful that some moments may be uncomfortable to read now.

For content warnings, there are many darker themes touched on in Basara such as: War Crimes, Child Abuse, Kidnapping, Sexual Assault, Slavery.

So please be mindful of this.

Basara is a fun action-adventure story with a lot of world-building and suspense with a really complicated female lead. If you like JWQS I think it's worth giving a try. Sadly the physical editions are out of print but the series is available digitally.

Thank you for reading my post!

[jangmo-othewarrior]

DMC Questions Anon here!

Before you read this next question:

I was informed that it would be a good idea for my questions to be answered with a specific tag so if people wish to block it they could. Please tag your answers to any question I send you with "dmc questions anon" and I think that should work.

If you wish to be taken off the list, ask. If somebody wishes to be placed on the list, ask. If your anon asks are off and you wish to participate, just make a post answering the question you see going around.

Remember you do not have to answer every question, so please don't feel pressured to do so.

Please also remember to take as long as you need! Do not rush yourself, this is supposed to be a fun activity and I don't want anyone to feel stressed out by trying to rush to answer questions.

Now onto the actual question:

How would you rank the 5 games in the Devil May Cry series? (By story)

Separately, if you want, how would you rank extended material? (The DMC1 Novel, The DMC3 Mangas, The Anime, The DMC2 Novel, Deadly Fortune, Before the Nightmare, and Visions of V, all of which can be found (along with other stuff) here: https://originaldmc.github.io/DivinityStatue/Downloads.html)

If you wish, how would you rank all of it together in one big list?

DMC QUESTIONS ANON!! :D

Okay, I'm gonna do everything together, but i will preface this by saying i have a lot more exposure to some things than others, thus I will have varying degrees of 'much to say'.

DMC 5

I'm definitely biased for this (it's the one that got me into the franchise) but I digress.

FAMILY THEMES BABI MY FAVORITE THING

I just adore the main cast so much u do not understand. So much hype shit happens with em too, it's great. The characters are simultaneously over the top but also very real? Like Dante is the wacky woo-hoo pizza man but also horribly in control of his emotions and how to express them.

The Vergil reveal was so obvious but I dont care. It's good. The depths given to his character through V and Urizen are VERY good.

And NERO- lord everyone in this family has trauma

Also SDT was introduced in this game I'm sorry but no piece of DMC media will be able to top this because of it.

2. DMC 3

is anyone surprised

I love the bois so much, with their stupid catchphrases and horrible family dynamics. it's so weird looking at them like

I was nighteen once. I wasn't like them but I was nighteen.

Also the THEMES once again center around family, especially with the addition of Lady and Arkum. I also love this cast SO MUCH

except arkum fuck arkum all the homies hate arkum

Literally the only reason this is lower than DMC 5 is because no Nero, Trish or Nico. That's it.

3. Visions of V

i haven't talked about him much but I would also gently hold V (and by extension Vergil)

Really I just love this manga because of how much is shown and revealed through it. Everything is really visceral and hits so hard.

Literally everything in this manga stabs u in the feels especially the final shit GOOD LORD

but it really is tied with #4 because it can't really stand by itself? It needs DMC 5 to be whole, in a way.

4. DMC 4

I really wanted to put this above VoV but my DMC 5 bias shown through in the end IM SORRY

also yeah Sanctus as a villian is dogshit, i agree

and some characters REALLY needed more screen time (see: Credo, Angus, KYRIE) but also this game has the Shakespeare scene so....

also I just love Nero and his teen angst can u blame me

But GOD did Kyrie need more screentime

5. Before the Nightmare

Wow the DMC 5 bias strikes again, huh.

IDK man I just love the prequel shit. Like, Nico and Nero meeting is so fucking funny

Also Lucia makes an appearance for the first time since DMC 2 so thats cool

It also expanded the lore on how devil arms work through Balrog which I am SO thankful for.

Also Roc Goldstein exists now and everyone should know about one of the ONLY GOOD DADS in DMC history

Really the only other one I give my full respect to is Sparda, and he died when his kids were like, six. (Dante and Vergil r getting there tho, give em time.)

6. The Anime

Look Patty is the only reason this is so high I love her and if u look at my previous posts u can tell I love her and Dante's father daughter relationship u can pry it out of my cold dead hands

Also the lore with Sparda's apprentices, demon smoners being a thing, and the introduction to Morrison is very nice.

But also Lady was WAY off the mark almost the entire time, and the plot with Patty only really took center stage towards the end so :(

ALSO THEY DIDNT EVEN SHOW DEVIL TRIGGER IN FULL I WILL NEVER FORGIVE CAPCOM FOR THIS INJUSTICE

capcom if u put Patty in more shit I will forgive you (maybe)

7. DMC 1 novel

This novel is weird because it was written before almost all of the other shit so Canon often either ignored it or bent over backwards to avoid it until the DMC 5 era

But I like it. All of the new characters r very good and I love them all.

Grues death STILL hits me in the feels so hard.

Dante has lost so many parental figures ya'll

One of the only reasons it's so low is because of Gilver, the fuck

He made NO fucking sense for the longest time until the timeline rewrite and the retcon that he's a Vergil clone.

That fits his character so much more bur looking at him as Vergil makes no fucking sense. Everything about his character contradicts what we know about Vergil, even back with only DMC 3 as a reference.

Despite those issues, i am very happy we are seeing some rep for this book in the games and other media. U do not understand the screech I let out when Grue's daughters were shown years later.

8. DMC 1

is this sacrilegious?

Yeah the gameplay is good and it was a hallmark of its time but also Dante is as stale as cardboard here I'm sorry

Like his plot is the most uniform and overdone revenge plot I have ever seen and his relationship with Trish....

it's funky in this game, let me tell u. Thank whatever higher power exists that they leaned more towards siblings in later installments because I would be pulling my hair out otherwise.

But the quips r also really good and all of the Nelo Angelo stuff is my favorite part of the plot, so I guess that evens out?

This game was a very good launching point for the rest of the series except u know what

Also fuck mundus all the homies hate mundus he sucks

9. Deadly Fortune

Uhhh yeah it's just.... DMC 4 again with some things changed?

Honestly the reason this is so low is because of my preferred way of absorbing story is through video games than manga.

It's okay. Not trash or anything. It's just alright

10. DMC 3 Mangas

They're ... fine? I guess.

Like the first meeting between the twins in YEARS is very good, but also the manga is unfinished and all...

So I'll just leave it at that.

11. DMC 2 Novel

Gonna be honest I've never read this one.

So I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt

12. DMC 2

Yeah remember when I said Dante was cardboard in DMC 1? Yeah now he's silent, emotionless cardboard.

the villian is bad, the location is okay i guess, really the only saving grace for this games story is the concepts it introduces

Demon civil wars? Artificial demons created by people? Those are cool concepts! So cool that one was reused in a much better game, but I digress.

Honestly the story is probably one of the least sacrilege parts of DMC 2, and it still isn't the worst piece of DMC media based on story. That goes to our surprise contender....

13. DMC: Devil May Cry

DMC questions anon did NOT ask for this, but I'm putting it here so that everyone understands that this games story and characters are SO BAD that I'm putting UNDERNEATH DMC 2

But what can I say that hasn't been already stated?

Vergil is so far out of character he's basically an OC and his turn around at the end makes no fucking sense

Donte is an asshole who has functionally abandoned what made Dante likeable in ANY GAME

The plot itself is the most rehashed 'the government is evil and we must resist it' plot EVER

Even the new shit they added for this game doesn't even fucking work well.

Having demons that look like angels be the antagonists is much more interesting that just having angels and having them do NOTHING

Kat is literally the only thing that I don't have a super negative opinion on because she was NEW and I hadn't watched them fuck up a character I love. They just made a mediocre one at best

Needless to say, I utterly despise the plot of this game with my entire being.

Thank you for the question, DMC Questions Anon! I'm sorry I went a bit off script, but I hope it was at least entertaining.