#all games like that have really dumb protagonists

[perotovar]

about your post on tl*u s2; - 🪽

one thing i haven't seen anybody talk about is the misogyny in the writing of this season. in a story with two protagonists -- both women, one of them a lesbian -- they managed to center and focus the male characters massively while sidelining the protagonist???

joel and tommy get whole new backstory flashbacks to deepen their characters (and, for some reason, make him homophobic), jesse is a whole different person so he can have his own individual reasonings to participate in the story, meanwhile ellie (the protagonist) is dumbed down, flattened into an angsty teen and abby is villainized into a monologuing cartoon antagonist who coerces and bullies her friends into brutality -- a gross way of reducing her nuanced character with complex relationships into just, "The Villain."

not to mention, the fanservice. lines like "no teen likes their parents at that age (from joel), "i'm gonna be a dad" and "you really are quite handsome" are these characters being used as a medium for the viewer, with the obvious intent of pleasing the masses and marketing on the fandom jokes at the expense of the meaningfulness and complexity of the original characters.

i'm not sure if it's intended misogyny, but that is certainly the outcome. i think one thing that happened is that neil/halley/craig are trying to ""fix"" the problems people had with tlou pt2. idk if you were around when pt2 came out, but it was not received well by the players. they got a fuckton of backlash for a lot of the choices they made and it's one of those stories that had to grown on people and accept over time. it ended up being the most awarded game ever until baldur's gate 3 came out.

so i think they're trying to "correct" a lot of the problems people had, but it's misguided because we've had time to sit with it and accept it. plus i think neil is spineless for a number of reasons and there are bigger problems within the story that he won't fix so it didn't work.

"joel and tommy get whole new backstory flashbacks to deepen their characters (and, for some reason, make him homophobic)"

this is something i've seen come up a few times and... i don't necessarily agree? joel and tommy's backstory is something we (the game fans) have been wanting for over 10 years and we finally got some sort of glimpse. the show is the perfect avenue for them to take in giving it to us so i didn't mind it at all. i don't like that their dad was an abusive cop but that's a different discussion.

i don't think joel is homophobic, either. i think he's old school texas republican and has preconceived biases. he's got an idea of what people are "supposed" to do and in that moment, he was on high alert because his kid was smoking weed, getting a tattoo, and presumably having sex so he was in full Dad Mode. he also still believed in the age of consent in an apocalypse where that wasn't even a thing anymore and got mad at that too. he also came around in the end and got over himself because i think he'd rather have ellie gay than not at all.

"jesse is a whole different person so he can have his own individual reasonings to participate in the story"

yeah i hated what they did to jesse. he was a petulant shithead in this and i was like ??? where's the jesse that said "my friends problems are my problems"? he's more protective and selfless than whatever the fuck he was in the show and it annoyed me lmao

"meanwhile ellie (the protagonist) is dumbed down, flattened into an angsty teen and abby is villainized into a monologuing cartoon antagonist who coerces and bullies her friends into brutality -- a gross way of reducing her nuanced character with complex relationships into just, "The Villain.""

yeah, i agree with this. they really fucked over both of them

"no teen likes their parents at that age (from joel), "i'm gonna be a dad" and "you really are quite handsome"

yeah...... i fucking hated a lot of the dialogue writing in this season. it felt so clunky and lame and ugh

"are these characters being used as a medium for the viewer, with the obvious intent of pleasing the masses and marketing on the fandom jokes at the expense of the meaningfulness and complexity of the original characters?"

i think the answer to this is just "yes". i definitely think they're trying to make this story appeal to everyone when that was never going to happen in the first place. you can't retcon/"fix" the problems in the original while keeping the integrity of the story. it didn't appeal to a lot of people initially so why would it now? instead, the focus should've been on making a great story and not a story for everyone. it was never going to happen.

[daytaker]

You know how in VN games

you have to make choices and almost always you find yourself with choices that are just stupid? And you want to smack the main character and tell them to knock it off?

Why is the Twisted Wonderland MC like that but like 10 times stupider than normal.

What are they even DOING.

They are so oblivious to literally everything happening around them I just

(SMACKS MY FACE INTO A WALL)

The entire Octavinelle chapter was like... a test in my tolerance of being forced to play a dumbass around a bunch of very intelligent characters (and some other dumbass characters but they're fine since they ain't me).

I actually just went up to Azul and signed a contract with no backup plan, nothing, just hoping that maybe I'd figure something out in three days? How could this game make me so stupid as to solve that problem by threatening to annoy Leona? Why did that work? I can only assume he's planning my murder, which will be richly deserved, to be honest.

I almost never take any agency but the times when I do, it's to be stupid. For shame.

[oakgreenoak]

Something I've always found kinda interesting about Red and Green in gameverse is how they turn some of the Stock Shōnen Protagonist/Rival tropes on their heads.

This is really long character analysis of these two and various media counterparts of theirs, so I'm gonna stick it under a cut.

In some ways they fit their roles quite well - aside from the obvious colour associations, you have Red as the hero whose sense of justice is stronger than his sense of self-preservation, and you have Green as the privileged rival who cares about beating Red above all else.

But, if you look at it another way - Green's got the light spiky hair, the hot-headed and boisterous personality, the drive to Get Better And Win. He's designed to read as really open and chipper, yet snarky. Sure, he isn't dumb, but he's arrogant, and he's got something of a one-track mind; the guy finds himself in the middle of a hostage situation because he's just that hellbent on fighting his rival, and does not seem to be thinking about anything else. He's also got a motivation - given how the Professor talks to him in the championship room and supplementary material like his Generations appearance, it's not a stretch to think the reason he's so driven to Get Better And Win is to prove himself to his grandfather. It's shown in later games and supplementary works that he's become somewhat of a mentor as he got older and wiser.

Red, on the other hand, is a quiet loner whose only motivation seems to be to get stronger for the sake of getting stronger. He's level-headed and dark haired, his cap rounding off his edges and obscuring his face. He's heroic, but not really sociable, as evidenced by the fact he spends the Johto games alone on a mountain without having told anyone where he went. He seems isolated in a way that later games' protagonists really don't. He may have always been a step behind Green, but he's always better.

Equally fascinating to me is how other adaptations have changed the base designs around and rewritten personalities to suit different purposes, while still being visually recognisable as counterparts to their game-selves.

For example: Red and Green's counterparts in Special slot WAY more neatly into their stock shōnen roles, with Red as the boisterous hero and Green as the broody rival, and it's reflected in their new designs.

Red's hair becomes spiky to reflect his more excitable nature. His hat, in turn, never obscures his face; it's always either tilted back to accommodate his fringe or turned backwards. Green's hair, on the other hand, is not quite as spiked upwards and instead falls into his face, frequently obscuring his far eye in the same way game!Red's hat does.

And then, of course, the anime balanced them in a totally different direction.

Instead of scrapping Green's personality wholecloth, it's become exaggerated in Gary. He's not the broody antihero rival, he's the arrogant, privileged, better-than-you rival. He's always ten steps ahead of Ash, always pisses him off, and is ALWAYS better until the end of his run. The anime also emphasises his intelligence far more, with him doing things like rattling off dex info and the speed of light in mph off the top of his head, to further contrast him with Ash.

Ash, who is of course THE shōnen protagonist. He's dumb, but determined, and always ready to help people in need. Unlike game!Red, the power of friendship (with more than just pokémon) is central to him; any given season of the show is defined as much if not moreso by his travelling companions and interpersonal relationships as it is by whatever he's actually doing.

It's funny to me, though, how most adaptations seem to find the fact that gameverse Red and Green have swapped some stock roles as something to fix. Even Origins, which is probably the closest a high-profile adaption has come to game-accurate, made its version of Red louder and more standard-hero-esque.

I'm not knocking any of these things, of course, just observing. I adore both Special and anipoke. I just think that the way the game characters are written could lead to some interesting dynamics were it to be explored more.

[ayumigotabittoolonelyquitted]

Yuji itadori x tall reader head canons

♡ The moment Yuji lays eyes on you, it’s game over for him. You’re exactly his type tall, strong, blessed and he’s already imagining what your wedding photos would look like.

♡ He’s so confident when he confesses, too. Probably flashes you that goofy, boyish grin and says something like:

"Hey, I think you’re really cool. Wanna go out with me?"

And you? You look down at him (literally) and just go:

"Sorry, you’re too short."

Immediate psychological damage. Yuji.exe has stopped working.

He stands there, smiling on the outside but internally combusting.

"Too short? Too SHORT???"

But it gets worse. He asks, trying to salvage his pride:

"Then… what’s your type?"

And you, without hesitation:

"Todo."

MORTAL WOUND. DEATH. PAIN.

♡ Bro just got rejected and his best friend got praised in the same breath.

You walk away, completely unaware that you just shattered his entire ego.

Meanwhile, Yuji is standing there, staring at Todo from across the training field like a betrayed shonen protagonist.

♡ Cue maldative dreaming.

"so when I asked her out , she said I wasn't her type"

"I wish I was a little bit taller…"

"I wish I was a baller…"

"i wish I was 6 foot baller"

"I wish I had a girl , I'll call"

♡ He starts looking up height-enhancing exercises on Google. Hanging from bars, stretching his legs, drinking so much milk this man is on a mission.

♡ Considers asking Gojo if there’s a cursed technique that can make him taller.

At some point, Megumi just sighs and says:

"You’re never gonna be taller than Todo. Accept it."

Yuji refuses. He refuses.

♡ Starts wearing shoes with thick soles, hoping to gain even an inch.

♡ When you and Todo are sparring, and Todo lifts you effortlessly, Yuji is in the background dying inside.

♡ Eventually, he just stares at himself in the mirror like:

"Maybe she’ll fall for my personality instead… right?"

♡ Meanwhile, Todo has no idea any of this is happening. He’s just vibing, calling Yuji his besto friendo, completely oblivious to the emotional crisis happening next to him.

Wish granted

♡ After weeks of maldative dreaming, failed height-increasing attempts, and watching you simp for Todo, Yuji was ready to accept his fate.

But then, fate does him a solid.

♡Gojo sensei, in his infinite wisdom (or trolling tendencies), pairs you and Yuji as training partners for an entire month. (Fox he did that on purpose)

♡Yuji is initially like, “Oh god, this is gonna be painful.” He’s fully expecting you to talk about Todo 24/7 while he suffers in silence.

♡ But after a week of working together, he realizes something.

You’re actually… really cool.

Not just in a “wow, hot person” way but in a “holy shit, I really like talking to them” way.

You hype him up during training and laugh at his dumb jokes.

You don’t baby him you challenge him, push him to be stronger.

And when he actually manages to land a hit on you during sparring, you grin and say, “Damn, shortie’s fast.”

♡ Normally, the height comment would kill him. But… why is he blushing instead???

♡ Meanwhile, you? You were obsessed with Todo.

♡ But now? Yuji’s got you questioning everything.

♡ Like, why does his laugh make your chest feel weird?

♡ Why do you find yourself looking for him in a crowded room?

♡ And why, for the love of all things holy, do his stupid brown eyes make your heart race???

♡ Todo doesn’t even cross your mind anymore. Especially not when Yuji looks at you like that.

♡ It all officially clicks for both of you one night after an intense training session.

♡ You’re both exhausted, lying on the ground, staring at the sky. And out of nowhere, Yuji just mumbles:

“I don’t even care about being taller anymore… I just wanna be good enough for you.”

Your heart? Gone. Exploded.

You turn to face him, and without thinking, you say:

“You were always good enough, idiot.”

And then you kiss him.

Congratulations, Yuji. You may not have gotten taller…

But you got the girl.

This was inspired by this edit

AND THIS WAS REQUESTED IF U HAVE ABY REQUESTS PLESSE TELL.

[venusalexian]

Maybe the team having a team binding night and are watching a horror movie, some people are easily scared and reader and the Alexia's kids are pulling a prank

hey! thank you for the prompt. I did it without X reader (for the first time!) because I understood the prompt as such.

for anyone who needs some barça femení comfort rn, I hope you like it <3

Partners-in-crime

silly fluff

-> The Kids™ have some fun at the expense of their teammates

Team bonding night is sacred. It’s even part of their work calendar, a necessary part of their training plan, even though they spend every other day together anyway. What happens in them, however, is anything but constant. It depends on the time of the year, on the mood set by their games, but especially on the host. So, when Jana’s turn to host falls right before Halloween, it is time for Barça femení’s first-ever Horror Movie Night.

Some teammates grumble a little bit. Because Barcelona has its own different tradition, because horror movies are dumb either way, or because there is not much bonding going on if everyone is screaming at a fake monster. But Jana doesn’t change her mind because she has a plan. A really good one.

She holds a meeting at her apartment three days before. Kika is new to the team, and Esmee is just coming out of her shell, so ‘the kids’ are gonna have their own kind of bonding. She gets everyone under twenty-two into her living room and pulls out a board.

MISSION: PRANK DURING MOVIE NIGHT

Vicky is immediately on board, yelling out ideas. Other teammates take a bit longer to join in, but by the end of the night, they have a solid plan, and everyone is excited.

On team bonding night, the team trickles into Jana’s apartment at dusk. They chat first, share some pizza, and settle for the movie around her living room right when night falls. There are teammates on the couch, on the floor, on chairs pulled from her kitchen, scattered all over. 

They’ve chosen the perfect movie, one full of jump scares, where the biggest enemy is darkness. Twenty minutes in, she shares a quick look with Kika, on the other side of the room, then nods. Time to get the show started.

As the characters on the screen enter the house they definitely should not have, hunted by something they cannot see, the kids start to move. Salma gets a hold of the remote. Kika announces that she wants someone to go into the hallway with her to go to the bathroom because ‘she’s too scared’. She is joined by Vicky while their teammates tease them by mocking them as ´little scared children’. Esmee helps Jana hide the brightness of her screen with subtle positioning and a pillow on their side of the couch so she can access the app on her phone that controls all the electronics in her house.

All ready.

The characters on screen have gone from all over different rooms to together in a living room that is not too different from the one the players sit in. As the tense music rises, the characters realize they’ve been played, but it’s too late. And just as the characters on screen yell from the dark specter that gets in through the balcony, everything is set into motion. The lights and TV all go off at the same time as loud yelling, banging, and then the abrupt opening of the balcony doors of Jana’s apartment.

The older players, caught off guard, scream and jump from their places. Even calm, collected Captain Alexia Putellas lets out an undignified shriek and a visible flinch on the sofa. The kids, though? They're howling, rolling over the floor, laughing at their teammates. Of who are the little scared children now, huh?.

Vicky and Kika, protagonists of the prank, are breathless with their snickering.

Then, the yelling. Lights are turned back on, and they’re being yelled at about being nice to teammates, and keeping everyone’s cardiac conditions stable. But not much is getting through their giggles.

Jana feels a light knock on the head from Alexia, two people to her right, and a hard stare with a never again. She’s still catching her breath, though, and is smiling ear to ear with her partners-in-crime.

Yeah, totally worth it.

[seekerbr]

A dumb idea that i have is that all the sports/hobbies in the Yugioh world are actually as dramatic as the card games, we just don't see them because we exclusively follow the POV of game nerds. Like, people that really like Soccer can do superpowered attacks like in Inazuma Eleven, but Yugi doesn't like sports so we don't see that.

Tristan seems pretty boring, but that's because we don't see the motorcycle-related spy thriller that's also one of those deliquent manga he gets involved in off-screen; somehow, it is the missing link that leads directly into 5Ds in the future

Tea goes to the USA and quickly becomes the protagonist of a Josei manga about dancing, with murder, betrayal and yuri undertones, but you need to go buy a diferent magazine to read about that unfortunately

Mokuba is probably the rival character to another protagonist in a anime about either Capumon or computer games in his free time; he's less unhinged than Seto in that role but probably even less likely to admit he has a crush on said protagonist

[kozachenko]

Behold, my Touhou Project Inscryption Au that I started working on before all the stuff with Touhou 20 went down. Mainly finished this so I could get it out of my head lol.

No one asked for this. No one needed this, but I have free will and this is how I choose to use it lmao.

Artist's Notes;

Full disclaimer I have never played Inscryption before, I have only seen gameplay videos going through the entire game and have watched lore recaps, analyses, and videos on it. I do still love this game though and want to play it someday.

I remember it was during one of my many rewatches of Markiplier's Inscription playthrough (The Flying Uryaruli never gets old, plus they're kinda comfort videos lmao) that I thought of the dumb idea of "what if Chimata was in it?" and thus this idea was born. My initial concept of this was "the devil added microtransactions to his game" (bonus points if you understand that reference), which then evolved into "what if Megumu, Tsukasa, and Momoyo were the other scribes" which then evolved into me thinking way to fucking hard about this idea and deciding to swap out those three for other characters to be the scrybes. I'm sure you can tell who I chose for the new scrybes based on the cards (it's Zanmu and Keiki), though I did leave a hint as to who would be replacing which scrybe in this AU (hint, look at their health and attack line's, Keiki's attack is 1 btw it just got covered up by Zanmu's card). That part will probably become clearer as I develop the concept more (which will probably come in a long while) but in the meantime I'll explain the abilities more.

So I decided to adapt the cost into coins because in my mind, Chimata would focus really really hard on the collectathon trading card aspect. In fact, I imagine that in the beginning of this AU she's say something like, "and if you collect all of the cards, you'll be able to find a special little promo code in them. For what exactly? Well where's the fun in me telling you that now!" As I wrote in the image above (for those who can't read the font it says, "Balancing isn't exactly my forte, so some of the cards I gave you in your base deck have a 50/50 shot of being trash or stupidly overpowered!") Chimata probably doesn't care for the balancing and mainly wants to oversee the exchange in ownership with trading cards. I know characters like Nemuno or Ubame fit Leshy's vibes more but Chimata was kinda the progenitor of this idea and I think it would make more sense for her to care about cards so much so yeah lol (also there is a specific part in Act 1 of the game where I think Chimata's theming with the moon in Stage 6 of UM would work really well).

Also, in this AU, Sumireko would be the protagonist who runs a lost media Youtube channel where she discovers the cartridge with Inscryption in a similar way that Luke did in the OG game.

As for the effects on the cards, I'll go over them briefly:

Zanmu's sigil would negate the effects of the opposing creature's sigil, I was initially gonna give her the "if an opposing card attacks this one, it doesn't" sigil but decided that would be too OP and went for this idea instead.

Keiki's sigil basically functions like the warren sigil in the original game, where upon placing her down on the board she gives the player a free Haniwa card (which would be 1 attack 2 health and no cost). For obvious reasons I think this fits Keiki pretty well.

So the main purpose of this AU isn't to be 1 to 1 with the game's characters personality-wise (for reasons that will become apparent if you know who Keiki is substituting for) but in terms of theming I did try to think about who would fit best (other than Chimata but again, she's kinda got special treatment since I just though the idea of her constantly pulling out microtransactions to get herself more faith or trying desperately to convince Sumireko to get another person to play the game so she has someone to trade with would be funny). Visually this will also look different from Inscryption because...ain't no way I'm replicating that and also I want to use this as an oppurtunity to let myself do harsh lighting because I love doing harsh lighting in my drawings :D

Again, this is going to be an ongoing project of mine that is mainly gonna be shitposts like this. As you can see with the drawing I did not care about rendering the metal scale much and focused more on getting the shading on Chimata right. I also changed some things about her design and added some stuff, mainly changing how her dress pattern works, added some shoulder ornamentation to her cape, and gave her some nice big golden sphere earrings because I know she'd wear something like that.

Not the most proud of this piece (I finished this at around 10:30 at night so I was kinda eepy finishing this up) but for a shitpost, this is really all it need to be tbh.

[riririnnnn]

Noa really gasted all my flabbers.

Before this chapter (278), I knew that he is the World's Best Striker, but after this chapter (278), I can see why he is the World's Best Striker. He is literally him. It's like looking at some kind of genius mastermind of some sort. The "Instead of assisting my teammates to win 1-0, it feels better to pull off a hat trick and lose 3-4" makes so, so much more sense now!

I won't lie, till now, his character did seem pretty bland to me—just some dude established as someone at the top of the game who was, in the end, going to adopt the protagonist in some way and then the sappy ending of student winning over the mentor.

Oh boy was I wrong.

The curveball he just threw at me, hurled me outta this universe. And just like in Loki's case, I feel like a fool once again since I have misunderstood Noa's whole character.

Firstly:

You know how some things just stand out for no reasons at all? Like, it's a trivial thing, but it just keeps on silently scratching the back of your head—the above panel happened to be that exact thing for me. My dumb ahh was really thinking, "Tf they talking about?" when I first saw this panel.

Before this small exchange, Noa was taking about how there are two philosophies in BM—and it depicted Kaiser and Isagi in the opposite of eachother—and this is exactly when, according to me, the whole Kaiser Vs Isagi rivalry's roots got firmly cemented. Yes, I do understand this rivalry started when Kaiser grabbed Isagi by his chin, but hear me out, okay?

You see this thing above?

Yes. Exactly.

We were told that BM's basic principle is Logic and Rationality, and considering Noa's personality, one can assume that Blue Lock-ers in this team would've been coerced into following this motto too, but Noa didn't do remotely anything like that. In fact, in all the other NEL teams, the coaches low-key molded the Blue Lock-ers to their respective mottos whereas Noa remained hands-off throughout everything—one of the main reasons why the majority of the Fandom considered him the worst coach in NEL.

But, well, I used to use this (above) reason to defend him—that he isn't tampering with Blue Lockers' originalities by letting them do things on their own accords just like Ego used to do.

Keyword: I used to.

Because I really don't know what to feel now that I've a whole different perspective in my hands—look at this:

These are Kaiser's words.

Kaiser was, in a way, already competing against Noa in BM, and now Isagi was added into the equation too which made him more hostile. I mean, instead of disregarding the rather, comparatively, un-rational philosophy of the Blue Lock-ers, Noa was accepting it and giving it room to grow! And if this philosophy won, then Kaiser (not in a literal sense) would be wiped off of the team! Further, it also seems like a small jab of, "You think you are the shit? Then prove yourself." which Kaiser was able to sense, and that's why, I think, he asked, "Are you testing me?"

Secondly:

LMFAO LAVINHO'S FACE! THIS IS MY FAV PANEL OF HIM!

I highly admired Noa for never stepping in the field until and unless the opposite team's coach had stepped in. It used to be my favourite argument for defending Noa's coaching ability. And just like my previous point, I can't look at this the same way anymore.

Of course, he isn't wrong—the coaches stepping in definitely throws off the balance in the field. But, well, if the power dynamics shift too abruptly and too much, it would tip off Kaiser and that'd ruin Noa's plan for the NEL—it would also tip off Isagi which would also ruin Noa's plan for the NEL.

So, in short and straightforward words, he always stepped in the field for the sake of himself and not for the sake of younger players in his team.

Thirdly:

This convo happened after Shidou's goal—PxG's first goal in their match with BM.

Right after these words left Loki's mouth, Noa went out to make changes in the positions of BM—he went out to suggest things and all just like an actual coach would do. And though this panel stood out to me in an odd way, I also remember finding it so damn hilarious for him, seemingly, being threatened by a mere 17 year old—I was actually going to make fun of him for this when this chapter (253) came out, but then I guess I chose to do otherwise.

I think it's because before this chapter (253) dropped, I was going to make a wholesome post about the possible relation between Noa and Loki since they are from the same national team—some kind of Father-Son relation. But then the I saw their convo and felt embarrassed, and probably decided to not talk about them till more of their story got revealed.

Now their convo makes a lot of sense in a different way.

And lastly:

I remember being caught so off guard by this. Like, till that point, Noa had never ever talked regarding Kaiser in such a way—it nearly felt as if he were rooting for him, and I found it so sweet that I even included it here.

But now that we have a bigger picture, it doesn't seem that much sweet to me anymore.

I can't understand how I dismissed his poker face in the (above) panel as simply his usual emotionless self when it clearly looks like he isn't surprised at all—like he knew what was unfolding in front of him beforehand, like he was expecting it and.. he was quite literally expecting it, didn't he?

All this time I thought that Loki was the sneakiest about his personal goals in NEL meanwhile Noa was two steps ahead from the start.

[moonlightsapphic]

thoughts on xo, kitty:

i had the time of my life getting straightbaited in s1, loved it and very much believed it was set up beautifully for a kittyuri ending

i once again had the time of my life getting straightbaited by the s2 trailer (which had initially dissapointed me), and then once again squealing at kittyuri moments in the actual season lol

god yuri is so hot

god minho is so hot

this show is bisexual propaganda if there ever was any

i have said it before and i will say it again: this is the queer/sapphic teen asian american romcom we want and need! it’s just like the dumb straight shows! WE DESERVE TO GIGGLE AND CRINGE TOO

i was surprised (but not displeased!) to see a setup for another season rather than an ending with this one. manifesting an easy renewal. (thank u, straight taltbilb fandom, for helping feed the netflix marketing beast for our chaotic bisexual show.) that being said, they could totally have ended it here and idk what the fuck they’re even going to have as a plot for s3.

i have a love/hate relationship with new characters being introduced and the silly plotlines and also the somewhat disjointed dialogues sometimes but it’s also all very endearing lol.

i love the family drama in the show! the execution is lighthearted yes but fellow asian viewers know what i mean. <333

i genuinely don’t know who kitty is going to end up with! but that’s jenny han to you. tsitp would feel the same if the source material didn’t already tell us the ending, too.

i was a kittyuri truther after s1 but now i’m leaning mooncovey just because of how the development/excecution went … and i’m not mad either way lol. all i can tell you is that something viscerally bisexual was happening to me everytime i saw kittyuri on screen in s1 and mooncovey on screen in s2 (with some overlap. screams)

i did feel a little dissapointed to see yuri always chasing what she can’t have this season but really it made a lot of sense and i’m excited to see her development next season.

while yuri has commited many crimes which is what makes her iconic, minho is so babygirl and has never done anything wrong in his life. the shoujo manga/kdrama mooncovey moments were just *chef’s kiss* YES MA’AM GIVE THE VIEWERS WHAT THEY WANT

my girlfriend ships mindae and i think she’s crazy but also i see it, dae is the only one other than kitty that minho could satisfactorily end up with. god i was so mad when i thought they were making an ohio rando his endgame lmaoooo and i was GENUINELY concerned that the kittyuri hate train from mooncovey shippers would descend like bloodthirsty sharks if that happened. praying to god they don’t just push minho or yuri with any ole new character at the end of s3 just to have them not be single. that would be lame. mindae is more than fair game though. 😝 they get into so many fights, it has to mean something … brb getting lost in the gay dae theories …

yuri & dae’s friendship will never grow old to me. i love i love i LOVE

also love it when the characters speak korean amongst themselves, which really drives home how multicultural the show really is. (also it’s hilarious how madison, a literal white girl, speaks better korean than kitty lmao.)

a part of the mooncovey fanbase is very biphobic and lesbophobic and we really need to shame them for it because it’s super annoying. like yeah i know you’re coming from tatbilb which taught you queers exist only in the form of the gay guy best friend for the straight girl protagonist but! jenny han has grown! have you not seen tsitp?! have you also not noticed kitty was never like lara jean?! she wore a mf suit to their dad’s wedding for god’s sake sigh. disrespectfully, if your ship can’t exist without lame excuses on why an alternate ship isn’t as “valid”, then your ship probably isn’t that great in the first place. which is sad, because mooncovey is an awesome ship.

overall a slay. jenny han i know we have a fraught relationship but they could never make me hate you. truly one of the few people in mainstream cishet romcom media that said “actually queer people should be included af because they’re FUN and an underappreciated goldmine!” she also never lets the fandom tell her what to do. you keep doing you, queen!!! i mean it! 💖

[3liza]

the twisted metal show is just getting progressively goofier and funnier and I can't emphasize enough how refreshing that is, even though it's missing a lot of the same stuff I was complaining about missing with fallout. a good attitude can excuse a litany of sins tbh!!! it's correctly on tone with the source material (which is dumb as hell) and not stuck up its own ass and not trying to adopt any more elevated message than "Orange County is full of psychopaths" which is something we can all get behind tbh

they are clearly aiming for a thunderdome or escape from LA tone and getting, generously, almost as close as they can without thunderdome production budget. once again the wardrobe is really lacking, which always bugs me when wardrobe is so easy to do on no budget if you just hire the right creatives. i don't want to watch serious or irony poisoned post apocalyptic shit anymore, I'm fed up. whanging that horseshoe as close as you can get to "mad max" and falling short is preferable to whatever smug tech conference bullshit was going on in fallout.

I'm not saying it's good but it is fun. I'm especially enjoying how the stupid action movie dialog is getting progressively more self aware, but not in an annoyingly ironic way. they are getting comfortable with letting their writers and actors softshoe a little bit and we're starting to get Simpsons-style crowd bits like the protagonists encountering some poor bastard strung up by one of the wasteland gangs and remarking that "maybe he deserved it" and the extra groans and raspily retorts "I didn't!", which got a genuine laugh out of me because they didn't linger on it and let it get stale.

i wish they had pushed this a lot father in terms of making it more late 90s grimdark gargoyle shit like the games, but that stuff is expensive and I think they spent all their money on actual vehicles (which I respect) and didn't have a lot left over for costumes and set dressing

what's most surprising about this entire production is how laser targeted it is at people born between 1980 and 1988, which cannot be a significant television viewership in the larger picture. there is almost zero effort to make this relatable to anyone outside 40 year old Oregon Trail millennials. the soundtrack is so fucking funny

special mention to casting a bunch of actual 40 year old women and letting them look haggard and dirty and wrinkled for once

really Sweet Tooth is the biggest disappointment. i understand he's the franchise figurehead but they fumbled it imo. i don't think will arnett is the right casting. idk if sweet tooth should even talk or be human tbh, I kind of always saw him more as a sort of ogre or avatar than just a normal human psycho killer, and having him onscreen so much from the beginning was probably network mandated but really spoiled the biggest narrative tension for franchise fans they could have saved up to cash in on a good reveal later. oh well. alternately I think leaning into it being JUST will arnett in a clown mask would have been funnier than trying to split the difference with dubbing arnett over a more physically powerful Joe Samoa playing the body

[feshippingpolls]

Admittedly it's just a lot of posts along the lines of "Oh this is a notp I could never imagine x character dating a woman/man" even when they're canonically bisexual like Edelgard or Alfred. I'm probably overstating it, but it's always just a bit uncomfortable to see the idea of them being bisexual responded to so negatively.

To be fair, a lot of modern Fire Emblem (games where the player can romance basically anybody/pair characters up for Fates and Awakening) doesn't really have any characters that are exclusively attracted to the same sex. Since characters with same sex options (such as Niles/Edelgard/romance options in Engage) are always romanceable by both protagonists, they are always functionally bisexual. While this gives bisexual representation (which is great to have), it erases sexualities outside of bi or heterosexuality because every character has to be available to at least players of the opposite sex (gotta appeal to the straights ig + make your child soldiers for gen 2). So even if these characters are functionally bisexual in-game, it feels pretty difficult to believe that the spectrum of sexualities in-universe is so limited and fans will want to have representations of other orientations. Hence, fans might choose to interpret characters who are bisexual in-game as exclusively attracted to the same sex and it kind of comes down to personal headcanons at that point.

Engage is an outlier here because every character can be given the pact ring regardless of the avatar's gender, making every romanceable character (since not all ring supports are romantic) functionally bisexual. While this is very cool and makes every character available to anyone, it also means that characters' sexualities are even more up to player interpretation (unless you want to interpret them as just living in a world where basically everyone is bi which hell yeah pls take me there). I should add that I do really like the way pact rings work in Engage because it sucks to have your options limited based on the gender you play as so it's just nicer to have everyone be bi. But I think it's fine for these characters to be headcanoned differently.

But I don't want to ignore the possibility of biphobia, I do know there's a lot of scrutiny for bi people dating the opposite gender and I'm not sure how much it bleeds through here. However I feel like a lot of this just comes down to personal headcanons. While I recognise it isn't the same since bisexual representation is important, a lot of functionally straight characters are interpreted differently by fans and often interpreted to be bisexual, so I don't think this is a case of biphobia (on a large scale, anyway, ofc I don't know the thoughts of every single fan).

Edit: If you're interested, you should definitely read the comments for different perspectives. At the end of the day I'm just one dumb bisexual and other people have good counterpoints.

[daughterofheartshaven]

A Virgin New Adventures reading guide

I told @gotyouanyway that I'd give them my reading guide for the Virgin New adventures that I made for a friend a while back and posting it publicly was easy and also means other people can use this too. I wrote this back in 2021, but stand by it from what I remember. It has been like 5-6 years since I read some of these books, so if I rated your favorite too low lemme know and I'll give it a re-read.

This might not be that helpful if you want to pick just a few books - I designed it more to streamline VNA experiance

The key:

1 - I'd recommend skipping

2 - Eh. You can skip, but there is at least something to be gained by reading it

3 - I would recommend reading this. It's not plot-critical, but it is a good read or useful setup

4 - Read this for sure. It's either plot-relevant, or just that damn good (or both).

Timewyrm: Genesys - 4 (introduces the timewyrm and the series; unfortunately it's also not great.)

Timewyrm: Exodus - 3 (continues the timewyrm story, and is a fairly straightforward but interesting story)

Timewyrm: Apocalypse - 2 (eh. Not much for or against it either way)

Timewyrm: Revelation - 4 (concludes the timewyrm arc with style)

Cat's Cradle: Time's Crucible - 3 (Good if you can wrap you head around it)

Cat's Cradle: Warhead - 2 (depressing as all get out, but very well written)

Cat's Cradle: Witch Mark - 3 (just plain weird. Does finish the current arc and sets up Return of the Living Dad)

Nightshade - 2 (kinda weird. Notable as the first Mark Gatiss story)

Love and War - 4 (plot-relevant. Also awesome)

Transit -4 (Introduces important recurring character. Hard to follow but really good even if you can't follow it)

The Highest Science - 3 (good story, but ultimately not amazingly important)

The Pit - 1 (I did not enjoy)

Deceit - 4 (Not a great read, but important to the plot)

Lucifer Rising - 4 (Amazing, with important character development for our protagonists)

White Darkness - 2 (first David A. McIntee novel, but not especially gripping)

Shadowmind - 3 (good demonstration of where Ace and Benny are as characters, vaguely interesting plot)

Birthright - 3 (good character piece for Ace and Benny, shows a darker side to the Doctor without being dumb about it)

Iceberg - 2 (plot is messy and weird. Only read if you need the Doctor's half of the story from Birthright)

Blood Heat - 4 (starts alternate universe arc, important developments for the Tardis)

The Dimension Riders - 2 (gonna be honest here - I don't remember a thing about this one either way)

The Left-Handed Hummingbird - 3 (first Kate Orman novel. Pretty good, although a little weird and hard to follow)

Conundrum - 3 (Be prepared for weirdness. And superheroes. Helps setup for No Future and Head Games)

No Future - 4 (concludes the alternate universe arc with style, establishes Ace from here on out)

Tragedy Day - 3 (dark, but good. Worth a read)

Legacy - 3 (Kinda dark, but it works. Be prepared for over-continuity)

Theatre of War - 4 (Pulls off one of the best plot twists I've seen anywhere, and introduces Braxieatel to the Whoniverse)

All-Consuming Fire - 4 (Not plot-relevent at all, but is very good, especially if you are a Sherlock Holmes fan)

Blood Harvest - 4 (Major plot point in the Whoniverse)

Strange England - 2 (takes strangeness to an art form. Can be freely skipped)

First Frontier - 4 (plot relevant for spoiler-y reasons)

St Anthony's Fire - 2 (dark and weird, but well written)

Falls the Shadow - 1 (Just... no)

Parasite - 1 (Written by Jim Mortimore, therefore depressing as all get out)

Warlock - 2 (I did not read. Sequel to Warhead, so only read if you liked it)

Set Piece - 4 (major plot developments for multiple characters)

Infinite Requiem - 2 (like The Dimension Riders, I remember nothing)

Sanctuary - 3 (a pure historical. Not really great on its own, but helps set up Human Nature)

Human Nature - 4 (The story that was adapted to TV. One of the best New Adventures by itself, becomes even better by having fun comparing it to the TV version)

Original Sin - 4 (plot-relevant)

Sky Pirates! - 2 (Only if you like Douglas-Adams-esque dark humor)

Zamper - 3 (Somewhat interesting follow-up to The Highest Science)

Toy Soldiers - 2 (Adds pretty much nothing, but not painfully bad) 

Head Games - 4 (a worthwhile look at where the Doctor has been going and who he is)

The Also People - 4 (probably my favorite New Adventure, although Theatre of War and Human Nature are also up there. Also resolves a recurring character's arc)

Shakedown - 3 (Fun, but ultimately fluff)

Just War - 2 (Weird and ultimately unimportant)

Warchild - 2 (Same situation as Warlock. Starts Psi arc, but can be skipped)

SLEEPY - 4 (Generally good story, sets up Psi arc if you skipped Warchild)

Death and Diplomacy - 3 (only worthwhile as setup for Happy Endings)

Happy Endings - 4 (Plot relevant. Ultimately fluff, but plot-relevant)

GodEngine - 4 (not plot-relevant, but an excellent story)

Christmas on a Rational Planet - 2 (part of Psi arc, and lays groundwork for Faction Paradox stuff, but I couldn't really follow it)

Return of the Living Dad - 4 (cleans up old plot threads, and is a great story in its own right)

Cold Fusion - 4 (Not plot relevant, but an excellent, gripping story)

The Death of Art - 2 (part of Psi arc, but not great)

Damaged Goods - 2 (Russel T. Davis's first Who work, but very dark and nasty)

So Vile a Sin - 4 (finishes Psi arc and has other plot relevance)

Bad Therapy - 2 (deals mostly with repercussions of previous story, but not great in and of itself)

Eternity Weeps - 1 (Jim Mortimore's writing is too depressing for me. Technically plot relevant in that Benny and Jason get divorced but not worth it)

The Room With No Doors - 4 (setup for Lungbarrow, good story in its own right)

Lungbarrow - 4 (concludes the new adventures of the seventh doctor in a surprisingly meaningful way)

The Dying Days - 4 (a nice little coda to the series that sets up Benny's adventures as well)

[maespri]

oh my i never really saw myself making a post like this, but i really wanna talk about morgana! more specifically… why i don’t really understand the hate he receives.

for starters, i know a lot of people dislike mona because he gets on ryuji’s case often. his squabbling with ryuji can get hurtful at times too, i know, but i feel like so many people conveniently leave out the fact that… ryuji returns fire? it’s not as though mona is constantly attacking poor ryuji who can’t defend himself; it’s a two-sided fight throughout most of the game. both of them are constantly fueling the fire. not to mention, it’s a fight that eventually ends. both individuals have great character development (i could talk about it for /ages/, but i digress) that ends with their fighting essentially ceasing entirely. they’re both dumb teenage boys, they both said dumb stuff to each other, and they both hurt each other, and all of that is recognized and left in the past.

the hatred toward mona in general is something i struggle to understand entirely. you hate this cat because he tells you to go to bed? the game would have told you to do that one way or another, because it’s a game. there have to be constraints, or you’d get terribly overpowered incredibly fast. i wholeheartedly agree that mona’s lacking in comparison to the other characters in many ways- but i’ve never hated him, and was surprised to see a lot of people did.

maybe i’m just weirdly empathetic toward fictional characters, but i really liked his storyline. mona’s been with the protagonist since day one, helping him out, staying with him, encouraging and supporting him in everything he does, navigating them through mementos and palaces and battles… and he’s never really appreciated for any of it. obviously, the other phantom thieves do the same and don’t require any extra praise, but morgana already has a complex stemming from the fact that he’s not human. inherently, he believes he’s not nearly as good as any of the others, and subsequently, that he isn’t good enough in general- and he’s so ashamed of that that he can’t even voice the concern to the protagonist pre-okumura’s palace. it made sense to me when he snapped and ran away; if you were constantly the black sheep of a group, unable to engage with anyone unless the guy you live with is always there as well, wouldn’t you yearn for autonomy too? (don’t even get me started on the haru parallels there; there’s a reason morgana snapped during the okumura arc.) if you felt expendable and there wasn’t ever an effort made to prove otherwise, purposeful or not, wouldn’t you also want to leave? to spare both yourself, and the people you’re leaving? i really liked his arc because it led to two realizations- that he was pivotal to the group, and it was fine if he ended up not being a human. (and honestly, he was pivotal to my group… who else would i use to heal everyone outside of battle…!)

anyway, his objectification of women was weird. didn’t like that. but this is a JRPG, and he’s not the only one who does strange things like that at times (why was ryuji looking at ann’s chest in the mona bus outside futaba’s palace man…). honestly, his flirting was also weird at times, but as long as it never got strangely sexual, i didn’t really mind? it’s not like it ever genuinely bothers ann either as far as i remember. it’s more just a stupid thing he does.

anyway… i dunno. i like the kitty. he’s silly, he kept me company, and he made my playthrough fun. life is so much more beautiful when you carry love in your heart rather than resentment

[morallysuperiorlips]

Struggling With Your Worldbuilding? Here's Some Help!

Alright, so. Worldbuilding. It's either your favorite thing in the world, or the bane of your existence. Either way, I'm here to help.

Worldbuilding, for me is a very long, tedious, and never ending process. Like everything I output, I base a lot of my things on vibes and aesthetic and personal feeling. It's all innate. However, I can't teach innate so let me tell you about the "routes" I go on when I'm mapping a world.

When it comes to worldbuilding, whether you're writing fanfic or something original, I found there are two roads you can go down when building up your lore:

Character-Based Worldbuilding and Fact-of-Life Worldbuilding.

Character-based worldbuilding is exactly how it sounds--it's a matter of feeling out the character and seeing what it is they like to do and how they function. From there, you might find "oh they like to do X, I want them to do X in the plot." From there, you can determine how X would work its way into your world, and from there you continue to ask yourself questions to further build your blocks upward.

I find it's really helpful to start with a character and find things you want to see them doing, then spark the road of block-building questions by kicking off with a "okay, how can I get this to work?" And this can go for a major plot point, or something as trivial as a side scene. And prepare to KEEP ASKING QUESTIONS because things will continuously pop up as you think about it and consider different angles, etc. etc. etc.

Fact-of-life worldbuilding can come from little puzzle pieces and inklings of things you want to see built into any given world and basically doing the same as above and crafting upward. This can go for a major plot point or some background lore that doesn't see much of the light of day but is there to help build a more lived-in world.

Still unsure of where to begin? There's also room to look at a story and think "what am I writing? What aesthetic/vibe do I want out of this?" and once you can answer that, do some visual intake to jump start your brain.

Look up things that are in line with the vibe you want. Watch shows that follow an aesthetic you crave. Read books in a similar bracket. Take notes of the things you've seen and push and mold them together in a way that reflects what you're going for.

FOR EXAMPLE, my WIP is heavily noir-esque, gothic, dark, so I took in a lot of content that catered to my desired vibes. While doing that, it helped me build into the "routes" I have.

I watched certain scenes of Attack on Titan, and as I witnessed the titans obliterate everything, I decided "Okay, I want the eldritch beasts in my world to get big enough to obliterate everything, what do I need to do within my world, that fits the setting and isn't directly copying AoT that can make that happen?"

When I watched Bridgerton and saw these women in flowing dresses in a regency aesthetic, I said "I want to put my protagonist in that aesthetic in this story, with a modern, darker, twist, so what needs to happen in the universe to get there, why would that aesthetic exist in a modern society?"

When I watched Hunger Games and saw all the capital people mingling around one another at the Victor's Ball in Catching Fire, I said "I want a scene like that in my fic, what needs to happen in universe for that to make sense?"

Likewise, I witness a lot of dumb shit irl, or am apart of certain things, or hear certain things and just think "I want that in my story, how do I need to build my world to get these things to fit?"

It's a lot of trial and error and cutting and reshaping. The world for my current WIP took me 10 years to build up and to this day I am still chipping away at it and changing things about it.

Side note, but I also always encourage working both major plot worldbuilding and trivial worldbuilding, because oftentimes major plot worldbuilding can lead to trivial worldbuilding and vice versa, and you should never knock the background shit. It gives readers stuff to theorize and speculate about aside from the plot, which I think is always fun. And again, that helps provides a very lived in world, which should always be the goal.

As always, have fun and go fucking write something today <3

[thg-rcg-simps]

You never had a chance against fate – Mydei’s loathed ascend to godhood

Sooo, as the 3.2 patch is approaching, obviously I had waited so long till writing about our beloved Lion King. It was totally not procrastination, executive disfunction or the fact we played the patch rather late, no no it was planned like this from the get go.

And I will surely not get lost in the trauma or similarities to our boy Jing Yuan, hehe

Lean back, take some snaks, this shall be long ^^

[SPOILERS for the Mydei storyline and the 3.1 patch as a whole]

(Art doesn't belong to me)

Where do I begin? Where it went wrong? Where it began? When it ended? Or when the story throws us in since last patch?

I decide for the latter, as it’s more dramatic for a start. Or so the game devs thought for sure while making this warrior's entire life journey.

So, we are at the most secret place Amphoreus possesses and we conveniently can access from our bath-chamber, before the Titans. Which are still busy with our isekai protagonist, which wants to obtain the coreflame of Strife. Nikador has fallen, therefore a new demigod had to be born.

For a short moment in 3.0 we really thought that Phainon would get the coreflame and become Strife, tilting the whole theory of which (known) character would presumably get which of the Titans coreflames. But he’s ✨special✨, not just in the way that he has a husband with a white lion, no no he’s the Hero. But…I drift away, this is not about the white-blue haired slightly dumb Phainon, but his edgy depressed traumatized counterpart.

And because Aglaea is who she is and Trinnon lost connection to Phainon, it was clear, something had to happen. Obviously, we choose the most dangerous path, or at least this is what it was described at in the end of 3.0 but apparently it’s fine. I mean, they don’t know it but we are far from being truly alive and Mydei can’t truly die, so I suppose it makes sense to send us to fetch him.

In Nikador’s trial a person faces their worst fears, having to fight against them. And in all Mydei-Phainon fashion, his worst fear is connected to Phainon, his loss and his people.

Anyways, we get Phainon, drag him back to safety, or well out of a very possible death, and get a black screen, only to find out we have forced Phainon into resting and bugging Mydei about the coreflame. They haven’t done that for awhile and I’m glad it’s not a big occurrence in this patch but this one was very…hard and random ^^’’

While Dan Heng is having deep thoughts about the black tide and corruption like problems could be a problem of a Stellaron (or a simulation) because, alas we are still in Star Rail and this is kinda the theme, Tribbie is speaking with Mydei since she worries about his worrying for Phainon. He brushes her off and tells her yet again there is no word for “fear” in the Kremnoan language and telling her he knows about the planned idea for him to become Strife, but asked if he could first talk with his people.

I want to dwelve on the fact how incredibly worried Tribbie is and even going so far to say she will be there for him regardless of his decision, especially regarding his crown. But this will be part of a later post about Lady Tribios herself.

Anyways, our prince who does not want to be one, goes around Okhema questioning multiple Kremnoans, from children to elders the answers were all alike, they want to return “home”, hoping for a King and new battlefields. This does not sit right with Mydei, who is only more determined to not become King. Or the idealization of Strife. Or the successor of his late father.

You see, his father was not a nice man. First there was the whole ordeal of splitting Nikador, driving him basically insane as they tried to drag them in a human vessel or simply lock them away, making a god their marionette. Then he got the amazing idea of murdering his one and only child. He does say it’s to end the bloodshed, but he also says it’s because of Nikador. So maybe he wanted to do good…but he wanted to end bloodshed with more bloodshed and by murdering his wife, so I don’t really think that worked out. His son did end it however somehow, so…plan successfully failed?

Mydei was thrown in the River of Souls in which he got his blessing and curse by the gods, immortality. A gift he would often wish he did not possess. Especially because there was no one worth living for.

Here comes a problem tho, it’s a time one. Amphoreus in itself is a fine world, it has the chance to be even amazing, some characters being written just sooo well. But it does remind us a lot of Belabog, and with that time problems are apparently also a thing again. Not as big as Servals, but how old is Mydei?? And how old was he when he was thrown in the River of Souls? Because at first it seemed like he was a baby, but that couldn’t add up since he remembered his mother. We also don’t really know how long he was in the River or where he got out and how he then found his loyal comrades or was taught by Krateros or Verax Leo. HoYo, I plead with you, make sense!

What we do know, however, is that he had 5 very loyal and close friends named Hephaestion, Perdikkas, Leonnius, Ptolemy, Peucesta, which stayed, lived and fought together till the very end.

(Art doesn't belong to me)

We also know that this group of soldiers were relatively rebellious towards the Kremnoan standards and were trying to change what Kremnoan even are. Because they are not just senseless beast attacking and fighting, dying in honor of being a warrior, no they are loyal strong friends who fight for their comrades and live for the fallen. They are so much more but bloodshed crazy fighters, as painted by both many Kremnoans and other natives to Amphoreus.

This is a theme and is quite interesting, since some of the mentioned comrades of our dear crown prince, are not even active fighters, and through the Verax Leo (I terribly want to know if they are all the same or is each one a separate lion, which is a big possibility since the one Lion that was Mydei’s greatest teacher, is insinuated to die) we know this is not a one time occurrence. Kremnoan people were not just fighters, they were as varied as any other people we meet on the planet. They all just were Nikadors followers and inhered Strife in one way or another. And not everything has to be about the brutality. In fact, when we go with Trianne to see the past of Castrum Kremnos many of the people even in the central area at the time of this big spectacle made by the King, not all were fighters.

It's very interesting to see how Mydei is so extremely wanting and wishing to prove the stereotypes painted by his father and just the general public about his home and his people, wrong. He wants to make them see there is nothing heroic of dying or of wishing for war to fight in. He wants them to see that if they do what they have done before they will eventually just die out and nothing will be even left. It’s an honor thing. But the honor is misplaced.

Mydei spends his entire life fighting for those people who are extremely ungrateful for any of his attempts to save them from their own doom. And no one is even…slightly thankful or thinks of his sacrifices made for and only for his people. His friends. His mother. The only thing he ever knew was violence and how Strife works. The only thing to his name beside a title he hated, was the fact he is Kremnoan. He’s proud of being one. He reminds us, as the Trailblaizer just like the other Crysos Heirs, that he is proud of being Kremnoan. But he is not at same time. Because of what it became.

See, no matter what he does, or what he wishes to do because he sees father than those close minded people, his efforts should be considered heroic, but are said to be foolish. Because his so called people, like the stereotypes. Like to go to war. Like to fight. Like to pretend this is a heroic thing to do even tho right now, there are much bigger problems than stupid little conflicts escalating. People want to go home, not because they miss the place, or the memories with it, no they miss the violence. And the praise they got out of it. They miss the slaughter. And they miss being encouraged for it.

The Kremnoan language is vast we learn, but fighting abilities are valued higher than knowledge. Kremnoan have such a big history outside of their so called heroic wars. There are so many words and stories. So many that one could say the Kremnoan language has no words at all.

So of course, the only possible way to safe his people, was, to kill them. Not personally, just end them. Metaphorically, and actually. Mydei takes on the crown, only to end it. He takes Strife, so he can take it away, destroy its bloody claws plastered around his folk no matter how young.

And I think this is the most fitting things he could’ve done. The only thing that actually would work. Make his people listen. Make them understand. Or at least he hopes so.

They might hate him as a King, but they hated him as the crown prince that refused the crown anyways, those who would hate him would do anyways. He does the right thing, he ends the agony being associated with his blood. In his mind it’s a fair deal, he’ll die for his people. Over and over and over till the end. Till the Black tide might consume him. Till the world would come to an end as well. He would die as a true Kremnoan. As Mydeimos, son of Gorgo.

His fate, the prophecy, as he thought he could unrun it, was always ending exactly like this

(Art doesn't belong to me, but I dig the duo/quatro)

Of course this is not the end of the story, there is actually much more to it, like the fact that Mydei was done in mere hours (max) with Nikadors trial (in comparison Phainon was there for days and couldn’t get past them), the fact that Phainon and Mydei are as official as the other very straight pairings, the fact that his former teacher, and biggest opposer to what he did, Krateros wanting to take on the coreflame himself, kidnapping Trinnon and later “repaying” them with trying to save Trianne as she feel because of the Reaper.

Or well…the last conversation he has with Castorice before parting to Castrum Kremnos about death. About her abilities probably even cutting through his immortality. I know this is all foreshadowing so we all drool over the fact we can literally pull her as this post goes up, but, I think most people still underestimate her so I thought to throw that in.

Of course, it’s absolutely heartwretching that he can’t even properly stay for the goodbye ceremony for Trianne, even though he is absolutely loving this small adorable readhead trio. It’s not mentioned with words as much but Mydei and Tribbie (as much as the others) share a bond where they would care a lot for the other. As much as Tribbie, as the teacher, is caring and very affectionate towards all, with Mydei is special and very heartwarming (but more on that in her post, also yes I know she is special with everybody).

If you ask us, I have to say that this patch is by far the better one of the two we had for this world. Of course, I extremely miss Herta, I think it’s very displeasent that the main crew is voicless as it disrupts the experience (especially for the next patch, I fear the worst when they become more relevant than just Dan Heng), but the writing and character building is amazing! I love how they handled Mydei (and Tribbie). I think they portrayed him as a person perfectly and tho we find it more than cheap to shush him to the side with having him fight for an eternity, so he disappears off the visual story line, it kinda fits his being. So, we’re still very happy with this side of the story, at least it was told properly, in a ways to make us understand too.

I mean, how could we not, it’s a beige haired man with a lion and a pretty traumatic backstory, that fights similarly to our Blady just more unpredictable and more chaotic (and less grumpy when being healed).

Anyways, thanks for reading this all, have a cookie 🍪, may beige haired hot lion husbandos be with you ^^

-TakumiHairGuy & RikkaCatGirlbut

[dmbakura]

as someone who became interested in Stellar Blade when its 2022 trailer dropped (where its name was changed from Project Eve) watching the lead up to the game become hijacked by the incel squad claiming it was gonna be the downfall of modern gaming because it brought back sexy female protagonists, to the subsequent "censorship" (it is not censorship) debacle that saw most of the same squad turning on the game, and the entire conversation surrounding the game in general, has been maybe the funniest, most bewildering thing to witness.

on one hand you have the incel gooners trying to use the game as a political mouthpiece to push a certain agenda, usually being misogynistic or bigoted in other ways in the process. also mixed in are misguided critiques of certain double standards (example, regarding bg3 and how it handles sexual content vs stellar blade and its fanservice) and just overall a lack of actual care for the game outside of using it as a bludgeoning tool in their dumb culture war.

on the other hand you have people who only know this game through the conversation the incel gooners have started and think the game is some hentai coomer simulator with no other substance. I believe this group is mostly well intentioned, but at the same time are allowing the incel gooners to be the authority on the game and aren't doing any actual research of their own. I have seen so many people gobsmacked that stellar blade has actual polished gameplay and that the sexy costumes/boob jiggle aren't at all representative of the game as a whole. there's definitely some good faith critiques of the character design mixed in here, but also please stop allowing the gooners to shape your perception of the game and letting them dominate the conversation.

and finally you have people like me who have ACTUALLY PLAYED the game (in my case I'm 22 hours in so I haven't finished it yet) and know what the game is actually about. it's a highly polished single player action game, with no microtransactions, on console (which is a HUGE deal in the Korean market, which is dominated by mobile games) and it's overall just a really fun experience. the sexy stuff you can take or leave, there's a bunch of costumes that cover her up if you don't like the skimpiness, but aside from the blatant fanservice with Eve, it's just about the most sexless game I've played in a while. seriously, there's not even romantic hints, aside from a female shopkeeper hitting on Eve.

anyways, it's just interesting (and borderline incomprehensible) what the conversation surrounding this game has become lol