#did he finally get the LORE UPGRADE he needed

[sycopomp]

Barula and Pich? 👁

HELLO MY DEAR ROANOAKS, ALWAYS LOVELY TO SEE YOU IN MY INBOX <33

YES!! Barula and Pich are characters that @rainboopz and I have, in her setting of "The Sea King's Mermaid"! It's an Asian fantasy set unda da sea 🎶 and she's actually going to be publishing a website on it soon so everyone can learn more about the world and lore!! 👀

But for Bich specifically, these two have become just. two of our favorite bastards. And bastards they are-- irredeemable, absolute, bastards.

Barula is General of the North Sea, and Pich is General of the West Sea. Illicit affairs with your enemy? Oh my. It's more of an "enemies with benefits" situation going on, but they're also pretty friendly when their seas aren't actively at each other's throats (and even sometimes when they are lmAO). They swap notes on interrogation techniques, boast about victories, gossip like a pair of old grannies, and in general make themselves a pain in everyone else's asses.

Neither of the other Generals really like them-- of course Barula hates Chihaya, considering they're a shark, though their general demeanor and personality grates on his nerves as well. He did manage to take one of their teeth after an unfortunate… accident… led to Chihaya going into a blood frenzy-- which Barula was quick to put an end to, and he sure as shit never lets anyone forget that he bested a crazed shark General.

On the flip side, he doesn't mind Minseok… but he is salty that he's never bested the guy in any of their spars. He's General of the South, which Barula mostly considers a joke since all they really do is party. How the hell does a leafy seeahorse of all things, from the happy-go-lucky kingdom of all places, defeat him? General of the North, the most battle-hungry and warmongering kingdom in the seas, infamous even in his own right for being one of the most formidable warriors in the history of the four kingdoms. What the fuck!!

We haven't done as much on the Advisors of the four seas, but the North Sea Advisor, Hoaxuan, is also mine and they Do Not Get Along. But Hoaxuan doesn't get along with anyone in the North. (Wonder why...)

As you could probably tell, Barula is mine, so I can talk for him about hoouuuuurs. He's a striped dolphin with a hate-on for sharks, he's way smarter than anyone assumes from such a brute, and he shamelessly takes advantage of the privilege and authority afforded to him by his position. He worked damn fucking hard to reach the top, and like hell he isn't going to enjoy it to the absolute limit. His Emperor couldn't give less of a fuck either; Ganbold is a temperamental, stubborn, self-righteous old lung that, if anything, encourages Barula's abuses of power-- so long as it serves to strengthen the North (or at least its image). I mean, the Emperor himself doesn't seem to care much for doing shit by the book, so why the hell would Barula? (They're a hell of a pair tbh, enabling back and forth lmAO.) However, their closer relationship doesn't mean Barula is blind to Ganbold's flaws, and even he gets fed up with those divine temper tantrums. But part of his job is shutting up and obeying, and he doesn't really care about the motivations behind being sicced on someone by his Emperor, hehehe.

I have a playlist for Barula, appropriately titled "Barulastard," with such songs as "Animals (Cover)" by Living in Fiction, "Animal in Me" by Solence, "Move Your Body" by My Darkest Days, "Detonate" by Black Math, "Between Breaths" by Blaqk Audio, and "Limbo" by Freddie Dredd. It's about the vibes, man.

You can learn more about Barula on my Toyhouse: https://toyhou.se/21387196.barula

And Pich's Toyhouse is over here: https://toyhou.se/12707449.pich They have a lot of wickedsauce art by Rain, so plsplspls go check them out I'm not normal about them I love them.

(They'll both be getting updated bios for the website to keep all the TSKM bios uniform too, so look forward to that hehe.)

If you have any other questions about (or for) Barula, pls send 'em my way because he's my favorite bastard. (Or Minseok! He's also mine, tho he is not a bastard. His bio is a WIP but we just did some work on his lore recently and I'm sooooo in love with him rn.)

[ilanarose7]

Bells Hells Episode 95 Morning After Thoughts

SPOILERS BELOW!!! (This has become a weekly thing for me to help digest the episodes and I'm probably gonna keep doing it. really helps with my episode memory as well)

New favorite Campaign 3 episode unlocked!!!! The title of this episode has been released on Beacon (I won't spoil that), but I will personally be referring to it as "Shopping and Shipping" in my own head. It just had the perfect amount of everything and felt so incredibly cathartic (then stressful in the best way) after everything that's happened in recent episodes.

Let's break it down:

The Essek v Astrid verbal showdown!!! Essek appears to hold all the grudges that Caleb doesn't (or at least didn't really at the end of M9). When Astrid dropped the "Ludinus has an itch in the back of his neck" lore I was thinking back to when they first learned more about the harness and someone (I think it was either Marisha or Laura) wrote in their notes "We cut off Ludinus's head!!!" that was later read aloud. After that convo, that action seems like a decent play. That or maybe the Cadeuces-style Dispell Magic to the back of the neck. (side note: of course Fearne bought the Vasselheim version of the Kama Sutra 😂)

NEW CLOTHES FOR EVERYONE!!! We know there's new Dorian art waiting to be released since he rejoined the party, but everyone is getting an Aeor-ready makeover! It makes perfect sense, but I was still thrown off by the level of outfit upgrades and am so excited for the art!

Pumat is BACK! Well, his Simulacrum are at least. I don't care, just hearing that voice made me so happy. And also Dorian giving all his money to Orym so he can buy the armor? So what if I was squealing?

Downtime at the Cabaret ❤️ The Imodna kiss as Laudna went back upstairs. The Callowmoore flirting leads to Ashton, for the first time in a LONG time, successfully pick-pocketing Fearne. Dorian and Chetney banter back in full swing. Fearne leaving the EXU group hug to give Dorym a moment together. going back slightly but Iva Deshin made Bells Hells clock that YES, YOU ALL DO GIVE OFF POLYAMOROUS VIBES! So many character moments that have been needed in such a plot-heavy story

Ashton shows their head off to Essek! I have been waiting for this for sooooo long!!! Allura had given some answers, but talking more about how Dunamancy and the Assembly's manipulation of Dunamis has played a role in everything going on. While the cast know this info out of character, its good that they finally can do so in character as well

Laudna, Delilah, and the Sword-Shaped Elephant in the Room. Well, damn. First off, the acting in this last hour or so was AMAZING!! Also incredibly demonstrative of the level of trust at the table. Now to talk about the moment itself. The line between Laudna and Delilah has been getting blurrier and last night I don't think Marisha even knew fully where Laudna ended and Delilah began. The cast and many insightful Critters have been comparing Laudna to an addict and last night is an incredible example. The way Laudna handled it was wrong, this could have been a conversation rather than an initial attack. But was Laudna or Delilah the one making those choices? Or being manipulated into them? In the moment, the calm approach the group tried to take was the right one, but honestly, Laudna needs a harsher talking-to like what Chetney did with Ashton post-shard incident. Taliesin on 4SD said that's what saved Ashton from leaving the group. It might be something that, other than Imogen's love, may be enough of a wake-up call to help her break away from her Delilah-induced magic addiction

TLDR: The whole episode was full of amazing moments that were cathartic, informative, tense, and heartwarming. THE PERFECT BELLS HELLS EPISODE! again, that's just my opinion. I'd love to hear what everyone else thought too!

[thetwilightroadtonightfall]

y’all. We need to have a talk about the union leaders’ keyblades

okay, so the first thing you have to know is that khx and khux’s keyblades are different. khux introduced new keyblades that weren’t included in khx originally, but! khux also made some changes to the keyblades that were originally in khx. Namely, it removed some of the in-between forms of each keyblade

(credit to this image via @appre-chi-ation)

As seen above, khx’s Starlight originally had these 5 forms in khx. The base form, plus its 4 upgrade forms.

But khux’s Starlight only has these forms, essentially having its upgrade line cut in half, and the addition of a new final form (sorta lol, it just glows)

This is the same for all the khx-khux keyblades. Starlight, Treasure Trove, Lady Luck, Three Wishes, Olympia, Divine Rose, and Moogle O’Glory all have their upgrade lines essentially compressed in khux.

Now, why does this matter? Ephemera, Skuld and Strelitzia wield this Starlight form in particular:

This is Starlight upgrade 3 / 4th form overall. It only exists in khx.

And Lauriam wields this:

Divine Rose upgrade 3 / 4th form overall. It also only exists in khx.

Since we know that the chi saga (and kh in general but chi specifically) is really great at tying gameplay mechanics and lore together, I think I actually understand the potential lore significance of this now.

These four were wielders before the war and were chosen to be union leaders. Putting Strelitzia aside for obvious reasons, Ephemera, Skuld and Lauriam escape to the new world wielding a form of their respective keyblades that actually doesn’t exist there. Now we don’t actually know why these forms don’t exist in this world from a narrative standpoint, but it might have to do with everyone’s memories being overwritten except theirs, or maybe it’s a glitch in the data that wasn’t taken into consideration (or maybe it was placed there on purpose? 👀 but this is just speculation).

Whatever the reason is, the fact that they wield non-existent keyblade forms from a forgotten reality could potentially explain why their keyblades never get upgraded past that, despite them being union leaders. You’d think that they would upgrade to the strongest form, right? Maybe going to the new world/reality stunted their keyblades’ evolution, and they’re just stuck with what they came with because they weren’t able to finish maxing out their keyblades before the war. (This is why you always do your materials quests, kids!)

Now, the reason they don’t just choose to wield a different, stronger keyblade instead is a whole other thing. Amongst the “new” keyblades brought into khux (Stroke of Midnight, Sleeping Lion, Counterpoint, Fenrir, Darkgnaw, Missing Ache, Fairy Stars, and Diamond Dust [Bad Guy Breaker is a special case]), they certainly have a lot to choose from.

My guess is either A. they simply can’t, as in, they’re physically unable to switch their particular keyblades in for a different one because of the circumstances of data Daybreak Town or because of something Ava did, or B. they chose not to, in order to just have a memento of the pre-war world, before their life changed drastically. I’m leaning towards the latter, since Blaine gives Ephemera Master’s Defender while they’re in data Daybreak Town and it wouldn’t make sense if there was even a possibility that Ephemera wouldn’t be able to use it there. This opens up a whole conversation about keyblade lore and how keyblades themselves change overtime and in different circumstances, along with how data worlds might affect keyblades. But that’s a whole other can of worms.

Anyways, here’s the most interesting part about all this…

Ven.

He wields Missing Ache upgrade 2 / 3rd form overall.

Already right from the get-go, you can see that this is different from the “formula” the other leaders are following (except Blaine, who’s the exception here, as he is to many things). Unlike the other leaders, Ven wields a keyblade that wasn’t in khx, but is included in khux as a “new” keyblade. He’s wielding a keyblade that was only put into use in the new world where everyone had their memories wiped in some capacity, including him. His keyblade is an anomaly. It may have very well been a big hint about him being an anomaly amongst the other union leaders!

tl;dr the union leaders were nerfed, the hints about Ven being a fake leader were there all along, and we need more keyblade lore. Thanks for coming to my ted talk ✌️

(an additional P.S.: Eph and Skuld were introduced in khx, so it’s possible that the main reason they were given their particular Starlight form was so they could be relative to Player’s hypothetical strength level at the time they’re introduced. But I still like to believe that there’s this additional significance to it)

[gingerlurk]

Lovers' Crest | Chapter 12: The Visit

Din Djarin x f!Reader

Masterlist

Summary: You have more questions than before. The same goes for Din.

Word count: 1.8k

Warnings: 18+ MDNI, slow burn, non-canon (the Razor Crest never gets destroyed, it also gets upgraded with a cabin), post season 3, Calvinball with canon and Mandalorian lore (making it up), light angst.

A/N: A short chapter here, will post the next one fairly soon. Been an interesting week to be a Din Djarin/Pedro Pascal fan hasn't it? Hope you're hydrating! Thanks for reading, big love.

--

The leader of the revived Mandalorian people is not so proud as to deny you to work on her speeder. She has a refreshing air of keen intelligence and frank regard. You like her.

Bo-Katan Kryze stands beside you as you fiddle with a mess of pistons and shaft lines. She asks an occasional question, but mostly looks out across the work site. Her people move about with quiet efficiency. They’re on a ranging operation – a huge group surveying a ruined city. Din had said he needed to go out there to see her – pay respects or something. So, after a terrifying meeting with a leader named simply, the Armourer, your group of three had flown the Crest out to join them.

The shade of the hangar is surprisingly cooling in the rocky, hazy clime. You spy Din by himself across the expanse, lifting crate after crate from a transport tray and stacking them neatly against a craft. You make a mental note to bother him later about adequate rehydration.

You’ve decided the person standing next to you is your best option to ask about what’s been gnawing away at you in the time it took to reach Mandalore. She and Din seem to hold each other in a profoundly high esteem, and you can see she deeply cares for him, and Grogu.

And, since Din’s big speech about the ‘sacrifices’ you made and the ‘honour’ and ‘loyalty’ you exhibited in retrieving that beskar cache, she’s ensured you’ve been welcomed and your offers to assist their rebuilding efforts accepted.

Although it was mostly when she’d reached up, removed her helmet and looked you dead in the eyes that did it. When you realised there was so much here you didn’t know. So much about Din Djarin the Bounty Hunter. So much about Mandalorians. What little you’d gleaned from discs and stories. It was nothing at all.

Still, it was just the one question you couldn’t shake at the minute. Just ask it. She’ll give you an honest answer, you think, then you’ll know.

You twist a coil of wire around and around the kit, worrying at it over much as you force the words out.

‘What does sha--’ you pause on the unfamiliar word, push it around your mouth. ‘What does shareekah mean?’

Bo-Katan turns to you sharply, but keeps an even gaze that takes in your pinched features and nervous fiddling with the bit’s end.

‘Cyar’ika?’ she asks, putting more softness on the final syllable than you had managed.

‘Sure, yes. That,’ you strip more rubber from the coil and continue twisting.

You glance sidelong at her, see Bo’s eyes soften. Then you look out into the glare. She follows your gaze to see the lone figure straighten and stretch out. 

‘It’s a form of endearment,’ she murmurs. ‘Generally, it means “darling”, “or “sweetheart”.’

The part ready, you slip it into place, plugging the ignition gauge into the new switch you’ve created, trying to remember how to breathe. You can handle this.

But, Bo continues. ‘It’s meaning is contextual though. In certain contexts, it can also be held to mean, “most beloved”.’

Oh. Force the new question past dry lips. ‘What kind of contexts?’

‘Oh, I don’t know,’ she shrugs, arches a brow. ‘Bringing a stranger with no clan to a secretive people’s home world and convincing everybody present it was a really good idea?’

You jam the speeder’s hatch closed a touch too hard. Bo looks back at you. You give yourself a shake and huff, ‘Okay, she’s ready.’

A couple of flicks to the dash and the machine hums to life.

‘You’re going to see a lot more room at the top end now. And the glide will be tighter. I suggest heading out somewhere flat and opening her up.’

Bo-Katan gives you a small smile, a hand on your shoulder. ‘Thank you,’ she says. She replaces her helmet and swings a leg over the saddle, wasting no time zipping out from the sheltered spot. The engine roars overhead a moment later and you hear an honest-to-gods, ‘Wooooo!’ fade out.

That makes you smile. It’s a relief.

Another speeder glides in and you prepare to begin again. The towering rider dismounts and takes up a stoic vigil behind you, leaving you to your thoughts. You glance up and see Din out in the sun, looking back at you.

After witnessing a compelling ritual of armoured Mandalorians filing through a mess tent, some taking to gather around dotted fires to remove their helmets and eat, and others stepping away, fanning out to private spots – including Din, hand first squeezing your shoulder gently – you excuse yourself, begging fatigue, and head the short distance back to the Crest. 

The dusk air finally brings a cooling breeze, and you settle on letting that carry your simmering nerves back down to the earth. Seating yourself in the opening of the ship, feet thumping out a nervous pattern on the ramp, you breathe the sharp air and try to calm. You’d been growing aware of the true depth of Din’s feelings for you – even before you’d finally reckoned with each other. The conversation with Bo-Katan confirmed it. And now you’re left to wonder why it has sparked such a sharp panic within you.

There was no question you’d fallen hard for Din Djarin. Who wouldn’t? You thought you’d experienced great, epic loves before – but they all paled compared to this.

A problem was that when those old romances had crashed and burned, you’d never been sure you could piece yourself back together. And now this. What would happen to you if you lost this? You angle to the side and lean hard against the wall of the Crest, willing its cool hard surface to draw you down into yourself. It seems to hum back.

‘Be honest,’ you say aloud. ‘Am I completely fucked?’

Silence. Your breath ghosts against the wall of the ship.

Another problem was the one that had settled hard over you since stepping foot on Mandalore. This was a devout people, with a troubled and difficult history. The customs and culture were rigid, out of a survivalist’s necessity. And, as far as you could tell, their beliefs revolved around mystic superstition and ancient scriptural doctrines. Even the more pragmatic among them, like Bo-Katan herself, had an air of fateful intent around everything they said and did.

It had all given you the distinct feeling that what you and Din had found together did not fit into their way.

Even if it did, what did it mean? 

What did the love of a Mandalorian mean, ultimately? Where were you heading? What was Din expecting? You know he takes it all incredibly seriously – it’s his identity. How do you fit into all this?

You don’t know how to ask these questions. So, with an avoidant will, you push them to the side. Ferry them away like so much else. For now, you think dimly.

Out of the darkened evening, you spot a pair of lights heading for you. Din and Grogu emerge into the glow of the Crest a moment later. Grogu hurries forward to hop into your lap and you nuzzle the top of his head, enjoying his content purr and feeling calmness wash over you finally. 

Din takes you in, huddled in the door of the ship with his son. ‘Shall we get some rest,’ he asks, approaching you with a hand outstretched. You take it and stand, letting him crowd you around and into the hold.

--

Later, when you’re asleep against his chest, cool breath tickling his neck, Din once again thinks back to his conversation with the Armourer. 

After depositing the beskar and engaging in a stilted exchange of formalities, you and Grogu had been dismissed. You’d shot him a puzzled look as you followed the kid out. A what-the-fuck-is-her-deal kind of look.

Once alone with the Armourer, the two of them had sat down and discussed the best use of the beskar.

‘We have many needs, now that Mandalore is revived,’ she’s saying. Din just nods and agrees with whatever she suggests, flattered to accept an upgraded flamethrower. He’s just waiting for the inevitable. The Armourer’s perception and intuition were always an intimidating thing.

And sure enough, once the ingots of precious metal have been allotted, she goes still and stares hard at him.

He waits. Feeling not entirely ready.

She looks to the door you’d exited through, then returns her gaze to him.

‘You have coupled,’ the Armourer says.

‘Yes.’

‘She is not Mandalorian.’

‘No…’

A long, pregnant wait. She leans in.

‘Have you ever removed your helmet?’

‘No.’

‘Has it ever been removed by others?’

‘Never.’

‘This is the Way.’

‘This is the Way.’

She stands and strides to her forge.

That wasn’t so bad, he thinks. But then he’s thrown.

‘Do you know why we follow the Way, Din Djarin?’ she asks. He’s not sure what answer she is seeking. ‘The main reason?’

Once again, he waits.

‘To survive,’ she says. ‘We have been a diaspora, carved apart and hunted. We’ve followed the Way so we may continue. Do you think that holds true now that we are a united people of Mandalore?’

She turns back to him, seems to be genuinely waiting for an answer. He says, in all honesty, ‘I don’t know.’ 

It hadn’t even occurred to him to question it.

She tilts an appraising helm at him, moves back to sit opposite him again. He’s never witnessed her so restless.

‘Neither do I,’ she says, low and intense. He’s floored. ‘But I contemplate this question, every day, seeking the answers for the good of our people. As I do so, you should contemplate the questions that plague you now. Where do you fit? And where might she?’

The Armourer lets that shockwave wash through him. Then, changes the subject.

‘Your apprentice, Din Grogu, is due for his first Sojourn of the Will with his fellow students. There is one coming in a single moon’s turn. It is an important undertaking for every apprentice.’

Din welcomes the change in the course of this discussion and thinks. He knew he would have to face Grogu taking part in one of these things eventually. Had been dreading it actually. But it had to happen sooner or later.

‘I suppose now is a good time,’ Din ponders. He doesn’t want to be apart from his kid. But the Armourer’s right, it is an important rite of passage.

And, it means alone time with you. Time to figure all this out.

Time to tell you how he truly feels, maybe.

--

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(I am ambivalent about the movie announcement - swinging hard in positive-negative directions. But I don't think I like the new artwork that came with it at all. Something about the light reflected on Din's helmet is giving me BSG Cylon vibes? And is that an exploding ship he's jet-packing away from? Because if so, how is the poor child breathing...? Anyway, those are my thoughts byyyye.)

[munchkinmarauder]

My review of Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver

Overall I'll give it a generous 4/5 stars and I'm excited to see where this series takes up but I do have some gripes with it

Also lots of stuff from Orlando's AITP X-Men Monday interview pops up so check it out as we may have some hidden clues on what's next

Spoilers below

Overall a good set up issue with some fun moments. Some of my fears were exaggerated but some of those expected fears did mean I didn't enjoy the issue as much as I hoped. However I'm fault happy overall and keen for the rest of the series

The good-

- a series with the twins as coleads has been long overdue. I'm so happy to see it finally happen. Fun fact this is the first marvel series to be headlines by a sibling duo.- for the most part the twins dynamic and fight felt like a proper sibling fight. You could feel the weight of their long history and the multitude of things left unsaid and resentments.

- it's nice to see Wanda being the one clearly at fault for a fight between them for a change

- while the twins are little orange I appriciate the commitment to showcasing the twins as visible people of colour. It was long needed. I do think they (and Luna and Tommy should be more visibly brown). I also am enjoying the art and the use of the vibrant colours in general.

- I like the mystery being set up with why the twins are being targeted and the twist that while Magneto did write the letter he wasn't the one who sent it. I'm not as curious at the letter contents as I thought I would be. It seems he's being cruel because he's a dick to Pietro but let's see. I also really am excited to know why it's both twins and the combination of them together that has the giver upset. Lore and power upgrade for born twins? I hope so. Wanda being a universal threat is a given so I am way more curious about what they'll do with Pietro

- I think it was a good move to make a joke about is or isn't Magneto the bio dad at the start and shoot it down. I would love for the retcon to be undone I just don't think it has a place in this story about the bond between the twins. Magneto doesn't need to overshadow the series more than he has already for what it's worth I do think the comics are leading up to a Magnet fam reunion with most of its members appearing in major comics this year.

- it being acknowledged that Magneto was cruel to Pietro, killed him and treated the twins unequally. I have gripes with this I'll set out below but given how biased Orlando is towards Magneto this was good to see.

- the Luna, Tommy and Monet cameos made me so happy! I'm glad Orlando seems fond of Luna and I hope she and Monet join Tommy in helping Pietro. Even if the ladies are just cameos it's still a nice touch.- I liked the contrast where the fuming twins lash out with their powers. Wanda destroys her shop and Pietro is ranting but checking up on loved ones while he does so. They are each others ying and Yang.

- we're lucky the Wizard is a drama queen cause his snipers seem pretty competent and if they'd used regular bullets this series would be automatically over lol. I do also think the Wizards team called Pietro to upset him. Futher and not Wanda to ensure the twins wouldn't be able to contact each other.

The bad

- the writing for Wanda was better than Pietro. This feels more like a Wanda series so far but it's early days so let's see. Even though Wanda is the one initially in the wrong she seems to be treated more sympathetic by the narrative and of course she has more page time than her brother.

- Pietro's past appearances in SW made me a bit unsure about how Orlando will write Pietro, his takes in the comic themselves are quite superficially though he talks about Pietro very passionately in Interviews. Nothing really changed that opinion here.

- we didn't get enough of the twins interacting and this is supposed to be a series about their relationship. It would have been nice to have a little more of them getting along so the fight felt more impactful. An infinity comic with the two might have been a good idea.- I hate the Pietro fears Wanda thing Orlando introduced as well as the Pietro manipulated Wanda for HoM. I don't think Steve actually read that comic because Wanda herself in that comic said all her brother was doing was protecting her cause the X-Men and Avengers wanted to kill her and Magneto was willing to let them. Having Wanda say this was off-putting. Had it been purely in angry it would be somewhat forgivable but Orlando has expressed this sentiment in his other SW books

- Orlando's insistence on the adopted family angle and portraying Magneto as a complicated but good man who took the twins in with Wanda as the worshipful daddies girl and the victim blaming as Pietro was cold to him. That man was abusive to both his children. He would let them die for his cause and had abandoned them multiple times. Wanda pre retcon had many an issue and gripe with him. The twins are justified in their issues with him and no one should have to forgive their abusers. Magneto is a fascinating character and I loved the pre retcon dynamic with the twins as it was so tragic and full of irony and it only really works if theyre blood related. This painting of them as a happy chosen family is detrimental to all characters involved.

[maspers]

Bionicle is weird yall

Okay so let's talk Bionicle. The Lego action figures with surprisingly deep lore and themes, and basically one of the coolest things to ever exist. You either love Bionicle or have not read Bionicle.

Who's your favorite? Mine has got to be Kopaka. For various reasons, including his general competence throughout the whole story. He's just pretty rad.

Now, you might be surprised I like Kopaka, since all things considered he's kind of a prick. He snarks at basically everything that enters his line of sight, and largely acts kind of stuck up due to his (admittedly justified) belief that he's the smartest person around. He spends the entire story fed up with everything else. He is completely and utterly convinced that he is the only sane person in the entire universe, and that nothing in the entirety of Mata Nui is behaving in a logical and rational way.

But see, here's the thing: all of that bluster about being the only rational thing around is complete bullcrap and lies, and here's why:

Kopaka, like all the original six Toa, is an amnesiac. He popped out of a magic canister in the ground and basically has no backstory to speak of since before he woke up he essentially didn't exist. And we know he's not a possible exception to this since, unlike the other Toa, he's the one we actually see it happen to. He has legit no idea who he is until Nuju tells him. What this means is simple: KOPAKA HAS NO FRAME OF REFERENCE. You can't judge something to be insane if you have not experienced sanity. Nothing is "irrational" in the abstract, you need context. Most people have extremely well-developed context obtained by living, but since Kopaka had not yet lived until he woke up he has NONE OF THAT.

And even if he did, he'd still be a massive hypocrite. Sure, the Matoran society and the Makuta are kind of weird, but Kopaka is a TOA, and Toa are a whole new kettle of craziness. Kopaka is a magic space warrior robot with the power to control the very concept of THIS STUFF IS COLD. His face is a magic mask that grants him X-ray vision and then gets even more powers later on. He can physically combine with other Toa to create a weird mega fusion Toa. Heck, after his first upgrade his primary weapon was skis. SKIS. He basically shapeshifts into a new body every time he goes somewhere else. And, as noted before, he legit just popped out of the ground one day, which makes him and his sibling Toa objectively weirder than all other Toa ever, since all the rest are transformed Matoran. Kopaka's entire existence is really freaking weird. He has no legs to stand on in his "I am the only rational being in the universe" belief. So where the heck did he get it from?

The simple answer: Mata Nui himself. When designing the Toa to act as a sort of internal anti-virus for all the weird garbage in his system, Mata Nui decided "You know what let's make the Ice one a prick who thinks he's sane" and somehow that idea perpetuated to the very end of the design process. The only reason Kopaka has to deal with everything else seeming completely bonkers to him is because Mata Nui, massive benevolent Troll that he is, *made him that way*. I bet when Kopaka finally made it to Bara Magna he was probably internally extremely relieved, because now he could judge the Agori by comparing them to the Matoran and vice versa instead of judging the Matoran on no actual justification whatsoever.

TLDR Kopaka is my favorite Bionicle because the entire premise of his personality is absurd and he probably spent the entire plot trying to internally justify it. Also ice powers go brrrrr

[sepublic]

I don’t care if you’re not an F-Zero fan, I need you to discover this unhinged lore I discovered about a racing game series. Because apparently this vehicle, called the Death Anchor, was originally an interplanetary ballistic missile stolen from the Galactic Federation, and some evil group modified it into a race car. But it’s still rigged to blow up and the current pilot, Zoda, doesn’t know this. And he’s racing it against a bunch of other racers in a highly-televised Grand Prix.

Now with that out of the way, I also want to discuss what this means regarding my desire for a Metroid show to share the same canon as F-Zero GP Legend and incorporate elements from it. Because now I want to allude to this fact by having a Federation interplanetary ballistic missile look suspiciously Death Anchor-shaped. Make it an Easter egg only the most hardcore fans can spot. Because this is simply the most insane thing ever to me and I’m also curious as to what the original missile looked like.

Does anyone in-universe realize the resemblance, do they believe it’s just a coincidence or simply made to look like it, or even if it was repurposed surely Zoda defused the damn thing right??? And then one day someone has to break it to him that he’s driving an active nuke on a race track within a city. This is something you launch from the surface of one planet so it can travel through space and explode on another planet.

Furthermore: When Zoda gets upgraded into his Hyper form in the GP Legend anime, he also gets a new, separate vehicle called the Hyper Death Anchor. I dunno if its resemblance to the original model is purely aesthetical, or if it’s also a repurposed nuke that hasn’t been defused. Because the last we see of it, it’s hurled inside of Black Shadow’s Dark Matter Reactor, which is also a bomb meant to blow up the universe, alongside Zoda himself. And the reactor is blown up, but by an outside source and without the necessary juice it needs; So the explosion is confined to the empty corner of space it originated.

But now I’m gonna say the big explosion we see at the end of the final battle isn’t just from the reactor going kaboom, it’s also from the nuke inside finally going off. And somehow Zoda, who was inside both machines in a matryoshka of explosives, survives all this unscathed and is last seen participating in another race. Using the original, canonically-repurposed and still-active nuke from before, his first Death Anchor. And he still doesn’t know that both vehicles were repurposed nukes still ready to go off, and that one of them did.

Is this a reference to Back to the Future? It’s an 80’s classic turned film trilogy involving a Time Machine built out of a car; Its inventor got the radioactive energy source he needed to power it by promising a terrorist organization to build a bomb for them if they secured said nuclear materials and gave it to him; He lied and sent them a dud. All of this prompts his friend to ask, you’re telling me this thing is nuclear? The Time Machine doesn’t explode, but the fact that a dangerous component was originally meant for a missile, and you can drive it, reminds me of Death Anchor…

Funnily enough, Death Anchor’s origins and volatile nature are lore from the games. Its pilot Zoda is canonically an enhanced, cybernetic human pumped full of chemicals to perform better. In the aforementioned GP Legend anime, he was revealed to have been created by Black Shadow in the future, and then sent back in time to get the main protagonist killed, to prevent his destiny. So, being sent back to the future to change the present, an explosive car meant to be a bomb at one point…

[charaznablespeteevee]

Would you share your thoughts on the Gundam you've seen? I added the first one to my list based on your posting about it (mostly the transition Char posting, he sounds like a fascinating character) and am not on Twitter to see your liveposting

Good question!! It seems like you want to know if I'd rec them so I'll answer based on that.

The original Mobile Suit Gundam (1979) absolutely I would rec to literally any anime fan. Both because it is a genuinely good anime, but equally because it's like. You know how people say you have to read the Bible to get all the references to the Bible in literature? It's like that. Gundam is one of the Bibles for anime. It's in everything. And you won't realize this until you watch it.

It's also a very good science fiction show just in general. The major characters are all great, the drama is compelling, and while some of the animation has not aged well, the newtype stuff has some super neat effects that are gorgeous to see on a big screen to this day.

It's also super accessible, the full show is available on Crunchyroll or if you don't want to commit watching a 43 episode show the three compilation movies are on Netflix and are a very solid alternative.

Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam (1985) - they got a big budget upgrade so everything is Bigger and More. More robots, more character drama, more romance, better music, and some bizarre segues into how men are from Mars and women are from Venus. Absolutely worth a watch if you liked the original Gundam because it continues to follow a lot of the original characters.

Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ (1986) - technically "skippable" if you consider 0079, Zeta, and Char's Counterattack a trilogy, which it kind of is. ZZ focuses on an almost entirely new cast of characters and the first half of the show is VERY heavy on the comedy before jumping directly into some of the best anime I've ever seen for the second half. The mood whiplash is kind of divisive among fans. Personally I like it and the characters are great. Worth a watch if you like what you've seen so far.

Char's Counterattack (1988) - caps off the gayass Amuro/Char rivalry and is just an amazing movie in general. Gorgeous visuals, and the final 15 minutes or so are a series of emotional gut-punches the likes of which I've rarely experienced in media. Must watch IMO.

War in the Pocket (1989) - six episode OVA featuring entirely new characters. This is a truly fantastic little series that lets you into the lives of a small handful of likeable characters and how their lives are affected by war. It's Gundam so guess how that goes. I liked it a LOT and recommend it. BONUS: This is a GREAT "starter" Gundam. It's short, it's very good, and you don't need to know anything about Gundam going in. There's a few references to prior lore, but they aren't anything major and a newcomer could easily figure it all out from context.

Mobile Suit Gundam F91 (1991) - this is a movie that was originally going to be made into a TV show and it shows, they stuffed far too much into too little time and it suffers for it. So unfortunately this is the first thing on this list I probably wouldn't rec. That said the characters are pretty fun and the ending is very good, so you can do a lot worse if you're bored or a completionist.

Mobile Suit Victory Gundam (1993) - this is what I'm watching right now! I'm a little over halfway done with it. This is all new characters and there are some interesting new concepts. For example the first twenty or so episodes were set on Earth so you got some really gorgeous scenery during mobile suit battles that made those scenes really visually distinctive compared to say, a battle in space. That said it's yet to really "pull me in" the way most other Gundam series did. For now I'm still waiting to see if it will do that or not.

Witch From Mercury - I'm assuming everyone knows what this is. It's gay as fuck, what can I say, and it's the entire reason I fell down into this Hell to begin with. 10/10

[thorns-and-rosewings]

I think after some of the more recent episodes of TSAMS I am in need of updating some of the things in the Reaper King AU 💀. As I now have a few more ideas of what happens next. I guess this is the Part 8 of the AU then :)

I also now have a few VERY interesting ideas about some of the other characters in this AU and what is going on with them. Specifically Sun, Ruin and Eclipse.

Oh boy do I have some fun things here... But also some dark things.

TW: Same as before. Actually quite a bit of gore in this one... And some seriously disturbing imagery.

-Slight change to the lore of this AU, Ruin DID create Reaper Killcode... HOWEVER... this is not Ruin faking being cured, this is Ruin being cured and making a MASSIVELY BAD DECISION...

-He created Reaper KC to play the villain... So HE could defeat him and play the hero... He created Reaper with a weak spot. Essentially a hole in his chest that would have been how Ruin planned to defeat this new enemy.

-...his actions were driven by loneliness and his desire to to really become a part of the Celestial Family.

-Unfortunately the second Reaper Killcode took Stitchwraiths core and added it into the hole in his chest, it actually upgraded his body and made him into the insane threat he's become... As the core upgrades came as KC was literally it's 'Perfect Host'

-Moon discovered Ruins part in KCs revival and ran him out of the Pizzaplex in a fury.

-In spite of him having brought KC back, he was not responsible for Eclipse's revival... Or at least he's not aware of it if he is. He did kinda blackout on some alcohol and he apparently does weird things when he's drunk, soooo that's kinda up in the air at the moment.

...now to the present...

-Sun and Moon opt to go see what is up with a huge mountain range suddenly just appearing outside of the city. They stop by the ranger station and meet Harper... Who is surprised as hell at the sight of two more sentient robots. Still, she treats them politely. Tells them about the park... And the legends of how the forest is a hotbed for Cryptids. With the most feared being the 'Reaper King.'

-She also says yes, she is aware that something is weird and she's realizing she might not be in the same universe she was a few days ago...

-Honestly... Not the weirdest thing she's experienced with this job. And she wants them to be careful as this forest is notorious for its disappearances.

-She's dating and having 'Smoochy Time' with the alpha cryptid in this area. She's pretty familiar with weird... But Moon and Sun don't know that...

-Sun and Moon kinda brush the cryptid thing off and just opt to explore this place a little together. Neither are taking this very seriously as they walk deeper in.

-Things seem semi-normal... At least until they pass through one particular clearing and something catches Moons eye and he ventures off the trail to get a better look at this thing. It looks like a ghastly old tree... Only carved into it are frightening images, particularly of what looks like some strange demonic faces... Hanging from the trees are bones and the truck is slathered in blood.

-He and Sun are VERY unnerved...

-Even moreso when a herd of deer suddenly rush through the clearing... But one deer is being pursued closely by what looks like two wolves and there's something already on its back holding onto its neck... One of the creatures trips it up and the deer goes down. The animal making agonized screams as the creatures tear into it... Until finally it goes silent.

-The thing on the deers back stands it's about the height of a young boy, showing grey skin and semi-glowing eyes. And blood staining its mouth and dribbling down it's chin, while one of the pursuers stands... Showing it to look like a child version of the Wolfman, also just as bloody from the ordeal.

-They grin at each other then pet the actual wolf that was with them before looking back into the forest from where the deer heard had initially run from.

Vamp: Brothers! How was that?

Lycan: We brought it down! It's a good size! With seven points on its antlers!

-Moon and Sun are crouching down near the tree watching this scene in horror. As everything proceeds to get MUCH worse when from just beyond the treeline another figure approaches the boys and the wolf... A figure that both of the animatronics had hoped they would never see again...

...Bloodmoon...

-He approaches the group, a strange blue ball of fire floating near him as he walked, and the wolf immediately rushed up to him... Showing that it's head bore a sickening deformity, like it nearly had two heads but it never got far enough and was just a conjoined skull. But to the shock of the secret onlookers, Bloodmoon greets the animal with pets as it licks the maniacs face... That shock easily quadrupled as the Blood Twins looked to the dead deer and then brought both of his hands up and rubbed both of the boys heads.

Bloodmoon: Not a bad kill... You got this one without my help. Next time you will have to take it down without HunterKiller helping.

Vamp: Did we did ok?

Bloodmoon: You did great! It is dead after all! Very dead! (Bloodmoon puts an arm around each of the boys as they look down at the deer... And his disgusting tongue comes out and licks across his sharp teeth) And now my little brothers... We FEAST!

-Bloodmoon, the boys and the wolf immediately begin to tear into the deers carcass... The sounds... The wet sounds of the ripping and tearing of the deers flesh. The loud crunching as Bloodmoon bit into bones in order to get at the marrow... And then the boys eagerly requesting him to bite other bones, as they were unable to get marrow themselves due to their teeth and jaws not being as strong... And so much blood just splattering everywhere...

-Moon regains himself first, reaching down to get a grip on Suns shoulder... And pulling him up, but only just slightly. As not to alert the freaks just a short ways away from them.

-They need to leave... Now!

-Sun is just locked up in horror at what he just watched but he yielded to being pulled back by Moon... They both turned to creep back the way they came-

-Only to stare at the sight of a young girl made of blue flames, holding one of the deers antlers in her hand and a piece of twine. Clearly staring at the brothers in shock.

...But Sun sees something different...

...for a moment he can see the little girl as she was before she mutated into a Wisp...

-This sight triggered something in Sun, the part of his coding that sought to protect children... and before Moon could stop him, Sun grabbed the little girl up and just starts booking it as fast as possible. His intent only being to get this child away from danger...

-Wisp, understandably, starts screaming

-Its a blood chilling, eerie sound that seems to carry in all directions without losing any volume. Immediately getting Bloodmoon and the others to freeze. All of their faces thoroughly soaked in blood and gore. Bloodmoon looks around, only to spot Moon and Sun... With Sun holding his little sister and dragging her away.

Bloodmoon: WISP!!!! Let go of our baby sister!!!

-They abandon their meal and started to chase Sun and Moon. The boys, Lycan and Vamp starting to make calls, strange whooping calls into the woods as they are just... Tearing after Sun and Moon

-Wisp is struggling amidst Suns grip and crying, while Moon is just screaming at Sun to drop her. But then the little girl ignites! She badly burns Suns arms and hands. Escaping Suns grip and rushing back to Bloodmoon and the others... Actually she plowed into Bloody so hard he actually fell backwards... Buying some time for Moon to pull up Sun and start partially dragging him away.

-Sun regains himself enough to just be running alongside his brother... And he makes the fatal mistake...

Sun: I think we lost them!

-A MASSIVE Wendigo-esqe creature explodes from the nearby trees, running on all fours it lowers its head that is adorned with huge pronged antlers and rams into both Sun and Moon. Sending them cascading down a steep hill

-After hitting the ground, Moon groaned in pain but managed to get to his knees pretty quickly. Only to realize they were now outside one of the Ranger cabins near the entrance of this park... He got a brief flicker of hope for a moment, thinking they might be able to escape if they booked it from here.

-That tiny moment of hope was dashed when the Wendigo creature leapt off the hill and landed only a short ways away from them. It's skeletal head lowered and blazing eyes locked completely on the brothers...

-Out of nowhere, chains seemed to snake out from amidst the foliage and ensnared both of the Celestial animatronics. Pulling them backwards until they were slammed against a tree and further wrapped up in the chains.

-From off to the side an eerie floating spectre was revealed to be the source of the chains... A young girl, probably in her mid-teenage years became visible. Wearing a raggedy dress and a hooded shawl, the chains seemingly coming out from the shawl...

-And within a few seconds, the vampire and werewolf children... Along with Bloodmoon and the mutant wolf. The little girl made of blue fire, Wisp, was in the form of a tiny ball of flame and positioned on the top of Bloodmoons head...

Wendigo: So... What happened? It's not every day you guys let out calls for all of us to get involved in one of your hunts.

Bloodmoon: We'll tell you later, but for right now... (He turns his hateful gaze straight at the bound forms of Sun and Moon... Particularly Sun) We have an old score to settle...

(That's it for this part, I promise to get the next part up soon but this was already going on for too long at this point...)

[the-solver-system]

can I have a basic lore rundown of code & bones

GIGGLE THIS IS GOING TO BE LONG

Okay so, let's start at the manor!

B and R were both worker drones at the Elliot manor, though they were different rankings and in different sections so they basically never interacted.

B was a prototype for a new super high-tech model of drone, so she didn't have to do too many chores and was more like a show animal.

R was an older model of worker drone, so she had to do all the basic chores and stuff. Though she struggled due to being a trash drone Tessa found, and her being an older model.

R also eventually got the solver, though it was before V did.

Basically the whole manor thing we see in episode 5 plays out the same except R also has to be fought off.

and then more recently

Cantor was raised by Alice, but he eventually grew fed up and fled. They broke into outpost 3 (I finally learnt the name of it!!) and managed to go unnoticed. They chopped their hair, and tried integrating with the other drones. They went to school, though they weren't liked by most of the classmates. That is, except for Uzi. Cantor and Uzi got along great and often hanged out.

Though eventually, Cantor got an idea. They told Uzi they were sneaking out, took one of the key things, and left. It didn't take long for a murder drone to try and attack them, though they got away. Not without getting an idea though.

Cantor cut off both of their legs, and half of one of their arms. They used old disassembly drone and worker drone bodies to make their body resemble that of a disassembly drone. They also used oil to dye their hair from white to black. AND!! They added two more voice boxes to themselves!

Eventually, they found a disassembly drone that caught their eye. Most disassembly drones had monotone hair, but this one had a very eye catching brown color. It interested Cantor, and they decided to attempt to revive the drone.

It took a LONG time, but eventually they were successful. The drone awakened, and after being told what happened, introduced herself as Serial Designation B.

She invited Cantor to join her squad, but they were hesitant. They confessed to B they were a worker drone, but B.. surprisingly didn't kill them. Since Cantor gave B an upgrade so she didn't need to kill the worker drones, she really didn't see the point. She wasn't all that loyal to the company.

Eventually B led Cantor to her old squad, consisting of Serial Designation U and Serial Designation I. The two warmly welcomed Cantor and were thankful B was alive, even if she now looked different.

Cantor wanted to try again. Try to bring another drone back to life. So they scavenged parts, and eventually found a disassembly drone body and a worker drone body they wanted to bring back. But, they decided to fuse the two together. After also adding in their own code to make sure the drone functioned, the drone awakened. Cantor gave them the name Cryp, and everything was fine and dandy.

Though not for long.

Something happened to Cantor, they changed. Sometimes they would be more reserved and aggressive, to the point sometimes they would attack B. A drone they saw as their sibling. One time they attacked Cryp, and Cryp died. Fatal Errored.

Cantor was distraught and tried and tried to get them back. They had brought drones from the dead before, surely, SURELY, they can do it again... right?

but no matter what they tried, Cryp wouldn't power back on.

B and Cantor drifted apart, to the point they were passive aggressive and sometimes spiteful to each other.

Though one day when Cantor went exploring, they found R. a drone trembling, desperately trying to fly but their wings refused to budge. Their tail was ripped off, and they were sobbing.

Cantor helped R, and she told him about her old squad. Consisting of V, N, and J. She was forgotten, not in any company records and her name not remembered by any of them. She was just a shield to them, since she was able to regenerate from any amount of injury incredibly quickly and felt no physical pain.

Cantor gave R a new tail, but couldn't do anything for her wings. He invited R to join their squad and she accepted.

R noticed how distant B and Cantor were, and tried to get them to get along. They refused, but R kept pushing. She was normally quiet but she saw how much these two were hurting and just wanted to help.

Eventually, she witnessed Cantor's solver form beating down on B. Telling her that Cryp's death was all her fault, forcing her to stare at what was once Cryp.

R decided that was enough, and tackled Cantor.

Cantor snapped out of it, and was out of the solver mode.

It took a long time but eventually B and Cantor talked it through, and tried to figure out ways to keep the solver away.

They decided to leave the squad, both because they didn't want U and I to get hurt, but also because they two didn't want to stop killing worker drones. B and Cantor tried to get R to stay behind as well but R refused, so they left (and brought Cryp along as well).

Eventually they found an abandoned pod to hunker down in and stayed there. Cantor set up a lab in a hidden basement under the pod, and everything seemed okay.

Then episode 8 happens.

yeaahh idk how to explain that, lets just say they were confused as hell somewhere else and just trying to survive.

After, Cantor decides to drag B and R back to Outpost 3 to check on everyone else. Surprisingly, they're let in. Cantor is confused but grateful, and heads to Uzi's house.

He knocks, and Uzi opens the door. She doesn't know who he is at first until she hears their voice.

"Hey Uzi, wanna hang out?"

She just starts absolutely sobbing, and tackles Cantor into a hug, she lets Cantor and his friends inside and they all catch up.

I could get into the rest of it but this is already really long, though if y'all want more I'd be happy to deliver!!!

[uaremyjae]

My thoughts on my One Piece journey and How it’s affected me 🩷

This is going to be long ass post lol

I think this is the platform that I never knew that I will ever comeback to but you know because of one piece and deprived of Sanji, Nami & Law content, ✨ here I am 😁✨ *shamelessly comeback after abandoned tumblr for good 11 years lmao*.

Anyway, I just want to let out my thoughts on my one piece journey and how it affected me. So bear with me. This is only place I can talk about One Piece because other platforms I had is related to kpop * Yes I’m a kpop fan. HEAVY ON NCT. Neo Got My Back.*

I know about one piece way back when I’m teenager. It’s just I don’t start to watch it/ read it somehow?? Idk why 🤷‍♀️ I’m also confused to as why because I did grew up watch anime like FMAB, Naruto, Bleach, Black Butler, K-On, Fairy Tail on tv. HECK I EVEN WATCH THE LONG ASS DETECTIVE CONAN TOO 😭

I think it’s because back in the day ( 2010 - 2017 ), I had lack of access to internet and not exposed to the series at all. Besides the local TV station here, only aired Naruto ,Bleach and those anime I mentioned . *I’m just 24 years old btw*

So around September 2023, I came across to One Piece content on TikTok and funny enough it’s Brook edit! I was so intrigued with this character and little did I know I watch a bunch of One Piece clip here and there on TikTok. To be fair, I am basically spoiled myself that time 😬 but I’m the type dgaf if I got spoiled because I won’t remember at all later on. 🤷‍♀️

So I decide to start watch it. First few episodes, my reaction was like “ Okay Luffy is an interesting guy🧐his body stretches and always smiled! He got damn hands tho ngl”. Zoro, my reaction was like “ahaaa SO THIS IS ZORO THAT EVERYONE KEEP TALKING ABOUT. Quite a Stud.”

Nami, interesting female character that I can relate because I like money 🤑 and her backstory is so sad. Ussop is also another character I gradually love over the time!

Then COMES MY HUSBANDO, SANJI. Man I have a thing for a man who can cook and looks good in suits. Sanji really makes me having my first anime crush ever! I DONT HAVE A CRUSH ON ANYONE IN NARUTO & Detective Conan but One Piece made me have one 🤧 *The upgrade from loving a guy that exist but doesn’t know you exist ( haechan,jaehyun & jaemin bb i luv you guys but Sanji 😮‍💨) to loving a guy who are not exist on this plane of earth 👀*

Little did I know I start to binge watch it. First day of watching, 30 episodes in 6 hours. 10 days later I already watch 325 episodes . but the show is so good! The story telling that oda created really hit home to me and the foreshadowing & lore he created makes me hooked unlike other story that I have read & watched.

Here’s the thing, to me every anime that I watch, I never like finish it . Sometimes I would just watch last ep and called it the day. This is not only apply on anime, it’s apply to western shows, my own local shows & k-dramas. So One Piece truly like solidified their place on my heart. I finally can understand why one piece are so loved for decades!

Also during those times, I hit rock bottom too. I quit my job because I was falsely accused for stealing shit at my work place and being discriminated by my ex-boss due to being the youngest one for my entire work.( everyone else was in their 40’s ). That time I was desperate as I need some money to achieve my bucket-list and want to lessen the burden of my family. Lord heavens knows what I’m going through, got death threats by that mf. Twisted the truth that causing my whole family cut ties with her severely. From there, I felt so stress and worried.

So One Piece is my way of escapism and it’s been a beautiful and exciting journey. Compared to last time, I took a 7 months breaks from works due to burn out & anxiety, this time it doesnt took long for me to overcome those situations and my “year-end blues” that I called is not as bad as before. I also has been actively try to get a job asap so I can buy an Ipad as I want to start learning digital drawing again after watching one piece.

One piece teach me it’s never late to start a new journey towards your dream! I used to dream to be a graphic designer or animators but my family don’t want me to be that. They want me to have that conservative jobs like working in government, an accountant etc. so essentially I gave up those dreams so I can make them proud of me. It’s been bothering me for so long as I felt like I should have go for what I want not what people want. At the end, I abandoned my accountancy knowledge and worked as an admin & a baker which I found a lot more less stressful that being an accountant. I guess what people describe after knows me personally being a confident, free-spirited & rebellious is just the way I am. AND oddly enough One Piece is just perfect manga & anime for me!

At this point, I already caught up with anime. I’m a weekly basis anime watchers now. I also has caught up with manga too. It’s been a huge revealing & fresh experience of One Piece for me. I felt like I being myself again! It’s weird but it’s the truth! I never felt so at ease and being seen. I just want to do what I want. It’s just fitting fate for me to be a One Piece fan!

That’s all what I want to say… if you really read this till the end. Thank you!

[katyspersonal]

I've made more SOTE progress!!!! And I MEAN progress this time! Damn that was fun but I don't know whether to feel happy or sad because like I said, I really don't want this DLC to end ;-;

1) So, I went in the direction of the ruins place..... and then turned around and decided to get back to whatever dragons business I still had left bfhhhvhg And started with that cave which I recalled had a Wyrm (and also a HUGE bowl of spaghetti sauce gfhyhh)

2) After I killed it, I actually went back to Florissax! Apparently this is the name of Dragon Communion Priestess that is revealed indirectly, much like Boggart's! By that time, @val-of-the-north woke up and I allowed him to take my hand here because he warned me that her quest is terribly broken. And, God... -_- You have no idea how much, but perhaps I am getting ahead of myself....... 🤦‍♂️

3) I heard that I needed to kill two drakes above first, and my reaction was just 💀💀💀💀💀 Because I am AWFUL at fighting them! ......Or I USED to be, but perhaps I am getting ahead of myself hfuhfhybj [2]

4) Found this item in a shack nearby!

5) So, I figured that my usual "strategy" was not going to fly, and finally bothered to upgrade a weapon (big katana) with the built-in anti-dragon effect! You know, a weapon you OBTAIN in this very DLC! HOOOOOO BOY AT LAST!! TWO WEEKS LATER, SHE FINALLY GOT THE BRIGHTEST IDEA TO USE THE TOOLS SHE'S BEEN GIVEN 🙄🤦‍♂️

6) So I proceeded to go above, and met a singular drake, so I decided to actually fight it normally! No pussy long ass distance dumbass Int user combat! Close combat and learning the dodging patterns only!!

And it actually worked. I actually finally adapted to the dragons' moveset and when to roll in and not away, and how to stay around their feet right and how to run from the fire! After two goddamn years of struggling with dragons (excluding SOMEHOW first-trying Borealis, the frozen dragon) I adapted 🙄🙄🙄🤦‍♂️

7) Cool lore:

These grow from the burnt dead bodies across the peak and don't respawn

8) So yeah, in the next place, there were two drakes fighting each other (sure guys whatever), and I figured the boss one can first kill the weaker one so I was just standing and watching them like 🍿 until one left!

9) After defeating THIS one, I felt so much power that I decided to side-track and go back to kill two other dragons (the undead ones in Scadu Altus and Cerulean Coast). I didn't need it, I just felt SUCH a strong urge to do that, you have no idea!!!

9.1) Well, first I actually talked with Igon, because after both of the fighting drakes were killed he laughs and praises us for being a great drake warrior xD He gave me an item (his cut finger) that opens a change to summon him against Bayle, which he really asked to do!

9.2) Okay ANOTHER thing I did was to finally jOiN cOvEnAnT to talk with Florissax that Val asked me to do, because according to him I needed to talk to her at night, which was only possible after defeating the two drakes + I could now ask about Igon

9.3) She also revealed the roots of Dragon fascism; turns out that Ancient Dragons are after Drakes not for some prejudice reason against their species being "diluted", but because Bayle was the one to wound Placidusax and HE is the drake. Argh, can ONE person in this DLC have motivation to be an asshole that is NOT revenge!

10) So I was running around for a bit longer, visited another mine not far away from previous dragon (saw the big rock dude petting the lava slime there), and finally returned to Florissax!

....so, first, she was not appearing during the night. I tried to rest at the grace, still nothing. I tried again, nothing. I asked Val what was going on, and he wasn't sure and went looking on forums, meanwhile I tried to restart from another grace and travel to her location before the night was over! She still did not appear. 🙄

At this rate I started to wonder whether I broke the quest by not talking to her earlier before getting to Igon, but just for the heck of it rested at grace again, but now I skipped time to the night even though it already WAS the night! And then she FINALLY appeared near the Altar at night!! ...only, no new options or dialogue appeared!

According to Val again, I needed to catch her praying to herself so I could give her an item I already had. I reloaded the area, no praying. Reloaded it again, still nothing. Reloaded it again, and she straight up disappeared 🤦‍♂️ I thought that was it, and quest got broken, but just in case I quit the game and started it again.... AND IT WORKED.

....I am WITHOUT WORDS. According to Val, Jarburg quest used to be the same on launch.

11) But yes, she was praying to Placidussax, saying she surrendered her sleep so he could rest, and we got the choice to use Thiollier potion, that did mention it'd merely make dragons sleep for a bit. Damn... to think of it, Elden Ring quests give enough hints.

12) Val reassured me that was it and I just needed to skip a few days in game, so I went to murder remaining drakes! Fast enough, I killed them! Both of them!! However, the one in Scadu Altus was fighting with a lot of Black Knights and it was just entertaining to watch for like 15 minutes until they all finally died 🍿🍿🍿

13) me before: NOOOOO WHY DRAGONS ARE SO HARD, Val I do NOT want to hear your yapping about how they're not """that""" bad, I don't care and I will just run past them ;-;

me now: NOOOOOO WHY ALL DRAGONS IN THE GAME ARE OVER ALREADY, they needed to put more of them in to kill!!!! ;-;

14) I talked to her, where she was very crashed by having fallen asleep:

"I have broken my pledge. I succumbed to the deep slumber... that was meant for my Lord. Twas a craven act! Of a foul and lowly beast! Forgive me, good warrior. My Lord will no longer look upon me. I have fallen from grace. An old dragon no longer. Go on, leave me be."

15) So, I did gfjgffhg And proceeded to go above! Honestly, when I was looking at this area in the world's map, I was SURE it wasn't explorable...

Also, my complaining about no longer having dragons to kill was met!! There was another dragon, an ancient one now! It gave me a bit of a challenge for several times, but I remembered that rocky things are all weak to magic damage so that + defending myself from bolt more helped x)

15.1) This dragon is named Senessax... Sigh... Remember my theory about Placidussax? Zullie (the youtuber) datamined that he had 2 male heads and 3 female heads (1 male and 2 female missing), so I speculated that those heads turned into Granssax, Fortissax and Lanseax? Now that there are more dragons named with -sax, I feel like this theory aged like milk ;-; On the bright note, I recall King's Field (?) had a pair of white and black dragons siblings, so since Fortissax is black and Lanseax is pale and they're siblings, maybe it is return of the trope?

15.2) Fingers in the Ruins are rocky creatures with gold (AKTYALY amber) sewn into them, and ancient dragons are rocky creatures with amber sewn into them... I guess the ancient life is just like this?

16) I finally met Bayle!!!!!! And I actually laughed when Igon INSTANTLY started screaming curses at him upon being summoned XDDD The most character ever! Also cute that he said Bayle was going to face "the true drake warrior and him" gfhhbv He doesn't acknowledge himself as one anymore because of his fear, but acknowledges US!

Took me a few tries, but like I said, I finally adapted! 😎

17) Returned to his corpse:

(He also dropped his bell bearing, need to check the item it gets later just in case)

18) I talked with Florissax about the victory! She gave dialogue: "Ahh, finally, our wish is granted. Our dream, long yearned for, has come to pass. My Lord was blessed with great insight. He saw in the insatiable hunger and fierce spirit of man, the very things that would fell Bayle, our wretched nemesis. Warrior, you soar with the strength of dragons. Whereas I am fallen. Leave me be."

And gave this item! Sooooo that's how her name got revealed!

19) There was an option to tell her that we put her into sleep ;-; I was a bit nervous to pick it but felt like I should jtythhhgb

"Never, in all my years... How could you inflict such cruelty? No, that is not for me to judge. Whatever your hand in it, it was I who succumbed to the sweetness of slumber. The fault lies with me. I may be fallen, but I need not surrender my honour."

Arghhh shut up girl, you talk like an abuse victim :/ Not even a slap in the face?

20) So, she continued:

"On the second thought (? not certain, I forgot to write the starter), I believe you do owe me something for the transgression. On a mere whim, you've stripped me of my one and only Lord. As such, I require another - you. One day, may you become a dragon whole, a Lord of your own making. Lead me, and I will follow. My good Lord."

.....well, "now you have to adopt me" is sure one way to solve the conflict, I guess hfhgfnh

21) This way, I got her spirit ash:

So yeah, I ASSUME that her set is available, and I am not 100% sure whether her head piece is just the mask or simply how her head is supposed to look! She does have a face data, but she would need to since her model uses NPC mechanics, so it could be ignored?

I just haven't seen the description yet, but ER logic does let us adopt to appearances of others (like getting hair of other characters for example), and her body appears to be very black and shriveled, with sharp inhuman features! I sure hope that her look IS how ancient dragons in human form are supposed to look! It would offer an insight on how Lansseax used to look when communicating with the Dragon Cult!

(Besides I am still biased since I wss cursed with boring portrayals of Godwyn x Fortissax where the latter was a basic bitch yaoi bishounen without even the slightest monstrous features 😔 Even horny Lanseax waifu artistd had the basic dignity to at least add some horns and scales hfhyghj Okay that was my monthly voucher of being a petty bitch used, until the next time when my mask of respecting all type of creations cracks hdhhjgfhhnhh)

______________

Conclusion: character development if I've had one lol

[bropunzeling]

director's cut of your choice of scenes from the elopement timestamp :)))))

hello from the airport :)))) here is matthew and brady's conversation aka a secret fave scene of mine:

"Dude, you're so wound up," Brady says as they go through a bucket of pucks at Centene. The ring of the posts and their muffled curses fill the rafters. "Are you stressed about something? What is there to even stress about?" [this scene had two goals. one was more sibling/ratfam content (since its very lacking from the original works for obvious reasons) and the other was to get to the point at the end of the conversation. i decided that brady needed to be the guy because (1) i like writing him (2) matthew would actually open up to him and (3) because he's already been married for a couple years/is gonna be a dad/etc etc it adds this nice, your sibling is further along than you (helpful, rather than anxiety provoking)]

Matthew’s shot goes off the post and rolls away. He curses. "Nothing."

"Uh-huh." Instead of grabbing a new puck, Brady leans on his stick. "Try me." [matthew has not acted like this since the summer of 2022 and brady is not stupid]

Matthew takes another shot, straightens up. Brady’s still looking at him, flat and even. God, he’s not gonna move, is he. 

Giving up, Matthew checks the rink—safe, Leon went off to hit the bike five minutes ago and no one else is around [one of my editing points was reminding myself of the secrecy! like obvs they are not as horribly repressed and not telling anyone anything as they were in meet me halfway, but like, leon's reputation matters to both of them and neither want to test and see what would happen if it came out that they were dating. theyre admittedly sloppy, but it’s still a thing they think about]—and then says, in a low voice, "I asked Leon if she'd ever want to, uh. To marry me."

Brady sucks in a breath. "You proposed?"

Matthew shakes his head vigorously. "No. No. [i mean, you kinda did.] I didn't mean now, I meant in the future. Someday. You know."

"Sounds like you proposed,” Brady says, much too loudly. The whole building might have heard him.

"I didn't," Matthew insists. "All I wanted was for her to think about it, you know? I wasn't going to—to spring anything on her." [me on my relationship soapbox like SURPRISE PROPOSALS ARE SHITTY AND YOU SHOULD ALWAYS TALK ABOUT IT FIRST] He clutches at his stick. "Just—I wanted her to know that I was serious, and see if she'd also want that, and now it's been like four days, and she hasn't said anything, and I kind of think I fucked something up. Fuck, maybe I shouldn't have said anything at all. What if I scared her off?"

"Dude. Breathe." Brady's infuriatingly calm. [the contrast between brady's general inflappability and matthew's anxiety is always funny to me.] Matthew glares at him. "I doubt you fucked anything up."

"You don't know that.”

Brady shrugs. "Okay, no, I don't know for sure, but like—you can't really think you scared her off."

"It's happened before," Matthew mumbles. [obvi like -- they are pretty good and over the events of The Battle of Alberta, Playoffs Edition; it's been years. however, that won't stop matthew from being anxious! last time he thought they were on the verge of a relationship upgrade leon ghosted him! he doesnt want that to happen again] He doesn't want to stand here while Brady looks at him with that calm, know-it-all expression. Maybe he'll go collect some pucks. He heads towards the goal.

Skates scrape behind him. "Matt." When Matthew looks over his shoulder, Brady’s trailing behind him with the bucket. "She’s stupid in love with you." [one of the fun things about this time stamp, along with everything, was finally getting to let this version of leon be stupid and romantic and overcome by her own feelings. she's soooooo gone.] At Matthew’s glare, Brady rolls his eyes. "I was there when she showed up last summer, remember? I think I'd know." [another fun thing was dropping bits of Lore that im not sure will ever become a proper cleaned up ao3 time stamp, and this was a big one i wanted to hit!!!]

Matthew bends down and grabs a few pucks out of the crease. He hadn't actually been awake when Leon had shown up in Florida last summer; he hadn't been expecting her. They had agreed, after the Oilers got knocked out, that she'd wait to come out until after the playoffs were over. She had to close up her house; debrief the season with Connor. And—they'd fought about it, over the phone, more yelling than there had been in a long time, but Leon had asked how he'd feel if he was there watching from the sidelines while she won the Cup without him. If he'd really be all that happy for her. [it was important to me to hit this because obvi we see the opposite in meet me halfway - matthew checking in and gone even when leon beat his team - but crucially they never did get to this point, and im not sure matthew ever thought through what it would look like if leon HAD made it that far. mr hiding in the garage when the cup was at his house probably wouldn't have handled it well! and like - even if they are in love and in a relationship, they are still the same fundamental people who are competitive and desperate to win and hate to see other people get what they want. so of course they fought.] [obvi my solution to this tension is in 5 or so years they play on the same team, win cup, put baby in cup.]

She'd apologized the next day, but she'd made her point, too. When she booked her flights for late June, he hadn't argued.

Then his sternum got cracked. Mom and Dad had to drive him home from the rink and help him out of his own clothes. And when he woke up after a miserable night, it was to find Leon asleep sitting up on the bed next to him, holding his hand like it was a lifeline. It wasn't until later that he'd gotten the details out of Mom—how Leon had shown up at two in the morning, exhausted and incoherent and making a beeline right for his bedroom. How she wouldn't leave, even when Mom tried to insist she go find an actual bed and get some sleep. [(a) she was doing so bad. (b) this is absolutely the tipping point for matthew's people to be like oh shit this is a big deal thing, as you can see with the below]

Matthew had spent the next few days thinking mostly about how much his chest hurt and how badly the team was playing, but he also noticed the way Brady and Leon had quietly teamed up—to get him out of bed, to get him dressed, to get him to the arena. [there is a whole unrealized scene in my head of them watching matthew suffer during game 4 on the couch and both are like, quietly so fucking stressed out for him, and it’s this little moment of quiet bonding and acceptance where its like you love him, i love him, we both wish he wasn't on the ice right now] Once he got past the self-pity, he’d found it pretty funny. However Brady had felt about Leon before—and Matthew was pretty sure that feeling wasn't acceptance, no matter how much Brady tried to hide it [brady really did not like leon after the Events of rob thomas' party. as soon as he connected the dots that girl matthew has been moping over for months = leon draisaitl, leon was fully on his shit list. he definitely headhunted her that whole next season]—apparently Matthew breaking himself could smooth over almost anything.

"Listen," Brady says now, leaning against the net and holding out the bucket for Matthew to dump pucks into. "Do I think she was a dick when she ghosted you? Yeah. But she's fucking crazy about you now. You can't miss it."

Matthew drops a handful of pucks into the bucket with a clunk, then heads for the boards. "Okay, but like—she hasn't said anything," he says. "What if she doesn't want to?"

"What? Get married?"

Matthew nods. [crux of the scene!】

Brady skids to a stop by the boards. "I don't know, man. I mean, maybe she doesn't because she thinks it's too soon. Or maybe it's not that big a deal to her. Half the guys from Europe do the whole, you know. The partner thing." [matthew: spiraling. brady: repository of reasonable takes] He shrugs. "I guess the question is, if she wants to be with you, but doesn't want to marry you, are you gonna be okay with that?" [and here we go! so like, a Big Theme of meet me halfway/the girl!leon cinematic universe (gcu) is like, dealing with expectations and hangup and how you pictured your life going vs how it's actually going vs how you actually want it to go. and obviously for most of it this is leon's journey - reconciling hockey and a personal life, understanding that she doesn't have to shut out friends or family or the potential for partnership in order to have a career, that it won't make her lesser or softer, that it’s okay to be soft in the first place.

but. BUT. it's very important to me that matthew is ALSO going through this reexamination of his own expectations. his picture of life was not so subtly based on his parents and structured in a very particular way. and falling for another hockey player who wouldn't be staying home, who would push and challenge him and be her own independent person, naturally upends some of those comfortable images he had of his future. and this is just one more instance of him needing to look at what he imagined for himself and changing the picture to fit not what he thought he would get, but what will actually work for him and leon, what they actually want together. and here and in the next scene is when it hits that its not about the trappings but about the knowing. he doesn't want leon to push him away, he wants to know that theyre going to be doing this together, but that doesn't mean they have to do things the way everyone else does, either.]

Matthew chews the inside of his cheek. Would he be? It's hard to know. For so long, he's had that little picture of what his future looked like. Even as it changed, that part—being married, that sense of permanency—it’s always been there. He doesn't know how he'd feel if it were gone. [again the permanency is the thing. obviously i am like, in the middle of my own feelings about all this, but really it is like: you're here with me, im with you. even when we're annoying or stressed out or tired or miserable or caught covid on our romantic vacation when you were gonna propose. you're with me and i'm with you and it's gonna be for the long haul.]

"Just something to think about," Brady says after a moment. He claps Matthew on the shoulder. "But for what it's worth, I think she's pretty fucking serious about you."

Matthew hip checks him back. Brady doesn't move, the fucker. "When did you get so smart, asshole?"

Brady laughs. "Who says I haven't always been this smart?"

"You were a fucking idiot when you were thirteen," Matthew retorts.

Brady shoves him into the boards, the bucket of pucks clattering to the ice. "You really gonna bring up teen shit? Because I remember—" [brothers!]

Things go a little haywire after that, first chasing each other and then all the loose pucks scattered across the rink. By the time they've collected everything, they're both laughing hard enough that they can't catch a breath.

"Hey," someone shouts. Leon's leaning on the boards, wet hair sticking to her head and the nape of her neck. "Are we gonna go soon? I'm starving." [relatable]

"Yeah," Matthew calls back, making his way towards her. "We're done, I think."

When he makes it over the boards, Leon’s already reaching out, one hand fisting in his jacket. She yanks him closer, kissing him, then pulls back and says, "Go shower. You stink." [they would be so much better at keeping their secret relationship secret if they didn't want to make out and or fuck whenever they're within five feet of each other. alas]

"Uh-huh," Matthew says, ducking back in to kiss her again, just to see if her nose will wrinkle. It does. [gross!!!! and!!! in love!!!]

"Shower," Leon repeats, slapping his chest and shoving him towards the door. "Hey, Brady. You coming to lunch?"

Matthew misses whatever Brady says to her, but he doesn't miss when Brady comes into the locker room and snaps a towel at him. "Told you," Brady says in a low voice. Almost subtle, for him. "Crazy about you." [rip to brady, who has to witness god's most embarrassing pda every day of his summer and then deal with his older brother thinking that his girlfriend doesn't love him]

Matthew busies himself with his towel. His cheeks are warm.

[lyranova]

As promised here are my “in depth” thoughts about Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King movie!

Warning Spoilers below!

I thought the movie was pretty fun and exciting! The different team ups between characters were amazing, and they showed off characters and squads (ie; Mantis’s and Lions) who didn’t really get their “times to shine” much in the anime and they introduced really interesting characters with the Wizard Kings!

My favorite team up (besides the BBs ofc) had to be Fue, Nozel, Yami, and Yuno. Not only because 3/4 are my faves (I’ll admit Nozel is growing on me 👀) but because it was so interesting to see, I mean, we’ve seen Nozel and Fue team up before, but we haven’t really seen them team up with either Yami or Yuno. At least not that I can remember. Also we never got to see Yami and Yuno team up with each other either, so that was really fun and exciting to see 😁!

I also LOVED Mereo’s fight against FunnyBunny in the desert, like, it was so awesome to see! I’m glad we got to see just how much Mereo’s squad and brothers mean to her as well and how they give her strength to keep fighting, it really warmed my heart 😭! Also FunnyBunny has my favorite magic out of the Wizard Kings besides Conrad, it just looks so cool 😱’

The BB’s fight was sooo great too! Like the Ice mage’s Chapel and spells were really interesting to me 👀, and I loved the different team ups between the Bulls (like Magna and Gordon, Zora, Nero, and Luck) and how it shows just how great they all worked as a team! NOELLE WAS SO AMAZING THO!! Like we got to see her kick some serious butt against that old guy and just show off how cool her Valkyrie armor is 😁👏!

And I gotta shout out Grey because she showed off her transmutation magic and was absolutely great 🥺, I also loved the “blink and you’ll miss it” moment with her and Gauche 🥰!

I also love the contrast between Asta and Conrad, like, they’re so similar but so different. Asta could have easily become like Conrad if he let all the hate and discrimination that the Nobles and Royals threw at him get to him, but also what happened to Conrad’s family and friends contributed to that mindset too 😅.

WE GOT NACHT and LIEBE CAMEO’s!!! AAAAAHHHHH I WAS SO HAPPY WHEN I SAW THEM LIKE 😭😭💕💕💕!! ALSO WE GOT TO SEE LEOPOLD BEING COOL AND FIGHT AGAINST ONE OF THE WIZARD KINGS!

And finally…I NEED MORE LORE ON THE WIZARD KINGS LIKE??? I NEED IT, WHAT WERE THOSE SMALL GLIMPSES OF THE PAST? WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM, WHY WERE THEY ALL STRIPPED OF THEIR RANK?? DID THE ICE MAGE KNOW NOELLE SOMEHOW?? I NEED TO KNOW PLEASE I BEG OF YOU 😭😭����😭😭🙏🙏🙏🙏!!!!

My only gripes would be that we didn’t get to see much of Julius and that sometimes I got dizzy and i actually had to close my eyes at one point 😅. But that’s really my only gripes.

Now onto my mother 👀!

Firstly; She thinks Conrad is a cheaty cheaty cheater who does nothing but cheat 😆! She finds Jester annoying af, she said FunnyBunny was Black Clover’s Erza Scarlet, and…she didn’t have any opinions on the Ice Mage other than she felt he was related to Noelle in some way 😅!

She felt the movie was very disappointing, and I think her main problem was with the storyline and character development.

She said it was her least favorite and, in her opinion, the least interesting. She felt that she couldn’t really connect with the bad guys and that the good guys didn’t really “earn” their win since they didn’t get any power upgrades or anything, which is understandable. I think if the movie had been broken up into episodes and more was able to be shown that she would have liked it more 🤔.

She did have parts of it she liked tho! Mainly with Mereo (she is my moms favorite BC female character) 😆.

She loved when Mereo was first shown and said quote: “Yeah She doesn’t play around, she will not hesitate to kick your ass” 😆! She also loved when Mereo grabbed Sekke by the head before he could run away “He deserved it!” was her reasoning as to why she liked it.

And finally she found it HILARIOUS when Grey turned the Ice into Water and Magna began surfing and just randomly said “Alright here we go!”.

I don’t know why she found it so funny, and in turn so did I, but I think it was because of how his VA said it 😆!

Anywho, that's just our opinion. I liked it. Mom didn’t. It happens 😅!

[tobiasdrake]

Well, it's nice to get a glimpse at the inner workings, at least.

That is definitely some Fleshmancer shit floating in that stasis tank. Also, the Arcane Golem's hand. Research lab?

Yeah, my fight with the golem was pretty sweet. But you should use better words. I'm not comfortable with the words emerging from your shrouded hood right now.

So are you the Artificer? Because I said it before but this whole place reeks of Artificer tech.

Is that why it looks like petrified Fleshmancer gook? This has a strong Final Dungeon vibe to it.

I have this seashell, but I don't think that counts. We'll circle back to this.

So there is a purpose to the loop, then. We're spiraling. In that case, it's cosmically a good thing that I let Soldier's dumb ass get killed.

If the Messenger system continued unimpeded then this would never happen. It needed disruption.

He's not wrong. Prophet isn't fooling anybody with that shit. Anybody can speak in a loud voice. Watch me.

THE SWIRLING HEAVENS HAVE FORESEEN A TIME WHEN A GREAT RECKONING WILL COMMENCE UPON THY ANUS

See? Prophecy isn't hard. Anyone can do it.

*nods sagely* The true assclown revealed. Good to know you have as little patience for this shit as I do. I think this is the first time I've ever felt an actual kinship with you, Archer.

But what if I don't want to be screamed at by an otaku today?

Ugggggggh fine

Okay, but where's the lie, though?

I mean. The mists of time are alive so if we wanted accuracy, I don't see why we can't bring him here. Is it for ego? Because I'm pretty sure it's for ego. No other reason to be talking to a guy with a hat that reads "Oracle" when Apollo himself is right there.

So I'm looking for musical notes, then. Does this have anything to do with my fancy seashell?

Have we tried other things? Like fire? Or peeing on it? Something? Or did we leap straight to Crystallized Musical Elements?

...

...

...

This one. Open this one. I need to know what's on the other side of this one.

CHOKE ON YOUR BONG YOU CONCEITED NERD I waaaaaaaant it!

Ugh, fine. We'll do this your way.

Ooh, a map. We are officially in Metroidvania territory now. I appreciate you, bruh. Thanks for having my back, despite many of the things I've said to you over the course of this journey.

Alright, i am ready to receive the map! Lay it on me!

...no....

No....

I... I cannot be this stupid... I refuse....

I THOUGHT IT WAS BORING LORE AND JUNK.

I think I was very clear about this at the start of my journey. I read the Moon Goddess's fable religiously and pretty much ignored the rest of my history lessons because who the fuck cares about boring history!?

This is the most humiliating upgrade I've ever received in my long and highly accredited history of postal delivery.

[prototypelq]

DMC Questions Anon here!

A Devil May Cry spinoff that is set to be led by one the female cast has been announced, and they've asked you to make the game. Which of the women of Devil May Cry will you choose to be the main character? What other characters will you want to appear? What's the plot of the game? (You can also go deeper into gameplay mechanics if you desire.)

Hi, dear DMC questions anon!)))

I think my answer is quite obvious) (psss it`s gonna be Patty)

Contradictory I`d like to say some words about other ladies as protagonists:

Lady can get her chance to Finally Get Some Characterisation. This woman is middle-aged and her character has been 'teenage girl with a rocket launcher' The Entire Time, This Is An Actual Crime. Her only bit of character is (1) throwaway line in 5, ONE. Lady has been dealt a very bad hand by the franchise, but if she were to have a spinoff game, maybe she could have gotten at least a good goodbye arc, though it`s hard to give a proper goodbye to a character if she never had any arc in the first place. Lady is kind of doomed by the series at this point, very little can save her, F.

Trish and Lucia are equally good choices here. Both of them have...some character, also they are both demons and demonic culture or lore could have been explored. They have a very basic foundation (which is much stronger than Ladys), but its strong enough to jump-start a good story and give them some light. Personally I would prefer Lucia, just because I like her more.

Now, onto my favourite DMC girl)

As a major cerified Patty Propaganda enjoyer, I would love to see nonsexualised young adult version of Patty! There, however, are some additional reasons why I'd love to see more of her:

no power creep. Patty is not a Sparda, and Spardas are known to suffer from insane power creep, and she just wont be able to handle that. Patty can explore the more down-to-earth struggles of a modern world where demons are an actual thing. She can handle like domestic demon problems or some small infestation, but if she steps into something she cant handle she Needs to get out of there and call in backup (her adopted dad/cousin/uncle will handle everything very thouroughly). DMC is never really afraid of the demons, they are basically a dummy for the player to practise on, and can only make you anxious if youre playing on a harder difficulty. Well, base game difficulty is actually always a DMD mode for Patty and I think that could be a very interesting lens to look through

This same lens can be used to show other human demons hunters or armorers like Nico! 3 Spardas, 2 demon ladies and one rocket launcher schoolgirl cannot handle every possible demon problem, theres gotta be other hunters.

Patty is canon to be a descendant of a sourcerer, and this is a Great segway into gameplay. Because I think Patty's possible gameplay should be V's upgraded and expanded theme and moveset.

Has anyone here seen or heard of Astral Chain???No? Yeah me too, its a nintendo exclusive. Wanna know what it is? A Platinum Game slasher with Pet Demon control, where you have Multiple demons to choose from, you can use them for Mobility to platform around, and customise and it has a banger soundtrack!!!

I believed V has something really good going on when starting out DMC5, and was a little dissapointed when I realised how shallow he is compared to other characters. He is still fun and very very unique to play and I think his gameplay should be improved upon and Astral Chain Proves that too.

Give Patty some magic stuff to bind demons with, let us have a variety of summons to choose from (I Will go through the entire game with a pet Cerberus, just as I did in 5, thanks for asking), but Patty herself should have her own moveset and toolkit. She can't possibly get into melee range with any demon as human speed cannot compare, but she could use some guns (courtesy of Dante probably), and spells or potions. Personally I was not a fan of Breakers', well, breaking mechanic, but it would work really well for an actual human demon hunter who needs additional powerful thingies like that in battle. Also Would love to see Kyrie being proficient in some rare Order magic or stuff like that, they Had to have some other spells or scrolls around, and its a reason to see Kyrie in game) (like how could Nero leave her alone otherwise, she has to have at least some defencive options, and seeing as devout she was I think she could be quite good at them, maybe she just doesnt like exterminating demons herself)

My only issue I dont have a solution for is how to make this sort of theme seem related to the DMC series, as a human protag will be a significant downgrade from sparda powerhouse-losers. Limiting enemy numbers or screen will make the gameplay less interesting, and giving it fast pace like the other entries might destroy the illusion of 'human' demon hunter, who is not as capable as sparpda bois. Buuut that's sort of problem for the game designers to handle and not me soooo I'm gonna use that excuse yeah

tldr: I would choose Patty, she can give the game a down-to-earth viewpoint of how an average DMC series people handle demons, and her gameplay can be an expanded version of V, with some inspiration from the Astral Chain and some original moves mixed in