#hello rain code community

[vvemo]

I think i yassified desuhiko just a lil

[nonbinary-throwdown]

Update on Submissions!

Thank you all for submitting! We received 327 submissions. Of those submissions, 169 unique characters have been confirmed for this competition!

However, we need 192 characters to reach the closest amount for an even tournament. And so, submissions will be reopened until this number is reached.

The list of currently confirmed characters is under the cut. Please only submit characters that are not on the list (this list will be updated as characters are submitted)

Amount needed: 0!

Confirmed Characters

Siffrin (In Stars and Time)

Kris (Deltarune)

Bonnie (In Stars and Time)

Raine Whispers (The Owl House)

Alex Fierro (Magnus Chase)

Jim Jimenez (Our Flag Means Death)

Crona Gorgon (Soul Eater)

The Hollow Knight (Hollow Knight)

Testament (Guilty Gear)

Acht (Splatoon)

Frisk (Undertale)

Kirby (Kirby)

Ashes O'Reilly (The Mechanisms)

Murderbot (The Murderbot Diaries)

Nomi-Nomi (I Was a Teenage Exocolonist)

Stevonnie (Steven Universe)

Napstablook (Undertale)

Paintbrush (Inanimate Insanity)

The Collector (The Owl House)

Danny the Street (DC Comics)

BMO (Adventure Time)

Rita Kaniska (Ohsama Sentai King Ohger)

Marco (AI: The Somnium Files - nirvanA Initiative)

Janet (The Good Place)

Double Trouble (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power)

Floofty Fizzlebean (Bugsnax)

The Knight (Hollow Knight)

Hange Zoë (Attack on Titan)

Emporio Ivankov (One Piece)

Envy (Fullmetal Alchemist)

Sheriff Sam (Welcome to Nightvale)

Fourteen Fifteen (Friends at the Table: Twilight Mirage)

Bon Clay (One Piece)

Janel Theranon (A Chorus of Dragons)

Adira Tal (Star Trek: Discovery)

Darcy Olsson (Heartstopper)

Eighth Doctor (Doctor Who)

Ziggy (Hatchetfield)

Morph (X-Men/X-Men '97)

Opera (Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun)

Halara Nightmare (Master Detective Archives: Rain Code)

Kazi (The Dragon Prince)

Neferpitou (Hunter X Hunter)

Gin Noto (The Caligula Effect 2)

Setsu (Gnosia)

Shi Qingxuan (Heaven Official’s Blessing)

Haruhi Fujioka (Ouran High School Host Club)

The Bard (Wandersong)

Chara (Undertale)

Sunil Jha (Loveless)

Nightshade (Transformers Earthspark)

Two (Battle for Dream Island: TPOT)

Galore (Flight Rising)

Francois Snow (Of the Devil)

Dante (Limbus Company)

Jia (Project Naught)

Uraume (Jujustu Kaisen)

Tam Lang (Mooncakes)

Glass and Gloss (Flight Rising)

Scribbles (Flight Rising)

Loki (Marvel)

Rinn (The Tea Dragon Society)

Bloodhound (Apex Legends (Titanfall Universe))

Lion Ushiromiya (Umineko no naku koro ni)

Broccoli (Broccoli Soup)

Molly (The Warp Effect)

Cody Winter (All for the Game)

Raqio (Gnosia)

Missne (Missne och Robin)

The Student (Broccoli Soup)

F.F./Foo Fighters (Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean)

Olive (Broccoli Soup)

Charles Eyler (Hello Charlotte)

The Gourmand (Rain World)

Petrel (What Lurks Beneath)

Masha (The Owl House)

Strawberry Crepe Cookie (Cookie Run)

Mama (AI: The Somnium Files)

Inazuma (One Piece)

Kyusaku "Q" Yumeno (Bungou Stray Dogs)

The Architect (Bungou Stray Dogs)

Cole Seymour (Yaelokre)

Clémente Dearworth (Yaelokre)

Kingsley (Yaelokre)

Peregrine August (Yaelokre)

Gonzo (The Muppets)

Sunshine (Creature Court)

World Hater Majik (Ichi the Witch)

Khai (Starless)

The Toy Soldier (The Mechanisms)

Sibling Dex (The Monk and Robot)

Ibuki (Assasin's Creed Shadow)

Diggory Graves (Hello From The Hallowoods)

Olivier Song (Hello From The Hallowoods)

Asra Alnazar (The Arcana)

Anne Faulkner (Paradox Live)

Mathilde Confiseuse (Tales from the Stinky Dragon)

Cel Sidebottom (Rusty Quill Gaming)

Bot (Inanimate Insanity)

Four (Battle for Dream Island)

Jamilla Gardener (woe.begone)

Osana Najimi (Komi Can't Communicate)

Shamud (Earth's Children)

Seam (Deltarune)

Princess (FAKE TYPE.)

Yuu Asuka (Stars Align)

Violet (Young Justice)

Nico Hakobyan (Danganronpa: Despair Time)

Es (MILGRAM)

Sailor Uranus (Sailor Moon)

Zoit (Lloyd in Space)

Popeye (Popeye)

Henchperson of indeterminate gender (A Series of Unfortunate Events)

Syvan (Elsewhere)

Blanche (Pokemon Go)

The Lamb (Cult of the Lamb)

Myc Cellium (Inside Job)

Hazen (Deceive Inc.)

Demon King Oda Nobunaga (Fate/Grand Order)

Sam (Deadman: Dark Mansion of Forbidden Love)

Celia (Beastieball)

Davepetasprite^2 (Homestuck)

Grendan "Grandma" "Grenda" "G-Ma" Highforge (Drawtectives)

Echo Reverie (Friends at the Table: Twilight Mirage)

Phrygian (Friends at the Table: Partizan and Palisade)

Valence (Friends at the Table: Partizan)

Klaus Hargreeves (The Umbrella Academy)

Tintomara (Drottningens Juvelsmycke)

Bliss (Citizen Sleeper / Citizen Sleeper 2)

Titania (Final Fantasy XIV)

Layne Dawncreek (The Tarot Sequence)

Jess Chambers | Kid Quick (DC Comics)

Pin-Lee (Murderbot (TV show))

The Merciful One (The Dragon Prince)

Valentina/Val (gen:LOCK)

Nathan Seymour/Fire Emblem (Tiger & Bunny)

Courtney Cahatel (Dead End: Paranormal Park)

Nanachi (Made In Abyss)

Tau-indi Bosoka (The Masquerade)

Jax (9-1-1: Lone Star)

Clover (Undertale Yellow)

Etihw (The Grey Garden)

Luka (EmuFeral)

Edward Wong Hau Pepelu Tivrusky IV (Cowboy Bebop)

Zira (I Don't Want to be a Magical Girl)

Hoshi (I Don't Want to be a Magical Girl)

Xio (The Sunbearer Trials)

Roguefort Cookie (Cookie Run: Ovenbreak)

A (Xenoblade Chronicles 3: future redeemed)

V1 (ULTRAKILL)

Ima (Ikenfell)

Raquio (Gnosia)

Huzzle Mug (Great God Grove)

Ink5oul (The Magnus Protocol)

Riva (Dimension 20: A Starstruck Odyssey)

GiGi (Chucky (tv show))

Niko (Oneshot)

Justice (Zenshu)

The Interloper (Corru.observer)

Venture (Overwatch)

Naki (Kamen Rider Zero-One)

Kai Bartley (Grey’s Anatomy)

Jae-Yoon (Ordem Paranormal: Natal Macabro)

Frankie Stein (Monster High Gen 3)

Nakuru Akizuki/Ruby Moon (Cardcaptor Sakura)

Nine (Battle for Dream Island/X Finds Out His Value)

Partynoob (Regretevator)

3 & 4 (9)

Nonbinary Yiga Clan Member (unnamed) (Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom)

Adjudicator Shrue (The Silt Verses)

Sibling Rane (The Silt Verses)

Charli Ramsey (Marvel Comics)

Pollution (Good Omens)

Desire (Sandman)

Tova (The Sex Lives of College Girls)

Juno Steel (The Penumbra Podcast)

GPS (The Nightly Manor)

Ian Wright (Quantum Leap (reboot))

Rose Noble (Doctor Who)

Frei (Hello Charlotte)

Nagihiko/Nadeshiko Fujisaki (Sugo Chara)

Clove (Valorant)

Marshmallow (Annoying Orange)

Romulus-Quirinus (Fate/Grand Order)

Moray (Undertale Yellow)

Lupe (Four Leaf)

Kai (Godslave)

Fleet (Rectify)

Monster Kid (Undertale)

Barry the Quokka (Sonic the Hedgehog)

Juice Box (Animatic Battle)

August Willenheim (When The Night Comes)

[fullscoreshenanigans]

Yes, hello, I love your blog, you're my only window into what the fandom is doing and I could always completely skip the manga and just stick to reading here. So, about your poll of popular theories, I saw something about the demon world being underwater, would you mind elaborating, please? It's for research. For a fanfic 👀

[The poll in question]

I'm always going to advocate for reading the manga, not just because of what happened with S2, but also to see all the gorgeous detailing Demizu puts into her work that's lost in the transition to TV animation, along with her playing with perspectives/proportions in relationship to power dynamics.

(Chapter 1 | S1 Episode 1)

But thank you! <3

My understanding was the theory of the demon world being underwater was introduced by @couldnt-think-of-a-better-name, who was mainly active during the series' heyday (February 2019-July 2019, between the releases of chapters 123-142 during the King of Paradise and Seven Walls arcs and when S1 premiered in Japanese and English).

• Main post about the theory • Secondary post about Lambda-7214 being a coordinate • Neat edit of chapter 7's, chapter 16's, and chapter 2's cover art • Volume 13 Special Edition mini-artbook art hinting at the trajectory of the series

I think it's interesting in how the Seven Walls search party traverses what we're presented with as the entire demon world to find clues about Cuvitidala and the Seven Walls, yet the largest body of water we see anyone interact with is a pond. Nothing close to an ocean that would present them with difficulties such as building a boat or buying one from demons.

(Chapter 60 | Volume 8 Title Page | Chapter 99 | Chapter 100 | Chapter 102)

Shirai also confirmed the elevator at Goldy Pond takes one to "a certain forest in Australia" (out of 458 forest communities).

(Mystic Code Book Chapter 3 Q&A)

While the stairs under Grace Field headquarters seem to land one somewhere on the east coast of the former United States of America.

(Chapter 178 | Chapter 179)

There's the imagery of the Statue of Liberty, leading me to believe the North American headquarters for the Ratri clan are located in (former?) New York City, but I don't know if I would necessarily say they wash up on the city's shores since Mike takes a jet out to meet them and the children aren't freezing in the November weather there. There's also the impracticality of after coming back from the demon world to transport goods or just traverse between the worlds you conspicuously land out in the open on the beach, so I believe it was the demon god's meddling that sent them to this beach, and the proper exit in one specific, singular location like the Goldy Pond one is somewhere else in the area. Two specific locations located in opposite hemispheres in our world, yet in the demon world you could potentially travel between the two passageways on foot in approximately a week based on the time it took the kids to reach the shelter at B06-32 (one day of initially wandering through the forest, five days traveling with Sonju and Mujika, and one day walking through the wasteland) and how long it took Yuugo, Emma, and Ray to reach Goldy Pond (four days) if it was a straight shot.

(Chapter 49 | Chapter 60)

It all leaves me very curious about how large the demon world is compared to the human world and how the demon god decided to split the two worlds up.

It's also interesting how despite all the water imagery in the series, we don't see any rain in the manga outside of the chapter 28 cover art (mentioned in the fourth post of that list):

But the anime chose to have a very light rain overlay during the second episode while not animating the ground or characters getting wet:

It rains in the light novels.

(TPN Light Novel 1: A Letter from Norman [June 2018] - "The Day Emma Cried")

(TPN Light Novel 4: Films of Memories [December 2020] - "Operation Stormy Night," originally published in Minerva Confidential Report Report Volume 1 that was packaged with the first volume of the Japanese S1 blu-ray in March 2019)

And we see the children playing in the snow in the past.

(Chapter 10 Bonus Scene)

[thecozycat]

💜 Showcase Saturday #5: Pizzacat Delights 💜

This weekend's Small Web showcase feature is Pizzacat Delights; a cozy corner of the internet, where everything is wrapped in the sweet, nostalgic glow of Hello Kitty! Created by Pizzacat (aka Claire), this site is more than just a place for personal expression—it's a tribute to the internet's simpler, more creative days. As a kid, Claire spent hours hopping between websites, clicking links, and diving into Flash games. Today, she’s reclaiming that sense of freedom and creativity in a world where corporate-run social media platforms have all but squashed the individuality of the early web. On Pizzacat Delights, Claire has the freedom to share whatever she wants, from personal stories to quirky interests, all while honing her coding skills with every update and change to the site.

Claire's passions go beyond the digital world—she’s an adventurous spirit who loves the outdoors, the beach, and historical places like castles and old churches. Whether she's taking walks or enjoying the rain, there's something deeply soothing about the simple pleasures of life. Her life has been filled with interesting experiences, from wrestling an alligator (sort of!) at age nine, to staying up for 24 hours straight during her teenage years, to accidentally watching a YouTube video for five hours without realizing it. Her story is full of delightful oddities and fun facts and is absolutely a delight to read through!

Claire’s site offers a mix of content from a blog, microblog, and even a shrine section dedicated to her favorite things. There’s also a growing archive of resources, cool links, and plenty of odds and ends that reflect her personality. Whether you're looking to explore her creations, learn more about her interests, or just stumble upon a delightful new corner of the internet, this site is sure to bring a smile to your face.

👉 Check her site out at: https://pizzacatdelights.neocities.org/

Want to help the Small Web movement grow? Join us on other platforms. ♥

FB Page & Group: facebook.com/thesmallweb facebook.com/groups/thesmallweb Twitter/X: x.com/smallweblove Tumblr Community: tumblr.com/communities/thesmallweb Mastodon: indieweb.social/@thesmallweb

[shallowseeker]

Anon(s)-adjacent:

I've gotten like 4 The Trap questions yesterday, but basically my "official" stance is this: I now think The Trap was a much more covert comms than I initially thought, which I've discussed chaotically at turns but summed up here. And that is an aspect I really like!

Note: If Cas and Dean didn't have such a long history of covert communication, I wouldn't probably break it down quite so charitably.

///

A good example of the covertness imho is Theeee Bel line: Given the amount of time Dean knew Belphegor, it's distinctly odd for Dean to give Belphegor a cutesy nickname in this specific context/conversation. (Unless, of course, it's an dig. Which it is.)

The Bel of it all

I see a few layers in his mentioning Bel in this way. Make no mistake, Dean's making a not-subtle, purposeful dig. This is what specifically triggers the conversation to take a more negative turn. Cas gets growly and bites back in large part because Dean responded to Cas's condolences and initial vulnerability with a weird dig that included "Bel" in place of Jack. (Cas doesn't respond perfectly to grief either, but this? Cas is responding to Dean being weird about "Belphegor.")

But I don't think it's as simple as Dean wanting to respond to Cas's vulnerability with cruelty: so that leaves... right. Jack. (And Rowena.)

Mostly" Jack's death is still too painful for Dean to mention his name, so you get this smokescreen/stand-in in the form of "Bel." I talk about why I think Bel is such a sticking point here. Basically? I personally think it's about the ruination of Jack's body. I think Dean, in part, was open to Bel being in there to preserve Jack's body, both to delay the process of "decay" and hold out hope they could get Jack back somehow.

///

Covert comms are fun tho

But anyway, like I said, one thing I do like about the structure of this little run of eps is the coded messaging. Ex: These great lines in 15x08...

[Castiel sitting at the table as Dean enters and grabs beer from the fridge] DEAN: Maybe you went too far. CASTIEL: Maybe. DEAN: I mean, he's been in lockdown for quite a while, you know? Maybe you just, uh, went too fast. What's he doing now? CASTIEL: No idea. He was very distraught. DEAN: Yeah, but what exactly did he say? CASTIEL: "Leave. Get out. I want you dead". We didn't bond.

Maybe I went to far. Maybe I was in lockdown because I was in shock. Maybe you upped and left me too quickly. Etc etc.

In theory, I love the big ball of weird covertness that hovers around the season, but I do fall a bit on the Jackles opinion of things: it's a bit too much at times. With the amount of time they had left (ONE SEASON), it often comes off too strong and too opaque.

They opened so many cans of worms that nothing really landed, and then, when they tried to soliloquize it together and shoehorn in some follow-through themes in the last two episodes for each character, it felt... speech-ey and unnatural (imho). And at times, bad in the way that felt... like we were watching shapeshifters HELLO I'LL BE IN EVERY DROP OF RAIN.

///

The relationship negotiation is actually ok for me

At heart, I think it's a mostly successful negotiation of a relationship. But negotiations aren't as bad as they sound. It's not an apology per se; it's a needs-based conversation, and they're both aware of that fact as they participate in it. Dean is not obligated to forgive Cas, but if he wants Cas to stay, and his passive-aggressive barbs sort of imply he does want Cas to stay, I think it's reasonable for Cas to voice his grievances...

The conversation happens in part because Dean is signaling he wants Cas to stay. (Even with the: "Where are you going?" in 15x03) He further verbalizes his bitterness about Cas "up and leaving them." And Cas verbalizes where his own discomfort lies: in being disproportionately blamed (for a relatively small detail in the grand scheme of a situation they all had sufficient info to make better decisions about).

There's also the grief-anger that's preventing even the most basic of conversations ("I tried to talk to you over and over again"), and the grief-denial sidestepping Jack's and Rowena's death in favor of overly focusing on some evil ambitious demon Belphegor they met two seconds ago. Which is, again, both a coping mechanism and cruelty.

Dean is retroactively altering the narrative in his head, that he was "okay" letting Bel take over the world if everyone in his fam could stay safe/alive, that they could find a solution "with Rowena." But crucially, his actions towards Rowena and Cas during the actual episode were not safety-oriented. He was cutting and cruel towards both of them, to the point where Sam had to step in to protect Rowena, so it comes off a bit hypocritical in this case...

In a nutshell, Dean's gut has been wrong multiple times now, and he's pretending he's in control and knows what's best when everything's actually spinning out on everyone. There is no amount of "sticking to the plan" that will lend Dean the sense of control he so desperately needs.

I think it was okay for Cas to remove himself to process his own grief, especially on the heels of being blamed for Rowena's death and told to his face that he's what "always" goes wrong. (Always-and-never statements usually signal that Dean... isn't doing well.) You can't say shit like that and expect people to stay. The same way it's okay for Dean to process in his own way, Cas has to process in his, but if they're going to process together... well. You get the picture.

But anyway. The bookend! Is missing! Because Cas can't bear to give Dean empty promises and what will be more lies, he cuts off Dean's "I need to say something." Instead, Cas gives Dean all he can... by taking the Mark.

So, Cas throws his weight and strength around as a stand-in for the emotional support/intimacy/promises he cannot give without triggering his deal.

///

I think the anger directed at Dean in season 15 is mostly fan-based, not family-based

I don't actually think Cas or Sam or even Jack hold onto a lot of resentment for Dean's "mistakes" in this season, not even his falling in line with Chuck and proudly pretending he "always knew Chuck was squirrelly." (I don't even think Cas's words in The Trap are that weird on the heels of the "Bel" barb Dean made.)

All in all, I get the impression that the frustration with Dean is largely fandom-based and tends to overlook:

Dean has weathered being a friggin' archangel vessel

He's lost his mom, his son, and Rowena one after the other

Because of these Gatling-gun style traumas, he has soooo much going on that contextualizes all these bad things for Dean:

Trusting in Chuck's "destiny," and "fate-" style decision-making (actually uttering the unholy sentence: "'Cause you just heard it from God Himself…") was attenuated by both Dean's despair and active suicidality.

Thinking the Equalizer gun is the Only Way (TM) was a manifestation of his guilt; he feels like HE should stop Jack because Jack is HIS

Dean's existential crisis was brought on by Chuck's betrayal, but it was a lot rooted in Dean's need to escape that ghoulish voyeurism.

Dean's hardening into a field marshal-style commander was painful, but even in his anger, he relies on Cas as a partner. It's a dark echo of how they function together in Peace of Mind, as a unit protecting the well-being of the family unit.

(Aside: But it is also true that Dean drives over Cas's objections and seems almost entitled to "pressure Cas as the muscle" to go to Hell; it's true that Cas could've died down there and Dean didn't express care. Dean even moved into hard-marshaling Rowena, but Sam shielded her. I think it probably bothers Dean too that in his last moments with Rowena... he wasn't being at all kind to her or a good teammate.)

Dean is acting like this because he has no hope. Jack Kline, his "future," has just died. And just as he's actively suicidal, his extensions of "self," his "intimate family unit," his husband and son, are no longer valuable in the healthy sense, a bit of a off-key to how family annihilation functions

And so, Dean spills words of grief-anger, words meant to wound— to air his grievances

Then he suffers even more existential crises "my life's work is a hoax," "there's no point" etc etc

Then, there's his out-of-character focus on pure, bloodlust and revenge; it blinds him in a way we rarely see from Dean.

He loses sight of what he cares about; the Jack's "not family: line is a psychological balm specifically used to make it easier for Dean to sacrifice Jack for the Revenge/Cause

But Dean initially goes over the line when he resolves to lie to Amara in order to sacrifice her

Dean had resolved to be Jack's "second" in a suicide plot and brutally encouraged him/thanked him for shouldering the burdens so he and Sam can reap the benefits/“be free”

And Jack IS vulnerable to this; Dean knows how much pain Jack has been shouldering since getting his soul back. It's complicated, but Dean's almost... subconsciously using that worthlessness here... Jack's guilt makes Jack ripe for sacrifice. In some ways being a hero almost necessitates a lack of self-worth. This is also something Dark Kaia keyed into, begging Jack for help as she pressed on his wounds.

On the other hand, Dean is trying to remain neutral in some ways: if he's going to sacrifice Amara, then it's only natural he should be okay with losing his own loved ones, including pulling a gun on Sam (And I think Dean was serious in that moment btw, until Sam talked him down)

Cas is the opposite: he is absolutely willing to sacrifice Amara but NOT willing to sacrifice Sam, "I won't allow you to sacrifice your own life!" OR Jack "I won't watch you die, not again!"

I think Cas's line: "Where's Amara?" shows that, like how Dean comes to his senses about Sam and Jack, Cas is also coming to his senses about how wrong it is for Amara to be the martyr here...

ANYWAY, though. My point is...

Unlike the fandom, Dean's family has a lot of grace for him, largely in part because they've weathered their own existential crises and fucked up so much in the past.

I mean. With respect to Heaven-related existential crises, Cas is Theee Poster Child for it. If anyone gets it, it's him. And sure, Dean didn't always have grace for Sam, but mostly he did! I think it's a lot modeled by OG Bobby, too. This set the tone for where the family is with respect to empathizing with what Dean is going through.

///

And The Empty of it all

As I said in the long convo, The Trap is missing its natural bookend, Dean's terms, because Dean's terms about Cas would probably include (a) not lying, (b) staying, and ofc the unsaid I love you, and these points are all too tied up with The Empty deal to address. And in this case, that's a cruel, structural, engineered torture actively preventing Cas from being available.

Personally, while I don't agree with Cas initially withholding details about his Empty deal, Dean's fragility after the Michael-possession and his now-current wound of losing Mary, Jack, and Rowena do create extenuating circumstances. I can see where Cas might want to keep it under wraps, the same way Dean wanted to keep the Ma'lak box under wraps. And later in season 14, Cas and Dean had enough on their plates trying to wrangle Michael, soulless Jack, and workaholic Sam.

So, I'm of the mind that The Empty deal itself casts a long shadow over the natural bookend, actively preventing progress and disincentivizing Cas’s availability. (And it is quite surprising to me how often this point gets overlooked. It's not that Cas doesn't have patterns; it's that there are cruel, structural elements inflaming them and punishing openness.)

///

With too many character/narrative setbacks on the table, the story runs out of time and stalls

And a few throwaway lines and verbose speeches do NOT fix this. (Cas throwing in a halfsie about Jack being more than a destiny + Dean sparing Chuck with a lil "not who I am" speech come too late in the game, and imho don’t feel as big as they should.)

The actors could feel it, and the writers gaslit them about it, continuing to waste valuable run time in a season where the main plot simply needed to hog the spotlight. All the spotlight.

Dean and Cas get fouled up by the lure of the Almost Victory and virtually fail to recover. Jack's subsequent resurrection casts a long shadow over their progress, and they both take a hard turn into the very things they've spent a lot of time fighting against: Revenge and Destiny.

And even though they sink to unimaginable lows at the very end of season 15, they're allllmost triumphant in the end. Thanks to a combined TFW family support system, Dean comes to his senses and thaws to loving Jack again, and he wounds Death. Cas throws off the expectations for the Grand Story and tells Jack that Destiny doesn't matter. But they're both too late. For each other and Jack. Jack's black hole-destiny is already set into motion, and the story never really recovers.

[biggie-chcese]

urrrrghhh hello rain code community, snivy here. im incredibly bored at work rn so if anyone wants to send me a character i will give you a random headcanon i have about them

[operation-resonance]

Hello I’m asking the Rain Code, Danganronpa and Ace Attorney communities for something in spooky month. I am curious which of these creatures would you use with the vibes of the listed characters. Also I’m curious if Clay Terran would look cute as an alien.

Blorbo list for critter: Phoenix Wright, Miles Edgeworth, Apollo Justice (you can do Trucy too), Klavier Gavin, Athena Cykes, Simon Blackquill, Nahyuta Sadhmadhi, Iris Fey/Hawthorne, Ryunosuke Naruhodo, Yuma Kokohead (can do Makoto K. too), Makoto Naegi, Hajime Hinata and Shuichi Saihara

Critter list: Angel, Demon, Vampire, Werewolf, Neko, Mermaid, Fairy, Ghost, shapeshifter, Kitsune, unicorn, dragon, phoenix (firebird)

[metlentari]

3-Hour Study With Me | Rain & Background Ambience | Deep Focus | Pomodoro 50/10 Hello friends, Welcome to a brand new 3-hour Study With Me session designed to help you dive deep into your work with calm, clarity, and focus. In this video, you’ll hear gentle rain and ambient background noise — no music, no distractions, just the perfect atmosphere for getting things done. 🌧️ We’re following the Pomodoro technique with three full 50-minute focus blocks, separated by 10-minute breaks to help you recharge and stay productive throughout the session. This is the ideal study companion for: • Long study marathons • Deep work sessions • Coding, reading, writing, or organising your thoughts I'm sitting at my desk, with my favourite warm drink and a peaceful setup. The soft rain outside keeps everything grounded and calm — and I’d love for you to join me. Where are you watching from? What are you working on today? Let’s connect in the comments and motivate each other. Your support helps this small but growing study community stay alive. If you enjoy the session, feel free to subscribe and share it with someone who might love this space too. Stay focused, and let’s do this together. ✨

[growling]

Odd and unusual, deeply unsettling creature dubbed by the locals as "tumblr user Growling" (pinned post)

hello everypony this is growling's blog of tumble on which i post my yaoi (anything can be yaoi if you're open-minded enough) [reminder to self update the damn pinned now!!!!]

-> it/its or he/him in general -> metaphysical/spiritual fictionkin + plural, which is why I switch between I/we pretty often when referring to myself (please do not use psychiatric or pathologizing terms for us such as DID, alter or introject. our system members do not have defined roles, either.) -> Collective/unclaimed names include: Seth, Andrzej, Jaspis, Karneol, Sylwester, Stefan, Kosma, Feliks, Sójka, Mikołaj, Józef and Wojciech. We collect names like cool rocks -> evil loveless aplatonic afamilial aro schizospec antisocial narcissists with dangerous levels of autism they warned you about. now start barking

Rain Code side || Akuma Kun side || Yomi's blog || Spotify (if you like character playlists and think I got immaculate music taste....)

Attention keeps me alive and I love receiving asks heyhey hey you should send me asks I need enrichment in my enclosure haha..... That being said I'm usually bad at articulating myself and prone to get overexcited/anxious when I try to respond, so I may take way longer to answer. They had to nerf me somehow. Genders vary between parts but as a general rule none of us are comfortable with feminine terms even as joke/slang, "girl" isn't gender neutral guys what the huh.... I do not have a DNI as they're just objectively ineffective and dumb, stop expecting others to curate your own experiences and use the block button as it was intended, also the hell do you mean by "basic dni criteria" are you just virtue signaling or is this some sort of code.

Current fandoms & things I'm into: Winx Club, Rain Code, Bungou Stray Dogs, Akuma Kun, Danganronpa, The Coffin of Andy and Leyley, Gushing Over Magical Girls, Akudama Drive, Gravity Falls, Tribe Nine, Mouthwashing, Henry Stickmin, Project: Eden's Garden, ZENO Remake, Breaking Bad and occassionally posting about Warriors, but I've distanced myself from the community because it's rancid over there, same with Wings of Fire. Non-fandom specific, we really like violent whump (not the fever type. the, uh... other one) or just terrible things happening to fictional characters. Wanting them crying, terrified and in pain is an expression of adoration from us <3 though we're too shy to post/reblog any of that sort of stuff for now since not many people are as into it. Oh yeah and also cat genetics, these are cool.

[sharpfurry5917]

Um, okay so... Hi! Hello! Welcome! You can call me Sharper, or just Sharp for short, and this is my intro post! So uh, yeah! let's get started...! I guess... I honestly don't know how to do these, it's been so long since I posted on any social media-

✨

Things You'll See

This is a multi fandom blog, so I'll be posting all kinds of stuff. Such as:

· Art, both traditional and digital.

· My quotes. Which are funny things I say in my head that I write down on my phone.

· And other various things I write, like my scenarios. Which are basically my way of writing fanfics, but they're written more like screenplays, I guess?? It's just been more easier for me to write that way, but I have been branching out.

✨

Things To Know About Me

· She/they.

· 20 years old.

· I have selective mutism and social anxiety. Two things I hate greatly. 😊👍

· I have this friend in my head, named Mind that I talk to that I had since childhood. They're kinda like a headmate??? They show up in my quotes, so I'm mentioning them so you know who that is.

· I don't use swear words. It's something that I refused to use for years, and it just kinda stuck. Instead, I come up with my own "swears". Like 'fudge', 'ship', 'bass', and 'cheez its mice'.

· As I said, it's been a while since I posted on social media, 5 years, to be specific. And I've just been browsing through it as a bystander instead. I eventually wanted to put myself out there again, but my crippling anxiety prevented me from doing so-

Until eventually, I gathered enough courage, and did it. And I'm very happy that I did!!

✨

The Many Fandoms I'm Into

(Including when I first got into them)

· SpongeBob Squarepants ~ ???

· My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic ~ 2012

· Minecraft ~ 2012/2013

· The Sonic series ~ 2014

· Okami ~ 2014

· The Spyro series ~ 2015

· Steven Universe ~ 2015

· Splatoon ~ Dec, 2015

· Minecraft: Story Mode ~ 2015

· The Last Guardian ~ Jan, 2016

· Hello Neighbor ~ Nov, 2016

· Tattletail ~ Mar, 2017

· The Bendy series ~ Mar, 2017

· Poppe the Performer ~ Jun, 2017

· Villainous ~ Jul, 2017

· Camp Camp ~ Sep, 2017

· Cuphead ~ Oct, 2017

· Doki Doki Literature Club ~ Dec, 2017

· Baldi's Basics ~ May 15, 2018

· Detroit: Become Human ~ Jun, 2018

· Mystery Skulls Animated ~ Oct 18, 2018

· Deltarune ~ Nov, 2018

· Undertale ~ Mar 2, 2019

· Ace Attorney ~ May 10, 2019

· The Owl House ~ Aug 16, 2020 (My b-day, btw)

· Danganronpa ~ Jun 21/Sep 4, 2020 (Watched someone play the prologue and Chapter 1 on 6/21, then got the game for myself in August, and actually got into it when I reached Chapter 2)

· Friday Night Funkin' ~ Jan 9, 2021

· PaRappa the Rapper ~ Mar 5, 2021

· Komi Can't Communicate ~ Dec, 2021

· The Horizon series ~ Feb, 2022

· Andy's Apple Farm ~ Jan 15, 2022

· Beastars ~ Aug, 2022

· Danganronpa: Despair Time ~ Apr 7, 2023 (First started watching in Jan, 2021, but really got into it due to a certain character-)

· Super Danganronpa Another 2 ~ May 1, 2023

· Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE ~ Jul 10, 2023

· Zero Escape ~ Sep 4, 2023

· The Amazing Digital Circus ~ Oct 25, 2023

· Murder Drones ~ Oct 29, 2023

· The Another Code series ~ Mar 11, 2024

· KinitoPET ~ Apr 18, 2024

· Al: The Somnium Files ~ Apr 27, 2024

· Indigo Park ~ May 19, 2024

· Garten of Banban ~ May 22, 2024

· Max Design Pro ~ Jul 11, 2024

· Poppy Playtime ~ Nov 19, 2024

· Jentry Chau vs. The Underworld ~ Dec 22, 2024

· Mouthwashing ~ Dec 25, 2024

· Squid Game ~ Feb 8, 2025

· (Pretty Pretty Please) I Don't Want to be a Magical Girl ~ Mar 2, 2025

· ENA ~ Apr 14, 2025

✨

· The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy ~ Apr 24, 2025

And uhh, that's it...

Thanks for stopping by!

[ruleofbirds]

𝚍𝚎𝚟𝚕𝚘𝚐_𝟶𝟷.𝟷

Kia Ora, Te Ao!

Hello, World! It's official - Robbie has a tumblr now. Absolutely unfathomable. Honestly, it's mostly because it was this or Wordpress (or a more obscure indie dev forum) and this seemed the most accessible and quirky. I'm sure this won't lead to another awful endless scrolling habit. Any advice for the visual side of things is warmly received! I want this blog to be a fun part of the week, because a lot of fun will be had developing RoB. Just realised that acronym happens to be my name. Could be worse.

Okay! Now that the initial ramble into the void is out of the way, it's time to get into the c o n c e p t.

This tumblr is a devlog for my NZ ecosystem simulator currently titled "rule of birds", which I will be working on for the next 8 weeks as part of Blackbird Foundation's "Protostars" program. This means a weekly check-in with the other creatives in the program, the organizers at Blackbird, and a post for all of you here.

I'm breaking this week's post into 3 sections just to cover the bases;

01.1 -a bit about my creative practice and how it led to this project

01.2 -a discussion of "flocking" in programming (using p5.js)

01.3 -a discussion of NZ natural history

So here's the intro post, where I ramble about myself for a sec.

So! basically, I specialize in spatial design, I love working with anything nature-related, and I want to make a video game.

Lately I've been on a tangent based around art in NZ's cultural context - the design principles behind whakairo (Maori woodcarving) and how their composition conveys meaning, how histories of spirituality, tribal and colonial relations affected design, and my own art interpreting my natural surroundings with photography and charcoal drawing. I can neither confirm nor deny whether there will be an art zine compiling a wee bit of this work on the community table at the Whanganui Zinefest this Saturday.

That tangent branched off into a focus on natural history that's the keystone of rule of birds. My motivation for focusing on an ecosystem simulator is to articulate a basis for the sort of games I want to come out of Aotearoa. The sim will be the proof of concept - and I suppose this blog will be the manifesto.

I feel like there's a massive demand for games exploring NZ history - like, imagine a big-budget maori-led release set in pre-colonial time, with all the unique aspects of survival, resource management and day to day activity that involved - or an assassin's creed type action game based during the time of Te Kooti. It goes unsaid that Kupe is one of the best parts of Sid Meier's Civilization VI - iykyk.

What I think separates a good game from a great one is how alive the virtual world feels - rather than being led through an a-to-b progression of events presented in the same visual style I've seen countless times before, if the world can react in a dynamic way, and the details in the background are crafted to feel organic and immersive, I'm going to want to stop and wander off the beaten track that an objective marker may be pointing me towards.

The last game that caught my attention in this way - and coincidentally the one that made me want to put my coding knowledge to the test with gamedev - was, of course, Rain World. To everyone who knows me, I'm sure you're surprised I've made it three paragraphs without bringing this game up. I'm not going to go into too much detail here, because there is *a lot*, but key points are you are one creature among many scavenging for food in a brutal biomechanical ecosystem, hibernating between cycles of cataclysmic rain, and the game plays like basically nothing else due to how the coded behaviour of every entity in the world follows its own logic that has much more to do with its own survival than the experience of you as a player.

Here's a nice little illustration of the physics behind a movement-sensing tentacle monster, to give a sort of discrete example - but the creatures that act according to behavioural karma systems and the dynamics of how the different lizards scuffle and coordinate with each other is worth looking into too, if this is your thing.

(Source: GDC, Curious Archive)

Now, I really want to jump into some of this behavioural coding stuff, so I'm just going to move on to collecting things for the next post - hope this has been an interesting read! if you somehow found this page in your tumblr algorithm, welcome! I'll also be posting bits on the instagram page @robbiek_devlogs and you can check out my other work on my main insta @robbiek_art

Hei kōnā mai,

Robbie K

Next up: simulation in coding, natural history research post #1

Next week: Adventures in Godot Engine!

[rainworldmodding]

Staff and Instructor Applications are now open in our Discord server!

Hello Slugcats, Modders and Watchers!

We're excited to announce that applications are now open for two key positions in our Discord server.

Modding Instructors:

Create, maintain, and share resources to help fellow modders.

Organize and assist in planning community events.

Provide guidance and support to modders working on Rain World modding projects.

Patrollers*:

Proactively prevent rule-breaking.

Manage roles, stickers, and emojis.

Assist instructors during community events.

*Patrollers start with a period of fit assessment and training. You must be 18 or older to be accepted, but anyone can submit an application.

Want to learn more about these positions and apply, or just see what's going on? Join our Discord server!

[biggie-chcese]

HELLO RAIN CODE ENJOYERS I MADE A DISCORD SERVER

just wanted a hangout place where i can be annoying about this game without bothering my fellow ace attorney fans lol

anyway if u wanna join, read the rules, make an intro, and come brainrot with us

THIS SERVER IS 18+ ONLY! NSFW IS NOT THE FOCUS OF IT, BUT THERE ARE CHANNELS AND I DON'T WANT MINORS ENGAGING PLEASE!!

[tinybabycatpaws]

hello everycat! this is our age regression & syskit blog, created with the intent to explore and blog about our regression & as a safe space for our syskits, and to create things for the community others may enjoy .

ask games we are currently doing ; one, two, three, four, five.

please include the question as well!

we are a system that have a few age regressors, age dreamers, pet regressors, pet dreamers, & syskits. however, collectively you may call us kit, or any cute pet-like cat-like petnames ( e.g. ; kit, kitty, mittens, furball, bean, etc... )

we go by it/its or kit/kits on this blog, and we prefer feline or nonhuman terms.

our big age won't be revealed, however, we are an adult. our little age is whatever the clanmate regresses to or already is, so for simplicity, we regress to all previous ages.

and though we don't know exactly know what ages we all regress to, we do know that we regress to a kitty the most often in regards to petspace.

we don't really have a big do not interact list, but some obvious ones we do want to interact are ; ageplayers, anti-agere/petre, anti-therian/otherkin/fictionkin, anti-furry, kink, or NSFW accounts.

after the cut is the tagging system, but it's extremely long

GENERAL TAGS ;

🐈 . . . ; any text posts from us when big. 🍼 . . . ; any text posts from us when in littlespace. 🐾 . . . ; any text posts from us when in petspace. 🩷 . . . ; any text posts from us when in caregiverspace. 🎨 . . . ; any arts or crafts any of us might make when small. 🖼️ . . . ; art we reblog from other people. 🧸 . . . ; our stuffies or toys. 🧶 . . . ; any asks we might get. 🌈 . . . ; any moodboards we might make. 🗝️ . . . ; anything regarding our journal 🧵 . . . ; anything we reblog. 🪽 . . . ; intros of clanmates.

EMOJI CODE ;

🤍 ; neutral / no space ✉️ ; caregiver space 🩹 ; slipping 🎧 ; big space 🥛 ; little space 🦴 ; pet space 🎀 ; little clanmate

CLANMATE INTROS & TAGS ;

the emojis will be used for the tags.

only actually active clanmates will be listed. so no dormant clanmates are going to be listed.

AGE/PET REGRESSORS/DREAMERS ;

🐾 whisker 🐈 - syshost + roleflux ✦ aesity - they/them ✦ 18-22 - flip, no lean ; agere to 0-3 ✦ petre to kitten

⚡ volt 🔌 - energetic alter ✦ fictive - he/zapp/bolt (they/he/fluff/paw when little) ✦ 22 - flip, regressor lean ; agere to 0-4 and 6-10 ✦ petre to kitten & dragon.

🌲 lupus 🐺 - syshost ✦ aesity - it/its ✦ ageless - flip, no lean ; agere to all previous ages ✦ petre to puppy.

SYSKITS ;

🍄 lumen 🌙 - doekid + comforter ✦ aesity - it/they ✦ 10

🪵 timber 🕯️ - battery ✦ aesity - he/they/bark ✦ 8-10

🦮 bailey 🐾 - playmate ✦ octive - it/pup ✦ 23 (permaregressed to 10-12)

🎈 fizz 🚀 - vernalian ✦ aesity - he/him ✦ 4

🌳 mudpaw 🌧️ - roleless ✦ clangen - they/rain ✦ 6

CAREGIVERS ;

🐾 whisker 🐈 - caretaker ✦ aesity - they/them ✦ 18-22

🌲 lupus 🐺 - caretaker ✦ aesity - it/its ✦ ageless

⚡ volt 🔌 - caretaker ✦ fictive - he/zapp/bolt ✦ 22

🐦 robinleaf 🌿 - caretaker ✦ fictive - she/fern/kyu ✦ 19

🦌 willow 🪵 - caretaker comforter ✦ aesity - they/fawn ✦ mirror age

[miabebe]

Hi,

Okay, where do I start? Well, I can tell you that you really did make me so much more curious with this chapter, god, it was quite the ride. When I tell you, I screamed, I mean it was absolutely wow! Spolier alert for anyone who hasn't read the chapter, starting off with cheol and her ignoring each other, well, understandably and the others all sensing it. Then, she's rushing gyu to build the very house she's been trying to delay and shua telling her to get it together because things are going to get worse? He has a point though, communication is key and she clearly isn't good with it, but idk if any of them are, I guess we'll find out. Oh god, the lesson with jihoon though, thank you for that, I probably screamed the loudest during that scene, I'm really obsessing over that man. Their dynamics seem to have improved with the lesson but hello? He can't read minds but bodies? God, no wonder he knew, of course, it all makes sense. I can't wait to see more of him, lord, I'm probably gonna lose it when I do. I loved finding out more about the whole demigod theory, the gods and monsters, it was very interesting indeed. Moving onto her running into cheol and han, han nudging him and him trying to speak to her but her avoiding him and just deciding to out with a bunch of them to soonyoung's party? Girl, idk if you're brave or stupid, but oh well, it was eventful so, who cares? Her going with gyu, I do like her gyu's dynamic, it's just so much more carefree and fun. Now, the party, omg, what was that? Soonyoing and his ex-girlfriend, seokmin, and CHAN? He was so blunt, and clearly hinting at her, but she thinks he's too sweet and innocent. Honestly, I do not believe that even for a second, any of the men in this camp being innocent? Girl, you're kidding yourself. Also, aphrodite's children? They're crazy and shua being one of them and chan hinting at him being just as insane, oh ,I'm officially invested in his story. Chan telling her he'll guard the door but her finding hao there, damn, it was surpising. He's quite an interesting character, drinking the alcohol for training his self control? Damn, no wonder he's in charge of training. Him telling her that he helped her as her campmate but as her trainer, he wants her to get over it on her own? Well, her finding soonyoung saying her name was probably her last straw. In all honesty, I was not expecting a threesome with soonyoung and hao and that was insane. It was intense but not too much because they were both so different, and I loved that. The ending though, code yellow? Damn, are we gonna get to the attacks and war scenes next? I'm certainly invested. Ugh, cheol seeing her in the jacket and holding soonyoung's hand, and lightning cracking with rain pouring down, damn he's furious isn't he? I'm curious to see what will happen with them next. Also, cheol lying to her about having a cold? Man was desperately trying to distance himself from her, huh? I'm curious why, is it perhaps because of what chan said or because he's trying to avoid what he feels for her? Soonyoung, him rejecting his ex for the first time ever, man's already whipped. I'm very intrigued by her powers though, can't wait to see her train with them and use them. Although we didn't get much of jeonghan, my heart was crying every time he did appear, I miss him so much😭.This ask is probably a lot, but that's because I just finished 2 weeks of exams and my hormonal imbalance is at an all time high, okay this is all tmi, but yeah, my point is, I absolutely loved this chapter and couldn't help myself. Thank you for writing this, the plot, the characters and just everything about this series is so fascinating to me. Hope you had just as much fun writing it ☺️.

You're here ❤️ 

Yeah communication really is an issue here, she's got to learn to express better but I think she's also in a very difficult place where she's still trying to figure out her life? Cheol isn't really good either, neither of them knows what's on the others mind 😬

Hahaha I remember you're going through a bit of an intense Jihoon phase? It's not much but at least she's going to finally start interacting with him now and so things will move further 👀 I was scared their discussion might seem like an info dump so I'm glad you enjoyed it!

That was an intense party, wasn't it? Chan being innocent is hmm a good doubt, but she sees him as a child so let's see if he will change her mind 🤷 Ahh about Aphrodite's child Shua, that's another mystery for now, who knows what Chan is talking about 😬 Hao is interesting, he is the Son of Ares, the ultimate warrior, so he is a bit extreme but the threesome yeahh, I had a feeling it would be a little unexpected so I played around with it hehe

Code yellow is moderate danger so I'll let you gauge the intensity of what's to come! Cheol is being a bit complex - he's avoidant, he's also angry, maybe even jealous, we don't really know, man isn't telling her shit but I think chapter 3 might have more insight into that? Her powers might be the biggest mystery of all, the whole story really revolves around that so there's lot to uncover there 😬 Jeonghan ah, I was going to have a scene with him in this chapter but I thought Jihoon's was more relevant at this stage in the plot? But I do really miss him too 😭

Oh no my friend, this ask is not a lot at all! I cannot explain how happy it makes me to receive such detailed thoughts, I love it so much! Ahh you got to read this as a post exam relaxation then? I'm so glad I could give you that hehe I had so much fun writing it and thanks to your encouraging words, I'm know I'm going to enjoy writing the rest of the plot a lot too! Thank you for reading my love ❤️ 

[tiffanylamps]

Beyond Evil: the Romantic Rain trope

Hello! Guess who's back on their shit again... Me!

When I first finished watching Beyond Evil/ 괴물 on 5/02/22 (yes, I know, it surprised me too during the last episode), I immediately started writing an essay about the show's queer subtext/queer coding. The essay is an analysis of episodes 1-8... and it's ridiculously long and unfinished (and probably never will be finished). This post includes the opening parts. I like them, so I have decided to share them. These opening thoughts surround the rain scene in episode two and how it is romantic in tone.

[I do have another bit analysing Dong Sik's queer coding, which I might post one day.] So, yeah, this is a part of a larger piece. So, that's why it feels a bit incomplete.

A disclaimer: ~ I use the word ‘queer’, a lot. But this is not meant as a derogatory/offensive term. But instead, is used by its reclaimed meaning: a generalised term to refer to someone who isn’t heterosexual.Also, all spellings of characters’ names are taken from AsianWiki.

(my very gloomy-looking screenshots)

Enjoy!

“Why are you doing this to me? Why?” Han Joo Won talking to Lee Dong Sik (episode 5).

Have you ever asked someone a question that they refuse to answer? Instead of giving you the information you want, they dance around it, jump to conclusions, and add the right amount of distraction; until you can’t even remember what you asked in the first place. This is a recurrence of Beyond Evil’s main characters Lee Dong Sik and Han Joo Won. Their conversations and arguments often spark one of them to ask a question that the other does not answer. 

This happens numerous times throughout the first half of the series. Typically, these questions are of the following nature:

“Just what about me interests you so much?” Lee Dong Sik, episode 2

“It’s a dangerous thing to become attached to someone. Don’t you think?”  Lee Dong Sik, episode 4

“Why can’t you leave me alone?” Lee Dong Sik, episode 5

(English translations taken from Netflix)

Oftentimes these questions are more for the audience to ponder on, rather than for the characters to outright answer. This is why they aren’t answered with verbal confirmation but instead, with the character’s actions. 

In the thriller, crime, and mystery genres, it is usual to have a protagonist investigate and chase our anti-hero/sympathetic villain. Beyond Evil (otherwise known as Monster/ 괴물) uses this narrative trope as the basis of its storytelling: one hotshot young guy comes from the big city to investigate an older seemingly unhinged man of a crime he may or may not have committed. But over time, as the protagonist learns more, we get to see the shades of ambiguity that are bursting at the seams.  Furthermore, both characters will be forever changed because of their relationship and the events that follow.

One element that makes Beyond Evil stand out from others within the same genre is that this story isn’t really about a small hometown murder. It uses the murders within this rural area as a canvas in which to tell the real story: love. One way this is proven is that the story focuses on the victims and their friends and families, and the overall community, instead of the killer(s). 

Beyond Evil explores and showcases the Ancient Greeks’ philosophy of the seven kinds of love:

Eros: romantic love; passionate, lustful, the want for sexual intimacy  Philia: friendship; affectionate, platonic, sweet and equal Storge: familial; strong bonds, kin-ship, unconditional Agape: altruism; empathy, selflessness, love for worldly experiences Ludus: new love; non-committal, flirtatious, playful Pragma: committed love; long-term relationships, companionship, maturity Philautia: self-love; self-esteem, self-worth, a necessity

(information source: https://www.wellandgood.com/greek-words-for-love/)

It is a story highlighting the importance of love: all the different kinds of love we encounter in our lives; how we are affected by them; what it looks like to live without love; including, when it's time to accept love and when it's time to let it go. But most importantly, sometimes, you can find love in the most unexpected place. 

[But before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s sprinkle some background information and analyse the first half (the first act, if you will) of Beyond Evil (episodes 1-8) and look at how Joo Won ended up broken-hearted in Dong Sik’s front garden.] Redacted for this post.

ii

On the first watch-through of this show, the audience is told the story predominantly through Joo Won’s gaze; which is biassed and trifled with unreliable narration. Through his perspective, we are toyed with and encouraged to constantly doubt the other characters. The show expertly uses Alfred Hitchcock’s film theory Pure Cinematics for instilling doubt, harnessing the power of the editing process to define the visual narrative. In other words, the show creators displayed a key understanding of how the narrative changes with context. 

The best example of this is the butcher shop sequence on the night of Kang Min Jeong's disappearance. We are first introduced to the sequence from Joo Won’s perspective: all of Dong Sik’s actions are awkward and suspicious, and we over-analyse his movements and actions/inactions to come to the conclusion that he’s done something. Then later on in the show, we revisit this sequence from Dong Sik’s perspective and yes, he has done something but not what we were led to believe. All of his awkward and suspicious behaviour becomes a painful and morally grey experience, where the audience feels great sympathy for him. 

The context defines the narrative. Without the full context, we do not get the full story. 

And only with the full context, can we look past the structure of the piece and unveil the answers to the questions that are asked... we reveal the truth.

Whilst rewatching the show, the viewing experience is completely different. All the pieces are already fitted into place, so I spent less time trying to decipher and instead, leisurely trying to digest. The experience is nowhere near as suspenseful but far more gut-wrenching. This is because the viewer already has the full story - the full context - everyone’s actions and inactions are accounted for: we know why x was acting sketchy in episode y because of what they did 20 years ago, and so on. 

When everyone’s actions are accounted for it is a lot easier to follow the story from Dong Sik’s perspective. We see the injustices that innocent people go through more harshly, we also see the cruelty of the guilty from the get-go. We are able to focus on the smaller details of people’s relationships, instead of thinking about the big picture. We are also able to take the time to truly understand the visual language the creators are showing us and how that shapes the narrative.

There is one sequence that comes to mind that is told purely from Joo Won’s perspective. There is no dialogue during this particular sequence of shots, so the audience is completely reliant on the visual language to understand what is being conveyed. This scene is greatly important for the show as a whole, as it gives us an uncensored look into Joo Won’s thoughts.  Without it, the narrative of the story would be different, as it adds context to Joo Won’s actions later on in the series. That scene is from episode two. 

iii

Joo Won and Dong Sik are on patrol, still getting used to each other as partners. One) because their personalities clash and two) because Joo Won is actively investigating Dong Sik for murder, which is just hanging there between them. They stop their patrol to help a disabled young adult who is lost in the rain. Dong Sik takes charge of the situation because he is better equipped at interacting with disabled people and the people of Manyang (and the wider Munju area) as a whole. This scene is one of the most important as it is an untainted humanisation of Dong Sik’s character, giving the audience (and Joo Won) a first glimpse into who Dong Sik really is.

Up until this point, Joo Won has only seen Dong Sik as a character: the killer; “the suspect” as Dong Sik later describes it. He vehemently dislikes him but still has a misguided interest in Dong Sik’s life. But this suddenly is challenged. Standing there in the rain, with no shoes on, smiling at the young man who is dancing, we get to see what Joo Won sees for the first time: kindness, humility, and beauty. 

It’s a glitch in the system.

This scene is slightly baffling. It poses the question of what the creators are truly trying to tell its audience. Is it that these two characters work best when they are unified and Joo Won’s assumptions of Dong Sik are wrong?... Well, yes ... but also, of course, hiding in plain sight is the subtext that Joo Won is gay/queer.

Which point takes paramount importance? It would seem that in this scene it’s the subtext. We see why this is so through the sequence of shots:

After the situation has been assessed by the pair and they have come to an agreement. Joo Won goes to the shop to get supplies to help with the young man and when he returns, we, the audience, are faced with a sequence of ever-closing in close-up shots. With each cut, the camera is showing us what Joo Won is choosing to focus on; where his eyes are gravitating. What is odd about the sequence is the information that is chosen to be shared: Dong Sik's feet, the umbrella, the smile: kindness, humility, beauty. 

 Joo Won returns to the pair and falters, he seems shocked into stillness. Which almost seems frivolous, as Joo Won is already privy to two-thirds of the information being presented. 

Joo Won already knew that Dong Sik had given his shoes to the young man. 

He knew about the umbrella because he is the one who gave it to Dong Sik to use. 

Then… they cut to a slow-motion close-up of Dong Sik’s smiling face, rain behind him and sunshine kissing his face. This last shot is the only piece of information we didn’t have before Joo Won went to the shop because it’s Joo Won’s thoughts at that moment. It’s no longer information that can be detailed in a police report but a deeply human moment. He has digested the information in front of him and this is his conclusion: beauty. 

This screams romantic undertones- especially with the knowledge that rain is often used as a romantic trope in visual media.  “​​Rain seems to go along with pivotal moments in characters' lives. It's implied that if you can ignore bad weather and brave the elements, then your big moment is even more real and intense and genuine. If you want to be deserving of your love, you won't care if it's raining, you will rush out into the rain to be with her or him-” tvtopes.org, Romantic Rain.

This trope is used often within Korean media, especially within the romance genres. So, it is a visual language that is common knowledge with Korean audiences. It is less likely to be seen within the crime and mystery genres, so it speaks volumes that the creators decided to include it.

Here are three examples of Korean dramas that use the Romantic Rain trope to show the protagonists have romantic feelings for one another:

Legend of the Blue Sea: offering an umbrella as protection/taking someone into your care Flower of Evil: Hee Sung allows himself to become soaked because of his feelings Goblin: slow motion shot of the characters passing one another in the rain

How Beyond Evil uses the same visuals within this scene:

Protection: Joo Won gives Dong Sik an umbrella and forensic shoe covers Soaked: Joo Won stops mid-run to stare at Dong Sik in the rain, seemingly awestruck/concerned Slow-motion: Joo Won’s perspective in the following sequence of close-ups is in slow motion

This scene is not the moment that Joo Won realises the extent of his feelings for Dong Sik. It is used as supporting evidence for the later conversations Joo Won has with Park Jung Je and Nam Sang Bae. In which he is asked by both of them why he cares so much about the cold case (in which Dong Sik is his suspect). To which, Joo Won replies the first time he’s asked:

“This is Lee Dong Sik’s–” 

He shouts this and has to stop himself, calming down to answer that he’s determined to solve the cold case because one of the victims is Lee Dong Sik’s sister. The key person in that answer is Lee Dong Sik. He is the reason Han Joo Won cares so deeply [and because of his own personal involvement] about a case that no police officer would try to solve: “-there isn’t a single cop in the country that would prioritise such a case.” [Park Jung-Je.]

Han Joo Won is a determined person. When he sets his mind to something, he will achieve it, even if it upsets other people or hurts himself. He’s a person who cares deeply about things and can become easily fixated. If the creators wanted us to see Joo Won’s actions deriving from a place of spite or a self-righteous need for the truth, they would never have used the Romantic Rain trope.

Following the scene in the rain, Joo Won chooses to not act upon what he felt then and instead, suppresses his feelings.  It makes sense. He’s experiencing attraction (eros) for his murder suspect; the man that he has been obsessing over; the man who only now is more than just a character to him. He is becoming a human and a very attractive one, at that. 

Joo Won doesn’t know what to do with that newfound knowledge. So… he starts to lose his cool. This is obviously aided by other factors…  

Without this scene, and those particular shots, Joo Won’s intense interest in Dong Sik and his mental decline over the next two episodes wouldn’t make as much sense. When we take the queer subtext into consideration, it makes the puzzle pieces fit all that bit more snuggly. It gives us the knowledge that Joo Won has humanised Dong Sik in his mind, he likes what he sees and he doesn’t know how that fits around his rigid moral compass… and what Joo Won knows about himself because really this scene is more about Joo Won discovering himself than it is about Joo Won discovering Dong Sik.

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Look how devastated he is. This man has literally stalked the very handsome man he's staring at, has taken pictures of him, has said pictures on his tablet/printed out, spends his days staring at these pictures whilst biting his lip- then gets all bent out of shape because he realises he's attracted to him?? Baffling.

That is it for that scene's analysis, I remember writing more but I must have deleted it at some point. Anyway, hope that was entertaining and easy to read (I have the tendency to ramble on/make grammatical errors haha).

See ya!