#i think i thought of a pretty unique premise for the story and i’m really proud of it! i hope i can translate it into writing properly! 🩷

[gothsuguru]

will be starting on the professor!geto request soon! :3

[thewriteadviceforwriters]

Hello, and thank you for your blog and resources! I’m still reading through them, but I needed to ask you something.

I’m writing a story where the two main characters aren’t really the heroes of the story. They just happen to be the villain’s target, which is defeated by the true hero, and this hero almost doesn’t appear until the very end. My two little guys are only there to, basically, suffer.

How do you call that kind of “protagonist”, if they can really be called that at all? I thought they may be antagonists but reading your post about villan vs antagonist, they really aren’t. They’re just really unlucky to be caught up in the middle.

Thank you for your help!

Hi!

Thank you so much for asking this question. I'm so happy you asked. I'm glad you enjoy my blog. My goal is to provide resources for writers and help others on their writing journey.

I find your premise fascinating, and I would love to read it myself. I completely understand your confusion about your character's role. Personally, I have experienced that a few times in my writing projects.

Hopefully, this short blog post can help you understand a bit more about your characters and their roles.

Defining your character's role

When we discuss the role of characters in storytelling, it essentially involves labeling. The ability to define and assign these labels to your characters can sometimes be confusing. Storytelling roles are meant to provide a simple way to understand where your character fits and the actions they need to take in the story and the plot. However, there are instances where characters can't be easily categorized with just one word.

Storytelling thrives on complexity; it's not an easy thing to fit into one box, just like how you can't put a book into only one genre. You can't do the same thing for characters. Classically in storytelling, protagonists are often viewed as the "heroes" leading the story, plot or other side characters. But it sounds like your characters are in a different box.

First, let's brainstorm some unique ways to label your characters without relying on classic storytelling roles.

Protagonists in Distress

You might be confused and wondering why the word "protagonist" is used here. Well, your characters can still be considered protagonists even if they're not saving the day. "Heroes" and "protagonists" are different. Your two characters are the central figures of the story, whose struggles and experiences drive the plot forward. This means they are shaping the narrative from their own perspective, and if you ask me, that sounds pretty much like a protagonist.

Sympathetic Characters

These types of characters are not talked about enough; however, anyone who reads a story has encountered at least one of these in literature. They are the ones who tug at the audience's heartstrings, bringing the readers into your story in a sympathetic way. Even if they aren't out on a quest for glory, saving the day, or helping other characters, their suffering, struggles, and conflicts can easily illuminate the themes of our story or raise the stakes in a significant way.

Think of it this way: Let's imagine you have a favorite book. You obviously have the classic protagonist or "hero." They drive the plot forward, are in their perspective, and they're the first character mentioned in the synopsis of the book. However, you also have those side characters, perhaps your character's friends or allies. Their stories, personalities, and their role in the plot individually make you like the story even more.

a story isn't anything without characters, and a story with only a protagonist wouldn't be a story. Most times in literature, readers like side characters more than the main character.

Catalysts

Since you mentioned that the challenges your characters face set the stage for the true hero to emerge in the plot, they may actually be acting as catalysts for change, which is a very important role. Catalyst characters' experiences could kickstart another character's journey or emphasize the antagonist's cruelty/conflict.

Tips for Developing Their Roles

Now that I've pinpointed some roles that may relate to your characters, here are a few tips to help you flesh them out:

Backstory exploration: When creating characters, especially the ones that you are developing, it's important to delve into their histories. You need to be able to confidently state how they arrived at this pivotal moment and why they are the perfect characters for this role. A rich backstory can make their struggles feel more impactful and relatable, which are two elements that readers love in characters nowadays.

Emotional resonance: Focus on the characters' emotional journey, as this is key in creating a 'catalyst' type character. Their reactions to the unfolding events, and the special moment when the true hero makes a significant change to the story, can really connect with readers. Try exploring what they fear, hope for, and dream about. Adding depth to their circumstances can make your story even better.

Agency within Limits: Even if they find themselves in tough situations, I recommend you consider giving them moments of agency. Small decisions can really show their growth or resilience, even if they aren't the hero or undertaking heroic acts.

Relationship Dynamics: I will emphasize this because it's important. The bond between your main characters can add depth or moments of levity, which can really add another great, unique element to your story. The fact that you have two catalysts and a true hero already makes your story fascinating. However, building a relationship or friendship between them can serve as a bright spot amid all the chaos that goes on throughout your plot. This can showcase connection and hope which can balance the heavy themes in your story.

Thematic Focus: Every story needs a theme. That's why I recommend thinking about what the characters' suffering represents in the grander scheme of your narrative. Try brainstorming the perfect theme for your story. Is it a reflection on fate, the randomness of evil, or the nature of heroism? The themes surrounding their challenges can elevate their significance beyond mere plot devices and storytelling roles.

Your character may not fit neatly into the roles of "hero" or "villain," and that's completely fine! Please don't stress about emphasizing their complexity, and let their experience enrich your story. I hope this helps clarify their roles and sparks some inspiration as you keep writing! If you have any more questions or need any further guidance with anything at all, please don't hesitate to reach out to me!

Happy writing! - Rin T.

Before you go, why not join us at The Write Right Society? We're a supportive Tumblr community where writers lift each other up. Whether you're a newbie or a pro, we'd love to have you! Share your work, get feedback, and connect with fellow wordsmiths, writers and aspiring authors. 

[dwcmarshalarts]

more questions!

Why is major vespira’s uniform slightly different to that of the rest of the navy when it’s been shown before that naval marines dress the same as sailors (that piece showing off the marines & terizikan ground forces) and is it just an accidental oversight or similar to how USMC officers have different uniforms than enlisted marines?

2. It’s really weird to say “can I be your friend” however I was wondering what your thoughts were on more casual world-building discussion were, because you have inspired me with some aspects, like the civil war piece you made regarding how quickly the fancy parade uniforms of the us army went downhill during the civil war & the realities of who’d actually be wearing it, and it’d be great to have a kinda forum you’d be okay with to discuss various ideas and topics, especially because I’ve recently been trying to get into civil war related mythos, especially with the union

3. Damek critou, as far as I know dames is a character owned by another person yet is the main character of one of your side stories? if so that’s cool and I’d love to hear how that came about, aswell as I’d love to hear a little bit more about what’s actually happening in that story, as I’ve gotten the basic premise of cute traumatised lil blue fox gets whisked away by a dashing rebel officer after getting bored of Rafans 6am meetings (not exactly but that’s the gist of it I presume :pp)

4. Not really a question, but I sent a few more asks in but accidentally turned on incognito, one of them was about your characters (Xever’s unit) and what they were like to interact with as people, in a civilian and military setting with subordinates and strangers (because asking if they accepts hugs is kinda boring) because they all seem pretty interesting (also who’s the lieutenant? :pp)

1. Naval Marines and Voidmen (non-Marine soldiers on the Circuit’s ships) do have the same fatigues, but they don’t dress the same overall. The NM are a unique subdivision of the Navy which have their own internal command structure, they just happen to share some resources, and ultimately answer to their Naval Commanders- most often the folks in charge of their ship or squadron. As such, NM get their own dress uniforms.

2. My take on worldbuilding generally is that I think it is a fundamental aspect of writing stories, and I’m thankful that as of the recent couple years, plenty of people are interested in jumping aboard and doing their own. That said, I think there is a tendency with “going too far” into it, and people get very lost in the sauce. I used to be the consummate worldbuilder back when I was working on my In the Red series, but after a while I kind of noticed that a lot of the world-building that I was doing at the time was just a rote regurgitation of what I knew about real world history. This was also a trend with a lot of what I was seeing from contemporaries, no shade meant, but that was just what I was seeing. I stopped, as a result, and spent a while focusing mainly on the characters in my other series, which would become the flagship “Percivals” stories. I would only really start worldbuilding again after I had a clear idea for the character development and arcs, as well as how they, in conjunction to the world around us, would be relatable to a reader. That way, I could pull not from the rote history, but from what *drives* developments.

Not to mention, I’ve begun growing a little less patient with the worldbuilding-forward story aspects, as it can end up making a story feel less “real” or “lived in,” and break some of the immersion. A good worldbuild is one where you don’t think about the worldbuild. There’s this great line about dialogue in films where characters shouldn’t state information that they should already know, just because the audience needs to be let in on some exposition. This is true about worldbuilding as well. Take from our real world too: how often do people think about the Seven Year’s War? How many people drive past the Winfield Scott Hancock statue in Washington DC and consciously thinking about his role in commanding US Forces at Gettysburg? How many people think about the makeup of a fleet of ships-of-the-line when they pass by Nelson’s Column? The answer is- most people don’t even think about it. They don’t bat an eye and keep going about their lives- and- yes, these historical events have shaped the course of history. But more goes on than just those big events- I haven’t even mentioned mundane, bureaucratic processes that reshape neighborhoods, or public constructions that alter a landscape. Oftentimes, those things get overlooked for flashy, “historical” events, when in many cases, boring legislation or changes in regulation end up being far more wide reaching in scope, both in their immediate effect, and later down the line.

The truth behind the matter is that the key to good, “lived in” worldbuilding is restraint. Restraint of putting everything out there, restraint of not giving every single detail to a reader/viewer. Yes, worldbuild, yes, write about the logistics system in x nation, but have the restraint to keep it in the background as yet another mundane thing. Once you treat a world as having been naturally evolved as opposed to artificially developed, with highlights and whatnot, that’ll be when it’ll feel properly lived in.

As for any further discussion- I’m a little busy a lot of the time haha. If you have any more questions, I can always answer them, or get around to answering them through my inbox. Thank you for your interest!

3. I’ve known Damek for a little bit, and as we’re both interested in sci fi, we’ve had conversations about theoretical placement of his character in the Percivals for a bit. I did a piece for him a while ago that was a commission and I set that in-universe. As an idea, it was kind of just sitting there for a while. In the mean time, I had started another stand-alone story with Ezo (another person’s character who I’m chill with) and built up the antagonist for that story, an ICC Admiral Rafan Spex. Back then, he was a mustache-twirling villain who was unambiguously sinister. Andor, the Star Wars show, did a lot to give me an idea for what Critou could be like. After doing some thinking, I rewrote the Spex character, and connected it to Damek to bridge the two stories, and serve as the basis for a three-arc, eleven chapter story. I’ve written the synopses for every chapter except 11, but I won’t be releasing that widely any time soon to avoid overt spoilers.

4. The officers in Xever’s unit are pretty chill, for the most part. Maybe with the exception of Wynn. Now, I’ll admit, this is a pretty broad question, and one that I wouldn’t be able to reasonably or concisely answer in a single post, but I’ll go over Xever to start with. Xever has had a very rigid, and turbulent upbringing. His father was, for most of his crucial, developing years, a broken man with dead career prospects whose own father was also harsh and austere military patriarch. Xever only really ever connected with his brother, whose death early on in his military career robbed him of companionship, and turned his mother into a fish-out-of-water shut-in, too hurt by the loss to be too active. Despite Xever finding some peace with Tycho for a short while, Xever’s lack of broader social interaction made him socially awkward, ripe for bullying during the Academy. His interests, mainly music and introspective, vulnerable ideas were simply not the same as his peers, and that along with being gay, compounded his insecurities. He’d eventually get through the Academy (not without hiccups) but as he quickly rose through the ranks (largely by family connections), he was still largely socially awkward and masked that by talking to his coworkers in Ground Forces with very by-the-book, stock-standard speech. He’d been to explore himself more off-work, especially in the company of Tycho, and be more loose, particularly in areas where his father would be unlikely to know about. This would have made him more sociable and chill in the long run, but due to events in the story, that would be cut short.

Knowing this, we can tell a couple things: without support from others, or the comfort of well-rehearsed, by the book answers, Xever can be quite socially awkward, both to professional comrades and civilians.

Good question though, I’ll likely make more structured, separate posts about the other characters in time! Likely next will be about Ewan Figes, followed by Tycho, then Wynn, Rodriguez, and Dyer.

[poochiray]

10 OffGun-ish fics you should read

So I’m coming up on my anniversary soon. This month it’s been a year since my first OffGun story I’ve published. Within this year, I’ve read and wrote a ton of OffGun. So I thought I’d celebrate the occasion by recognizing some of my favorites from the fandom. These are not really in any particular order, so please keep that in mind. I’m not ranking one over the other. And each story has its own special things I like about them. Some of my favorite tropes I tend to gravitate towards are slow burn, pining, angst, smut, humor, switching (be it sexual position or partner), happy endings, & getting together stories. Almost all of these stories have a couple of these things in them. So without further ado, the list~

1) Picking Flowers by allourheroes | 13.3k, Explicit, Pick/Rome

Ya’ll, it was so hard to pick a story by this author. I like a lot of their stories and honestly anything you read by them is going to slam. But there are two stories I think back on even months later. This is one of them. The synopsis of this story is that Pick (as a veterinarian) sometimes has to take care of supernatural creatures. And as such, he comes across a half-pixie named Rome. It’s just such a unique take on Pick/Rome and even though it’s a fantasy AU, their personalities still shine through. It’s cute, romantic, a little angsty, and honestly I remember it being a little slow burn too. Just a very very cute story and definitely worth the read.

2) our hands speak for us by Rioana | 12.1k, Explicit, Off/Gun

K this author has three works, and honestly you should read all of them. I’m not even kidding here. Rioana just gets Gun. Her first story is basically an extensive character study on Gun and as you read through it, you just accept it as reality. Her stories just make sense as plausible explanations, and the same can be said for our hands speak for us. The premise of this story is set during Puppy Honey era, and Gun casually decides to give Off a blowjob to get him to be more comfortable to work with. Then things go from there. I won’t spoil it too much, but be forewarned, Off is not painted in the best light here. This is during his earlier filming career with Gun. As such, there is real situations referenced and the whole thing feels like we’re just going back in time. It’s very real. But very good. 

3) A Savage Gang by piningbisexuals | 53.4k, Explicit, Khai/Third

Maybe an unpopular opinion, but this is my favorite Theory of Love story. It’s definitely a darker, more gritty tale. This was inspired by the Not Me trailer and what resulted was an amazing story where the Savage Gang are actually...well, a gang. There’s drugs, there’s sex, there’s the typical Third pining over Khai. It has everything I ever wanted in a story and the slow burn is just ughhh. So well done. This is a story that sticks around and stays in your head for weeks later. If you’re going to read any Theory of Love story, read this one.

4) make a wish by Feyrelynn | 7.7k, Explicit, Off/Gun

This was the very first OffGun story I bookmarked, so it kinda has a special place in my heart. I’d been dabbling in the fandom, going absolutely feral over edits of these two clingy men, and then I stumbled across this story and that was pretty much it for me. This is a birthday fic, with a very simple concept. Off places a wish on his birthday to see what life would be like if he was really with Gun. And then he gets his glimpse into that reality. Short, simple, and adorably sexy.

5) Provocation by hedgielettuce | 5k, Explicit, Third/Khai

Ok, if you are at all familiar with the things I write/read, this one won’t come as any shock to people on why it’s listed here. This is by far the sexiest Theory of Love story I’ve ever read. And why? Because this author embraces BOSSY THIRD. One of the reasons I love Third so much is because he calls the shots. He instills fear into his hot shot playboy boyfriend. He’s not playing.  And this story expands on it, going so far as to show a jealous dom side to Third that makes perfect sense and leaves Khai in shambles.    

6) love and eggs are best when they are fresh by pancakelady | 10.7k, Teen, Sean/White

Making this list made me realize I’m sorely lacking on Sean/White stories to recommend lmao. I think the reason being is that I just love their canon story so much. So, I don’t feel the need to read more about them? Does that make any sense? I dunno. But either way, this story stuck out more than any other for this particular pairing. It’s the classic high school AU where they are partnered to take care of a “child” for a school project. The “child” being an egg. This is just a very fucking cute story and pretty wholesome too. I think it’s the only story not rated E that I’ll be reccing, so there ya go haha. 

7) The Initiation Series by pallidvixen | 30k+, Explicit, Pick Your Not Me Pairing, it’s all there

Now for the complete opposite of wholesome because I’m fucked up like that lmao. Wow. What’s there to say about this one? Well, for one, it’s a series. You have to read each story because it gradually builds up and gets crazier as it goes. But the basic premise is that Gumpa has an initiation ceremony that all the members of the gang must undergo to prove their loyalty and devotion to the cause. The ceremony? Group sex. It’s everyone fucking everyone. Gumpa with big dom energy, Black just pissed off and not wanting to be there, Gram being an eager fluffer for Black, Sean the virgin, Yok the slut...it’s just. It’s so fucking amazing. And shocking. And I could write so much more but I’ll stop. I get it’s not everyone’s cup of tea but ya’ll. This is the story I think about more than any other, it’s so fucking messed up and perfect.

8) Meant to Be by lililyyli | 76k, Explicit, Maetee/T-Rex

Ya’ll. I have a specific need, and it’s more of this pairing. I started this story because on the word count alone, ngl. Finding longer OffGun stories in general is such a rare treat. But to have one for this pairing too? Sign me the fuck up. The plot on this one was super cute too. Maetee has magical powers and is an exorcist, meanwhile T-Rex is a demon. Together they run into each other as kids and grow up as friends. Things happen, they part ways. They come back as adults and slowly fall in love with each other. I just remember binge reading this entire story in a day, it was so interesting and cute and lovely. And I still think about Maetee getting to dress up as a princess.

9) How Old My Heart by Xagan | 44.3k, Mature, Khai/Third

Ok one of my favorite tropes to read is pining. The thing is with this story is that all the pining is off screen. It's in the background. And it's fucking brilliant. As the reader, you get to piece it all together. You get to watch Khai wait and wait, always playing off as this fuckboy friend. You get to watch Third fall in and out of love with someone else. You then finally get to watch them both come together and create something beautiful, only for one to think it's all casual, the other not. It's a slow burn story, but well worth the read, and the ending was just perfect.

10) there’s a word for it by smyx | 8.7k, Explicit, Yok/Everyone

Lol so this story isn't even technically OffGun focused. This author has written some spicy stories that do feature more OG pairings, but, y'all. This story has a special place in my heart and there's a reason I'm reccing it over the others. It has charm. It is hilarious. Yok is basically a flirty slut who works his way around the gang. Yet in the end, he ends up attempting a threesome with SeanWhite and lol. It's so bad. I just like how sometimes the sex isn't omg amazingly mind-blowing. There is a realness there that I appreciated reading. And Yok's casual approach was just adorable and had me roaring with laughter throughout.

💚 If you've gotten to the end, thanks for reading my list! I'll probably be creating a new list for next year. Drop your recs in the comments! I'm always looking forward to reading new content of OffGun and their associated ships. 💚

[fuckyeahgoodomensfanfic]

Fanfic Review: Stitch Me Up

Dr. Aziraphale Fell is newly appointed as the Chief of the A&E (ER) at Celestial Harmonies Hospital in Lambeth, London. The crowd is a much different one than the patients that gathered at his previous place of work in the South Downs- and his coworkers are perhaps the oddest of all. Emergency physician Gabriel Winger seems to think Dr. Fell has robbed him of a position that was rightfully his. Beatrix Bealz, the trauma surgeon on call, doesn't look or act like a surgeon at all. And then there's that strange Head Nurse Crowley. So stand-offish with his coworkers. So sweet with the patients. A mystery, all together. Aziraphale can't help but want to solve that mystery- what physician can resist one?

Length: 246,250 words

AO3 Rating: Explicit / Spice Level 🔥🔥🔥🔥

Best for: Angst, Human AU, Romance

Triggers: Mental Illness symptoms (depression, bipolar disorder, panic disorder), past suicide attempt, self harm

Read it here, fic by Get_Wrexed

*Minor Spoilers* So I broke the rules. This is an unfinished work. If that’s a hardline for you, then this is not the fic for you. However it ends in a good place!! It’s a little abrupt but most threads are wrapped up. No cliffhangers here! This hasn’t been updated since 2021, so that’s why I’m comfortable positing a review. I don't think this is going to get an update. I didn’t realize it was unfinished when I started, but the premise really got me! So I had to see it through.

Aziraphale has just been made Chief of A&E at a busy London hospital. Crowley is the chaotic, but hardworking Head Nurse. I love stories that have their attraction start with mutual respect for each other’s intellect and competency. They are both so passionate about what they do! The setting is so engaging. We stay there for the majority of the first half, but once the relationship gets underway we start to spend less time at the hospital.

A large portion of this story deals with mental illness, showing the parts of mental health that are not pretty. Crowley and Bealz act out in unhealthy destructive ways like real people do. This isn’t a sanitized version. If those topics are triggering for you, I would maybe skip this story. It’s not purposefully triggering content! But is a main plot point and will come up often. Aziraphale puts so much effort into navigating Crowley’s episodes, he really is doing everything he can to make a safe environment. I think reading Aziraphale’s way of treating Crowley could be a healing experience for someone with similar struggles. One very minor critique, I do feel like we had a lot of repeated conversations. A lot of lash out, apologies, reassurance scenes. They’re great, but after a couple repeats I found myself drifting a little. I wanted to get back to the hospital backdrop.

The last portion deals with power play. Aziraphale is very focused on safe consensual play, while Crowley is very eager to begin without fully understanding what it all entails. I love them finding their way, and I looove that this one talks about power play outside the bedroom. That’s the main way we engage with the arrangement. Of course there’s smut, but it’s usually not graphic. Interestingly we usually enter Crowley’s subspace and I really enjoyed that pov. I thought it was very unique and dreamlike. Aziraphale killed me with his dramatic sighs of disappointment when he wants Crowley to behave, lots of, 'Don’t you want to be good for me?' I ate it up every time.

Final story note, I want to mention that I thought the Bealz storyline was very unique and a strong point of this story. Crowley and Bealz have a deep history together and are platonic life partners. The author was not afraid to actually show that. They are not romantic, but they are integral to each other and physically affectionate. To be honest, I thought it was a little brave in a ship focused story to say, "no this person is also important to Crowley and actually does take priority in some cases". And I appreciate so much that Aziraphale is allowed to be jealous, but knows it's his problem. Crowley isn't doing anything wrong.

This was a very excellent read! I am holding on a little hope that we'll see a completion of this story but if not I'm very grateful for what we have!! It's still a satisfying and full story. Mostly safe in public until later chapters, but again the smut isn't that graphic. So you could get away with it if you want.

Read it here, fic by Get_Wrexed

[number-1-kuaidul-fanboy]

Okay so my thoughts on Go Rush’s most recent arc

The first Yugioh arc I got to watch as it was coming out (only two episodes of it were out when I fully caught up on the show), a pretty momentous occasion for me that I’ve been looking forward to for quite a while.

The arc is also Go Rush’s equivalent of WRGP.

Was it as bad as that? I guess not, it was far shorter and I enjoyed a greater ratio of it than I did of WRGP, where apart from the mildly good Team Taiyo, and okay final duel, I was either completely bored out of my mind or filled with rage the entire time. This arc of Go Rush meanwhile, of the thirteen episodes it gave us, I fully enjoyed... five. And thought two (the finale) were okay while everything else ranged from boring to awful. Characters were butchered, the story took directions I couldn’t get invested in, and the amount of Sevens fan service was more excessive and distracting than it ever has been in this show before.

It wasn’t so bad that I’m quitting the show, I do feel like they can recover from this lackluster arc. 5Ds recovered from the far longer WRGP arc after all so maybe Go Rush can have its equivalent of Ark Cradle soon. I hope it can.

MORE DETAILED THOUGHTS UNDER THE CUT, INCLUDING SPOILERS FOR THE NEWEST EPISODES.

The first three episodes of their arc were a strong start that showed a lot of promise, the initial premise was really enticing and interesting. I also liked the Yuhi vs Tremolo duel, and Tremolo as a character overall. His scenes even in the lesser episodes were enjoyable, he seems like a fun character despite his shotty introduction and I hope we learn more about him and Phaser as the show goes forward.

The episode where they raid MIK headquarters, despite its fumblings, was also pretty good and pretty much the last time I had fun with this arc. I did think the final duel between Yudias and Phaser was okay (Phaser being a dragon alien was cool but man did his humanoid dragon form look weird as shit), but it would’ve been a lot more enjoyable if nearly everything between the MIK raid and that duel didn’t range from boring to downright awful. The treatment of Manabu’s character and shafting of his potential arc this season was frustrating, as was Zwijo being... way too different after what happened last season. He and Phaser both feel like they changed too much in such a short amount of time to the point where I can’t really believe they’re genuine.

I also couldn’t stand the overabundance of Sevens fan service this arc. I love Sevens but having two episodes in this cat world that accomplished nothing for the overall story, or really even the characters, brought the pacing to a screeching halt. It felt like filler, filler that wasn’t funny or charming. It just felt like the creators of this show were shaking the audience and going “HEY REMEMBER SEVENS?! YOU SHOULD WATCH SEVENS SO YOU CAN UNDERSTAND THIS SCENE! SEVENS IS REQUIRED VIEWING FOR GO RUSH NOW SO SUCK ON THAT, DICK NIPS.”

And that’s obnoxious, as someone who does like Sevens, so if anything, I feel bad for the people who didn’t see or like Sevens but were enjoying Go Rush only to be bombarded by so much sudden Sevens continuity and fan service that didn’t even provide anything new for Sevens fans. For me, as a Sevens fan, the episode where they travel to Sevens time felt like it was just there to remind me of a better show I could’ve been watching instead.

Go Rush has its own identity out of Sevens and a unique charm to it despite being a sequel and before THAT episode, it could be enjoyed without having seen Sevens. I’m gonna use GX as an example, I know I do that way too much but both GX and Go Rush are sequel shows that shifts the focus to different characters than its predecessor so I think it’s a fair comparison.

In GX, no DM character was a major player in the plot like Yuga is in Go Rush and while GX had DM fan service here and there for sure, the fan service was never so bad it took away from or overshadowed the new characters. Sure, Judai duelled Yugi in the final duel but that was at the very end of the show, like a fun extra, and it still tied into Judai’s character arc first and foremost. GX knew to keep the focus on its new characters and themes and as a result, despite being a sequel, it felt like a completely distinct experience from DM and even surpassed that show for me.

Every time Yuga is onscreen in Go Rush though, it just makes me realise how much more I care about him than any of the new Go Rush episodes because time that should’ve been used to develop those characters was instead used to remind us of the old characters.

So overall, Go Rush needs to shape up and shape up fast. I want to enjoy this show, and have enjoyed it in the past, so please. Go Rush, be Go Rush, don’t be Sevens Pt 2: Convoluted Time Travel BS Boogaloo.

[wonderfulworldofmichaelford]

Is It Really That Bad?

The hand of fate is moving, and the finger points to you, Nicolas Cage.

The Wicker Man is a classic folk horror film known for its unique tone, musical numbers, Christopher Lee, and its iconic titular structure. Movies like Midsommar owe a lot to this film; it’s certainly not a film I love, as I’m not big on movies about cults, but I can appreciate it at least.

Now, as with any classic horror film, it was inevitable it would get remade, and if there’s one genre where remakes actually have a real shot at being great, it’s the horror genre. The Thing, The Fly, The Blob, all of these films managed to take a terrifying story told once before and twist and recontextualize it for a new audience, and all three of those films are classics in their own right. So you’d think remaking a film in which an intolerant but well-meaning cop is led to his death as his ignorance is preyed upon by a charismatic cult of pagans would go well, right? There has to be some biting social commentary or some unique elements to this film, especially seeing as the setting was updated to America! Setting the film in New England or the deep South, places rife for the sort of horror the original played with…

Oh, wait, it’s set on a weird fictional island? And the cult is some matriarchy that’s meant to show a reverse patriarchy…? And it’s not a musical?

Yeah, no, this movie didn’t exactly do much to win people over. Quite a few actors from the original were highly critical of it, particularly Christopher Lee and Ingrid Pitt, and the original director Robin Hardy had his name removed from the credits out of disgust at the state of the film. Edward Woodward, the original film’s star, turned down an opportunity for a cameo, which speaks volumes about what he thought. Nicolas Cage has been pretty open about thinking the film was absurd, and critics basically laughed the film right into bombing. It’s safe to say Universal, who had been trying for years to get this remake off the ground, were likely regretting ever allowing the project to come to fruition. All in all, the whole thing is a monumental travesty notable only for some meme-worthy content within.

But is that really all this misguided remake has going for it? Is its legendary badness overexaggerated, or is it truly like watching the world exploding every single night? Well, I’m here to answer that for you as I determine whether or not The Wicker Man is really that bad after all.

THE GOOD

This movie’s saving grace, and what you most likely know it best for, is just how batshit insane it is, to the point of it being one of the funniest unintentional comedies this side of The Happening. Of course, there’s the infamous line about the bees, but if you’ve actually sat down and watched the movie you’ll know that line (which only appears near the very end of the extended cut) is merely the tip of the iceberg. You have schoolgirls chanting “Phallic symbol,” you have hallucinated girls getting run over by trucks on boats, and you have Nicolas Cage kung fu fighting angry women which culminates with him dressing in a bear suit, sprinting across a field, and sucker punching someone. It’s just an insane ride.

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Of course, all of this is carried by Nicolas Cage. He realized what this movie was when making it, and in true Cage fashion brought the ham and cheese to make a perfect B-movie sandwich. His delivery of lines such as when he’s asking if two women have a shark in a bag or demanding to know how something got burned really are something else, and it all builds to that beautiful delivery of “NOT THE BEES,” the crown jewel of an utterly bonkers Cage performance. It became a meme for a reason, even if it isn’t notably crazier than many of the other lines.

If you can give this movie credit for anything, it’s for not being a straight up remake. Like yes, the basic premise—a detective goes to investigate an island and ends up sacrificed by a cult—is the same, and it doesn’t take advantage of being set in New England like it should, but this is a wildly different take with a different cult and different situations than the original film. It’s more akin to a remake like The Thing or The Fly than Van Sant’s Psycho, for what that’s worth. Though, on the other hand, this will be the only time this movie is ever mentioned positively in the same sentence as the former two movies because...

THE BAD

So, you know how I said it was good this movie decided to go in its own direction? That’s all well and good, obviously, but it would seriously help if that direction didn’t suck. This is a remake that just completely and utterly misses the point of why people like the original. There’s no musical numbers, the plot is dumbed down to extreme levels, the new additions and characterizations are just not really built into anything interesting… Sure, Nicolas Cage is a far more likable protagonist than the original guy (which is a low bar to clear considering what a judgmental douche the original’s protag was), but they don’t really do much interesting. They took a cult classic notable for its musical numbers, expert use of folk horror, and Christopher Lee and turned it into a bargain bin B-movie.

And that’s not even getting into the… questionable political message. Neil LaBute made the decision to turn the cult into a matriarchal society to show what would happen when patriarchal power dynamics were reversed, and the end result is exactly as problematic as you might imagine. With how divorced from reality any aspect of the cult is from a patriarchal society (I don’t see women having their tongues literally cut out or being sacrificed in pagan rituals very often), the entire film comes off as the anti-feminist version of Save the Pearls. Like maybe this idea could have been executed better, but it feels like the idea only someone who really hates women would want to even try and attempt. Like what point are we trying to get to, anyway? That everyone sucks? Do you really want to sit through a movie with a foregone conclusion where that’s the message? I get wanting to mix things up, but this was not a good direction to take the cult.

And of course there is the most damning element at play here: This movie is not even remotely scary. It has weird, surreal imagery, and as a horror remake it’s trying to be tense and unnerving, but between the idiotic anti-feminist angle and Cage hamming it up the whole thing comes off like a giant farce.

IS IT REALLY THAT BAD?

As a horror film? Yes, this movie is pretty bad. But as a comedy? This film is a classic.

I’ve always believed that if a film fails at its main goal but still manages to be funny, it’s not a worthless film. But that’s the thing: This film still failed. It tried to be a folk horror film that wanted to make you feel suspense and mystery, and instead gave a screwy comedy where Nicolas Cage punches women and overacts. That 3.7 on IMDB might even be a bit generous if I’m being honest. This film is firmly in the “so bad it’s good” category.

Still, if you’re a Nicolas Cage film buff, this movie is absolutely a must-see; it’s one of his greatest batshit insane performances ever. And like I said, it’s a bad film with a lot of value. This isn’t complete trash, and cinema is honestly better for this film existing. Most horror remakes of the 2000s through the early 2010s ended up merely being forgettable garbage that no one talks about a few years after it drops. Does anyone even care about that A Nightmare on Elm Street reboot or the remake of House of Wax? Does anyone even know they remade The Wizard of Gore? But this baffling remake no one asked for and that no one wanted of one of the greatest horror films ever made has not only endured, it has become a progenitor of memes. I’ll take unforgettable garbage over run-of-the-mill cookie cutter trash any day of the week.

[nonsubstantial]

2023 book breakdown (first half)

~most of these, I listened to as audiobooks. But this is just a list of all the books I experienced this year, chronologically~

January ++

Nemesis Games (the expanse 5) - impact: 8/10

another solid entry in the expanse series, which has become a pretty comforting *go-to* for me at this point. There are a lot of things in these books that bug me, but their suspense and wit keeps managing to cover for their flaws. I have no doubt that further entries in this series will be simultaneously annoying and enjoyable, in the same way that this was.

February ++

A Court of Thorns and Roses (acotar 1) - impact: 3/10

I’m reading this series only because some podcasters I like started doing a podcast series analyzing it. While those podcasters (and one of my friends) really loved it, I unfortunately hated it. I can appreciate what they found good about these books, but I found the author’s inane descriptors and frequent misuse of words to be too distracting to overlook. Not only that, but I found a lot of the conflict to be rather trite.

March ++

The Count of Monte Cristo - impact 10/10...

several friends recommended this to me, one even going as far as to gift me their old copy before moving away. Unfortunately, I then slept on it for years, before finally picking it up. Holy shit though, am I glad that I finally picked it up. It may be correct to call it my favorite book of all time. This goes so far beyond being a simple revenge story. In fact, nothing in this book is simple, and I really feel like it manages to touch upon nearly every conviction that can exist within the human mind. While some of the narrative is archaic, that is only natural, since this book is nearly 200 years old. But despite being that old, there are some things in this story that still feel wildly progressive, even by today’s standards. Additionally, I feel that an understanding of the past, and the evolution of our culture, is important to understanding progress today. So I swear to you, this is a true masterpiece, and I hope that I can encourage other people to read it too, because it probably deserves to live on in our collective minds for at least 200 years more.

April ++

A Court of Mist and Fury (acotar 2) - impact: 2/10

as described in my blurb about the first book, I didn’t really like this series. I was having fun with the discussions about it, but holy shit it is waaaay too long, and I honestly feel like as much as I’ve heard that people can read into it as ‘empowering’, I really just found it to be insulting and trite. I felt like the language that the author uses to describe characters and relationships reinforces gendered hegemony, and their narrative doesn’t do many favors to class or social struggles either. I think I’d categorize it as a kind of wish fulfillment fantasy, but even then it’s way too long and the author’s constant misuse (or meaningless use) of words just left me feeling frustrated and offended.

Everyone on the Moon Is Essential Personnel - impact: 9/10

this book is one of the best collections of short stories that I’ve ever come across. Jarboe’s writing is thoughtful and to the point, usually utilizing clever metaphors for queer experiences. What really impressed me is how quickly I was able to understand every character and feel a personal connection to them. I could write a lot more about it, but reading this felt freeing and inspiring, in quite a unique way.

In The Watchful City - impact: 5/10

I was interested in the premise of this book, and its use of neopronouns, but I was left feeling a little underwhelmed. I liked the author’s ambition, but I feel like it failed in communicating its setting, as well as the main character’s motivations and feelings. Really, I see it as an interesting collection of ideas, but with none of them fully explored.

May ++

I did not finish a book in May :( 

(only manga :3) (p.s. I love chainsaw man)

June++

Babylon’s Ashes (the expanse 6) - impact: 8/10

another wonderful entry in the expanse series. Way more gay representation in this one too. I feel like it brought less new ideas to the table, but it instead focused on re-examining earlier themes and really rounding out the best characters from earlier books. In fact, almost every important character makes a return here, without it ever feeling contrived... which I believe is a magnificent achievement. I’m counting this as my second favorite Expanse book, up until this point.

Leech - impact: 10/10...

a book so perfect, I'd almost believe it was written just for me. The basic plot is that (stay with me here) a brain parasite hivemind goes to a spooky castle to investigate the murder of one of its host bodies, only to discover that the death might have been caused by a *different* brain parasite hivemind. The story is gruesome and terrifying, and supported by worldbuilding that is so creative and poignant that I wanted to live in it forever. The author’s writing is also beautiful and precise, and as I said before, it really just delivered on every front.

[houkagokappa]

Okay now that I’m done celebrating Christmas let me get back to seasonal anime and Bocchi the Rock!

I think most people have already seen it themselves or heard others praise it so there’s not much left for me to say, but watch me write an 5 page essay explain why it’s the best anyway.

At first I was worried that the premise and joke of Bocchi being incredibly introverted and socially awkward would get old, but it never happened. She kept coming across new challenges and the progression felt natural. I thought it was funny but also believable how she got good at guitar from being cooped up in her room for years, practicing so she could join a band and never getting the courage or reminder to do so. Her guitar skills were impressive and it’s nice to see and remember how most people have their strengths and weaknesses.

I loved the other members of the band and think they made for a great group with fun and functioning dynamics. Ryou being similarly awkward and introverted meant that the band and these bandmates were perfect for Bocchi. At the same time Ryou showcased a different kind of weird and was her own unique character with her own quirks. Nijika did a good job managing both of them. It was fun how Kita-chan fit in by being the outcast in this band of outcasts as the normie. She also deserves a special shout-out as a canon lesbian <3 Everyone in the band had something to bring to the table and it was great to see them come together, become friends and support each other. The supporting cast was also fantastic.

The story and premise weren’t that unique, but the characters made it fun to follow. The music was good and I’ve been listening to it on my own, which is important for any music anime. What really made the anime shine however was the animation. It was super creative and fun. I loved the visual jokes and metaphors that got incorporated into the reality of the show, like when Bocchi wanted to hide in a trashcan out of embarrassment and one suddenly appeared in front of her, she struggled to get inside it and then the others had to address her while she was inside or kept going like nothing was off about it. Meta jokes are always my favourites. The animation quality was good and I appreciated the different styles, I feel like we’ve gotten a lot more anime lately that utilises stop-motion stuff and live action sequences and it tends to be pretty interesting to see.

I don’t think there’s anything for me to criticise, I loved the series from start to finish and would be thrilled if it got a second season. It was one of my favourites from the fall season and a series that I highly recommend for anyone to give a try.

[marinsawakening]

Reading Round-Up June 2023

Books Read

An Unauthorized Fan Treatise by Lauren James

Described as "a serialized murder mystery novel set in a fictional fandom, formatted like a shipper's conspiracy theory", which is very accurate. It can be read in full (for free) here. I have mixed feelings on this novel. On the one hand, it's really clever in a lot of ways, I love Gottie and Rob and their parallels, and it absolutely nails the fandom atmosphere. The first half of the book feels just like reading unhinged fandom discourse, which, if you're a nosy bitch like me, is fantastic. The second half, however, plays the (murder) mystery a lot straighter, and that's where it kind of lost me. I don't feel like the mystery is quite strong enough to work without the gimmick. I do think the novel uses its chosen framing device really well, but the ultimate mystery was such a let down for me it left a nasty aftertaste. I would still recommend this novel, though, because at the end of the day, it's a unique piece of writing with a lot of thought and effort put in. And besides, I am difficult to please when it comes to mystery novels, so others might enjoy this more than me. (PS for the best experience, make sure you know the story of the MsScribe drama.)

The Call of Cthulhu, The Curse of Yig, The Man of Stone, The Horror in the Museum, The Thing on the Doorstep, The Tree on the Hill, and The Shadow out of Time by HP Lovecraft

This month I finished Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos stories. I still hate this guy's writing and am relieved that I'm finally able to leave it behind. From this month, the ones worth reading if you're interested in Lovecraft's worldbuilding are The Thing on the Doorstep, The Shadow Out of Time, and The Call of Cthulhu. This man's writing is never not racist but I'm specifically warning for racism in The Call of Cthulhu, in particular in regards to mistreatment of voodoo, racism against Inuit people and repeated usage of the esk*mo slur, and repeated usage of the word 'mongrel' to refer to a diverse group of people of colour.

Phoenix Extravagant by Yoon Ha Lee (Did Not Finish)

I bought this book about three years ago for my birthday but never got around to reading it. Finally decided to pick it up because I was in the mood for something lighter, and unfortunately I did not enjoy it. I read up until about halfway through the book before deciding I did not care. The premise of this book is absolutely killer (giant mechanical dragon powered by magic paint does revolution against an imperialist nation), but unfortunately the writing/execution is just not every good. The worldbuilding's pretty interesting, as is the actual dragon, but the author does not seem to have a good grasp on how to distribute information, leading to either over- or under-explaining, which ended up being the death knell of this book for me. It's incredibly difficult to care about the plot when you barely explain the rules of the magic system your plot hinges on. This, combined with a small slew of other minor problems (the prose is mediocre, the pacing a little-less-than-mediocre, and I find a few of the narrative decisions this book makes to be annoying/baffling) made me frustrated while reading more often than not, and unlike what my Lovecraft adventures would have you believe, I am not a completionist and I do not make a habit of reading through books I don't like.

The Murderbot Diaries: All System Red, Artificial Condition, Rogue Protocol and Exit Strategy by Martha Wells

Currently listening through Network Effect. Picked this series up in a bundle of audiobooks sold for charity basically on a whim because it was an insanely good deal (less than 20 euros for the whole series + a lot of other books). I'd vaguely heard of the series but went in pretty much blind. Delighted to announce that it's great and I'm enjoying it immensely. Murderbot is a fantastic protagonist/narrator, and tbh it's hard carrying the series, because while the rest the narrative (worldbuilding, other characters, prose, etc) isn't bad, I feel like thusfar the only other stand-out elements are ART's character and maybe the portrayal of the Company. But Murderbot is just such a compelling character it's impossible not to be charmed by these books. They're funny as hell too. Favourite book so far is Artificial Condition.

Shows Watched

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury

Finished season one, on episode two of season two. Having an absolute blast watching this show; I really enjoy most of the characters and I'm interested to see where all that political intrigue goes. However, I do think that the school setting works against the show (it feels unnecessary most of the time and is boring compared to alternative options imo) and I feel like the transition between season one and two was pretty poor. It also has intermittent pacing issues. In addition, this is my first ever Gundam show and though I'd heard this was accessible to newcomers, and that's probably true bc I'm following along fine, I really do feel like I'm working with half the information most of the time. How exactly Gundams work is very underexplained in the show. I assume this is background knowledge long-term viewers are expected to have, but maybe it's a flaw in the worldbuilding, I can't say. At the end of the day though, most of the issues I have with this show are nitpicks and don't affect my enjoyment.



Games Played

The Great Artists

A game with minimal gameplay elements, in which you follow a group of phantom thieves and a detective right before and after a painting gets stolen. You can jump back and forth through time, allowing you to follow different people who are doing things simultaneously, which is the only interactive element. It's cute and interesting, plus I love the art, but I found the lack of interactive elements a little boring. You can get it here on itch.io.

[nia26]

My thoughts live reacting to gmmtv 2023 mock trailers and long gmmtv rant:

- THE INTEREST : I don’t really care for Bright but this type of role fits him best. The trailer was shot beautifully but I’m over these creditor/debtor storylines very basic and overdone. Depending on how the official trailer looks I might watch

-BEAUTY NEWBIE : 98% chance I won’t be watching this one. I haven’t heard of the Korean original but it looks like a commentary on beauty standards but done in a non-critical performative way that is already overdone. I don’t know who the lead actress is but I probably would’ve checked this out if Great and Fah were the leads instead.

-OUR SKYY 2: 100% won’t be watching this 😭 All of the original shows I dropped early, never watched, and wont ever be going back to watch 💀 I don’t have any attachment to these stories, characters, or ships to even invest my time and watch this.

-MIDNIGHT MUSEUM: Most likely will watch this 👀 I love dark fantasy so I’m interested to see what this entails. There’s also some strong actors/my favs in this Gun, Tor, Foei, and Namtan. The premise and actors definitely sparked my interest. I need to see who will be the director and screenwriter.

-THE JUNGLE: 100% won’t be watching this 😭 I think this is the same team that did ps I hate you but this one looks way less interesting. Gmmtv didn’t add subs either so maybe I would’ve been more intrigued if I knew what was happening idk 😂

-DANGEROUS ROMANCE: This surprisingly sparked my interest 😭 but this definitely looks like gmmtv trying to have another bad buddy moment but make it kinda “darker/mature” I guess idk 🙄? I think PerthChimon look cute together and from what I’ve seen from them they are pretty good actors (two things which will probably carry this show just like OhmNanon did with bad buddy). I will most likely check this out when it airs.

-FACELESS LOVE: I will not be watching this. Nothing about it got my interest at all. The cgi looks silly and just overall a boring premise.

-ONLY FRIENDS: OH I ABSOLUTELY WILL BE WATCHING THIS! Seated front row with popcorn and extra butter. A messy gay ass group of friend all fucking each other’s boyfriends, one sided crushes, sex tapes, fwb, and whole bunch of other debauchery oh yes. And gmmtv’s legendary, iconic, messy gay director jojo is of course the mastermind. Need this on my screen January 1st at midnight.

-LONELINESS SOCIETY : This looks like a cute and funny romcom. They spoiled the whole show in the trailer but I will still watch. I already like Joss and Jan but these new faces really got me interested. I’m interested in all the characters and all three couples storylines but I will probably enjoy the silly gullible family most. I will definitely be seated

-LAST TWILIGHT : This one looks cute. Queer media with lead characters that have an impairment/disability are rare so I’m glad it’s represented here. I’m nervous though cause I dropped Vice versa so hopefully this show has a better screen writer. I will definitely check this out

-WEDNESDAY CLUB: This is a less interesting hetero version of only friends mixed with the college version of the jungle idk 😭 I wanted to like it cause it’s about a messy, backstabbing, friend group which I eat up but it just fell flat idk. I don’t think it’s messy or fucked up enough for me especially after watching the only friends trailer. If the official trailer looks better I might check it out

-COOKING CRUSH: Will not be watching this. Trailer was boring. Thai cooking dramas having always been a snoozefest to me also this is 10 steps back for OffGun after their mature show Not Me. Also how they gonna have Apple in this and not make her a lesbian and it looks like she dies also? 😒

-The show with Dew and Prim kinda looks cute but the story isnt interesting enough to be invested in. If the screenwriter adds something unique to the plot I might check it out

- 23.5: This looks really cute! gmmtv is finally producing a gl so of course I’m seated. I’m mad though cause they could’ve had another gl side couple instead of a bl side couple but baby steps I guess 😒

-HIDDEN AGENDA: I’m definitely way more interested in the side characters and side couples than joongdunk and their storyline. I will likely check this out for everyone but the main pair 😬

-DOUBLE SAVAGE: This looks interesting 👀 I’m not sure what happened to cause all this family drama (murder?) but I like it. Strong actors Ohm, Perth, Foei, and Film so that’s even better. I’m worried tho cause this kinda looks similar to 10 years ticket so hopefully this ain’t a recycled storyline. If the official trailer shows more of the plot I will definitely watch.

-FIND YOURSELF: Wont be watching this. The trailer did nothing for me very boring. Gmmtv’s other age gap romcom trailer Loneliness Society was more interesting, cute, and funny to me.

-A BOSS AND A BABE: This was cute. Gmmtv needed to give ForceBook a redemption cause they really dropped the ball with Enchanté. I’m really rooting for this to be good cause ForceBook are cute together and can act. Boss/employee trope is basic and overdone but hopefully they have a good screenwriter and director to make things interesting. I will definitely be watching.

-ENIGMA: This looks interesting. I like the dark supernatural thriller genre. Also, the makers of The Gifted and F4 are behind this so it will definitely be well produced with a good storyline. However, I don’t know if Win and Prim can pull off these types of roles . Them as leads doesn’t make me want to watch unfortunately, but I will try and look past that and check it out cause I know the story will probably be really good

The shows I’m most excited for and will 100% be seated for are 23.5 and Only Friends.

The shows that I’m interested in and will most likely be watching are: Midnight museum, Dangerous romance, Loneliness Society, Last twilight, A boss and a babe.

The shows I’m kinda interested in but I need to see the final official trailer to determine if I want to watch or not are: Enigma, Double Savage, Hidden Agenda, The Interest, Wednesday Club.

Everything else I’m not really interested in watching (unless changes are made) or I don’t want to watch at all.

Overall, gmmtv 2023 trailers were underwhelming and same old same old. Only 2 out of the 18 trailers really got me excited. Gmmtv also lied about next year being “diverse”. I wouldn’t even consider 23.5 a gl cause there’s still a bl couple in there when they easily could’ve made them a gl couple or even better multiple gl couples. Everything else is just hetero and BLs like every year with the same faces/couples we saw this year. Also majority of the shows are still centered around school, a couple office romances, and similar/recycled storylines.

I think Mama Gogo was the only gmmtv series this year I finished and liked all the way through. Everything else I ended up not liking, dropped or didn’t watch at all. I fear I might be disappointed next year with gmmtv like I was this year. I know Only Friends won’t disappoint me cause Jojo is behind it but everything else I’m not sure.

Also, I think it’s so dumb gmmtv announces so many series for the next year knowing they can’t release all of them cause they still need to air half of the series they announce for the current year that will get pushed to next year. Unless gmmtv airs like 3-4 shows everyday more than half of gmmtv 2023 shows won’t be aired until 2024 cause they still got like 5-7 gmmtv 2022 series that will air in 2023. That’s another reason why gmmtv 2022 shows weren’t that good cause they have to rush and push these shows out.

Someone made a good point on Twitter saying “gmmtv aren’t willing to try or test new because their redundancy is constantly rewarded. Why try to make something new when they know they can get us to eat the same thing they already know how to make. Gmmtv loves low effort stakes and we reward them for it.” It sucks that gmmtv follows the same formula every year but fans eat up their mediocrity so they really don’t have a reason to change.

Anyways I hope 23.5 and Only Friends are released early next year but I know that’s not gonna happen 😭

[kuuderekun]

Kuudere are Stoics?

I’m pretty usual among modern people interested in Ancient Stoic Philosophy in that I’m mainly interested in their Metaphysics and in the Political Philosophy of Zeno’s Republic (which later Roman Stoics disowned) rather than what it means to live like a Stoic.

But as is often the case with me, the thoughts I have had on the subject relate to Anime.

First however I need to comment on how the casual understanding of a Stoic Demeanor causes Stoicism to be misunderstood.  Stoicism isn’t about having no emotions or suppressing them.  It’s simply about having them under control, trying to make emotionally impulsive decisions, or in debates make arguments that are emotional rather than logical.  

The Roman Stoics I don’t like probably would agree with what Ben Shapiro means by “fact don’t care about your feelings”, but Zeno Stoics would not, they would understand that Gender is based on more than just your sex organs, as would Paul based on Galatians 3.

One of the articles in Stoicism in Early Christianity argues that the very Emotional Characterization of Jesus in The Fourth Gospel doesn’t conflict with a Stoic reading of The New Testament but supports it.

And so in that context we come to my thesis that some Kuudere Anime characters are the true Stoics of modern popular fiction.

Kuudere is mainly a description of a character’s demeanor (which is where the Stoic comparison begins, all Kuudere are Stoic in that casual sense) and so can refer to a variety of different kinds of characters.  Some I suppose are the bad misunderstanding of Stoicism I referred to above, some are really Rei Ayanami clones, and some just come off this way because they’re Introverts.  And like Tsundere it seems to have originally referred more to the specific character journey of some Visual Novel Love Interests, being at first cold and seemingly indifferent to the protagonist as opposed to the hostility of the Tsundere.

But the Kuudere characters I’m thinking of when I refer to myself as a real life Kuudere are ones who are not unemotional or suppressing their emotions but are in fact entirely motivated by their emotional desires, just in a particularly calculated way.  For some their Tragic Flaw is their tendency to place the emotional needs of their loved ones ahead of their own.

To be trendy I think I’ll mention first the most recent addition to the Anime Kuudere canon, Misuzu Gondou of Tomo-chan is A Girl.  She’s the reason I watched the show, the actual main couple bugs me.  She’s the smartest character in the show, but spends much of the latter part questioning herself.  She’s also just really fun to watch.

Shizuku Sangou from Kampfer is fun in how she’s perhaps the least susceptible to the Tragic Flaw I mentioned above.  She decides she wants the protagonist pretty quickly and does not hesitate to act on it.  But she’s also the one motivated to advance the plot because of her past girlfriend who died.

Ayase Kishimoto from Chaos;HEad is perhaps the closest Anime character to my Christian Stoicism thesis.  She is a fan of a fantasy novel that seems like this world’s version of Narnia so she’s constantly interpreting the show’s Sci-Fi concept in religious sounding ways while sounding almost like a Prophetess.  Unfortunately what the Sci-Fi premise of the Chaos: shows is can be interpreted as Platonist, though I feel Steins;Gate has an ultimately Stoic take on Fate.

And that brings me to the culmination of this post, Setsuna Kiyoura of School Days.  Like most characters she is better handled in the original Visual Novel than in the infamous 2007 Anime, but for the most part she is still essentially the same character. She’s the smartest character in the story and is principally motivated by her loyalty to Sekai but that is complicated by her own feelings for Makoto.  The circumstances under which Makoto has sex with Setsuna in the VN are very different from the Anime, in the VN it’s a very unique premise for a love scene that I find very emotionally moving.

She is my Avatar on most websites because she is the best.

https://mithrandirolorin.blogspot.com/2023/04/kuudere-are-stoics.html

[albertonykus]

Doraemon Movie Review: Nobita's Secret Gadget Museum (2013)

What is Doraemon? The title character of the Doraemon manga and anime is a blue robotic cat from the 22nd Century who keeps an array of high-tech gadgets in a portable pocket dimension on his belly, and has traveled from the future to improve the fortunes of a hapless schoolboy named Nobita. Although relatively obscure in the English-speaking world, Doraemon is a Mickey-Mouse-level cultural icon in East Asia (and some other regions, too). The Doraemon franchise was a big part of my childhood, and there are still elements of it that I enjoy now.

Doraemon has released theatrical films almost annually since 1980, most of which involve Nobita and his friends (kind Shizuka, brash Gian, and crafty Suneo) getting swept into adventures thanks to Doraemon's gadgets. Despite being of potentially broad appeal to fans of science fiction and animated films, there are very few English reviews of the Doraemon movies, so I'm embarking on a project to write about all the films that have come out so far. Good luck to me…

Movie premise: Doraemon’s bell gets stolen, and he really wants it back. Nobita and his friends track it to a 22nd Century gadget museum, where they have to find the bell and figure out who took it.

My spoiler-free take: This movie features a unique setting and story genre for a Doraemon film, and it’s pretty respectable, though I think its singular qualities had even greater potential still.

POTENTIAL SPOILERS AFTER THIS POINT

Review: Whereas most Doraemon movies use Doraemon’s gadgets as a means to transport the main characters to classic science fiction or fantasy settings, a museum that displays these gadgets is a location that can essentially only exist in the Doraemon universe. Combined with the fact that the Doraemon films have not yet done a proper detective story up to this point, and the premise of this movie looks very attractive indeed.

Yet for reasons that are difficult for me to put my finger on, I came away from this film somewhat underwhelmed. Maybe it’s the fact that, despite an ideal setup for showcasing previously introduced gadgets in fresh and creative ways, much of the main plot ultimately hinges on new gadgets and additions to the lore. Make no mistake though, this movie does not skimp on giving cameos to established gadgets. Probably the best use of the museum locale is the scene where the protagonists and law enforcement are confronted by the gadget thief in one of the exhibits. The “duel by proxy” between the thief and the inspector investigating the case, in which they simply show off the gadgets they have on hand to counter each other’s strategies without actually using them, is pretty amusing, but makes sense in a setting where gadgets are widely available.

The mystery story itself is decent for a children’s movie, though I found the handling of the aftermath to be unsatisfying. To make a long story short, it is eventually revealed that Doraemon’s bell and several other items were stolen on behalf of a disgraced scientist, who hid microchips in those objects to preserve his life’s work on developing a sustainable metal for use in manufacturing gadgets. By the time the movie ends, the scientist simply goes back into hiding, with no apparent opportunity to redeem himself in the eyes of the relevant authorities nor any clear headway made in addressing the metal sustainability problem.

I also felt lukewarm about the revelation that Doraemon exhibits more cat-like behavior without his bell, which came across as more of an easy excuse to make visual gags than a natural extension of the lore. I did appreciate that everyone in the main cast contributes at one point or another, even though the story focuses most heavily on Nobita and Doraemon. Additionally, this movie features one of the few times (if not the only time) that the Restoration Light is used in a Doraemon film, which is a gadget I’ve often thought should be acknowledged in the movies more often considering how frequently Doraemon’s gadgets break!

Star rating: ★★★☆☆

[rei-caldombra]

2023 Anime Year Review!

Happy New Year! I'm gonna start by doing my best to list all the anime I watched this year. I felt like putting them in alphabetical order, so I did. 

The anime I watched in 2023 are: Attack on Titan Final Season, Buddy Daddies, Crash Course in Naughtness, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Swordsmith Village Arc, Don't Toy with Me Miss Nagatoro 2nd Attack, Dr. Stone: New World, Frieren Beyond Journey’s End, Helck, Hell's Paradise, Jigokuraku, Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2, Mashle: Magic and Muscles, My New Boss Is Goofy, My Hero Academy, Ranking of Kings: The Treasure Chest of Courage, Reborn as a Vending Machine I Now Wander the Dungeon, Spy x Family Season 2, Tomo-chan Is a Girl!, Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead.

For manga I have been keeping up with Bocchi the Rock, Bocchi the Rock Hiroi’s story, Call of the Night, Chainsaw Man, Demon Girl Next Door, Don’t Mess With Me Nagatoro, Mieruko-san, and Shimeji Simulation. 

Now I'll be giving some thoughts on the year as a whole and mentioning specific ones in categories. There will be no spoilers. 

It definitely looks like a lot, but I know I have watched more in the past. It's tougher finding as much time for anime now, but I desire to give more new shows a shot in 2024 like I usually would. There are a lot of sequels that I watched this year! The new shows were pretty good, with most of them fitting into the realm of being pretty good but not extraordinary. While the continuations on the other end had a lot more extremes, with most of the mainstream shows fitting into the realm of having moments I really liked in between stuff that was lukewarm or frustrating. 

My single favorite is Dr. Stone: New World. Dr Stone continues to be very consistent and have a bit of everything, providing good visuals, fun characters, and interesting applications of science. This season really stepped it up when it came to the story. The climax of this season is the best I've seen this year. It really keeps up the intensity and leaves you guessing what happens next. It got me very excited for what’s next. It’s great on all fronts. 

Most underrated I would give to Reborn as a Vending Machine. I think it's very solid and on the better end of isekai shows. It’s truly a unique premise and worth checking out if you like fantasy and slice of life shows. 

Biggest surprise hit I would go with Mashle. I had not heard of it before this and went into it just thinking it was going to make fun of Harry Potter over and feel like a rehash of One Punch. I figured I’d enjoy a few episodes then drop it when the schtick got old. But it's genuinely funny outside of its magic parody, and does do some genuinely cool magic stuff at the same time. I liked it a lot more than I expected to. 

Biggest disappointment I will give to both Demon Slayer Swordsmith Village Arc and Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2, specifically the Shibuya Incident Arc (yes they are the same season but they are fundamentally separated in the story and in release). Reason being that their issues are very similar. They both have some really cool moments that are surrounded by boring and frustrating shonen action style tropes. Such as dragging fights out dialogue and flashbacks, emotion baiting, and convenient power ups that don’t feel satisfying or earned. Both of the primary villains in these arcs are not very interesting to me. Neither of these shows are terrible, as they still had the core aspects that made me like them initially. But for me they have many disappointing and frustrating aspects. 

What new shows I’m looking forward to in 2024 as of now: Mashle season 2, Dungeon Meshi, Konosuba season 3, My Hero Academia Season 7, Yuru Camp season 3, Sound! Euphonium 3, Solo Leveling, and the new Spice and Wolf. I do want to watch some anime in 2024 that have been on my list, which are the following: Baki, Honey and Clover, and Chihayafuru at least. Baki I know is super fun and super up my alley. Honey and Clover is by the same author as March Comes in Like a Lion (one of my favorite anime), which is enough for me to watch. Chihayafuru comes highly recommended, and from what I know I am confident I will enjoy it. I've wanted to watch these for a while but with following the seasonals it's hard to get to them.

One anime I’m still holding out hope for is Dorohedoro season 2. I do still think we will eventually get it, but I really hope it's soon. An announcement in 2024 would be SHOCKINGly lovely. Another announcement I'd love would be an anime adaptation of Shimeji Simulation. The manga just recently ended and is very good (a post on that is coming soon). 

I really enjoyed this year of anime and manga! I hope you did as well and are looking forward to next year as much as me! I'd also like to mention that I started blogging about anime this year and have really enjoyed doing it! I plan to continue to please stick around! Thank you for reading!

[wondereads]

October Reading Wrap-Up

Reviews and thoughts under the cut

Lilacs and Leather by Thora Woods (7/10)

This was recommended to me by a friend and it was just a fun read. It was a little boring since the actual romance had virtually no conflict, all that being provided by external forces. Still, this a wish-fulfillment book so I’m not that upset about it.

A Bright Heart by Kate Chenli (5/10)

If you enjoy the currently very popular genre of stories about girls in historical settings getting a second chance at life with knowledge from their previous one, this has that sort of premise. It’s what initially drew me to the book. However, unless you like the genre, this book is pretty mediocre. The plot is very simple and easy to predict, and the main character, Mingshin, is pretty bland and perfect; she knows how to solve every problem. As such there’s not really that much tension since there are few challenges she doesn’t immediately overcome. The love interest and honestly most of the side characters are pretty one-note, and the writing fluctuates between the flowery words you’d expect from the setting and jarringly modern phrases. Overall, I was really looking forward to this book, but I don’t think I’d like it at all if it wasn’t a plot I know I enjoy.

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare (8/10)

I do think this book is better than Angel, I just think I was too lenient on that one because of the nostalgia (I've now adjusted its rating to 7/10). I really like that the conflict in this book is split between Tessa, who is focused on Mortmain and the main plot, and Will, who has his whole curse thing going on and is a good window into the emotional conflicts. It makes this book feel much more...filled than Angel which lags in many places. Concerning the emotional aspects, while I love both Will and Jem and am well aware of how the series ends, it feels to me like Clare heavily favors Will. Will gets a very complicated backstory, a lot of plot dedicated just to him, and while Jem arguably has just as pressing of an issue, he's just so placid about it. He can be soft-spoken and kind and still have a desire to live.

Ouran High School Host Club Vol. 1 (9/10) & 2 (8/10) by Hatori Bisco

These are rereads, and it’s just so much fun to read this series. OHSHC is definitely a dated manga with some jokes that aged badly and a style that has fallen out of practice, but it’s so enjoyable, especially for someone like me who read it a while ago. It has one of my favorite openings, the chaos of the Host Club gradually discovering Haruhi is a girl, and the chapters, while mostly individual shorts, do a great job of establishing the characters and through lines for once the story becomes more serious. These volumes are honestly so funny, and Haruhi’s one of my favorite manga protagonists (and a genderfluid icon).

The Tea Dragon Society by Kay O’Neill (9/10)

Despite being a very quick read, a graphic novel less than 100 pages long, this was adorably sweet and actually made me tear up. The art is lovely, and characters are very well developed for such a short book with a lot of casual representation in terms of race, sexuality, and ability. The art is beautiful and really enhances the ethereal vibe of the whole story. Also, I absolutely loved the little academic accounts of the different kinds of tea dragons and how to care for them in the back! This is a book that feels like a passion project and is a great cozy fantasy read!

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire (10/10)

This is a reread and it still astounds me how this book manages to fit an incredible magic system, an engaging plot, and some of my favorite characters ever into less than 200 pages. The concept of this book is such a unique one, and it allows for these very complex and unusual characters whose circumstances have made them very difficult to understand. Even though not every character is likable, McGuire does an outstanding job of portraying how their situations have made them this way (except Angela fuck you Angela). Despite it technically being set in the real world, and the characters contribute to this, the whole story has a dreamy, otherworldly quality to it, as if Eleanor West's home was its own pocket dimension. And, of course, I love how much queer rep there is in this book and just general willingness to portray non-romantic or atypical romantic relationships as the most important in a character's life. Now that I've reread this one, I'll finally be continuing the series.

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor (6/10)

This book has very little space for the kind of story it tries to tell, and it does its best. For an almost space opera-like plot, with intergalactic academies, alien conflict, and ancient tech, less than 80 pages is ridiculously small. As such, a lot of this book feels really rushed. A lot of worldbuilding stuff, such as the history between the Meduse and humans, what Binti’s edan is, and how otjize is so special, is just never explained. I definitely found this book interesting; there’s a major tone shift a third of the way through, and I loved the message of understanding differences and peaceful conflict resolution. However, everything is wrapped up too neatly, especially concerning Binti’s emotional state. Trying not to spoil too much, Binti goes through an incredibly traumatic event and has a very important aspect of her changed without her knowledge or consent, but she seems just fine at the end. I appreciate the attempt to wrap up such an ambitious story for a novella, but I would’ve much preferred a more open ending concerning that.

A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid (6/10)

This book started out very strong. The writing style really has that drifting, surreal style that fits a book trying to emulate gothic horror, and I really liked where the plot is going. I love books where the main character can't figure out if they can trust themselves or not, and the whole idea of discovering the secrets behind a truly impactful novel was so interesting. It was a little slow, but I was fine with that. Unfortunately, the ending is all kinds of rushed. The main antagonist is defeated very easily with virtually no explanation as to how, and although there's a character that the entire story practically revolves around, she only shows up at the end once everything is said and done to fill in the holes. Then there are multiple issues, plot and character wise, that are just never resolved. Unfortunately, the ending kind of ruined it for me, otherwise this could've been a 4 star read.

[crystal-library]

Series Binge: Newsflesh by Mira Grant

For someone that claims not to be a big fan of horror novels, I sure do read (and enjoy) a lot of them. Mira Grant (aka Seanan McGuire) is one of my favorite authors, and I started the Newsflesh series in 2020, and (since I own the entire series) have decided it's time for me to finish it!

Overall

Rating: 4 stars

Thoughts:

Overall, I really enjoyed the Newsflesh series. I was engaged through the entire series, and it was one of those series that I wanted to keep reading. I wanted more of the world and to know what happened next. The first book, Feed, was my favorite book in the initial trilogy, and I really enjoyed the short stories that added to the world-building. This series is a unique take on how society develops after surviving the zombie apocalypse, and I would love to see more stories like it. 

I do, however, think that the series would have been fine left as a standalone and some short stories. There are factors that I would have liked to have explored more, and aspects that seemed like a reach and far from the initial premise of the series. The ideas are great on their own, and I kind of wish they had been two separate series. 

SPOILERY thoughts on individual books below! 

Feed (Book 1)

Rating: 5 stars

I originally read Book 1 in the Newsflesh series in 2020, and decided that I wanted to reread it before continuing with the rest of the series. Feed is probably my favorite full novel in the series. I really enjoy the setup and worldbuilding of the series done here, and it has made me realize that I can enjoy a concept such as "zombies" when it is reasoned out in a logical way. 

I've seen a few people argue that this isn't a zombie book, because it doesn't follow the typical "zombie apocalypse" formula. But, at least in my eyes, it's not meant to be; this is a book about a society that has survived the apocalypse, and what life has become. I haven't seen this done often, and I think this creative take is part of why I enjoyed it so much.

Deadline (Book 2)

Rating: 4 stars

I’m pretty on the fence about the rest of this series. In all honesty, I enjoyed the books, but I’m not sure they were necessary. I almost wish that Feed was a standalone book (with the exception of some of the short stories). I almost feel like the diversion into government conspiracy and so on (getting into the last book) was just added in to extend the story. Not to say that it’s not engaging and enjoyable, I’m just not sure it was necessary.

I wish that the insect vector of the virus introduced at the end of the book was explored a little more. That was one of the most interesting parts of the story, and, along with the new information on people with reservoir conditions, and it felt like both of these concepts were brushed off pretty quickly. The worldbuilding is what drew me into the series the most, and I would have liked to see more of this and have it been more relevant to the characters, rather than them watching it all from a distance. 

Blackout (Book 3)

Rating: 4 stars

Much like Deadline, while I enjoyed Blackout, I'm not really sure it was necessary. It does wrap up the Newsflesh trilogy, and I did find it interesting. But I don’t think these books were entirely necessary. 

I’m aware that there is a connection made between Kellis-Amberlee (the zombie virus) and cloning, but I’m still not entirely clear on what that connection was. I feel like the cloning/mad scientist aspects came out of left field. I can’t help but feel like the concept of cloning was only introduced to bring George back into the picture, especially since it only happened in an attempt to control Shaun. 

I’m not sure why there was suddenly a romance between Shaun and George? I never picked up anything more than a sibling relationship between them, and then suddenly they were kissing. I kind of feel like it was only thrown in so that clone-George could prove that she was on their side. It’s established that they’re not biologically related, and I appreciate that. However, that was pretty much immediately negated by the fact that they still refer to each other as “my brother” and “my sister.” 

Feedback (Book 4)

Rating: 4 stars

Feedback is a companion book that follows events that occur at the same time as the first book, removed from the original group of characters. 

I enjoyed reading Feedback overall, but it's not my favorite book in the series. It starts out really strong, adding another layer to the series and giving readers perspectives outside of the Mason siblings. But in the second half of the book, it seems to take a sharp turn. I wish there was a little more of a horror aspect in this aspect of the book.  While there were definitely things that make your skin crawl, it doesn't seem like the same book. (For as dangerous and zombie-ridden as the Canadian wilds are made out to be, there aren't that many zombies...) 

I'm not 100% sold on my rating for this book yet. I might make some edits. 

Rise (Short Story collection)

Rating: 4 stars

Short story collections and anthologies are always hit-or-miss for me, and Rise is no exception. The pattern I noticed while reading is that I enjoyed the prequel and worldbuilding stories more than I did the sequel stories. 

The Day the Dead Came to Show and Tell, San Diego 2014: The Last Stand of the California Browncoats, and How Green This Land, How Blue This Sea were my favorites from this collection.  These all gave more depth to the series through worldbuilding and the clarification of events that were briefly touched on in the main series, as well as the more traditional horror vibes that we don't see. 

However, I stand by my opinion that the cloning/mad scientist aspects of the series are a little odd in relation to the rest of the series. I was not as impressed by the stories that focused on these aspects. I'm also still weirded out by the whole...romance. (I still think it’s unnecessary, and it would still bother me a little less if they didn't still refer to each other as siblings...).