#like I LOVE angels as fictional creatures and the creative ways of adapting different angel designs

[guardsbian]

I'm upset about angel misinformation again.

[charmspoint]

Sanguine Friday 4

This friday I bring you some creation lore

The story of Creation

At the beginning there existed a world.

Nobody knows for certain how the world came to be, if it formed by itself from time and space dust, or if a meticulous hand painted the rivers and planted the trees and formed the wildlife in the air, the land and the sea. Some believe the world was formed by an ancient Mother, the very first to bear that title, who fell into a long slumber upon the culmination of her creation. If that is truth or fiction nobody can tell, because no one was there to witness the beginning of the world save the rock and the bark and the stream that tell no tales even if asked.

But at the beginning there existed a world.

And at a point, Gods came to be.

Just like the world, nobody knows for sure how that had happened. Some say they were the final creation of the Mother, some say they had crawled out of her eternal dreams, some say that the world longed for its mistress and mourned the loss so much it had forced into existence something entirely new and somewhat alike. Some say they simply were, just like the world simply was.

But at the beginning there existed a world and Gods inhabited it like curious children.

They were a powerful kind, full of creativity and potential, and they explored every inch of the world given to them, learned the song of every bird, made a game out of naming every plant. The Gods existed and the world existed around them, independent if malleable and bursting with possibility.

When they had tired of exploring the world, when there were no new things to see nor learn, the Gods sat with each other and started to tell stories. They weaved tales of creatures similar to them, formed puppets out of sticks and sand and bone and flesh. Gave them names, gave them purpose, gave them a story. Each night the Gods put their new toys away and each day they would pull them back out, inventing new adventures and tales for their creations. With time, the puppets began to move on their own, heads turning towards their masters’ voices, legs taking them to where they were directed with no additional influence. These were new creatures, different from the animals and the plants the Gods knew until then. These creatures were intelligent, just like the Gods were, they thought and could act on their own just the same. But they had no will of their own, their existence starting and ending with the purpose their God had spoken into them.

These were the first angels. The first real creations of the Gods.

Upon the discovery of this ability, the Gods rejoiced. Captivated by their own power, they soon endeavored to create beings unlike even the first set. Beings that had their own will, their own direction, their own ability to choose. A breed that was made by the same hands that made the angels, but that had its own ability to grow and influence the world. The Gods chose to make something akin to themselves in all ways except for power. And the Gods made humanity.

The humans settled fast into their new home, adaptable and wise beyond the years of their existence. The Gods loved the humans dearly and dedicated all their time and attention to their care and growth. They kept shaping angels, the beings without will, too, and they sent some of those angels amongst the humans to be teachers and shepherds and muses and helpers. Some were kept in the palace of the Gods, a place inaccessible even to human understanding, to serve and to record and to take care of every need Gods may have as they gave their all for their precious new children.

Just as humans, the Gods were all different and they each took a different interest in their new creations. One loved to create beauty and perfection in human form, the other was most interested in humanity’s own ability to create, the third loved nothing more than to study conflict and tension, the fourth took keen interest in the ability of the human mind and so on and so forth. With time, human’s would give the Gods names like the Gods have given them names. With time, they would start noticing patterns in their creators actions and assign them roles that made sense of their own world. With time, the humans would influence the Gods just as Gods have influenced the humans and the pantheon would be formed.

The story of the Unwilting Rose

The name given to the Goddess who presided over beauty of all things was Lurza and she was said to be the most breathtaking being that had ever existed, as delicate as a dewdrop on a rose petal, as captivating as a solar eclipse. Lurza was beloved by both the Gods and the humans but no one loved her more than Rezasel, the God of industry, who spent his every waking moment trying to court the beautiful Goddess and even gifted her one of his most beloved cities, Brilnant, turning it into the center of all the world’s most beautiful crafts.

Despite the love she received, Lurza was still horribly unhappy. While a Goddess like her existed untouched by time, the same was not true for her creations. Even the most beautiful and perfect of humans she made eventually succumbed to the tooth of time and in her misery the Goddess withdrew into solitude to think of what could be done.

What she came up with would mark the end of the known world, for she came back with a creation entirely new. The new creature was beautiful. Impossibly, chillingly so. Its features appeared carved from marble and ice, its eyes shining like the flame of the first hunters or the eyes of the beasts in the dark. The new creature lived forever, unchanging, unwilting, unrotting. And most importantly, with one simple bite, the new creature could bestow this gift of eternity on to anyone else.

This new creature was called the vampire.

To Lurza, this was the ultimate human form, beautiful and frozen and able to turn every human into its own kind, avoiding the need for a cull in favor of the new species. Some of the Gods agreed with her, adoring the idea of shaping and observing beings as eternal as they were. The others opposed the idea, finding the preciousness of humanity in its briefness or fearing that an eternal being was too close to their own making, that it might overthrow them.

Failing to come to an agreement about the future of their world, the Gods fell into a war that shook the earth and shattered the sky, turning day into night and the world into a desert. There was no thought spared to their own creations as they waged war. The angels served as soldiers and tools. The humans suffered greatly and died as a result of their creators’ carelessness. Every corner of the world was stripped of its original beauty and turned into something vicious, dangerous and unrecognizable. Rezasel overturned Brilnant completely, twisting it into a locked fortress from which only weapons came, monitored by the shoddily repurposed angels who went from being muses to being cold and cruel guards.

Not a single speck of dirt in the world was left unchanged by the end of the war. And the end of the war came with a hush from a lover’s embrace. Having survived the violence and the terror that had marked the end of all other Gods, Lurza and Rezasel stood at the end of the world, holding the very first vampires in their intertwined hands, ready to be set out into the world. But the war had changed Lurza like it had changed all else and she could no longer imagine a world she had to share with another, could not imagine anything but complete and total control of all creation, could not compromise her ability to make everything perfect and just the way she wished.

At the end of the world, Lurza killed her most faithful lover, the one who had willingly destroyed the world for her favor.

Devastated and betrayed with his last breath and last swell of power, Rezasel did the one thing he knew would wound the Lurza most, would keep his name forever on her lips even if as a curse. His blood poured and sizzled over the first vampires and he cursed them to wither and decay more and more with each evil they inflicted upon the world.

With that last decree, he died and Lurza, the Goddess of beauty, the vampire queen, the unwilting rose, became the only God of the new, dark world.

She never wept over the other Gods, nor the destruction they had razed over the once beautiful world. But she did weep over the desecration of her creation. No matter how much she tried, a God’s final making was irreversible and every vampire she had set on earth grew rotten and malformed the more they spread their disease and every vampire she tried to make since suffered the same curse. Heartbroken, she gave the vampires the gift of illusion magic, forcing it into their hands and ordering never to break the façade if they wanted to keep her wrath away. With that, she turned her back to the world and returned to isolation. It is said that to this day she persists in attempts of making another perfect, immortal, untainted being. A being that would finally reflect her vision of the world. 

[moonlatias]

When I was a wee teenager, I was totally into vampires. (Not Twilight, or Anne Rice… more like Castlevania and Hellsing.) So naturally I began writing my own vampire/monster-themed story with many colorful characters in a party together. The main characters were a vampire and a gal who hunted such creatures, who of course fall in love.

The entirety of the worldbuilding reflected a lot of my Catholic beliefs and exploring them in a fictional setting, such as my take on many mythical and supernatural elements, how God, angels, and demons fit into my belief system, and what the nature of good and evil was (and how one can be damned just for existing in a way they never chose).

Eventually my interests drifted to other things, and I haven’t worked with the setting in about 10 years or so.

But I always like to look back at the characters that mean so much to me, so in the last few months I thought about them again, laughed a little at how much I’ve changed religiously/spiritually, and idly I wondered, “Hm, what if I wanted to work with this setting again? How could I adapt it, in light of me not being Catholic anymore, and instead rather pagan/Luciferian?”

Let me tell you… my characters honestly like it. A lot.

Main vampire guy has now totally discarded his Catholic background (since it quite literally let him down and he was super tired of trying to have faith anymore) and embraced demonolatry (of a sort), and the main gal has gravitated to a mix of her Japanese mother’s Shinto background and her European father’s folk witch/pagan practices (in replacement of his Catholic background). The story would ultimately have to work around a totally different worldview of what demons and angels actually are, but now I have a fun creative project to mess with. Plus my characters are back in my headspace and I’m happy to have them again.

Are there other stories where the vampires and hunters are pagan? Cause this is kinda fun. :)

[recentanimenews]

RECS: Want to Watch Old Anime? Discotek Has You Covered

Every anime season brings a new roster of hits, but the shows of the past recede into the distance. Certainly, there are some exceptions and niche fans keep the spirit of ongoing series like Gundam alive. But with the continued emphasis on new and exciting anime, it’s tempting to forget the multitude of great shows and movies that already exist.   The Discotek label has fought consistently over the past several years to ensure that anime’s past is preserved. Run by industry stalwarts, they’ve done the impossible time and time again: they tracked down the masters of cult OVA Project A-Ko, painstakingly restored the 2001 remake of Cyborg 009: The Cyborg Soldier from thousands of damaged tapes, and much of their best stuff is now available for streaming.

  If you’re looking for something a little different or simply looking for a new show to watch, why not travel back into anime’s past? Here are some great TV series and movies as enjoyable today as they were when they were produced.

  These are just my own recommendations, picked from the great sea of Discotek titles. But if you want to explore further, and check out titles including real-life inspiration on Yoko Taro, Sister Princess, you can find their shared Crunchyroll catalog list here.

  Note: The titles listed are largely only available in the United States and Canada.

  Movie Night

  Urusei Yatsura Movie 2: Beautiful Dreamer

    One of the best-known anime directors ever, Mamoru Oshii first made his mark with an outrageously popular animated sitcom: Urusei Yatsura, the series that put the queen of romantic comedy manga Rumiko Takahashi on the map. Oshii struck a balance throughout the TV series between hilarious comedy and experimentation, but it was in the second Urusei Yatsura film, Beautiful Dreamer, that he really went all out. This surreal time loop story keeps finding new ways to defy audience expectations throughout its runtime both as an atypical Urusei Yatsura tale as well as a sterling example of just how imaginative and ground-breaking the Urusei Yatsura anime could be at its best.

  GoShogun: The Time Etranger

    GoShogun: The Time Etranger is that classic anime standby: a film completely different in tone and content than the franchise that spawned it. Released four years after the original 1981 super robot series, The Time Etranger spends much of its runtime focused on the dreams and anxieties of sole female cast member Remy as she lies in a coma at the hospital. Examining “what happens after” a final super robot fight, it remains an enjoyable film with smarter writing than you’d expect.  The Time Etranger is also a notable favorite of the great 80sanime Tumblr.

  Night on the Galactic Railroad

    Kenji Miyazawa’s novel Night on the Galactic Railroad might be best known to English-speaking audiences as a reference point for anime like Mawaru Penguindrum and Galaxy Express 999, but in truth, it’s one of the most beloved Japanese children’s stories ever written. An anime film adaptation was released in 1985, directed by the famed Gisaburo Sugii and scored by Yellow Magic Orchestra member Haruomi Hosono. Also, the characters are all drawn as cats! While slow-paced, it’s a strong adaptation that captures the charming and whimsical spirit of the original novel.

  Other Discotek movie recommendations:

All the other 6 Urusei Yatsura movies

Jin Roh

Like the Clouds, Like the Wind

Ringing Bell

  Mecha

  Giant Gorg

    Folks talk up director Yoshiyuki Tomino as the key creative force behind the original Gundam. But don’t forget Yoshikazu Yasuhiko, the talented character designer behind both Mobile Suit Gundam and Zeta Gundam. His most personal anime project is Giant Gorg, the story of a young boy who stumbles across a giant robot on a mysterious island. Rather than a Gundam-style war narrative, Giant Gorg is a proper adventure story in which the young cast spring from cliffhanger to cliffhanger. A white whale in American anime fandom for years, it was finally licensed for distribution in the United States in 2015. Don’t forget this fantastic mash-up between the Giant Gorg OP and the Perfect Strangers theme!

    Mazinger Edition Z

    In Mazinger Edition Z, cult-favorite director Yasuhiro Imagawa reimagines Go Nagai’s classic robot series to create a unified setting packed with pulpy thrills and conspiracies: The giant robot Mazinger has a past history involving the Greek god Zeus! The villain Baron Ashura is recontextualized as a deeply tragic villain with the best story arc in the series! We’re even given Tsubasa Nishikori, a Go Nagai staple who here becomes Imagawa’s best-written female character! 

  Mazinger Z is absolutely suffused with the spirit that made Imagawa’s earlier masterpiece Giant Robo so beloved and is an essential watch for any fan of that series. Not to mention that it ends with a cliffhanger brutal enough to make Go Nagai jealous.

  Other Discotek mech recommendations:

Dai-Guard

Gunbuster 2

Tetsujin 28

  Comedy

  Cromartie High School

    Anime comedies speak to the time that they were made, but there’s something uniquely timeless about Cromartie High School. You could say the show is funny because it’s set in a high school whose roster of delinquents includes a robot, Freddie Mercury, and a gorilla. But I think it goes even further than that: Cromartie High School is funny because its rowdy delinquents live lives just as boring as our own. When I watch Cromartie High School, I think not “what weirdos!” but “same, bro.” True in 2003, true in 2021.

  Other Discotek comedy recommendations:

Bludgeoning Angel Dokuro-chan

Cat Girl Nuku Nuku

Golden Boy

Samurai Pizza Cats

  Drama

  Key the Metal Idol

    Key the Metal Idol is a truly weird series. Directed and written by Hiroaki Sato, one of three animation directors who brought anime film masterpiece Akira to life, it’s the story of an android tasked by her creator to become human by making 30,000 friends. It’s a series that skewers the entertainment industry but is also loaded down with science fiction exposition. It’s a series that’s deeply in love with the work of David Lynch. Key the Metal Idol is flawed and idiosyncratic, but it’s also a genre-busting original far ahead of its time. And the opening credit sequence rules.

  The Twelve Kingdoms

    Fantasy anime are a dime a dozen these days, but for my money, no recent title comes close to The Twelve Kingdoms. The series has its share of magical creatures, epic duels, and even more elaborate fantasy worldbuilding than you can shake a sword at. But most of all, it’s a story about people and growth. Twelve Kingdoms puts its cast of scared teenagers in a crucible and subjects them to intense pressure until those teenagers realize, to their shock and genuine awe, that they can handle anything the world throws at them. Twelve Kingdoms deserves consideration along with Berserk as one of the greatest works of epic fantasy that animation has to offer.

  Other Discotek drama recommendations:

Hajime no Ippo: The Fighting!

Honey and Clover

Kaiba

True Tears

  What are your favorite older anime? Is there an anime BluRay or DVD you treasure most? Let us know in the comments!

    Adam W is a Features Writer at Crunchyroll. When he is not evangelizing Kaiba to his friends and neighbors, he sporadically contributes with a loose group of friends to a blog called Isn't it Electrifying? You can find him on Twitter at:@wendeego

  Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a feature, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: Adam Wescott

[orbemnews]

Scrounging for Hits, Hollywood Goes Back to the Video Game Well LOS ANGELES — For 28 years, ever since “Super Mario Bros.” arrived in cinemas with the tagline “This Ain’t No Game,” Hollywood has been trying and mostly failing — epically, famously — to turn hit video games into hit movies. For every “Lara Croft: Tomb Raider” (2001), which turned Angelina Jolie into an A-list action star, there has been a nonsensical “Max Payne” (2008), an abominable “Prince of Persia” (2010) and a wince-inducing “Warcraft” (2016). If video games are the comic books of our time, why can’t Hollywood figure out how to mine them accordingly? It may finally be happening, powered in part by the proliferation of streaming services and their need for intellectual property to exploit. “The need for established, globally appealing I.P. has naturally led to gaming,” Matthew Ball, a venture investor and the former head of strategy for Amazon Studios, wrote last year in an essay titled “7 Reasons Why Gaming I.P. Is Finally Taking Off in Film/TV.” After years of inaction and false starts, for instance, Sony Pictures Entertainment and its PlayStation-powered sibling, Sony Interactive, are finally working together to turn PlayStation games into mass-appeal movies and television shows. There are 10 game adaptations in the Sony Pictures pipeline, a big leap from practically none in 2018. They include “Uncharted,” a $120 million adventure based on a 14-year-old PlayStation property (more than 40 million copies sold). “Uncharted” stars Tom Holland, the reigning Spider-Man, as Nathan Drake, the treasure hunter at the center of the game franchise. It is scheduled for release in theaters on Feb. 18. Sony is starting production on “The Last of Us,” a series headed to HBO and based on the post-apocalyptic game of the same title. Pedro Pascal, “The Mandalorian” himself, is the star, and Craig Mazin, who created the Emmy-winning mini-series “Chernobyl,” is the showrunner. Executive producers include Carolyn Strauss, one of the forces behind “Game of Thrones,” and Neil Druckmann, who led the creation of the Last of Us game. Sony games like Twisted Metal and Ghost of Tsushima are also getting the TV and film treatment. (Contrary to speculation, one that is not, at least not anytime soon, according to a Sony spokesman: God of War.) In the past, Sony Pictures and Sony Interactive operated as fiefs, with creative control — it’s mine; no, it’s mine — impeding adaptation efforts. When he took over as Sony’s chief executive in 2018, Kenichiro Yoshida demanded cooperation. The ultimate goal is to make better use of Sony’s online PlayStation Network to bring Sony movies, shows and music directly to consumers. PlayStation Network, introduced in 2006, has more than 114 million monthly active users. “I have witnessed a radical shift in the nature of cooperation between different parts of the company,” said Sanford Panitch, Sony’s movie president. The game adaptation boom extends far beyond Sony. “Halo,” a series based on the Xbox franchise about a war between humans and an alliance of aliens (more than 80 million copies sold), will arrive on the Paramount+ streaming service early next year; Steven Spielberg is an executive producer. Lionsgate is adapting the Borderlands games (roughly 60 million sold) into a science fiction film starring Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart and Jamie Lee Curtis. Buoyed by its success with “The Witcher,” a fantasy series adapted from games and novels, Netflix has shows based on the “Assassin’s Creed,” “Resident Evil,” “Splinter Cell” and “Cuphead” games on the way. Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, the duo behind HBO’s “Westworld,” are developing a science-fiction show for Amazon that is based on the Fallout video game franchise. And Nintendo and Illumination Entertainment, the Universal Pictures studio responsible for the “Despicable Me” franchise, have an animated Mario movie headed to theaters next year — another new collaboration between a game publisher and a film company. Today in Business Updated  May 21, 2021, 3:55 p.m. ET Still, Hollywood’s game adaptation track record is terrible. Why should the coming projects be any different? For a start, the games themselves have evolved, becoming more intricate and cinematic. “Games have stories that are so much more developed and advanced than they used to be,” Mr. Panitch said. There are also signs that Hollywood has figured out how to make game-based films that satisfy both audiences and critics. “Pokémon Detective Pikachu,” which paired animated creatures with live actors, collected $433 million worldwide in 2019 for Warner Bros. and Legendary Entertainment — and was the first major game adaptation in three decades to receive a “fresh” designation on Rotten Tomatoes, the review-aggregation site. Since then, two more adaptations, “Sonic the Hedgehog” (Paramount) and “The Angry Birds Movie 2” (Sony) have been critical and commercial successes. “Quality has definitely been improving,” said Geoff Keighley, creator of the Game Awards, an Oscars-like ceremony for the industry. The most recent game-to-film entry, “Mortal Kombat” (Warner Bros.), received mixed reviews but has taken in $41.2 million in the United States since its release last month, a surprisingly large total considering it was released simultaneously on HBO Max and theaters were still operating with strict coronavirus safety protocols. Mr. Panitch acknowledged that “video game movies have a checkered history.” But he added, “Failure is the mother of invention.” Game adaptations, for instance, have often faltered by trying to rigidly replicate the action and story lines that fans know and love. That approach invites comparison, and movies (even with sophisticated visual effects) almost always fail to measure up. At the same time, such “fan service” turns off nongamers, resulting in films that don’t connect with any particular audience. “It’s not just about adapting the story,” said Michael Jonathan Smith, who is leading Sony’s effort to turn Twisted Metal, a 1995 vehicular combat game, into a television series. “It’s about adapting how you feel when you play the game. It has to be about characters you care about. And then you can slide in the Easter eggs and story points that get fans absolutely pumped.” “Uncharted” is a prequel that, for the first time, creates origin stories for the characters in the game. With any luck, such storytelling will satisfy fans by giving them something new — while also inviting nongamers, who may otherwise worry about not knowing what is going on, to buy tickets. (The producers of “Uncharted” include Charles Roven, who is known for the “Dark Knight” trilogy.) “It’s a question of balance,” said Asad Qizilbash, a senior Sony Interactive executive who also runs PlayStation Productions, an entity started in 2019 and based on Sony’s movie lot in Culver City, Calif. Unlike in the past, when Sony Pictures and Sony Interactive pledged to work together and ultimately did not, the current collaboration “has weight because there is a win for everyone,” Mr. Qizilbash added. “We have three objectives. Grow audience size for games. Bring product to Sony Pictures. Showcase collaboration.” The stakes are high. A cinematic flop could hurt the game franchise. “It’s risky,” Mr. Qizilbash allowed. “But I think we can do it.” Source link Orbem News #Game #hits #Hollywood #Scrounging #video

[terramythos]

TerraMythos' 2020 Reading Challenge - Book 27 of 26

Title: How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? (2018)

Author: N. K. Jemisin

Genre/Tags: Short Story Collection, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Horror, Dystopia, Magical Realism, Steampunk, Cyberpunk, Post-Apocalyptic, Female Protagonist(s), LGBT Protagonist(s).

Rating: 8/10 (Note: This is an average of all the stories -- see below the cut for individual story blurbs/ratings).

Date Began: 9/27/2020

Date Finished: 10/4/2020

I really liked this collection! Jemisin wrote my favorite fanstasy/scifi series ever with The Broken Earth trilogy, and I really enjoyed her recent novel The City We Became. I was in the mindset for shorter fiction so decided to read this collection of short stories. Of these 22 stories, my absolute favorites (9/10 or higher) were:

The City Born Great - 10/10

The Effluent Engine - 9/10

Cloud Dragon Skies - 9/10

The Trojan Girl -10/10

Valedictorian - 9/10

The Evaluators - 10/10

Stone Hunger - 9/10

The Narcomancer - 9/10

Too Many Yesterdays, Not Enough Tomorrows - 9/10

Sinners, Saints, Dragons, and Haints, in the City Beneath the Still Waters - 9/10

A more detailed summary/reaction to each story under the cut. WARNING: IT’S LONG.

1. Those Who Stay and Fight - 8/10  

Describes a utopia called Um-Helat that exists solely because no one is seen as superior or inferior to anyone else. Over time we learn it's a future, or potential future, of America. But America today is pure anathema to it due to rampant structural inequality. In order to achieve its utopian ideal, Um-Helatians have to root out and destroy people corrupted by the past.

This story was apparently written as a tribute/response to the Ursula K. Le Guin story “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”. I first read this without context, then went and read the Le Guin story. I definitely see the parallels. Both feature a narrator describing a wonderful utopia in the midst of festival, trying to convince the reader of the place's existence, before introducing something dark that is the price of the utopia. In the Le Guin story, the utopia exists at the price of the horrible misery and suffering of one child, and everyone is aware of it. Most live with it, but a few leave for the unknown rather than continue to live there (hence the title). In Jemisin's story, the price is instead the annihilation of those tainted by exposure to the evils of the past. The choice, instead of leaving, is for those tainted yet capable to become protectors of the new world, or die.

The thesis is pretty clear: that only by abandoning horrible ideologies and refusing to give them any ground or quarter can a utopian society truly exist. I will say that rings clear, especially when one considers Naziism and fascism. Not all ideologies deserve the light of day or debate, and even entertaining them as valid allows it to take hold. I liked this story, though it comes off as a social justice essay more than a story in and of itself.

2. The City Born Great - 10/10

This one is told from the perspective of a homeless young black man who feels a strange resonance with New York City. He meets a mysterious figure named Paulo, who tells him the city is about to be born as a full-fledged entity, and the man has been chosen to assist with its birth. However, there’s an eldritch force known simply as The Enemy that seeks to prevent this from happening.

I've read this one before since it's the prologue to The City We Became. And honestly it was one of my favorite parts of that book. New York City is a phenomenal character. I love that the proto-avatar of NYC is a young homeless black man, one of the most denigrated groups out there. Cops being the harbingers of eldritch destruction is... yeah. It was fun to reread this. The ending is a little different, because in the novel, something goes terribly wrong that doesn't happen in this short story. There is also a flash forward where he is, apparently, about to awaken the avatar of Los Angeles. Makes me wonder if that is ultimately the endgame of the series. But otherwise it's the same thing with absolutely phenomenal character voice and creativity regarding cities as living creatures. I'm glad Jemisin expanded this idea into a full series.

3. Red Dirt Witch - 7/10

Takes place before the (1960s) Civil Rights Movement in Pratt City, AL. The main character is Emmaline, a witch with three kids. A creepy figure called The White Lady comes to visit and steal one of her children.

I love the little twist that The White Lady is a faerie. And the different take on rowan/ash/thorn instead being rosemary/sage/sycamore fig. There is a lot of touching bits about the horrible trials and human rights abuses during the Civil Rights marches (which are unfortunately all too relevant still), but ultimately a hopeful glimpse of the future of black people in America, though hard-won.

4. L'Alchimista - 6/10

Stars a Milanese master chef named Franca, who fell from glory for Reasons, who now works as head chef at a run-down inn. She feeds a mysterious stranger, who then challenges her to fix a seemingly impossible recipe.

This one was fun and charming. I thought the food (and magical food) descriptions were very vibrant and interesting, especially the last meal. I can tell this is an earlier story and it's pretty light hearted, but I enjoyed it. It felt like it needed a little more of.. something.  

5. The Effluent Engine - 9/10

In an interesting steampunk take, Haitian spy Jessaline comes to the city of New Orleans to meet one of its foremost scientists. Her goal is to find a viable, unique energy source to strengthen Haiti in a world that wants to see her nation dead.

I really liked this; it's one of the longer stories so there's more time for character development and worldbuilding. And it's gay. I'm not hugely into pure steampunk because a lot of it comes off as very... samey (hyper Eurocentric/Victorian, etc) but I thought this take was fresh.

Like much of Jemisin's work, there is a lot of racial under and overtones; this one specifically goes into the terrible atrocities committed against the Haitians during their Revolution, and the varied social classes of black/Creole people in New Orleans at the time. A lot of this is stuff I was unaware of or knew very little about. I thought it was interesting to bring all of these to the forefront in a steampunk story in addition to the dirigibles, clockwork, action, and subterfuge. Also, everything tries together in a very satisfying way by the end (the rum bottle!), which I love in short fiction.

6. Cloud Dragon Skies - 9/10

Takes place in a post-apoc future where some humans evacuated to space while others stayed behind and took on more indigenous traditions to heal the Earth. The sky has suddenly turned red on Earth, and some representatives from the "sky-people" come to study it and figure out why.

I really enjoyed this little story; fantasy/scifi fusions are my jam, but science fiction specifically told through a fantasy lens is just so cool to me. The cloud dragons were very interesting and imaginative. Also, I love how the opening statement's meaning isn't particularly clear until you read the whole thing.

7. The Trojan Girl - 10/10

This one is about sentient computer programs/viruses that struggle to survive in something called the Amorph, which is basically a more advanced, omnipresent version of the Internet.

Holy fucking shit was this a cool story. Probably the coolest take on cyberpunk I've ever read. The main character Moroe has formed a messed up little family of creatures like him who live and hunt in Amorph's code, but can upload to "the Static" (real life) if needed by hijacking human hosts. The way this is described is so damn creepy and unsettling. I love that while they're anthropomorphized, the characters are mostly feral and compared to a pack of wolves. Soooo much wolf pack imagery. And the ending is so fucking good and imaginative.

This was apparently a proof of concept story that Jemisin decided not to adapt to a longer series, which I'm kind of sad about, but it was REALLY cool nevertheless. The next story is apparently in the same universe and serves as the "conclusion".

8. Valedictorian - 9/10

This one is about a girl who is, well, top of her class in high school, and the stresses that mount as graduation approaches. But while it seems like a familiar setup, there is something decidedly Off about everything, which is revealed gradually over the course of the story.

I originally gave this an 8, but honestly I couldn't stop thinking about it so I boosted it to a 9. It doesn’t become clear how this connects to the previous story until the midpoint. I liked this one because it functions as a nice dystopian science fiction story but also biting social commentary on the modern American education system. I'm not going go say more on it because spoilers. While I personally like the first story more I think this is an interesting followup/conclusion with a more cerebral approach.  

9. The Storyteller's Replacement - 6/10

This one's presented as a traditional "once upon a time" fable told by a storyteller narrator, about a shitty despotic king named Paramenter. Desperate to prove his virility, he eats the heart of a dragon, which is said to be a cure-all for impotence. It's successful, but the six strange daughters that result seem to have plans of their own.

Not really my cup of tea-- it's pretty fucked up. But it's definitely cathartic by the end, which I appreciate, and I do like how creepy the daughters are.

10. The Brides of Heaven - 5/10

Framed as an interrogation in an offworld colony called Illiyin, in which a terrible accident occurred on the way that left all the adult men dead. Dihya, who lost her only son to an alien parasite, is caught trying to sabotage the colony's water supply for reasons unknown.

I like some things in this story. I love the trope of alien biology affecting human biology in unexpected ways. I'm not terribly familiar with Islam but thought it added an interesting faith vs practicality vs tradition element to the science fiction. However I found the sexual body horror REALLY squicky which turned me off the story as a whole.

11. The Evaluators - 10/10

Stylized as a collection of logs and excerpts from a First Contact team of humans visiting and studying a sapient alien species to potentially set up trade relations. There's a focus on one team member named Aihua and her conversations with one of the aliens, but there's miscellaneous important hints/excerpts from the survey that hint Something Creepy Is Going On.

This one was BIZARRE and took me two reads to fully appreciate, but it’s a great work of nontraditional science fiction horror. Just... the epitome of "*nervous laughter* 'what the fuck'". I can't say more without spoiling but dear lord. That whole Jesus bit hits different on a second read. Fucking hell.

12. Walking Awake - 7/10

Takes place in a dystopian society in which parasitic creatures known as Masters keep a small number of humans alive to be flesh suits for them, which they take over and trade around at will. The main character Sadie is a human "caretaker" responsible for propagandizing and raising well-bred human children that eventually become the Masters' hosts. She starts to have disturbing dreams when one takes over the body of a teenage boy she was particularly attached to.

This is apparently a response to Robert Heinlein's The Puppet Masters, which I have never read. It's a full damn novel so I probably won't. Google tells me it's about parasitic aliens, but was obviously also Red Scare paranoia about communist Russia. The argument in the Jemisin story is that the parasites are a result of human folly in an attempt to punish/control people their creators didn't like. This went poorly and resulted in the whole world being taken over.

The story itself is disturbing since the victims are innocent children, but it's ultimately about standing up and taking the first step toward revolution. I felt pretty neutral about the story itself; perhaps I would have liked it more if it was longer and I had more time with the world and protagonist. I wanted to connect to Sadie and her maternal relationship the boy who got killed more. Or maybe it's more impactful if you're familiar with the Heinlein novel and can see the nods/digs.

13. The Elevator Dancer - 7/10

A very short story that takes place in a Christian fundamentalist surveillance state. The protagonist is an unnamed security guard who occasionally sees a woman dancing alone in the elevator and obsesses over her.

I like this one but I'm not sure if I really get it. It's heavily implied the dancer is a hallucination, and the narrator gets "re-educated" but it's all a little ambiguous. I think it's about the struggle to find meaning and inspiration in an oppressive world.  

14. Cuisine des Mémoires - 8/10

This one's about a man named Harold who visits a strange restaurant that claims it can replicate any meal from any point in history. He orders a meal which his ex-wife, whom he still loves very much, fixed for him years ago.

This one was certainly different, but I really like the idea of food-as-memory, especially because that's an actual thing. This story just takes it to an extra level. Honestly this story made me feel things... the longing of memory and missed connections/opportunities. Jemisin did a great job with emotion on this one.

15. Stone Hunger - 9/10

Stars a girl in with the ability to manipulate the earth who's tracking down a man she senses in an unfamiliar city. It's heavily implied the world is in a perpetual post-apocalyptic state. When she's caught damaging the outer wall of the city to break in and injured/imprisoned, she's aided by a mysterious, humanoid statue creature with motives of its own.

I have to say it's really interesting to see an early beta concept of The Broken Earth. Orogeny is a little different (and not named)-- there's some kind of taste component to it? Though that's possibly unique to the main character? While hatred of orogenes exists I don't think it's a structural exploitation allegory at this point. Ykka + proto-Castrima existing this early is pretty funny to me. People also use metal, which is VERY funny if you’ve read the series. But I was thrilled to see stone eaters were Very Much A Thing this early and almost exactly how they appear in the series (a little more sinister I guess. At least the one in this story is. I think he basically gets integrated into the Steel/Gray character in the final version).

Anyway as a huge fan of The Broken Earth it's inspiring to see these early ideas and just how much got changed. It's hard for me to look at this as an independent story without the context of the series. I think I'd like it due to the creative setting and strange concepts, but I appreciate the final changes to narrative style and worldbuilding, which really made the series for me.

16. On The Banks of the River Lex - 8/10

Death explores a decaying, post-human version of New York City. He and various deities/ideas created by humans are all that survives in the future and they struggle to exist in the crumbling infrastructure of the city. But Death gradually observes new and different creatures developing amid the wreckage.

I liked this! Despite a typically bleak premise the story is very optimistic and hopeful for the future of the world post-humanity. I like anthropomorphized concepts/deities/etc in general. I thought the imagery of decay and life was gorgeous. Also octopuses are cool.

17. The Narcomancer - 9/10

Told from the perspective of Cet, a priest known as a Gatherer, who can take the life of someone through their dreams in order to bring them peace. When a village petitions his order to investigate a series of raids conducted by brigands using forbidden magic, Cet joins the party. However, he is troubled by his growing attraction to a strong-willed woman of the village.

This apparently takes place in the Dreamblood universe, which I have not read and know nothing about. However, I really enjoyed this story. It's the longest in the collection so I felt I really got to know the characters. The dream-based religion and fantasy was captivating to learn about. It was also romantic as hell, but not in the typical way you’d expect. I thought the central conflict of a priest struggling between an oath of celibacy and his duty to do the right thing (bring peace to someone who needs it) was fascinating.

18. Henosis - 4/10

A short piece, told anachronistically, about a lauded, award winning author on the way to an award ceremony. He gets kidnapped, but there's Something Else going on.

Honestly I get the sense this one is personal, lol. I will say I like the disturbing play on expectations, but I didn't connect much with it otherwise.  

19. Too Many Yesterdays, Not Enough Tomorrows - 9/10

Follows a group of bloggers who have found themselves caught in isolated quantum loops. Their only human contact is through tenuous online conversations with each other. Styled as various chat logs and emails interspersed with the thoughts and perspectives of Helen, a young black woman who before the loop was teaching English in Japan.

This one is real depressing and definitely Social Commentary (TM). The central thesis about loneliness and disconnect at the end made me pretty dang sad. Good stuff in an ouch kind of way and made me think.

20. The You Train - 6/10

Told from the perspective of an unnamed narrator talking (presumably on the phone) to a friend about her struggles adjusting to life in New York City. She regularly mentions seeing train lines that either don't exist or retired a long time ago.

This is the kind of story I'd normally really like. I think trains are interesting and like vaguely supernatural, inexplicable shit. The one-sided phone call is also an interesting narrative device. But I'm not sure I really got this one. It comes off as vaguely horror-y but also optimistic? I couldn't really figure this one out, and it was too short to feel much investment on top of that.

21. Non-Zero Probabilities - 7/10

Luck has gone completely out of whack in New York City. Highly improbable events suddenly become way more likely, both good and bad. This story follows a woman named Adele and coming to grips with the new ways of life this brings.

I liked this one well enough but I don't have a lot to say about it. I liked how the story looks at how people would adapt to a life where probability doesn't mean anything anymore.  

22. Sinners, Saints, Dragons, and Haints, in the City Beneath the Still Waters - 9/10

A magical realism story about a man named Tookie struggling to survive in New Orleans in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. He meets a talking, winged lizard and the two help each other out. But it soon becomes clear there is something sinister lurking in the flooded ruins of the city.

This story was very imaginative and a great cap to the collection. I thought it was an intriguing time period to set a magical realism story in. I love the little details, especially those of omission -- the "lizard" is never called a dragon, for example. I can see echoes of this story in The City We Became, especially the themes of cities as powerful entities, vague eldritch fuckery centered around hatred, and certain people being guardians of the city.  

[ggukau]

magical creatures au

important note: i tried to keep to the original folklore for most of these, but each has my own personal take on the lore. because these are only character profiles and an intro, i’d like to think that this is an introduction to an au that could be.

ancient creatures have long been both persecuted and marveled at by humans. as all beings do, these creatures have evolved to blend in with man’s society, ultimately becoming indistinguishable from humans. their society is complex; a network of alliances, tensions, discrimination, and good souls like our own. its hidden amongst the crowds, in the alleyways enveloped in the darkness, and living in the apartment next to your family’s quarters. the creatures are everywhere, you’ve just never known to look.

hellhound!jungkook - hellhounds are large dogs with thick, oil-colored coats of fur and burning red-orange eyes, as if fires were blazing behind them. they have always been associated with death, and depending on their masters, three sightings of one could even cause death. hellhounds are traditionally omens of death and the guards of the gates to the underworld, but some who have non-reaper masters or are kind, lone hounds choose to warn people of looming danger and in rare cases even protect others when their situation is dire. because of their reputation, hellhounds are standoffish and distant, but it is possible for them to imprint on another being, in which case they become extremely loyal and protective. hellhounds have gained the ability to shift between a human and their natural hound appearance, creating a physical difference between righteous and evil hellhounds, as the former prefers their human form while the latter tends to remain in their hound form. their paws singe the earth when in hound form, and they can summon and manipulate fire in both forms. hellhounds must wear contacts to hide their glowing red eyes, a feature that doesn’t change while they’re in human form, reminding them of their true, plaguing nature. hellhound jungkook typically keeps to himself, partying and warning people of danger to forget about his evil orgin.

sylph!tae - an invisible, fairy-like being dedicated to the element of air. they are tall and strong, although you wouldn’t know it at first glance. because elemental spirits can only move in their element’s domain, sylphs, who are the elemental spirits of the air, are the spirits most similar to humans, but if they are in water they drown, in fire the burn, in earth they get stuck. sylphs, because of this reason, cannot swim, be around open flames, or touch the ground. they hover half a centimeter above the ground as they walk so that don’t enter the gnomes’ realm of the earth, but also can’t be easily detected by humans. they have the power to make themselves invisible to the eye by bending light using their air manipulation gifts. sylphs are positive, open-minded, adaptable, and creative fairies. they are constantly gathering and sharing knowledge. sylph tae loves exploring each corner of the cities he travels to and from, playing tricks on the creatures with bad intentions and aiding creatures and humans who have caught some bad luck.

vampire!jimin - humans historically have always been afraid of vampires, but the species has slowly evolved into a fictional and common character in pop culture, making it much less necessary to evolve in order to survive. aside from mages, vampires are almost identical to their original forms. vampires, not needing to adapt much have only gained heightened hearing, retractable claws, and retractable fangs through evolution; the original vampires didn't have fangs at all, but fangs were slowly gained so that vampires could feed more easily. many humans have trouble recognizing vampires because they are fairly different from the images of vampires they've created. the real creatures have varying skin tones but always carry a purplish tint underneath their skin and are usually reasonably plump. they are perfectly able to roam about in the sunlight, which has no affect on them. vampires simply enjoy the quiet of the nighttime, a nice break from the loud bustle of the cities they usually occupy. vampires are confident, lively creatures who are very outgoing and successful in whatever thay do , which could result from their lack of need to completely hide. vampire jimin owns a nightclub, pulling attractive guys and girls from the crowd, feeding on them, and turning them himself, so they become loyal servants and toys. however after each sleepless night he spends with a new sire, as the servants are called, he can never seem to satisfy his dead, bleeding heart.

forest mage!yoongi - all mages would like you to know that they are very different from wizards or witches. yes, they are all practitioners of magic, but mages pride themselves on being able to draw their magic from within themselves and other without requiring a magical tool to harvest their abilities. they take a more traditional and less flashy approach to magic, placing more emphasis on magical rituals and traditional potions and spells, rather than on flashy and trivial spells and potions like their wizard and witch cousins. (no offense to the witches on tumblr out there. its just for the purpose of the au) mages typically choose a certain element to specialize in, each element being unique in small ways, training in that area from the time they are ten until there is no more knowledge to absorb, and mages believe that knowledge is endless. mages are old souls, appreciating their tradition and history as descendants of the priests, shamans, and medicine men of the ancient Zoroastrian religion. sweet forest mage yoongi loves the earth, its creatures, and the shaman grandmother who raised him.

note: im just thinking about his grandma teaching him new things, and will-o'-the-wisp hoseok just fucking falling deep as he stumbles upon yoongi gardening with his grandma.

will-o’-the wisp!hoseok - will-o'-the wisps have changed the most, their original form being strange flame-like lights that lead travelers on long, emotional, and exhausting journeys towards prosperity and self-realization that only the strong and persistent can complete. if a human follows a wisp, but strays from the wisp's light halfway through, the human will be unlucky and unhappy for the rest of his or her life, making humans extremely wary of wisps. wisps have learned to only appear before the brave, so although humans are still careful around wisps, they are now considered somewhat comforting. now taking a young human form, they are the creatures most indistinguishable from humans. their only physical power is conjuring their leading fire that is unable to harm other things. because many wisps are insecure about their power, they tend to live as normal humans, forgetting and suppressing their supernatural lives. however, the remaining wisps very charming and cheerful creatures who take pride in their powers. unconsciously befriending a wisp gives you an extremely luck-filled and successful life. the luck wisps grant others around them is considered another one of their powers. will-o'-the-wisp hoseok is a wanderer, always socializing, looking for someone strong enough to stick around with him through his journey. countless have bailed, earning them an unlucky life that hoseok never ceases to feel responsible for. but he'll never give up hope because he knows the human or creature that is persistent and strong enough for him could be just a stroll through the trees away.

pegasus!seokjin - the original pegasus was an immortal winged horse who fought a fire breathing chimera. his children became and created the many pegai that populate the earth today. pegai are extremely strong, fast, and graceful creatures. they are fire- and burn-proof and natural protectors and aiders, caring after those they become attached to. pegai tend to live for long periods of time, usually a couple of centuries, so they have come to be known as very wise creatures. after centuries of evolution pegai can fold and hide their wings inside their shoulder blades. sightings of pegai are rarely ever filed because if spotted, pegai are almost always mistaken as angels and reported as such. many pegai live in rural areas, but there are still those who are drawn to the creature presence in the city. pegai are extremely sweet, but won't hesitate to stand their ground if they or those they protect are threatened. pegasus seokjin lives in a spacious house in the suburbs, enjoying the space and peace until the silence, stillness, and monotony all becomes deafening. seokjin, not quite ready to give up the peace, keeps his suburban home but buys a loft in the city. he finds exhilaration, sensuality, and unpredictability in the backroom of a nightclub.

shapeshifter!namjoon - shapeshifters are creatures who can morph into any animal while maintaining their consciousness. in the past shapeshifters typically shifted into animals to remain hidden from humans, but now their gifts prove to be more prosperous. there are gangs of shifters who use their abilities to shift into other people in order to steal their identities and commit crimes. however, many shifters dedicate their gift to serving humans, many living their lives as seeing eye dogs, only sharing their secret with their owner. shapeshifters are incredibly intelligent and adaptable. namjoon, taking the shape of a great dane, is a seeing eye dog for a young (eight years old infact) blind girl. he discovers what it means to have someone genuinely and wholeheartedly love you and depend on you, and what it takes to be there for someone who needs and cares for you through the physical and emotional struggles of the innocent, hopeful child.

[satanandmeappreciation]

Spotlight #15 - Queenofcats17 (Fiona)

Tell us a bit about yourself: I’m Fiona, just an awkward potato trying to navigate the world now that I’ve graduated high school. I really like science fiction, fantasy, and anything to do with gods/angels and demons appeals to me, hence why I’m involved in this fandom. I’m a writer and an artist and those two things are my favorite things to do in the world. Although I appear small and adorable, I know I can have a bit of a temper and a less than clean vocabulary. But I try my best to be friendly and inviting, because I believe most everyone deserves kindness.

When did you get into the fandom and how did you stumble upon it?     I think I’ve been here since the very beginning. I found the comic when I was scrolling on Tumblr and found the original thing Orange did. After that I was pretty much sold, because demon and forcefully cheery girl? That’s my jam right there. I didn’t get into the fandom until recently when I discovered the fanworks blog. After that I immersed myself in all the fanfiction and art. The people in this fandom are so talented and have such amazing ideas. Then I wrote a fanfic and people seemed to like that, so I continued. Who are your favorite characters/pairings? Like pretty much everyone, I think, I ship Natan. My favorite character is probably Natalie, due to how much I relate to her. Uriel is also a favorite, as is poor Michael Pangakos. I find I like the whole cast, with the exception of Jericho because fuck that guy. Oh, and other pairings I like are probably Kristi/Michael, Laila/Felix, Ganthea, Uriel/Raphael, Zadkiel/Yup in a cute platonic family way. If anyone can make Zadkiel less stabby it’s probably that child. Favorite moment in the comic? My favorite moment was probably when Natalie freed Luci from Hell’s grasp and he was just so damn happy. I just loved seeing that big smile on his face and how absolutely giddy he was. For once he seemed genuinely happy. It made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. I do enjoy the occasional warm fuzzy in between bouts of soul crushing despair. What is your biggest inspiration as far as your art (and/or) writing goes?Probably the books I read for writing and a lot of mangas for art. Not to mention the various Tumblr artists that make me want to get better. But books and everyday life always give me so many ideas and I can’t get them out of my head until I have them written down. A lot of my ideas come from books where other people depict angels or demons or gods, or I start thinking about something random and it suddenly makes sense to make it a part of my story. What would you say is your favorite piece that you’ve done so far? I’ve only done two pieces so far, but Valentine’s Day was by far the most popular. I was really pretty surprised when I saw it had gotten 32 notes. It might be more now. I do like my bootlegger fanfic though. Even if I never finished it. ^^” But I love both of them equally. V-Day was more lighthearted, meant to be a pick-me-up from the emotional trauma of the recent update. What would you say is one of your favorite things to draw/write? The things I love to write the most generally pertain to angels, demons, gods and the like. All those things tend to fascinate me, and I enjoy seeing just how human I can make them. For drawing, I tend to draw my characters, and even then it’s mostly girls. I find girls a lot easier to draw than guys for some reason. I taught myself to draw using Tokyo Mew Mew so my style is anime. What do you think influences your art/writing style? For art, I’d definitely say the mangas I read. Since I taught myself to draw using manga, like Tokyo Mew Mew, my art tends to be influenced by it. I often use mangas to practice different styles or different eye shapes or something. They’ve also been helpful in figuring out proportions and the like. As for writing, I’m definitely influence by writers like Jim Butcher, Neil Gaiman, and Terry Pratchett, because they’re what I grew up reading. I think I learned and adapted my style based on what they wrote and what I thought sounded good in what they did. I want to immerse people in my work, I want to be descriptive. I want people to enjoy my work and be just as excited about it as I am. What are some of your hobbies you enjoy? I like writing, drawing, reading, swimming, and of course anything to do with cats. My current blog is actually one I made after making an RP blog for one of my OC’s, (askthedemonhunter), who happens to be Jack the Ripper as a girl and a demon hunter. I’m weird, I know. I also like watching crime dramas in my spare time, like Bones, Criminal Minds, Elementary, Major Crimes. I especially like Criminal Minds because it goes inside the minds of these people and figures out what makes them do what they do. I love a good mystery. While watching these shows my cat will often just jump on me and sit there, so I will generally pet him so he won’t meow at me. He’s a whiny baby. Before joining SaM, what was a fandom you were part of and are there any fandoms you’re into outside of SaM? I was into Gravity Falls, Pokemon, D. Gray-Man, and D N Angel prior to SaM. Also Supernatural, but that was in middle school and the less we talk about my middle school time the better. I’m still into Gravity Falls and Pokemon, but I’ve also gotten into Miraculous Ladybug, FFXV, Steven Universe, My Hero Academia, Undertale, and a lot of others. A LOT. ^^” Is there anything else you’d like the fandom to know about you or anything you’d like to say to the fandom as a whole? I think this fandom is just so talented, and I’m really happy to be among such amazing and creative people. Not to mention it’s awesome to have an excuse to be able to explore my fascination with demons and angels and compare how other people’s interpretations compare to my own of these creatures. You guys are great and I appreciate all the support you give to writers and artists.  Check out their writing tag below for other awesome pieces! http://queenofcats17.tumblr.com/tagged/fanfiction