#might be better to set in wartime

[the-faultofdaedalus]

once again thinking of the alt-history/sci-fi/dystopic universe in my head where the whole concept is “the surface of the sea just stops existing”

[quotesfrommyreading]

Much of the public discussion of Ukraine reveals a tendency to patronize that country and others that escaped Russian rule. As Toomas Ilves, a former president of Estonia, acidly observed, “When I was at university in the mid-1970s, no one referred to Germany as ‘the former Third Reich.’ And yet today, more than 30 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, we keep on being referred to as ‘former Soviet bloc countries.’” Tropes about Ukrainian corruption abound, not without reason—but one may also legitimately ask why so many members of Congress enter the House or Senate with modest means and leave as multimillionaires, or why the children of U.S. presidents make fortunes off foreign countries, or, for that matter, why building in New York City is so infernally expensive.

The latest, richest example of Western condescension came in a report by German military intelligence that complains that although the Ukrainians are good students in their training courses, they are not following Western doctrine and, worse, are promoting officers on the basis of combat experience rather than theoretical knowledge. Similar, if less cutting, views have leaked out of the Pentagon.

Criticism by the German military of any country’s combat performance may be taken with a grain of salt. After all, the Bundeswehr has not seen serious combat in nearly eight decades. In Afghanistan, Germany was notorious for having considerably fewer than 10 percent of its thousands of in-country troops outside the wire of its forward operating bases at any time. One might further observe that when, long ago, the German army did fight wars, it, too, tended to promote experienced and successful combat leaders, as wartime armies usually do.

American complaints about the pace of Ukraine’s counteroffensive and its failure to achieve rapid breakthroughs are similarly misplaced. The Ukrainians indeed received a diverse array of tanks and armored vehicles, but they have far less mine-clearing equipment than they need. They tried doing it our way—attempting to pierce dense Russian defenses and break out into open territory—and paid a price. After 10 days they decided to take a different approach, more careful and incremental, and better suited to their own capabilities (particularly their precision long-range weapons) and the challenge they faced. That is, by historical standards, fast adaptation. By contrast, the United States Army took a good four years to develop an operational approach to counterinsurgency in Iraq that yielded success in defeating the remnants of the Baathist regime and al-Qaeda-oriented terrorists.

A besetting sin of big militaries, particularly America’s, is to think that their way is either the best way or the only way. As a result of this assumption, the United States builds inferior, mirror-image militaries in smaller allies facing insurgency or external threat. These forces tend to fail because they are unsuited to their environment or simply lack the resources that the U.S. military possesses in plenty. The Vietnamese and, later, the Afghan armies are good examples of this tendency—and Washington’s postwar bad-mouthing of its slaughtered clients, rather than critical self-examination of what it set them up for, is reprehensible.

The Ukrainians are now fighting a slow, patient war in which they are dismantling Russian artillery, ammunition depots, and command posts without weapons such as American ATACMS and German Taurus missiles that would make this sensible approach faster and more effective. They know far more about fighting Russians than anyone in any Western military knows, and they are experiencing a combat environment that no Western military has encountered since World War II. Modesty, never an American strong suit, is in order.

  —  Western Diplomats Need to Stop Whining About Ukraine

[fatum679]

Thoughts on ep 6? I see a lot of praise for it but I'm like 🤔. A lot of things were annoying and illogical and I don't like what they're doing with most of the characters this season. Now even Daemon gets a redemption arc, Aegon is the biggest victim of his family, but Aemond is 100 % evil, Helaena barely appears at all (at this point Sylvie and Dyana might be more important to the story). I'm just disappointed.

Hello dear.

I'm terribly tired of this season, it's a complete disappointment. Many fan theories and fanfictions are better written than this series. I don't know what writers get their money for. The whole season 2 is like Groundhog Day. The sixth episode is just water.

We continue to be shown Daemon, his hallucinations and his “redemption”. We are promoted that he loved his brother, but this love did not extend to Viserys’ other children. Daemon and Rhaenyra actually spent their entire lives ignoring, neglecting, rejecting, and abusing Alicent's children because their grandfather was Otto. Viserys did not accept his children because ANOTHER WOMAN gave birth to them. Alicent's children were indeed discriminated against by their paternal relatives. Therefore, I do not believe in the propaganda of Daemon's redemption, that Rhaenyra is kind, and Viserys is a good parent. Besides, I'm terribly tired of all these hallucinations in Harrenhal. It was interesting in the beginning, but now it's endless repetition.

The pointless scenes of Rhaenyra and Daemon could have been spent on a story arc with the north and Sarah Snow, showing Daeron, more scenes to Helaena.

It looks like we have Daemon, Rhaenyra and Alicent, other characters, playing the role of «trees» or «decorations» for them.

They decided to show Aegon as a victim. This is a cheap scenario move to divide the TG stans into two camps: those who support Aemond and those who support Aegon. As if we weren't already divided into helaemond stans and anti-helaemond long ago. Aegon could have been given a bit of heroism to get burned by Rhaenys. But we have what we have. The dynamic between Aegon and Aemond reminds me of the dynamic between Viserys and Daenerys. It really is déjà vu, but I don't believe the writers intended it that way.

Aemond tries to deal with the problems that Aegon and Rhaenyra created. The birth of the rebellion began after Aegon carried out a reign of terror by hanging the rat-catchers. Rhaenyra set up a blockade. Aemond closed the gates, but if he had not done this, the entire infrastructure would have stopped working, since there would be no people left in the capital. It's cruel, but it's true and it's wartime. The problem is that Aegon, as king, failed to convey to the people that they were starving because of Rhaenyra, staged a public execution and fired Otto. Aemond can no longer do anything, because the mechanism has already been launched and a riot was inevitable.

I don't think they're trying to make Aemond evil, but the normies will think he's evil. He is cruel to his brother for personal reasons, he fired Alicent (which I support him on) because she loves Rhaenyra (Alicent actually had a chance to end the war in episode 3, but she loves Rhaenyra more than her children). Aemond brought Otto back because he knows that his grandfather is the best Hand.

I feel bad for Helaena the most. I really believed that she would be on the small council. Ewan talked a lot about Helaena: “She is good with books and money.” I'm really upset. We weren't even shown the Dreamfyre. Why does Alice Rivers have more screen time in the Targaryen story? Where is Helaena's coronation?

Alys Rivers is absolutely disgusting to me. She's a maniac on the hunt for Targaryen sperm. She drives Daemon crazy like a brain parasite. I hope people stop romanticizing alysmond, because the same thing awaits Aemond.

Sylvia was offended that Aemond no longer came to her and did not pay her money, so she decided to spread lies about him that he was throwing a feast in the castle. Even Diana doesn't believe her because she served the royal family and knew Aemond's character. Sylvia is not a hero, she owns a brothel. She abused (ra**d) 13 year old Aemond and I'm sure other children too. She manipulated Aemond, and when he left, she decided to take revenge on him.

Rhaena was given the Nettles line, which is quite disappointing. Once again the writers show that in TB this is the Mary Sue team. The writers actually decided to remove the cool character because they didn't want to ruin daenyra.

Helaemond is pain. The writers decided to gaslight us. The entire written plot in the first season was destruction, all the potential was destruction. Ewan and Phia say that Helaemond was not in the scripts, but I don't believe it. There are many scenes and hints in the second half of the first season.

House of the Dragon is truly a complete disappointment for those with critical thinking skills. The scriptwriters' favoritism is not even hidden.

Bring back Miguel! He is the only one who knows how to write a script and characters!

We have two more episodes, but there's not much hope.

p.s.

Aemond showed Larys his place and immediately understood his manipulation - the best scene of the whole season.

[dduane]

Lighting test: "Before they spar."

...It occurred to me the other day that (a) a lot of the ready-made poses for Daz Studio figures who're sword users are crap, and (b) that it's a shame no one has done a set of poses based on one of the better-known medieval fighting manuals, such as the famous 15th-century Fechtbuch or combat manual of Hans Talhoffer (online here at the Library of Congress).

And these thoughts course were immediately joined by (c), which consists of a large flashing sign saying "If You Want Anything Done Right, You've Got To Do It Yourself."

(sigh) Yeah, whatever.

This is a project of no importance whatsoever to anybody but me, so it's going to have to happen in between other things, like actual work. But the first thing that needed to happen here—a fairly simple one—was to build a virtual space, the Middle Kingdoms version of a salle d'armes, where the fighting positions could be set up. So I grabbed an interior from this package, which I've been using for a while, and some assorted items and furnishings from this one, and put them together... while stripping out anything not needed in a place where you mostly need space to move around without bashing into things.

Here's how that looks. Plenty of elbow room...

..and high ceilings. High ceilings are good when you're working with long swords. Ask @petermorwood. :)

But most importantly, the lighting's not bad. No point in trying to illustrate sword moves when you can't see the swords.

...And I guess that all this prep might eventually lead to the question: "Would these two ever spar with those swords?"

(Adding a cut. Underneath: weaponry details, the arguments of experts, and non-gratuitous PDA.)

Re: the sparring: I don't see why not. In Dusty's case, the sword he's working with—being not only the focus for his Fire, but something created using it, nearly as much a part of him now as one of his limbs—is exquisitely sensitive to his intent. With this particular unarmored opponent, his intent would unquestionably be Do nothing to harm my husband!!—and Khávrinen would see to it that that was exactly how things went. Additionally, any nicks, dings or scratches picked up during a session would be easily erased afterwards. A moment's work with the Fire would sort them out.

In Lorn's case, he's working with a sword that in centuries of use by the rulers of Arlen in battle has never picked up so much as a scratch or nick... and no one knows why this should be, or how. For that matter, no one's at all clear about any of the details of Hergótha's forging. But then that took place—what, a millennium and a half ago? More? Arlene chroniclers get into fruitless bar fights over just the dates... never mind the more personal details. (Did Héalhra Whitemane himself forge it [in his pre-demigod days], as some legends claim? Did he have help, or was he secretly a sorcerer?—since sorcery's widely assumed to have been involved. No one knows.) ...Anyway, damage to that sword is plainly no issue. Neither is damage to Herewiss, who's quite capable of using the blue Fire to prevent it. (Or just as likely to simply put on some armor.)

These issues aside, Arlen's king and the Brightwood's prince-elect—both being expected to appear on the battlefield when necessary in defense of their people(s)—would be careful to always stay in training. Sparring sessions with sharps, and with expert trainers (or willing friends), would routinely be happening at frequent, regular intervals to both of them.

But it's hard to imagine this happening to these two men, though, with substitute training blades. Even casual sparring can bring up sense-memories of experiences that weren't casual at all: the gnawing anxiety of wartime, the wounds, the anguish of battle... the devastation of loss, and the utter relief when it's all over and the ones you couldn't live without have come out of it still breathing. You'd hate to be using some anonymous loaner sword when those memories come up. Better to have in your hands what you had when, against all the odds, it all went right...

[silviakundera]

with the conclusion of Snowfall...

why do i enjoy Republican Era chinese dramas so much?

aesthetics! there is this blend of 1920-30s western fashion influences and traditional chinese garb & architecture that just pleases my eyes.

everyone looks very depressed & dangerous & sexy

chaotic period of transition - no matter if you're in the 1910's, 20's, 30's some absolutely wild historical shit was going down

cars and guns and gloves and swords. rotary phones!

dancing & drinking in night clubs, in glamorous pockets amid the violence & instability outside; a lil touch of mask of the red death vibes

end of empire themes, as a country tries to find its way after the end of the last imperial dynasty

there's those gangster, mob boss vibes from american and british dramas set in the 1920s, except everything is cranked up x100 because of general lawlessness; central government and law & order was a paper thin veneer over warlords

the start of WW2 from an entirely different perspective than the common narratives that I was exposed to growing up in the US (which is 99% stories about the european stage)

sino-japanese war / war of resistance material like Hidden Blade is fucking badass ok 🤷

in a time of resistance to occupation, colonizers encroaching, warlords fighting over cities, brewing civil war.... there are many different options of protagonists and unlikely "heroes" who are picking their battles and discovering what they are willing to fight for

Beautiful 👏 women 👏 in heels 👏and 👏 slinky 👏dresses 👏

Lots of revenge narratives. I love an over-the-top, bloodthirsty & destructive revenge narrative

Depending on the genre, there might be little or heavy politcal /patriotic discourse. But tbh none of the rah rah patriotism stuff distracts me much, because all the american and british produced stuff set around WW2 has rah rah patriotism & propaganda in it, so I just consider that part of the essential genre vibes. It's just another country's version. (Of course, others will have less patience when it becomes heavy-handed. YMMV.)

Dark & Gritty

Hidden Blade (film) - a masterpiece, if you enjoy dark WW2 spy films that play with narrative style and challenge the viewer to follow the story as it's woven. Had to review detailed historical context for the years in question, to be ready to consume. But worth it. I've watched it 3 times. 💀

Heroes (2024) - the very beginning era of this genre/the transition into repulican period. rocks fall, everyone dies. Primarily a tragic wuxia & pre-republican fusion. Excellent enough that I didn't mind the bleak storyline. 💀

Detective-ing

Miss S - adaption of 1920s Australian mystery procedural Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, staring Vengo! ML actor of Snowfall

Checkmate - Agatha Christie stories adapted to the setting & time period, plus bromance. I watched half the episodes w my brother, as we are both huge agatha christie fans. It was fun if you can be chill about adaption changes.

My Roommate is A Detective - for mystery & bromance lovers. Same actor duo as Checkmate.

Detective L - don't know much about this one tbh

Romance arc, with a somewhat happy ending for the 2 leads

Provoke - Gorgeous, glamorous, vibes vibes vibes all day long. Revenge and romance. ❤

Fall in Love - sons & daughters of warlords and their supporters get sexy and dangerous and decide even joining the civil war is better than the prior generation's bullshit. This is an objectively bad drama that I really enjoyed anyway (it helps that I skipped every scene for the 2nd and 3rd couples). This one turns v propaganda heavy at the end, if that bothers you. ❤

Arsenal Military Academy - military training hijinks w a side of cross dressing romance. Xu Kai and Bai Lu! It's soliders and japanese invasion et al, so be prepared for the standard patriotism. Comedy & drama. HE for the FL/ML but expect character death in this subject matter. ❤

Rookie Agent Rogue - Late 1930s spy drama with small romance side-plot. Expect the standard wartime patriotism, like with Arsenal Military Academy. The draw is the lead actress, the FL from Princess Agents, Minglan, Legend of Shen Li. HE for the FL/ML but expect character death in this subject matter. ❤

City of Streamer - Older woman seduces younger man who is the son of her revenge target. Melodrama with people serving looks. ❤

War of Faith* - Young man just wants to join the banking industry and have a subtextually gay relationship with his mentor in peace, but there's a civil war going on. Protagonist would like to be excluded from this political narrative, but ultimately is forced to pick a side. ❤🌈 *(Is it censored gay romance? No, not based on a gay novel. So not officially! But some viewers felt there was a subtextual romance storyline #shenlai ; YMMV. The happy ending is Untamed-esque; implied only)

many, many pulpy mini-dramas about revenge! warlords! ladies with pistols! (Miss Mystery, First Marriage, Maid's Revenge, etc)

Also... (happy ending not guaranteed)

Siege in Fog

Love in Flames of War

Couple of Mirrors - censored F/F 🌈

Stand by Me - censored m/m 🌈

Killer and Healer - censored m/m 🌈

Winter Begonia - censored m/m 🌈

[primus-why]

A Prime and a Warlord Sneak Onto a Spaceship...

Okay but imagine Optimus and Megatron wind up on a stealth mission-- you could put them in a truce, but I decided to stick to wartimes for this one-- only they weren't supposed to be the stealth options. As in, through some shenanigans, the usual mechs for the job are out of comission at that very moment, and the window of opportunity to gain what they initially came there for is closing... hence a hail mary attempt from the two leaders who usually act as the muscle. Say for example, they've snuck aboard a ship that will be jumping into hyperspace in less than an hour, so they need to find their respective mcguffins and FAST.

Optimus could literally turn a corner and run into Megatron like:

Optimus: Oof!

Megatron: Watch it-- Prime?

Optimus: Pardon m-- MEGATRON?!

Megatron: Shh! Announce it to the whole ship, why don't you!!!

Optimus: What are you doing here?!

Megatron: *scoffs* That's classified.

Optimus: Well it must be something important if you're just going to walk away without a fuss...

Megatron: Do you want me to kick your aft? Because I will! I'll-- *suddenly gets a com* ugh, just a klik...

Optimus: ... *starts inching away*

Megatron, to his com: Yeah... Mhm... I know that!... Well, I'm not just gonna-- hey!

Optimus: *takes off in a sprint down a different hallway*

Megatron: *catches up and tackles him* Primus, you're terrible at this.

Optimus: At what?!

Megatron: Sneaking around!!

Optimus: Oh, like you're doing any better!

Megatron: I was doing much better before you came along!

Optimus: *struggling to break free* Then let me go, bolts for brains!

Megatron: Don't be foolish! Your bumbling about will not only jeopardize your own objective but mine as well! I need to keep an optic on you...

Optimus: And I assume you'll also be taking me hostage once you've got what you came for?

Megatron: Ah, you know me too well, Prime...

I mostly set this all up because I want the usual stealth/spec ops teams to be watching from their consoles back on the Nemesis/Ark. Like yeah, sure, Jazz might have exaggerated Mirage's delay just a tiny bit, and obviously none of them expected Megatron to be there... but since the big bad Decepticon was playing nice for now what's the harm in watching the show for a bit longer? (Via all the security cameras they hacked into, naturally)

Meanwhile Soundwave is in the medbay-- recovering from an incident he suspects Skywarp is behind-- grinding his denta while watching Megatron bump into (and get distracted by) the damn Prime.

[contentloadingandstuff]

Reading time 📖

It's not often I share my hobbies outside of writing but, since it's fairly quiet as I work on multiple fics simultaneously, I might as well.

As you see, I've bought myself two works - the controversial "Lolita" by Vladimir Nabokov in English and "Maus" by Art Spiegelman, which is the more controversial text. I'll explain why shortly.

Let's start with "Lolita" since it's easier to talk about. I bought this book after listening to the video analysis by the creator Horses (link to the video here) to develop my own opinion about it. The book is both a memoir and statement for the judge written by the protagonist, convicted of abducting and assaulting a twelve year old girl - the titular "lolita". It has been misinterpreted as praise or glorification of pedophilic tendencies, but it is - just as "Crime And Punishment" by Fiodor Dostojewski but without the retribution - an analysis of a criminal's mind.

I'm looking forward to the lecture of Humbert Humbert's attempt to justify his behaviour to the world, the opposite of what I feel towards "Maus".

My payment of the 80 zł ( around 20$, 19€ or 16£) I spent on this collection of comics was a reluctant one. The premise is harmless enough (for lack of a better term). This set of comics describes the life and experiences of the author's father during the Holocaust, with a twist - here, the characters are portrayed as animals based on their ethnicity. The Jews are mice, and the Germans - cats. Simple idea of predator and prey, of the murder and the victim. But there are also other nationalities. Americans are noble dogs, the Swedes are reindeer, the Gypsies are moths, the British are fish (though I'm not sure why) and their southern neighbours are - as comedic tradition dictates - frogs.

What about the Poles then? They are swine.

What's more, the book's antipolonism shows time and time again. Poles are portrayed as antisemitic, cooperative towards the German occupants, impulsive, violent and cruel. There is little positive mention of them, and Spiegelman himself admitted that his father had little good to say about his countrymen and did nothing to give the nation justice. The incidents of wartime and post-war antisemitism are not portrayed as single crimes punishable by law, but as ordinary and acceptable occurrences.

Normally I enjoy delving into the annals of the second world war's horrific history, but unlike the other books I've read so far, this one seems to be written with a political intent, debatable as it is. Maus seems to share the same contemptible niche in Polish culture as Neighbours and Golden Harvest, alongside all of the other detestable excuses of historical journalism by Jan T. Gross. What these works share is their - subliminal or not - distrust and borderline disgust towards Poles as a nation. I am planning to review both books when I'm done with them here on the blog (regardless of whether there is any interest in it), so I will save my "ammunition", as they say, for then. I will however mention that the nation is, in terms of Righteous Amongst The Nations awards, the leader with exactly 7177 awards granted, the Netherlands second in with 5910. This is telling just by itself, doesn't it? Regardless, every experience is valuable, even if the author's intentions are questionable.

Again, I know this is far more serious than my usual content, consisting of silly x reader fics, but I find them interesting enough to mention. I hope you don't mind!

[sesamenom]

alright you’ve been extremely extremely kind and indulgent to me about my oc and i cannot possibly thank you enough <333333 so MY turn now to ask YOU about YOURS. please tell me about maglor’s distant granddaughter who is also your bbeg?? .w. or about the chatty hobbits i would very VERY much love to hear about both!!!

~ @nelyoslegalteam, reporting from main <3

(long post, sorry for the random people stumbling upon this lol)

so I'm the dm for the chatty hobbits campaign and essentially it's set in a beleriand-adjacent continent, but with a few extra races and stuff. of the founders of the original settlements, the king of elende (the elf kingdom) is Gil-galad's (invented for the campaign) twin brother Finellach/Finwain. originally he was inspired by the fact that gil galad has a ton of names but only uses ereinion/gil, so I just invented a new character and gave him half the names. I headcanon gil galad as maglor's son, so finwain is in universe maglor's son (left at the havens with gil bc his wife divorced him for kinslaying and his kingdom, being next door neighbors with morgoth, is far too dangerous for small children).

Anyways, his descendant Elinyel (also known as aramire or elinnor) is the current queen of Elende! she's an evil fire-themed bard who is extremely feanorian in all the worst ways - her actual kingdom prospered under her reign, but she just does not care about everyone else as long as she's protecting her people. There were some tensions with one of the major kingdoms to the north (conflict over unclaimed territory between the kingdoms and some tariff stuff), so instead of risking the other kingdom starting a war and hurting her people, she just preemptively invaded it and started burned all the border territories to the ground.

her actual coronation was pretty weird- so she's the second child, but her older sister was born in wartime and there's a general belief in elende that children of peacetime make better rulers, so Elinyel was chosen as her family's heir. her grandfather (the crown prince of his generation) died defending Elende in one of the major wars, but his younger brother and two young kids survived. there's a whole feud between their houses because the brother chose to retain the kingship even after the kids were old enough to take the throne. anyways, two generations later Elinyel killed her cousin Arendil (the previous king of Elende) over a dispute about the legitimacy of his house (and what she believed to be a dishonoring of her grandparents' sacrifice) and took the throne.

obviously she has many Issues. arendil also has two surviving kids who are now essentially trying to stop her from murdering all their neighbors in proactive defense of her people.

however, when she first ascended she recruited her friend group as her elite guard/vassals of the kingdom. (aka the other bosses in the storyline). so it escalated to a war between her forces and the children of arendil, which ultimately culminated in her beloved sister being killed by one of arendil's children. this in turn led to her having basically a massive mental breakdown and feeling like she failed to protect her loved ones (exacerbated by some of her other friends being killed in battles she led). a normal person might decide this is was kind of her fault for starting a war and putting her friends in charge of the army. instead she decided she needed to destroy everyone who could ever potentially pose a threat. which is, in her eyes, literally everyone on the continent (except for her kingdom, of course).

so now she is at war with absolutely everyone of all factions! She is also somehow winning by virtue of Song almost on the level of maglor himself, and ten (now six) also incredibly powerful friends. Anyways, she has decided that the best way to wipe out the continent (except her kingdom) and start fresh is to literally find an ancient lost stone that can break the Doors of Night, summon Morgoth himself, and start the Dagorath. obviously this will Not go well for anyone at all if she succeeds, but she is on a full-on rampage and genuinely believes she (plus friends) can protect her kingdom from Morgoth's army while he wipes out everyone else.

Here's some old art of her btw!

And some slightly more recent unfinished art of her and the Evil Friend Group from when they were younger:

and here's (L-R) her cousin who is the 3rd boss, Elinyel, and her sister from before the war!

[twojamie-o-clock]

If I could count the stories where Jamie is endangered or affected somehow by aliens in mockery of his intelligence. Well. There’s too many, so I won’t. Every time I encounter one (the dominators, the edge cc, etc.) I think to myself “I should write a fic exploring how he feels about this” because with Polly & Ben, we know he felt isolated from them (described in the Roundheads book anyways) and with Victoria of course they click better because she’s just as lost as him, but there’s still some struggle because she’s literate. When they finally meet Zoe it’s the worst because she’s on par with the Doctor (as much as one can be) in terms of being “book smart” or whatever you wanna call it, and (Albeit affectionately) the one most open to teasing Jamie. But there’s just too many instances to write a fic for all of them (though, I’m sure nobody would complain if we all did) and that just kind of made me sit back for a moment.

Idk hearing Jamie get mocked for intelligence is always a punch to the gut because I’m sure there are fellow fans like me who are insanely insecure about intelligence, and while Jamie might play along with it sometimes, we see in published media from his point of view (although I’m not convinced BBC books is anything more than published fanfiction, which is real) that it bothers him a lot. And I’ve read enough fics about him confronting this to make my vision blur. Of course his situation of coming from 18th c. wartime with no futuristic (to us) childhood that Zoe had Is what makes up this topic, so I’m not gonna call that card, but seeing characters in media getting bullied for intelligence always hits a little harder, if that makes sense? I love the audio dramas for giving us more insight on his perspective, and also showing that he is intelligent in a different way than Zoe for obvious reasons - that he saves them countless times through this, that he understands different situations better etc but it’s also half the time just belittling his intelligence and. Ouch. You know?

What are your guys’ thoughts on this because I’m speaking personally as someone who is very insecure about their own intelligence (this is probably more reinforced through a zoe-type of setting with academic standards rather than like situational adaptability that we might compare other intelligence to?? Because obviously my standards are set by formal education & art skills, not outwitting cybermen) 😭💀

Anyways. Yeah. Lmk.

[lanatusnebula]

Thinking about Reploids...

Caver Kanger Mouse's presence around a human at their time of death ends up becoming the main thing that sets off his descent. Pulled into the court where they label the more politically charged reploids as potential mavericks, he had to plead to those above him not to blame him for the accident. (It was a cave-in tbh)

While right in that he was innocent from harming a human, the manner of which he still broke a law of robotics was clear - "A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm." He has a problem with processing risk, which is part of his abilities as a cave spelunking assistant. The risk was too great, and rather than stopping the human from advancing into the cave, froze out of "fear". (emotions in reploids was still new at this time - something that is never really explained in the series is how each reploid responds to feeling emotions for the first time, as none of them are ever given the chance to experiment with these things as infants, since they never *are* infants).

I'd imagine that the earlier models made based on X's schematics are not as tweaked as the ones we see later in the actual game entries. This is all functioning under the assumption that robots in Megaman's time were simply emulating emotions in order to properly communicate with humans. But they were limited in what they could emulate. This presents the definitive line between X and Megaman - not just free speech, but true emotion. X functions under his own rules, and likely the Laws of Robotics, while Megaman functions in a semi-free manner under the orders of Dr. Light. I can't really explain it well because I'm extremely stupid, but the gist is - whatever Megaman felt was fake, whatever X felt is real.

Expecting a reploid, specifically an earlier model, to be able to handle raw emotions logically upon first being felt is a sort of story writing overstep. There's a lot of details in the games that suggest that replicated X's effectiveness in being as human as possible, is difficult or impossible. If they couldn't even create a reploid that could balance when wartime was necessary and when peace was the better option at this point in time, then there had to be some sort of evolution in how reploids handled emotions.

Zero's case specifically was unique. I don't think upon initial creation that he had the ability to feel and process emotions on the level of X. He might have! There are people who suggest that Zero's schematics are based on those stolen from Dr. Light (though I think I've seen his internals and they look pretty different...). Because we see Zero in Power Fighters 2, but not X, I'm unsure how true this is. There could very well be a situation where Zero and X were made separately with no real borrowing from each other, since we also know that Dr. Wily was equally as intelligent as Dr. Light.

I don't know. I don't like Classic Megaman LOL. It's all over the place so I'm just going based on the few games that actually did have plot (that I've played... somewhat.) I'm an old fogy (not as old as most Classic fans though) so my memory escapes me. Not trusting the wikis because I have seen some... things... that compromise its validity. (COUGH the mangas being suggested as canon ever COUGH)

ANYWAYS. Back to the reploid theories. They're advanced beings, but are flawed as they're creations of mankind. Like the robot masters before them, they likely had to undergo a series of improvements before they were considered viable as equals (in, what, MMZ?). As mentioned before, Zero's case is unique. There is a bit of a trope where a virus can rattle things in a machine's brain to give it emotions on par with humans (seen in Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, Dramatical Muder, Cafe Enchante...). I think it's bizarre. However! If a stroke can cause a human to gain a talent they never had before, perhaps there's some validity in it. Let's say Zero was nothing smarter than a mechanaloid in terms of emotional intelligence. Let's say that Zero's programming was made in a way that fixed whatever problems Bass may have had (such as disobeying orders). The virus that was intentionally (???) included in Zero might have locked him to this sort of mental state.

So, really quickly, Bass was an interesting case. He was an asshole. A creation (I believe) entirely made by Dr. Wily, probably ripping off Megaman's designs, seemed to have more flexibility in his mental processes than Megaman did. He could get mad, he had an attitude, etc. He had only one command given to him by Dr. Wily - to destroy Megaman. But he did a lot of other things, didn't he? He showed a degree of jealousy and scorn at the idea that Dr. Wily had another project that he was working on (Power Fighters 2) and I think that says volumes. He's not created to mimic the experience of having a child. He's not made to be someone's friend. He's a killing machine who is for some reason giving his opinions. Opinions. Megaman's dialogue typically had a one-note feel about them from what I recall. "Fighting is not necessary" (really following Laws of Robotics 1 and 3), and "Wily you have gone too far!" (following Dr Light's direction to stop Wily). What would Dr. Wily have to order Bass to do in order to get him to act in the way that he typically did? One might suggest Protoman had a sense of emotion as well, but I think that logic is... moreso tied to the mangas which I am pretending do not exist for Classic or MMZ. He seemed confused and aimless, if anything.

So back to Zero. A creation of Wily's, released who knows when, in reference to when X was awakened from whatever sleep Dr. Light put him in. The timeline seems scrambled in the PSP remake of X1. We can assume Zero was found after X? Maybe? ???? Was he put into a slumber like X or was he going around the entire time, only stopping occasionally to recharge? We just don't know!

At least, I don't know.

Zero and X being the bases (in a way) for the reploids (replicated androids) that came after them left humanity in a state where they had a bunch of knockoff Gucci merchandise running around. Zero's brain, organically being rewritten by the virus... leaving... his mind? I don't know how that works - And X having been polished until a man died and somewhat after that allowed them to escape the complications that the modern day ripoff had. Neither of them were afflicted by close proximity to other infected reploids. The virus didn't seem like it ever really affected them. X5 suggested otherwise very slightly, but that situation had to be set up in a VERY specific manner in order to happen.

And then X dies and Zero outlives him and still never really gets the virus after that. Zero was old as actual shit and yet had more emotional stability than a reploid made a mere 10 years prior. (Then again Copy X was made by a mere child so of course it had issues) But MMZ reploid mentalities are a whole other can of worms.

For the sake of storytelling, I will assume that initial reploids had emotional stability problems. They either didn't feel enough or felt too much. The ones that felt too much and acted on the newly acquired "impulse" emotion are then set up to be great hosts for maverick viruses or political maverick statuses (I guess like Boomer Kawanger).

I lost track of what I was talking about.

[nigh-temptation]

Alledia, in this version, is split up into 7 countries:

Windsor

Coco

Lufen

Nautilus

Frontera

Kanalis

Gulfeńn (which is split into more regions, or provinces)

(I will draw a better quality map someday 😔)

I made the map a little less of one big supercontinent, and I thought that making this world feel a little bigger would help make this story feel more vast without needing to leave the planet (I am never forgiving Kazu for that goofy ending in book 7, it literally came out of nowhere)

I will update this map later (I’m going to move the mountain range in Gulfeńn to the coast, so that geographically it makes a little sense as to why that whole area is an arid desert, and extend the mountain range up up north a bit)

During the war all the western countries are known as the Common Alliance (or at least, it will be if I don’t think of a less cheesy name). The best way to think about these countries is this:

(The flags are a bit ugly, but I tried my best 😭)

Windsor:

NOT occupied by Gulfeńn yet

the superpower of the CA

It’s really cold up there

Like… wet and cold

This place is just 1940’s England

Their national animal is the whale

I imagine Windsorian cities looking like Dunwall from Dishonored

Coco:

I haven’t come up with much other than it’s a small nation with not that much to offer in the way of trade, and was actually going through negotiations to become a part of Lufen before the war

Not occupied by Gulfeńn

Nautilus:

They are only partially occupied by Gulfeńn

The “front line” country

A lot of citizens have been displaced from here

This country (in my head at least) reminds me a little of Ireland

Frontera:

Completely occupied by Gulfeńn

A lot of elves actually live here

Human-Elf relations here is a lot more chill than in… say Windsor

Kanalis:

Also completely occupied by Gulfeńn

Basically if Chicago was a country

I always read Enzo and Rico’s lines in a Chicagoan accent, because they have Italian names 🤷‍♂️

Lufen:

‘MERICA RAAAHHHH 🦅🦅🦅

Idk, I have it in my head that this is cowboy country

This place is a lot looser than The boarder countries or Windsor

It’s a bunch of farmland broken up by forest, plains, and towns (kinda like where I live)

These guys are technically neutral, but have been sending supplies to Windsor

I will have a separate post for Gulfeńn (and why I am spelling it like that), but for now I want to focus on the human countries.

You might be wondering… how exactly did humans end up on Alledia anyways? Well my friend, I have a surprisingly simple answer for you!

I don’t fully know :/

I’d like to think they stumbled across the “Gate” (or portal thingy that Emily stumbled into) at some point hundreds of years ago, and adapted accordingly… but that leaves a couple of plot holes (how did that many people fit through the Gate? How did people of that many different cultures come all at once?) so let’s just not think about that for now 😅

The time period in which this will be set is more so in the 1930’s-1940’s. Because this is fantasy, we don’t have to be exact, and we can be a bit more flexible with “historical accuracy” or whatever.

I feel like a war oriented story such as this would benefit more from a Dieselpunk aesthetic. That way we have a bit of the modern age to work with, in terms of technology, and a thematic framework for the story right off the bat.

Here is an example of Dieselpunk! This piece is called Gray Monster by Jakub Rozalski:

I think mechs, blimps, and wartime would work perfectly with this genre of punk

final quick note, in my version of this story there are a couple different powers at play: The Common Alliance (bad-ish guys), The Resistance (okay guys), Gulfeńn (bad-ish guys), Ceilis (meh guys), and the Luna Moth Crew (good guys!)

Remember, this is an ongoing WAR. It is NOT a good time to live in Alledia, and the world should feel as such. With that being said, this is not going to be a “gritty” depressing story. I still want to capture the magic that the early books had. We can still have some fun with it!

Let me know what you think and if I should change anything :D

[thegeminisage]

okay WHEW it's star trek update time. last night* we watched tng's "interface" and ds9's "the siege." *i'm typing this at fuck o clock and scheduling it to go up tomorrow when i'm not here <3

interface (tng):

i don't want to talk about it

actually wait no yes i do but mostly i just want to complain. i wish there was perhaps some sort of skip/watch list with the dead parent episodes labeled. for star trek. i mean i know i'm making one but not that one i can't use that until it's too late. i can't crowdsource EVERY dead parent episode of star trek through my tumblr followers. though i will say whoever warned me about 4.02 of ds9 (i forgot which person it was, i'm so sorry 🙏) has my deepest gratitude. ok. complaint lodged.

what else...um, geordi and data. emptiness. Yeah

yeah. that's all. sorry. my spidey senses started tingling about halfway through the episode and i googled whether or not his mom really was dead and upon receiving my answer we stopped the episode to go directly to ds9.

the siege (ds9)

LOVED this one. where do i even begin

well i will begin at the obvious: women! kira and dax in the shuttle. mwah

what i loved most about kira and dax in the shuttle wasn't even the homoeroticism, though i did - of course - deeply enjoy the homoeroticism. what i loved MOST was that they seemed to have invented a personality for dax at last! i have no idea what was going on in this episode or who this dax was or where she was during s1 but i REALLY liked her. it's shocking bc i almost gave her LAST PLACE in the character rankings, but she was so fun here?? and also kind of like...airheaded and weird. "i might keep the nose." seems like they really DIDN'T know what to do with her in s1, but better late than never. i will continue to try and forgive her really terrible hair even though it makes her head look soooo weird and offputting

big spider bad. actually it was too stupid looking to be scary but i still didn't like it

quark and odo's gay little goodbye <3

julian FUCKING bashir pretending he was hot shit when he held those guys up. KING.

actually all of the action sequences in this episode were great. all three of season 2's episodes have been really funny even as they're also very serious at the same time, i fucking love it

love also the little nod to o'brien's service record on the cardassian front in the way of wartime rations. not only is it funny but it is, again, a great reminder of his cardassian trauma, and why he might feel obligated to stay behind

SPEAKING OF. everyone in ops, down to the last person, agreeing to stay at ds9, even though some of them have families like o'brien does. i'm SO glad they didn't forget his family, that they actually showed him and keiko arguing about it, but he STILL felt morally that he had to stay - that it was more important than his own life, and the risk of his family having to continue on without him.

PLUS the fact that not a single person wanted to leave, even after sisko assured them that they SHOULD think of their families...girl he is literally the best captain or commander or whatever. that's stone cold loyalty. they all trust him or love him or both.

i was a little ambivalent on li nalas as a concept but he actually was used finally...i think "off the hook" was a great way to take care of that arc neatly, because making him live the lie would have felt cruel, but him just ghosting would have made him look like an asshole, no matter how justified. i hope there's a bajoran afterlife he can chill out in

did we get set up for season-long villains with winn and jaro? that would be fun. the concept of "storylines" feels so foreign in a star trek show but there it is........

TONIGHT: tng's "gambit part i" and ds9's "invasive procedures," which with any luck will hopefully be about subjects besides dead parents 🤞

[danjaley]

The French Revolution from children's perspective - Some historical background

My current plotline is rather strictly dictated by economic considerations: I'm trying to show the French Revolution with the limited cast of a Sims-story. So it was only logic to take the children's perspective, who are kept away from the mass-riots. Now I don't actually know about direct sources about the French Revolution from children's perspective. It would be a great research-topic, but I don't speak enough French for that.

However, I had some great inspo in my PhD project. These are some more works of Christoph von Schmid, whose story The Mute Child I adapted as an autumn-special 2022. He was a catholic priest in rural Germany during the 1790s and when he started writing for children from 1810 onwards, he made the fate of French refugee children one of his main subjects.

I actually researched about that topic before: German priests played a central role in helping French refugees. Lots of them were clergy themselves, and then the village priest was often the only person who spoke any French at all. I do know sources from the clergy's perspective, and some of them sounded really traumatizing.

Schmid's stories are all centred around religion and morality. And he knows better than to confront his young audience with anything downright cruel. In the end, the lost child is always reunited with their family, thanks to their faith and good deeds. On one level, the Revolution provided a perfect background for this, because in Biedermeier times it was much rarer for upper- and middle-class children to get lost. On another level - although Schmid rubs this in comparatively little - there's also the subtle message that trying to abolish monarchy will have dire consequences.

(Title-images digitized by the Bavarian State Library: 1, 2)

In Der Kanarienvogel (The Canary Bird) a family gets separated on their flight. Mother and son end up in Switzerland, father and daughter in Germany, each supposing the other group to be dead. They find each other again because the son teaches the father's self-composed gospel song to a canary bird. The bird gets stolen and sold in Germany where the father and daughter recognize the song.

Ludwig der kleine Auswanderer (Louis the Little Emigrant) is set in a German village where a group of French aristocrats passes through in great haste. They accidentally leave little Louis behind, who gets adopted by a family and tutored by the village-priest. Some villagers are rather xenophobic, and there's a legal squabble over some gold-coins sewn into Louis' jacket. Later he makes himself useful, as war breaks out and there's an injured French soldier to be nursed. Louis, being French can translate for him. In the end Louis' mother finds him again, through hearing about the lawsuit. Everyone gets rewarded or punished for their behaviour.

I also drew some inspiration from Die Himbeeren (The Raspberries), but this doesn't have a good picture to show and may be the most spoilery of the three plots...

* * *

A completely different point is that in my B.A. years I worked for a Jewish museum and helped with research about Jewish children fleeing to Britain. From the British perspective, the Revolution- and Napoleonic wars are often compared to the Second World War, one of the points being the arrival of refugees. Although these were different historical situations, I wanted to show some of the trauma that came with public order turning against one, losing ones home and making a fresh start in a foreign country in wartime. I think that might have been similar to what the French children felt.

[writerlyhabits]

White Christmas

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x female reader

Word Count: 4.7k

Summary: The Holiday season catches Bucky by surprise, but after a less-than-ideal morning, a friendly invitation from his new neighbor is more tempting than he would have anticipated. 

Prologue to the Neighbors Series | Masterlist | Ch. 1 

Warnings: language, festive holiday things (I tried to keep it very vague so all celebrations could be filled in), talk of wartime and Bucky’s past, I think that’s it… 

AN: Happy Holidays!! I was watching White Christmas – one of my favorite Christmas movies, if you haven’t seen it, I highly recommend it – and the opening scene made me think of Bucky and how he might react. I thought of his neighbor showing this movie to him, and then did the math backward from the timeline of my series and realized she moves in right around Christmas time… so this is the fic that happened 😂 Set before chapter one, you don’t have to have read any of Neighbors to be able to follow along, but there are nods to later chapters if you have.

Thank you @deceiverofgodss for listening to my rambling, ily 💛

Bucky let out a sigh of relief when he got all the little app icons to jumble around the way google had said, finding the app he’d just been using and tapping the buttons in the corner. Yes, I want to delete the app. 

It had been about a month since he’d been given this new life, and it was… still an adjustment. The Wakandans had been more than generous, Shuri and Ayo seeing to it directly that he had everything he needed. They organized the pardon trial, went through hoops to find him a decent lawyer, and helped him settle into the apartment the government had set up for him. Shuri, in fact, had scolded him when he tried to tell her he’d find the place on his own, saying something along the lines of him being too stubborn for his own good. 

It was very reminiscent of when his family had dropped his sister Rebecca off at school in Indiana. Ayo had told him they’d already prepped the place with everything he would need to get started, Shuri had excitedly whispered about a new tactical suit she’d hidden in the back of the closet – “just in case… you can never be too prepared” – and then they were gone. 

Bucky had been required to start weekly therapy sessions as part of his pardon, and begrudgingly – by court mandate – he went each Saturday morning to hear comments about finding out who he was again. It was exhausting. 

It had started with the haircut. He hadn’t lasted two weeks before the shoulder-length mess drove him crazy. Though that wasn’t fair… it wasn’t the length that bothered him, but the reflection in the mirror. His codes were broken and his life was in his own hands, but the Winter Soldier seemed to be staring back at him everywhere he looked. 

The short hair was an adjustment to say the least. But he had stepped out of the barbershop feeling lighter, like a new man. And the face that looked back at him was one he hadn’t seen in a long time. 

That being said, it had also directly led to a plan that was most definitely one of his worst. 

The last time he had truly been James Buchanan Barnes was back in the 1940s, notorious for being popular with women. So when that cocky confidence surged back up again, he had the not-so-brilliant idea to try it again. He thought that if he went back to being the ladies' man he once was, he’d find himself. 

A horrible decision, that one. 

Having no clue where to even start, he took to searching on google “How does dating work in the 21st century?” Which had him downloading a dating app. The one that he was getting rid of this very moment. 

It had done nothing but confuse him further. He couldn’t take a good picture of himself to save his life and had worse luck creating a description for his profile; in hindsight, “James. 105. Still don’t know what to put here… I think I’m better in person” probably wasn’t his best move. 

Most of the girls thought he was trying to be funny, and were disappointed when the following conversation proved otherwise. Some girls took his profile as an invitation to talk about a number of things he wished he didn’t understand. And a handful of them… well, he didn’t think he could blame his poor excuse of a profile for the pictures he’d been sent, but it happened nonetheless. 

The dates he had been on were filled with nothing but meaningless small talk and modern nuances he didn’t understand, leaving him with less and less of the already dwindling monthly check he’d gotten as part of his pardon. It didn’t take long for him to come to terms with the fact that groceries cost far more than they did in the forties, and that his three thousand dollar army retirement wasn’t exactly the sum it used to be, especially when rent took up so much of it. Maybe he shouldn’t have turned Murdock down when he’d suggested they fight for more… 

No, he didn’t need to be selfish, he would get by. It had saved him from having to deal with any more of the loud crowds of press or the looks people gave him in the courtroom, which was why Bucky had told Matt ‘no’ when he suggested they could get away with more than a retirement rate based on outdated economic values. 

He’d certainly survived on less when he was in Romania. He’d be fine. 

Bucky approached the top of the stairs that deposited him in front of his apartment, returning from the last of his lousy dates as the app in question disappeared from the screen. Good riddance. 

As he went to put his key in the lock, he heard steps behind him coming down from the floor above, and he turned to glance over his shoulder as his door clicked open, pleasantly surprised when he found you descending from the floor above. 

You had on a flattering sweater and looked very put together, as you always did, except it didn’t look like it offered you much warmth since you kept your crossed arms close to your body as you moved through the building. In another time, he’d leap to offer you his jacket or make some quippy remark about keeping you warm. He’d have to be blind not to admit you were a very pretty girl, one he would have gone after back in his prime… 

But he wasn’t that man anymore. Not by a long shot. Who he was, he had no idea, but the James Barnes of his past was not who was standing before you in the hall. 

You gave him a warm smile as you made eye contact, and he returned it with a friendly grin of his own.

“Hey! James, right?” You asked sweetly, and he nodded in confirmation as you fished your own keys out from the pocket of your jeans. “Funny how we seem to keep meeting like this… You at your door, me at mine,” you joked as you gestured between the two of you, and it genuinely made him laugh. 

“Such strange places for either of us to be. We can’t keep seeing each other like this,” he tossed back, your airy giggle filling the landing. You were the first person all day that he hadn’t minded starting a conversation with. He didn’t know you all that well, he’d only seen you in the building a handful of times, but your interactions always left him with a smile on his face – in comparison to the rest of his daily encounters, that was a high compliment.  “Making more banana bread rounds?” He asked only a little awkwardly, gesturing up the stairs you’d just descended from as he tried to keep the conversation going. . 

“Hm? Oh! No, not today,” you answered, a little uncertain yourself. At least, that’s what he could guess from your posture, picking at your hands as you kept them in front of you. 

“That’s good. I don’t need any competition for your leftovers,” he joked, earning an amused grin. 

“Is that so?” 

“Are you kidding? That was the best banana bread I’ve had in eighty years.” You laughed out loud, your face scrunched up as you threw your head back. At least it had come across as funny because he wouldn’t have known how to play it off otherwise. “I may or may not have polished it off in one sitting,” he continued when your laughter had come back down to a chuckle. 

“Oh gosh, I’m glad to hear it! I’ll have to let you know when I make another batch,” you smiled, the warmth in your voice practically reaching out and taking hold of him, and he couldn’t say he minded. 

“Please do.”

The conversation hit a short lull – though shockingly, not an awkward one – and he feared whether this would be the end of it. Something about you made it easy to open up a little bit more, and he liked branching out from talking to either his therapist or Mr. Nakajima; neither of those conversations were easy, but unfortunately required. You were different. 

Before he could worry too long, your brows shot up on your forehead as you came to some sort of realization. “Oh, hey! What are you doing for the holidays?” you asked excitedly. 

“I uh… I won’t lie, I hadn’t even realized Christmas was coming up so soon,” he admitted. “I don’t really have any plans.” He could confidently say that was the understatement of the century, having lived through most of it. 

“Well, if you need somewhere to go, I was gonna do something Christmas Eve. Just, y’know, make some snacks and put on a few holiday movies,” you shrugged, and for a moment, Bucky genuinely didn’t know how to respond. “I’m new to the city so I haven’t found my people just yet, but nobody needs to be alone during the holidays.” 

When Bucky met you, he had opened his door to find you smiling directly at him, handing him a plate of banana bread muffins, and introducing yourself as his neighbor across the hall. And now, only a few days later, you were inviting him into your apartment to celebrate the holidays. He hadn’t been graced with this amount of kindness in a very long time, and it was more refreshing than he was prepared for. 

“Is anyone else coming?” he asked slowly, not quite sure what to do with himself and this wave of emotion that had hit him. 

“Uh, well I’ve been knocking on other people’s doors kinda asking the same thing,” you started, gesturing to the stairs you’d come down from a few minutes ago. “A lot of people are traveling, or have other plans. Or, you know, are lying to the stranger who just invited them to her apartment a few floors down.” Your comedic shrug made him chuckle under his breath, and he liked how easily you put a smile back on his face. 

“So it’d just be you and me?” Did that realization make him nervous? This whole interaction would be a hell of a lot easier to navigate if he could just understand what the hell his own feelings were doing. 

“That’s what it looks like... if that makes it too weird, that’s okay! But if you’re an introvert like me and like that there won’t be people there, my offer still stands.” Now it was your turn to look at him a little nervously, completely unaware that he could tell, waiting to see if you would end up having to spend the holidays alone. 

In that moment he realized that you were just two lonely people. One in need of a little extra kindness, and one with that much extra to give, conveniently placed right at each other's doorsteps. 

“I’ll be there.” 

When Bucky knocked on your door a few days later, you answered in a cozy-looking sweater, leggings, and tall fuzzy socks with festive patterns on them. He started to feel a bit nervous about the stark contrast of his leather jacket and gloves – more specifically, about what he would say if you asked about taking them off  – but the warm smile that spread across your face managed to ease his worries. For now. 

“Hey! Come on in!” You beckoned, holding the door open wider and turning back into the apartment, allowing him to follow in after you. “I’m glad you came over, I’ve been here all day and I just… well, human interaction could do me some good,” you laughed, and he chuckled with you. 

“Don’t mention it. I’ve been there, it’s… I’m glad to fill the position.” You smiled sweetly as you flitted through the space to the kitchen, and he took a second to take in his surroundings while you were occupied. 

Your apartment had a different layout than his, your front door dropping him directly into your open living room on his left, and the decently sized kitchen separated by a half wall of counters to his right. It was hard to judge precisely how large the space was as the only things in the room were a couch, a TV sitting on a dresser that definitely wasn’t in its final position, and a neat arrangement of cardboard boxes in the middle of the living room. And yet, despite the lack of living this space had gone through, it was far more warm and inviting than he was expecting. Even so early on, it felt like a home. 

You had an assortment of foods and snacks jumbled together on the countertop closest to him, and he watched as you pulled a few more dips and toppings out of the fridge. He had half a mind to laugh at the comical amount of food you had prepared for just two people, but he was a super soldier whose monthly expenses were starting to make him count his pennies... He could make a sizable dent in your selection without even trying, and leave only feeling a little bit guilty. 

“Sorry for the mess,” you started, stepping around a different stack of boxes piled in front of your cabinets. “I definitely thought that I’d have plenty of time to make my apartment look presentable by now, but I underestimated how much crap I have, so… I’ve made my peace with the cardboard coffee table for now.”

“I mean, you’ve been here how long, maybe two weeks?” He asked, and you nodded as you popped a loaded cracker into your mouth. “I’d expect you to have a cardboard coffee table still. It’s only a small change from the three pieces of furniture in my living room.” 

“Three? How long have you lived here?” 

“About a month,” he answered with a tight-lipped smile, and a small grin appeared at the corner of your lips. “To be fair, I didn’t really have anything when I moved in, so it’s… a work in progress.” You nodded in understanding as you pointed at him with intention. 

“Well, that’s different! Having to furnish an apartment is expensive, it takes time. Organizing the hodge-podge of shit you’ve collected over the years is less forgiving,” you explained, and he laughed when you rolled your eyes at all the boxes still surrounding you. 

Bucky was still trying to figure out how he wanted to settle into your space, but watching you be so candid and casual within minutes of his arrival was like a palette cleanser. Sure, maybe you didn’t know about the vibranium hiding under his left sleeve – nor that the history associated with it was his to claim – but watching you pick nonchalantly at the finger foods displayed between you was slowly eating away at his unease. You were relaxed and comfortable around him…

It was a nice change. 

“Help yourself, don’t be shy! Eat as much as you like, I’m sick of reheated leftovers, so if you don’t eat them now you’ll be taking them home,” you ordered pointedly as you stepped back into the living room, leaving him chuckling quietly to himself. “I’ll go ahead and put on something festive… Do you like old movies, James?” you questioned as you reached for the tv remote.

“Define old movies…” he offered cautiously. Catching up on the pop culture of the last seventy years had been a daunting task he’d barely scratched the surface of. 

“Like, really old. Classic Hollywood, from the forties and fifties.” Thank god…

“Yes. Yeah, I do. They- Yep, those are my favorite,” he fumbled, grateful that he’d at least know how to steer his way through most of this conversation. You looked ecstatic at his answer. 

“Have you seen White Christmas?” You asked excitedly. 

Dammit.

“I uh- no, I haven’t gotten to that one yet.” 

“What?” you asked incredulously, sounding offended as you snapped your head around to look back at him. “Oh, we’re watching it right now, you’re gonna love it.” 

Bucky raised both of his brows as if to ask if you were serious, a playful expression tugging at his features, winning him over when you gave him a sly grin before turning back to find the movie on your screen. What was he getting himself into… 

“It’s got some big names, too. Rosemary Clooney, Bing Crosby, and … shoot, I always forget his name…” you trailed off, fidgeting your fingers in concentration. He spared a glance up at you as he waited for you to figure out what you were trying to say, only to see a familiar face appear on the screen as you selected the movie. Well, somewhat familiar. 

“Is that Danny Kaye?” He piped up, remembering that painted smiling face from posters when he was younger.

When Becca came home from school in the summer of what had to be 1940, his family had driven up to Manhattan. As a treat, their parents had bought tickets to a show at the popular nightclub there – La Martinique – to see none other than Danny Kaye and his wife perform. It had been earlier in his career than whatever this movie was you were trying to show him, but if the smile on your face had anything to say for it, the vintage actor’s career must have done pretty well after the Barnes family had a chance to see him.

If he only had a nickel for each time he’d seen a celebrity in the 40s end up doing well for themselves. One for Danny Kaye, one for Howard Stark… That money could’ve at least bought him a soda to enjoy while being promised flying cars – and he was still waiting on those. 

You snapped your fingers and pointed back at him with a wide expression of relief. “Yes!! Danny Kaye… Ugh, he’s so good in this.” 

“No kidding. I’ve seen him in- uh… in other movies,” he started, recovering weakly from almost letting a detail slip that he very much would not have been able to explain. ‘I watched him perform in person over 70 years ago’ wasn’t exactly a shared experience. “My interest is piqued. Let’s see if it’s as good as you say,” he teased, happy when you hadn’t caught onto his blunder and shot him a smug look.

“It will be.” 

…

Bucky didn’t know what to expect from your classic holiday movie, but opening on a scene from the front lines of the war hadn’t been anywhere close. 

“Christmas Eve, 1944.”

That was a date he’d remembered living, having spent it similarly to what he saw on the screen. The Howling Commandos had banded together in their temporary camp, pulling together any bits and pieces they could to decorate one of the smaller trees growing just inside the perimeter. The men had shared traditions from back home, sang holiday carols, and kept Dum Dum Dougan from doing anything too outlandish. He definitely kept Steve on his toes, acting as an oversized mother hen to the whole group. 

“God, some of them are just so young.” 

Your voice took Bucky out of his thoughts, looking up to see your gaze locked on the screen with a commiserative expression. Your eyes followed a young soldier in one of the back rows before you turned back to look at him, becoming a little sheepish as you attempted a smile. 

“I know that sounds ridiculous. Like, they’re not actually out at war, he’s just an extra in the background, but…”

“But it happened.” 

He’d seen those boys come in. As Sergeant James Barnes of the U.S. Army in 1943, he’d seen men of all ages come into his responsibility as privates, the war encouraging an influx of men enlisting, himself included. Some of his men had wives and families they were fighting for. Some of them were around his age, having nothing better to do with their “able bodies” than surrender them to their country’s use. 

Some of those boys were freshly eighteen, enlisted mere days after their birthdays, and dropped in his hands. He’d even seen some as young as seventeen, having managed to get away with lying their way into the army, and each one of them made him feel more and more anxious about Steve’s ability to succeed at doing the very same thing. 

“I think people forget about that, sometimes,” you continued, your gaze back on the screen as you looked through the crowd of soldiers in between the crooner’s solo shots. “Just how young, or even how human these soldiers were.” 

He felt a lump start to form in his throat at your sentiment. 

“Obviously I know that these guys aren’t actually out on the front lines,” you continued, a small laugh escaping as you gestured toward the movie. “But I just… it makes me think about the soldiers who were actually out there and the lives they had. Their loved ones, wives and children, friends and girlfriends they might have left behind. What they went through when they were out there…” 

You paused, and when he studied the tight-lipped smile you were giving him, he knew you were trying to stop yourself from getting emotional. It caused a strange sort of tug of war in his brain, instincts that had been long since dormant wanted to prevent your tears, keep you happy. And yet, he was baffled by how moved you were by stories of these soldiers…

Soldiers like him. 

“Sorry, this- I know this is silly, but-” 

“I don’t think it is,” he offered quickly, and his train of thought was momentarily derailed when your sparkling eyes caught his – apparently the power of a pretty woman’s crying eyes still had an effect on him seventy years later.

He may not have been that same suave ladies' man anymore, but he wasn’t about to deny the fact that you were a very pretty woman, one that the old James Barnes would have been pushing people aside to ask you for a dance. He was old, not blind. 

“Really? Getting all sentimental about people who don’t really exist?” You snarked, trying to laugh it off. 

“But some of those men – the actual people – don’t have anyone to think about them like this anymore. Its… I think they’d appreciate knowing someone remembered their efforts.” He needed to stop and collect his thoughts for a moment, dancing on that line between his truth and the white lies he’d been telling so as not to stand out as a 105-year-old war veteran. 

If you kept looking at him like you could see into his soul he’d be spilling his guts in no time. He wasn’t ready to be seen like that, not by anyone, not by you. You were the only person he had actually wanted to talk to, he liked getting to know you, getting to relax for two fucking seconds without being holed away from the rest of the world…

He couldn’t risk losing that. Losing you. 

“I- I hadn’t thought of it that way,” you contemplated, pursing your lips as you reevaluated your emotions. “What made you think of it like that?” 

I’m one of them. 

Yeah, that wasn’t an option. 

“Uh, my dad, I think… he was in the Army before I was,” he started, which wasn’t technically a lie. But with the exaggeration, it gave him a moment to reflect on the truth, and remember those moments with his father so many years ago. “He was able to come home early after being wounded overseas. But even years later, he would look at the young men in their uniforms with this look in his eye… like he was taking the time to understand them, care for their situation like he wished he’d had someone to do for him.” 

George Barnes had never been a man of many words, especially not about his feelings. But that didn’t mean he hadn’t shared his stories with his children and passed on the legacy he’d carried with him through his service years. 

And now haunting the conversation Bucky was boring you with now. Way to be a sad sack, Barnes. 

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to bring the whole mood down,” he tried, giving you an apologetic grimace, but your expression only softened. 

“Stop, you didn’t bring anything down. Besides, I started it,” you shrugged, and he couldn’t help but chuckle nervously. “So, you said you’re in the Army?” 

Did he say that? 

He did. 

Shit. 

“I- well, I was. I’m uh… I’m not now.” Oh this was going fucking swimmingly. “I was discharged,” he finished awkwardly. He was tempted to just walk out your front door. Empty stomach, empty hands, dignity in shambles… but his identity intact. 

“Oh, okay. Do you mind me asking what happened?” 

Every muscle in his body was telling him to run. Get up and bolt out the door. But what good would that do him? You were his Neighbor. He couldn’t go far, and even if he escaped this conversation now, he would still see you in the hall between your apartments. 

Bucky was stuck. If he ran, your friendship would be strained. It was even a friendship yet, it wasn’t anything yet, and he would ruin it. But if he stayed, one more slip could mean you finding out who he was. And what then? Would the Winter Soldier come back to ruin this for him anyway? 

“I was… medically discharged,” he started, his throat tight as he forced himself to say something. Maybe if he kept it vague, he stood a chance at making it out to see the light on the other side. “There was an accident. I uh… well, I don’t usually talk about it.” 

“I’m so sorry, I- we don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to. I didn’t mean to pry,” you rushed to assure him, mere moments after he’d fumbled his way through an excuse. He felt like he’d just run a marathon, his heart thumping wildly in his chest as he realized he’d somehow made it through. You were now the one sitting awkwardly, fiddling with your hands once again as you wracked your brain for a change of subject, some way to backpedal towards common ground. 

The two of you had that in common. 

“It’s okay, really. Besides, I started it,” he tried, throwing your words back at you with a small grin. A strange sense of ease washed over him when you laughed, relaxing back into your seat and sparing a glance back at the television screen. 

The division had just finished singing a heartfelt song to their general – much more emotional than he wagered the average man of his time was capable of expressing, but that’s a Hollywood adaptation for you – when the sounds of explosions became much more prominent, men running for cover this way and that. It was, unfortunately, a familiar scene. 

“You have to watch this!” You cried, quick at attention once you realized which part of the movie you were in. “It goes by quickly, but it’s important!” 

“Alright alright, I’m watching,” Bucky smiled, welcoming the topic change as he settled on the couch next to you, watching this scene you deemed so important before he set out to tear into the snacks on the counter. 

Much to his own surprise, it was really nice. If someone had told him a month ago that he would thoroughly enjoy himself as he watched a movie on his neighbors couch, he wouldn’t have believed you. But he also wouldn’t have been able to anticipate that the neighbor in question would sing along to all the songs or gush about the sway of the women’s skirts – he listened as you described your dream dress in great detail, and he hung onto every word. “Something just like this pink one Judy has on, but maybe in a darker color? Like a dark blue…” 

Bucky wouldn’t have believed he’d be laughing over a plate of appetizers as you mocked the nasally blonde side character, or stopping himself from spitting his coke everywhere when you rattled on about just how “freakishly tiny” Judy’s waist was – your words, not his. He’d even found himself comfortable enough to open up on his own, avoiding any conversation coming close to his complicated past, but he liked being able to talk with you about things he was familiar with. 

He’d helped you set up your record table when he brought it up on accident, relieved when you offered to give him a tour of your collection when it was a similar interest. And, having moved into aiding with  handiwork around your apartment, he was quick to offer his super-solider enhancements to get the dresser moved at least to the right room. You tried to insist he didn’t have to, but when you watched how easily he accomplished it, the protest fell quietly out of the conversation. 

He liked being useful. He liked making you laugh… Mostly, he liked feeling like himself again. Whoever he was, it felt good to be someone he didn’t mind seeing in the mirror. 

Maybe he’d run into you in the hall more often. 

Thanks for reading!! If you’d like to be notified when I post a new fic, be sure to follow @writerlyhabits-library + turn on post notifications! 💛

Masterlist | Ch. 1 

[smallpotato80]

ACGAS S4 CS

First, SO much better than last year - except for the Siegfried/Tris scenes in the S3 CS.

Siegfried and Mrs. Hall were united in their care for Helen.

Siegfried sticking his beak in by picking up the extension in the bedsit! Ha!

Audrey finally took her ring off! Her divorce has been finalized for months now -and she had that interlude w/Gerald for second - but NOW she removes the ring.

Siegfried saying Mrs. Hall has sacrificed so much for them and he won't let her down. Bless him.

Siegfried has been SO involved in this divorce storyline. It HAS to mean something. I mean it can't just be a "friends" story with them. The set-up IS there. I don't think Audrey & Siegfried Shippers were hallucinating some intentional vibes/moments there last night.

Carmody, my boy, welcome to the big house! He's earned a room at Skeldale.

Mrs. Hall seemed to be very comfortable giving Mr. Farnon a honeydo list of tasks and he was more than happy to oblige

I would have thought we would have seen at least a Christmas card from Tris but, guess not. Oh, well. They continue to refer to him though. I don't think Tris is ever coming back to stay. Yes, he may visit, but I don't think he'll live at Skeldale again.

Mrs. Pumphrey and Tricky at the party! And Tricky had his own little couch by the fire! Like the boss that he is! Respect.

Baby Herriot was beautiful!

Siegfried cleaning up! Siegfried Cleaning up! Mrs. Hall let him! I mean, technically it is his kitchen but, still, she didn't shoo him away and she so nicely educated him about where the stop for the sink lives. So now Siegfried can continue to help with dishes if he is so inclined to do so....which he might be so he can spend more time with her... and she may welcome that too...

The bad?

Not bad, but James' storyline was kind of dull or just not the highlight.

The blue color tint they insist on using... I get they film in June but... not cute. The "snow" looked like paint too. Sorry, it just did. Mostly in the airbase scenes with James.

Series 5?

Wow, there's SO MUCH potential! Siegfried and Audrey playing Auntie and Uncle to baby James!

Audrey and Siegfried have a new adopted son - Carmody - to help guide and they are at their best with that!

There's no doubt Siegfried is in love with Mrs. Hall...

Mrs. P HAS to play a role in getting Mr. Farnon and Mrs. Hall together. Mrs. P is wise. She has loved and lost herself. She has seen Mr. Farnon's affection for Mrs. Hall twice now - once with Dash and now with toasting her above Jesus.

The real Siegfried did go on to become the vet at the race track so I wonder if that may be introduced in series 5.

I SO want to see Audrey and Helen working together on a community project. Mrs. P. seems to be very familiar with both now and I could see her partnering with them to support efforts

Hey, can Mrs. P help with a dance? Audrey is single now so she can attend! I know it's wartime, but could it be black tie?

Could we get a road trip for Helen and Audrey? Maybe going out to collect fees?

I have this vision of a horse being involved in a scenario with Audrey and Siegfried. The Real Siegfried brought a horse to dinner party and I could see that worked into a storyline. Can you see Siegfried trying to get Mrs. Hall up onto a horse! I can! It could funny and kind of romantic at the same time...

I do worry about Edward's fate... the timeline is not kind to his ship in 1941. Audrey deserves some happiness.

Merry Bloody Christmas!

[roaldseth]

Is triangle strategy good cause I've heard mixed opinions

My biased opinion: absolutely yes.

My unbiased opinion: absolutely yes.

But, just so you don't just jaunt about your day saying "well that wasn't helpful at all!" This is a more thorough breakdown below to why I like and recommend Triangle Strategy, as well as going into some common reasons as to why people say it's bad or have mixed feelings.

First and foremost as a disclaimer: I am not an SRPG enthusiast. I don't Fire Emblem or Tactics Ogre or what have you. However, I will address things in a broad sense and not things specifically for the genre.

>>STORY: The game opens you into a rather standard medieval-esque fictional setting; its land divided into 3 major powers: the Kingdom of Glenbrook, the Grand Duchy of Aesfrost, and the Holy State of Hyzante, each conveniently color coded for easy recognition and also have their own purposes and ideals. The farther you travers through the paths, for multiple routes await, and its history, the political and martial machinations quickly unfold from easy-going times to one absolutely engulfed in harrowing accounts stemming from no right answers. Despite any preset allegiances, the player, as a young newly appointed lord of the most acclaimed High House of Glenbrook, sits in-between the 3 forces and becomes the epicenter of the continent's, Norzelia's, fate.

Triangle Strategy is a game about harsh wartimes, the impossible decisions needed to make and end them, and the many results that you have directly and indirectly caused. Recently, I had made a post on other social media in which I noted that this game took me a very long time to complete because I had, at point, become physically unable to play from choice aversion and the dangers of outcomes. This is not a flaw of Triangle Strategy. This is its purpose. In those times, the game had done exactly what it was meant to do, so that aspect or level of anxiety while playing a first run-through is not appealing, then it might be something to reconsider with entertaining. However, I will say that eventually you can get accustomed and it can become easier to make those less than desirable choices. The common consensus that I also agree with is to play through your first run as blindly as possible, moving forward with your instincts and gut and even emotions rather than a guide or walkthrough. This is greatly reinforced with the Convictions mechanic, and baby virtually everything counts towards conviction. Pet that cat. You will feel better about it, trust me.

Throughout your path(s) you are presented with a variety of situations. Thought the main story is dire after the first handful of chapters, there is reprieve with character stories that range from silly to heartwarming to melancholic and just an all around fun way of knowing a little bit more on who certain characters are and how they interact with others and the world around them. The script itself isn't difficult, not written in an unintelligible old english, but in just enough way to get the feel of antiquity without being completely lost, making things seem more colorful. There's even a differentiation between characters who'll say "aye" as opposed to a more modern "yes," which is just delightful in my opinion.

The world-building however is understood enough to serve its purpose, but the exact details of many things are left up in the air for question if you look slightly below the surface. Though I personally am left wanting more because I fancy lore, it's very "a piece of a fiction novel" about it. It owns a lot of things it doesn't explain and that's what any writer would do if they were to create a fantasy novel with complex systems and history. It knows what's important to make it move.

As a close off, I would like to note one thing that I think was very bold of Triangle Strategy and that was its endings. Though there is a coveted ending that many strive for, even then the options you are ultimately given are all the results of the ones you hold closest giving in to their lowest selves, and because they are at their worst, the endings reflect that. That one specific, coveted ending is often remarked as "ill planned" and not necessarily thought out well from attempting to neatly tie everything back up into a happy present in contrast to the others, but as someone who's delved through the trenches of the MegaTen (Shin Megami Tensei) franchise and fandom, there is something to be said about "keeping the status quo" and it is that its delaying an ultimate inevitability. "Neutral" isn't always best or superior or a "happy ending."

>>CAST: Triangle Strategy truly is a game that has a character for everyone. It is large, but it is not skimping for quality. You will see literally any flavor of war veteran old man to pretty young adult boys that could've been a boyband in a different time to strong and independent battle women, many good and bad strong battle women, to peepaw who is probably in his 80s but is everyone's grandpa and a sniper. Each character feels like there was a level of care given into them, and even some all the more revealed after they are no longer able to. The world interacts, it breaths, and so does Norzelia's inhabitants.

For playable characters, there are 30 playable units to acquaint one's self with, each with their own unique class, weapons, and aptitudes. No one unit's development tree is interchangeable, which falls more into the category below (Gameplay), but it's also important in a way to see them as individuals. You will remember everyone's names, even with units that aren't your favorites or play style.

Outside of playable units, there still is a hefty list of important NPCs that are not any less composed, orchestrated, or of variation than our playable characters. Sometimes you will be in an instance struggling to remember what the fuck Clarus had done or who Patriette is or that Tenebris is still one of the Saintly Seven, but... the magic is in the fact that Triangle Strategy is designed to be experienced more than once to get the full effect. They too have their needs and reasons.

If you as a player want to do one run-through and call it quits, you will certainly still have an impressionable experience, but it will only grow the more invested. I didn't find it that hard because I had fallen in love with everything Triangle Strategy has to offer, so I had my own compulsion to keep moving with it, but if it doesn't ultimately strike you in that way, it is a part you will miss. But that is still okay though.

>>GAMEPLAY: Triangle Strategy is accessible for any level of strategist to stumble through with its difficulty settings. There is an Easy, Normal, and Hard mode. It's common for players to even try their hands at Hard, Deathless runs (I don't know if this is a trophy on Steam. I played on Switch). Battles have a staggering variation of difficulties and difficulty spikes, but there are ways to mediate trouble battles you can't seem to get right. Besides difficulty settings, the game also offers a Quietus mechanic which act as a one-time, additional maneuver without taking a units turn up. Quietus has limits but there's many different actions that you can always implement to save your ass. Personally, 99% of the time I forgot Quietus existed and really only used them on mock battles and final battles mostly to see what they did or save me from having to do another 1+ hour of battle or whatever. But, most battles, you can absolutely pull off without Quietus. You can pull off a number of things a first run-through that many people struggle with and/or guides will tell you to use [character or ability you don't have] or certain strategy you can't get right or whatever.

I will touch upon this again below because it is a common comment, but Triangle Strategy's main course is narrative. To experience it, you need to be ready and understand that it has a story to tell. It has multiple stories to tell, and for that you will have long sections that are mainly dialogue, meaty dialogue too. The type of player that just wants to experience battle and "raw crunch gameplay" is not going to have a favorable opinion on the game format because not all mechanics are tied profitably into battle (if anything it's the other way around). You will have battles, and you can mock battle all you want at the tavern, but story battles are sparse to keep point and potency. That being said though, voting and persuasion is a major, at the heart concept of Triangle Strategy which ties into the aforementioned Convictions mechanic because we love democracy in this House until we don't and is not convenient! Play Triangle Strategy as a story and experience, the gameplay is mainly there to support and accentuate it.

If I tried to point out every little thing about Triangle Strategy this post would be miles long. The game explains and leans into everything very well so enjoy the stuff that isn't mentioned as much in their natural habitat in a relevant way for your own interests.

There is a great "divide" amongst players on wether or not Triangle Strategy is a "good" or "bad" game, and ultimately it boils down to understand who you are as a player, as a gamer. Note your interests and what you enjoy in a game and then gauge, because despite "oh it was bad," "oh it didn't do this," "oh it didn't do X thing that's better," "oh let me romance the blorbos together" the game pulled off a lot of executional aspects really well in its own ways to be its own identity. But, to comment about the common comments:

>>"The game doesn't have enough battles"

The game has an amount of battles actually. There's one battle a chapter, which is probably the hubbub on why people might think there "aren't enough." But most routes are 20 chapters, so that's 20 battles. It's just that chapters also vary in length and some can be long. Then, there's 35 mental mock battles available in the tavern of the encampment, realistically likely only seeing ~21 of them on a first play through though.

But, battling as a mechanic I consider a secondary mechanic to its main purpose: Conviction. Because there also is a certain thing that happens also in chapters, sometimes before battles, sometimes before votes, and that's exploration. This is a way to 1) gain a sense of a map that will likely be used as a battle map somewhen in your run, but also to 2) gain more conviction. Exploration is just as much of a thing in Triangle Strategy as combat.

So, in the end, I don't think the problem here is the battles, but rather the pacing the game presents. The player will be met with an interesting experience of feeling everything is dire and needs to be handled right away, while simultaneously moving rather slow and leisurely with no way to course correct because it's not side quests holding you down but the actual main event.

>>"The demo was slow and boring"

Unfortunately, I did not play early demos, because if memory serves me correct there were multiple versions. From friends, they have said that the early demos and final products are two separate games. Do not trust.

Then, the final demo which you can probably still download on the store (I haven't checked), is its final form, but much like Octopath Traveler, the demo presented is the beginning, it's the opening. If I remember correctly the demo goes to Chapter 3, which is ironic because after then is when things start spiraling downhill really, really fast. So by then you are introduced to the major components of Triangle Strategy. You experience the dialogue storytelling, you get through exploration, there's battles, there is a voting point in which you are introduced to the infamous Scales of Conviction, so it really touches upon all of the moving bits that make the game move. You get brief understanding of the state of Norzelia, its last major conflict, and the future prospects and direction it is moving in; none of which goes in any manner on how anyone wants it to move.

>>"The story is just Game of Thrones"

There's a special secret: any medieval fantasy setting is just "Game of Thrones" because Game of Thrones is the most recent rendition that is popular among the masses. Besides general, not-at-all-surprising political maneuvering and scheming, there really isn't one point in which it's overtly cumbersome as "ripping off" the award winning novel series, because a lot also stands to fact that history is just like that too. "There's powerful Houses that everyone has to watch out for and [other thing that I won't disclose because I think you'll get a better experience not knowing]" yeah and so did regular Europe back in the day, but now it's fictional and maximized to make an interesting story. Actually, Houses and clans are still a thing, I'd imagine, but have mainly been reduced to icons (but don't quote me on that).

Conquest, wars of successions, religious wars, whatever the Boston Tea Party is, power hungry individuals, people abusing power, puppet states/nations, and a lot of other things are historical events and writing tropes to be used as narrative devices. Whatever media you have consumed beforehand effecting your vision and enjoyment is unique to each individual and only influenced by that individual.

>>"The game has terrible voice acting."

Well, first off, show some pity on the voice actors. I don't know their full conditions but also note that the artbook lists that Triangle Strategy's art production was from 2018-2022, and well, a certain pandemic happened in early 2019. It was likely by at least September 2021 that they had finalized voiced lines because teasers were going out with used tracks and lines. I don't remember when the first teaser went out, I was only alerted by several people when Benedict happened because of my character brand, and that's the moment it was over for me to be honest.

But, disregarding that, I'm no expert, but I love how some voices were done. I can still distinctly hear what Erador sounds like, like Mr. Wingert's voice greatly helped define Erador. Sure, I do recall originally opening Triangle Strategy for the first time and listening to Benedict speak and he was very.... flat, but in a very specific way. However, now in hindsight, I have a great appreciation for that because now knowing Benedict, what else was he supposed to sound like? It has a different interpretation and understanding when seeing what's attached to who and how, and in early game with a lot of characters to keep track of that doesn't always click. But, damn, if I do not mimic Lionel every time I say "yes, ha ha, yes" like that's voice acting, it sticks like a tv commercial.

Even though I have thoroughly went off in a lot of directions, I just cannot cover everything. I am absolutely open for engagement if anyone would like further discussion about anything I didn't cover or did cover. Thank you for the ask, and I hope this helped in some manner.