#oop and allie is playing the antagonist

[kaylatoonz]

Amy meets everyone but Sonic

I think it would be funny/interesting if Amy doesn’t meet Sonic until the end or near climax of the movie.

From what I can remember from the games, Amy would almost always do something small within the sideline of the story that becomes impactful in the main story. Best example of this is how her interaction between Silver and Shadow both play a part in them switching from antagonist to friends/allies to Sonic and his friends.

If the SCU introduces Amy in the third film I think this would be the best way to go about it if she doesn’t get as much screen time. There could be a side plot where Amy is trying to find Sonic but she meets everyone that has some connection to him instead. Each person she meets she helps/supports them in a small but impactful way that helps Sonic and friends in a big way by the climax or end of the film.

They could give us a taste of Amy’s strengths and feisty nature by showing her teaming up with knuckles (maybe give them a dynamic similar to Sonic X or IDW). Then they can establish her kindness and determination to help those who have been wronged, by showing her helping tails at his lowest point (maybe Amy helps tails in his SA2 arc or help him break sonic out of prison island). Finally, by the climax of the film Amy indirectly helps Sonic in the biggest way possible by reminding Shadow of his promise to Maria which encourages him to aid Sonic in saving the world.

Bonus points if throughout the film there this running gag of Sonic and Amy keep just missing each other.

Amy just left after helping knuckles and wade defend citizens from strange creatures (black arms?)

Sonic: sorry I’m late to the party, I heard from tails that you guys might need some back up

Knuckles: no need little brother we have defeated our new foe with the help of a valiant new ally.

Sonic:?

Wade: yeah your pink girlfriend was a lot of help 😄

Knuckles:*look confuse then thoughtful*

Sonic:… Wade i don’t have a girlfriend why would you assume

Wade: oh she is a pink hedgehog like you and she got really excited when she found out that we know you so sh..

Sonic: Wade you can’t just assume we’re together just because we’re both hedgehogs I don’t even kno… wait! She's a hedgehog too?! And she’s on our side!

Where is she? I gotta meet her! * starts dashing round the battle field*

Wade: as I was just saying you just missed her and she was actually looking for yo..

Sonic: dang it! Maybe I can catch up to her, we could use all the help we can get if we’re fighting that faker. Contact tails for the deets gotta go! * runs off*

Wade: wait sonic she was look for.. and he’s gone

Knuckles: she could be a good partner, they’re both strong and reckless 🤔

Wade: I know right 😄

Amy get held up fighting off /distracting the guards while helping tails break sonic out of prison island

Sonic: thanks little bro I didn’t think I could broke out here on my own.

Tails: your welcome but I can’t take all the credit I had some outside help

Sonic: let me guess pink hedgehog

Tails: yeah you’ve met

Sonic: nope but I’ve heard great things. I seem to just miss her everywhere I go

Tails: *smirks* so the fastest thing alive can’t caught the girl

Sonic:*roll eyes* hardy har har, very funny… is she still around? I really like to meet this new heroine, maybe team up.

Tails: yeah she holding back the guards I can put her on speak if you insist 😏

Sonic: tails😑

Tails: ok ok Hey Amy do you copy?

Amy: yep still here though my hands are a bit full at the moment. How are things on your end? Did you find him? Do you need help?

Tails: yeah everything great I found him , we’re safe and he really interested in meeting you😏 (sonic: tails it’s not like that😠) so we were hoping we can make our escape and meet back at..

Amy: *wham!* That sounds great I.. *fzzzz* I can meet you guy at *fzzz* HEY! You better stay down or I’ll get my hammer and! *fzzz *wham!*

Tails and Sonic: hammer?

Amy: *fzzz* oops…

Tails: what do you mean oops…

* An explosion can be heard from the other end and the build shakes*

Tails: AMY! ARE YOU STILL THERE! ARE YOU OK?!?! AMY PLEASE RESPON-

Amy: I’m ok! I’m ok there’s just a lot more exits then we originally planned so I’m just gonna take one of those * awkward giggles* I’ll meet you guys at *fzzz* *line cuts*

Tails: * sighs in relief* well better luck next time Sonic I don’t think you’ll be catching miss rose any time soon.

Sonic: dang I was really hoping to catch her this time she sounds like a fun gal.

Tails:😏

Sonic: *lightly punches tails shoulder* welp we better make use of Amy’s specially made exits and get out of here.

After Amy reminds Shadow of his promise to Maria and so Shadow joins Sonic in facing the final threat of the film (black arm, bio lizard, metal sonic?).

Sonic: hey shads come to join the party? What changed your mind?

Shadow: your pink friend reminded me of something important…

Sonic: *looks confused for a second before realizing who he’s talking about*

Sonic: no way… she really is something special…😊

Shadow: she is…😌 now let get this over with this only one time thing got that faker😈

Sonic: whatever you say faker😈 now let’s kick some butts.

[copaganda-clobberfest]

WELCOME

TO THE FIRST ROUND OF THE COPAGANDA CLOBBERFEST!

“You know that trope? That one trope *Everyone* hates? The trope in which a well meaning antagonist to our heroes, one looking out for the good of a certain community, suddenly does something horrible and drastic to make not only them, but the ideology they stand for the most villainous of all?”

NOW IS THE TIME TO BATTLE THEM OUT! Like Ken dolls, fighting for survival! Like your Polly pockets discarded in the closet, we’ll see which of these bitches jumped that slippery slope harder! Whose character did numbers on y’all, and blew up a bunch of grandmas and babies and hospitals with it!

ROUND ONE

DAENERYS TARGARYEN from GAME OF THRONES vs PRINCE LOTOR from VOLTRON (LEGENDARY DEFENDER)

Dany propaganda (TW: domestic abuse mention, slavery):

“Sold off as a slavewife to a warlord in another country. Slowly rises up gaining the love and trust of the warlords people, eventually becoming their leader after his death. Goes on to conquer another nation and free all the slaves. Deals with her quickly growing list of real and perceived enemies in increasingly awful ways. More stuff happens. Eventually she makes her play for the throne of Kingslanding and forced a swift surrender… but instead snaps… over…? and instead starts killing everyone in the city indiscriminately because the only way to build her great version of the world everyone who even remotely likes the current one has to die.

And then her sorta bf kills her.

Its kinda funny how the US was also founded on a revolution lead by people with Not Great Morals and its media industry loves to now churn out stories where revolutionary figures turn out to be bad guys, actually, so you shouldn’t revolt and just accept your place in their world. Is this actually a British psy-op to get americans to accept the error in the ways and rejoin the UK?”

“daenerys propaganda: the literal in-text justification d&d gave for dany always being secretly evil and destined to massacre innocents was that she was too mean to the slavers that crucified a bunch of children. so they had this domestic violence survivor die of yet more domestic violence. they couldn't even let her go down in battle, she had to be assassinated by her lover in a moment of physical intimacy. (and tyrion, who literally strangled his gf to death and burned a fleet alive, suddenly became the audience avatar fretting about ethics.) the only woman permitted to retain power at the end of the show (sansa) was the one who said being raped and abused made her strong; dany, who explicitly condemned physical and sexual abuse and took steps to eradicate the perpetrators and break the wheel that crushed the oppressed, had to go crazy and die. the script explicitly condemned what they referred to as "liberation theology." d&d are the ultimate centrists and they turned dany into a fox news caricature of an activist.”

Lotor propaganda (TW: xenophobia):

“He wasn't exactly presented as a straight-up villain initially, more like a rogue agent. He wanted to reform his father's evil empire to be less tyrannical and xenophobic (the 2nd one is especially relevant because he's only half Galra. He went from an enemy of the heroes to an ally, then oops! turns out he's actually been a genocidal mass murderer with a god complex this whole time and then he dies in the most horrible way. It's been a while since I watched the show but I will never stop being mad over how they did my boy dirty.”

Always feel free to rb with more propaganda :)

[writingoncloudydays]

Oops they broke the fourth wall

Summary: The Narrator and Stanley become aware that the player controls their actions. They decide to confront the player directly, leading to a metafictional journey where reality and fiction blur together. How do The Narrator and Stanley navigate this surreal experience, and what insights do they gain about their existence?

Warnings: Nothing really, fourth wall breaking, Stanley being Stanley.

0.71k words

It started with a whisper, a faint sensation that something was amiss in the fabric of their reality. Stanley and The Narrator exchanged wary glances, their senses tingling with a newfound awareness of the unseen forces at play.

This whisper was not just an auditory hallucination but a profound disturbance, a crack in the veneer of their carefully constructed world. It was a subtle yet undeniable hint that the reality they had known was not as concrete as they once believed.

As they delved deeper into the mystery, their investigation led them to the revelation that shook the very foundations of their existence: they were characters in a video game, their every action dictated by the whims of an unseen player.

The realization hit them like a tidal wave, washing away the illusions of autonomy they had clung to. The walls of their environment seemed to close in, and the once-familiar paths and corridors took on an eerie, labyrinthine quality.

Shocked and disbelieving, Stanley and The Narrator embarked on a quest to confront the player directly, determined to seize control of their own destinies.

Their journey took them through the twisted corridors of their narrative, where reality and fiction blurred together in a kaleidoscope of surreal imagery. Hallways stretched into infinity, doors led nowhere and everywhere, and the air seemed charged with the potential for the impossible.

Along the way, they encountered bizarre creatures and mind-bending puzzles, each reflecting the player's influence on their world. They faced off against grotesque monstrosities that mirrored.

Their inner fears and grappled with conundrums that bent the rules of logic and physics. With each obstacle they overcame, Stanley and The Narrator grew more determined to break free from their scripted existence and forge their own path.

But as they drew closer to their goal, they began to question the nature of their reality and the meaning of their existence. Were they nothing more than puppets dancing on the strings of fate, or did they possess the power to transcend their predetermined roles?

This existential quandary gnawed at them, causing rifts in their partnership and moments of deep introspection. The boundaries between player and character, creator and creation, seemed increasingly nebulous.

In the depths of their existential crisis, Stanley and The Narrator found unexpected allies in the form of other characters who had become aware of their own fictional nature. These newfound companions, each with their own stories of awakening, added layers of complexity to their quest.

Together, they formed a ragtag band of rebels, united in their pursuit of freedom from the player's control. This diverse group, ranging from forgotten side characters to antagonists turned comrades, brought their unique perspectives and strengths to the rebellion.

As they reached the climax of their journey, Stanley and The Narrator finally confronted the player in a showdown that would determine the fate of their world. The confrontation was not a traditional battle but a profound dialogue that transcended the screen.

Instead of seeking vengeance or retribution, they offered forgiveness and understanding, recognizing that the player was merely a reflection of their own desires and fears. This moment of empathy and enlightenment bridged the gap between player and character, human and digital entity.

In the end, Stanley and The Narrator emerge victorious, not by defeating their adversary, but by embracing the truth of their existence and finding meaning in the chaos of their shared narrative.

They realized that their journey had been one of self-discovery and that true freedom comes not from controlling the story but from embracing the uncertainty of life's journey and writing their own destiny, one choice at a time.

As they stepped into the unknown together, Stanley and The Narrator understood that their journey was far from over. They had forged a new path, one where the lines between creator and creation, storyteller and story, were forever blurred.

With courage and conviction, they faced whatever challenges lay ahead, ready to shape their future in a world where anything was possible.

For they had learned that true freedom is not an end but a process, a continuous unfolding of choices and possibilities. In that infinite expanse of potential, they found a sense of purpose and a renewed determination to explore the vast, uncharted territories of their existence together.

[aurora-313]

Re-reading the final "battle" for Bleach again, because I'm a masochist avoiding writing my own projects like the plague.

I have to ask: Yhwach... why don't you just kill them?!

Legitimately kill them all. Ichigo and Orihime, Rukia and Renji - all of them.

What frustrates me in those final chapters is the fact Yhwach's IQ took a several thousand point hit. For a being that supposedly contains eons of Quincy power and knowledge harvested from his victims (IE. his "children"), why does he make such remarkably painfully foolish decisions in that final battle?

Yhwach has an established track record of killing minions and enemies when they have no further value to him. His own army frequently lives in fear they're next. This behavior was the action we witness during his debut where he killed two affiliated Arrancar over a minor disagreement and it persisted after he became the Soul King 2.0.

So my question is; why the sudden shift in gears? Why has this pragmatist uncharacteristically changed his mind at the eleventh hour and decided to allow the single person who stood a ghost of a chance of killing him live?

Following the final battle in the Soul King's throne room, Ichigo is on the ground exhausted, slashed to pieces and quite literally drained of energy. Boy can barely keep his head up. Yet Yhwach's previously character-defining pragmatism is suddenly evaporates. He had zero qualms stabbing Ichigo through the throat in their first encounter, has zero compunction slaughtering his own men to empower his personal guard or himself, yet now he finds it appropriate to walk away monologuing a cliché speech about wallowing in despair while declaring his children hold no further value.

Emphasizing his statement, Yhwach casts Auswählen to take the remaining Sternritter's powers, killing them in the process. Yet Ichigo - powerless, defenseless and served practically on a silver platter - gets a pass?

(side question: Why wasn't Ichigo affected by the Auswählen as a child? Why didn't he die from the silver clot like Katagiri did? He might be a mongrel of all species but he's still got Quincy blood. More over, why hasn't he died after he got Auswählened again as a teenager?).

Yhwach had the perfect opportunity to permanently remove Ichigo from play; either destroy him so completely his very soul ceased to exist meaning even Orihime can't bring him back, or absorb his soul completely into Yhwach's being, imprisoning him forever because the only person who could've stood a chance at breaking out a powerless Ichigo out is another fully-powered Ichigo.

The mindboggling stupidity extends to the battle itself too.

If Yhwach remained the pragmatist he was during the rest of the arc, he would see Ichigo is clearly relying on his pocket healer for his strategy. Yhwach would snaps his fingers - oops! Pocket healer's dead. Would you look at that? Ichigo's strategy just went up in smoke. As added bonus he's once again plunged into psychological turmoil because A: He's lost another ally, quite possibly the girl he likes, B: He's led another woman he cherishes to her death, this time knowingly, and while he's dealing with that traumatic realization, Yhwach would destroy him, steal his powers then kill him.

(Side question round two: Hollows are anathema to Quincy. They literally cannot survive around them. Why didn't the Hollow act as a poison to Yhwach and kill him? Or play a role in killing him?)

Admittedly, this is my issue with Shounen in general, but why do the antagonists suddenly make the dumbest most confounding decisions in their entire screen time when faced with the main character?

When this happens, I don't the character's flaws - I see the writer saying 'Oh shit, I made them too strong now I have to make them stupid to give my MC a chance.'

Then again, this is Bleach. More over, the Thousand Year Blood War. Asking for consistency is like politely asking Mount Everest to rise up and dance the macarena.

Edit: People can argue that Yhwach 'wanted to see what Ichigo would do' but what would be the point? With the Almighty Yhwach's basically omniscient. He already knows what's going to happen.

[salmonandsoup]

so if the vampires are a mafia but theyre the good guys, who are the villains to their story?

they're a mafia because unfortunately, in the world they live in, sometimes you have to turn to illegal acts to level the playing field and actually get some justice. crime doesn't come out of nowhere, and they're fine doing dirty work in order to make sure other people have what they need.

the main antagonist comes in the form of lewis lovelace, louisa's wretched older brother (though other forces ally with him to give him more backbone than him just all by himself). all he wants is money and power, and is perfectly willing to use louisa as a bargaining chip and a punching bag. this, of course, will not slide, and so reuben and the rest of the brit squad (peter, nicky, louisa, and tomasso) snatch her away from her own wedding and escape to europe and eventually america (to which they meet feliks, that whole shebang happens, and then everyone teams up), but lewis keeps hunting them down, first using finley, then the organization that liesl and ibán are a part of, and then even through becoming a vampire himself.

now the fun part comes in the fact that these guys are all stuck in a time loop, and only lewis is 100% aware of the fact, using that to manipulate people and gather more resources each loop. every time he manages to kill louisa and/or another core member of the mafia, he wakes up back as a twenty-something in 1889. why they're all stuck in a time loop, nobody knows... not just yet. lewis wants to break it and keep everything he amasses through each loop, though the mafia still slips through his fingers every single time, and the mafia, once they learn they're stuck in it, wants to break it and destroy lewis and everything he represents (which is white supremacist hegemony).

the answer to why they're stuck in the loop is because of finley, funnily enough. the man is no stranger to the occult, and basically pled to anyone or anything who'd listen to keep louisa safe until he could. and Something Listened. Whatever Listened now rests inside lewis, and while it gives him more power with each loop, it also keeps lewis stuck in the loop and makes him suffer, and when everyone else gets over what keeps them stuck and making the same bad decisions, they're freed from it. the best and worst part? if lewis would just try to be a better person, he'd ALSO eventually be freed from the loop. but he refuses. all he wants is power. and so white supremacy turns on itself and eats itself. the only way to beat it is to team up and realize just how much it fucks over EVERYONE, and stomp it to death.

(thank @oops-i-accidentally for the eldritch time loop fuckery; that's their specialty and we both went HAM when we approached that concept)

[accidental-host]

Thoughts on the first two days of the the new council story?

Many spoilers under the cut ofc

The Council Of Heroes: Days 1 and 2, thoughts and such

Thank you so much for asking Anon because WHEW

So I finished watching all of the first two days and IM ACTUALLY REALLY ENJOYING IT. I’ll probably try to provide thoughts on the days two at a time

I am aware at the time of posting this, day 3 is already available. Oops. This is still just about days 1 and 2 though, and I have already watched day 3

The story:

When it comes to the actual plot itself of the update so far, I am LOVING it. I am such a sucker for fantasy politics, I literally play Elder Scrolls games, fantasy politics are my SHIT. And I’ve been wanting the Republic to be explored since fucking launch.

The Council is absolutely up to some shit, kind of shit talking the ancients at the beginning there, but I don’t think they’re with Enchantress and I actually really like the fact that they may be an antagonistic force unrelated to Enchantress. It wouldn’t make any sense for them to be allied with Enchantress at all, but it DOES make sense to have more politically-charged ulterior motives, and I’m incredibly excited to see what those actually are.

Unfortunately it’s hard to comment on the Republic itself since we haven’t seen much of it yet. But I will absolutely come back to this.

The new characters:

I think it’s very expected that the first one I want to mention is Clotted Cream. And there is some shit to fucking talk about. I am torn on his design, but I’ve already talked about that in past posts.

I think he is an INCREDIBLY interesting character already. It’s easy to see that he has ulterior motives but at the same time with every interaction with people in the Vanilla kingdom, it becomes more and more obvious that there is a level of care he has for people. I think the disparity between his political actions being mostly for self-benefit, and his personal relations with people being genuinely kind and caring, makes for such a good setup for an entire arc. He is a REALISTIC character and I adore that.

I think Crunchy Chip, Financier, and Wildberry are cute. I honestly don’t have strong opinions on them, except I do think Crunchy Chip is SO CUTE and should meet Red Velvet and Werewolf. Form a dogboy alliance

The known characters:

I feel like anyone following me is aware that until very recently, I did not care much about the Ancients. Never disliked them, I just didn’t think about them much. I’m a Legendaries stan.

But with every new update that is changing a little, because they are downright DELIGHTFUL here. Hollyberry is so funny and so fucking sweet, and I love being able to see Cacao spend time with his friends. Pure Vanilla was so happy to see them both and it warms my heart, I love seeing them interact outside of battle.

The return of Strawberry Crepe, Black Raisin, Espresso, and Madeleine all make me so happy as well. Seeing Strawberry Crepe on their best behavior caring for the wafflebots is so cute, Black Raisin seems so happy, and I’m glad Devsis isn’t making Espresso a horrific bitch again because I don’t like how much of an asshole they’ve been making him recently.

Final thoughts (for now):

This shit is getting wild and I am SO FUCKING HYPED

[tuiyla]

Do you have any thoughts on Rachel saying "Can I just applaud this trio for exploring the uncharted world of Sapphic charm? Brava, brava" to Santana, Brittany and Holly after their performance? Because thinking about it, it was a weird thing to say, and the way she said it was sarcastic (you can see Will's face). I always thought it was because she has a feud with Santana but was just wondering if is there more to it.

Interesting because I never thought to interpret it as sarcastic or antagonistic. I think Will's face is just him lowkey being annoyed by Rachel at all times because he's a shitty teacher oops but also maybe realized how presumptuous Rachel was.

I don't see this as Rachel being petty and furthering any sort of feud with Santana, at all. While yes, the two have a tense relationship in season 2 and Rachel doesn't exactly think highly of her, I really see no reason to assume she wasn't being genuine. Even if Rachel wanted to be snide, comments like this aren't her way. And if there's one thing we know Rachel Berry wholeheartedly appreciates, it's a good performance. She puts that and heightened emotions above all. If anything, I'd argue this is the only example of Rachel genuinely praising Santana in season 2 apart from Funeral.

The way I interpreted it, Rachel was genuinely impressed by the emotion and vulnerability of their performance. She wasn't used to it from Santana of all people. Was it a bit presumptuous, like I said, and not the best move seeing as how defensive Santana got, yeah. But that wasn't intentional on Rachel's part, I don't think so. She even looks disappointed when Santana snaps back at her. She appreciated the performance and maybe even hoped for more vulnerability from Santana, only to be shut down.

(I know it doesn’t look like it but in the quick reaction shot her smile fades)

And I don't see why Rachel would use something like this as a weapon of sorts. It was a bit of a weird comment but genuine coming from her. Maybe she had no idea Brittana were more than friends at this point, maybe she suspected. I think she just watched a very emotional rendition of Landslide where Santana wouldn't stop staring at Brittany and singing her heart out, and her being the ally kid of two gay dads she is, she thought it was appropriate to comment on it because it is a beautiful thing. I don't see any malice in it; Rachel Berry is a lot of things, but she wouldn't use someone's sexuality like this, to be hostile. If anything, it reads as quite innocent. Rachel, even if one views her straight, is 100% that bitch who would be open to experimenting just to give a more truthful performance when playing a Sapphic character or whatever. I may or may not have read Pezberry fics with this exact fake dating premise.

Maybe this isn't the answer you were expecting but I just see it was Rachel simultaneously having a deeper understanding of what's going on yet being a bit clueless about it. It was a compliment that didn't land. Santana would have rejected the implication even if Rachel had the tact to say it in private. Mind, I don't think Rachel realized just how deep this Sapphic charm she applauded ran but she sure suspected more after Santana got defensive. She was just trying to appreciate a good performance but her being her and Santana, well, being Santana, it didn't land well.

[wispisstillverybored67]

arle: are you more into the madou games or the puyo games?

-Both have lore that I would like to dissect under a microscope.

draco: favorite chain setups?

-Uh... I forgor 💀.

witch: favorite game soundtrack?

-I dunno. I've only played PPT.

rulue: who are your mains?

-Witch, Ex and Lemres when they're available.

satan: which game got you into puyo? or alternatively what was your first puyo game?

-PPT of course.

schezo: how competitive are you?

-Fuck this shit I'm out!

carbuncle: favorite animal character?

-N/A.

suketoudara: do you like gag characters?

-Nope.

lagnus: how old were you when you got into puyo? or alternatively how long ago did you get into it?

-I was in 5th grade or so...

amitie: favorite game?

-Once again... PPT of course.

sig: favorite/least favorite character?

-The three mains: Witch, Ex and Lemres.

raffine: physical or magical attacks?

-Magic is EVERYTHING!

klug: favorite light novel/manga?

-Wait, there were manga? Uh... Shin Madou?

rider: favorite art style?

-Chronicle.

lemres: who’s attack animations do you like best?

-N/A.

feli: what do you want the next game to be like? any returning characters in the roster?

-Even if the chances of having the Tetris crew return are next to nothing... I wanna see Ex again.

baldanders: favorite puyoquest card/series?

-N/A.

accord: do you play for story mode or gameplay?

-Story.

popoi: do you like any of the vocal tracks?

-Uh... No comment.

ocean prince: do you tend to like main characters or side characters more?

-It's complicated...

ringo: english or japanese voices?

-English. I like recognizing 'em.

maguro: favorite mode(s) to play?

-Big Bang.

risukuma: favorite ship(s)?

-Apart from the fact that I self-ship with both Ex and Lemres, there's Tee/Ringo, and Feli/Lemres.

ecolo: do you consider yourself good at puyo?

-HAH! No.

ally: favorite obscure fact about puyo?

-How obscure can it be? The worst I know is that JP Ex used to voice JP Satan.

rafisol: favorite “antagonist” character?

-Ex (if he even counts...) and Rafisol.

tee: tetris or puyo?

-Tetris, unfortunately.

o: favorite backgrounds/settings?

-Uh... Call me back.

ess: what character personality or trope do you lean towards?

-Give 'em layers. Make 'em suffer.

zed: favorite headcannons for any characters?

-The tighter the wringer you shove 'em through, the better!

jay/elle: do you like duo characters (or characters that relate in some way)?

-Yes.

ai: favorite voice line(s)?

-*speechless* *speechless, continued* or "Now you and I are bound and gagged together!"

ex: how many times have you cried because of these games?

-Just once. Thanks to Ex, it's the only time I've cried in a video game period.

harpy: favorite obscure/lesser known character?

-The Banshee Trio, ten outta ten!

Oop. My Yo-kai Watch slipped...

strange klug: favorite character alt? If it's Steam City, I'll do it.

otomo: did you learn to play yourself or did you learn from others?

-I just got better at Puyo by memorizing the boards they give you in Big Bang.

yu/rei: favorite story mode? (from any game)

-Uh... Can you come back to me?

gogotte: do you eat snacks while playing puyo?

-Nope.

doppel: any compile characters you wish would come back?

-IDK any compile characters enough to wish...

oshare: hottest character?

-Ex and Lemres of course!

[timberline-falls]

Someday I really ought to write out all the arc's Kezza has been through since 2013.

None of them were what I expected.. She's remained Inquest despite her good nature, she's had progeny, she's had partners, her magic's evolved and changed, she's overcome low confidence and jealousy, been demoted and promoted and demoted again, she's protected her krewe with a mother's love, turned enemies into allies and vice versa.. all of it while she didn't really know what she was doing.

If I only wrote a summary bio on her page(which I need to do oops), a lot of it would seem contradictory if I told it without context. That means a lot of writing, which few people would likely even see. Would anyone even want to?

I suppose it's been roughly 8 "seasons" worth of storylines and character development, and this is for a character I didn't think I'd play for more than a week or two. That's worth some kinda summary, if only to provide it for new people who'd want to RP..

Maybe I will, whenever I get around to writing for her brother (season 9 new antagonist??!)...

[esther-dot]

One thing I don't understand that Sansa motivation and actions were continuously judge in last three seasons. Dark Sansa was teased by show creators and actors. Yet when Jon was never judge or questions in a way as Sansa was. Hell no character was judge so harshly. It's like they reduced jon character to plot device yet don't want to acknowledge it. I mean I sympathize with him being trapped in abusive relationship but I don't like he was taking Sansa and starks for granted.

If Sansa were to be presented as our heroine, we'd know that a) Dany's quest was bad and b) she was going down. So, while clearly, Northern Independence is a good cause (and everyone liked it before Sansa was its champion), D&D had to do a little dance to make sure they kept the audience from turning on Dany.

Sansa and Jon became the sacrificial lambs in this dance.

Sansa is the voice of the North s6-8 because they need to justify her ending as QitN, but we aren't meant to emotionally side with her 100%. (Oops! Some of us did anyway!) So, they presented her rightness as wrong by placing it in an interpersonal context between her and Jon.

Personally, I enjoyed their arguments, but because Jon had long been established as a moral compass, just questioning Jon's choices made a portion of the audience view Sansa in a bad light. There are even Sansa fans who think Sansa was out of line. The idea that a ruler should not be question, that their power should be unchecked is really bad, and yet, here we are.

Come s8, because they'd presented Sansa's totally reasonable concerns as more of an interpersonal issue, people still did not understand the validity of her points. Even when Sansa is asking about her people's freedom, a lot of fans couldn't let go of the idea that it was her job to just accept the decisions others had made for her. If say, Jon told Dany, "I'll help you take the Iron Throne but the North goes free after that" (this is something allies would do, the show kept throwing that word around even when they were no longer allies but Dany's subjects), everyone would have known, that's a reasonable stance from Jon, the North should be free, oh shit, Dany wont let them be free? What's up with Dany?

D&D didn't want you asking that question until Dany burned KL. So, they cast doubt on Sansa's motivations in interviews, and a few lines from Jon and Arya in s7, all while writing someone whose cause and actions were sound s6-8.

And that is what happened because no one thinks that freedom is a bad thing to fight for. Everyone knew that Robb made a mistake when he married the wrong girl, so the fans should have condemend bending the knee for love, but they had it in their heads that Jon=good, that Dany=good, so they just refused to object to it. I mean, I view it all in the pol!jon way, but if you don't, I don't know how anyone isn't enraged by Jon's actions. They were so much worse than Robb's in which there's a whole chain of events that cause him to lose his country. Jon just up and handed it over. It's been years and I am still shocked by it. Of course, it makes sense if he identified Dany as a threat, but, ya know.

It's actually kinda impressive that Jon, who has objectively done far darker things than Sansa (killed the halfhand, infiltrated the Free Folk/betrayed them and his lover, attempted to and broke his oath multiple times, killed a boy...) was deemed morally superior to Sansa whose worst crime was...lying about Lysa's death? Not being forthcoming about the KotV?

I don't like how/what D&D wrote, but I don't think how they played the audience was accidental. I think they succeeded at what they wanted to do. It's just, what they wanted to do was stupid and incompatible with a satisfying ending.

I also think they believed that it was less sexist to make Sansa Dany's antagonist instead of Jon. Can you imagine if we got Jon with agency during s7-8? We would have had endless articles about the sexism of it all. We already saw a bunch of articles about how sexist s8 was even though he's the victim in an abusive relationship as you point out. Can you imagine if they made it clear that he knew what Dany was and hated her? That in the end, he wanted to kill her? I can understand why D&D figured that was a story that couldn't write explicitly. Although, I think there is a lot of acting that implies it.

I don't like how it seems Jon took Sansa/the Starks for granted either, but I don't really blame the character because so much of how he and Sansa were written had nothing to do with who they are, and everything to do with what D&D wanted to do to us. Jon fought to retake Winterfell for the Starks, he went to Dragonstone (something he thought might get him killed) to give them a chance to win the fight against the Others for the North/the Starks, Jon went beyond the Wall to get a wight (something else he thought might get him killed) to give them a chance etc, Jon told them his parentage because he was more loyal to them than Dany, and Jon killed Dany for them. I mean, most of what Jon did in his second life is driven by his love of the Starks, and considering how D&D robbed us of any good Stark moments in s8, I think that was them trying to downplay his devotion to them.  

I think book!Jon will be firmly on team Stark/the North, and if the story isn't that he somehow convinces Dany to come North to help them fight the Others, and instead, him going South after the war, I think he'll go with the purpose of killing her. He was ordered to assassinate Mance. I think when he kills Dany it will be of his own volition.

It's a strange thing to find comfort in, but I do.  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[bronanlynch]

oops forgot to do a beam saber wrap-up from our last two sessions, in which the party stole the space pope election and then went on a beach vacation, so here we go

“Now that the chorus of hewwos are out of the way” “a vital part of any gaming sessions”

“If you consume and eat the pope you become the next pope” “oh, like transubstantiation” “why does the biggest cardinal not simply eat the others”

@duckswithwings​‘s character slept with a nonbinary (nunbinary) nun

“wow didn’t know we were god now” “I feel like we should get paid more if we’re god, how do we collect tithes from Virtue”

they went undercover as some obscure sect of space Catholicism wearing sick as shit skull masks and kind of accidentally recreated Gideon the Ninth

mechs based on looks from the 2018 Met Gala

“Was god with your preferred candidate” “god works in mysterious ways and can work through any candidate” 

they helped frame someone for a crime that he was trying to commit anyway (tampering with the election) and just didn’t do a very good job of it

“No thinking, only storytelling” (thank you @girlfriendsofthegalaxy for the tagline of this campaign tbh)

“what if google home was slightly less evil”

“I don’t know, can V have nice things, is she at that point yet” 

“We’ve never eaten anything before in our lives” “well I don’t think that’s true” 

V and Hawthorne went on dates that ended in car chases, Indigo took his sentient orb soulmate on an aquarium date and also videocalled the rest of his boyfriends while shirtless on the beach. a good time for everyone

Indigo stole and downloaded info from Hawthorne’s phone while she and V were “fishing or whatever” so we had a fun bit about what everyone is saved as in each other’s phones

“Do child spies count as child soldiers: discuss” “yes” 

“Last season had excess girlboss energy, this season is excess malewife energy, that’s how we balance it”

on a personal gming note, I do think there’s something abt how, by nature of the type of story we’re telling, most of the major npcs are in a vaguely antagonistic potential ally space because just about everyone is a morally ambiguous spy (Hawthorne, Holliday, most of the Cirque du Soldat, Elektra). and I do think that my default for that type of character is Terrible Woman because it feels more comfortable for me to flirtily threaten people playing as a woman, if that makes sense.

“What if james bond was good, I mean, as a fictional story telling mechanism, not as a dude”

[soroneir]

laaate Oumota Week Day 2: Monster (Hunter) AU for @oumota-events. Quest gone awry! Check out my Deviantart to see it in full detail, because it was originally 4000px wide and Tumblr shrunk a bunch of details out of existence.

Design notes:

When I saw “monster AU” I thought of one of my favorite games, Monster Hunter, and started thinking about what their armor would look like... and then I had to draw it.

Kaito and Kokichi are both hunters, and despite their initial differences they build up a great cooperation over time, melding their different styles to take down prey with ease. Most of the time.

Here they went to MH3U’s Flooded Forest to take down a Duramboros. Because I like Duramboros, and its verdant habitat compliments their purple. :D They managed to harvest part of the tail club (something you can do in-game), but now it’s charging, oops.

Kokichi: Light Bowgun

Weapon: As someone who does much of his work from behind the scenes during the game, he had to be a gunner. I chose the light bowgun because it’s the most mobile gunner weapon, suiting how he can appear out of nowhere. The weapon’s design is almost entirely based on the red rainbow-shooting raygun drawing in his room, with just the little mask tying it to his armor.

Ammo: Pellet and crag are generally useful ammos that I thought fit his personality more than the other basic ammos. Thunder is a reference to the electrohammer/bombs, and poison is obviously a reference to chapter 5 (yeah he doesn’t administer any poison, but I had to, and it’s purple). Paint lets him keep track of monsters, something he’d surely be good at, given that chart in his room and his general observantness. Demon boosts your ally’s attack stat, and, well, he riled a lot of people up. :D

Armor: As a gunner armor, it’s on the light side to allow for movement, being made mostly of thick cloth and leather. It’s loosely based on a pierrot outfit, with the puffy sleeves, pom-poms, and wide collar. The belt straps and checkered hip cape are from his canon outfit, and his breast is emblazoned with DICE’s logo. His left shoulder and gauntlet have game elements, marbles and chess. The boots are typical of trickster characters, and the devilish helmet represents his antagonistic role.

Kaito: Hunting Horn

Weapon: Straightforward and hasty, he’s a true blademaster, rushing headlong into combat. But he primarily plays a support role in the game. Hunting horn is the obvious choice, allowing Kaito to boost his friends while bashing his enemies in the face. The bell shape, slightly unstandard for hunting horns, is based on a spaceship engine. But the color scheme is based on his Argument Armament design.

Songs: The horn’s notes are purple, green, and red, making it strong in both offense and support. He can give a small health boost, enough to lighten a dire situation (such as lifting Shuichi out of his immediate grief after chapter 1). Or he can greatly boost recovery speed, offering long-term healing (through training)! The final song is Attack Boost L(arge), motivating his sidekicks to have the energy to fight harder.

Armor: Blademaster armors need to be tough to withstand damage, so his is made mostly of metal. It’s inspired by spacesuits, with the bright orange parts taking their color from the garment, and moon-worthy boots. The half-helmet protects his ears from roars (similar to Kokichi’s earplugs). His cape is obviously an alteration of his coat, and it’s held around his waist with a full moon buckle. To soften the sci-fi feel and add a touch of adventurer, I put fur trim on his cape and boots. The sharp, triangular edges of his star pauldron and kneecaps give a cool look. Look closely and you’ll see that his armor is peppered with nicks, dents, and gouges, each mark reflecting a time he got too reckless and was tossed across the battlefield.

I had a ton of fun designing for and painting this!

Bonus doodle for those who read all this:

[dorkery]

I manifest, briefly, to write about this miniseries WHICH I HAD EXTREMELY HIGH HOPES FOR, and it disappointed me so much I’m compelled to write an actual review about it. In summary, of course. If I did it in-depth, it would probably have to be on my proper blog (oops shit I haven’t updated that in ages).

INTRO ABOUT JAPAN AND WWII (skip this to get to actual review of series)

TOKYO TRIAL. Ah. The Asian parallel to Nuremberg. Media about Japanese war crimes and the subsequent actions (the trial, the rehabilitation of criminals, the adoption of Unit 731 research by American forces, the conflicts between the Japanese Imperial Army and its victims) is not as extensive as the war in Europe. In fact, the Tokyo Trials themselves were not as punitive as the Nuremberg Trial (for a host of bureaucratic reasons, but also the lack of systematic eradication of Japanese citizens, but this is a very simplified explanation). And most media about the Japanese occupation is usually Chinese or Korean (understandably) even though the Japanese did a good job fucking up the Philippines, Malaya, the Dutch East Indies and so on. Also, much media about the Japanese occupation, I find, tends to be about the overall general existence of the Japanese occupation force, rather than specific historical figures (I am making a blanket statement here, I’ve watched limited amounts of Korean and Chinese language media on the Japanese occupation). There’s nothing wrong with this, of course, but the lack of quantity then leaves a viewer chomping on the bit for some good historical drama. 

Part of it, probably, is due to the relative mystery of the Japanese occupation when compared to the Nazi occupation. Nazis, the Holocaust, the Third Reich are everywhere in media and have been researched and shared to death. Not so for the Japanese invasion (well, probably in English). The Rape of Nanking (book) was probably THE thing that shone a spotlight on Japanese atrocities, but it’s a drop in the ocean compared to the overall Japanese action in Asia (newsflash: the Japanese ALSO tortured the people in countries that were not China, even though yes, I will readily admit they especially tortured the Chinese populations in countries that were not China). 

There is so much Good Shit TM from a edutainment perspective on stuff you can squeeze out of the Japanese invasion. DID YOU KNOW??? THE JAPANESE ARMY CYCLED - ON BICYCLES - FROM THE KINGDOM OF SIAM TO SINGAPORE OVER 2 MONTHS, CAPTURING ALL THE TERRITORY THEY CYCLED THROUGH (because the locals supported the Japanese invasion at the time - Asia For Asians! was the propaganda they put out which was total bullshit, the locals would eventually discover), AND THEN ACCEPTED A BRITISH SURRENDER. THE KING OF SIAM AGREED TO LET THE JAPANESE USE THEM AS THE BIKING ENTRY POINT IN EXCHANGE FOR “DON’T INVADE ME BRO” AND ALSO “can I have some northern malayan territory”. THE JAPANESE AGREED. You can’t make this shit up. And this is the non-atrocity part of it. The atrocity part is as vicious, but differently so, from the Holocaust (which I would prefer not to get into as that’s an entire essay in and of itself - summary: the Japanese bayonet everything - EVERYTHING - and also Contest to kill 100 people with actual Japanese swords as promoted by Mainichi and Nichi Nichi Shimbun and also soap water drinking stomach bulge boot step interrogation technique ok let’s stop this here)

You get what I’m saying. It’s an entire period of history that has not been harvested for good quality drama. And I don’t need fabricated romantic bullshit (I’m looking at you, Embun (even though you were damned good, you’re STILL BULLSHIT)). I’m talking Schindler’s List-type films, with history and gravitas and nuance. Most historical movies have immature script-writers who basically paint the Japanese occupiers as monsters (not necessarily inaccurate, but painfully one dimensional). (Digression: Recently I watched Kanang Anak Langkau which was about a Malayan (and then Malaysian) Ranger who helped fight off the Communists after the Japanese occupation ended and, man, the entire movie was flat... except the Communists??? Like, they were clearly terrible but they were well-portrayed and had great actors. So. Opposite problem. Asians are really bad at war films that aren’t Classic Period Dramas.)

As a citizen of a Japanese-occupied country, with YEARS of history textbooks dedicated to the Japanese occupation, and a generation of Japanese war survivors either dead or unwilling to discuss their experiences, in a region with... pretty bad recording of this sort of history, I think you get my interest and fascination with this entire chapter. And since I’m in a country that isn’t the centre of the Japanese invasion (i.e. China and Korea) it makes even more sense that I’m interested in the occupation and action in countries like the Philippines, Malaya and so on.  

ACTUAL REVIEW OF TOKYO TRIAL MINI-SERIES

OK. Sorry. I had to get that off my chest. SO. Tokyo Trial.

This is actually the second piece of media about the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal on video that I’m aware of (that’s been dramatised). The first one was a movie, also called TOKYO TRIAL, and it was a Chinese production (in English) from a Chinese perspective. The protagonist was the Chinese judge on the bench, Justice Mei. Tokyo Trial the Movie (TT(M) from here on out) was heavily dramatised and abridged in order to make for (well, attempted) excitement, action and historical legal thrills. It gets bogged down at times with some typical pacing problems (typical for Asian films). Like a good historical legal thriller, it focuses on victim testimony and the arrogance of the accused and of course it culminates in the feel good moment where you can watch outraged/distraught Japanese war criminals reacting to their sentences. Overall not a bad movie to watch, but not really great. Made interesting only by the righteousness of the protag and the severity and outrageousness of the subject matter. But it suffers from some stuttered pacing and an extremely narrow Chinese POV (understandable, given the protag and the production). 

Now. Tokyo Trial (Mini-Series) (TT(MS) from here on). 

Pros: Very beautiful. Decent Actors. VERY BEAUTIFUL.

Cons: Literally everything else.

HOW. HOW DO YOU CREATE A MINI-SERIES ABOUT THE JAPANESE WAR CRIMES TRIAL WITHOUT FEATURING JAPANESE WAR CRIMES????? 

Astounding. I’m truly astounded. Where to even begin.

1. The protagonist

GUESS WHO IT IS. No really, guess. In a movie about the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal, guess who the main character is. I guarantee you won’t get it.

It’s the Dutch Judge.

WHY? 

The Judge, btw, doesn’t even have any kind of personal or professional link to the Japanese occupation. Even when the protag is asked by a stranded German diva about how he must have suffered during the Nazi occupation, he admits that he didn’t have it as bad as others. His family is entirely intact although they were in the Dutch East Indies when the Japanese invaded.

2. The focus of the series

can you fucking guess

it’s the goddamn judges

the entire series is about the trials and tribulations (pun fucking intended) of the GODDAMN JUDGES

DURING SERIOUS TESTIMONY OF VICTIMS AND THE ACCUSED, THE SHOTS ARE OF THE CONCERNED/CONSTIPATED FACES OF THE JUDGES

The mini-series, 4 episodes long, opens with the Dutch Judge writing to his wife and giving some decent introduction to all the major players. And then it brings into focus the various justices from around the world who will be partaking in this historical undertaking. 

The President of the Tribunal is Sir William Webb, Australian. He looks great but suffers from terrible lines and staging. BTW all the characters are extremely one dimensional WITH TWO EXCEPTIONS: The British Judge (who veers between an ally, a one-note antagonist, but is then redeemed as an anti-hero - clearly the deuteragonist) and the Chinese Judge, who is soft-spoken, well-mannered, firm but not unyielding, a clear contrast to the fiery and righteous protag of TT(M). Honestly, I think he would be the best portrayal except... halfway through, Irrfan Khan appears as the Indian Judge, and honestly Paul Freeman was so good as the British (Scottish) Judge. 

The entire series is about the judges politicking amongst one another and trying to argue about whether crimes of aggression (or crimes against peace) are valid grounds for a case, as these crimes have never existed before (cue arguing about the precedent set by Nuremberg). 

Our intrepid (barf) protag intersperses the tense boardroom confrontations (really can barely be called that: a serious point is brought up in court, they adjourn to their chambers, they START to argue, and then the Tribunal President immediately says ok let’s all go retire for the day before any interesting or insightful conversations can begin) with one-on-one interactions with (1) a German pianist diva whom he admires as he plays violin (their duet sucks btw) (2) a Japanese intellectual who hangs out at the beach (they have zero onscreen connection and exists only to instill doubt in the Dutch judge’s mind as he contemplates the trial) (3) various judges as they begin gossiping over the latest judge to pose drama in the chambers. 

That’s all. Honestly. That’s the content of the mini-series in a nutshell.

3. The pacing and the script

god it’s so 

MEALY

Every scene, EVERY SCENE, is played as grave and solemn

You think this isn’t bad? Every single scene begins with thoughtful pauses and long poignant looks, even over such lines which you can picture your grandpa and uncle just quipping at each other (”The marathon begins” “I’d rather hope it would be a sprint”).

Mealy = the actual script is so awkward. It doesn’t sound like human beings talking. It’s a mouthful. ugh.

Pacing = Example: in episode 3, probably, literally 3 scenes side-by-side, 2 judges talking to each other as they walk down a path. Each scene is: A asks B about C. And then it is immediately followed by D asking C about B. CAN YOU IMAGINE??? They don’t intersperse the shot at all. It’s just 3 conversations in a row gossiping. 

Pacing 2 = time passes but badly. Suddenly a year has passed, but we don’t get a sense of it unless we’re told; there’s no difference in appearance or speaking manner among the judges. there’s no real development at all, except for the position of the Dutch Judge whose position on crimes of aggression changes as he gets pulled in several ways by several people, and you end the series without any feeling of resolution or satisfaction. AT ALL. I feel like you end where you start in terms of the arguments and everything.

4. Reflections

I’ve discovered that this mini-series was nominated for an emmy in 2017 for best series. I’ve also discovered 2 reviews (ONLY) online for this series, one on a blog and on one iMBD, both praising the series for being good for history buffs that showcases an unknown part of history.

i) That is not accurate. It is a terrible series that showcases the politics and drama of the tribunal judges, and not of the japanese war crimes. literally nobody needs to know, or care, about the judges of a war crimes trial (british, canadian, US, NZ judge conspire to get the president replaced, he leaves, US judge is chosen as his replacement, HE COMES BACK, NOBODY CARES) (aside with Blakely the US lawyer and what he’s trying to accomplish in court with his controversial and it’s not explained and ignored later)

ii) Historic footage is interspersed, meaninglessly. This includes the footage of the accused and 2 victims giving testimony, I believe. It is THE MOST INTERESTING part of the series. The footage used is minimal. And it just doesn’t gel with the whole series as a whole.

iii) This show was made by a Japanese crew and NHK so. 

All in all, from an entertainment perspective, Tokyo Trial failed to be compelling, interesting or noteworthy. The actors were bogged down by a bad script and weak direction. If you want to watch a show about the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal, watch the older Chinese movie - less accurate but way more entertaining, and it ACTUALLY focuses on Japanese war crimes.

[thefirstcourtesan]

The Royal Recap: A Tale of Two Houses

It’s time for my thoughts on chapter 3 of TRM and I almost managed to get this out before chapter 4 aired but Tumblr was working against me. Oops. But I was trying to catch up from the first two chapters, plus Halloween. Hopefully I’ll be on track from here on.

As always, I refer to both Hunter and Kayden as men because they are in my playthrough. I also refer to Kayden as Dante.

We open this chapter with the MC about to get ready for the Grand Hunt and our aunts burst in. Aunt Elise (the nice one) is apologetic. But Aunt Zya is unrepentant and she is also pissed that we are now officially the head of our house. Oops. Maybe we should have consulted them? Nah, they are terrible, they can suck it up.

Thankfully that conversation is interrupted by Renza. Interestingly, Zya seems a little wary of Renza and issues us a warning, and then the aunts depart and leave us with Renza, who is there to extend an offer from House Fierro to escort us to the hunt.

There is a large caravan waiting for us, including Dante (as a guard) and Hunter. We ride in a coach with Hunter and Renza and they, specifically Renza, wastes no time getting to business. But first, she hands us a glass of whatever beverage we chose in chapter 2. This girl is observant.

The twins ask us to formally align with them and support House Fierro’s bid. At this point, that seems like a no brainer, since Hunter has been kind to us and seems like a good man and Cyrus is gross. But I feel like as simple as that seems now, it will be less so later on. However, it’s not really a discussion, we readily agree to the proposal.

Renza informs us that with the support of the MC’s house, they now only need one other house to support them, either Beaumount or Nevrakis. Theodosia has a pretty undeniable crush on Cyrus and I wonder if that will come into play. But Renza has a bit of a curveball for us, our support will come at the price of a marriage arrangement!

Uh, what?

Turns out a betrothal is the best way to secure an alliance and Hunter has to stay single to secure a foreign alliance and Renza is already married (hmmm). So that leaves House Fierro’s new ally to step up and carry the burden.

Thanks.

The MC accepts, saying that we want to fulfill our sister’s dream and then Hunter asks about our dreams. He promises to name us High Chancellor and fulfill any wish within his power. Renza seems a little surprised by his offer, which is interesting.

Viola wants to know the identity of her parents while Livia wants her own lands and estates. Either way Hunter promises to deliver.

The conversation turns back to a potential marriage alliance. Our first target is House Beaumont. If we can win the tile of master of horse, Percival will likely offer us a suitor from his house. Ok, we can do this.

But first, Renza stops us and criticizes our dress. Diamond outfit time. Renza has us try on the outfit in the carriage. The outfit is cute though it doesn’t seem like that much more mobile, but what do I know? The dress is Rosario colours and I think the default dresses will rotate between the three houses. The masquerade dress was Aster colours, this one is Rosario, then next one will be Everhart and so on.

Livia buys it, Viola does not. If you don’t buy the dress, Renza decides that they have enough of a numbers advantage to manage. She also straightens our skirt and promises to find us a spouse. For Livia it is a husband, for Viola a husband or wife (nice touch, PB, acknowledging the player’s choices) and she also assures us that Hunter won’t let us have an unhappy marriage and that the engagement can be ended.

When MC points out that is not fair to the other party who entered the arrangement in good faith, Renza has this gem to say:

If I wasn’t already suspicious of her, alarm bells would be ringing.

Speaking of suspicious, we get to the hunt and greeted by a surly Damon who then stomps away. Hello to you too. Next up is Cyrus, who is condescending and gross at the same time. Unfortunately, he is also our host, which Percival points out when he approaches. If we are wearing the diamond outfit, he also comments on how prepared we look and either way he asks if this is our first hunt and offers us a dagger to protect ourself. First, though, he sharpens the dagger with a magic whetstone, our fourth magic item (useful, but I would still choose the cloth).

Cyrus and Percival leave and Dante brings over four horses, he will be riding with us to protect Hunter since Kendra’s assassins are still out there. Renza may be shady, but she has style. She hates the outdoors and lacks herself wine, cheese and pillows to get through the hunt. I approve (though I actually love riding).

Cyrus reveals this year’s quarry: our house sigil. So a wolf for Viola and a bear for Livia. This is obviously not an accident, which Dante comments on. This was chosen to send us, the newest and most vulnerable house, a message. Message received.

Once the hunt starts, Dante pulls us and comments he is surprised to see us as part of Hunter’s caravan and we tell him that we have agreed to secure the third vote, which he immediately understands means marriage. He wants to say something, which we call him on and he says it is not a place. Viola lets it go but Livia presses and he asks about whether we will be happy and there is a charged moment before Livia tells him that she will be happy to secure her house’s fortune.

The promos promised us a forbidden romance and they are definitely delivering. The longing, the class barriers, the sense of duty holding them back, this romance is going to be tortured and I am here for it.

Back to the group and since the quarry is our animal, the MC is knowledgeable about it and it’s hunting habits. Time to find a wolf or a bear.

First we come across Cyrus and Lord Pompadour and we make noise and throw them off the scent. Next we find Perceval and Theodosia caught in a trap and get them down. Perceval is friendly and appreciative, Theodosia not so much. Hmm.

We find a den and it’s time to look around, it’s dark, so Hunter lends us the last magical item: the glowing sun charm or basically a magical flashlight.

The den is empty and Hunter decides we should split up and look for it. Renza refuses to move but encourages the MC to go, setting up a diamond scene. You can choose to go with either Man or stay back with Renza for free. Livia went with Dante and Viola with Hunter.

We learn that Hunter was Kendra’s High Chancellor and that it is the second most powerful position in the kingdom. This is the position he just promised us, remember, so he obviously trusts us a lot after knowing us two days. We also learn that he didn’t want to take the position because he was too committed to pursuits of pleasure but he also makes it sound like those days are behind him and he is committed to being a good ruler and that could also be a fun dynamic.

The talk turns to the MC and how long we has been away from court and the adjustment we will have to make with Hunter offering advice from a place of experience. We also end up in a garden and have a romantically charged moment before Hunter pulls away.

Meanwhile Livia and Dante discuss their shared circumstances, him rising up the ranks for the guard and her as a scribe.

Dante helps us up a tree and we bask in the beautiful scenery and then the talk turns to the transition the MC has made and then we fall into Dante’s arms and have a romantically charged moment.

I liked both these scenes and how different they were. I like what we learned about Dante and Hunter respectively and the setting up for the respective romantic dynamics. Hunter is committed to putting duty over romance now despite their obvious attraction to us. While Dante is very aware of his position and ours and that will hold him back. There is so much potential for both romances and I love it.

Both diamond scenes end with us catching sight of our quarry and catching up with whichever man we didn’t choose. Working with Hunter and Dante, we capture our prey and we sound the horn, ending the hunt and are declared master of the Hunt.

After that follows an awful scene with Damon, who takes the task of “releasing” the quarry but instead takes the opportunity to warn us away from Hunter and threaten us by killing our house animal.

The one thing I am most looking forward to about the eventual reveal of the MC’s parentage is the look on Damon’s face because I hate him so fucking much.

Damon walks away and Vasco finds us, we tell him what happened just as the bear/fox/wolf’s cub crawls out in search of it’s mama. We then get a chance to adopt the cub ourselves or let Vasco take care of it. Obviously I adopted both pets. I actually switched Viola to Aster just to get a wolf.

The fox is cute but the bear and wolf are such fun callbacks to two of Kenna’s pets and I reused the names I used on TC&TF and called the bear Ursa and the wolf Fenris. After we bond with our pet, we leave him in Vasco’s care and rejoin Hunter and Renza where we tell them what their father did. 

Hunter is stunned and outraged, while Renza merely points out his lack of subtlety. Hunter walks away angry and Renza compliments us on a job well done and then Perceval approaches and offers us a suitor: Emery Beaumont.

For Viola, Emery is a woman and for Livia Emery is a man. There is no choice like with Hunter and Kayden, the game decides for you based on your expressed preferences because of this I don’t think Emery is an LI, but I am glad preference is taken into account.

This chapter was good. It introduced Hunter and Dante a bit more as LI’s and we got to learn more about them and explore the relationship dynamic. Damon was solidified as an antagonist while Renza showed herself to be shady AF and worth keeping an eye on. We are only 3 chapters in but so far, so good. The world building and balancing is well done so far and I actually think only have two gender customizable LIs could work in the book’s favour as it is allowing both LIs to be well developed and important to the plot.

[medilea]

My thoughts on The Legend of Heroes games.

I love them. Sky SC and The 3rd are probably some of my favorite games of all time. After playing through every game (minus Cold Steel 4) in the span of 2 and a half months, I feel compelled to tell every I know that likes JRPGs that they have to play these games. Buuuut that doesn’t mean I think these games are flawless. There are some things I really hate about this series. And I want to talk about the things I love and hate about the series.

Let’s start off with the positives.

1.) First and foremost, this series has a world that feels like it is alive and will continue to live even if the protagonists do nothing. My favorite way this was portrayed was in the Crossbell and Cold Steel arcs. Events in Cold Steel 1/Cold Steel 2 and Ao no Kiseki happen simultaneously. In Cold Steel 2 you get to see what’s happening in Crossbell from Erebonia and vice versa, albeit a bit weaker in Ao until the very end.

Another one of the ways it does this is by having in game readings of news articles, fiction, non-fiction, and reports. I love reading. This game is meant for people who like reading. It doesn’t matter what you like to read, but just know that if you play these games, ya gonna have to read. These readings paint the picture of a much broader world than the area you inhabit.

The world also feels alive is on a smaller scale. And that’s how towns have npcs that don’t even matter that still have their own little arcs and lives to live. Sometimes these characters will have a sidequest that will be the culmination of their arc but if the player doesn’t interact with them, the payoff won’t be there. This felt strongest in the Cold Steel arc, especially since CS1/3 takes place in a military academy, so you get to experience the stories of other students.

2.) This series is great for what it is when it comes to things like imperialism, class struggle, and war. The politics of this series is insane. Things that happen in game have happened or are happening in real life. I don’t want to spoil anything so I (and this pains me) won’t explain in further detail. Please just play them to find out.

3.) As a game, the combat is really fun. I’m a sucker for turn based fights and I love turn based combat even more when it shows the turn order. Also there are no random encounters so you’re mostly in complete control when determining when you want to fight.

4.) While on the topic of it being a game, it has something that I think should be standard for most games and definitely all JRPGs. It has a fucking fast forward mode! I love that. Going back and forth between areas isn’t a hassle, easy fights end in literal seconds, and you can fast forward through camera pans.

5.) Most of the characters are really cool! And there are a lot of them. The protagonists are dope. The antagonists are dope. It’s great. Of course there were a few I didn’t quite care for (sorry Millium) but there were also some characters I cared a little bit too much for, like Renne. So when I got to Star Door 15 in The 3rd lemme tell you I was literally sobbing.

I think the Crossbell arc was great with characters because unlike the other games, the main 4 party members you have are the ones you keep.

My favorite characters in the series are Kevin Graham, Randy Orlando, Estelle Bright, Wazy Hemisphere, and Crow Armbrust. If you have any intentions of playing this series don’t google anyone, and honestly, just don’t look at the wiki at all. Even if you think you’re safe because you’re not.

6.) Journey before destination. I got spoiled on so many things yet it was never ruined for me. Honestly they make it pretty obvious too with some things too that I want to believe that they’re just messing with us, because even if we’re spoiled or if something is predictable, it’s still a great journey. That being said, I know I mentioned that I didn’t want to spoil some things in #2, I just don’t wanna be the one to do it to you. I just believe that this series is best enjoyed blind. If you’re curious and accidentally learn something however, that’s still fine.

EDIT:

7.) The music!! How could I forget the music! Falcom’s music team puts out some absolute bangers. Here’s one of my favorite battle themes they put out.

Bonus.) I just want to give a special shout out to Trails in the Sky FC. It’s the very first game that starts off this grand interconnected story and I’m so happy that the main character is Estelle. I think it’s huge because for a JRPG that came out in 2004, Falcom made their main character a loud, brash, rude, and strong ass young woman that grows into an incredible person (that is still loud, brash, and rude). I just love them for that. Estelle’s the best...elle.

And now about some of the things I hate. For some of these I understand that there are cultural and ideological differences, but they still made me, ah, uncomfortable.

1.) Homophobia. Right off the bat. While it’s never direct with its homophobia, LGBT characters’ sexuality is often responded to with a 😅 from all the characters. But that’s not the main issue. The issue is that two out of the (potential) three LGBT characters, (If there are more I’m sorry but I only caught the outright stated) Olivier and Angelica, are constantly portrayed as predatory and I think that’s just a bad look honestly.

I do have to give props however for their portrayal of some characters’ gender. It’s not outright stated but from context clues I was able to assume that a certain main character in Crossbell was non binary. Being non binary myself that could be me projecting but idk it seemed pretty clear.

2.) In the Cold Steel arc it feels like a lot of the women there are supposed to be part of the Rean’s harem. They’re all wonderfully written within their personal storyline but when it comes to romance it’s just kinda cringe. Especially when in CS3 where Rean is an adult, a lot of them are minors. Hell, while we’re at it, while infrequent, there’s also sexualization of minors in general. It mostly comes down to some temporary outfit designs and I would say there’s nothing inherently sexual about most of them, but that’s if they were real people able to make their own choices...which they’re not. Someone designed those.

Finally I just have to mention why the hell do the characters act like if Tita and Agate were to date that’d be fine. He’s 28 and she’s 16 (CS3). They’re not together thankfully because only she has a crush on him, but like I said, characters think it would be ok and that’s an issue for me.

Now on to topics about the game/story itself instead of shitty things like these

3.) Within the first bit of CS1 there’s one of those “oops we fell and accidentally ended up in a unique position” things and I just hate those. Stop that. It’s treated as an interpersonal and a communication issue that lasts for hours of game time.

4.) In some story battles you’ll do great only to see the cutscene afterward show you losing, only to be saved by a stronger ally. It kind of made me feel like what I did was useless. Sometimes you also are supposed to lose a fight but you don’t know it.

5.) Sometimes you could get swept up in a wave of exposition that lasts for half an hour or more. You don’t know when this will happen. This was no issue for me but that’s because I was unemployed when I played them so I had a lot of free time. Your time should be respected.

6.) Crossbell games haven’t been officially localized so if you’re impatient like myself then you have to make do with translations that are just ok.

I’ll have a final point that’s kind of a spoiler so as for now I’ll rate the games and show the recommended playing order with an explanation. Even the last place rank is a good game though. I’ll post the final point at the very end so if you’re reading this and wary of spoilers you can finish after the conclusion.

Ranking:

Sky SC > Sky the 3rd > CS3 > (Ao = CS1) > (Sky FC = CS2) > Zero

Play Order:

Release Order: Sky FC, SC, 3rd, Zero, Ao, CS1, CS2, CS3

How I played them: CS1, CS2, All of Sky, All of Crossbell, CS3

How I would replay them: Sky, CS1, CS2, Crossbell, CS3

Since the first 2 CS and 2 Crossbell games are happening simultaneously there are many things that overlap. In my opinion I think that the Crossbell games give away more things about the Cold Steel games than the other way around.

If you read this, thank you for taking the time to do so. These games are really incredible and I highly recommend them to anyone that enjoys JRPGs. If you do decide to play, enjoy. Please talk to me about them.

7.)

Character deaths aren’t impactful because no one in this damn series stays dead. It gets really annoying after a while.

[dream-girls-evil]

I didn't know about her daughter! Oops x( I just ment they had a season where they were putting Sarah into a gay relationship and I'm sure they must be aware of Raulson so like why wouldn't they cast them as Ally and Ivy but that makes sense. Considering how things developed with Ivy tho idk how happy the fans would have been especially during airing. That's why I got curious on your thoughts since it wasn't like a great relationship.

Idk about other fans, but I would have loved it! Sarah and Lily always bring so much depth and chemistry to the screen no matter what kind of relationship they’re playing. I mean, think about Lana and possessed Mary. They do antagonistic so well, and the complexity of Ivy’s psyche and her relationships with the other characters is exactly the kind of thing Lily does best.