#ren reviews stuff | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

starcrossed591 · 9 months

Text

CDrama Year in Review 2023

I'm still very much a CDrama beginner--I just started watching them in the summer of 2022--but since this is the first year I got into them in earnest, I figured I might as well do a year in review a la @dangermousie (whose lists I have found incredibly helpful in deciding which CDramas I really, really need to go back and watch as part of my CDrama education--so thank you!). So, without further adieu, here is my ranking of 2023 CDramas, in order of least enjoyed to most enjoyed*.

(See also: KDrama Year in Review 2023)

*Disclaimer: *not* a measure of objective quality

10. Royal Rumours: This drama was not great? Meng Zi Yi and Jeremy Tsui were fun, but the story started out messy and got messier. For some reason I still finished it, I think because I had a lingering cold and it was all my brain could handle at the time *shrug*

9. Gone with the Rain: I actually really enjoyed this one! The pacing was inconsistent, but Zhang Nan was fun as the irreverent Mo Xi, and we love a grizzled general. Special shout to the teacher who was not actually evil, just a sad lesbian whose gf disappeared on her

8. Love You Seven Times: Intriguing concept, not a strong enough FL to carry it through. The reincarnation stuff really worked for me at first, especially in their first mortal tribulation (as people, not CGI animals), but I got tired of it pretty quickly. I admit, the gifs of Ding Yu Xi as a sexy cat demon *did* pull me back in, but not enough for me to actually finish the thing, alas

7. Destined/Chang Feng Du: Started out really strong, and then stalled out on me. I think I only got up to about episode 22 or so, after their epic desert crossing and new start in a new state--they lost all narrative momentum for me there. I stopped watching and then just...didn't start again. I do, however, remain a big Bai Jing Ting fan, and will be keeping on eye out for whatever he does next

6. Hidden Love: (Contemporary) Age gap romances are hit or miss for me, but Zhao Lu Si absolutely stole/carried the show for me in this one. Although more fun imo when the main couple are in the the will-they-won't-they phase than in the family melodrama after they get together, still the only contemporary CDrama to get me to give it a go this year--and I'm glad I did

5. My Journey to You: Featuring my favorite murder girlies Esther Yu as Yun Wei Shan and Lu Yu Xiao as Shanguan Qian! Gorgeous costumes and sets, sweeping cinematography, and plot that kept me on the edge of my seat. Full disclosure, I have not actually watched the last two episodes because I got busy and then saw weird chatter about them, so I have no comment on the allegedly weird ending

4. Till the End of the Moon: Look, I know the ending wasn't ideal, but for the majority of its run, this drama owned my entire soul. It also introduced me to Bai Lu as Li Su Su, who inspired my first actual tumblr post (that wasn't a reblog) because I was so obsessed with her. And everyone knows that Tantai Jin is the CDrama ML of the year. 10/10, no regrets at letting it take over my life (and the OST my Spotify) from April to May of this year

3. The Story of Kunning Palace: More Bai Lu is always a good thing, and she's extra fun here as the transmigrated former evil empress and totally-over-your-nonsense Xiang Xue Ning here. The reverse haremness of it all totally shows why Bai Lu is the chemistry queen, especially with the princess (Liu Xie Ning) and cranky, morally grey, would-fail-gym-class strategist Xie Wie (Zhang Ling He). So glad this drama made it out of the CDrama vault and didn't languish indefinitely in censorship hell

2. A Journey to Love: Finished this one two days ago as of this writing and am still not normal about it. Ren Ruyi (Liu Shi Shi) and Ning Yuan Zhou (Liu Yu Ning) lead an exceptionally strong ensemble cast in this wuxia that explores the complicated relationships between love, duty, loyalty, loneliness, and companionship. Ruyi and Yuan Zhou are far and away one of my fave OTPs of the year, but just as compelling are the relationships between friends/brothers/fellow assassins Yu Shisan, Yuan Lu (ugh my heart), Qian Zhou, and Sun Lang. This drama definitely has one of the strongest ensemble casts of the year. And the character growth of Yang Ying from little princess abandoned in the cold palace to who she becomes by the end will stick with me for a long time. Plus another 10/10 OST!

1. Lost You Forever S1: I'm not normally a reverse harem girl, but the longing, loss, and hard resolve portrayed to perfection by Yang Zi as Xiao Yao really did it for me here. This whole drama struck an emotional chord for me, and where TTEOTM consumed my soul, LYF took over my heart. Xiao Yao's relationships with her power hungry, overprotective cousin Cang Xuan; hot snake demon Xiang Liu/playboy archery shufu Feng Feng Bei; and perfectly devoted Tushan Jing are all equally compelling to me, and while I may know who she ends up with in the end, who I *think* she should be with changes based on who's on screen at any given time. And A'Nian, my favorite bratty princess who really just needs some strong parenting, holds a special place in my heart. I know we may never get S2, and even if we do, censorship means it probably won't be what the drama makers are capable of, but I'm so glad for this little piece of absolute perfection. And, again, a top notch OST!

Fave Drama: Lost You Forever, by just a hair over A Journey to Love. See above.

Least Fave Drama: Royal Rumours--truly why did I finish this, what was past me thinking

Biggest Disappointment: 2023 is also the year I read Dreamer in the Spring Boudoir, my very first CNovel! But then I didn't even bother checking out its adaptation, Romance of a Twin Flower, because it got rid of everything that made the novel such an addicting read, including a brilliant, strategic, ice cold FL and an ML who actually kind of sucked at the beginning, only to grow on you very, very slowly over time. I'm grateful that the chatter around the drama is what brought the novel to my attention, but other than that, hard pass.

Favorite Male Character: Lots of good ones this year, but I'm gonna go with Cang Xuan (Zhang Wan Yi) from Lost You Forever. The conflict he faces between getting enough power to protect the people he loves the most and that power making him incompatible with those loved ones is so compelling, and his yearning for Xiao Yao even when she's right in front of him is wrenching. Full disclosure, I also just really love the sound of his voice

Favorite Female Character: This could easily have gone to Li Susu (TTEOTM), Xiao Yao (LYF), or Ren Ruyi (AJTL), but I'm gonna go with Bai Lu's Xiang Xue Ning in The Story of Kunning Palace. Something I really loved about this character was just how jaded Xue Ning really was, even in her second go round at life. Yeah, she wants to make amends for the harm done in her previous rise to power, but that has hardly turned her into a good--or even pleasant--person. Instead, she's incredibly skeptical and still plays most things ice cold, especially with her family. As a bonus, we got plenty of Bai Lu's fantastic side eye as she basically had to do high school all over again when she gets called into the palace despite her very best efforts not to be.

Favorite Ship: Ren Ruyi and Yuan Zhao from A Journey to Love have got to be it. They balance each other out so well, and over the course of the drama, learn to communicate effectively with each other whenever they have a problem. They also recognize that not all problems can be solved by ~love~, which makes their relationship even more compelling when they decide to prioritize each other in a way that respects what the other wants from life.

Favorite Secondary Ship: Little princess Yang Ying and Yuan Lu absolutely broke stole my heart in A Journey to Love. Doomed love even more than the main OTP, these two's youthful romance was such much fun to watch, especially as they egged their respective mentors on in their own romance. Yang Ying's recognition that her first love did not have to be her only love is also something I always love to see, even as it broke my heart that (spoiler) she and Yuan Lu never really had a chance at an HEA. Their relationship really exemplified a key theme of this drama: that you should love the people you love while they're still with you because tomorrow is never promised.

Non-2023 Dramas that I Watched: Two non-2023 dramas I watched that deserve a special shout out are Love and Redemption and The Sword and the Brocade. Love and Redemption prepared me to really appreciate the big swings that Till the End of the Moon took, and The Sword and the Brocade went a little way to filling the Story of Ming Lan shaped hole in my heart. The Sword and the Brocade also had absolutely searing critique of the concubine system, even as it featured one of the most genuinely good-hearted FLs I've seen. Would recommend both!

Most Looking Forward To: Yes, I'm a sucker and the censors (not to mention the characters) will probably break my heart, but I'm still crossing my fingers that Lost You Forever S2 will live up to the promise of part one. See above: still a CDrama beginner, have not yet had all the optimism knocked out of me. Sue me.

#CDrama #year in review #Lost You Forever #A Journey to Love #The Story of Kunning Palace #My Journey to You #Hidden Love #Chang Feng Du #Destined CDrama #Till the End of the Moon #Love You Seven Times #Gone with the Rain #Ren Ruyi #Yang Ying #Yuan Lu #Bai Lu #Meta #CDrama Review

76 notes · View notes

lensman-arms-race · 3 months

Text

Journey's end (human reader meets Sabre, ~4.1k words)

This was a request from @ren-chan082. The original prompt was:

I was wondering if I could request one involving Energized Tv Man a.k.a Saber with the reader… I mean, imagine if the group of humans that Camerawoman found reunited with Saber and Poly to be taken to a more safe place but one of them ends developing a tiny crush for Saber The main problem could be that apparently Saber distrusts humans and doesn't like to have any nearby so there would be a lot of tension between them? I think that could make for a pretty interesting plot about both of them… ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

I beefed the prompt slightly! Ren-chan mentioned the group of humans we see at the end of episode 73, but my brain parsed 'Camerawoman' as 'TV Woman' - because of course it did. We haven't yet seen TV Woman encounter unskibbed humans, so I made up some. If I had written about the humans from episode 73, I would have made them more militaristic. I hope it's still to your satisfaction!

I wanted to make this a 'Y/N' fic, but I find that abbreviation looks unattractive (and I keep parsing it as 'yeah, no'), so I named the reader-character 'November'. Because of N for name, and N is November in the NATO alphabet.

Request queue

Hosted versions of this fic: skibzone (my site), AO3

---

You take the opportunity to check the contents of your pack to review what you and McPiss managed to grab today, while they keep vigil out of the window, scanning the streets for approaching skibidis.

You'd met Tranter McPiss a couple of months ago, a fellow scavenger in the ruins of the skibidi plague's aftermath. Not the most fun or charming person you'd ever met, but competent and sensible enough. Naturally, you'd stayed together for safety in numbers and for companionship (such as it was).

Some toothpaste to add to the cache. You start picking off the cardboard boxes so you can pack the tubes in more neatly and make a bit more space in the pack. Few jars of peanut butter, probably the most calorie-dense food you're likely to find. Just about every veggie seed packet you could stuff into the pack's many pockets. You and McPiss plant those in available bits of ground as you go, in the hope they'll spread.

"Stop rustling for a bit," says McPiss quietly. (You silently take your hands out of the pack and let it down to the floor slowly.) "I hear something," McPiss whispers.

You strain to listen… it's footsteps. You don't know whether to feel panicked or hopeful - is it fellow human survivors, or some of those sinister hardware-headed robots? Or, worst of all, it might be some of those body-snatcher skibidis that have grafted fallen robot's bodies to their toilet bowls.

You're relieved that you can't hear any of that 'skibidi skibidi skibidi' chant that signals the arrival of the blood-crazed biting toilet-people. Might you dare to hope you've found another band of humans?

As the footsteps get closer, your hopes are dashed by hearing some garbled robot speech. Shit. Your guts feel as though someone's dumped a bowl of cold acid in them. Can you and McPiss escape through the window? It's a hell of a drop - could you climb down somehow? Are you better off staying put and trying to talk your way past the robots?

You frantically try to come up with a sensible plan and share it with McPiss, whom you can sense getting tense and frantic alongside you, as though something is saturating the air between you.

The footsteps stop for several seconds. If you stay quiet and still, will they go away again? …Despite the lack of footsteps, something enters the room nevertheless. You can't parse what you're looking at. The sight resolves itself as the head of one of the television-robots, its screen glowing… but without the rest of the robot. It's… hovering on little rockets, you realise. Ohh shit, it's seen you.

The hovering rocket-television displays a cutesy emoticon on its screen… then its screen background goes from a soft purple to a hot sugar-pink, as the hovering monitor smoothly advances towards you. A suggestion hangs heavily in your mind: "Don't worry". You feel you should be appalled at being manipulated like this - you know that thought didn't come from you! But the gesture feels so kind, so considerate, as though the hover-television is letting you borrow some of its courage. Just as the ethical implications of this sink in, a headless robot body walks in, flanked by two more TV-headed robots. The headless one confidently steps forward to meet the hovering TV-head, which must be its own. The two parts of the robot elegantly re-capitate with what looks like practised ease.

One of the flanking robots (they look like Floaty-Head's bodyguards, you reckon) says something - you can't work out what language it spoke. Human-made televisions were invented in Scotland… might they be speaking Scots Gaelic?

The two bodyguard-type robots step forwards, one coming towards you and the other towards McPiss. 'Your' robot says something you can't parse, its screen changing colour from a green-tinted mid-grey to a pale cyan. The screen glows bright, making you flinch, then fades back to its former grey, along with a benignly smiling emoticon. Did the robot just… scan you? Mark you? Whatever it did, it seems pleased with the result.

The other robot appears to have reached much the same conclusion as McPiss. Both bodyguards rejoin their comrade with the detachable head, who has the aura of one who's in charge. Hover-Head's screen fades out from pink back to purple, releasing its mental hold on you - you feel like yourself again, but a little more afraid without the constant reassurance being beamed into your brain.

"We're fucked, aren't we?" McPiss whisper-hisses to you.

You're not so sure. The robots outnumber you, and they could have killed you by now - but they haven't. And the floaty-headed one used its screen-power to soothe you and encourage you. If they'd wanted to kill you, wouldn't they have paralysed you with fear?

You're about to say something to McPiss, then something occurs to you as one of the 'bodyguard' robots speaks - the sound of their speech sounds like a recording being played backwards. (This robot has what looks like an LED torch mounted to its head-casing, you notice just now. Their compatriot has a noticeable trait of their own: some hot pink socks, in stark contrast to the rest of their sombre black get-up. What if… you called them Pinky and Perky. What if you did that.)

You notice Floaty-Head display a cheery emoticon, then turn the dials on their head-casing. Their speakers click and buzz until the robot is apparently satisfied with what they hear.

"Calibration," says the robot. "Humans, do you comprehend?" Its voice is like a flock of metal birds of various sizes speaking together in perfect synchronicity, with the slightest reverb.

McPiss looks to you, apparently for support. Should you say yes to the robot? …Do you have anything to gain by pretending that you can't understand them? Probably not.

"Yes," you say. "Yes, we comprehend you."

"Imperator to squadron," says Hover-Head. So their name or title is 'Imperator'? You file that away in your brain-meats. "Unskibbed humans found. Duplicate communication parameters."

"Copied," says Perky. …You need to mentally assign these two some different nicknames.

"You're far from Sector Carina-Seven," says the TV-robot with the detachable head - the Imperator. (Maybe they can all detach their heads and this is the only one you've seen doing it? Or maybe not - Pinky and Perky don't have the head-rockets. Argh. You can't keep calling those two that.)

"…Sorry?" ventures McPiss.

The Imperator displays an amused emoticon on their screen. "This sector isn't safe for D-class personnel and below. Given how unprepared you seem for combat or recon, and how easily we were able to approach you, I am assuming you are lone operants acting without orders or backup."

"We're not with the skibidis, if that's what you mean," you say. "Or whatever you call the toilet people."

"Yes, we call them skibidis too," says the Imperator. (Didn't they call you and McPiss 'unskibbed'? You've just worked out what that must have meant.) "…If you're not affiliated with the Alliance, you won't know the sector names. Carina-Seven is the current safe zone for unaffected humans."

"Can you… tell us how to get there?" you ask.

McPiss seems displeased by your question - they probably think you're being too eager to trust these robots. You'd agreed with McPiss that the faceless, slightly weirdly-proportioned robots were creepy… but now you're rethinking that stance. At close range, they're almost cute!

"We can do you one better," says the Imperator, displaying a delighted emoticon. "My colleague can take us there."

"One moment, please, while I confer with my colleague," you say to the Imperator, then gesture your head to McPiss to get into a huddle with you. Well, two people isn't really enough for a huddle. It's half a huddle. A hud.

"We don't know their motivations," says McPiss quietly once you've moved away from the robots. "I think we should part ways with them while we still can. We know what we're dealing with out in the wilderness - these robots are an unknown."

"I'm inclined to go with them," you say. "You have a point, but… if they wanted to kill us, they could have done that many times over. And we know the robots are enemies of the skibs too-"

"Don't give me that 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend'," interrupts McPiss. "The enemy of my enemy can smooch my hoop as well."

"I just think if we don't go with them, we'll regret it later," you say. "I'm tired of running and hiding and not having a safe base to call my home."

"I exert no hold on you," says the Imperator. (How much of your conversation did they hear?) "I cannot force you to come with us." (Well… physically they can. The Imperator is probably speaking of ethics rather than capability.) "But I advise you to choose quickly-"

On cue, you hear the sound of approaching skibidi activity…

"Let's regroup with my colleagues for now," says the Imperator, "And you can decide where to go from there. Grab your bag." You do so, and the Imperator and their two guards converge smartly on you. You're unnerved but you hold firm as the Imperator claps a hand on your shoulder - you're aware of one of the two guards doing the same to McPiss.

Your surroundings suddenly become very dark and close, as though walls of black fog swept in and converged on you, until all you can see is the Imperator… The walls of fog fall away just as suddenly as they materialised… and your surroundings are different. What just happened? Did you just go down a wormhole?

"You could have warned us that was going to happen!" shouts McPiss. You agree a little - that was a bit scary and you would have appreciated the heads-up.

"Skill issue," remarks someone. You jerk your head to the source of the sound and realise there's another TV-headed robot here, of a different model from the Imperator and their two guards. You thought the Imperator looked elegant, but this unit… "They made it in a rizz factory and didn't know when to stop," you hear yourself thinking. Gah! Get it together!

"Be gentler," chides the Imperator. "These humans have had a frightening day."

"These skibidis-in-waiting, you mean?" the new robot says, idly drawing and flexing some magenta-purple blades installed on its forearms, in a casual display of power. "You do them no kindness prolonging their misery, Imperator. Only a matter of time before their brains rot."

The Imperator displays a glaring displeased emoticon, apparently not impressed by the bladed robot's rudeness. The two of them 'stare' silently at each other for a couple of seconds - are they communicating on a wavelength you can't hear?

"They're clean," says one of the guards (the one with the torch on its head). "Both scanned."

Purple Blades nods silently to the Imperator, apparently concluding their imperceptible conversation. "I take it back," they say, approaching you and McPiss. (McPiss bristles and stands their ground, but you try to stay relaxed - you'd be far better off with these TVs as allies rather than enemies.) "Had a dicksplash of a day. Frustrated. Took it out on you." The robot makes a show of deliberately tucking away its blades, then presents its gloved fist to you. What does this gesture mean? Should you… copy it?

You raise your own fist and bring it in, mirroring the TV-unit. It completes the gesture - and you realise it was going for a fist-bump all along. You happily push your knuckles into place - what excitement!

"What should we call you?" you ask.

"Sabre," replies the blade-armed TV.

"I'm November, and my companion is Tranter McPiss," you say.

"Why would you tell them that?" protests McPiss angrily.

"What are they going to do; get in touch with our bank?" you point out. You continue to Sabre: "…You smell of burning. Did you run into skibidis too?"

"You can tell?" asks Sabre. You guess robots can't smell. "Blew a fuse. Don't know which one. Diagnostic system failed. Takes forever to check all fuses systematically. Grumpy about it."

"I can smell that on you," you say. There's a definite burnt metal tang, with the unpleasant sour back notes of burnt rubber. "May I… examine you a bit more closely? I might be able to find it."

"If you must."

You move your head closer and sniff at Sabre's torso while walking around them. Sabre seems mildly alarmed, and their head moves on a swivel to track you, even as you walk behind them. Evidently they can spin their head like an owl. (The Imperator and their two guards seem to keeping their eyes - well, their screens - on you too. McPiss is keeping their distance - they don't seem eager to help out.)

"Mind how you go, meatbag," warns Sabre. "I'm pointy."

"The smell is strongest here," you say, pointing to a spot on one of Sabre's shoulders. "I would guess your blown fuse is under here."

The two bodyguards move in, as Sabre takes off their coat. "Hold that for me," instructs Sabre, handing it to you. …Oh, it's nicely warm. The two guards set to work with what you assume is a robot first-aid kit, containing several small specialised-looking tools. Sabre undoes their jacket and shirt, revealing a glimpse of sleek and slightly angular plating. You realise you're clutching the coat quite hard…

The guards are evidently trained in field repairs, as they remove a panel of Sabre's plating, exposing a bank of fuses. One of the guards pulls out the blown fuse (while Sabre appears to be trying not to flinch) and the other replaces it with a fresh one from the kit. You remember what Sabre said about having to check all their fuses systematically - you guess it would be hard for them to remove their own body panels because of the awkward angles, especially with their blades in the way.

"You'd better appreciate this," says the Imperator warmly. "I don't share my spare fuses with just anyone."

"Thank you, Imperator," says Sabre, then: "…Thank you, November. That saved a lot of time." They take their coat back from you. "Are you cold, human?"

"I am a bit," you concede. You'd had to leave your coat behind earlier that week and you hadn't found a suitable replacement yet. (You guess it was this week. Keeping track of time has fallen a bit by the wayside these days.)

Sabre moves to put their coat on you before you can object. They hold the sleeve out for you to insert your arm, and you do so without really thinking about it. It's hard to not take something that someone is handing right to you. The cuffs snap closed with magnetic clasps as you put the sleeves on - they have large slots in them for Sabre's arm-blades.

You shiver in delight inside the coat. Its warm weight feels nice, and you rather appreciate the view of Sabre in just their jacket. "See, McPiss," you say, "We were wrong; robots are nice."

"For your knowledge," says one of the guards (the one sans torch), "We prefer to be called 'techfolk' rather than 'robots'. It's true, we are robots, but so is a mindless factory assembler."

"Understood," you reply. You suppose calling them 'robots' is like calling a fellow human an 'ape' - it's correct, but can be wielded offensively. "Well, what do you think?" you ask McPiss. "I reckon our best chance of survival is to head to… Carina-Seven, was it? Join the other humans there. I'm so happy to know there are still more of us out there!"

"I can see there's no dissuading you," says McPiss. They move in close to you so they can whisper. "I think you're being too trusting."

"I think you're not being trusting enough," you say. "This would be a stupid amount of effort to go to for a trap. I'm going with the techfolk. I really hope you'll come too." You address the Imperator: "What happens now?"

"My colleague Polycephaly will take us the rest of the way," says the Imperator. "We'll need their teleportation ability to get us all the way to Sector Carina-Seven from here." The Imperator addresses McPiss: "Consider this the warning I didn't give you last time. Are you ready to depart?"

"I know I am," you say.

Sabre steps near you and offers their hand. You guess they're initiating a teleport, and you take it. Your world is swirling black fog for a moment, and then you are somewhere else. Next to you, the Imperator spawns in with McPiss, followed by the two bodyguards.

Your body surges with terror at the unmistakeable sound of a skibidi chant rapidly getting closer-

"Doctor Polycephaly diagnoses you with being annoying. Here's your prescription."

The skibidi song rapidly takes on a panicked tone as the approaching skibidi gets lifted into the air and thrown away, explosively shattering its porcelain on impact. You can't work out what you just saw… until you realise there's yet another TV-headed techfolk here - you actually hadn't noticed them at first because their sheer size made your brain not register them as an entity. This unit's colossal!

"Some fresh meatbags," observes the huge TV - Polycephaly, you think the Imperator said. You're startled to see four more TV-screens suddenly unfurl on stems from behind the big unit's back. Polycephaly kneels and cranes their subscreens inwards, apparently getting a better look at you and McPiss. "Bound for Carina-Seven?"

"Just so," replies the Imperator.

"You know the drill," says the giant TV. "Fog tax." Polycephaly's main screen turns void-black - not the black of a switched-off screen, but black like a hole cut in reality. Clouds of void-blackness spill out of Sabre's, the Imperator's and the guards' screens and fly towards Polycephaly, as if the big TV is vacuuming up their energy. The four smaller TVs jokingly protest at this treatment, to Polycephaly's amusement.

Polycephaly stands up again, and takes a few steps to a nearby shipping container. They pull open its doors and then pat the roof. "Get your arses in my box, mammals, unless you'd rather take your chances with the skibs," says Polycephaly.

You get inside the shipping container, a little hesitantly - how is this going to work? You feel braver once the Imperator, the guards and Sabre follow you in. If they're getting in, it's clearly the right thing to do. McPiss brings up the rear. You can see their point about preferring to face an known evil than an unknown one, but you're daring to hope that going with the TVs won't turn out to be an 'evil' at all. You feel a pang of guilt that you ever thought of the robots - the techfolk - as creepy.

Polycephaly closes the doors of the shipping container, shutting you all into near-darkness. The only light comes from the four TV's screens - the Imperator and the two guards with their green-tinted grey, and Sabre's richer royal purple.

"Feeling okay?" Sabre asks quietly. They pat your hand. Oh! Before you can say anything, all of you are plunged into swirling blackness. This feels the same as when you were transported earlier. Did Polycephaly teleport the entire shipping container?

That question is answered when the doors re-open. McPiss immediately hops out, reminding you of re-wilded tigers dashing to freedom from their transport crates. The Imperator glances behind them to make sure you're following, giving you a reassuring smiling emoticon, then steps out accompanied by their two guards.

"Out you get," says Polycephaly, slapping the container roof. You obey, Sabre walking alongside you.

"Ni hao, Imperator. Wo happen so?" A human voice!

"Buono estente, Gladys," replies the Imperator to the human. "Beaucoup skibidis, but two newbies."

"Skibidis, quelle fuckery. Oho!" says the human - Gladys? - noticing you and McPiss. They wave hello to you, and you wave back. So does McPiss - they seem happy to have found more humans instead of robots.

You take in your surroundings. Is this the Sector Carina-Seven that the Imperator mentioned? There are many humans here, some at work and some at leisure. You notice a few of the Camera-headed robots - techfolk - here too, talking in a sign language with some humans.

McPiss introduces themself to Gladys. "McPiss - Tranter McPiss," they say, holding out a hand.

Gladys shakes hands. "Dailyo, McPiss. Gladys, je suis. Welcome a Sector Carina-Siete."

"November," you introduce yourself with a handshake. You get an idea - you'll probably score points if you contribute supplies to the group. You open your pack and start bringing out toothpaste and peanut butter.

"Zahnpasta avec karanga squishy? Bonus est!" Gladys clearly approves. You guess a mix of people from around the world live here and have fallen into using a pidgin blend of their own languages. Gladys calls over a couple more people to help unload. "Sprechen a beth?" Gladys asks you.

"…Not sure what that means, sorry," you reply.

Gladys tilts their head slightly, apparently taking in what you said. "Oho," they say. "Macaroon!"

Someone else approaches. "Parler zum newbies," Gladys tells them.

"Ey up," says the new person. "My name's Macaroon - Chris P. Macaroon." (Gladys must have summoned someone who speaks the same language as you.)

"Ey up, Macaroon. I'm November and this is my colleague McPiss," you explain. "We ran into some skibs but luckily the Imperator ran into us first."

"And I didn't want to come with because I assumed it was a trap," says McPiss. "For once, I'm glad to be proven wrong."

"Nice coat," says Macaroon to you.

"I should give it back," you say. "I borrowed it from Sabre - have you met them?" You begin taking it off so you can give it back to its owner.

"Sabre, lending your coat to a human?" says Macaroon. "I didn't think you liked us that much."

"Skibidi-headed, but not as stupid as you look," concedes Sabre. It seems McPiss isn't the only person glad to have been proven wrong today.

"That's high praise, coming from Sabre. Gladys and I will get you another coat from somewhere," Macaroon says to you. "And we'll give you a tour. You and McPiss should both get settled in for today - tomorrow we can talk about adding you to the duty rota and get you some Alliance tablets. These things, I mean, not medicine tablets." Macaroon flashes their digital device.

"Thank you," you say. "I can't believe my luck! Earlier today I was scrabbling in the wilderness running from skibs, and now this!" Life will be so much easier with a home and some friends.

The Imperator approaches you and McPiss, having been talking to a small group of humans and Cams. "I must take my leave," they say.

"Imperator, I'm so glad we met you," you say sincerely. To your surprise, the Imperator extends their arms to offer a hug. You gladly step forward to accept. You've been on the run and on edge for so long, it feels overwhelming to stand on safe ground and enjoy the simple pleasure of a hug. Your eyes prickle pleasantly with the beginnings of happy-tears. And the Imperator gives great hugs, warm and firm, no shyness or limpness. The Imperator gives you a final little squeeze, then ends the hug.

The Imperator offers a hug to McPiss. "Have you got over your dislike of robots?" the Imperator asks cheerfully, displaying a happy emoticon.

"I have," says McPiss, then accepts the hug readily. "Thank you, Imperator."

You seize your chance. You don't know when you'll see Sabre again. "Sabre… could I hug you?"

There's a pause. Have you offended them? Then: "If you must."

You'll take it! You hug Sabre, noting how carefully they move to not injure you with their blades. Their coat smells of your warmth, as if you've known them a long time and their scent is familiar to you. You delightedly snuggle into them as much as you dare.

"Sabre, cwtsh?" Gladys says with amused surprise.

"Mind your own business," says Sabre. They deliver a final squeeze to signal the end of the hug - did they pick up that habit from the Imperator?

"Will I see you again?" you ask Sabre as you disengage.

"Possibly," says Sabre non-committally, as they press something into your hand. They vanish in a column of black mist, to your surprise. …Is that what teleportation looks like from the outside?

You notice the Imperator and their two guards stepping back into the shipping container, which Polycephaly slaps their hand on and teleports away, in a big cloud of smoky black fog. Dang - you'd wanted to thank and say goodbye properly to Polycephaly. Hopefully you'll see them again, if the robots - no, the techfolk - find some more humans.

You check what Sabre gave you. It's a business card of sorts, with some contact details on it. Well, you know what you'll be doing when you get your tablet tomorrow…

#skibidi toilet #skibidi toilet fanfic #skibidi fanfic #lensman tags: fanfic #ren-chan082

12 notes · View notes

puroresu-musings · 7 months

Text

NJPW THE NEW BEGINNING in Osaka Review (Feb 11th, Osaka EDION Arena)

Toru Yano & YOH vs. Ryusuke Taguchi & Boltin Oleg **

Bishamon vs. Great-O-Khan & Callum Newman ***1/4

Shota Umino, El Desperado, Tomoaki Honma & Tiger Mask vs. EVIL, Ren Narita, SHO & Yujiro Takahashi **1/4

Tetsuya Naito, Yota Tsuji, Shingo Takagi, Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI vs. SANADA, Yuya Uemura, Taichi, DOUKI & TAKA Michinoku ***

Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi ****1/2

IWGP Tag Team Championship - El Phantasmo & Hikuleo (c) vs. KENTA & Chase Owens **

Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr. *****

10 Man Dog Pound Cage Death Match - United Empire vs. Bullet Club War Dogs *****

Photos.

Wow, what a show this turned out to be. It started pretty ordinary, but ultimately had three exceptional bouts, one of which is the best match of 2024 so far. The show opened with CHAOS teammates Yano and YOH taking on Taguchi and Young Lion Shooter, Oleg. This was perfectly fine, but only went 3:45, so there really wasn't much to mention. YOH scored the win over Taguchi with a roll up. Next, UE Young Boy Callum Newman got a chance to shine in his tag match with O-Khan against Bishamon. This was a good little sprint, with the spirited Newman looking especially good. It wasn't to be his night, however, as he was put away by the veterans at 7:37 with Shoto.

The NJPW Babyfaces took on House of Torture next. This was your typical HoT match, beginning with a brawl, before the babyfaces got their shine, only to succumb to heelish shenanigans. After Dick Togo distracted the ref, Narita hit Tiger Mask with the Metal Plated Push Up Bar Of Doom, before SHO pinned him with a Shock Arrow in 8:43. Post match saw SHO steal Despe's IWGP Jr. Belt and proclaim himself the new champion, so we've got yet another HoT stolen belt deal, and Desperado seems destined to feud with these dorks for his entire reign. This was followed by pretty much the same LIJ vs. J5G match we've seen all tour now. It was a good outing, but I can't say that I'm interested in any of this, aside from Tsuji and Uemura's Hair Match in Sapporo at the end of the match. The two youngsters carried the action in this one, which culminated in SANADA tapping out BUSHI at 11:05 with Skull End to go strong into his Title Match with Naito on the 24th.

Perhaps the final ever Okada vs. Tanahashi match followed, twelve years to the day that the Rainmaker Shock happened in this very same building that made Okada a Superstar. This was excellent, emotional stuff that was by no means the best match these two have ever had, but it was a great send-off for what is perhaps the greatest, most consistent feud ever. I've potentially gone a tad high with the rating, but I don't care, I'm sticking with it, as this one had me invested from the minute the entrances happened. The Osaka faithful were super into this, loudly chanting for Okada at the start, going crazy throughout. Tana, who's definitely in "office shape" at the moment, even turned back the clocks and hit the High Fly Body Attack to the floor, which was awesome. After getting the knees up on a HFF attempt, Okada nailed the Tombstone, but Tana turned the Rainmaker into a small package for a great near fall. After some back and forth which the crowd were totally into, Okada hit a beautiful dropkick, a Landslide, and a Rainmaker to put the President away at 16:50 with one final Rainmaker. The pair embraced in the post match, and a teary bowed to the Lion Mark and Okada bid farewell to Osaka. He only has two matches left in his NJPW career in Sapporo, which should be similarly emotional occasions, and hey, who knows, maybe he could even put someone over on his way out (nudge nudge, wink wink).

The IWGP Tag Title bout that followed was something of a dampener, to say the least. This was the opposite of the last match, the crowd were dead for the most part, and it moved at the speed of smell. It was hovering around one star territory, but things picked up once Hikuleo got the hot tag and ran wild, but it was short lived as the ref got bumped, Taiji Ishimori ran in, hit his old pal ELP with a belt, then Hikuleo, which allowed KENTA to steal the win and the titles. Look, I know New Japan likes and rewards loyalty, and Chase Owens was there for them when they needed people badly, but the notion of him holding a major title in NJPW in 2024 is all kinds of bemusing. And to say the new GoD's Tag Title reign was a bit of a disappointment would be an understatement. These guys deserve better, and I honestly don't have the strength to watch another match between these teams after the two we've already seen so far this year.

Thankfully, things turned around in fantastic fashion with an absolutely perfect display of pro-wrestling between ZSJ and Bryan Danielson. This was a rematch of their 5 star classic in AEW last October, and it managed to surpass that match and is the best bout of 2024 so far. Outstanding grappling and counter sequences throughout this, Dragon used an arm wringer to send Sabre's legs into the ropes, which he then proceeded to work over the whole match with intense kicks and leglocks. Zack fought back, working over Danielson's neck. Lots of Romero Specials, Manjigatame's and Cobra Twists, before it broke down into a stiff strike exchange. Danielson hit a big Back Suplex off the top for a near fall, then tried Cattle Mutilation, which Sabre escaped and hit a Zack Driver for a near fall of his own. Dragon hit the stomps, then locked in the crazy arm submission he submitted Okada with, but Zack fought to the ropes. Another strike battle culminated in Danielson hitting the Busaiku Knee out of a backslide, but Sabre turned a second into a European Clutch, they exchanged great cradles, before ZSJ got the pin with a crucifix at 32:46 of fabulous action. The two shook hands afterwards, and now being 1-1, Danielson challenged Zack to a 2 out of 3 falls tiebreaker backstage, which I'm 100% down for. In the ring, ZSJ signalled he wanted a belt, then called out the winner of Naito/SANADA (despite what Chris Charlton might have claimed he said). I'm all for Zack winning the belt to be fair. I've lots to say about Naito being the champion again, which I'll refrain from, but all I will say is that the guy who holds the top belt in this company sure has felt like an after thought since winning.

Then the Dog Pound Cage main event that was also Will Ospreay's New Japan swan song. Look, theres way too much to even attempt to recap, and I went back and forth about going the full 5 stars on this one, as it did feature some stuff I really wasn't keen on. BUT, at the end of the day, these 10 guys put on an absolute spectacle of bloody drama and craziness, and it's definitely not a match I'll forgot any time soon, and a tremendous post match. They had an impossible task in following the previous match, but they had an equally blow-away outing, that was the complete wrestling polar opposite. This was set up like that classic ROH vs. CZW Cage of Death from 2006, in that the cage encircled ringside as opposed to the ring itself, and was fought under War Games rules, with guys coming out every two minutes.

Ospreay and Finaly started, with Ospreay convincing Finlay to let them fight for 5 minutes. Lots and lots of crazy stuff followed, which included the heels bringing out a ton of plunder, Akira hitting an incredible dive off the cage onto the War Dogs before Connors gave him a big spear through an upright table in the corner, Gabe Kidd potatoing HENARE with table shot, that split him open bad on the top of his head, which the doctors at ringside spent a lot of time trying to patch up. HENARE got a receipt of sorts later when he hit Kidd with a super stiff slap that looked like it knocked Gabe silly. Connors hit a big spear on Ospreay through the ropes, off the apron and through a table at ringside, Jeff Cobb ran wild on everyone with his incredible power moves, TJP emerged from under the ring as the Aswang, running wild and misting all the heels, Maloney broke up a pin attempt by Drilla Killa'ing Ospreay into the pile of bodies, Coughlin took a serious wilful beating with kendo sticks, who then took a big senton through a table off HENARE from the top of the cage. Connors introduced thumbtacks, but ended up bumping into the pins. Gedo came out with a barbed wire wrapped table, but O-Khan put an end to his interference, and it was Finlay who went through the barbed wire table, thanks to an Ospreay powerbomb. Gabe Kidd responded by hitting Ospreay with a piledriver off the apron, through a ladder bridge to the floor. Moloney forked Akira in the head, who juiced heavily, but then overcame his fear of the fork, no-sold it, and stabbed Drilla in the head with the cutlery, drawing his blood of his own, then hanged Connors over the top with a dog collar.

The heels then handcuffed Cobb to the cage, removed the ring canvas and padding, exposing the boards, and what followed was absolutely terrifying, as those boards were flying around and guys were falling through the ring left and right, to the point I thought someone might get seriously hurt. HENARE hit a massive vertical suplex on Kidd to the boards, before he too was handcuffed. Akira then took a horrendous Tombstone on the boards, which left Ospreay alone with the War Dogs. Sacrificing himself to save Akira, he tried a Hidden Blade, but collapsed from exhaustion, resulting in him taking a spear into the boards by Connors, then Finlay wrapped his knee in barbed wire and hit Ospreay with his new Overkill finish to end this insanity and win for his team in 64:05 of crazy, mind-blowing action.

The Overkill finish was quite ironic given the amounts of sheer overkill in this thing, there were times when I thought/was begging it would be over, but they just kept going and doing crazier stuff. Anyone who knows me knows I love a good crazy, unhinged blood and gimmicks match, and this was one of the best there's ever been, overkill or not. In the post match, Ospreay bid farewell to New Japan, and he got the big emotional send off with the confetti and all the UE guys surrounding him. Ospreay asked that the fans not forget him, and backstage he promised he'd be back, but when was still a mystery. Losing Ospreay is a major blow to NJPW (not to mention they're also losing Okada!), but I've no doubt he'll do great things in AEW.

NDT

#njpw #new beginning in osaka #review #will ospreay #united empire #bullet club war dogs #new japan pro wrestling #zack sabre jr #bryan danielson #american dragon #kazuchika okada #hiroshi tanahashi #puroresu #wrestling #reviews #wrestling reviews #aew #wwe

21 notes · View notes

hellcatinnc · 2 months

Text

Vampire Dormitory Anime Review

Spoilers Included

Ok this anime has so much confliction to me in whole I loved it but at the same time it annoyed me. I do think it is worth anyone putting on their watch list though even though for people that fall into being Ren lovers you don't want to get your hopes up will not get you anywhere. This story is based off one vampire saving a girl/boy/girl from dying when she fell by accident when she was contemplating suicide. You go on this path listening to Ruka be a cute blush boy one minute and ridiculing Mito about her blood tasting horrible. He even kept pushing her aside past his own feelings so he could be the king of vampires and be with his one true destined partner. Like yeah he saved, yeah he took her in but come on this should not have been a open and closed love story. I don't get why when you add a second guy to some anime's and I end up shipping the second guy more, this is another anime that has that happen to me. So lets break down the characters then I will go over what burned my ass the most in this anime and what I loved.

Mito Yamamoto

Such a pretty girl and I do like her as a character she isn't useless. She has her own personality she does get hurt easily but then again I think this is why I like her I can relate. The being alone, falling too fast and getting hurt easily. They need her in an otome game for sure or at least a personality like hers. Anyways she is the main of the story and I'm glad in the end she got a happy ending she deserved it.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The cute back and fourth scenes with both guys and Mito in the picture were perfect. She looked good with both of them I'm not gonna lie. Although I still prefer her with Ren I guess too each their on in the end. It really is her story though about how she finds love and friendship and a home.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ruka Saotome & Mito Yamamoto

I started watching the show for this pairing however I honestly think it didn't last long for me. I mean Ruka isn't a bad guy he just listens to everyone else too much on what he should do and not follow his heart. It really was the only issue I had with him because he is a sweetheart, and is a blushy boy too. He was too easily swayed even when there was a imitation Mito he jumped right to her and even chose to save her life over Mitos'. I'm not sure why so many were against Ren but loved Ruka when he did just as many stupid shit if not more. He broke her heart on several occasions, he pushed her away, he played this pull her in to push away again, and sometimes he could be plain rude to her. In the end not gonna lie the first time he really won me over when he more the less said fuck it all I want her before he even knew it was his destined partner. I loved this side of Ruka he finally grew a back bone and went after what he wanted at any consequence. Ruka isn't a horrible character I do feel like he fits a teenage age perfectly where I feel like Ren is more grown up.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ren Nikaido & Mito Yamamoto

Ren stole my heart pretty early on and I think he got the shit end of the deal. So most the show is about him and Mito I swear, cause everytime Ruka is hurting her she runs to Ren. He is like a big brother/best friend trope type for sure. He tries to come off as a tsundere early on but he isn't he just doesn't take shit off people. He is lonely and has been alone most his life just like Mito this is why their friendship I think grew very fast. In a perfect world Mito would have been better off with him he would protect her like know other. However after you get to a point you can really love this man and what they have together the writers fuck it up.

I mean it too, you know when you get a certain character and you get a idea of their personality and stuff is, well this is what you get with Ren you learn who he is and how much he loves Mito whether girl or boy. However writers had to make sure people didn't like the 2nd male lead much more so the last 2 or 3 episodes makes him in to a asshole that turns her into a male so he can try to force her to marry him. This is not or has not been once the kind of man he is. I was so enraged by this, so your telling me a man who wipes away her tears, beats peoples asses that bother her, holds her close when Ruka hurts her...your telling me thats the man that would force something on her...I think not. I will hold to the end Ren is my favorite and I would have gladly took him off her hands to have a real man. OMG and when this man blushes I want to kiss him so bad. I love my blushy boys.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Komori

Now this man likes to flip back and fourth between being the vampire king and a somewhat cute shyish type guy who is everyones boss at his restaurant. Its funny until the end no one realizes this is the same guy. I mean look at this man how can you no tell he is the same lol. Now I can't say I much cared for his attitude as the king though came off like a ass at times.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Takara Kagurazaka

Takara really isn't anything special he is pretty geeky and you mostly only see him in a group or when he is with Juri on his own. He is crazy about girls but not a one want him. However I loved how he was with Juri always protecting him and even after Juri confessed his love he didn't blow him off. I don't think he is gay but Juri means everything to him hoping to read the manga and see if these two become more would be so cute and so happy for Juri.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Juri

This boy is the sweetest and the cutest like I can't even he has this beautiful little face that makes me want to kiss him. He is much too pretty to be a boy probably prettier than Mito to me and she is a girl lol. Anyways its so sweet to watch him and his little crush on Takara like I don't its not a heavy influence so people that don't like BL won't have to worry but I would love to see a spinoff with him in the BL universe for sure.

6 notes · View notes

riacte · 5 months

Text

watching false vod review the hermits and my mind is drifting away from me again........ mcc ren catchup training / vod review...... she would be like rennnnnn remember to sign up and play with me ☹️☹️☹️ also you're gonna be rusty now do you wanna train and ren would be like anything for you my friend 🫡 and they spend four hours doing / talking mcc stuff and she bosses him through everything and he's like 🥺🫡 she's gonna run that man like the navy

#i love imagining stuff #and then they get distracted and talk about food again for 30 mins.#ria.txt

7 notes · View notes

rararazaquato · 10 months

Note

Tell us more about le cartoon version of Raincode you have please.

Like of other characters appearing and more dynamics, including episodes.

oh BABY you're in for a treat!!!

i have a whole google doc planned out for this thing, despite me having no animation experience gjgkhkh... this is gonna be the Public Lore Dump Post btw, and spoilers for all of rain code will be under the cut.

so the concept for this whole thing came about while watching the animations of youtuber OkayScreamingNow. super cool animation btw, their "psycho teddy" animation moderately blew up but i'm a huge fan of their "everybody likes you" video.

between watching those, a ton of aimkid videos, wince media's meat bun song, and nicktendo's mighty b review, i started feeling really nostalgic for mid-late 2000s animation, the stuff i grew up on. growing up creepie, yin yang yo, kenny the shark, all these were shows i adored as a kid. so, combined with my current rain code fixation, this little au came to be!

the general conceit of this au is that "Master Detective Archives" is a 2008 animated children's program that lasted for 20 episodes and is majority lost media. only a couple episodes exist in the bowels of shitty piracy sites, and even then those sites keep getting taken down. the more screenshots and concept art i make, the more is "revealed" about the show.

one of the things that interests me the most about children's media is how people worked around the censors. a lot of people are familiar with the story of the ren and stimpy adult party cartoon. for those who aren't familiar, when john "god's mistake" kricfalusi created an adult oriented reboot of ren and stimpy, the show was dogshit. with the new ability to rely on the crutch of whatever grossout sexual humor it wanted, it became a massive stain on john k's career (he has had other horrific stains both before and after apc, but i need to stress, no one liked apc).

for a more positive example, i love pretty much all of jhonen vasquez's work, but i find the humor and even some of the horror of invader zim to be more interesting than the same stuff in jthm, because iz was working under far stricter standards and practices.

what i'm trying to get at is that i enjoy the challenge of seeing how i can take concepts and make them more kid-friendly while still keeping the intrigue and interest the concepts originally had. i worked at a summer camp in 2022, and the driving force behind this little project was "keeping rain code camp-appropriate, but also keeping it interesting".

this ethos will hopefully explain some of the Big Changes i made to the story and characters. i do want to stress that i do not think i am improving on the original work. i think rain code is a story that, inherently, works better as an m-rated, gritty, cyberpunk-y murder mystery. i've just always been uniquely fascinated by this particular genre shift.

so, first major change: nocturnal detective agency has turned into nocturnal detective academy. this is a place where young minds, particularly those with supernatural powers, go to hone their craft. or at least... it was. now it's run exclusively by three people: headmaster Zange Eraser, school nurse and therapist Melami Goldmine, and teacher (and everything else) Yakou Furio.

i grew up with a book series called school of fear, which was about a small group of kids with severe phobias being sent to help conquer their fears at a highly rated school. however, it was actually just a kooky old lady and her massive mansion, and while she helped the kids get over their fears, she did it in unorthodox and occasionally darkly humorous ways. i remember a scene in the books where she put the claustrophobe and the kid afraid of death in a coffin for a few hours, and while that is absolutely NOT how exposure therapy works, the idea of a school that's just a few adults running a lowkey scam out of their house has always tickled my funny bone.

so the nda is a school, teaching detective skills and the like. of course, because yakou is my beautiful failwife, he mostly just sends his students out into the city of Kanai Ward to do their own investigative work and report back with what they've learned... as long as they don't get in trouble with Hecksmile or his goons, at least!

yeah, the other big change is that the peacekeepers are more like team rocket than corrupt cops. while i agree that the police suck, and a lot of older cartoons seem to share that sentiment (even some newer ones like gravity falls), having all the villains be evil, corrupt cops seems like a recipe to get s&p on your ass. so now, the cops just don't do anything, and Hecksmile and his goons just wreak havoc whenever they feel like it.

(i've already explained the hecksmile bit in a previous post, but i dont think any of the other names would need changing. maybe if this was the 90s, desuhiko and fubuki would get their names changed to something more eurocentric, but this isn't the 90s and that stuff was cringe even back then.)

there are only seven students at the academy, and i've de-aged these characters to be more relatable to the target audience: our main character yuma, halara, desuhiko, fubuki, vivia, pucci, and aphex. i'll detail them a bit here, because yakou, zange, and melami can all stay pretty similar (actually, melami doesn't randomly feel up strangers to get their clothing measurements anymore, but that's a pretty minor change).

yuma is still our main character, acting as the straight man and audience surrogate. the whole "number one" twist isn't really a thing with how this whole plot is set up, so his awkward and generally "scrunkly" attitude from the game is his natural state here. though none of the ages of the characters are specified, he's often called out as the youngest detective, probably in his preteens or early teenagehood. his coalescence is used for a lot of teamwork-based solutions to problems, but he isn't that great at actual mystery-solving.

this is where shinigami comes in! in the first episode, after some hijinks, yuma accidentally summons a death god. fortunately, he summons a teenage death god. she can only appear in her cool human form in her summoner's dreams, she can't interact with anyone in the physical world except her summoner, and she doesn't even have her reaper's license yet! regardless, she likes having a friend, so she helps yuma see things from different perspectives. i figured death spirits wouldn't be off the table, exactly (i mean, look at billy and mandy), but i think there's a certain humor in a death god not being able to do any soul reaping. i like to think she talks about it like her driver's license. "ugh, i'm not allowed to reap any souls until i'm 16 thousand years old! i'm only 14 thousand!!!" because of her teenagerdom, her human form is going to be far less sexualized. also because i think her canon outfit is a little ugly.

halara doesn't change much from canon. very mysterious and intimidating. no one knows their gender because everyone's too afraid to ask (and to find out, you'd have to pay them about $100 in cash). they still love cats but have an allergy to them, they still don't trust people, etc.

desuhiko changes a lot from canon. he's less actively creepy and more of a wannabe romantic. he has a tendency to fall for grown women, although he has absolutely no chance with any of them. this is played for laughs.

fubuki is another character who doesn't change much from canon. obscenely rich and super out of touch with everything around her. has occasional bursts of intelligence for comedy.

vivia is still everyone's favorite emo sadboy, writing poetry in the fireplace. his passive suicidal ideation, though interesting to explore in media made for adults, is very dangerous to put in a children's show, so we're nixing that. instead, he's just real sleepy and goth. he's also the least interested in doing actual detective work, so when he and yuma are investigating together, it gives yuma a chance to take the lead.

pucci doesn't change much from canon, but admittedly, we don't know too much about her. she's sensitive to noise, very thoughtful and introspective, but very awkward around people being nice to her.

and aphex. what to say about aphex. i don't like aphex for a number of reasons (anyone who played with jpn audio can back me up on this one), but the idea of someone who is initially violent and cruel becoming your (still somewhat violent and cruel) ally is a fun character trope to me. my go-to example is buford from phineas and ferb, and i think that's the role aphex would play. initially a threat, but eventually becomes softer and more well-developed. well, if the show got more seasons.

and that's our main cast! i could talk about kurumi, makoto, and martina, as i have a lot of cool ideas for them, but i have been writing this for like an hour and i think i need to chill ahaha... ty for the ask!!!

#mdarc #rain code #rain code spoilers #mda nicktoon

16 notes · View notes

hartshorn-and-isinglass · 1 year

Text

So Yeah I Just Got Done Watching The Sudbury Devil

...and it kinda blew my mind. It's somehow the most-unreal and most-real historical film I've ever seen. This is basically a thesis piece on de-romanticizing the period movie, and I cannot imagine anyone else currently in the biz who would even want to try and do that, and that's what makes this such a special project.

Watching this, I was reminded of how people dress up as fairies and elves and go to Ren Faire with the justification that "well people back then believed in those things so this is what their world would have looked like to them!" and let's just say this movie is a bit of a dark funhouse-mirror version of that idea. If we run with the conceit of looking at the Puritans' world through their eyes, it's less glitter and elf ears and more penis magic and Rosemary's Baby. Satan lurking around every corner, horrors beyond comprehension... and on the other side you have the more quotidian horrors of an oppressive and rigid hierarchy, ostensibly the side aligned with God. I grew up in the Evangelical milieu, so that shit hits a little close to home. Maybe one day I'll tell the story of how church life in my teen years was so miserable I accidentally a witchcraft... but I digress.

Admittedly I may be biased because I've watched so much of Andy's stuff and I get where he's coming from, so I don't know what this is going to look like to people being introduced to Andy's work for the first time, even if they are history enthusiasts. Watching a lot of the Witchfinder General's antics helps with the Original Pronunciation dialogue, and Andy's videos on King Phillip's War are a primer on the themes he's working with in this movie. I remember King Philip's War in school being the merest of footnotes but Andy treats it as crucial to understanding this country in all its fucked-up complexity and he's kinda winning me over on that one.

I should note that this movie is definitely not going to be for everyone: this has a level of gore that's on the bleedin' edge of what I can stand and a lot of sexual content, apparently enough that some people had to walk out of the premiere. All of it is in the service of the story, though. So yes, I recommend giving this a whirl when it comes out on streaming/to a theater near you if you can stomach some very literally visceral stuff. It's so much more unhinged and weird than I could possibly convey in a review, I dunno. I'm so glad I got to see it (but EVEN SALTIER that I didn't get to go to the IRL premiere now after seeing what Dr. Justin Sledge brought to the screening).

#atun shei films #the sudbury devil #puritans #17th century values #modern magic and medicine

26 notes · View notes

cookiecomics · 8 months

Note

Hello ! I'm a huge fan of ATOTT (I cried a lot because of it :D) and I wanted to ask how you plan your stories ? I'm trying to write a story but I don't really know how to start and what I should use, so I'm currently writing in my note app on my phone. Thank you very much for writing ATOTT and have a wonderful day/night !

Thank you for the sweet comments and for the tears, they water my plants <3.

I can tell you a bit about my process and you can adapt and change for what works for you! <3

Inspirations:

I watch a lot of writing videos since reading is a struggle for me with dyslexia and I tend to lose focus if it's not engaging so my favorite YouTube channels for advice on writing and storytelling are:

Hello Future Me

Brandon McNulty

OverlySarcasticProductions: Story Tropes Video

StudioBinder

They give alot of great advice on story structure, plot details, and how to subvert and develop your ideas. Things to consider when plotting your story and developing characters and even stuff that can help comb out plot ideas when you're frustrated!

IN TERMS OF HOW I PLAN MY STORY

I need an outline. This is a barebones, what happens from beginning to end with very little detail. For me, I cannot start any story without knowing what the ending is. Even if things change as the story progresses, having that initial start, middle, and end is super important for me.

3-ACT Structure: Then I divide the story outline barebones into the three-act structure for character development. Here's a great video on the three-act structure that I like :) It's not the only way to tell a story by any means, it's just what works for me. Particularly, my focus with the three-act structure is to ensure that the characters are changing tangibly from act to act. I'll usually have a small table, very small, that denotes how the major characters (minor characters much later) change from act to act in terms of goals, wants, personality, and relationships and that really helps me know that the story has some sense of progress no matter how the plot details might change.

Full Outline- Then I hunker down and try to figure out how to get to those character changes by developing my outline further to include plot details and this is also where I'll plot any plot twists or secrets in advance so I can foreshadow them earlier. For example, Ren in Act 1 to Act 2 to Act 3 have different mindsets around control. In act 1 Ren definitely feels like he's given up on any semblance of having control over his life, act 2 Ren explicitly maintains control no matter the consequences to get the ending he wants. and now Act 3 Ren is facing the consequences of all those instances of control in all of his closer relationships and he's given up on having the perfect ending act 2 ren was striving towards so fiercely. Focusing on "how would x get to y" is how i focus on what kind of events would change the characters into who they become late.

Turning points- lots of them: Act 1 and 2 have two turning points, which are essentially major events that change the direction of the characters in the plot. Act 1's turning points are chapter 12 and chapter 23 (Ren's attempt and Ren killing the principal) because both caused huge changes in Ren's character. For Goro, act 1's turning point was also Ren's attempt but also him discovering the truth about Shido. A turning point in my eyes, completely shifts the status quo of the story and impacts the characters fundamentally, and forces them to change to survive in these new circumstances

Review and Revisit my Acts after each one: My outline isn't a hard and fast rule, sometimes some scenes don't work out by the time I get to writing it. Sometimes characters take new directions, so usually after each ACT ends, I take a bit to review the next act with those changes in mind. Don't be too attached to what you've put down in your outline :) It's only there to guide you! It can change and evolve :)

That's more or less how I plan my stories :) I write in Google Docs 99% of the time. I do highly recommend the channels I listed :) They really fuel great ideas and provide excellent plotting and writing advice! I hope this was even a little bit helpful. SDKJFHSJF I think when planning a story, I focus less about the plot details and more about what the characters want and who they're willing to become to get those wants.

#advice #i guess

11 notes · View notes

piratical-princess · 9 months

Text

More bad (or in some cases pretty good) Xmas movie reviews here! I’ve tried some odd ones.

EDITED TO INCLUDE:

Christmas on Mistletoe Farm: This was EFFING CUTE. Super British. Quirky kids in hand knitted stuff and big Wellies. Baby barn animals everywhere. Comedic English overacting. As charming as a mouse in a teapot. I would watch it every year twice. The colors alone are scrumptious. 9/10

* Christmas Inheritance - As stereotypical as Christmas romance movies get. Small town, lonely innkeeper, main character returns to town to find the magic of Christmas by helping with some pageant or festival or whatnot. Bland but mainly pleasant but stop making characters do that slow head shake while sincerely singing thing, it’s weird . 4/10

A Christmas Movie Christmas - A fun swing at typical Christmas movies. Christmas magic transports two sisters into a Christmas movie of their own where they wake up every day with their hair and makeup already done and cookies already baked. Parts of it are funny, but it led me to the disturbing revelation that all B actors wear false teeth. 6/10

Christmas Chronicles 2: I was excited for this. Hot Santa, Belsneckel, Yule Cat. Nope. Bad. Please don’t bother, you’ll soil the first movie. 1/10

Dash & Lily : in spite of being about New York, this short series is really good and sweet. It’s a scavenger hunt of literature and romance and the art of loving your own weirdness against the backdrop of Christmas. It’s charming and colorful. Definitely not perfect, it is a high school aged series based on YA romance and that can sometimes lead to “youthful” acting, but it is good and I appreciated it and the music was superb. 9/10

Noelle - dang, I really liked this. It seems a discredit to say it’s like a gender bent Elf, but that is the broadest definition. Very warm and loving. 10/10

Scrooge: A Christmas Carol - this is the animated Netflix version. I have mixed feelings. I thought they took the art in some really interesting places. I thought the music was pretty terrible. I thought they did the lower budget animation thing where some characters look amazing and some look poorly thought out. I thought Scrooge was weirdly hot. 6/10

Mickey and Friends: Duck The Halls - Newer style of Mickey Mouse animation that is part Ren and Stimpy and part midcentury modern, which is awesome. Donald Duck stays in the snowy north for the winter and literally falls apart from the cold, lots of body horror. Hilarious. 10/10

Jingle All The Way - I know, it is weird that as a 90s kid, I had never seen this. I was promised a bad movie and I’m slightly disappointed that I loved the hell out of it. From Arnold expecting us to believe that he works in mattress sales and saying “you’re my numbah one custahmahh” with a cheesy grin to a brawl of underground gang Santas to Phil Hartman having the balls to hit on Arnold’s wife and moaning obscenely over the phone about how good her cookies are while Arnold yells “PUT DAT COOKIE DOWN”, it’s all amazing. But really the best part is the unexpectedly complex buildup of a real hero/villain relationship - the connection, the offer of friendship that gets rejected, the ensuing battle that becomes an insane bid for revenge, culminating in a real costumed fight that ends - in the true spirit of Christmas - with the police hauling away a grown man in a latex bodysuit clutching a toy he has ruthlessly stolen from a child that would grow up to become Darth Vader. 15/10

#Christmas #movies

14 notes · View notes

vashtijoy · 1 year

Text

index of meta posts, part three

possibly this is getting out of hand?

Indexes: [one] [two] [third semester] [akechi's confidant].

out-of-universe meta discussion

On Akechi's bodycount and how to interpret canon. (posted 2023/04/22)

Is Akechi obvious, or is Joker an unreliable narrator? (posted 2023/02/19)

On the "perfect victim" myth, and how Akechi does not consider himself a victim. (posted 2023/02/16)

Akechi's resemblance to Light Yagami is totally superficial and is meant to mislead you. (posted 2022/12/11)

cute things

Akechi uses the full title of the Featherman show, like Futaba. (posted 2023/04/26)

Goro, please carry an umbrella, you're killing me. (posted 2023/04/24)

What would Akechi's love language be? (posted 2023/03/25)

"Honey, I'm home": intimacy chicken with Joker. (updated 2023/03/26)

P5A: Akechi looks like a crow and shoots directly at Joker's head—and Joker laughs. (posted 2023/02/25)

"the fish are beautiful": Joker's impromptu diversion at the aquarium. (posted 2023/01/20)

sad things

NPC cop to drunk NPC: "Akechi-kun, your family is probably worried about you." (posted 2023/03/30)

The toy shop at the end of "Proof of Justice" is in Kichijoji. (posted 2023/03/014/09)

P5A: Akechi looks like a crow and shoots directly at Joker's head—and Joker laughs. (posted 2023/04/26)

Anon comment on Akechi getting dragged into the "found family" trope by the ankles. (posted 2023/02/18)

yes, there is gay subtext in your innocent waifu simulator. (posted 2023/02/07)

little details

[twitter] Akechi's main outfit is his school uniform. (posted 2023/06/23)

How did Morgana see Dome Town? Also, the RL TV studio. (posted 2023/05/30)

Akechi and the evil wristwatch he wears only on his own time. (updated 2023/05/03)

When does Akechi start using Joker's given name? (posted 2023/03/26)

Followup ask: can we pin this down more precisely? (posted 2023/07/22)

@somethingpersonarelated reviews Akechi's outfits [tags are mine]. (posted 2023/04/25)

Akechi's school uniform doubles as his day job uniform. (posted 2023/04/29)

The toy shop at the end of "Proof of Justice" is in Kichijoji. (posted 2023/04/26)

The toy gun, Proof of Justice, was likely conceived to be Akechi's palace treasure. (posted 2023/04/09)

tech stuff

[twitter] Material from the betas. (posted 2024/01/23)

[twitter] Technical requirements for Akechi's third awakening. (posted 2023/09/01)

Character signature colours and Yoshizawa's phone. (posted 2023/08/15)

Akechi's "cute wink" cut-in, and his "evil wink" cut-in, and when they're used. nb this is wrong and needs updating (posted 2023/04/08)

fic excerpts

Goro and his mother: Akechi at six. (posted 2023/11/30)

Goro and his aunt: Akechi at nine. (posted 2023/03/27)

Postcanon HCs and Ren finding Akechi again. (posted 2023/1/15)

Goro and his uncle: Akechi at thirteen. (posted 2023/04/26)

How would I like Akechi's story to continue? (posted 2023/03/21)

Shido confronts Akechi about the Metaverse. (posted 2023/03/04)

12/24: deduce, panic, kill: P5 as a comedy text adventure. (posted 2023/02/03)

other characters

How would Akechi and Mishima get on? (posted 2024/01/18)

Is Joker from the city or the country? (posted 2024/01/17)

Shido's Palace: what do the posters say? (posted 2024/01/14)

Deleted scene: Haru's hangout at Crossroads. JULIAN AND ANGEL WARNING. (posted 2023/12/14)

The Monabus was registered in Tsukiji. (posted 2023/11/20)

Haru: "we'll just take him out again". (updated 2023/10/19)

9/3: the Featherman allude to Haru on TV. (posted 2023/05/13)

How do we know Joker's grey shirt is sleeveless? (posted 2023/04/26)

@nardaviel's excellent guest post about Joker. (posted 2023/03/28)

On forgiveness: Haru's approach to Akechi. needs updating, sigh, that one Mementos line has at least another reply from Makoto. (posted 2023/02/12)

It's Yusuke who steps forward to tell Shadow Shido he was the worst dad. (posted 2023/01/02)

lolarity

P5 initially used "Saki Konishi" (the corresponding character in P4) as a placeholder name for Shiho. (posted 2024/06/07)

Incorrect Persona: "There was more than one lobster present at the birth of Jesus?" (posted 2023/12/25)

Miel et Crepes is (obviously) a pancake café. (updated 2023/05/28)

Would Futaba make Danganronpa jokes to Akechi? (posted 2023/05/15)

Akechi and the Russian takoyaki. (posted 2023/05/04)

Akechi allegedly smells like the sleazy Veteran Pick-Up Artist on Central Street. (posted 2023/04/30)

The other Goro Akechi (and the food blog). (posted 2023/01/22)

Akechi and Joker height truthing. (posted 2023/01/01)

Akechi, stop staring at Joker's bed. (posted 2022/12/27)

word of god references (other people's posts, etc)

from @starfirexuchiha: Some new Akechi trivia: What's in his attaché case? Akechi wears the argyle to copy Naoto. What's his apartment like? What bike does he ride? How is he with spicy food? Why and when does he eat with his right hand? Yes, Akechi awakened to both personas at the same time.

PQ2: rival characters have a greater presence when they're calm, and also Akechi probably painted the mural.

P5A: "for us, we know he's a detective."

P5A: why there is more Akechi.

"Maruki does not have concrete proof that Akechi is dead." (incidentally y'all, I would love a better source for this one.)

"Akechi's confidant is the key to the third semester". [JP]

#index

39 notes · View notes

stuff-diary · 8 months

Text

Silent

TV Shows/Dramas watched in 2024

Silent (2022, Japan)

Directors: Hiroki Kazama & Mai Takano

Writer: Miku Ubukata

Mini-review:

In the 10+ years I've been a part of the J-drama fan community, very few shows have taken it by storm like Silent in Fall 2022. There was so much hype and buzz around it that it felt daunting to watch it, so I ended up putting it off time and time again. Now, I regret not starting it back then, cause it really is that good. All the characters and their relationships are beautifully complex, even if I have to admit I didn't always understand/agree with their decisions. Also, I loved that the writer put the focus on healthy communication, pretty much showing that it's the key to everything, no matter what shape it takes. The drama's reflections on society's perception of disabled people are also quite interesting, and most dramas would never dare to talk about this stuff so frankly. On top of that, Haruna Kawaguchi and Ren Meguro give two beautiful, nuanced and unforgettable performances, making the whole thing all the more special. And kudos to the drama's team for actually casting some deaf actors, even if they only play very minor roles. (Yes, that's not much, but it's really rare in Asian dramas, so it's a start). Anyway, I'm really glad this gorgeous show met my crazy-high expectations.

9 notes · View notes

trashquisitor-shirozora · 1 year

Note

Oh my god the Mandalorian s3 decisions being a push to make Bo Katan more marketable for women makes so much sense.

I’ve been watching the flames of season 3 for afar wondering what possibly possessed them to sideline the wildly popular duo of Din and Grogu in favor of this Bo Katan stuff, aside from the obvious future content advertisement… it’s because it’s popular with women…

Like it’s a known pattern that corporations hate when something they’ve created aimed at men is disproportionately popular with women because they strive to keep a very distinct line between Boy things and Girl things. Anything Star Wars is for men, except the acceptable Girl Things like Leia and Padme and Asoka. But then the Mandalorian became wildly popular with women and they can’t just cancel a cash cow like the Mandalorian without milking everything they can from it so they’re like “well let’s bring in Bo Katan she’s for the Women now start making the toys”

I am so late to this but that meant time to simmer and seethe over Disney's decisions before and lately, and things I've read over the years about how corporations market to their target audiences, and how little things have changed.

I saw rumors and theories that KKKennedy (y'all sorry I keep calling her that but iykyk) meddled a LOT with The Mandalorian and Jon even threatened to quit, but at the end of the day the Mouse House has the final say and we're stuck with their decisions. I really don't know how the final numbers will look, how it'll affect their merch sales, and what it means for the future seasons of The Mandalorian. Maybe the hard pivot to redeem Bo-Katan for the bajillionth time will be the new cash cow or the canary in the coal mine (for The Mandalorian; I'm sure Ahsoka will be a hit no matter what). Maybe they gambled right or they've lost too many viewers who wanted Din and Grogu to be the heart and soul and center of this particular show. It's called The Mandalorian after all. If they want to claim that it could be any Mandalorian who's The Mandalorian of these season, then maybe Season 2 should've followed a different Mandalorian and established this before scamming us with Season 3. They were already trying that with TBOBF before having Din and Grogu steal the show.

But now that I've seen those rumors and theories, I could not fucking stop thinking about what happened when the ST was rolling out and when Rogue 1 and Solo came out. I could not stop thinking about the casting choices for Rey, Jyn, and Qi'ra, could not stop thinking about how white and brunette they were. I could not stop thinking about KKKennedy and others talking about how they wanted to bring more female fans to Star Wars, acting like Star Wars was exclusively a male space, which, what a fucking insult. I could not forget pictures of her wearing "The Force is Female" shirts and pushing this message so fucking hard that it would keep showing up in critical reviews of TLJ/TROS/ST as proof that Disney didn't know what it was doing.

Rey, Jyn, and Qi'ra were lucky to not have the kind of long history that Bo-Katan already had in the gffa by the time she made her live-action debut. It didn't take much to google her involvement in TCW and Rebels, and see what she'd done. I've seen commenters say she redeemed herself in Rebels by rallying the Mandalorians but are you sure about that? Are we still having trouble with writing redemption arcs after the fucking horrible one Disney put Kylo Ren through to the detriment of every other character not named Rey?

I wouldn't have minded Bo-Katan having greater involvement in Season 3 if she didn't basically take charge of not just the COTW but also the entire show. Watch out for the new merch of her with the Darksaber now. Probably the most we'll get out of Din is whatever happens to him in the season finale because Disney gotta make more money, amirite? Grogu got a new accessory so that Disney can sell new versions of him, so why not Din?

I truly envy the poeple who are having a good time or don't need to have these thoughts constantly in their heads while watching. I didn't have a good time and I can never turn those thoughts off. I don't have the luxury so I'm never shutting up about this.

ftr I unfollowed Okiro after the billionth time he called Din, Grogu, and Bo-Katan "Clan of Three". what the fuck had she done to earn equal footing?

#shirozora awkwardly responds to asks #the mandalorian #the mandalorian critical #mando critical #the mandalorian season 3 #mando spoilers #sorry y'all but as a yellow person i am ALWAYS constantly aware of this shit #i cannot deal with kkkennedy's brand of white feminism interfering with good stories and sensible character arcs #sorry also for these long asks but i can't help critical ramblings because i have nothing else to offer for this season #ask box will still be open but i gotta yeet myself out of it until I'm done with these illustrations

36 notes · View notes

puroresu-musings · 9 months

Text

NOAH "THE NEW YEAR" 2024 Review (Jan 2nd, 2024, Ariake Arena, Tokyo)

1, GHC Jr. Heavyweight Tag Title 3-Way Elimination Match - Alpha Wolf & Dragon Bane (c) vs. Alejandro & Ninja Mack vs. YO-HEY & Tadasuke ***3/4

2, Jake Lee, Jack Morris & Anthony Greene vs. El Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr., Titus Alexander & Vinnie Massaro **1/2

3, Masa Kitamiya vs. Tomohiro Ishii ****1/2+

4, Go Shiozaki vs. Satoshi Kojima ****

5, Great Sakuya & Nagisa Nozaki vs. Haruka Umesaki & Miyuki Takase **1/2

6, Takashi Sugiura vs. Ulka Sasaki ***

7, Hiroshi Tanahashi & HAYATA vs. Zack Sabre Jr. & Yoshinari Ogawa ***1/2

8, GHC Jr. Heavyweight Championship - Daga (c) vs. Eita ***

9, NOAH/NJPW vs. House of Torture 12 Man Elimination Match - Kaito Kiyomiya, Shota Umino, Daiki Inaba, Shuji Kondo, Ryohei Oiwa & Junta Miyawaki vs. EVIL, Ren Narita, SHO, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Yujiro Takahashi & Dick Togo ***3/4

10, GHC Heavyweight Championship - Kenoh (c) vs. Manabu Soya ****1/2

11, Naomichi Marufuji vs. Kota Ibushi *

This was my first full NOAH show I've watched in forever and it was a great watch. They pulled in a great crowd of over 5K, it had very good matches up and down the card, two fantastic bouts, but unfortunately it ended with one of the worst matches you're likely to see all year...

Things started hot with the Jr. Tag Title 3-Way. You know what to expect here; lots of crazy spots, not much in the way of traditional "psychology", and 100mph action. The crowd loved this and it was a great way to kick things off. There was confusion over the elimination nature of this one, and had it ended after after the first fall, I think I'd have liked it more, but it was a great little opener with the GLG duo of YO-HEY and Tadasuke eliminating both opponents at 8:48 and 12:24 respectively to win the straps. Things cooled down a tad with the next match, which was decent enough but just your standard 6-Man, which saw the GLG were victorious again.

The next match was something of a Dream Match for me, one that's been teased for a good couple of years now as Ishii and Kitomiya, two of my favourite guys from their respective companies, had an absolute war that is a strong MOTYC only two days in! You know what to expect here, it was tsandard Ishii big match fair, which is always tremendous. They pounded each other with chops, Lariats, headbutts, forearms punches and suplexes for 15:04, before Ishii got the win with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster. Amazing. The next match too was excellent as Go Shiozaki went over ageless veteran Satoshi Kojima, in a battle of the Go-wan Lariats! This was great, and kept relatively short at 13:56. Shiozaki won after an exchange of Lariats. Go formed a new faction called Team NOAH in the post-match.

Next up we got a couple of interesting debuts. "The Great Muta's daughter" Great Sakuya (Riko Kawahata) debuted in a doubles clash which ended in a DQ after she blew the dreaded Dokukiri in poor Umesaki's face. This was very silly, and the crowd were dead for it, but whilst it certainly wasn't great, it certainly wasn't bad either. The next match was better as former MMA fighter Ulka Sasaki battled NOAH legend Takashi Sugiura in a nice little exhibition. Sasaki looked good here, and it featured some good sequences, before Sugiura naturally won at the 11 minute mark with the Olympic Yossen Slam.

After intermission we got the ZSJ/Ogawa vs. Tana/HAYATA tag match. This was really good, as you'd expect, though at nearly 18 minutes it was a little long. They teased a lot of stuff with Zack and Tanahashi for their TV Title match at the Dome tomorrow. Sabre Jr. won for his team when he submitted HAYATA with a crazy leg stretch. The GHC Jr. Title bout was decent enough, as Daga retained over Eita in exactly 13 minutes. I expected a bit more here, and it ultimatly came off as a bit of a squash as Daga dominated the whole thing, despite the crowd really wanting Eita to win. The 6 on 6 Elimationation match was actually a lot of fun and I really enjoyed it. Like everyone else, I'm at the end of my tether with this HoT stuff (and don't even get me started on Narita's inexplicably asinine inclusion in this nonsense), BUT, this match proves if done right, it can be pretty great. Obviously we got all the token House silliness like the never-ending stream of low blows, interference and incompetent refereeing, but it built really well as it boiled down to Kaito and EVIL, with Kiyomiya looking like a hero as he overcame the odds and sent EVIL to the floor with a Shining Wizard at the 26:14 mark to win for the babyfaces.

The first half of the Double Main Event; Kenoh's GHC Heavyweight Title defence against former tag partner Manabu Soya came next and it was another fantastic, hard-hitting war, and another early MOTYC. We all know Kenoh's great, and I've always been a fan of Soya since his All Japan days, but he's kind of lingered in the NOAH mid-card since arriving and gotten lost in the shuffle somewhat. Well this was a coming out party if ever there were one, both guys looked fantastic here, and I was worried someone was going to get legit KO'd at points, given how hard they were hitting each other. Kenoh missed a Moonsault knee drop by a considerable margin at the end there, but recovered well by devastating the big man with some headkicks and got the submission win at 28:36 with the Kenoh Special. Excellent, excellent match. Shiozaki came out in the post match and challenged Strong Fist to a title match, which will be happening on January 13th. Count me in as these two always have great matches together. And this is where I'd recommend everyone just turn this show off...

The Marufuji/Ibushi main event *sigh*... look I'm sure everyone already knows about this match, something that once upon a time was a dream match, but in the harsh realities of 2024, was an abject nightmare. This match was all kinds of bad, as Ibushi came into this thing banged up to oblivion and physically incapable of doing... anything, really. AND IT WENT 33:26!!! Which honestly felt like a good couple of hours watching live. Ibushi announced he was working through a broken hand and foot in the days prior, and when he made his entrance with tears streaming down his face, I feared the worst. The reality is this match shouldn't have happened, or if it did, have it go like 10 minutes maximum or something. And certainly don't have it be the main event! It was total insanity to book this to go north of 30 minutes. But even then, nobody made Ibushi try to do his signature spots in this thing. The guy couldn't even get himself up to go over the ropes on a backdrop, so what made him think attempting a Moonsault to the floor was a wise move? Well, he seemingly broke his ankle doing so, and the match only descended into more of a train wreck from there. The crowd were dead, almost like they were at a funeral, the "action" was a level lower than snail pace, and watching it was a profoundly sad experience. I never thought I'd see the day when the Keiji Muto of 2023 looked more mobile and having more business being in the ring than Kota Ibushi ever. Ibushi won with Kamigoye to put everyone out of their misery, none more so than the two guys in the match, then there was a totally bizarre post match where Kiyomiya and Jake Lee came out and seemingly banished Ibushi from NOAH. Ibushi could barely stand or walk on his way to the back, and this is a match I'll never watch again in my life. I had thought about giving this a DUD, but I couldn't be that harsh given the circumstances. Also, Marufuji did try his best out there, bless him. But the fact is Ibushi needs some time away from the ring to heal. I mean, this could be the end of his illustrious in-ring career, which is beyond heartbreaking, and he's looked a shadow of his former self since he returned to wrestling last Spring, but he wasn't even the same person out there on this show.

All in all, this was a great supershow from NOAH, marred slightly by a catastrophically bad main event, for obvious reasons. But I recommend everyone check it out up the fab Kenoh/Soya match, and just pretend the Ibushi/Maru match never happened.

NDT

19 notes · View notes