#see how the honorable mentions is the same length as the list?

[violaceum-vitellina-viridis]

Top 9 No-Skip Albums, as tagged by @concertconfetti. this was,,, so fucking hard oh my god, I have so fucking many no-skip albums, narrowing it down to a top 9 was,,, hhhhhh. I made several decisions in the direction of "accurate representation of my music taste" and “formative to me as a person” because if I tried to pick favorites I was literally never going to narrow this bitch down at all.

tagging @storm-and-starlight and uhhhhhh anyone else who wants to do this you can say I tagged you :D

personal lore explanations under the cut!

these are not in any particular order, to be clear, because as stated narrowing this down was a bitch and a half so I'm definitely not trying to rank shit

▶ Folie à Deux by Fall Out Boy

to be entirely honest, the entirety of Fall Out Boy's discography is no-skips the whole way down, but Folie was the very first full album of theirs I heard so obviously it has pride of place. this album is so fucking good, okay, and I'm so glad that people are coming around to how much of a banger it is but like Vinn said in theirs, I AM going to be on the "I loved this album before it was cool" train for eternity.

favorite song: Disloyal Order Of Water Buffaloes

▶ Endgame by Rise Against

almost all of Rise Against's discography is also no-skips for me, but this one came out when I was in middle / high school and obsessed with dystopian fiction so it made An Impression. it's also the album that has Make It Stop on it, a song written about the rash of queer suicides that made national and international news in September 2010; as a queer kid and Rise Against fan who was heavily affected by those suicides and everything surrounding the media about them, it was incredibly formative for me.

favorite song: Make It Stop (September's Children)

▶ DIVISIONS by Starset

Starset is another band whose entire discography is no-skips the whole way down. they are in fact my absolute favorite band -- I have shaved their logo into my hair before, I have four tattoos on my fingers that correspond to 4 of their songs, and I've done VIP for every one of their Utah shows since 2018. this album is the winner out of all of theirs because it contains several of my most favorite songs by them and also every song on this album is an absolute banger live.

favorite song: Other Worlds Than These

▶ Wretched and Divine: The Story of the Wild Ones by Black Veil Brides

look, I was an emo/scene kid. what do you want from me. this album of theirs wins over We Stitch These Wounds entirely because this one is an Album™, meant to be listened to in order as it tells a story. it was also formative to me as a person because it came out when I was in high school. recently I relistened to this album through again and experienced the full spectrum of human emotions. 

favorite song: tie between Resurrect the Sun and Overture, possibly just those two as a pair

▶ Ceremonials by Florence + the Machine

the first time I listened to this album all the way through was shortly after a good friend died in high school, and the opening song Only If For A Night straight up gutted me alive (positive). the rest of the album proceeded to fundamentally rewire me as a person. 

favorite song: Heartlines

▶ Excommunication by Tyler Glenn

as an ex-mormon I am contractually obligated to love this album, and tbh even if I wasn’t, I would still love it. it’s an incredibly fantastic look at the up-down-sidways of a faith crisis – something that’s both a crisis, a terrible thing to experience, and also a kind of rebirth into freedom. I have,,, a lot of feelings about this album and Tyler Glenn okay.

favorite song: Black Light or Devil

▶ Pressure Machine by The Killers

The Killers said, “hey, Utah fans, do you want to know what it feels like to be flayed alive?” and then did not wait for an answer. oh my god, this album is,,, so much. it’s an ode to small town mormon Utah and it’s brutal in the best goddamn way. I genuinely tear up every time I listen through it, and some days I cannot listen to it at all for fear of dissolving into a puddle of sobs. I almost never hear one song without just going and listening to the whole album through, too.

favorite song: Sleepwalker

▶ Pins and Needles by The Birthday Massacre

I don’t even know what to say about this album, I just adore it so much. the poetry and word play and cool music, it’s just. so goddamn good. honorable mention to Walking With Strangers by them as well, but this one won entirely because it’s the one I listen to through/on repeat the most.

favorite song: Two Hearts

▶ Dark Is the Way, Light Is a Place by Anberlin

once again with a band whose entirety discography is straight bangers the whole way down, but again: this was formative to who I am as a person. it was one of the first albums I ever owned (alongside Cities by them as well), and I have seriously considered getting the album title tattooed. I probably will at some point if I can figure out a design and place for it.

favorite song: Pray Tell

additional honorable mentions because FUCK it was so motherfucking hard to narrow this down:

▶ The Horror and The Wild and Ruin by The Amazing Devil

▶ Let The Ocean Take Me by The Amity Affliction

▶ A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out by Panic! At the Disco

▶ Atlas I and Atlas II by Sleeping At Last

▶ Post Traumatic by Mike Shinoda

▶ For Your Entertainment by Adam Lambert

▶ BADLANDS by Halsey

[racefortheironthrone]

Hi- er, this is my first-ever writer's strike, how does one not cross a picket line in this context? I know how not to do it with things like Amazon and IRL strikes, but how does it apply to media/streaming?

Hi, this is a great question, because it allows me to write about the difference between honoring a picket line and a boycott. (This is reminding me of the labor history podcast project that's lain fallow in my drafts folder for some time now...) In its simplest formulation, the difference between a picket line and a boycott is that a picket line targets an employer at the point of production (which involves us as workers), whereas a boycott targets an employer at the point of consumption (which involves us as consumers).

So in the case of the WGA strike, this means that at any company that is being struck by the WGA - I've seen Netflix, Amazon, Apple, Disney, Warner Brothers Discovery, NBC, Paramount, and Sony mentioned, but there may be more (check the WGA website and social media for a comprehensive list) - you do not cross a picket line, whether physical or virtual. This means you do not take a meeting with them, even if its a pre-existing project, you do not take phone calls or texts or emails or Slacks from their executives, you do not pitch them on a spec script you've written, and most of all you do not answer any job application.

Because if this strike is like any strike since the dawn of time, you will see the employers put out ads for short-term contracts that will be very lucrative, generally above union scale - because what they're paying for in addition to your labor is you breaking the picket line and damaging the strike - to anyone willing to scab against their fellow workers. GIven that one of the main issues of the WGA are the proliferation of short-term "mini rooms" whereby employers are hiring teams of writers to work overtime for a very short period, to the point where they can only really do the basics (a series outline, some "broken stories," and some scripts) and then have the showrunner redo everything on their lonesome, while not paying writers long-term pay and benefits, I would imagine we're going to see a lot of scab contracts being offered for these mini rooms.

But for most of us, unless we're actively working as writers in Hollywood, most of that isn't going to be particularly relevant to our day-to-day working lives. If you're not a professional or aspiring Hollywood writer, the important thing to remember honoring the picket line doesn't mean the same thing as a boycott. WGA West hasn't called on anyone to stop going to the movies or watching tv/streaming or to cancel their streaming subscriptions or anything like that. If and when that happens, WGA will go to some lengths to publicize that ask - and you should absolutely honor it if you can - so there will be little in the way of ambiguity as to what's going on.

That being said, one of the things that has happened in the past in other strikes is that well-intentioned people get it into their heads to essentially declare wildcat (i.e, unofficial and unsanctioned) boycotts. This kind of stuff comes from a good place, someone wanting to do more to support the cause and wanting to avoid morally contaminating themselves by associating with a struck company, but it can have negative effects on the workers and their unions. Wildcat boycotts can harm workers by reducing back-end pay and benefits they get from shows if that stuff is tied to the show's performance, and wildcat boycotts can hurt unions by damaging negotiations with employers that may or may not be going on.

The important thing to remember with all of this is that the strike is about them, not us. Part of being a good ally is remembering to let the workers' voices be heard first and prioritizing being a good listener and following their lead, rather than prioritizing our feelings.

[39oa]

top 3 landoscar moments <3

miss risa you have no idea how difficult this was i think this is like 20x the acceptable length of what this prompt called for.

honorable mentions: not one specific moment but any instance of 1) lando constantly giving oscar the opportunity to win in the final round (see winner-takes-all during summer games + 100-point ultimatum in mini golf), i think if we tallied all their wins by round over the course of mclaren pr videos he'd honestly be above oscar by now, 2) lando being obessed with saying OSCUHHHH like it's an actual filler word he's ingrained into his basal speech patterns instead of his legal name, and 3) obviously oscar hearts-eyeing lando's entire existence in general though i think one great moment is the virgin radio uk appearance because why were they still managing to exchange extremely charged eye contact throughout 14 minutes of zak brown sitting between them. brah

other hms include ice bath video just because them making those sounds at each other was objectively hilarious, the cricket match-up (lando getting all worked up like "nice and easy oscar or else i'll take you off in the next race!!!" "i'm just worried about oscar, i feel like he's a silent killer you know" "oscahhh ): let me get you out mate ))):" and then oscar nonchalantly going Well it's only lando bowling i'll be fine. and immediately decimating him with his aussie schoolboy cricket prowess lmfao), suzuka in general but more specifically oscar not being prepared in the slightest to get absolutely doused by lando on the podium after he foksmashed his champagne, and also underrated landoscar moment is definitely oscar submitting the lando P3NI5 photo to a neural network image guesser.

ok let me get onto the actual list but thongs debate too just because lando obviously Knew but was doing it to be a little shit... in general i think what's fun to me about landoscar is that they've become quite natural in a sort of quiet domestic way so i like any moment that shows off their wordless communication, or alternatively oscar's endless level of patience + tolerance toward lando (listening to whatever pre-race music he blasts / silently giggling at his antics during the cake decoration video). like it's kind of funny when lando pretends in any way that he's miles more hilarious than oscar is because 1) he literally has the exact same sarcastic sense of humor, 2) 80% of his humor is a defense mechanism anyway, and 3) he's probably even more baseline introverted than oscar is (omg i could write a thesis on their social media presences but i won't.) and whenever people talked about how carlando were So Funny as teammates and mistakenly ascribed effusiveness to lando's character in response to their dynamic it quickly became apparent later on that carlos was always the one bringing this out in lando and not the other way around so... like i think their humor matches up well just in subtle moments aka the post-double podium video where oscar is like eyeing the way lando is holding his trophy at the start and then lando gets embarrassed and they start giggling while poor andrea is trying to make his speech like If you two don't stop!!

ANYWAY THE LIST:

🥉 twister: not really because it tells me anything wrt aspects of their dynamic but just because it's SO RIDICULOUS AND UNHINGED. first of all it's such a stunning instance of lando being better at something than oscar is but then the something is literally just being flexible so that's already a large enough indictment there (why are you as a man only good at golfing and being a little gaybo... i won't). but like [face-to-face with oscar's ass while folded up like a little pretzel] "what a sight that is" / "OSCUHH" x5 WHILE HIS VOICE IS LITERALLY GOING HOARSE IN THE PROCESS / and of course the most formative "YOUR LEFT FOOT IS NOT GOING BETWEEN MY LEGS!!!" actually dynamics-wise this WAS informative in that it proved to us that oscar will always be the first to lose at gay chicken. amen

🥈 sportbible green flag video: i think this video deserves to be slotted in at #2 because it's from when their teammate dynamic was still somewhat fresh but it proved to me that oscar was capable of Handling lando... like lando was clearly On One here and saying the most genuinely unhinged shit and somehow oscar still managed to find him funny and charming?!?? which i think is important because as much as oscar has always been characterized as chill and accepting there have been instances of him being genuinely flabbergasted and/or frustrated during his prema days which is of course also a reflection of age and natural maturity, but i still feel like specifically with lando he is SOOOOO TOLERANT of all his particularities and FOR WHATTTTTT. but also you can see during the >LOOK AT YOU WITH YOUR STUPID GOATEE ON moment that this was when lando was starting to understand that oscar wouldn't bend to everything he said and could be witty and incisive (silent killer) when he wanted to be and i think this is important as well in determining the equal footing of their dynamic. tbh my favorite moment here is the entire astrology question because of lando confidently assigning oscar piscesisms when that couldn't be any further from the truth. go off king of rejecting logical reasoning

🥇 LANDO'S BIGGEST FAN INCIDENT: this is #1 to me for so many reasons aka 1) i think this was formative to landoscar taking off as a ship in general because it spanned multiple fics but also 2) this was Personally what convinced Me to actually invest in 814 ship stonks because beforehand i was like "ok clearly oscar likes lando as a teammate and lando thinks oscar is a little lame and dry (in a mildly derogatory instead of fond way) and also oscar is just an attentive listener in general so his heart eyes disposition is mildly exaggerated" but then i watched this and it rewired my brain chemistry. the way we were still skeptics in august... 

this whole fanmeeting is insane for several reasons but basically it boggles my mind because the entire exchange starts from the moment oscar is DESCRIBING HOW LARGE HIS NECK HAS GOTTEN which means lando is like sitting there quietly cataloguing the size of his body while oscar gets mildly flustered by the nature of the conversation and then lando deliberately cuts in like mate i'll buy you a new shirt and you can tell you can TELLLLL he was sitting on that response making sure it read well in his head. also it's doubly insane because when oscar responds that he'll get him a smaller shirt to strangle him they're both clearly interpreting it in bad faith like "you just want to get rid of me because i'm your competition xD" but then for whatever reason lando decides to make it Exceedingly weird 5 seconds later and his VOICE LITERALLY CRACKSSSS WHEN HE SAYS HE'LL BUY HIM A SEE-THROUGH SHIRT???????? like what's all this then. why did he essentially call oscar fit. why did he default to his little fantasy of seeing Known Bad Dresser oscar piastri in a shirt detailing lando's possession of his affections. genuinely calamitous levels of embarrassing for everyone involved i don't even know what to say.

ok i'll stop but hopefully this was informative <3 i'm so sorry

edit: omg i forgot to mention this but also the iconic silverstone fan stage side-hug and lando's whole face lighting up when he realized oscar was the one initiating physical contact!!!! 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫

[allyourkayfabefriends]

Top Albums of 2023

Hello everyone!

It's that time of year again! For me personally, it's been a hectic year, but an exciting one too. I did my best to keep up with new music, and listened to new albums with pretty good regularity, however I didn't find myself revisiting a lot of new records, at least not yet. In the list to come, I definitely see most of them as growers, records I'll fall in love with in the years to come, that already have left a strong impression on me. Just this year alone I spent a lot of time with 2022 releases I adored like Alvvays' Blue Rev and Panda Bear & Sonic Boom's Reset, and another record I'll give special mention to in a minute. I'm hoping to fall more in love with these records, and all the records I missed this year! Let's dive in

My Favorite Record from 2022 That I Listened to For the First Time in 2023: MJ Lenderman - Boat Songs

Ripping off this gimmick from Steven Hyden, who actually put this record tied for the #1 spot last year (with Big Thief's fantastic double album that was in my own top 10). I really became enamored with the alt-country sound this year, and this record was just the perfect scratch for that itch. The songs veer from aching to rocking, sometimes in the same track. My absolute favorite song of the year was "You Are Every Girl to Me" on this album, which evokes such strong feelings in me it's hard to describe. MJ had a big year being part of Wednesday, but I'm excited to see where he goes next as a solo artist!

Honorable Mentions: The Replacements - Tim (Let It Bleed Edition) M83 - Fantasy Alan Palomo - World of Hassle Greg Mendez - Greg Mendez Olivia Rodrigo - GUTS

10. Sufjan Stevens - Javelin

I've been a Sufjan fan for a long time now, probably around 8 years or so. I've always admired his ability to capture such intimate feelings with such sweeping and varied instrumentations. His last full length under his own name, The Ascension, came out in 2020, when a lot of new music wasn't really sticking with me. The Ascension had the same vastness that I came to know in Sufjan's work, but it felt slightly distant. Javelin closes that gap. From social media posts, it seems like Sufjan has had a tough year, and this record is about grappling with pain and loss. Removed from that narrative, the songs here build and grow with such beauty that although I've only listened in full once, I'm almost saving myself from the full wallop I know this record will give me once I really dive in. Thank you Sufjan, for everything.

Crucial track: "Shit Talk"

9. Squid - O Monolith

Squid are an exciting band to come out of the vibrant post-post(-post?)-punk scene in England. I really liked their 2021 debut, Bright Green Field, but it was sprawling and epic, and it could feel tough to revisit. O Monolith takes everything that was great about BGF and builds on it, while also focusing in a bit more. With 8 songs at about 40 minutes, this record experiments with post-rock-esque tension builds, vocoders, and engaged, involved guitar work. I feel like these songs will work well live as well. Excited to see how this band continues to grow!

Crucial track: "Siphon Song"

8. Wednesday - Rat Saw God

I know, I know, how surprising. I am not immune to Wednesday's Rat Saw God being on my year end list. Despite not having listened to this record a ton, I can definitely already feel like this is going to go down as a critical cornerstone of where alternative/guitar-oriented rock music will go for maybe the rest of the decade. As I fell in love with MJ Lenderman's Boat Songs, I grew to appreciate this record more and more. With huge, crushing fuzzed-out electric guitars mixed with beautiful pedal steel, it's really hard to resist this record's charms. Even revisiting their 2021 record, Twin Plagues, was a delight. Can't wait to listen to it more!

Crucial track: "Chosen to Deserve"

7. JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown - SCARING THE HOES

Another hyped up album I couldn't help but put on my list. While not being super long to begin with, this record flies by, and it can be hard to miss everything. I've been a fan of Danny Brown for awhile, and have skirted around JPEGMAFIA's work, so this was a good introduction to hear them work so well together. JPEG's production here is insane, and both are firing at full mischievous speed. Just check out that sample at the end of "Fentanyl Tester".

Crucial track: "Fentanyl Tester"

6. Mitski - The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We

Yay! Mitski! After the kind of underwhelming Laurel Hell from last year, this record finds Mitski back at nearly full strength. Again, my weakness for pedal steel bleeds through, and I love Mitski experimenting with a new, more acoustic and natural sound. This is another record I haven't listened to more than once or twice yet, but I'm still excited to fall more in love with it. She's back!!

Crucial Track: "Bug Like an Angel"

5. The Tubs - Dead Meat

As a huge fan of bands such as Los Campesinos! and Martha, I've always had a soft spot for British rock bands with heart. The Tubs are no different, and in my year-end revisit, this record really stood out to me. It has the jangle of old British folk and early R.E.M. with the propulsion of Joyce Manor, not forsaking sweet melodies and harmonies along the way. At 28 minutes long, I insist you give this a spin!

Crucial track: "That's Fine"

4. Yo La Tengo - This Stupid World

For a long time, Yo La Tengo admittedly did not click with me that much. I'm not sure what changed, but their ability to vary between raucous, distorted shoegaze to calm, reflective instrumentals really stuck with me. On This Stupid World, they've once again found that sweet balance. Bolstered by arguably one of the best concerts I went to this year, I've really come to love this record a lot.

Crucial Track: "This Stupid World"

3. Avey Tare - 7s

Avey Tare has always been my favorite member of Animal Collective. His 2019 record, Cows on Hourglass Pond, is my favorite solo release from anyone in the group. Avey has apparently been sitting on 7s for a little bit now, and I'm so glad it's in the world. Avey continues his unique blend of experimentation with profound moments of beauty, melody and depth. He's also been working more with the bass guitar on his and AnCo's latest albums, and it really works well on tracks like "Invisible Darlings" and "The Musical". Hey Bog is an epic in a year full of Animal Collective epics. Very happy with this one!

Crucial Track: "Lips at Night"

2. Animal Collective - Isn't It Now?

Animal Collective have always inspired a dedicated, eager fanbase. After a few years doing their own things, the four core members of the group have reunited to make an ultimate "for the heads" record, with Isn't It Now. Last year's Time Skiffs built on a lot of things the band as a four-piece did well, and made it more melodic and accessible (again, Avey's bass playing and Panda Bear sitting behind a proper drum kit have changed their sound in a way you wouldn't expect), however this record takes it one step deeper. As typical with Animal Collective records, the band often plays songs that will appear on the *next* record on tour for the one they just put out. As a result, when I saw Animal Collective twice last year, they played most of the songs that ended up on this record. However, I did not fall victim to demoitis, and these songs sound magnificent. Definitely their densest record, but full of rich sounds, melodies and just the right amount of melancholy. Really really love this one.

Crucial Track: "Genie's Open"

1.Jeff Rosenstock - HELLMODE

Jeff Rosenstock is my favorite musical artist. For nearly 20 years, everything he has put out, whether under his own name with his backing "Death Rosenstock" group, Bomb the Music Industry!, or Antarctigo Vespucci, has been great to amazing punk music. On HELLMODE, his first full-length since moving to California in early 2020, has Jeff more level-headed and reflective than ever, but also bursting with the sheer kinetic energy that has made his work a joy to listen to and experience since i became a fan in early college (seriously, go see Jeff live if you can!). There's a maturation here that doesn't sacrifice his passion in the slightest. This feels like a big budget record, but in all the right ways. Songs like I WANNA BE WRONG, 3 SUMMERS, and LIFE ADMIN capture the feelings of trying to work through your own life with so much crashing down around us. This has been the most in-love I've been with a new record in a long time, where I could really not get enough of it in the first month when it was released.

Thanks for reading if you made it this far! Here's hoping to a peaceful, loving and fulfilling 2024. Much love to all!

[therulerofallpotatos]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love ❤

Curious what ur fav fics of yours are? 👀🖤🩷

Like ever?Like my five favorite fics of ever? oh boy ok lemme pull up the list

Well immediately I Bit Him so He's Mine is coming to the top of the list which isn't even done yet but is sitting rn at around 40k, is my longest project ever and officially novel length. Between the writing a murder mystery, writing a low fantasy adventure, the gothic/fairytail romance, the hyde wednesday/hyde tyler scenes, the subplots, and the fact that I'm not able nor do i want to rely on psychic visions for information, this is the most involved and exciting project I've probably ever done. Before Wednesday, I hadn't really sat down and written a proper drawn out mystery plot and this is the first where there were no psychic visions either. It's also officially longer than my Absolution novella which is not on this list just because that fic was one of the first I ever wrote and it shows. (though it is special to me because of that)

2. I'll add Wandering in the Dark because it was born of a prompt that my hs senior english teacher gave the class for a project that'd been anticipated (or dreaded depending on who you were) all semester. Basically, we all got to draw a disease (chronic I believe or at least mine was) out of a hat and then just do whatever we wanted writing a story with it. He gave me complete creative freedom. I wrote steter fanfiction which is also why it reads for someone who isn't familiar with teen wolf. I got an A.

3. My Lost Soul (Lead Me to Redemption) was my baby for a long time. It was one of the first pieces I ever wrote in a creative writing class which I then rewrote as sterek fanficiton and evolved into a whole series with Derek, Stiles, and Peter becoming the Hale Pack again. My writing style and quality drastically changes from beginning to end and there's something special about getting to see that firsthand reading this series. I'm sure it would only have continued if I hadn't lost steam for the story.

4. This is not a fair game. I'm not even left my teen wolf list yet.

4. I suppose I'll put Have You Seen Me? because idk I just like it. I like it a lot. I like exploring Tyler immediately after the cave. I like the title and the way the summary is just Tyler's wanted poster. I like how it leads into Wednesday going to Nevermore and I like how they interact with each other and Tyler being an Addams

5. Hold Me Close and it's sister fic Pin Me Down (to be posted) will have to take place as well. I'm counting both because I love them for the same reason. I've been writing officially since 2016 and for at least as long I always knew that I would eventually write my own fuck or die/sex pollen fic and that I'd take the approach of approaching the potential trauma and very present vulnerability present in the premise. Plus, the sex marathon aspect was a good writing challenge to stretch out the sex scene long enough to actually feel like a marathon reading it. Hold Me Close's sex scene was around 3000 words. Pin Me Down's sex scene is 3455 words long.

Honorable mentions for an abandoned multi-chap from high school that I hadn't thought about for years solely because I recently went to a convention where I met a lot of local authors and talked their ears off about writing and the genres we do and our current projects (and I had plenty due to wyler week and the bingo) and this one author recognized my ao3 alias and loved the fic in question. Mark Me an Angel for the hannigram fandom which also is a good example of why you plan a basic plot/direction when you start something.

[zerodaryls]

For the ask game! 16, 37 and 43

16. have you ever wanted to tell someone something but you didn’t?

yeah usually like cussing out my toxic family members but then i didn't because i realized it was healthier and more effective to just cut them off entirely <3 i could have verbally destroyed my stepdad with a single sentence but i am actually better than he is so instead i just don't talk to him at all lmao

37. favourite actor/actress

idk if i have one, because usually my favorite actors are just whoever play the blorbos of whatever series i'm currently fixated on, so it varies from time to time. and even then i wouldn't say they're favorites because i just like their characters, not necessarily them as a person (side-eyes d*rk and dw*ght) lmao.

hmm, in honor of the origin of my url i'm gonna say Bill Pullman.

he's just so iconic and i'm always happy to see him on screen and he gives me a whole heckin' lot of gender envy lol i have literally taken photos of him to a salon and been like GIMME THE HAIR (he has had the same goddamn hair style his entire career, i dare you to find a photo of him where his hair isn't this same basic style lol like it varies in length but it's always the same cut and i LOVE it)

he's in like. so many of my favorite movies. Zero Effect (blog url inspo), While You Were Sleeping (fave romcom), Brain Dead (fave psychological/existential horror movie), Independence Day (...one of my fave sci-fi/alien movies), Spaceballs (...I wouldn't actually call this a favorite movie of mine tbh but like it's so fucking iconic I can't not mention it), AND there's this super cringe scene in Mr. Wrong (terrifying movie, it's billed as a comedy but it's legit a horror film to me lmao, do not recommend) where he sings Hold The Line by Toto (my favorite band) really badly and it's just. So iconic. almost ruined the song for me. almost. (no one can ruin Toto for me. 'tis not possible.)

43. favourite song ever

oh come on you can't do that to me, i can't pick a fave song ever, that's not a thing, i don't know how to do that :')

but as i mentioned Toto... it's gonna be one of theirs, lol. i can't even choose one goddammit i'll do a top three (stRUGGLING EVEN TO DO THAT... THE 'TISM CANNOT CHOOSE)

gonna put Rosanna first because it's the first song I remember rocking out to when i was like 3 years old in my car seat and telling my dad to turn up the car radio

next up Can't Stand It Any Longer because EVERYTHING ABOUT IT IS PERFECTION, from Joe Williams' vocals to the melody to the beat to the ALL THE MUSIC TERMS I'M NOT EDUCATED ENOUGH TO COMMENT ON IN DETAIL hskjdfhkjsdhfdjksf

aaand as much as it pains me to only choose one more i'll go with one from the Isolation album so you can hear another vocalist (the amount of vocalists this band has had... and they're all so talented in their own ways and GAWWWWWWD I LOVE THIS FUCKIN BAND SO MUCH I'M GONNA SCREAM),, anyway here's Endless:

i could literally talk about Toto all day so i'm gonna have to cut myself off here before this becomes an infodump lmao

............actually i'm gonna put one last song because it came up in the recommended sidebar and Joe is fucking adorable in this video and gives me a lot of gender envy and YES THAT'S PAULA ABDUL DANCING,, WHY WASN'T THIS ONE OF THEIR BIGGEST HITS I DON'T UNDERSTAND

....a..and... um... listen i hate listing 4 things because that doesn't feel rounded out so here's one more to make it a nice rounded 5,, featuring Steve Lukather as a BABY (okay he's like 21 but he looks like a baby) and because I can't list a bunch of Toto songs and not feature any from their 70s era:

i need those rainbow suspenders.

...okay sorry sorry i was entirely possessed by my autism for a minute there 😅 thus concludes the post. thanks for the asks and for opening up my big chaotic box of obsession lol.

[marvelrarepairbingo]

SUMMER SPLASH/PRIDE MONTH MINI-EVENT

Happy PRIDE MONTH!!

If you're already a part of our brilliant and fun Discord Family, you've seen the announcement for our Summer Splash/Pride Month mini-event! New cards are up (and I'll post them here shortly), and the rules for this mini-event are the same as the Spring Fling event. Don't worry, I'll post everything here. This event starts today, June 1st, and runs the whole length of the summer, so there's plenty of time to participate!

We intend for it to be a fun, low pressure event where members will be able to use any of the prompts to replace squares on your current card if you would like to do so.

For this event, we have cards that are exclusively NSFW and those that are SFW. You can pick either one, but know that if you pick a SFW card you can fill the prompt with a NSFW story. If you pick a NSFW card, you can also do a SFW fill (although some prompts might be a little challenging in that). It's up to you what you come up with. We want to see how creative you can be so for this event with the cards you can choose from one of the pre-made cards listed below and have fun creating.

You can pick ANY of the cards below that inspire you to gain a special Spring Fling badge at the end of the event. As mentioned before you can use any of these prompts on the card you pick to replace any of your current squares if you'd like or if you simply want to do the prompts for the event itself that's okay too.

Because these cards are a little different than the normal cards, to get a bingo and be eligible for a bingo/coverall badge, you have to complete the five square prompts. That's it for this one as it is a smaller card meant to be a fun little add on. Anyone who does 1 fill can get a badge of participation.

Event Rules

Please no character/ship bashing! Also, no kink shaming on other’s work! This is a place where we encourage people to feel safe in their creativity. If you don’t like something someone creates then try to follow the rule “Don’t Like, Don’t Read/Comment/Etc”. We want this to be a friendly zone for everyone to feel included so please keep that in mind. We want you to create and explore, but be sure to be mindful of your other Marvel loving fans because we want everyone to have a good time!

While we understand that everyone has their own thing that inspires them, we ask that your fills do not contain incest, underage (under 18), rape/non-con or any bestiality themes. If you have any questions about this rule, please feel free to contact us so we can clear up anything for you.

Any fan works that you have made are allowed to be in this event. This Bingo is not just limited to writing and drawing, so if you have something else that inspires you, let your mind roam free and create!

When making a fill be sure to label it accordingly. Warnings are important to readers so if you think you might need one please include it!

In this bingo event we want everyone to have fun, but for safety purposes we want this event to be for those 18+. We encourage authors and artists of all ages to keep creating, but for this event we’d like to keep it adults only. Thank you so much for respecting that and we appreciate your interest moving forward! We are operating on an honor system as we can’t check everyone’s age, so please be respectful in moving forward in signing up.

And now the cards!

SFW 01

SFW 02

SFW 03

NSFW 01

NSFW 02

NSFW 03

LET'S HAVE FUN, FOLKS!

[adultswim2021]

The Room (featuring Space Ghost bumpers) | April 1, 2010 - 12:00AM | Special

The time-honored April Fools stunt for 2010 was a repeat showing of The Room, with a twist.

Tonight’s viewing of The Room was augmented with special bumpers featuring Space Ghost interviewing a befuddled Tommy Wiseau. He seems perpetually perplexed about what exactly is going on, and most of the footage of him is very outtake-centric. In addition to interview segments, there are also short bumpers of just him on the Space Ghost monitor saying something to the effect of “you are watching The Room on Adult Swim” and mentioning April Fools. He fumbles this repeatedly, and we see the results in these bumpers.

I remembered this rather fondly, and this time around I was eager to sink my sterling chompers into these bumpers again. I quite confidently put these on my list for stuff to cover as if they weren’t going to be relegated to an EPHEMERA CORNER. Really, it’s about 50/50 as to weather or not that was a sound decision. These are technically bumpers. Added up they almost make up the length of a Space Ghost episode. Well, it’s longer than “The Mask”, at least. I watched a compilation of the bumpers on archive.org, and if I’m to believe that these are in the same order they aired in, then what happens is the interview segments actually run out and all that’s left are those brief bumpers of Tommy ID’ing the program you’re watching.

Some have a natural aversion towards Tommy Wiseau, and I don’t blame them. I legitimately love watching The Room, and think he’s entertaining in his awfulness. This charming badness takes a hit when he's trying to be funny, but some of the good stuff sneaks in, by the nature of Space Ghost's emphasized use of unguarded moments. The very last bumper has Tommy beginning to complain about the fact that the studio space was in close proximity to some annoying neighbors. My money's on Dinner and a Movie filling the studio with the pungent aroma of their Monster-In-Law-sagna.

A few moments in these bumpers are funny; like when Space Ghost and crew just talk about how bad The Room is without accounting for the fact that they’re saying it to the creator’s face. That's a benefit of retroscripting; they weren’t REALLY being nasty to Wiseau’s face, but far after the fact. The magic of non-live television.

Other earmarks of Space Ghost silliness include George Lowe prattling on about Lens Crafters advertising, as well as a segment where Moltar and Zorak trade The Room quotes to a confused Space Ghost (this is actually the only thing I remembered with any clarity from my original viewing of this in 2010).

Space Ghost also references Tommy by the Who, and then bruskly explains “that was a reference”. That style of reference is common on Space Ghost, and that sort of deconstruction almost gives this an air of finality… that is, if one wanted to consider this a final Space Ghost episode. Problem is: It sorta isn’t. Stringing the interview segments together doesn’t seem like it would result in anything cohesive, and I wonder if there was ever some idea that this would result in a new 11 minute Space Ghost episode. The final product doesn’t seem to suggest so. 

This was a welcome return from Space Ghost, but I think it’s only marginally better than the GameTap episodes. I can’t even discern if this was written by members of the old crew or the GameTap team or perhaps some interloper. And I assume we will never know.

[caroloftheshells]

long elaborate "stuff of the year" post

life events...

started dating my awesome partner!

became an aunt!

2 of my good friends got married to their partners!

had covid twice! (once was technically a holdover from last december)

presented at conferences in person for the first time!

finished coursework, studied for comprehensive exams, and passed said exams!

new games...

sound voltex exceed gear (there is a cabinet in an arcade i go to almost every thursday now)

inscryption (not done with it yet! thus, do not tell me anything about this game lol)

red dragon inn

secret hitler

exceed (w/guilty gear & blazblue character decks)

concept

hues & cues

three sisters

azul (the one my sib has is the chocolate edition)

music... [here begin the lists of official Favorites as opposed to just Stuff Done]

"top songs": bunker (pva) / cherry (daphni) / cujo kiddies (disq) / mighty cloud (wooze) / o.k. (yellow magic orchestra) / flowers (cibo matto) / ebony eye (yves tumor) / i'll have what she's having (wooze) / ice age (how to destroy angels) / le pain perdu (cibo matto)

favorite albums that came out this year: i killed your dog (l'rain), masego (masego), dream in dream (cornelius), that! feels good! (jessie ware), the age of pleasure (janelle monáe)

favorite albums that didn't come out this year: cherry (daphni), va-11 hall-a ost (garoad), safe in the hands of love (yves tumor), bitter (meshell ndegeocello)

honorable mention bullet point: i got mad about somebody's incorrect tier ranking of steely dan songs on youtube and my partner & i collaboratively settled on a new (song-by-song) ranking of their output through two against nature. this meant listening to said whole discography which truly has some epic highs and lows a la high school football. the fact that pearl of the quarter and king of the world coexist on the same album... bewildering

movies... in general did not watch as many this year as last so this will be a shorter list, & not ranked, but some of the ones i liked were

first reformed

all that jazz

ju-on / the grudge

across the spiderverse

john wick 1-3

he got game

we're all going to the world's fair

skinamarink

talk to me

the others

godzilla minus one

tv...

fma 2003 and i think that's it?

books... see this post which was my comps reading list. but the biggest props in terms of full-length books go to

rationalizing culture (born)

birds of fire (fellezs)

living genres in late modernity (kronengold)

industry (robin)

[chemicalbrew]

2022 game list

2022. Truly, the year of uhh. I'm glad that not only can I write this post in the first place, but I have at least a few banger games to report on as well.

Thank Aidios, the list is much shorter than the '21 one. And due to this short length, it's going to be in order, just like my first list!

Shoutout to the three games I decided to cut (Head AS Code\Birth ME Code and Atelier Ryza) - they basically ensured that this year would have been off to a rough start. The former two are a pale imitation of the thrill of Zero Escape that I sought to replicate (complete with an unhealthy amount of innuendos) and the latter... turned out to just not be my kind of game, like, at all. I stared Ryza in the face and thought 'oh god, is this what is considered a fun protagonist these days??'

I was, in fact, impressed, that these games were logged this year and not an eternity ago... 2022 has been kinda rough :(

I'm still looking forward to the third ABiMe game, if only to laugh at it hysterically. I love how much the first two games upset me.

Honorable (maybe) mentions: CrossCode (PC, 2018) [♪ Battle 2]

On the surface, this is a game made for me. Incredible pixel art (even down to the squeaky clean UI), witty writing, a charming silent protagonist, a creative plot hook (I mean, have you seen an RPG try its best and mostly succeed at replicating an MMO game?)… but there is one problem.

It's also a platformer. That's all I need to say.

Ironically, this wouldn't be a problem if I didn't like the rest of the game so much - one of the things CrossCode does best is the distinction between the optional and the required. I didn't have to spend hours trying to make sense of the maps or execute somewhat brutal (for me, someone who is very much prone to avoiding platformers that require any semblance of skill) platforming challenges, but... I also did.

I know, I know - it's more telling of the problems I personally have when I play games than anything else, but at the same time, the way the game is structured meant that it gradually became more and more overwhelming for me, as most platformers do (see also: Celeste, Cave Story, etc...). So I ended up dropping it!

Which sucks, because, as I mentioned, everything else about CrossCode is super fun! The frantic battle system (that makes me think of early Ys, but on steroids) encourages you to mow enemies in your path down as efficiently as you can with the skills you yourself get to choose, the side quests do just enough to pull you into the world, the mystery of the very nature of our protagonist is mostly intriguing, and the music is everything you could want from a modern game that takes inspiration from the old, if I'm being honest. I find myself thinking about it a lot outside of the game, and while I was playing, it was a treat to look forward to new tracks.

I was totally ready to fall head over heels for this game, and in the end, I didn't even get to see the plot twist that every review seems to be so upset about! It's a tragedy, really.

Live A Live (Switch, 2022)

You might think I’m refusing to include the usual OST highlight because I personally didn’t think much of the soundtrack (and a lot of the tracks I did like ended up kinda overplayed), but no, I’m doing it because a) the remade OST is consistently taken down everywhere (thanks Square) and b) the remake doesn’t have an option to switch between SNES music and arrangements of it. If I had to put something in its place, it would easily be Select-A-Live, though. Simple, elegant, encompassing of the game’s main draw.

Anyway! Have you ever seen a game that prides itself on being as creative as it is compact (that has been remade maybe just a bit too faithfully)... and then throws all of its pride away in the final act? Cause honestly, this is as succinct of a description for Live A Live as I can muster.

What makes this game unique and seemingly ever enduring in the hearts of fans is how it wasn’t afraid to toy with what RPGs of the distant year of 1994 seemed to represent while also being a sort of love letter and time capsule to stories, tropes and themes of wildly varying sorts. The diversity here - from a wordless story of a caveman learning the joys of love to a straight up Street Fighter-turned-RPG boss rush to a futuristic narrative about duty and humanism and how these two things can clash with one another to... well, you get the point - is genuinely impressive, and with it, it’s easy to see how and why this game, even while being painfully niche, paved way to quite a few modern darlings of the genre.

The intrigue and joy born of brevity makes the subsequent twist even more impressive... in how far removed it feels from the rest of the game. The different paths converging, being forced to fight boundless hatred across time and space... borne of what could be described as either a tragedy worth mourning or a narrative so pathetic it makes everything the game spent the past 20 hours setting up feel insignificant in retrospect, no matter how tightly and lovingly executed it actually was, both in terms of gameplay and narrative.

At first I couldn’t believe the game dared return to the very early makings of the genre it so lovingly subverted. Then I was delightfully surprised - for the last time, as layers of subversion doubled in on themselves. The hero never saved the princess. The world collapses around him as he gets set up by his close friend (who was also, to make matters worse and\or more contrived, cheating on him... with the princess) and exiled from the world he knew, and as the Shakespearean antics of this chapter get cranked up to eleven, everyone the hero has known ends up dead for one tragic reason or another, which makes him do such a sharp 180 on the path of good that... he resolves to spread hate. Across time and space. Yup, the cause of literally everything you had to resolve up until now was a guy with no coping mechanisms who shouldn’t even be aware of half the places his incarnations end up in. It’s... a bit ridiculous.

And, in terms of gameplay, his chapter is aggressively old-school, with its ‘unique’ gimmick literally being random encounters, the exclusion of which I had been ready to praise the game for before this point. If Live A Live wanted me to appreciate what good it had earlier, it succeeded in the worst way possible.

Even starting the final stretch of the game feels strange - unless you choose the ~evil~ path, which, admittedly, is a genuinely wonderful spin on things I wish other games would recreate. Where else do you get to be the big final boss,  beautiful sprites and everything, seven times in a row, with your goal being to ruin the lives you fought so hard to preserve just a few hours earlier? Maybe it’s just me, but there’s something weirdly enjoyable about getting to actually exploit movesets that the AI would use against you with a deliberate weakness. Otherwise, you pick up right where the hopeful ending you painstakingly earned left off, and watch your character of choice whisked away into the world of previously mentioned tragic villain with no rhyme or reason.

From there, you must grapple with random encounters (made awkward with each of the previous characters’ movesets being carefully tailored for their own chapters, but not the semi-random pool of enemies present in this final section) and level design you’ve seen in many other games, while putting together a party comprised of characters who have no reason to know one another, whose sweet little arc ended hours ago. All to Defeat The Big Bad For Real This Time, I Promise?

I suppose that’s not how it actually ends, given the game’s previous well-constructed messages about love and community and righteous anger and all. But holy shit, the drop of quality I got to witness over the climax of the game, no matter how purposeful or cheeky, makes me want to do anything but find that out. I’m fine with how self-contained the initial stories were, and I don’t think this game needed a tacked-on ‘thread it together‘ ending.

There must be something wrong with your game if the most memorable thing its final stretch has to offer is... how gorgeous it looks. Especially since the rest of the game is not really a slouch in that department either - the ‘HD-2D‘ style ends up being the perfect happy medium between being faithful to the original and breathing life into it. Too bad it’s genuinely the only consistently good aspect of this game.

10. Grimm’s Hollow (PC, 2019) [♪ First Reaping]

This one was sitting in my backlog for a year and a half, and I honestly have no idea why - I barely even remember how I came across this gem, which is weird. I mean, it’s free on Steam (which is surprising to me considering the quality), cute, has multiple endings, talks about death and grief in that bittersweet way that never fails to restore my faith in humanity...

And best of all, it’s purple. >:) Well, not all of it, but like 80% of this game’s aesthetic is based on my favorite color, which was probably why I got interested in the first place. I wasn’t expecting to see a solid, if a little condensed, storyline about coping with loss and change and learning to make new connections in life and afterlife behind such a simple front, coupled with a neat battle system (and a couple bangers to accompany those battles!) that combines ATB and simple QTEs together in that solid way that vividly reminded me of playing Mario RPG in the kitchen, somehow. It’s sooo nice, at least for the short amount of time the game asks of you! Plus, there’s a decent amount of exploration, no random encounters, and you can just feel the amount of care put into everything. It’s a great way to spend an evening or two, honestly.

The endings you can get range from sweetness of closure to either the protagonist and\or deuteragonist to simple screens that could have passed for game over screens, but it’s fine. Literally the only noticeable flaw this little game has is how it refuses to make clear that you lock yourself out of half the endings by maxing your skill tree! I would have had no idea had I not randomly seen it online.

9. Unreal Life (PC, 2020) [♪ Dance Hall Crisis]

*this game is niche enough that the OST is not on YouTube, I'm linking directly to an mp3 instead. And no, the rest of the soundtrack is not remotely like this track, but who cares? It's my favorite, and I love how the very nature of this piece - being somewhat laid-back out-of-context, but standing out as a faster-paced backdrop for some of the more relatively intense scenes when seen in the game's entirety - says more about the nature of the whole experience than one might expect.

Unreal Life is so true to its name that it comes elegantly close to betraying the core of its story and setup with a mere glimpse at its title... but it manages to make its twist layered just well enough to leave the players satisfied and intrigued, not disappointed. The dreamy pixel art (I'm not sure if I would call this the greatest art seen in a game, but it's obvious that the person who made it all is skilled at converting the limitations of the style into genuine beauty), carefully crafted to convey just the right amount of detail in any given object so they come together in memorable set pieces, and the somber, almost nondescript a lot of the time, music, completes the experience that the game has to offer, every element further selling the feeling of uncertainty, loss and struggle beneath the wonderful sights and strange occurrences driving your curiosity.

I haven't mentioned a lot about how the game plays yet, mostly because it almost always felt secondary to experiencing the world. You walk around. You click on things. You talk to things. You get items and use them. It's a point and click, but instead of a mouse, you have Hal. A 'walk and click', if you will. And there's a lot of walking - almost annoyingly so, I would say, but it adds to the mood. It forces you to sit back and take in what the game throws at you.

The one unique thing the game does is the aforementioned memories - you're able to compare the past and present as experienced by inanimate objects in the world, and it is how you find the majority of clues you need. However, even this doesn't require much thought from you - the information you gain is plain to see, and characters comment on it as well.

The two characters right at the forefront are humans - a young girl in a pure white gown named Hal and another woman, miss Sakura, whose disappearance drives Hal forward across the whole story for reasons not even she can ascertain, imbuing the simple plot hook with a mysterious air. We see Hal struggling to piece together her place in a strange, dreamlike world that alternates between being almost conveniently welcoming and full of painful memories bubbling to the surface, but is always pervaded with a feeling of otherness... But the secondary characters that stand out in this game are all strangely unique - if you try to look at what people remembered most about Unreal Life, you'll likely see lots of talk about... a penguin? a dog? a traffic light?.. Yeah, if you ever wanted to have feelings about inanimate objects and talking animals, this game is for you.

For me, Zero was definitely the highlight of the game, for reasons quite simple - I just like casually rude characters that have changes of heart for the better. Especially if they're a piece of AI manifesting themself as an eyeball (insert AI: The Somnium Files-esque AI\eye joke here for me).

Despite the appeal characters like Zero hold, every piece of this world is, in truth, made in service to the main character - it's Hal's growth you and the other characters observe across the game, it's her thoughts (the ones you can literally access in-game) and memories she magically obtains from objects that move the game forward, and it's her reunion with Miss Sakura that completes it - in ways both expected by that point and surprising at the same time. I liked Hal because the game justifies almost everything about her by the time the end credits roll - you may feel like rolling your eyes at another 'silent, shy, hurt, naive, needs to grow and eventually does' sort of protagonist, but Hal overcomes the challenges set in front of her and within her with a pleasant sort of grace that would, I'd wager, make even the most skeptical players resonate with the image the game paints of her bit by bit.

Through Hal, the game wants to make you think about what you can do, what you want to do. Her struggles, both in the world she's trapped in and the one she came from, are meant to motivate and reassure you - you, too, in time, will know how to accept yourself, to live and contribute to the world. This isn't anything new or fresh by any means, but there's a reason topics like this are so enduring across media. Because there's always someone who needs to hear this in a way that resonates with them personally. And even though I didn't feel that resonance while playing, I appreciated the wonderful execution, even more so when I remembered that this is an indie game at the end of the day. It's kind of a cliche to bring this sorta thing up, I know, but recalling that the wonderful art was done by one person makes my heart swell, okay? You have to respect this game for coming from someone's heart and soul.

...and hey, what other game will give you a jar containing infinite shrimps? That's kinda a dream come true by itself, isn't it?

8. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse (PC, 2014) [♪ Scuttle Town]

Normally this game would get very similar treatment to CrossCode, being a platformer as well (or more accurately, a Metroidvania that takes just enough cues from 2D Zelda, in my opinion), but... I actually had a blast with Pirate's Curse?! Surprising everyone, me most of all. What stars had to align for such a miracle, making me blaze through a kind of game I usually steer clear from (enough that I was hesitant to play it for about a year, despite a hearty recommendation)?

Well... A lot of them, actually. I appreciated the straightforward level\area designs (more so than is probably usual in the genre these days, I feel. My favorite was Propeller Town, because I loved the way the pirate hat\'glider' handled in general) that nonetheless have just enough well-hidden collectibles inside, making repeat trips enjoyable, coupled with the freedom of movement you gain in this game as you progress (with the cannon at the end giving a quadruple jump and being able to dash and glide at the same time... it's so fun to blow through stuff that used to give you trouble with all those tools working together!).

I adored the mixture of pixel sprites (which are animated in such a lively way that it can be legitimately hard to stop staring at how everything moves) and proper character art, even if it took a bit of getting used to. And for the most part, I enjoyed the characters themselves, which do just enough for the game to give you an excuse to saunter around the world, while giving you the feeling of this adventure being a piece of something with a history (i.e. Squid Baron being self-aware and everything Shantae and Risky have going on - it doesn't have to be complicated to be fun).

But of course, the jewel on top for me personally has to be the soundtrack. There's the aforementioned Scuttle Town, which has managed to conquer my brain in ways few VGM pieces do, but also plenty more to enjoy besides that. The peppy and catchy music works in tandem with the cute visuals to ensure the player enjoys themself and remembers the experience fondly - and it really pays off!

Now, it's not like the game was without flaw - there's barely anything that qualifies as fast travel (aside from the usual 'warp back to town' item that doesn't work when you would need it most), which leads to some excess backtracking being involved; and the writing is nothing to write home about, aside from the aforementioned sense of continuity and some funky fourth wall breaks here and there. But in my heart, both of these can be excused - Curse is very much trying to carry that old-school game spirit within itself, and I didn't exactly play it to be wowed by a grand story. For the most part, the game achieved what it had set out to do, and impressed me enough to consider playing at least one more Shantae in the future, so it's hard for me to call it anything but a success!

7. 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim (Switch port, 2019-2022) [♪ Brat Overflow]

This is one of my favorite video game title screens, if we’re being honest. Everything about it just works - seeing the protagonists stand together against the literally looming threat, with what turns out to be their true hope right in front of them, with muffled sounds of siren-like voices and machinery as an accompaniment.

And then, a mysterious blue light flashes by, and our protagonist - well, one of them, turns to face the camera with an almost inviting expression on his face, as the song fully fades in together with the game’s logo. Yes, this is what 13 Sentinels is about - just another game about teens and young adults saving their doomed world from an inhuman threat. Somehow.

Or so it would seem, because a core part of this experience is watching the layers and layers of fuckery unveil themselves. ‘Oh, okay, so this is a time travel story!‘ Nope... I mean, kinda... ‘Oh, I get it, they’re teleporting!‘ Nope. ‘Oh, so the protagonists are all aliens, huh?‘ NOPE, it was a post-apocalyptic story all along!

‘Hm, I guess it really is just about beating the monstrosities, huh?‘ Not even that, that was just a side effect of lazy coding in the simulation that fifteen researchers forced their infinite clones into so they could survive on their way to infinite inhabitable planets. Which means that in the process of saving themselves, humans committed a very, well, human error that caused more problems than it solved, but in the end, reached their goal. This is how the game manages to both ask the fundamental question of ‘why bother with anything‘ and answer it in a defiantly hopeful fashion in one fell swoop.

So basically, the moral of this game is both ‘check your code before you commit‘ and ‘humans will stand proud in a vicious cycle of death and rebirth to protect the world and people they love‘. That’s both nifty and fucking nuts.

Of course, this is a small, surface level observation, and it doesn’t begin to cover everything that’s going on here. There’s cloning, a talking cat, androids, high school shenanigans, nanomachines, a gay awakening or two, a fucking shitload of artificial intelligence, identity crises of multiple kinds, and far more cheesy romance than was probably necessary (I guess 60% of this is set in a Japanese high school, but still... everything was dreadfully predictable lol)... There’s so much going on that, apparently, even the writer himself talked about struggling to keep the mysteries together in his head!! And a huge chunk of the story didn’t make it in because of time and budget constraints, with some of it only being explained in the game’s own information analysis section! (It honestly really shows, especially when you see the ending being set in the simulation and not the real world.) Like, let me tell you, when it comes to being convoluted, 13 Sentinels can give basically any game a run for its money!!!

So, then, why did I, someone who hates having convoluted jargon shoved down her throat, stick with it? Simple: I was lured in. Playing the story sections of this game is like watching a painting come to life, for many reasons. The gorgeous set pieces provided (with INCREDIBLE lighting. Screenshots don’t even do justice to how stunning this game is, because the lighting in these sections consistently blows your mind.), top-notch voice acting (made even more impressive by the fact that it was recorded outside of any studio, honestly) and the titular 13 protagonists’ growth arcs (turns out, they grew both as people and in the literal sense, ha)... It all makes for a very immersive experience - before you know it, you’re shouting at the screen as you get hammered by the numerous reveals this plot has in store for you... or watch Hijiyama lose his ability to think about anything but yakisoba pan.

Sure, the protagonists are often playing by the tropes, and, as mentioned earlier, the relationships between them are a mixed bag, but out of such a huge selection and\or mess of a story, everyone’s bound to find some part they enjoy. Personally, I’d say Ei’s story about finding one’s identity anew (immediately after committing murder) while falling in love with a schoolgirl next door (who definitely didn’t want to be involved in anything resembling a crime, especially one concerning her alternate self, but oh, she’ll do anything for his man, including becoming a schoolgirl with a giant robot.) was my favorite - again, just the right tropes and mood for me! >:) And in general, there are countless little details that show how much care intended to go into this game, making sure every protagonist’s story lines up or simply making it all more believable, ironically enough. In an alternate world where the developers had more time and resources... this whole cast might have been one of the greatest in video games (there was lots of build-up material planned and cut), but as is, they’re just good.

The last part that pieces 13 Sentinels together is its battle mode, where you actually get to control the ✨giant robots✨ directly and save the world. It’s a simple mix of real-time combat and tower defense, with little nuggets of quality character banter and lore files being your real reward for engaging with it. I mean, if you like this sort of thing, you won’t be feeling robbed or anything - each character has unique skills, and the game encourages you to experiment with your loadout... there’s even multiple difficulty levels and an ‘endless’ mode you unlock after the main story! But to me, the core appeal was in how mindless most of it was - number go big, kaiju explode, yippee... And then the final two stages turned my simple strategies on their head and sucked the fun out of the whole experience at the crucial moment when the story, for the most part, pieced itself together and I was feeling pumped! Oh well, ultimately, before I hit the roadblock, I was having fun putting on a show for Yuki-chan. :p

The soundtrack of this game is something I really appreciate, as well. Well, not all of it -  the story section’s music didn’t leave much of an impression on me, but the battle music... Why, yes, I love bashing manufactured robots’ heads in while dynamic electronic music with juicy bass blares in my speakers!!! In fact, hearing LYSINE randomly in a Youtube video was enough to spark my interest in this game in the first place. It’s absolutely one of the greatest highlights of my personal experience.

Ultimately, this is another passion project that came close to biting off more than it could chew, but the effort put in ended up shining through in almost every aspect. This was a strangely unique experience for me, one that made me reevaluate, at least a little bit, what I actually like about games I play. It might not stick with me in ways most other stories do, but I’m thankful to have (almost) completed it anyway!!

6-5. Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies (3DS\Android, 2013) [♪ Difficult People]

Ace Attorney: Spirit of Justice (Android, 2016) [♪ Dance of Devotion]

Look, I made the fifth and sixth mainline entries take fifth and sixth place, I'm a genius. (not really) Prepare for a somewhat nonsensical ramble as I try to piece together my far too numerous thoughts on them!

My favorite thing about these games might be how controversial they became\are in the eyes of the fanbase. If you ask some of the more invested people, they'll spare no quarter in trying to convince you how the change in the writing staff is the greatest blight on Ace Attorney as a whole... and then you play the games, and it goes a little something like this ('I pray for your ass' is 100% accurate, can confirm).

What I'm trying to say is... AA5 and 6 are surprisingly... good? Or, more accurately, not bad? Just different. I can understand how I have an inherently unusual perspective compared to long-time fans just by knowing in advance about the reason these games never quite feel the same as even their direct predecessor (cause, again, a lot of it is due to the original writer being forced to work on spinoffs at that time), but even then, I don't think being unaware would have changed my opinion too much. It's clear Yamazaki and co. had put some thought into these games, and besides that, it's just strange seeing the games bashed because of the new person at the helm, given that he also handled the fan favorite Investigations games (and yeah, I love them too, but I think in the end I appreciate the mainline games more).

Also, story-wise, AA4 was pretty weak; I'm sure things would have been different had it received a proper sequel that it clearly planned to build up to instead of the soft reboot that we ultimately got, but on its own it never stood out to me, probably because I don't seek serious affairs rife with a moody and inconsistent air from this particular series, so I was never upset with having to see those lingering threads go down the drain in the first place. I never really understood the allure behind the characters of Apollo (the most normalest guy in the world) and Trucy (who I think just exists to force a dichotomy between the changes Phoenix went through and his decidedly still soft heart), either, so I didn't really feel like there was anything to massacre in 5/6 (except for Phoenix - he truly had no reason to return to law, ever, and his presence sours both sequels and strips them of potential just about everywhere. The time we had to spend with him could have been used to explore Athena or Apollo's childhoods!!)

A lot of the problems DD and SoJ show - the struggle to have a proper story to tell, the dated humor (that naturally works better in these games, since they're more recent - Retinz's haughty 'I'll do anything for those clicks, baby' attitude in particular is a decent impression of what is just close enough to what would probably be called being an influencer in the modern day), the drawn-out trials such as 5-3 and 6-3 or 6-5... they all existed in some way or another even before Apollo Justice. Of course, that doesn't mean we can absolve the games completely of these flaws, but they shouldn't be unfairly judged, either. It's why I prefer to focus on the things I did enjoy here, even if DD has remarkably few of them.

You see, I initially was ready to declare Dual Destinies my new favorite game - Athena's introduction made quite a splash (truly, a multilingual neurodivergent icon the series did not know it needed), the shift in music style was intriguing, and Simon became my most beloved prosecutor in the whole series almost instantly (and for better or worse, he still is.) I also liked the unusual linearity this game has, just because I like things decently straightforward in my games.

As AA5 dragged on, however, the linearity felt more like a flaw than an asset, serving only to make the game feel empty. Other cracks started to show as well - the decision to split screentime between three protagonists harming each of them in turn (even if it was fun seeing how the Space Center linked Apollo and Athena before they even knew each other, it felt forced more than anything due to lack of a setup), the multitude of directions they try to take the game's prosecutor in and inevitably fail to capture the aura this 'archetype' had in previous games, resulting in a character that does barely enough for the story and leaves you eager for more (assuming you don't straight up dismiss him and his edgy attitude), the weakest soundtrack in the series, the unsubtle development of Athena's character (along with similarly blunt theming around 'the dark age of the law' and such, which I can only assume was done in an attempt to make the game easier for newcomers to approach... even though this is the fifth game in a storied and normally interconnected series... huh?)... things like that piled on quickly and soured my impression a hell of a lot. At least I had Simon in all his glory to keep me going - just like someone on Backloggd said, he 'deserved a better debut game than this'.

So in the end Dual Destinies turned out to be a lovable mess, the first half of it testing your patience and the second offering a payoff that's only enjoyable if you are invested in a character that, to many, pales in comparison to the series' past (I loved him, though, so by extension, I can’t help but like his whole game). Ah, and you can spend money to defend an orca, which is more fun to talk about than actually experience. What about Spirit of Justice?

To put it bluntly, it's also a mess, arguably a bigger one. But discussion of this specific entry deserves to have more nuance than this - if Dual Destinies is like having to dig through layers of dirt before chancing upon a solid chunk of gold, Spirit of Justice is like eating a burger that's serviceable, but it has bits of your favorite sauce all over the place, so you can't help but be tempted to finish eating the whole thing, even if it is in actuality mediocre. So let us ask the question once again - what about Spirit of Justice made it ultimately more enjoyable than its predecessor? 

The simple answer is that Dual Destinies, being middle-of-the-road in most respects, unintentionally does a great job of lowering your expectations for whatever comes next. Because of this, my opinion on Spirit often changed drastically while I played it - I liked it overall, but I felt like my enjoyment of it went against basic logic. Again, it was like eating your favorite piece of fast food - you know it's not exactly good for you, and you feel baffled about how much joy it brings you, but you can't stop yourself from feeling that joy.

My thought process while playing the majority of Spirit was something like ‘well, this story may be absurd sometimes, and the land of Khura'in, a setting created out of desperation to fix that was not broken before the new writers worked themselves into a strange corner, is just a bit shy of an affront to the audience’s intelligence... it continues to make a mess little by little of both pre-established character arcs and those of newcomers, and this is probably just the surface of a sizable list of reasons this game could be rightfully considered a disappointment by some… but guess what? There’s just enough remnants of squandered potential that, fortunately or not, the game has me hooked’.

That remained the case until the credits rolled and I stared at the phone screen with waves of a strange mixture of regret and satisfaction. To say that this is a weird way to end an entire series is frankly an understatement.

But in general, Spirit tries its hardest to appeal to the player on many fronts at once. The 3D models and animations’ quality has increased noticeably compared to their first attempt with Dual Destinies (and a lot of the witnesses are a joy to interact with as characters, too), the investigation sections, for the most part, are more substantial and thought-out than the previous game (you actually have to think about how to progress sometimes, wow!!), the attempt to have a story with a bigger scale is, if nothing else, something to be admired, and the soundtrack... why, it might be the best in all of Ace Attorney.

Music as a whole here is lots more memorable and moody, with many tracks for events based in Khura'in having a sort of specific somber and mysterious feel to them never seen in the series' past, and pieces that play while court is in session lending trials a resolute and somewhat desperate air (the cross-examination music in particular is my favorite across the whole series.), fitting of the stakes continuing to rise as you make your way through the story.

Yeah, that's right - they actually made another attempt to make an overarching plot work in an Ace Attorney game! And, as mentioned earlier, they tried to expand its scope beyond things we've seen before! Not to mention the countless characters from series' past they could not and would not let go of... and all of these things had to compete for space in a game, that, while being the longest in the franchise by a large margin, is constrained not only by series' tradition, having only five cases to unfold the story in, but also by just how much filler there is.

While Turnabout Storyteller is my favorite case in the series, period (the banter between prosecutors is great, most of the jokes land, and it has a great witness with well-handled DID representation in Uendo), it has little to say about what’s going on in the world at large, and I could talk forever about how flawed the parts of the story that do concern that are (I decided to cut all that inane rambling from this post, jeez).

So, it’s no wonder people have debates on the quality of this game to this day, especially its controversial handling of characters both old and new. Athena having all development of her character reversed, Apollo getting a contradictory backstory to bend the plot to the writers’ needs, and Nahyuta having his character arc compressed so much that his heel turn ends up being nonsensical, among many other things, like how in court, he manages to alternate between clean, sensible logic and running down the defense with raw insults, which continues to go on for three more cases barely unabated... It’s a mess from the word go, but there’s some heart in it, and it tried something new. That’s why it’s a game that I think will haunt me for a long time.

4. Panel de Pon\Tetris Attack (SNES, 1995) [♪ Thiana's Stage]

What could give a game that is about nothing but matching blocks by color such a high position? The fact that it has so much more to offer than just blocks. ...and the fact that I like match three games. With a caveat.

Said caveat is that I'm actually not overly familiar with games of that sort - I've barely played Bejeweled or whatever else might come to your mind when you think of the genre. Instead, there is a certain series of games called The Treasures of Montezuma that holds a weirdly special place in my heart.

When I was less than ten years old, I was glued to the PC screen, watching my mom and dad take turns obliterating colorful pieces on the screen to really repetitive music, and now here I am, an actual adult, doing the same thing to relax and pass the time. In fact, I made it a point to go through that series one by one over the course of this year, as a sort of nostalgic boredom killer, watching the games hit their stride and fall from grace after the first three entries (cash grab lol).

The things that made that series different from what I would usually see in the genre (and that ultimately made the whole family love that goddamn series for years) were as follows:

you can move other pieces while the ones you already matched are disappearing;

you're incentivized to plan ahead in one way or another to execute massive combos;

there's a fair number of different modes with the same core mechanics to keep things from getting stale.

Sound familiar? Yup, Pon hits all of these points just as well, with a puzzle mode and a VS mode that is a plain joy to play with someone else and delivers some satisfying challenge if you go through it on your own!

But not only does it play in a completely different way when you get down to it, it also (gasp!) has great, poppy visuals and music that is not repetitive! And it has multiplayer! I was not expecting to love a game that just randomly grabbed my attention with its bright and fuzzy game cover standing out in the list of (pithy) NSO offerings (RIP🥺) as much as I did. But it was too well-made not to!

Another important thing is that Pon is probably a hallmark of 'easy to understand, hard to master'. Sure, matching blocks is, as mentioned, not the hardest thing to comprehend in the world, but the unique thing about Pon is that said blocks come from the bottom, not top. You have almost complete reign over them - you can swap any two blocks that are next to each other horizontally, or make one of them fall down from an empty space.

This allows you to not only match blocks in threes one by one, but, more importantly, to set them up so they fall down and clear themselves in chains as well (or set up columns so that you clear 4 or 5 blocks at once all on your own, instead of praying to RNG to give you such a combination). Learning to set up and execute chains is far and away the most important part of this game, and it's what makes it unique, because, thanks to the aforementioned restrictions, the process is different from both other match-threes and games like Tetris and Puyo Puyo (neither of which I actually really like, so imagine my surprise when Pon consumed my soul for a few months...).

A successful play session of Pon requires many things - the knowledge of how chains are set up and executed, the reflexes to actually follow through on the execution, the ability to adapt to the random wall of blocks thrown at you, the understanding of how garbage blocks work in VS... The things people pull off at competitive level still seem like a fever dream to me, and even though I kind of feel like I got as far as I could in terms of skill, in the grandest scheme of things I'm probably barely above a beginner.

And yet, the game leaves you free to play at any speed you want, with most modes also offering you three difficulty levels - and the lowest settings make blocks crawl slower than a turtle. This kind of accessibility, combined with cute music and actually unreasonably pretty and sweet character art, makes this one of the most welcoming games I've ever seen - and I never have a bad time when I decide to sit down with a music playlist of my choice and just crawl my way up from minimum speed to... the actual maximum (99) on Easy or about halfway there (I maybe only broke 60 once or twice) on Hard.

So, basically, this might be the Chrono Trigger of puzzle games for me. I still think to myself about how badly I want to play it on a proper SNES controller now and then.

PS.

3. Trails of Cold Steel (PC, 2017) [♪ Investigation]

It's funny, I ended up posting about two Trails games at once, and yet, I made it a point for myself to take a long break between the two - an action that is, in general, greatly advisable, since Cold Steel manages to feel familiar and strange at the same time, and playing it without tempering your expectations can lead to ruin. Its high placing among the other games of the year is well-deserved, but compared to the rest of the series, in most areas, it falls short - this is a good RPG, but a barely acceptable Trails game. Not in the least because the protagonist's role can be aptly summed up with this (one of my favorite videos ever, I think.).

There are just enough things about this game that are consistently enjoyable and still feel (mostly) worthy of the high standards set by the series' predecessors that I managed to plow through it beginning-to-end in three and a half weeks, which is definitely comparable with my previous series track record (maybe even surprising myself a little.). The setting's structure takes cues from both Sky (with separate locations that you get to visit and thoroughly explore for a chapter that together make up the whole of a region) and Crossbell (with Trista and Thors Military Academy serving as a hub-like place where you get to observe fellow students' progress throughout the year) for an interesting attempt to shake things up a little and convey the growing sense of scale that surrounds Erebonia as a whole.

The shift to 3D, for the most part, is... inoffensive? There are two specific losses that came about as a result of it that I can't help but mourn (one is expressive character portraits, the other is the disappearance of our good old friend the battle grid, which demolished what little importance the MOV stat had in one fell swoop.), but as a whole, it's a very appropriate change and executed just well enough to not ruin whatever immersion you might have. And that's good enough, since graphics were never the series' biggest draw...

But the soundtracks are definitely one of them. The music in this game is a little hit-or-miss at times, especially compared to a game like Azure (at worst it just does its job, at best it haunts you at night - I guess I'm just being picky because of my experience with Trails ¯\_(ツ)_/¯), but it definitely manages to feel unique compared to previous entries by trying to go in a more 'orchestral' direction. There's a lot to like, even if it doesn't feel like it measures up to the past at times - at least a few battle themes are bangers as usual, and this game probably has the greatest amount of gorgeous and atmospheric field tracks you just can't get enough of. But for every track I genuinely love, there's always one or two, especially when it comes to battle music, that made me think 'okay, this is neat, but it's definitely not the same any more :('. Not to say it's bad, it's just... good at being different, I guess.

The NPCs, especially the ones around Thors (I love Beryl, Mint and Linde) and the ones that end up travelling places alongside you (most notably Annabelle and the classic duo of Ricky and Anton), also manage to bring joy whenever they appear. The more static ones suffer from the same problem they did in Azure - they serve more as set pieces than anything else at times, and they're part of the bigger issue that is this game trying to draw from what is, seemingly, more modern anime tropes. Man, that hurts to type. You could say that that sorta thing plagued the series since forever, but nowhere is it more noticeable than here.

It also, naturally, affects the story and its pacing, as well as the more prominent characters. I used to fear the school setting would ruin what the series has been building up towards, and it sorta did, but the crux of the problem is really the repetitiveness of it all. Start the month, do quests around the academy, explore the schoolhouse (half of which is basically a waste of time), go on a field study the next day, act a mediator to resolve a conflict in your class, watch tensions in the country rise in some way (very slowly), help out to mitigate that, go home, repeat for 70% of the game... eventually it all starts to feel like Groundhog Day or something.

That feeling is not helped by some characters feeling more like gimmicks than people - while I appreciate what the game managed to show about, say, Elliot's family or Gaius' connection to his homeland, at the same time it tries its damnedest to reduce them to 🎶 and 💨 respectively. And then there's Alisa, who manages to have a somewhat impressive arc about gaining independence and starting to find purpose in life (which matches Rean neatly, because half his deal is also searching for it. It's cool.)... but she has literally the worst introduction that feels as if it wants to ruin your impression of her (I've had enough girls falling on top of guys and vice versa for a lifetime, thanks). It's almost impressive how much fluctuation there is in how the members of Class VII are handled, especially when you remember it has someone like Emma whose whole deal is... well, maybe she'll tell us in the next game. They really want you to play the next game.

Even the characters I ended up actually enjoying (Jusis and Fie, mostly) got my attention in a way that feels... surface-level. Sure, this game can give someone a decent arc when it wants to (we love us some found family-lite), but it's not quite enough. Yet another way in which this game leaves you hungry for more.

Speaking of scale, it ends up feeling off on two fronts. One, the game resorts to telling you about it rather than showing it most of the time. Erebonia's capital is supposed to have a population that's two and a half times bigger than Crossbell's, and yet the 'half' of Heimdallr that you get to explore never really measures up to that expectation. It's fun to walk around there in its own right, but the writing surrounding the place creates a strange sense of dissonance... I don't know, I don't like how much that specifically felt like a reach.

Two, this game being concurrent with Zero\Azure is an interesting choice, but at the same time it feels like a taunt. Azure left us on a tense parting note, but instead of getting to explore the resolution of a goddamn occupation, we travel back in time to go to a military school. Yeah, great. It's especially silly hearing some NPCs freak out over the events that led to it all and how it affects them (most of which you are expected to already be familiar enough with), while the main story wants the player and the main characters to cast it all away and enjoy some festival.

I get it, and it's actually quite an appropriate thing to do given their position as literal students, but it's still quite ridiculous, and even the way all the endgame happenings undermine this sense of security you were told to upkeep is too sudden and strange to actually be enjoyable. (not to mention the final final boss that came out of nowhere... *grumble grumble*)

They really want you to play the next game. And the thing is, I will... next year... But only because I'm still waiting for the previous plot thread to resolve itself. And because Trails gameplay is Trails gameplay, no matter how many changes it goes through. (I ended up skimming over this particular matter, but all you really need to know is that the game balance here is particularly skewed, making random encounters feel like mere tissue to tear through and boss fights feel drawn out and easily won.)

2-1. Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (Switch, 2017) [♪ Our Hope] XBC2: Torna ~ The Golden Country (Switch, 2018) [♪ Battle!!] Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition (Switch, 2020) [♪ Where the Ancestors Sleep]

(yesss, I get to use my own gifs!! Consistent tagging sure pays off)

Xenoblade made me realize for the umpteenth time how much I love JRPGs. Xenoblade introduced me to the latest and greatest of characters I just love putting in the mental microwave. Xenoblade helped me meet lots of wonderful people. Xenoblade was there for me when I actually felt like utter shit trying to think about the future.

There is no way anyone should be surprised about this placement. For months, I’ve been struggling to describe just what makes this series so great, because the thing is, it’s just about everything. The games look great and offer you lots of vibrant fantastical vistas to explore, they manage to combine intriguing characters with compelling settings, they have incredibly diverse soundtracks, they break the universe in half in multiple ways before folding it back together and leaving you full of hope. That last thing is why I’m putting them all together here, instead of being needlessly petty and leaving one of them behind - while it’s true I initially found myself preferring 2 to 1 and still think it’s the more... ‘welcoming’ game out of the two, it’s their combined existence that serves to propel them to heights equal to my all-time favorites.

Just like with the other... half a dozen games on this list, I could go on forever about the details I find interesting to think about, or the things that surprised or infuriated me, or just... the battle system of Xenoblade 2 alone... But the one thing that matters is, I’m glad I gave these games a chance exactly when I did. It was precisely the right moment that made them resonate in that unique way that I think we all seek out in media.

The future

I had this section planned out roughly for '21, so what I'll do this time is mix together the lists for both years. Here's the first year's list, woeful as it is:

Ys IX: Monstrum Nox

Ys vs. Trails in the Sky

Dinosaur - patch still isn't out at the time of writing.

Legend of Heroes II: Dragon Slayer

Tokyo Xanadu - played the first two chapters or so, ended up beating Trails first

Popful Mail

Trails of Cold Steel

AI: Somnium Files

Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin

WarioWare: Touched

3DS Etrian Odyssey

Atelier series

Now for more relevant predictions, mostly obvious given the current list:

Trails of Cold Steel II

Great Ace Attorney, with the rest of CS being at least after this

Xenoblade Chronicles 3

Dead Cells (I have high hopes for the relatively recent updates)

Final Fantasy VII Remake

[wordsandsound14]

Top 20 albums of 2023

So it was a tough year. I think a lot of people have said this and I’ll add to the noise on it. And the damage of the year continues into the next a little bit - it does sadden me that I will have to announce that I am unable to continue releasing music for a little bit because of financial reasons. If I want to campaign these songs and get them out into the world in a meaningful way that could increase my chances of them being heard, I’ll need to hold off since that takes money to accomplish. My last song, "Orion”, got so very little listens while “Yellow” was making headway with almost 1000. So my goal of releasing a song a month for a year will have to be held off until I start again. My hope is to start releasing in the summer when life is more consistent; it could happen sooner, it could happen later. I’ll just have to see how things are. I’ll continue making music in the background as always. I really do want to put these songs out and I can’t tell you how bummed I am that I have to wait longer. I just want to give my best shot at this and this is part of it.

With that said, I do have a list of albums for you to listen to and a list for my top 50 songs is to soon follow in a different post. The year started out a little rocky with releases but started to fill out by the end and this year had some great albums when things started actually picking up. Some honorable mentions first tho. This will included albums I discovered too late to be part of best of 2022 list, albums that I listened to in 2023 that don’t qualify but I liked, and ones that didn’t make the list but felt like I should mention: Pink Floyd - The Dark Side of the Moon / Pool Kids - Pool Kids / Gang of Youths - angel in realtime. / Arm’s Length - Never Before Seen, Never Again Found / Lizzy McAlpine - five seconds flat / JID - The Forever Story / Red Hot Chili Peppers - Unlimited Love / The Wonder Years - The Hum Goes on Forever / Michigander - It Will Never Be The Same / Big Thief - Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You / The Linda Lindas - Growing Up / Gregory Alan Isakov - This Empty Northern Hemisphere / Point Taken - Here / Various artists - Barbie the Album (Best Weekend Ever Edition) / Crown Lands - Fearless / My Kid Brother - Happy.Mad.Weird.Sad / The Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream / Eric B. & Rakim - Don’t Sweat the Technique / Arlie - BREAK THE CURSE / Vines - Birthday Party / Noah Kahan - Stick Season

20. King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard - The Silver Cord

From the lists I’ve seen so far, a lot of people preferred their other album to this one from this year. I thought Petrodragonic Apocolypse was alright but didn’t really click for me. However, this one feels super unique and captured my attention. There isn’t another album that I’ve heard like this one, which is what I love about King Gizzard in their genre bouncing journey. It chases the 70’s Sci-fi sound and has fun with the idea of making music within that context. I will say that I listened to the shorter version of the album. There are the “regular” versions of songs and the “extended” versions I didn’t get around to trying since they are substantially longer. I do think the regular versions could’ve been longer but none but one felt like it warranted a prog like “extended” length. Regardless, I enjoyed this album a lot and have a great time when listening to it. It’s a journey through space that you’ll never forget you’re on. (Fav songs: Set, Theia, Chang’e)

19. Sam Smith - Gloria

It feels really weird that Sam Smith ranked on my list, no offense to Sam. There were some artists that I was really anticipating their releases and their music didn’t make this list and Sam’s music quality has been inconsistent to me. Don’t get me wrong though, I think this album got slept on. There’s some really good pop songs on here and only two songs that I dislike (Gimme, Who We Love). In all honesty, this album would have placed higher if it weren’t for those two downers. But everything else feels like Sam reinventing themselves and solidifying themselves as a pop artist. They were still making some hits in the past 2 albums but nothing felt like it was really leaving impact. It felt like the songs from their first album were still carrying their success. But Gloria goes to prove that wrong. “Unholy” made records and the other songs here prove that Sam wants to make music. This album is why I still follow this artist. (Fav songs: I’m Not Here to Make Friends, Lose You, Love Me More)

18. The Front Bottoms - You Are Who You Hang Out With

I think what feels funny about this album is that I don’t feel like The Front Bottoms really nailed it here. I feel like they could’ve done better but I also haven’t really heard a lot from them to really compare it to. I stumbled upon this album since I was trying to get all my songs from my old computer hearted on Spotify (didn’t even finish doing that lol). I remembered The Front Bottoms and really liked the songs I did have by them. I gave them a follow and pretty soon there was an album to listen to. However, whenever I go back and listen to it, I enjoy the songs here. I think what happened is that this album isn’t what I expected. They’ve changed a lot, especially when the songs I listened from them are over a decade old. At the same time, I think that’s what I like about it. What I appreciate the most is that they didn’t try to push the envelope on making their music have the feeling that it once was. A lot of bands from the 2000’s will try to pull their former sound into their new sound with varying levels of success but they just let it be. It’s a fun and light hearted record that doesn’t take itself too seriously. They at least made the music they wanted and allowed it to happen in the form that they found it. Give this album a listen and just take it as it is. (Fav songs: Punching Bag, Paris, Not Joking)

17. Spanish Love Songs - No Joy

The funniest thing is that my spouse loves to make fun that Spanish Love Songs lead singer sings the same way for every single song. It’s really apparent when you pay attention to it. But that’s also kinda the pull to their music. Anyways, Spanish Love Songs comes out with follow up to the incredible “Brave Faces Everyone". While they fall a little short, they still manage to capture me on most the songs here. They experiment some and continue to make gut-wrenching lyrics. I do think this one needs time to ruminate; a quick listen doesn’t quite allow it to sink its teeth into you. It works best when you grow attached to each song individually (looks up the lyrics and all) and then put them together again. Then the project feels a lot more complete. What this album does signify to me is that there’s a lot left for this band and I’m really interested in what’s next for the band and how this album will place in their career in the future. I’m usually not a fan of saying I’m excited for next time cause I should be excited for this time but the hinting in this album does do that for me. (Fav songs: Haunted, Clean-up Crew, Here You Are)

16. Susto - My Entire Life

While Susto comes right out of the gate with “Rock On”, the rest of the album is less in your face and asks the listener to pay attention rather than demand it. This southern rock band is one I found in 2022 from Spotify’s discover weekly. I listened to their 2021 release “Time in the Sun” and fell in love with what sounded like southern Jack Johnson. In a way, I can still hear the interoperation but Susto has a bit more to them than just that descriptor. They are self described as “acid country & artisanal rock.” What I feel they achieve the most is that they make music that feels like being in Carolinas, their home being in Charleston. There’s a sunshine prevalent in their music, a local comfort, and a sense of community that all comes together to make an organic experience. Susto isn’t flashy but they make good songs and I’m excited to listen more from them and they have a decent backlog to check out. (Fav songs: My Entire Life, Mt. Caroline, Rooster)

15. Citizen - Calling the Dogs

Citizen also had the challenge of creating an album to follow up their last amazing album, “Life in Your Glass House". That album has the #1 spot on my list in 2021 so there was a lot of expectations on this album. “Calling the Dogs” does something that I was hoping they would do and that was not even try to attempt to create something like its predecessor. It keeps its identity and follows a branching route hinted at in the last record. While it’s not as a monumental album, it does a great job of making high energy short rock songs. Almost like bubble gum rock. It feels like these type of songs were just the songs that were coming out of the band when making this album and they made them instead of fighting it. They’re all memorable, catchy, and fun rock songs to listen to. There’s a driving energy to this album that’s infectious to listen to and they don’t waste a song slot while at it. (Fav songs: Can’t Take it Slow, When I Let You Down, Takes One to Know One)

14. Hannah Wyatt - hummingbird

This is one my classmates from school and I adored her first album and she came out sneaky with this release early in the year. “hummingbird” is a dark, Americana folk album that takes you into the forest during the early night. It almost feels like going back in time and living off the land. It’s a period piece almost. There’s a somber mystery that runs through this album. The violin and acoustic guitar are the backbone of this album and compliment each other terrifically. Hannah is amazing at making a folk album that is one that catches the itch I’m wanting from the genre since singer/songwriter get lumped into folk sometimes. While it’s little lower on my list, it is one of the fuller experiences here. Give her a listen and hopefully she can find her crowd for her endless talent. (Fav songs: Cincinnati, high-water, yakima two-step)

13. Gregory Alan Isakov - Appaloosa Bones

My spouse and I really fell in love with Gregory this year, even though it was just one song that we liked, “Big Black Car”. She told me about the new songs and that there was an album coming out later. We waited with anticipation and, much like Susto’s release, it didn’t stand out right off the bat. It felt underwhelming, especially since Gregory doesn’t release music often. But after I put him in my playlist of recent releases, it started to click and I fell in love with the album. When it was time to take the album off and I pick the songs I like so I can remember them for year end lists, I ended up wanting to pick majority of the songs to add. These are songs to live with and they grow with you the more you listen to them. Gregory made some beautiful music this year and, while it’s pretty on the outside, it is so much lovely on the inside. (Fav songs: Sweet Heat Lightning, The Fall, Mistakes)

12. Foo Fighters - But Here We Are

Every time I talk about the Foos with friends, we almost always state how we aren’t Foo album people and that we just grab the singles. And each time, about half the albums end up being our exceptions of full ones we listen to. In conclusion from those talks, I think what we mean is the Foos mostly make a collection of songs instead of an album and that their non-singles don’t really do much unless the album as a whole works. “But Here We Are” is probably their most cohesive album thematically. We all know about the struggles that Dave Grohl had to endure lately. And while I don’t think this is as lyrically nuanced that I would have hoped, that was never their thing. Dave still wrote some songs that say what they are wanting to say and still conveys the full meaning without having a complex vocabulary. This felt like one of the first Foo albums that it felt like the world was silently anticipating so there was a lot of pressure on this album. I believe the band delivered on making something that still felt like the Foos (even sounding the most Foo as of recently, calling back to early 2000’s sound) and speaking about the band’s sorrows. (Fav songs: Show Me How, Under You, The Teacher)

11. The Maine - The Maine

I actually missed this one when it came out and it was ARTV’s YouTube short that notified me that there was another album out. I honestly thought I was following the band on Spotify. Guess I wasn’t but I am now. Anyways, the comments on the short were all talking up the album as a return for the band and how they have gotten back to making good music. I hadn’t listened to them since 2017 since the previous albums didn’t get much praise. In this album, The Maine prove that they are masters of pop rock and really deliver on it. It is true that they sound like a boy band most of the time but the music is fun and upbeat that who really cares that they sound like One Direction. And I’ll address the elephant in the room for those who know the album. Yeah, “cars & caution signs” should have been the closer and “spiraling” is the worst song on the album and doesn’t really feel like a closer. But it’s not that bad to me. The album goes by quickly and having fun with the album way overtrumps this concern. (Fav songs: I think about you all the time, leave in five, the mood i’m in / jsyk)

10. Ed Sheeran - Autumn Variations

Ed put out two albums this year and the first (“-”) was just alright. There were some decent songs but the promo made it seem like it was an album that was hard to write and subtract was gonna be the “sad” album. It didn’t really deliver on that. Then he surprised released Autumn Variations and didn’t do any PR on it. Just said that he wanted to put these songs out and didn’t want to do the whole music label release stuff. To this day, I still think his first album is his best and there hasn’t really been anything close. This album breaks that for me. It doesn't dethrone “+” but it does feel like a call back to a more authentic Ed. I’m not sure if the two albums were written at the same time or not but these songs feel like the ones he wanted to put out more. I can feel that these are the ones that really speak to him and I hope future Ed can continue along this path of making music that feels this honest. Maybe he can experiment again with hip hop (like hist first single of 2023) but right now, he can be cozy in this album. (Fav songs: Plastic Bag, England, Page)

9. blink-182 - ONE MORE TIME…

blink came out and made of the best reunion records. It’s everything you’d expect a blink record to be as they pull from all the sounds of the career, there’s a song for every blink fan. The punk, to the pop punk, and with the short humorous songs. The more impressive thing is that they did it without it feeling like you already heard it or as a cheap version of their already existing sound. They really went all out and made sure they delivered on their reunion. Everyone seems to be playing at their best and I am pretty impressed with their musicianship here. I will say that I do think they bloated up the track list by having 17 songs and, while none of those songs are bad, they could have cut 2 or three songs (tracks 14-16 come to mind). But that’s the only thing keeping this record back. Give blink a listen, even if you are just here for the reunion since I’m sure it’ll get you to go listen back. (Fav songs: ONE MORE TIME…, MORE THAN YOU KNOW, CHILDHOOD)

8. Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors - Strangers No More

The title of this album comes from the love of music. Drew Holcomb was feeling very holed up after covid lockdown and that feeling was so overwhelming that he went on tour before releasing another record. They did come out with a record in 2019 so there were songs that didn’t much live attention but I think Drew wanted to make songs inspired by coming back to the road. There’s a few songs that were recorded and released during covid that make the track listing but it’s overall a new bunch. What I love most is that I feel the intention behind every song here. There’s not one that feels like it’s phoning it in or doesn’t work. It’s been a while since the band put out a record that is this complete. There’s no dull moment and they are slowly becoming more and more renown within their genre. Each record increases their clout as they continue to chase great songs and this album is another great step forward. (Fav songs: Find Your People, Fly, That’s on You, That’s on Me)

7. Movements - RUCKUS!

Movements is known for being an entry point within the post hardcore genre, making gut punching lyrics with a little softer of a hard rock. Lots of use of space and ambience to pull everything together. And their sophomore album was more of the same but with less hardcore in it. This is more like a straight up rock record. Even with two lead singles, it was a little weird to digest that they were going to change up their sound this much. It’s not even that dramatic of a genre change but it wasn’t something I was expecting them to do. But they nail it. There’s a pounding kick drum as a heart beat with crunching guitars throughout this record. And while the lyrics are toned down just a little bit, they aren’t worse because of it. They fit this style of music better and they still are pretty good. I think they were struggling to find the next direction to go given the singles released in between releases but this was a great direction and gets me excited to what Movements can do and how they will break their barriers. (Fav songs: Tightrope, Lead Pipe, Fail You)

6. Genesis Owusu - STRUGGLER

Hip-hop/rap and country are two genres that I’m slowly attempting to find my tastes in since the mainstream of either really don’t interest me that much. The trap beats all sound just as the same as another bro country song that’s about beer, Brad, and breasts. Both genres feel redundant so squeezing the bad stuff feels like energy better spent listening to genres that better suit me. But I still like the core idea of either genre and crave the creativity from them. Genesis Owes is a rapper who has broken into my interests with his first record “Smiling With No Teeth”. While that record didn’t blow me away, I was really intrigued by his sound and liked the way he was making music. I could tell that his next steps were going to be in my interest. I wasn’t prepared for the musical fest that he had waiting on “STRUGGLER". It’s rap, it’s rock, and it’s R&B. I’m not sure what else to call it other than a modern funk album but take the disco out. The bass lines in these songs are incredible and that doesn’t even take away from how central of a role the electric guitar plays. And then he raps on top of them too. It’s really an incredible album that has a great vibe to it and he explores his central theme well too. (Fav songs: Tied Up!, Leaving the Light, Survivor)

5. Benny Sings - Young Hearts

I found Benny Sings by one song “Here It Goes”. It was on my year end list of songs for 2021 and I followed him because of it. He was dropping songs at the end of 2022 but I wasn’t expecting an album, I honestly thought he was just a single and EP person but then “Young Hearts” came out and I fell in love. It’s a bedroom pop and easy to listen to but Benny Sings proves that he’s worth listening to with his comforting sound. His sound is so simply done that it really does sound so effortless. But the craftsmanship comes from within and the songwriting on the record is what holds it together as nothing is over the top. He has a way to create songs that have a sense of magic to them that only a songwriter could create even though they have the same tools as you. It’s a charming cute album that goes on repeat and is easy to loop. (Fav songs: Pyjamas, Take Your Time, The Only One)

4. Waterparks - INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

Waterparks has a very interesting career so far… with an equally interesting fan base. There’s lots of opinions about the band but I usually try to stay away from all the noise to keep my mind at ease. They have, also, slowly become a band I keep up with but don’t wait for their releases. Something about their music stopped clicking and it felt like ego was getting in the way. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY changed that. It truly felt like Waterparks entered with an album ready to say the things they wanted to say and make the music to have the urgency to accompany it. It’s a record that represents what I wanted the band to do again. Except they surpassed the expectations. There’s rap, pop punk, hard rock, ballads, and pop rock. Waterparks wanted to get everything they could that’s under their umbrella and show that that they have it in them still. The added track added on the digital release that does kinda ruin the ending a little but I’ll ignore that because the music is just that good. (Fav songs: BRAINWASHED, CLOSER, FUNERAL GREY)

3. Zach Bryan - Zach Bryan

This was probably the biggest surprise of the year. I hadn’t even heard much of this guy before this year. I got some exposure when the song with Kacey Musgraves came out but I wasn’t sold until the song with Bon Iver was released on a follow up EP. By then, I had seen his album everywhere and being pushed on Spotify a lot. So I thought I would give it a listen. Zach created an album that is music at its core. These songs feel so alive and have so much heart in them. He made these songs without concern for if his numbers would go up and without any PR. And it completely changed the game for country music and, maybe, music overall. And these songs aren’t flashy. There’s not much hook to it and the he opens the album with a spoken word over some guitar. This isn’t even a country album in the modern sense but one that goes back to the more traditional country. It was just about writing songs and telling stories. Good songwriters making music that feels like it came from within. Zach has got my attention. (Fav songs: Hey Driver, Smaller Acts, Jake’s Piano - Long Island)

2. Teenage Wrist - Still Love

These top 3 had a huge battle for the number one spot, especially these top two. I’ll say that maybe “objectively” this album is what I consider the top one. But I have more of an emotional connection with the winning album and my gut told me that it didn’t belong in second. So I welcome you to the best rock album of the year. I first heard Teenage Wrist when listening to Spotify’s discover weekly. That one song (“Stella”) got me to listen to their last album (Earth is a Black Hole) the year after it got released. It got me to follow them and that ended up paying off really well. The band decided to go in the direction of a really solid post grunge sound in a year when I was really craving it. But none hit the spot quite like this one. The keen songwriting and fuzzy amps make for an exceptional album that’s enhanced by collaborations that only add to the project. I can’t explain how much I enjoyed listening to this album and how each song has stuck inside my memory. Give them a listen and give Teenage Wrist the audience they deserve. (Fav songs: Diorama, Sunshine, Still Love)

1. Glen Hansard - All That Was East is West of Me Now

Glen is one of my all time favorite songwriters. His lyrics are raw, ability to coordinate the song with the emotion, and passionate singing make for a folk artist at the core. He has also been experimenting with his sound for the past two albums, one being self produced with more horns and his other being a collaboration of friends live in studio. This was a callback to his career, even calling back to his days with The Frames on “The Feast of St. John”. It was a return to the form in which a lot of people had fallen in love with without retreading the same ground. He continues to write meaningful and beautiful songs that are precisely written. I always look forward to a Glen Hansard release but this one is the type that I live for. The album went under a lot of radars, especially for a veteran act. But my favorite album of the year has already woven itself into my soul. It’s a fine addition to my collection and will be placed along the other high achievements from this artist. (Fav songs: Sure as the Rain, There’s No Mountain, Down on Our Knees.)

[thedarkmistress16]

What is your thought about portrayal of yandere in media?

such a perfect ask for this blog, thank you kindly~!

There honestly isn't much depiction of them in traditional media one may come across, like live-action movies. The closest you'll get is "obsessed/manipulative/stalker/dark" tags. Like, they'll go to typical yandere lengths of killing rivals and their darling to some extents (some not at all or are terrible at killing people- the latter being funny from their sheer incompetence), but none of them are as dramatic and batshit crazy like the yan dev inspo creations. They don't hit the same because they aren't "true yanderes" in the sense of coming off of animated mediums. At least to me, that is. And yes, yan sim was my intro to yanderes as an adolescent (the classic and peak mark senpai playthroughs at that time).

Speaking of, when coming off of yan sim, or it being your first intro to yans, everything else feels subdued in comparison. Other media like Your Boyfriend Game is one of the closest, recent depictions of a fictional yandere next to Broken Colors, in that I would say they talk, behave, and think like what at this point I would expect a yandere to do. Or at the very least, what an obsessed person would do (but not all yans are obsessive or even exclusively so). But this doesn't mean much seeing how these visual novels are incomplete as of writing this and their characters are subject to change upon the official release, if they ever do get to that stage.

I would say the second closest to a good yan depiction are the ASMR vids, and the range of plot setups and character relations can be very exciting and interesting to discover as you listen (your secret admirer is a classic, even if this is a creepypasta. Still gives me chills. And there are some collabs as well, which is pretty neat!).

Apart from my own general yandere character ideals/conceptions as to what i prefer them to be represented and how they should act, the various traits shown in yans across media is the most interesting thing about them to me. They can be many subsets, a few honorable mentions being they can be possessive, sadistic, and delusional, usually an extreme of such a trait. It's fun to compare them all and how much they intersect, on top of debating which one would be the worst to deal with and what their overall personalities would be based on that intense trait.

I actually have sort of a ranking list of live-action films with this kind of "mostly yan-esque" character i've found and watched a long time ago, which includes my thoughts on its execution. feel free to hmu if you're curious and i'll link you guys the doc or make a new post.

[thisaintascenereviews]

Top 10 Albums Of 2023... So Far! Part Two: 10 - 6

Welcome to the next part of my list of top ten albums of 2023! We started with five honorable mentions, but now it's time to get into the first half of the list proper, starting with...

Drain - Living Proof

2020 was a clusterfuck of a year that derailed the careers of a lot of bands, including the hardcore / crossover thrash band Drain. They released the incredible California Cursed in 2020, only to have their touring plans halt in their tracks, but three years later, we've got their second album, and first for Epitaph, Living Proof, and it's another solid record. It's more or less the same as what they were doing on their debut, but in a tighter package, and including a bit of variety, such as a hip-hop interlude towards the end of the record. This record doesn't quite hit as much as California Cursed, but we'll see if that changes by the end of the year. This is just the first half of the year, but even then, this is a great hardcore / crossover record that fans of the genre(s) will certainly appreciate.

Blood Star - First Sighting

At the same time the new Enforcer came out, I came across the debut record from a band called Blood Star, entitled First Sighting, and come to find out, that this band is a new endeavor from the guitarist of Utah heavy metal Visigoth. They're a big name in the 1980s metal influenced camp of the genre, and listening through this record, I can hear it. The guitarwork is wonderful, and even the vocals are incredibly good. Like Nostalgia by Enforcer, this doesn't do anything unique that a lot of other bands already did, but I wanted to pick one of these albums to include on the proper list, and I found myself coming back to this one more. As far as 1980s styled metal records go, this is a good one, and it's worth your time and attention, especially when this album is only around 35 minutes, give or take.

Paramore - This Is Why

Six years after their last LP, After Laughter, Paramore are back with This Is Why, and it's, uh, a post-punk album? Yeah, Paramore surprised everybody with a new record and a new sound. Instead of their 80s synth-pop / power-pop sound they had with their last album six years ago, they came back with another sound with its roots in the 1980s -- post-punk. Armed with angular guitars, vocals are almost like they're spoken-word poetry, and lyrics that have a more political bent to them at times, This Is Why is a very interesting album that works quite well, for the most part. The first half is a lot stronger than the second, but it's not by much. I also wouldn't say that This Is Why is Paramore's best album, but it's easily their most interesting, and one of their most unique, because you don't hear a lot of bands doing this anymore, so it's worth a listen for that alone, and it'll be interesting to see how much I come back to this album throughout the year. 7. Enforced - War Remains Thrash metal has had a bit of a lackluster year, as not a whole lot of notable releases have come out, other than one that I'll talk about here in a second, but Enforced dropped their third album (and second for Century Media), entitled War Remains, and if anything at all, it tightens up their sound after their last LP, Kill Grid, whether it's shortening up the length of this record, or just making fast, loud, intense, and energetic thrash that pulls no punches and doesn't hold back. War Remains also doesn't waste its time, or spend any time bullshitting around, like their last album unfortunately did. This is a quick half hour that comes and goes real quick; it knows what it's trying to do, and it does it extremely well. Not too many thrash albums have come out this year, but hopefully fans have playing this one a lot to hold themselves over from the next thrash album that will take up their time and attention. 6. Metallica - 72 Seasons This year has been a big one for the biggest bands in certain genres, but the biggest metal band in the world, and possibly of all time, released their first album in seven years -- Metallica. 72 Seasons is the name of that record, and I reviewed it earlier this year a bit after it came out. I already went into detail about it, but Metallica is one of my all-time favorite bands, and this record is the best possible scenario that we could have gotten from a modern-day Metallica -- a nice mix of classic metal and thrash. I wish I would have put this higher, because it's a great record, but this record is way too long at times, and it does get slightly boring and middling, but just when it starts to get that way, something comes back and catches my attention again. I just can't put this extremely high for that reason, but I do really love this record. Who knows if it'll change later this year, but I don't want to put this album at the top of the list just because it's Metallica. With that said, though, it'll be interesting to see what's at the top, if Metallica's not (although if you look at the collage I made, you can already see what the rest of the list looks like).

[metalandmagi]

Winter 2021 Anime Worth Watching!

Since 2020 basically sacrificed itself to give us the most stacked anime season of all time, I’m currently buried under the weight of almost 20 shows airing per week. So for anyone who’s looking for some anime to watch this winter, here’s some first impressions! I’m speed running my list this time by only talking about the new shows...because otherwise this would be my great American novel. 

If anyone’s interested, I have master lists for both 2020 anime and 2019 anime, because there’s no shortage of fun things to find. 

New Shows!

And before anyone asks, So I’m A Spider, So What? isn’t on here, because CG spiders freak me out.

Cells At Work Code Black: This...less comedic spin off of Cells At Work (made by a different studio) takes the wholesome concept of Osmosis Jones meets cute anime girls and turns it on its head. In this much more depressing version, we follow a rookie red blood cell who works in the body of an overly stressed, alcoholic smoker who puts every strain on the body imaginable. I love Red Blood Cell AA2153 and his co-workers, but man am I glad we get the regular Cells At Work airing this season too, because I need something fun and uplifting after seeing my sweet son go through hell every episode. 

*Heaven’s Design Team: Have you ever wondered how God came up with some of the weird ass animals that live on this planet? Like, what’s the deal with giraffes? And why can’t we have dragons and flying horses? Well this is a comedy about the engineers and designers in heaven creating the new animals that are going to inhabit the Earth. That’s it, that’s the show. It’s kind of in the same vein as Cells At Work, having comedy blend with a surprising amount of educational information. If you want something light and funny, this is the show for you (though I don’t think it needs to have full length episodes). I’m just hoping there’s an episode about how the hell the platypus was created. Also it’s the only new one available on Crunchyroll.

Horimiya: A romantic comedy about a girl named Hori who fits the image of a perfect queen bee and a quiet bespectacled boy named Miyamura who never makes an impression at school. When the two meet by chance outside of the classroom, we see that Hori is practically raising a younger brother by herself, and Miyamura is actually a sweet guy who happens to be covered in tattoos and piercings. This show is an exercise in breaking down the images people have of others in their minds, and it’s a concept that really hits home in a fun and meaningful way. Honestly, this has become one of my immediate favorites. The characters have great chemistry, and I can’t wait to see more of them!

Monster Incidents (Kemono Jihen): When big shot Tokyo detective Inugami is called to a rural town to investigate a series of strange animal deaths, he finds a mysterious boy with the nickname Dorotabo who has been shunned by the other children in town. As the detective gets closer to Dorotabo, he discovers that there may be more...inhuman secrets to the boy than he realizes...and Dorotabo discovers that Inugami has some secrets of his own. This is a hard show to sell without spoiling the first episode, but it had twists and turns that kept me engaged from start to finish. I’m really interested to see where the plot goes, because I thought this was going to be something totally different just from the PV and series summary. If it plays its cards right, this could be a great paranormal detective show!

Wonder Egg Priority: A psychological drama about a girl named Ai who starts having dreams about a mysterious egg that promises to give her what she wants most in the world...a true friend. Before long, she begins to see how the dream world and reality are tied together, and trippy antics ensue. It’s hard to say more without spoiling anything, but I had to go back and add this one in because I made the mistake of thinking it was an OVA when it’s actually a full series. And what a series it’s starting out to be. This anime has all the psychological discomfort of a Satoshi Kon product with the beauty and style of something from Kyoani (even though it’s made by Clover Works). It’s really one of those anime you just have to see to understand.

Sk8-∞ (Skate the infinity): An original skateboarding anime from Bones, featuring a typical sports anime protagonist who takes a new transfer student who has never skateboarded in his life under his wing. Together they compete in dangerous races and take the skating community by storm. The character designs rival Appare Ranman’s in outlandish creativity, and I can smell the main characters’ ship dynamic a mile away (considering they’re exactly the same as the protagonists from Robihachi). If you’re looking for some wild and crazy fun with top notch skateboarding animation, don’t skip this!

2.43: Seiin Koukou Danshi Volley-bu (Seiin High School Boys Volleyball Club): Yes, it’s another volleyball anime. And no, it’s not just a clone of Haikyu. This story follows Yuni Kuroba, a physically built but emotionally weak teenager who finds out his childhood friend Hajime is moving back to their hometown for high school. Yuni discovers Hajime has become an exceptional volleyball player and they join their school’s volleyball club hoping to turn the unknown team into a rising star. If anything, this anime is much more like Stars Align or Free, where the sport is a backdrop for letting the characters explore their personal problems. Or at least it seems that way after the first episode. I went into this show ready to throw it in the trash because how could anything compete against my beloved Haikyu, but I found myself really enjoying the dynamics of the main duo and I’m curious to see what the rest of the team is like.

And speaking of sports anime rip-offs…..I can’t believe I’m including this but…

Skate Leading Stars: The show where the animators clearly wanted to design another throw away idol anime but saw how popular Yuri On Ice was so they decided to make whatever the hell this show is instead. It revolves around a fictional team sport called skate leading, and we follow the world’s most insufferable main character, a former figure skater named Kensei who wants to return to the ice and join his school’s skate leading team after he finds out his childhood rival is going to compete in the sport. Look, this show is just trashy enough to get a certain type of audience hooked, and it mainly has to do with the best boy of the winter season, Hayato Sasugai, the aspiring team “coach” who pulled most of us into watching this show with his punk appearance, snide comments and smug personality. He’s basically the lovechild of Izaya Orihara and Shizuo Heiwajima in a high school sports anime setting. The show treats itself with the perfect amount of sincerity to get away with being absolutely ridiculous most of the time without making you feel like you’re watching it from a dumpster...like Try Knights. You will know after one episode whether this show is for you. All I can say is, Hayato is worth the watch, and I haven’t seen any 3D animation used for the skating scenes (yet) so that’s a win for me. 

Honorable mention:

Jobless Reincarnation ( Mushoku Tensei): Yet another isekai where the main character is hit by a car (big surprise) and gets reincarnated into a fantasy world...but he happens to remember his previous life and narrates himself growing up as a jaded adult. I’m only including this because it looked amazing animation wise, and I love the opening where getting hit by a car and dying is actually traumatic. And I love the protagonist’s parents (who are retired adventurers who just want to bang all the time). But honestly...the main character is the fucking worst, and I don’t know if I want to keep watching it because of how creepy and weird he is. Like...he’s the hit on your fantasy mom as a baby kind of creepy and weird. But for anyone who wants a cool looking isekai that had an amazing PV, it’s worth checking out. 

Continuing Series!

Because the real gold of the season is in all the established anime getting their next seasons, I’m just going to list some of the things that are also amazing and definitely worth checking out if you haven’t already (because I’ve already talked about most of them at some point and don’t know what else to say).

Attack On Titan season 4

The Promised Neverland season 2

Beastars season 2

Log Horizon season 3

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime season 2

Re: Zero season 2 (second cour)

Dr. Stone season 2

Cells at Work season 2

Osomatsu-san season 3 (second cour)

Higurashi New (second cour)

Jujutsu Kaisen (second cour) 

Not to mention all the shows I don’t watch that everyone else loves...like World Trigger (which I have seen quite a bit of, but long shounen shows are too much for me now) Quintessential Quintuplets, and Non Non Biyori. 

So there’s just some of all the anime airing this season. Hopefully, someone can find something they like. Here’s to a great year...well, of anime at least...

[tittyblade]

tumblr etiquette 101

a list that is nowhere near exhaustive, from yours truly.

First off, welcome! Whether you’re a twitter veteran looking for anything but whatever twitter is, or a new user just done signing up, glad to see you in our ranks beloveds! Welcome home. Refer to this quick tour to make sure your fandom experience (or tumblr experience in general) is a positive one!

Disclaimer: I know it’s long, but please try to read or skim through til the end if you’re new here! This is by no means meant to be a rule book (for the most part lol), only a guide to help you get settled easier!

1) Your blog

This is where people will see and interact with you, so put some effort into it!

Try to choose a name (url) that’s simple. You can see it as your brand, it’s how people will perceive you and remember you. If you’d like to interact with other users here (and not use the site just for the content) it’s better to have something short and sweet, preferably without spaces. (Of course, these are only suggestions.) Rest assured, you can change it literally any time you want.

Have a theme. Utilize the tool that lets you edit your blog’s color or the font of your bio! You can make it match your profile picture, or your blog if it has a theme of its own. Make it feel homey :]

Fill in your bio. People will be checking out your profile probably more often than you think. Don’t leave it empty! Put in any information you’re comfortable with sharing and isn’t too personal (like your age if you’re a minor, or other TMI that can be found on other people’s carrds). It’s always better to add a name/nickname people can use to refer to you by, but feel free to use your blog description to shitpost still.

You can have an intro post. More often than not, you’ll see a blog have a pinned post, a post permanently appearing at the top of a blog until you pin another post or unpin it. You can make one of those, if you’d like to introduce yourself in more length, link any other socials or a carrd, and show others visiting your blog how you tag things so it’ll be easy for them to navigate. Not an obligation.

Keep your anonymity and your safety. It should go without saying, but there’s no harm in repeating it just in case. Your comfort, privacy and safety has the utmost importance. Don’t share any information you don’t want to. Don’t share your age if you’re a minor, or any other incredibly personal info. I’d encourage you to go by a nickname that’s not your real name, (blog name, your brand, remember?) since there’s safety in anonymity, and that’s lowkey one of the big deals of tumblr, but that’s up to you still.

Choose what you want to be visible. Your liked posts and who you follow are all things you can set to keep to yourself and hide from the publics eye, how handy! You should go through all the setting while you’re at it, set it to your comfort.

Side blogs are a thing. You can have multiple blogs that you can use for different things (see: different fandoms, art blog, etc) to keep them organized or away from your followers. Just remember that the replies and off-anon asks you send will be from your main blog, as well as where you follow other blogs from.

2) Interacting with others

You’ve set up your account, now comes the fun part!

Follow to your heart’s desire. If you care about others seeing who you follow, fear not! In tumblr, usually only two types of blogs keep their following visible to others: newbies, and big blogs using it to point people on other good blogs’ direction. Just turn it off, and go ham following people.

Customize your dashboard. Gonna mention just two things here: this is another reason why it’s really important that you follow blogs without sparing, your dash will collect dust otherwise; and you should turn off “best stuff first” in your dashboard settings, to have a better community here and all.

Follow tags. You can set it in your settings that posts with your followed tags appear on your dashboard.

You can check the og post for edits and context. When you see a reblogged post you don’t understand the context of (or don’t recognize the character in case of fanarts), click on the profile so it will take you to the original post. From there you can check the original poster’s tags to get the context, or see if there have been any edits made to the post, since when you edit a post it doesn’t update any past reblogs.

Send people asks... This is how you make mutuals, people! Do it off-anon if you’d like them to know your blog, or anon if you’d rather not! (You can still end your messages with a signature to show you’re the same person, -[name] is one example.) Send them nice messages, ask their opinion on something, discuss things, or just straight up shitpost lol. Go wild. The sky’s your limit and it’s definitely more than 280 characters.

...and let them ask you! You can set your preference in the settings, do it on desktop tumblr to access more settings tho! What you can customize on mobile is limited (like letting people ask you things anonymously, that’s only on desktop settings). In my personal opinion, it’s always better to tag their username (or a nickname you give them, if they’re a friend) on that post, since you wouldn’t want your interactions with your friends to get buried in your blog forever.

Comment on posts. If you have something to say but don’t want the post to appear on your blog you can add a comment. The owner of the post will get a notif for it, but for anyone else you need to tag them.

For the love of god, reblog. People will only see your liked posts if you have it visible to public and they specifically go on your blog to look at them. You like something? You reblog. It’s already hard for posts to circulate properly, if you don’t reblog them literally no one will see them. If not for anything do it for the artists. Just hold and drag on mobile to fast rb.

3) Your Posts

Finally here! Don’t be a lurker, post and engage!

Make use of “read more”. If your post is long, add it. That’s what you clicked on earlier to expand this post. On desktop leave an empty line and you’ll see three dots appear, and on mobile type :readmore: on that empty line.

Draft a post to come back to it later. Pretty self explanatory.

Queue your post. Whether it’s your own post or you’re reblogging, make use of the queue feature to a) not spam reblog and fill up the dashboard of people following you and b) keep your blog active while you’re gone. Mess around in the settings, it’s fairly easy to set up.

Schedule your post. Same as queueing, the only difference is you get to choose the exact time your post will go up. Handy if you want to schedule a post for certain dates like april fools, or 5 years in the future for some reason. 

Format your texts. You can do all kinds of fancy stuff here (that’s a link, try pressing on it). Twitter doesn’t have this, make use of it. Changes depending on whether you’re on mobile or desktop. (Desktop has less features.)

Check your stats. If you’re trying to understand the algorithm better or want to look at some pretty graphs you can get your data on that on desktop tumblr.

@ people in comments. You’ll get all the notifs when people comment on your posts but they won’t see your reply unless you tag them in your message.

4) Tags, and tagging a post

This is where my earlier statement “this isn’t a rule book” stops being applicable. It’s not a war crime to go against these, I won’t come chasing you (don’t take my word for this) but you’ll work up a bad rep. Just saying lol.

Do NOT crosstag posts. It’s really tempting to add unrelated tags to increase your posts’ interaction, I know, but that’s not what tumblr is about. Don’t be a dick and make other communities’ experience worse for them.

Always tag your posts with “crit/critical/discourse/etc” if it calls for it. There’s no exceptions to it. This is the reason you see people migrating to tumblr. Let people enjoy things.

Don’t main tag a critical/negative post. If your crit post is about “Thing”, you add the “Thing critical” tag, but not the “Thing” tag. People block crit tags if they don’t want to see it, don’t shove it in their faces by main tagging it. 

If you don’t want to see something, just block it. Another reason why people are able to survive on tumblr. You don’t start discourse, you don’t make call-outs, you block. You can find something for every community you can think of if you go looking for it. The worst of the worst probably won’t ever appear on your dash, but if you’re worried or feel the need for it, you know where the block button is.

Feel free to shitpost or ramble. More often than not you’ll see people rb a post with a comment, and their elaboration will be in the tags. The tags are only visible on your profile and the notifications of the owner of the og blog. Just a thing people do.

Reblog artists’ posts with nice comments in the tags! Commenting on a drawing is usually done through the tags (Not an obligation, again, just a thing people do. Feel free to add your comment on the rb itself if you’d want other people to see it tho!) and leave nice messages for the artists! It’s a win-win for everyone involved. 

If you have more than a single follower, always use the common tw warning tags. You don’t need to tw everything, but tw’ing some common things is the bare minimum human decency. Keep it safe for others. 

Tag a post “long post” if it’s really long. Pretty self explanatory. Don’t make people scroll through all that please lol. 

You can use them to organize your blog. This is more of a pro tip, if you’d like to not miss a post in your blog, cause they will start pilin’ up soon enough.

#Liveblogging is pretty fun. If you’d like to talk to people during streams, don’t forget to add the relevant tags still! Again, you won’t show up on people’s dash otherwise.

Whew! That got out of hand. Hopefully I didn’t bore you too much. Check out blogs like @heritageposts and @hellsite-hall-of-fame to honor our past o7. @mcytblr-hall-of-fame too maybe :eyes:. Anyways, don’t forget the most important rule of them all:

Enjoy your stay! You’re meant to have fun on here while also making friends (if that’s your thing). Just be kind and respectful of others, you’ll get the hang of the rest! <3

[emjee]

so you wanted to like Bridgerton

…but you couldn’t get past the gender politics/massive consent issues/rich people/crime of wearing stays with no shift underneath/insert your reason here.

Behold, I present to you this list of some of my favorite romance novels categorized by my own reactions that mayhap you share:

(But first, a note: I have read all of the books on this list, but in some cases it has been quite a while, so I’m not going to list content warnings because I frankly don’t remember all of them. I recommend checking Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, author websites (KJ Charles has her content warnings listed by book), and reviews if you’re concerned. If you DM me about specific books I can also do a quick search and give you an answer.)

(Actually, a second note: Please obtain these books through means that support the authors as well as small business, if possible. If audiobooks are your thing, check out libro.fm, which allows you to support an indie bookstore through digital audio purchases. If you prefer paper, order from an indie if you can--The Ripped Bodice is a romance-only bookstore that has paper copies of authors who can be hard to find in paper elsewhere, like KJ Charles. Where you have to get your ebooks depends on what your device is, but please pay for them. If you can’t or don’t want to, (which is fair!) check and see if you library uses Libby and/or Hoopla, which allow you to borrow ebooks as well as audiobooks. I believe Libby and Hoopla is only available in the US, but I might be wrong.) 

I’m not going to do a summary for every book because this post is already long enough but I’m happy to answer questions about any of them!

If you liked the brotherly shenanigans, but weren’t into the weird controlling thing Anthony had going on:

The Turner Series by Courtney Milan (Unveiled, Untamed, and Unraveled) is about Ash, Smite, and Mark Turner, three brothers who have made it through life so far by relying on each other. If you want schemes and revenge on rich people, start with Unveiled. If you want to read about a law professional who actually cares about justice, start with Unraveled. If you want a book-length purity culture takedown, start with Untamed.

The Brothers Sinister Series by Courtney Milan (The Duchess War, The Heiress Effect, The Countess Conspiracy, and The Suffragette Scandal) listen Courtney Milan’s just really good at brothers and sibling relationships in general. If you want a duke who’s a class traitor, start with The Duchess War. If you want politics and wild fashion, start with The Heiress Effect. If you want friends-to-lovers plus SCIENCE! start with The Countess Conspiracy. If you want the best suffragist newspaperwoman ever to appear in fiction and the forger who falls in love with her, start with The Suffragette Scandal.

If you were very happy to see people of color in an English historical drama, but have some reservations about the way it was handled (see this video about colorism, racebaiting, and implicit bias in Bridgerton):

A Gentleman Never Keeps Score by Cat Sebastian (this one’s gay)

After the Wedding by Courtney Milan (this one has a bi heroine)

An Unseen Attraction by KJ Charles (also gay)

The Duke Who Didn’t by Courtney Milan

Wanted, a Gentleman by KJ Charles (also gay)

Unfit to Print by KJ Charles (also gay)

If you were like “none of these members of the aristocracy are sufficiently embarrassed that they’re members of the aristocracy”:

The Soldier’s Scoundrel by Cat Sebastian (also this one’s gay)

A Duke in Disguise by Cat Sebastian (this one has a bi heroine)

The Duchess War by Courtney Milan  

The Suffragette Scandal by Courtney Milan (The Duke Who Didn’t, also falls under this category)

If you thought, “actually I’ve decided I’m not interested in the aristocracy, no matter how embarrassed they are”

Try anything by Rose Lerner, especially Sweet Disorder, True Pretenses, and Listen to the Moon.

If you thought, “dear God please just use your words and talk about sex” (a.k.a. books about women who are DTF):

A Delicate Deception by Cat Sebastian (this one also includes a bi for bi main pairing, and every single main character is queer)

Gilded Cage by KJ Charles (this one has a bi heroine)

Extra shoutout to The Duchess War, listed above, for A+ communication between the two protagonists about the sex they do and don’t want to have.

If you did kind of agree with “reformed rakes make the best husbands”:

The Ruin of a Rake by Cat Sebastian (also gay)

Band Sinister by KJ Charles (actually very little reformation goes on here, which makes it better, trust me, and gay as hell)

If you were like “yeah yeah can we get back to Benedict and this artist guy? Is it too much to want them to make out?” (a.k.a. this is the section for queer books I haven’t already mentioned)

Anything by Cat Sebastian and KJ Charles, with honorable mentions for:

Unmasked by the Marquess by Cat Sebastian

The Society of Gentlemen Series by KJ Charles (A Fashionable Indulgence, A Seditious Affair, and A Gentleman’s Position)  - extra shoutout for the research that went into this series and how historical events directly impact the plot and the characters’ decisions, it’s really quite masterful.

I have also heard wonderful things about Olivia Waite’s The Lady’s Guide to Celestial Navigation and The Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows, but I haven’t had a chance to check those out for myself yet.

You actually kind of liked the costumes, but you would like to read about historically accurate wild fashion in which everyone wears the proper linings under their stays and corsets really dear Lord is it too much to ask:

The Heiress Effect by Courtney Milan. The wild outfits are a plot point, trust me, and have historical basis to boot.

These books are concentrated on nineteenth century England, because that’s when Bridgerton is set. (Courtney Milan’s books are Victorian, not Regency, but they’re going on the list because I said so, Netflix Adapt Courtney Milan Next And Do Not Mess It Up challenge 2k21). If you’re looking for non-England-set romance novels in any of these categories, hit me up and I will see what I can find.

“Hey MG, this list is made up of like…the same four authors.” Yes, alas, I have grown wildly picky about my romance novels in the last few years and this is the core of what I know well enough to confidently recommend.

I’d love to hear what people think of these!